TMST - Chores

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog. Feel free to leave your links in the comments if you are participating.

2/8/2022 What’s the chore you resent having to do the most?

I have been so bad lately with joining in! My goal is to try and join in every other week! eeee. I've missed some good prompts like last week's!

Couldn't resist this one!

I think the chore I resent the MOST is dishes. I HATE it. I especially hate having to gather the dishes my FH's leaves around. GRRR put it in the sink! *shakes fist* It's not that hard. GAH!

I also hate, hate, hate putting cloth away after laundry. Gah. 

Tell Me Something Tuesday: Falling in Love With Covers.

9/21 - Have you ever bought a book just because you fell in love with the cover? And did such book live up to it?

Of course!! Too many times to give a number. Sometimes a cover just CALLS to you and you can't resist.

Did they live up to their cover???? I would say 50/50. Some have been absolute winners. Some? Absolutely not. Some have lead to sorrow and sadness. We shall call those sirens. Lovely to look at, but will lead you to a bad reading experience. 

 

Wordless Wednesday

Tell Me Something Tuesday: Vacation Reading

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on Rainy Day Ramblings where Rainy discuss a wide range of topics from books to blogging. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

Vacation Reading: What books would you pack for your vacation?

What an appropriate question! I just got back from two long weekend vacations. The other week I went to Indiana with my mom and then this weekend I fly down to Florida for my old High School friend's wedding. Lots of vacationing for the end of June! I have one more scheduled vacation at the end of the August. How do celebrities do this???????

But yes, I always have a couple of paper books and then my kindle fire for access to my ebooks. I try to have a variety when I pack/download a book. I try to have a couple of different genres to avoid boredom. Better to be safe than sorry especially if you are stuck on a plane! 

This weekend I packed for Florida last weekend: 

One is a murder mystery and the other is Fantasy YA. See? 

Here is what I packed for my Indiana trip a couple of weekends ago:

One is a murder mystery and the other is a Historical Fiction. 

What do you pack for your vacations?

Here are some pictures from my Florida trip! :3

Blog All About It: GROWL

This month the prompt is "GROWL"

Another tough prompt this month! They are certainly challenging us!!

For this month, I shall go ahead and make a list of things that make me growl in books. And growl in a bad way. There is no order to this list. ;D

• Perfect characters
• 2 D characters
• Obnoxiously long books that really did not need to be that long
• Any character that suffers Bella Swan Syndrome...*which means characters that are loved by everyone and it makes no sense
• Overly cheesy scenes
• Abrupt endings
• Cliff-hangers with no book in sight
• Run on sentences
• Not enough background story...I hate being confused

Just a few things that make me growl! What makes you growl?

Blog All About It: Favorite Scent(s)

This month’s prompt is “Favorite Scent”. I have been struggling how I want to proceed with this prompt. I can easily tell you my favorite scents or share some pictures. I’ve been going back and forth on how to approach this prompt. 


In the end, I think I’ll list my favorite scents and then share some book titles I randomly found on Goodreads that has my favorite scent in the title. Sound like fun? I think so ;) I literally just typed the name of the scent into the search bar and picked whatever one popped up. 


There is no order in my list. 

Japanese Cherry Blossoms – One of my absolute favorite scents. I have SO many lotions and scrubs and perfumes with this scent. Beautifuuuullll. 

Photography SAKURA: Japanese cherry blossom

 by Ryota Mizukami

Cranberry – Not sure why, but I LOVE the smell of Cranberries. So sweet and sour and yum. 

Cranberry Queen

by Kathleen DeMarco

Hot Coco – I actually have a candle that smells just like this. I did have a plug-in for my basement. So sweet. 

Hot Coco (The Unbridled Series #2)

by Cindy McDonald 

Ocean Breeze – This has been a longtime favorite. I adore the ocean and I adore this scent. 

Ocean Breeze 

by Cepi R. Dini 

Cherry – Another fruity one. You can tell I really love the sweet smelling ones. 

