I Love Animals!

Whale by Brian Skerry (Photograph)

 

I just got a puppy, and I’d like to introduce you to the new addition to my family. His name is ‘Scribbles’ and he’s a Pomeranian with a rare wolf sable color. I had forgotten how active puppies can be. He has me running in circles, but boy, do I love this little guy––already!

Scribbles

So in honor of Scribbles, I decided to write a post about animals. I love people, I really do, but sometimes I wonder if I don’t love animals more. Everyone who knows me well knows that I have great affection and respect for animals. I even incorporate them into my stories.

 

 

I found this online, and I thought it would be invaluable information for any dog owner.

 

Interview With A Dog

the silence is broken

 

We asked a dog to pull aside the shroud of secrecy and be interviewed. He asked that his name not be used, but for the good of all dogs he agreed to share these ten insights with humans.

 

1) My life is likely to last 10-15 years. Any separation from you will be painful to me. Remember that before you buy me.

 

2) Give me some time to understand what you want from me.

 

3) Place your trust in me. It’s crucial to my well-being.

 

4) Don’t be angry with me for long, and don’t isolate me as punishment. You have your work, your entertainment and your friends. I only have you.

 

5) Talk to me sometimes. Even if I don’t understand your words––I understand your voice.

 

6) Be aware that however you treat me, I will not be able to forget it.

 

7) Remember before you hit me that I have powerful teeth, but I choose not to use them.

 

8) Before you scold me for being uncooperative, obstinate or lazy, ask yourself if something might be wrong with me. Perhaps I’m not getting the right food, or I’ve been out in the sun too long, or my heart is getting older and weaker.

 

9) Take care of me when I get old. You’ll be old one day.

 

10) Go with me on difficult journeys. Never say: “I can’t watch, it’s too painful.” Everything is easier when you are with me.

 

               And through it all:

                 Remember that I love you. ♥

 

Here are some more reasons I love animals so much:

In a world lacking empathy and compassion animals put us humans to shame. ♥

True compassion: Elephants are among the most emotional creatures in the world. They have been known to rescue other animals.

Watch this video ⇓

 

 

Animals are so loving and affectionate.  ♥ They each have their own personality and they know how to express themselves.

Sweet Capybaras

 

 

 

Donkeys

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Someone was missed a whole lot!

Gorilla admiring the beauty of a butterfly.

 

 

 

 

Peek-A-Boo

Kitty enjoying the sun’s rays.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blue Orchid Mantis (Hymenopus coronatus) Strike a pose! Ha,ha!

 

 

 

 

 

Kisses for baby.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bffs

Someone has to do it . . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Animals enjoy nature more than we do.

Nothing like cooling off after a long flight.

 

 

 

 

Weeee!

 

 

 

 

 

When was the last time you enjoyed a sunset

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying the flowers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Look what I can do mommy!

 

 

 

 

Arctic Fox – Ahhh! Fresh powder! That’s snow for all you non-skiers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Animals are funny and entertaining.

Never give up! We could learn a lesson from this little turtle.

Hey! No drinking and flying!

Moooom! Not in front of the humans!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anteater (Vermilingua) – They say red wine is good for the heart.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’ll be here all night, folks!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The animal kingdom is amazing! Check out these unique creatures.

The Blue Footed Boobie

Ghost Bat

Pangolin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tardigrade a.k.a. Water Bear                    

The Good, the Funny and the Ugly

Greetings all! Thank you for visiting my blog. There are 7 days left for Halloween. Today I wanted to share with you some of the beautiful, artsy, creepy and fascinating Halloween Make-up and Costumes I have come across. Who knows, maybe you can get some inspiration for your own costume and make-up. Enjoy!

Scarecrow – Not too scary huh?

If you’d like to see a Scarecrow Makeup Tutorial visit Kallie here.

What a Doll!

Great illusion – Dolly

Zipper Face – Gross, but the make-up is great!

Phantom – Ooh! This one scares me!

