Cruising--Then and Now

 Thirty-nine years ago, hubby and I went for a cruise on the Oceanic to Nassau in the Bahamas. We were celebrating our first anniversary. The ship could hold 1,600 passengers and 560 crew. We stayed in a small cabin with two narrow beds--separated from each other. There was a very small closet and small bathroom. Of course, we didn't spend much time in our room. There was plenty of entertainment and plenty of food--six meals a day, which included a fancy midnight buffet.  There was gambling, too, but hubby and I don't gamble.

This year, for our fortieth anniversary, we booked a cruise on the Carnival Sunshine to see the town of St. John in New Brunswick, Canada.  The Carnival Sunshine can hold 3,006 passengers and 1,150 crew, making it huge in comparison to the Oceanic.

Our cabin was compact but larger than the one we had on the Oceanic with a lot more storage space along with a bed big enough for the two of us together.

One of my daughter's friends compared it to a floating mall because in addition to lots of entertainment, the ship also has plenty of shops--all with sales, of course.

In the past 39 years, the cruise industry has perfected the art of parting you and your money. The key card used to open the door of your cabin is connected to your credit card. You swipe it for every beverage you drink along with every extra service or purchase you make. I purchased the Wifi for $35, which was the "value" Wifi. If I wanted a faster connection, it would have cost much more. But the value Wifi was all I needed to stay in touch via Facebook Messenger with my daughters.

Since it was an anniversary cruise, we were granted several extra amenities--a free bottle of wine with dinner, a meal at one of the exclusive restaurants, a free photo, and spa services. I didn't use the spa services, but everything else was great. :-)

While the Oceanic boasted six meals a day, the Carnival Sunshine offers twenty-four hours of food. The Sunshine also has more of everything and many, many options. My favorite places on the ship were the quiet places--like the Serenity deck or the Library. The Lido deck was always noisy--though in the evening there were movies on the big screen, which was awesome. Hubby and I enjoyed the Piano Bar where every evening Jimi played popular songs and everyone sang along. However, some nights the Piano Bar was too crowded--so we didn't venture in.

Our trip on the Sunshine was only four nights long--far too short. I think a longer cruise which stopped at a few more ports would have been more interesting. As it was, we were in St. John for a very brief amount of time.

Thirty-nine years ago, on the Oceanic, when we were in our cabin we could hear the engine grinding away all the time. On the Sunshine, we didn't hear the engine in our cabin. However, I did feel the bed chug-chug-chugging along with the movement of the ship. There wasn't much swaying back and forth, but the ocean was fairly calm. I'm sure there would be more swaying if the ocean was rough.

All in all, it was a nice diversion spent in pleasant company and it was over far too soon. It was wonderful to be pampered for a while.

New Cozy Mystery!

One of the Prism Group authors, Julie B. Cosgrove, is writing a new cozy mystery series. Here's the book blurb:

As Janie and Betsy Ann go for their morning jog, the city sanitation vehicle follows its normal five-mile Tuesday morning route through their retirement community of Sunset Acres. The two Bunco-playing biddies spot a leg dangling out of the dumpster when the truck lifts the trash container high in the air. Someone diced up one of their newest residents—a grouchy loner named Edwin Newman. Did he unpack too much of his dicey past when he moved in last weekend? 

This is what one Amazon reviewer said, "Living in a retirement community is supposed to be quiet and peaceful. When bunco loving friends happen upon a dead body, they decide to ensure their community is safe by solving the crime in this delightful book, full of humorous situations."

Check it out at the links below. 

http://amzn.to/21aW5Pa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oj0u3kJzNk

Flowers in My Garden

Evening Primroses

I love flowers but it takes a lot of effort to create a beautiful garden. I've been trying for years. My sister, the horticulturist, has helped me by giving me hardy perennials that are difficult to kill. The Evening Primroses she gave me bloom faithfully for the entire month of June and a patch of Brown-Eyed Susans perform equally well as summer wears on--though the deer like to munch on the Brown-Eyed Susans.

My sister also gifted me with Dames Rockets, an invasive weed that resembles phlox but blooms during May. Dames Rockets have a lovely fragrance and the deer don't eat them, which is a good thing in this part of the country because the deer feast on flowers, vegetables, and anything else that pleases their palates. Deer are voracious.

