Friday, June 15, 2007


Joshua is improving now that he has started chemo. He is also doing radiation. He is talking some and eating soft food. He still has trouble ambulating due to left sided weakness and dizziness from the tumor itself. Pray that his spirits remain high despite all the set backs he has had. Everyday his mom has him say positive, uplifting things out loud to encourage himself. He has been moved from ICU to a room. He still has a long, hard road ahead of him. But he and his family are greatly loved and supported.
Miss you Josh and hope you are home and healed real soon!

Sunday, June 10, 2007


prayforjoshua.com

Josh is my pastor's son. He is 14 years old and has an inoperable brain tumor. This family needs your prayers.Visit his website and leave a message of encouragement on the message board.Josh came home from the hospital Friday, but had to be transported by ambulance back to Egleston this morning. Lets claim total healing for this brave young man. Josh is a warrior and a such a free-spirit! So, please pray to whomever you call your Higher Power. And if you are not a prayer person, please send healing thoughts and good wishes his way. Hugs,Angie

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

What an F'd Up world in which we reside.













As quiet as it is in our lovely little town of Pine Mountain, GA, we have once again been touched by a national tragedy. Jamie Bishop, son of Sci-fi novelist Michael and wife Geri Bishop,was one of the victims of the Virginia Tech gunman, Cho Seung-Hui, a 23-year-old undergraduate senior majoring in English.

Fox News says this about Jamie:
Bishop, 35, wore his hair long, rode his bike to campus and worked alongside his wife in the foreign languages department at Virginia Tech, according to the Los Angeles Times. He was known for his gentle manner and generosity toward students.
"I don't think he was the type of person who had an enemy," Troy Paddock, a close friend whose wife also teaches in the German program, told the Times. "He was a very friendly person. He was a nice and helpful person."
The Georgia native was an avid hiker, movie and Atlanta Braves fan, and was said to be very popular with students.
"He was very outgoing, a very personable individual," Richard Shryock, the chair of the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, told the Times. "He was someone who took teaching very seriously and was a good colleague to be with."


The media vultures have descended upon Pine Mountain, harrassing the locals for any little scrap of info they can unearth. Scavengers. Part of me understands they are just doing their jobs, but part of me absolutely abhors the intrusion.
I have kids the same age as some of those victims. My God. What a world.

Monday, March 26, 2007

The Amazing Jill Shalvis, Author Extraordinaire!

At least I think she is amazing and I'll tell you why....
Every so often an author come along who is both talented and personable.
One whose writing combines all the elements of a good story. Relationships, humor, strong primary characters, memorable secondary characters and engaging storylines.
To me Jill is an author of that caliber. But don't just take my word for it. Read any one of her books. She is one of my auto-buy authors...yes, she is that good!

And may I suggest you come visit her newly designed web-site and hang out on her highly entertaining blog when Jill share snippets of life as a glamorous, jet-setting member of the beautiful people. For daily updates, click here
http://jillshalvis.com

One of my personal favorites so far is "Aussie Rules." And I just found out, Aussie Rules has been nominated for a RITA!! Go Jill!! I'm not good at book reviews, so let me quote what Harriet Klausner had to say:

Melanie "Mel" Anderson manages more than just the North Beach Airport in California; she helps her employees and her business partner with their scrambled lives. To Mel this is her family though she misses her surrogate mother the airport owner Sally, who disappeared a few years ago.

Australian Bo Black owns the deed to the airport and plans to take control of it. He wants to find his father's missing plane and regain what should have been his except Sally conned his dad when they briefly married. However, his plan goes awry as he needs a revision because all he wants to do is sleep with the enemy who to his amazement he loves; even more shocking is Mel reciprocates Bo's deepest regard while everyone else thinks they make strange bedfellows while wondering if it is AUSSIE RULES or Yankee control.

The key to this fun contemporary filled with eccentric characters is the background North Beach Airport seems normal so anchors the delightful story line from veering to far from the tarmac. The war between Mel and Bo is fought on several fronts elating the audience as they skirmish in the skies, on the ground, and in the bedroom. Though the climax seems to gentle of a landing for such a zany soaring tale, Jill Shalvis rules with this fine battle of the sexes.