Frankenstein’s Wife – She looks angry. “That’s why we can’t have kids-your nuts are in your neck!”

Shark Mouth – I don’t want to be around when she gets hungry.

Cracked Doll – Yes, I have a thing with dolls.

The Bride is Blue

Poison Ivy – Great make-up!

Steampunk – Cool and stylish costume.

Penguin Costume – This is an accident waiting to happen.

50 Shades of Grey – enough said…

Poop Factory – Awww! I don’t think he’s happy about this title.

Nun – Taking a break?

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall – Ha,ha! How adorable is this!

Batman’s Joker – This is the cutest Joker ever!
Why So Serious?

15 Questions for Katie Cross

It is my pleasure to present to you today the dulcet, funny, and talented writer Katie Cross. This pretty young woman is witty and charming and well worth your attention because she’s headed for big things with her writing.

In her words…

In a perfect world, my husband and I would live in a cabin in the mountains, my dogs would never have to be on a leash, and I could go trail running every morning. I’m obsessed with eating peanut butter on a spoon. I’m ridiculously attracted to my husband, and I’m madly in love with my vizslas. I weight lift because it makes me more of a girl and wear yoga pants almost everyday because they are comfortable.

My current work in progress is a YA fantasy book named Miss Mabel’s School for Girls. It will be my first book (squee!). I’m on the 8,000th round of edits and hoping to self-publish by the end of the year. Hope springs eternal, right?

I’ve written a lot of synopsis’s for it, but this is my favorite so far: mostly because it’s really short!

Fifteen-year-old Bianca starts school as a first-year student at Miss Mabel’s School for Girls, entering into a Competition to be the personal assistant to the powerful witch Miss Mabel. Years before, Miss Mabel set a curse on her family that Bianca is determined to break.

From the inside.

      Fascinating story Katie!

Q & A with Katie Cross

1- What makes you laugh?

My puppy when he runs face-first into a wall, and Chuck Wendig. His blog kills me. I think I almost fractured a rib laughing at it the other day.

 

 

            Wow! I’ll have to look him up.

 

2- What makes you cry?

Oh, I am the main reason I cry. I’m my own worst enemy, and I’m in my own head far too much.

3- What is the loveliest thing you have ever seen? (Something that touched you). 

One night when my husband and I were laying in bed he thanked me for being his best friend in an offhand way, right before he fell asleep. I’ve never been the same, and I haven’t seen traditional love stories the same ever since.

 

         Awww. That’s so moving.

 

4- Have you ever found true love?

Heck yes. And it’s riddled with sarcasm, dirty dishes, and slaps on the butt.

 

 

         Ha, ha! I love that Katie!

 

5- How do you feel about being interviewed?

I like it better than the paparazzi that surround my house everyday. Just kidding. I always feel bad for the poor saps who read my interviews.

 

 

         What? Why? I’m sure everyone’s enjoying your wittiness right about now.

 

6- What do you do for a living? What’s your day job?

I’m a nurse and writer, but I refer to myself more as fixer-of-the-always-broken-ice-maker and best-damn-cookie-eater-in-the-world. I’d also really loved to get paid to work out, because then I think I’d do it more consistently.

 

         Ha, ha! See what I mean? Funny girl! I’ve noticed there are a lot of writers in the medical field. Hmmm.

 

7- Do you laugh at your own jokes?

Seriously, I’m funny. I crack myself up. 

 

8- What was the greatest thing you learned in school?

Never allow your sixth grade teacher to call you ‘fro girl.’ It sets a bad tone for your relationship with your hair over the rest of your life.

           Bad Teacher!

            

9- How much impact does your childhood have on your writing?

Can that be measured? It’s like asking if the first twelve years of life had any bearing on the next twelve. It all starts there, right?

 

            You’re right.

 

10- Have you ever read or seen yourself as a character in a book or a movie?

Yes, and that character scared the crap out of me.

 

            Wait a minute. You’re going to leave us hanging? Alright, lets move on.