In another section of the yard, I have Soapwort, also known as Bouncing Bet. My sister tells me these plants are difficult to eradicate once they get started, but in my case that's a good thing. I need plants that do well without much encouragement.

A patch of hardy, thread leaf coreopsis doesn't seem bothered by drought, attracts butterflies--but not deer,  and blooms for a long, long time.

Do you have any suggestions for a brown-thumb kind of gardener? Any flowers that never fail you?

The Best of Heroes

My father passed away. He was ninety-four years old. A World War II veteran who became a journalist and worked for over forty years at the Jersey Journal in Jersey City. He rarely took a day off from work. He helped form the newspaper guild and was president of it. 

He loved to talk politics. He was funny, smart, and honest. 

He supported my mother and four children on his salary. That involved becoming a Do-It-Yourself expert in household repairs. He made sure all four of his children went to college. When he retired, he bought a camper. He and Mom traveled to Florida in the wintertime and Canada in the summer. 

When Mom's health declined, he took care of her. When she died, Dad became my responsibility since I lived closer to him than my siblings. When he broke his hip, we sold his house and moved him into a senior apartment complex very close to our home. 

For several years, he remained fairly independent. He walked to the grocery store and bought all his food. He made new friends in his building. He made even more friends online. He kept up with the family and all his grandchildren on Facebook. 

Then he had a stroke. After two months of rehab, he was back in his apartment--this time with live-in help. His aide cooked for him, did his laundry, and made sure he didn't fall down, but he dressed himself and spent plenty of time online detailing his experiences as a young man during World War II. I became his editor and computer guru. He called his aide his associate. 

He was happy. He kept up with all his friends, went to the movies every Wednesday night and attended the Friday breakfasts as he had before his stroke. We took him out to restaurants on the weekend and he went to all the family get-togethers along with his aide.  

Meanwhile, I worried about Dad's finances. The money from the sale of his house rapidly depleted in paying the aide's salary. I applied for the Veteran's Aide and Attendance Benefit. I was told it would take twelve to eighteen months. I contacted my congressman. He didn't have any success in getting the Veteran's Administration to move any faster. 

Dad began to get very weak. He didn't care about Facebook anymore. He didn't go over every item on his bank statement anymore. 

He didn't read the newspaper. 

One day he had a seizure. After an MRI, we learned he had metastatic brain tumors. The oncologist wanted to treat him with radiation. We said no. 

We brought him back to his apartment with his trusty aide by his side. We called in the Visiting Nurse Association's hospice team. Dad had more visitors than ever before. 

A reporter from the local newspaper interviewed him for a Memorial Day article. 

Then Dad took a turn for the worse. I was by his side as he took his last breath. 

He was given military honors at the gravesite, which was nice but it would have saved me a lot of sleepless nights if he had received the Aide and Attendance Benefit from the Veteran's Administration. Nevertheless, there was enough money left to bury him next to my mother. 

I'm going to miss his daily morning phone calls, his presence at every family gathering, his lively conversations, his politics, and even his constant questions. The journalist's Who, What, Why, When, Where and How never left him.

Dad was the best of heroes. 

Chicken Italiano

My niece and her fiancé visited today. They'll be getting married soon. My southern sister gave them a cookbook as a shower gift. My niece said her fiancé has a lot of cookbooks. She usually pulls recipes off the internet--and I admitted I do as well sometimes, but there's nothing like an old-fashioned cookbook. I've got a nice collection and I dragged out some of my favorites. My new nephew-in-law was appreciative and took snapshots with his cellphone of several recipes I pointed out that everyone in the family loves.

One of my favorite cookbooks is The Texas Experience. Hubby brought it home from one of his business trips many, many years ago. (It's a 1983 edition.) 

After my niece and her fiancé left I glanced at one recipe I hadn't tried, Chicken Italiano. It was simple--my favorite kind of recipe! I doubled the sauce as I usually do because I love saucy recipes and I used only chicken breasts instead of cutting up a chicken.

Hubby really enjoyed it. I did, too. 

Give it a try! 

Chicken Italiano

1 (16 ounce) bottle of Kraft's Creamy Italian Dressing
2 packages onion soup mix
2 (4 ounce) cans of mushrooms, drained
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon oregano
2 pounds of chicken breasts, cut into chunks

Combine the Creamy Italian Dressing, onion soup mix, mushrooms, bay leaf and oregano. Pour over chicken. Bake covered at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 10 minutes. 