Her latest, which is on the top of my TBR pile is "Smart and Sexy". This is the first of a three book series featuring Noah, Shayne, and Brody, running an exclusive air charter service named Sky High Air.

Smart and Sexy is Noah Fisher's story. Again, not my words:

Noah Fisher has worked for months to make Sky High the most prestigious charter airline in California. He’s long overdue for a break - something involving ski slopes, cold beers, and hot ski bunny babes, not necessarily in that order. The itinerary doesn’t include being hijacked by Bailey Sinclair, gorgeous widow of one of Sky High’s wealthiest (ex-) clients. But here they are, and being crammed in a cockpit with the scared, stubborn, unbelievably sexy former model he’s been fantasizing about invokes Superman tendencies that could get Noah in serious trouble.

Bailey is desperate to find the stash of money hidden by her conniving, thieving late husband - before the bad guys he owed find her. It’s a long shot, but nothing compared to the gamble she’s taking by being so close to Noah. Every minute in his company has Bailey thinking about doing crazy, reckless things like touching, grabbing, kissing… Suddenly, seat-of-your-pants seems like the only way to fly.

I know you want more, so click here for an excert:
http://jillshalvis.com/excerpts#excerpt12
So now that you know about the fabulous Jill Shalvis, go forth and purchase!! Smart and Sexy will be a good start, but once you have read Jill's entertaining brand of story-telling I know you will on a back-list hunt for the rest of her titles!

Friday, March 09, 2007


You know the old saying, "If it's not broke, don't fix it?" Thats kind of how I feel about authors who develop a huge following for a series they are writing. When they first hit the scene, all their releases are paperback, (i.e. affordable). Once the PTB discover they have a cash cow on their hands, new releases are all hardback. And unless I can coerce my local librarian into purchasing the HB, I have to
beg, borrow, or steal until the PB release comes out. (Luckily she likes me and knows I have good taste in reading material)
Do you know how much I hate that? Unfortunately, when it comes to books, I am an instant gratification kinda gal. And until I get my hands on that book, I feel like I am missing something.
Like there was a party and I was the only loser that was not invited. *sigh*
Welp, it looks like another of m auto-buy authors has been thrown on to that bandwagon.
And don't get me wrong, I am extremely happy for Ms. Harrison (can I call you Kim? I feel like I know you.... :) ) The general population equates HB to credibility, which in turn means better visibility, better promotion by your publisher, increased revenue and better book sales. (or at least I assume so, I'm no publishing insider!)
That being said, anybody want to lend me Kim Harrison's newest, "For a Few Demons More"? It releases on 03/20/2007 and if it is as good as her previous installments, we are in for a treat.
Now where did I put the number to my library?

Monday, March 05, 2007


This is a new-to-me author and I am spreading the word!
Also see my myspace blog for the same meme.

http://blog.myspace.com/angie_lah

The VISIONS OF HEAT meme
1. Which psychic power would you most like to possess?
The power to read minds. Although my spawn swear I already posses that ability.Being an empath would probably be ok, though. Running around reading minds all the time sounds like it might be exhausting.

2. If you could see the future, what would you like to see?
Do my spawn ever learn to make a bed or put away laundry?

3. Imagine you woke up one day and could shapeshift - what would you shift into?
One of my dachshunds..Think about it. Sleep all day. Get taken on walks. Have tennis balls thrown for you when you wanted. Get cool doggie treats and yummy dog food (of which I only eat the little tan squares and bone shaped pieces, leaving the big, brown round pieces untouched) I can think of worse ways to spend a day....

4. What kind of a paranormal creature would you invite over for dinner if there were no limits on who you could ask?
I already have dinner with two teenaged boys every night. Any paranormal creature would be an improvement.

5. Which future innovation do you wish would hurry up and get here already? i.e. flying cars, a transporter, computers with artificial intelligence, an auto chef?
Auto chef sound cool. Then my spawn would stop complaining that there is nothing to eat in the house.