Cherry

 by Mary Karr

Amethyst Lily – My last one I’ll add. This is a new favorite of mine. It smells SO good. 

Amethyst Lily

 by Rebecca E Ray

There are so many scents I adore, but those are just some special ones that come to mind. I am curious about some of these books now…mhmmmm….maybe I’ll add a couple to my TBR pile….

Tell Me Something Tuesday: Mean Girl/Boy Theme

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on Rainy Day Ramblings where Rainy discuss a wide range of topics from books to blogging. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

How do you feel about the whole mean girl/boy theme?

This is a classic theme, especially in YA stories. There has been some good stuff that uses this as a theme, but overall? Over-used. Super over-used and in some ways not realistic. 

Why not realistic? Sure there are some mean boys that I would go to school with or meet and some were attractive. However, I would never fawn over them and wish they were not mean to me. No. Sorry. When people are mean you do not or should not want to date them or be friends with them or even be in the same room as them. Not a real thing at all...at least maybe in my world. Not sure how others feel. 

Also, I feel like it is over-the-top. I was bullied in school, but even my bullies were not as MEAN as these type of characters. 

Sometimes the whole theme can be interesting, but 8/10 times it is over-used and not realistic or even over-the-top. 

What do you guys think?

Mamyia enjoying the sunshine. The snow is almost gone!!!

Tell Me Something Tuesday: Time Travel or Teleport?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on Rainy Day Ramblings where Rainy discuss a wide range of topics from books to blogging. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

Would you rather time travel or teleport?

Oooooo this is a good one. I want both! WHY CAN'T I HAVE IT ALL!!!!!! I WANT MY CAKE AND I WANT TO EAT IT ALL DANG IT! 

Well...since the fates hate me I shall pick time travel. 

I would love to be able to go to different times and see the world for what it was myself. I would want to uncover historical mysteries and then magically find the answers (*cough* like my own notes *cough*) and become a renowned historian. HUZZAH! Imagine if I could find out the mysteries that have stumped everyone for centuries????? Like what happened to the boys in the tower or who really killed Kennedy. 

I would also like to try and fix things I did wrong a moment ago. Tell myself it was foolish to eat that box of cookies. Past Carole don't be a fool. I would like to also revisit times, places, and people I miss. Due to the laws of time travel, I would have to be careful to not alter anything, but it would be ncice. 

Yes. Time travel is the way to go I think. 

Look at that creeper! 

Tell Me Something Tuesday: Werewolf or Vampire?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on Rainy Day Ramblings where Rainy discuss a wide range of topics from books to blogging. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

Finally decided to join the club. :) You can blame Blodeuedd. ;D 

Would you rather be a werewolf or a vampire? Why? 

Ooooh. This is a tough one and I have contemplated this since I began reading the paranormal genre. There are pros and cons to each of these supernatural beings. I wouldn't mind immortality of the vampire race, but drinking blood? Bleh. I wouldn't mind running around in the woods and being part of a pack would be fun, but I can't imagine the pain it would take to transform and how much money it takes to spend on clothing. 

Honestly? I think I would like to be a werewolf in the end. 

I would love the freedom of running around the woods and howling with my fellow werewolves. I would prefer to be able to change at will. Being forced to change because of the moon would be annoying! 

Also, the majority of werewolves are fit and healthy and eat all day. What is so wrong with that??????

As much as immorality seems swell, I don't want to live forever. I can't imagine saying goodbye to all my mortal friends and family. Too sad! 

Being a werewolf seems like the best of the two. 

However...if I could pick to shift into any animal of my choice...I would pick a house cat. Look at that spoiled cat. She gets to stay home all day, gets all the food, and gets all the love she wants. Sighs.  

Wednesday Writing Prompt #4

Happy Wednesday everyone! It's been a while since I've shared some of my writings from this writing prompt book. I'm really liking it. I highly recommend it. :) There is a 500 one that I bought for my friend...seems a little much for me...hard enough to do these 300. 