Yummy! 

Checklist for Heroes

Most of us have an certain mindset of what a hero should be. On the left is my hero, Wildon, from PRINCE OF THE MIST. He might not be your idea of a hero, but there are certain qualities every hero must have. Click on the blog post link below. You've got to see this one. It should make you laugh. :^)

Go to:

Thinking about heroes that I've recently read....

Enjoy.

My Books Are At the Library

If you like reading free paper editions, you should get a library card and visit the local library. It's a great place to discover authors! If your library doesn't have the books you wish to read, ask the librarian. Libraries also carry ebooks, too.

Libraries are cultural centers as well featuring movies, live entertainment, informative talks, and offering many other benefits for their communities. Visit your local library today.

The Process--or Me and Matisse

When I was in college I took an oil painting course. Oils were nothing new to me. In her younger years, my mother worked in oils. I grew up messing around with Ma's paints when she wasn't looking. I loved squishing the oils around and mixing colors. I love the smell of the stuff, which is probably not a good thing but the truth is it smelled like home. I could draw quite well--freehand. I was quite sure I would get an A in the oil painting class, but that was until I met the professor.

My oil painting professor had a fondness for Matisse. Yes, Matisse created some wonderful paintings, but I am a realist at heart. I want scenes on my canvas to have a close approximation to what things look like to my eyes. To do that, I need small brushes and I work very tight--section by section. I love details--grass, hair, and rocks. That makes me happy.

My professor insisted all his students own large brushes. I knew I had no need for a large brush and it was terribly expensive, but I had to buy it anyhow. The professor wanted all his students to work on all areas of the canvas during the process. He did not want me to work in one corner at a time.

He wanted my painting to look like a Matisse. I wanted my painting to look like a Penelope Marzec. We had some basic ideological differences. I did not get an A. :^(

What has this got to do with writing? Everything. I've read plenty of books about writing. I've sat through innumerable writing workshops. I've listened to scores of writers explain their process and I've learned that everyone has a different process. Beyond the great divide of plotters and pantsters, there are various ways to get to The End.

There isn't a right way or a wrong way. There's only what works--for you. It probably won't work for someone else, but that's okay.

Despite that one professor, I never gave up painting. I've gotten some fabulous reviews for my books and some awards, but there have been some reviewers who reminded me of that oil painting professor. Obviously, I cannot make everyone happy. Still, I have not given up writing.

The fun is in the creating. The fun is in the process.

The only real rule is to do it. Put your butt in the chair and write. Now.

Talking Love With Paula Mowery

My guest blogger today is Paula Mowery! Read her own true story below.

We’re told in Scripture that God is love. He definitely proved His kind of love is an unconditional and undeserved type through sending His Son to die for our sins.

Some love isn’t hard to conjure. God just helps us to enhance it. For example, I am still head-over-heels in love with my husband of twenty-six years. But through God’s Word and leading, I’ve learned to love my husband more like God planned for a wife to love her husband.

When my little girl was born, I was in love, even though it took a lot to get her here. But God has shown me how to love my daughter through example and discipline.

I struggled with infertility issues before finally conceiving my only daughter. My bitterness heightened each time I would hear about a young woman or girl who conceived out of wedlock and by accident. I cried out to God that this wasn’t fair. I wanted a baby and would care for that child and love that child, giving her a mother and a father.

Some years later I was approached by the director of our church association’s Pregnancy Crisis Center to become their devotional leader. I struggled with my answer for a bit but knew God was pushing me to do this.

As I shared about the love of God and then listened to these girls tell their stories, I had to repent of my former bitterness. God taught me to love and care for these girls and their babies. They each had a story with hopes and dreams of their own.

Everyone deserves to know about the unconditional love God offers. This is what I hope readers see in the story, The Crux of Honor.

Since God is love, when we allow Him to teach us His kind of love, we can’t help but be richer and enrich others.

Check out Paula’s contribution to Prism Book Group’s new Love Is series…

The Crux of Honor

“Love does not dishonor…” 1 Corinthians: 13:4

Chelsea Wilson’s life is a constant reminder of what living dishonorably looks like. At every turn she continues to prove her mother’s shunning must be deserved. 

Dr. Kevin Alley returns to the old home place to establish his medical practice. After running into Chelsea, he knows his love for her is still strong. 
Chelsea is ousted from her small rented room when her mother bursts in, proclaiming Chelsea’s pregnancy. 