This meme was begun by Nalini Singh to get the word out about her next book, Visions of Heat http://www.nalinisingh.com/visions (releasing March 6). Want to play, too, and enter to win a $50 Amazon voucher plus an ARC? Click here http://nalinisingh.blogspot.com/2007/02/visions-of-heat-meme.html for details.

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

The small miracle that is Chai Tea....(from this point on to be known as CT, since I am too lazy to actually spell it out every time.)Could it be only a year ago that I discovered the joys of CT? So much so that it has almost rivalled my obsession with all things coffee? I just came off of a 21 day fast where I gave up caffeine, all processed foods, white rice and flour, bread meat, candy and junk food. (It was a church thing)Basically it was a vegan diet and guess what? I didn't hate it! And my cholesterol levels actually dropped to normal AND I lost ten pounds! What does this have to do with CT, you ask? The first thing I broke the fast with was CT. It was like a little slice of joy......The worst part of this whole fast thing was giving up coffee and tea. And ok, bread and pasta, after all I am Italian and you know how we love our carbs. But I did find a really good whole wheat pasta that I topped with a nice Puttanesca sauce. So, if you have never had CT and you enjoy things that taste slightly like pumpkin pie, go forth immediately (if not sooner) and indulge. No, no. No need to thank me.Just sharin' tha love.

Friday, February 02, 2007

One Freaky Picture!
Okay, how weird is this? I cannot imagine that kind of cold. I get frostbite in 40 degree weather...not really, but I hate the cold!
I just read the best book ever. Deborah Smith's "Crossroads Cafe". It was awesome. This is how her website describes it:
A beautiful woman, scarred for life.
A tortured man, seeking redemption.
Brought together by fate in a small town high in the majestic Appalachian mountains.
Live. Love. Believe.
What are you waiting for?? Read it!

Monday, October 02, 2006

Jennifer Lebreque is having a little posting giveaway at her blog.
Go on over and post for a free book from Jennifer! She has 5 or 6 more to give!
http://jenniferlabrecque.com/wp/334/reader-appreciation-day/#comments

You will love her!

Monday, September 11, 2006

A Day of Remembrance September 11, 2006

Five years ago today, we lost 13 of our close associates, thousands of neighbors, and our offices at 1 World Trade Center.

On the second anniversary of September 11, a four-by-four-foot stone memorial plaque was dedicated to the memory of those lost in the tragedy. Located in the lobby wall in the MetroTech Center in Brooklyn, New York, the memorial honors those we lost and celebrates the ingenuity and adaptability of our workforce. Etched into the plaque are the names of each colleague lost and a phrase that reads,
"Together we will show the world that the things that comprise the American Spirit, our hope and humanity, our dreams and our love, are not kept in buildings, but in ourselves."
Following are the names of those recognized on the memorial plaque:
Edward Beyea
Vivian Casalduc
Brenda Conway
Elvira Granitto
Winston Grant
Ramon Grijalvo
Cynthia Giugliano
Lorraine Lee
Jerome Lohez
Alexander Ortiz
Andgela Scheinberg
Ayleen Santiago
Abraham Zelmanowitz

This is part of an article from our company intranet site. I don't think anyone will mind that I have quoted it here. This was just one of the many Blues under our corporate umbrella, but we are all family. I did not know any of these individuals personally, but their loss is still felt, today more than most days. I pray peace and strength to their families and to the families of all who lost a loved one on this date five years ago.