 

11- Do you ever blog/write naked?

No, but great idea! I sit on a wooden chair. That doesn’t sound all that comfortable. 

 

            No. I’ll send you a chair cushion for Christmas. ;D

 

12- Do you consider yourself an author? Why/Why not?

Yes, but only because I force myself to acknowledge a reality that I don’t always appreciate. (Read: yes, but I’m totally in denial about it)

13- Tell us about your work in progress.

It’s a YA fantasy novel called Miss Mabel’s School for Girls. The book is about a fifteen-year-old girl named Bianca who enters a competition to win the chance to become the personal pupil to the powerful Head Witch Miss Mabel. Years earlier, Miss Mabel set a curse on Bianca’s family that has deadly consequences. Bianca hopes to win the Competition and bargain with Miss Mabel for the chance to take away the curse.

 

But nothing is ever what it seems.

 

For the record, I really hate writing summaries about my book.

 

         That must be a writer thing.

 

14- How do you see your future as a writer?

Hopefully it looks a lot like it does now: me typing away on my computer with a lot of random ideas in my head.

15- Tell us one of your guilty pleasures.

Oh man, can I narrow that down? I’m going to go with almond flour chocolate chip cookies. I can eat that stuff until it comes out my ears. Or ice. I love to chew ice. 

 

            Hmmm. I’ll have to try almond flour chocolate chip cookies.

Almond flour cookies! Yum! Chomp,chomp!

Sorry Katie, I couldn’t help myself.

Thanks again for this chance, Vashti!

It was my pleasure Katie! xx

If you’d like to connect with Katie Cross follow the links below. Visit her blog, and be entertained with her interesting posts.

Katie’s Blog:  KCross Writing

Google+

Twitter

He thought of days he had handed over to a bottle.

The Drunk

by an unknown drunk writer

◊

◊

Starkle, starkle, little twink,
Who the hell are you I think.
I’m not under what you call
The alcofluence of incohol.
I’m just a little slort of sleep,
I’m not drunk like thinkle peep.
I don’t know who is me yet,
But the drunker I stand here the longer I get.
So just give me one more fink to drill my cup,
‘Cause I got all day sober to Sunday up.

◊

◊

Hello! A warm welcome to my blog. Thank you for taking the time to read my post. Today I will share a short excerpt from my novel The Basement: Robbie’s Rite Of Passage. I hope you enjoy it!

“Within this entertaining and frightening tale is a good lesson to be learned.”~ Goodreads

Robbie’s Rite of Passage

Promptly at eight o’clock, Robert staggered toward Robbie, who still sat by the window as if he put himself in a time-out. Weighed down by his thoughts, Robbie stared at the night sky as his dinner sat cold on the dining room table.

Robert grabbed the window frame for support and clung there. He looked at his son sternly for a long time before taking him by the arm and moving him away from the window toward the front door.

“It’s time you left and became a man! Prove to your friends, neighbors, and me that you’re not a pathetic loser.” Robert shook his head in an exaggerated manner.

“But, Dad, I’m only eleven! Don’t I have plenty of time to become a man?” His father tilted his head to the side and looked as if he had eaten something rotten. Seeing no change in his demeanor, Robbie continued, “There are rats down there. Lots of them, and they’re humungous!” Robert waved his hand dismissively and ignored Robbie’s pleas. “Dad, remember the Black Death? We just studied that in school and people got black spots and all swelled up and died! The rats caused this! Dad please!” He face was red and his nose runny.

His pleas offended his father. “Ack!” Robert pounded on the wall. “I’ve been down to the basement a hundred times. The most I’ve seen were a few mice!”

Robbie’s mom stepped forward and help him. “Please don’t make him—” Her words were strangled by a single gesture. Robert glared at her with his finger over his lips. She puffed and lowered her eyes.

He had made up his mind. No matter how much his boy or his wife begged him to reconsider; Robbie would be venturing to the basement come nightfall.