Kevin takes Chelsea in, giving her space to live on the upper level of his house. 

When Chelsea’s baby displays life-threatening symptoms, Chelsea must face her mother. Secrets unfold about Chelsea’s parents. Can Chelsea and Kevin uncover the secrets linked to Amish heritage in time to save the baby? Can the two find love together despite their history? 

http://amzn.to/1rdk3wS

www.prismbookgroup.com

The Books I Never Published

There are some things I just cannot bear to throw out. I have a stack of old, unpublished manuscripts. They take up room, but I don't have digital files for them because I typed out the stories on a manual typewriter. Every once in a while I take this small mountain of words out to wipe away the dust and groan, but I can't bear to part with them. They made me the author I am today.

The first book I finished was Irons in the Fire. However, it wound up being the second book I had published. The manuscript went through innumerable changes and edits. It made the rounds going from publishing houses to a variety of agents. Eventually, I finally received a contract for it. Meanwhile, I wrote other books. One was set in Florence, Italy, because I spent a summer there and I loved the place. One was set in Mexico and another here in NJ. After I finished writing the books and after a few more critiques, I realized each had problems--big problems. There were convoluted plots and too many characters. Fixing the books would take a lot of work and truthfully, I didn't even know where to start.

Then I came up with the idea for Sea Of Hope and some sort of writing magic happened. I got a contract for it. Some time later, I realized that writing those other books helped me to learn how to put a book together.

How many books have you written that are hiding under the bed, or on a shelf collecting dust? Can they be fixed or are there just too many problems in them?

Throwback Thursday Bridal Shower

This picture was taken at the bridal shower I received from hubby's family. It was held in the hall in the back of a bar somewhere in Brooklyn--and it was a surprise. (Hubby was worried that I would guess, but I had no clue.) Babci is on the left, my soon-to-be niece in the center. Cioci Stasi (Aunt Stella) is on the top right. (Cioci would have been 100 today! Happy Birthday in heaven, Cioci!) I am next to Cioci looking tired. On the bottom is my soon-to-be sister-in-law. I thought it was funny that both Babci and her sister, Cioci, showed up in polka dot dresses. 

This was one of three bridal showers given to me before I was married. My family gave me one--and at that one my mother gifted me with an outrageous frilly, lacey, almost-nothing negligee. She did it to get laughs. Mom was a bit of an entertainer. 

The other shower was given to me by the faculty at Cliffwood Elementary School where I worked. I shared the shower with my BFF, who was also going to be married. 

Back in those days, there were no bridal registries. So I wound up with three crock pots, two toaster ovens, and several other duplicate items. I gave one of the crock pots to my mom. I used the other two for years until I asked Daughter #1 to buy me a huge crock pot for my birthday a few years ago. She did--and I've been happily making massive amounts of food ever since.

Travel in the Olden Days

PATRIOT'S PRIDE is set in 1784, after the American Revolutionary War when Margaret must travel to England for the reading of her grandfather's will. She endures a long, perilous ocean voyage and then must travel overland to her destination. Riding in a stagecoach during that time period was difficult, uncomfortable, and dangerous. The prevalence of highwaymen made the trip even more fearful.

So far, PATRIOT'S PRIDE has garnered ten excellent reviews on Amazon! Join Margaret on her journey and try a sample today!

What Will You Read On The Beach?

How about a pirate book? Travel back in time with Lesley to 1711 where she lands on a pirate ship commanded by a daring captain saddled with a mutinous crew.

One review from Romance Reader said, "This book was fast-paced, with obstacle after obstacle, including prejudices and overcoming ignorance. It was a fun ride that I read voraciously from beginning to end. The paranormal elements were intricately woven. I'd recommend this book."

Check it out!

Mantraps for Trespassers

A few months ago I read an old Catherine Cookson novel, The Girl, and I am currently rereading Victoria Holt's The Legend of the Seventh Virgin. Both are set in the 1800s and both have scenes in which a mantrap disables one of the characters. The scenes in the books are rather gruesome. 

Mantraps are mechanical devices used to catch trespassers and prevent poaching. The poachers were the poor who did not have enough to eat and the mantraps were set on the estates of the wealthy. The use of such an instrument is another sad example of man's inhumanity to man since the victim of such a trap was often maimed for life afterwards--if he lived. 