Saturday, August 26, 2006

If paranormal is your thing and you want a sneak peek at Diane Whitesides Texas Vampires series click here:

http://www.dianewhiteside.com/bondofblood_excerpt.html

Friday, August 18, 2006


Oh look! Exactly 2 months since my last post!! Blogspot is Satan's playtoy. Or maybe it is just my computer. As stated earlier, we all know that I am the world's spottiest (is that a word??) blog updater. But lately, everytime I have even thought about posting a new entry, blogspot freaks on me. It won't upload my pictures or it will only let me post one picture or it flat just doesn't post my entry.Now granted I am not the most computer-savvy (savvy :P I love that word.. makes me think of Jack Sparrow!) person that ever sat at a keyboard, but come on! It can't always be me! Can it?? Although, I did have an IT techo-geek refer to my PC issues at work as a PEBCAK.(Problem Exists Between Chair And Keyboard). Luckily I have a sense of humor or he'd still be walking with a limp. I have been trying since July to upload a few pictures of our last beach adventure, but BS is just NOT cooperating.
And look!! Another rainbow at the beach! See how special I am? Most people just get sunburned at the beach..I get rainbows. It sucks to be you. :)
Seriously, we had a really good (read childless) time with 2 of our best friends. See how much fun we had? Check out my good buddy below!


Personally, I would have waited for one of the rolling valet racks. But I guess you take what you can get....

Sunday, June 18, 2006


We just returned on Friday afternoon from the first week-long vacation we have had in YEARS!!
One whole week at the beach...it was so lovely. I love the Gulf Coast beaches...Panama City Beach has the softest, whitest sand. And for once, the ocean was perfect. The only really bad day was Monday when Tropical Storm Alberto made its presence known. It was really quite fascinating to watch the resort make "hurricane preparations". A few people actually left, but all we got was 20 minutes of rain, overcast skies, and mondo big waves. And around 5:00 PM, check out the picture...a rainbow!
I also got to read three excellent books...
"Aussie Rules" by Jill Shalvis (it was my favorite...lurrrved Bo Black!) Jill is one of my favorite authors...you really should check her out. Seriously.
"Hot Item" by Carly Phillips ( a satisfying end to the "Hot Trilogy") and
"The Good, The Bad and the Undead" by Kim Harrison ( I love her series just about as much as I love Sookie Stackhouse and Merry Gentry!)
Back to the real world on Tuesday. *sigh*
It was nice while it lasted.....



Thursday, June 01, 2006

Yes. It's that lovely time of the month when all the males in the house are walking on eggshells and shooting each other sideways looks, rolling their eyes when they think I'm not looking.

It ain't easy being the only female in a house full of testosterone. Was one girl-child too much to ask for? At least I'd have an ally.
Even half the canines in this house are male, so I'm still outnumbered!

I need me some serious beach time.
Ahhh, well. Nothing a Xanax and tequila shooter won't cure......
Instant vacation!

Tuesday, May 30, 2006




Which Level of Hell is This?

I saw this and immediately thought of Jill Shalvis! This is for you, Jill....

Friday, May 26, 2006










Rock and Roll is Here to Stay!
I finally got my hands on a few pictures of my son as Johnny Casino from the Middle School production of "Grease" That's him with the red guitar. I have to admit, for a middle school musical, it was quite good! He was excited because it was the first time he ever got to play with a real band. And he got to play and sing three songs. This was the song right before the big "Hand Jive" dance contest. It was wild watching these kids playing these characters. Most of them I have known since they were in Pre-K and now they are looking and acting so grown up.

Monday, May 22, 2006

This is what happens when bird flu hits the trailer park

Saturday, May 20, 2006

Well, It is all over but the partying. My first born has graduated from High School! The ceremony was at 9:00 AM at Harris County Tiger Stadium. We got there at 8:00 AM and let me tell you...buddy, it was hotter than nine miles of paved Hell by the time that graduation was over. That was my first experience with graduation at the high school. Two hours in the hot,Georgia sun. I really felt bad for the seniors. Black pants or dresses, black gowns, black caps, and 91 degree weather. Next year, I'm, wearing sunblock!
BTW, Ain't brotherly love grand? They are such goof-balls.....

Sunday, May 14, 2006



These are my angels! So far I have had a very nice Mother's Day. Beautiful, touching cards (I even got the Hallmark Card that sings "I Feel Good" like on the commercial!) And I got a new digital camera and accessory pack! That was unexpected....and no, these are not pictures from the camera. I haven't really had the chance to use it yet.