He gawked at his son and his wife through blood-shot eyes. Both of them were sobbing. He stumbled forward and bumped his leg on the sofa. He gawped at the piece of furniture, slack-jawed, for a long time. Then he looked at Robbie.

“There are tribes that send their boys out to the jungle on their own to become men. These boys have to sleep in the wild.” Robert slurred. “There’s some tribe in papa, papua”—Robert sucked through his teeth—“whatever, in Australia somewhere where boys go through six stages of initiation tests, and they begin as early as age six!”

Robbie’s mom stared at him with imploring eyes covering her mouth in disbelief.

“I believe boys need to fear their face to mature into men and the sooner they do the better.” Robert leaned over to talk in Robbie’s ear but did not bother to lower his voice. The boy winced. He could smell the beer on his breath and twisted his face. “These tribesmen rip the boys from their homes and their momma’s arms. They send ’em on dangerous adventures, often resulting in injuries, pain, and even death!” Robbie jolted and gulped.

Robbie’s mom inhaled sharply. “Robert that’s enough.”

Robert punctuated this last statement by jumping to his feet, almost toppling over, and grabbing Robbie by the arm once more. He continued to harangue. “I’m sending ya down to a dirty basement with a few mice running around. You’re getting off easy.”

Robbie looked at his mother. She stood motionless with her hand over her mouth.

Robert explained to Robbie his task was to go to the basement and kill as many rodents as he came across. He handed his son a heavy, wooden bat to use as a weapon. He told him he would be doing the entire neighborhood a great service by getting rid of the pesky critters. He also told him if he did this right, he would be a hero.

“You’re gonna have to be brave, feel the fear, and do it anyway. That’s the courage of meaning!” Robert garbled to his son.

Robbie’s dad indicated it was going to be quite dark in the basement and handed him a big, yellow flashlight. Robbie gulped. He also told him there were fresh batteries in it, so it should last the whole night if needed. Robbie stared at his father with vision blurred with tears.

The reality of the situation suddenly hit the boy; he became pale and fidgety. He began to fiddle with his clothes. He retched, but only stomach acid came up because his stomach was empty.

His mother saw his reaction and let out a mournful cry. “Please! He’s only eleven years old! He’s a boy afraid of the dark! How do you expect him to go to that creepy basement by himself? Have you lost your mind?” It was like talking to a wall.

“Lose my mind? I haven’t lost my mind. It’s right here for safe keeping.” Robert poked his head with his pointer finger. Then he turned the finger at his wife.

“You’re the reason he’s growing up weak—the reason he acts more like a girl than a boy.” He rolled his red eyes at her. “Because of you, he’s neva gonna be a real man! You mollycoddle him. It’s time the boy became a man, so cut the cord! He’s gonna do this even if it kills him!”

Robbie’s mom gasped and wept into both hands.

Robert then grabbed his son by the back of his T-shirt, opened the front door, and shoved him out so violently poor Robbie crashed to the floor on his injured knees. He winced as pain shot through his entire body. It took everything in him not to scream. He got up slowly and faced his dad, all color gone from his face.

Robert threw the bat and the flashlight at him. Robbie flinched, and both his arms flew instinctively to guard his face. “Kill as many mice as possible, and then ya can come home! I don’t care if it takes ya all night!”

Suddenly, his face softened and his voice gentled by a degree or two. “You’ll return a different person, my son. A man and a hero you will be.” With conviction, he closed the door in the boy’s face.

Robbie stood facing the door for a moment brow scrunched, wondering why he had to have Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde for a dad. If only he could be in his comfy, warm bed. If only this was a nightmare and he could wake up from it. Except it wasn’t, and he couldn’t. Robbie did an about-face and began his dreary journey to the basement, thinking, this must be what a guy on death row feels like as he takes that long, last hike toward the electric chair.

~ Excerpt from THE BASEMENT by Vashti Quiroz-Vega

Now available in paperback and ebook (Nook, iBooks and more) Get it on amazon

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