You can read more about mantraps and see photos at http://www.ryemuseum.co.uk/mantrap/ or at http://www.godalmingmuseum.org.uk/index.php?page=man-trap

Surgery in the Old Days

Surgery in the old days had a very poor success rate. This is a doctor's amputation kit from 1822, it isn't much different from the tools used by the hero in my historical, PATRIOT'S PRIDE. My story is set in 1784, and the hero, Derrick Fortune, is very familiar with the use of the saw. He attended lectures at the School of Medicine in Philadelphia. However, when the Revolutionary War broke out, he and most of his fellow students along with the faculty  were pressed into service to tend to the wounded.

Derrick was quick with the saw, but despite his best efforts many of his patients died. In fact, only a third of those who went through an amputation lived. They died of infection. No one knew about bacteria in those days. (You can read a brief overview here: http://www.ushistory.org/brandywine/special/art06.htm)

After the war, Derrick decides to go to England to study with John Hunter, a renowned surgeon. (You can read a brief summary of John Hunter's life here: https://www.rcseng.ac.uk/museums/hunterian/history/johnhunter.html) Derrick hopes to find a way to prevent sepsis and he believes science holds the key.

It is on the ship that Derrick meets Margaret. The two clash immediately since she, like many of her female counterparts during that time, used herbs and various concoctions to aid in healing family members. She abhorred bloodletting. He believed in its efficacy in many diseases.

I have a board at Pinterest with more examples of Antique Medical equipment. You can find it here:
Follow Penelope's board Antique Medical Apparatus on Pinterest.

You can read more about PATRIOT'S PRIDE at

PATRIOT'S PRIDE

Check out the wonderful reviews at Amazon, too!

Talking Love With Lisa J. Lickel

My guest blogger today is Lisa J. Lickel, another Prism Book Group author with her own true life story about love. 

Lisa J. Lickel

From the time boys became more than “tag” targets I was never without someone of the opposite sex to hang out with, call on the phone, escort me to dances or movies, even when Mom was the chauffeur. I was a drama queen flirt, histrionic friend, and disingenuous church group groupie. I’d love to say it changed in an instant when as a middle teen the Holy Spirit provided the answer to that infinite question of whether Christ was for real. Decades later, I am still working out who I am on many levels. That story won’t get the final edit until it’s over.

In between, I went to college and joined not one, but two Christian groups, fell in love with the music, studying anything and everything, and the boy with the wispy blond mustache and highwater pants from one of the faith groups who prayed with me for John Denver’s soul. Seriously. We won’t know for a while if poor John received the benefit of our intervention. When the mustached boy didn’t run screaming after meeting my family for the first time when we got snowed in and ate turkey three days in a row, and his dad laughed in good humor when I dropped and broke dishes on the way from the table to the sink the first time I met his folks, I knew things would work out fine.

Two grown up children and an odd assortment of grands—girls, boys, and kitties—later, life is full circle as our oldest son heeded the call to seminary and now serves as area director for the many branches of the campus faith organization his dad and I attended. Son number two followed in his father’s footsteps, attempting to encourage a better world through public education. “Love is not proud” is not an easy description to avoid when it comes to introducing family.

Love has shown me all the attention I need has always surrounded me, filled me, poured out of me in ways I don’t have to control or manipulate, or understand. The Lord of life is in charge. My job is to leave behind a story that boasts only of God’s great mercy and grace exemplified in what He has done for me.

Check out Lisa’s contribution to Prism Book Group’s new Love Is series…

Everything About You

“Love is not proud…” 1 Corinthians: 13:4

She needs a movie set miracle, he needs cash...can a farmer morph into a movie star in five days? 

If Shelly has her way, Danny will become America’s next heartthrob and she’ll get her own promotions company. He’s already gorgeous, a little naive, and needs to work on that accent. To Danny, Shelly is on the pompous side, but holds the key to his real dreams...if he can figure out all the rules, say the right things for the daily vlog session, keep his heart strings in place, dodge Shelly’s vicious former boyfriend and the movie star diva. 


Shelly’s about to lose a lot more than her heart if she can’t get a handle on her wounded pride and learn who to trust.

http://www.prismbookgroup.com/EverythingAboutYou.html

http://www.amazon.com/Everything-About-You-Lisa-Lickel-ebook/dp/B01BYIUBKA