Weekend Coffee Share. #maythe4th Be with you!

Welcome to my Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Allison at eclecticali.wordpress.com

This week was hectic with state testing, and it is not over, but at least the tests for my subject area are done!  So, I plan to have a little more fun with teaching in the next few weeks, giving them a fun project and having them do some creative writing.  Those brains can still grow a few more synapses before the year’s over!  My excitement for the coming of summer is partly based on having more time to write.  I also have three books I just bought and have started on one of them.  Guess what?  Stephen King is coming out with a new book that I am considering, but I also am putting a book on my list from a past professor of mine, Michael Wiley, who writes local mystery taking place in Jacksonville, Florida.  You can never have too many books, right? 😉  That, and, the next season of Stranger Things drops in July!  Let the binge watching ensue…  I have a week before my second screening test regarding my health, but I am feeling better about it right now, maybe because I am just living!  There were two school parties for students yesterday and the energy just rubbed off on me (though I really zonked out last night). 🙂  I’m also planning something awesome for my mom, my son, and me on Mother’s Day and I’m sure to share it afterward.  Stay tuned…

By the way, today is May the 4th, so May the 4th be with you!  My son and I have been a Star Wars family since he was younger!  In fact, it is likely the reason I have seen all of the Star Wars movies, including Solo!   I believe his dad was the first to take him to a Star Wars movie and that he was too young at that point, yet he wanted to see the next two when they came out.  He also seems to have an imagination like mine, so the other- worlds- and- times concept seemed to really appeal to him.  However, the third prequel installment, where Anikin becomes Vader, was disturbing and sad.  I had to explain a lot to him.  He was about nine, and it’s debatable if he was too young at that point.  Yet, he still wanted to see the three original movies after that, so we bought the DVD set, one of which included bonus content, and the 100- times- watching habit ensued.  When he liked a movie, he would watch it countless times.  I will say, the first trilogy was not as violent or disturbing, so I’m glad to own it.

This brings me to the debate I have seen online elsewhere.  Is it better to watch the original Star Wars Trilogy or the prequels first?  Personally, I say it’s best to watch the original trilogy, not knowing of the relationship between the two main characters which leads to the star-crossed lovers angle.  To hate Darth Vader and then later discover how he actually is Luke’s father and that he wasn’t always so evil, to see what may have caused it, was appealing to me.  I am sure some have opinions that would differ.  🙂

I’m also a huge fan of Carrie Fisher and have read some of her memoirs, so I love this new shirt that I ordered from outofprint.com.  It also benefits library associations.

My dog does not really get all the excitement, but isn’t he cute as Yoda?  Here’s a secret:  that outfit does not fit him anymore, and I think he’s glad.

I am proud to say that I love Star Wars and all you can learn from it about good and evil.  Yoda is the best character!  My son and I bonded over this series, and perhaps it would have been different if I had a daughter instead, but that is not what happened.  I am thrilled to be the mom of a son who is now a young man!

  Age 11.

 Age 13.

In fact, I need to get him a Star Wars shirt and see if he would wear it.  That is questionable, but it may be worth trying!

Thanks for stopping by and enjoying a coffee share.  I hope your weekend and the upcoming week are both splendid for you!

 

 

 

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#WeekendCoffeeShare: Out of Chaos…

Photo courtesy of Pixabay.

Happy Saturday, fellow bloggers.  What a much needed Saturday it is!  Work has been hectic lately, life has been hectic, even my writing has felt hectic.  Welcome to my Weekend Coffee Share!  If we were having coffee today, on the 13th of May, I’d tell you:

Somedays work is really a challenge as we move closer to the end of the year.  However, I did something with my students to end out the week:  Collaborative Discussion.  I am pleased to say that I enjoyed it!  Yes, they’re still antsy because of Spring and the impending end of the school year, yes, I had to remind some of them to stop being silly, but they even made me laugh at some points.  I got to see that some of them have really grown in their thinking about our texts and in their self-expression.  That was priceless.

Life is, well, life.  I miss the A to Z Blogging Challenge, but I wouldn’t have time to blog every day anyhow.  I’ve had a hard time with my son turning 21.  I had to set some rules in writing for the household, which took some thought.  Still, I’m glad I did it.  It’s not easy seeing your child make mistakes or bad choices, and it’s also not easy standing back to see them fall flat on their face just to learn their lesson.  I had many years to teach those lessons, but he had two different households and two totally different parents influencing him.  I’ll go no further so as not to make this a venting session about my ex.  🙂

Writing.  I said it was hectic.  I regret not having time to enter the short story challenges here on WordPress.  It’s easy to meet other inspired writers that way, and it’s so rewarding to create a little world within 100-250 worlds.  I guess I miss that, too.  I’ll have to miss it because I’m working on editing my full-length time travel novel in the hopes of publishing it this summer.  It’ll be self-published, of course, because that is the way I do things right now.  Over the last month or two, I’ve read two books about self-publishing and promotion, one by Derek Murphy, which was very helpful and packed with ideas.  I recommend it.  The title is Guerrilla Publishing.

In the Writing/Author world, I have published a short story on Smashwords about a stray dog’s life until meeting his forever home called From Lost to Loved, A Stray Dog’s Tale for free download.  I have two freebie programs going on in the effort to get my name out there a little further.  One is a limited time Instafreebie where people can get my first novella, Made for Me, in digital form free when they sign up for my newsletter.  See it and sign up at https://instafreebie.com/free/UsMtE . The other is an Amazon giveaway of the e-book, Seeing Through Sampson’s Eyes, the darker, more dangerous progeny of Made for Me.  It only runs until about 9 p.m. tonight (May 13th), EST. This giveaway is aimed at getting more Amazon followers.  Plus, two more people will be reading my sci-fi, coming of age tale of a young woman whose dad wasn’t fully human.  Before tonight, you can enter at https://giveaway.amazon.com/p/35b50ae59e6ba24d

Why all of this at once?  I started the Amazon giveaway last night when I just had no energy for editing.  The brain must be in the right place, you know, and I was tired. When I am ready to release my full-length novel, I won’t have time for the rest of this.  These freebies can only help to get my name and my work out there.  I’ve had 74 entries for the Amazon giveaway since last night!  When I do the novel release, I may have to invest in a Twitter service for my other novels.  Plus, who knows if I may be editing and getting these last minute ideas for the novel right up until publishing?  I’ve never done so many stages of a novel for publication.  Some tell me this is how it’s really done.  I’m learning, though.  Now, I should stop talking about editing, and go back to actually editing!  I hope everyone has a great week!

The Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Emily at nerdinthebrain.com.  I urge you to write your own #weekendcoffeeshare.  Be sure to use the hashtag in your post, then visit Emily’s latest at http://www.nerdinthebrain.com/weekendcoffeeshare-the-one-where-im-off-exploring-wacky-stuff/  and add your own to her link-up.

*If you’re wondering about my “chaotic” title, it’s just something jumping around in my brain that hasn’t found a place to land.  I couldn’t hold it in, though.  It sort of needs to take root before becoming a full idea.  I hope it didn’t cause confusion or leave you disappointed in the details of my week.  🙂  Hectic/ Chaotic.  All different shades of meaning.