Here is something I wanted to share.. I don't know where it came from or who wrote it, but it kind of got to me.
Happy Mother's Day to all of my favorite women!!

This is for the mothers who have sat up all night with sick toddlers in their arms, wiping up barf laced with Oscar Mayer wieners and cherry Kool-Aid saying, "It's okay honey, Mommy's here." Who have sat in rocking chairs for hours on end soothing crying babies who can't be comforted.

This is for all the mothers who show up at work with spit-up in their hair and milk stains on their blouses and diapers in their purse. For all the mothers who run car pools and make cookies and sew Halloween costumes. And all the mothers who DON'T.

This is for the mothers who gave birth to babies they'll never see. And the mothers who took those babies and gave them homes.This is for the mothers whose priceless art collections are hanging on their refrigerator doors.

For all the mothers who froze their buns on metal bleachers at football or soccer games instead of watching from the warmth of their cars, so that when their kids asked, "Did you see me, Mom?" they could say, "Of course, I wouldn't have missed it for the world," and mean it.

This is for all the mothers who yell at their kids in the grocery store and swat them in despair when they stomp their feet and scream for ice cream before dinner. And for all the mothers who count to ten instead, but realize how child abuse happens.

This is for all the mothers who sat down with their children and explained all about making babies. And for all the mothers who wanted to, but just couldn't find the words. This is for all the mothers who go hungry, so their children can eat.

For all the mothers who read "Goodnight, Moon" twice a night for a year. And then read it again. "Just one more time." This is for all the mothers who taught their children to tie their shoelaces before they started school. And for all the mothers who opted for Velcro instead.

This is for all the mothers who teach their sons to cook and theirdaughters to sink a jump shot. This is for every mother whose head turns automatically when a little voice calls "Mom?" in a crowd, even though they know their own offspring are at home-or even away at college.

This is for all the mothers who sent their kids to school with stomach aches assuring them they'd be just FINE once they got there,only to get calls from the school nurse an hour later asking them to please pick them up Right Away.

This is for mothers whose children have gone astray, who can't find the words to reach them. For all the mothers who bite their lips until they bleed when their 14 year olds dye their hair green.

For all the mothers of the victims of recent school shootings, and the mothers of those who did the shooting. For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who sat in front of their TVs in horror, hugging their child who just came home fromschool, safely. This is for all the mothers who taught their children to be peaceful, and now pray they come home safely from a war.

What makes a good Mother anyway? Is it patience? Compassion? Broad hips? The ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner, and sew a button on a shirt, all at the same time? Or is it in her heart?Is it the ache you feel when you watch your son or daughter disappear down the street, walking to school alone for the very first time?

The jolt that takes you from sleep to dread, from bed to crib at 2 A.M. to put your hand on the back of a sleeping baby? The panic, years later, that comes again at 2 A.M. when you justwant to hear their key in the door and know they are safe again inyour home? Or the need to flee from wherever you are and hug yourchild when you hear news of a fire, a car accident, a child dying? The emotions of motherhood are universal and so our thoughts are for young mothers stumbling through diaper changes and sleep deprivation... And mature mothers learning to let go.

For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers. Single mothers and married mothers. Mothers with money, mothers without. This is for you all. For all of us. Hang in there. In the end we can only do the best wecan. Tell them every day that we love them. And pray.

Thursday, May 04, 2006




My first born will be graduating from High School in 16 days! I’m thinking I'm not ready for this. Armed forces recruiters keep calling the house asking to speak to him. I still see him playing Super Mario Brothers, riding his skateboard, playing soccer, drinking Capri Sun, and watching Ren and Stimpy. I have a hard time reconciling the young man in the cap and gown with the child I walked down the hall to his first day of kindergarten (which I vividly recall with startling clarity although I have trouble remembering what I cooked for dinner last night!). *sigh* I am so proud of him , but at the same time wish they didn’t grow up so fast! And they do grow up waaay to quickly.
This is Prom Night. Yes. I did ask him what he was thinking with that arm thrown over her shoulder! They are a cute couple. She is by far the sweetest girl he has dated. We like her.