Copied from the Universal Hour of Peace web page:
The Universal Hour of Peace is measured locally from 11:30 pm December 3lst through 12:30 am January 1st. We encourage you to initiate the new year with peace-filled intent. Refraining from any harmful thought and activity, some meditate in solitude while others join with family and friends in harmonious reflection.
I think this should be a New Year’s Eve tradition.
Change starts with me.
It’s that time of year when most people, including me, start thinking about the upcoming year. Yes, I’ve set my goals for 2018 (see my blog of December 13), but I’ve been thinking about how and when I do things. I’ve decided it’s time to make a few changes in my social media calendar.
My twice weekly blogs will be moving to Mondays and Thursdays.
I will no longer be tweeting my Tasting Notes Tuesdays
I’m sure I will be tweaking my schedule as the year progresses. Stay tuned!
Silver Lining by Maggie Osborne. I am on my second copy of this book. The first one disintegrated from overuse. I once lent the book to a friend, who had it for months. She simply couldn’t get into it in the beginning: “That stupid silver spoon,” she kept saying. But she finally succumbed and ended up loving the story.
Silver Lining is not a Christmas book, but I always read it at Christmas time. In my opinion (and since this is my blog, my opinion is the only one that counts) the story contains one of the best Christmas scenes ever written.
The heroine is an orphan who was sent west on an orphan train. She’s never celebrated any holiday. The family of her marriage-of-convenience husband strive to make sure her first ever “real” Christmas is a good one. Oh, there’s tension and conflict in that chapter, but the plucky heroine lets nothing dampen her excitement of being part of a family at Christmas.
Do you have a favorite Christmas scene in a book or a romance you read every year at Christmas?
Why this observance is in December is one of life’s imponderables. I think of sangria as a summer drink.
When I was first old enough to drink, we would go to the Ground Round (a chain restaurant that barely continues to exist) and order pitchers of sangria. I have many fond memories. Hazy, but fond.
I’ve been trying to move my husband away from soda, juices, and other high-sugar beverages, so I’ve been making iced tea with my Celestial Sesaonings tea bags. I found this one at the store the other day. Can’t wait to try it.
If you follow my blog, you know my local RWA chapter is doing a Book Reading Bingo Challenge. Once a month (or so) I recommend books for a category or two.
Jennifer Crusie’s Bet Me would fulfill either of the following categories:
The heroine (Min) needs to lose weight in order to fit into her maid-of-honor dress for her sister’s upcoming wedding.
The hero’s (Cal) courtship inadvertently takes the form of feeding her.
MIn and Cal are three-dimensional characters with plenty of backstory and great sidekicks. There are laugh out loud moments. There’s a great cat. She likes Elvis (Presley); he likes Elvis (Costello). Chicken Marsala is practically another character in the book.
Even if you’ve already filled your Eat, Drink, Be Merry and Dress for Success squares, you should read this book. You’ll be glad you did.