Birthday Grub

MY RHYMING POEM

Birthday Food

Had a great birthday, had some good grub
Love the sweets and food from friends and birthday clubs
It's all so delicious - the chocolate I am bound
Just need to work harder to lose these excess pounds

By Sherry Hill

MY HAIKU
 

Chocolate Birthday Treat 

Love the chocolate

So creamy and delicious

A great birthday treat

- By Sherry Hill

APPRECIATIONS

I believe it's important to not be so full of ourselves. People help you along the way. So let's not be lazy about giving thanks.

I like to thank my family and friends for a wonderful birthday. On my birthday, I had a chance to belly dance and cheer at the Houston marathon. It's always so exciting! This year, the belly dancers was moved to a different mile marker, and it was a wonderful spot. The participants and the volunteers were magnificent. I also appreciated the construction workers across the street who enjoyed the dancing.

I would also like to thank the businesses who offered treats from their birthday clubs. Here are the list of businesses where I received yummy food and sweets:

Scholotzsky's - free sandwich
Baskin Robbins - free scoop of ice cream
Firehouse Subs - free sandwich Fuddruckers - free 1/3 burger (after purchasing entree equal or less in price)
Dairy Queen - buy 1 blizzard, get one free

I appreciated these treats even though I gained a couple of pounds. I was smart enough not to eat everything at once. Most of the birthday coupons expired one week after birthday, so that was helpful. I especially loved the Fuddruckers's staff because they gave me a cheery, birthday wish.

If you're interested for treats for your birthday, go to the websites and sign-up for the birthday clubs.

THE LEARNING CORNER

Vocabulary

ebullient
— adj
1.	overflowing with enthusiasm or excitement; exuberant
2.	boiling

"ebullient." Online Etymology Dictionary. Douglas Harper, Historian. 02 Feb. 2014. <Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/ebullient>.

Sentence

When Mark received the grant for zombie productivity research, no one could spoil his ebullient attitude.


THE CHILLING CORNER

Because sometimes you need to chill

Books

Four Seasons of Creative Writing by Bryan Cohen 

4 out of 5 stars

I received a free digital copy from www.storycartel.com in exchange for a review.

I like the way the book organized into the different seasons. Most of the prompts I feel are for young children and teenagers (based on the content and the way prompts were phrased), but they can work for adults as well. The prompts helped me with setting and point of view which are valuable for writing. Some of the prompts had some facts and history that were educational. The best prompts for me was in the Mixed Bag sections.

Overall, I enjoyed the book. It helped me to think about setting and mood. I loved the way it was organized into different seasons. This book will be great for young children/teenagers.

False Security by Angie Martin

5 out of 5 stars

I received a copy from the author in exchange for a review.

I enjoyed this book. The author did a great job of building suspense especially in the beginning. I was wondering what was Rachel's secret. This was one the reasons why this book was a page-turner. The main characters and the plot were also well-developed.

I was a little thrown off with Part 2 since it was back in the past, but I understood the style after I finished reading it. The details all fit together nicely with just the right amount of background information. Since the book was well-written, I was still turning pages to the end.

Overall, this book have great suspense and wonderful characters. 



How to Write for Kindle:  A Non-Fiction Book in 72-Hours or Less by Nancy Hendrickson

3 out of 5 stars

I received a free digital copy from storycartel.com in exchange for a review.

This book is geared for nonfiction writers. Even though I am mainly a fiction writer, I got some value from this book. The resources about research, distraction-free tools, and formatting were useful, but the strategy on fast-quality writing was too basic.

The book did not focus on grammar, but I appreciated the grammar rule about participle phrases. That information was nice to know.

I loved the suggestions on how to obtain book reviews. These are tips that I could use. The author also gave helpful information about the upsides and downsides of Amazon opitons.

Overall, this book was helpful with the resources, but I felt the fast-quality writing strategy was too basic to be a book topic.


TOO MUCH Z-NESS?Do you find yourself getting lazy? Maybe someone called you lazy and that you need to get off your butt. Perhaps you're not accomplishing your goals like you should. Are you blaming the government for everything? Well, it's time for you to tackle your excessive Z-ness. I hope this tip helps you.

I have so many things to do. I have to read, write, dance, practice, blog, research, exercise, chill, and work. I also need to get on the ball with practicing Italian and Spanish, sewing, making freezer meals, and working on my website. There is so little time as most people would say. Are you in this position?

Well, I find that organization is extremely helpful. A couple of weeks ago, I cleared an area in my home for writing space. I cleared the junk from a nearby bookcase and stocked it with writing resources and journals. My writing is becoming more of a habit because I have this space just for writing. This area helped me make set a schedule since I now have somewhere to go. 

I also cleared an area for exercise with gadgets nearby (step, ball, weights, mat, stretch bands). This helped me to set an exercise schedule since I have somewhere to go.

Now I need to work on the the other things. I feel good since I'm on the right track.