1) Complete this thought: "I wish I had paid more attention when..."

I wish I had paid more attention when my grandpa  was alive. He told me so many stories. I remember many of them. However, when I got to my pre-teen years I didn't pay him as much attention as I would now. Talk about guilt.

2) What do you look forward to every week?

The weekend/days off are what I look forward to every week. It is the only thing that gets me through the working week. I know, I know typical answer. 

3) Were you born to shine in one special way? What makes you really stand out?

Born to shine in one special way? I'm not sure. I think I'm too young to know this really. Does anyone really know what they are born to do? Does anyone know how they stand out in a good way. I know a lot of ways that I stand out negatively. I can't really answer this question. Maybe my desire to help people is what I was born to do and my compassion is what makes me shine brighter then the other candles in the row. 

4) What stupid question have you heard someone ask (or asked yourself)?

I like to believe there is never a "stupid questions". BUT there are dumb questions adults should never ask and I have been asked before: 

-What is a type-writer?

- Reading is dumb, why do you do that?

- What year is it?

- Why bother learning history?

Merry Holidays and Happy Christmas!

Merry Holidays everyone from here in Michigan! Rei, Toki, and Mamyia have had a long day of being spoiled! Bloody hard to get decent photos of them. But they finally submitted to my will. LOL! Also, scroll down for some excellent news in the life of Carole Rae! Yes, nothing crazy and I normally avoid personal posts, but its been an exciting month or so!

And yes! I do have exciting news as well. First, I have finally graduated from college!! It took 6 damn years to get this degree. I am besides myself with joy! My diploma for my bachelor's will be here sometime in January! Pictures will for sure pop up! I'm still waiting on details of me walking in a gap and gown. 

Also, my longtime boyfriend nearly popped the question...he gave me a promise ring. Yes, yes, not as exciting, but alas it is a promise that once things settle down for us and we are ready we will get engaged and then someday married. So exciting!!! Yes, yes I am hearing the eye-rolling about how lame Promise Rings are. However, it is a huge step for us! Especially for him since he was so anti-marriage for the longest time. Plus its jewelry and what girl doesn't love a physical reminder of their love with someone? hehe. Oh and yes, my nails are totally awesome. ;) Thanks in advance! #inthechristmasspiritthisyear It is hard to tell in the photo, but the ring is a lily (my second favorite flower) with a pearl on the inside. My mom helped boyfriend pick it out. LOL!

Happy Holidays everyone! Much love from here in the States. <3 

Happy St Patty's Day!

Happy green, orange, and booze to you all! :)

I have no idea if any of you use or have heard of the phone app called Snapchat. They, of course, have a fun filter for today which I used.

Again....HAPPY ST. PATTY'S DAY FROM YOURS TRULY!! :) 

Super Duper Late Blogoversary & Giveaway Time

I really stink at remembering dates like this. This blog turned 4 on the 4th. Jee wowzer. I guess I was thinking it was the 24th, not the 4th. Oh well...

Anyways! I can't believe it has been 4 years since I created this blog. There have been ups and downs. There have been some AMAZING people I have had the pleasure of "meeting". There have been some not so amazing people that have tried to belittle what I do and me. Thus is life.

In honor of my blog and the wonderful people I have met, I will be hosting a giveaway. ^____^ I'm too lazy to deal with rafflecopter, so we'll just go ahead and have you enter through commenting.

Guidelines

• 1 Winner shall be picked at random
• Open for everyone - even my international buddies
• Must be a follower of this blog (and/or subscribed)
• Must comment below with email address OR link to "Contact Me" page on blog (I need to be able to contact you somehow)
• Giveaway will end Feb 28th
• Has 24 hours to respond or a new winner shall be chosen.

The Prizes

The Movie - 'Cold Mountain'

The Novel - 'Elizabeth I' by Margaret George

Annnndddddd......a mystery book. It shall be a surprise when you get it. Why? Because I am evil hehehe. ^_^

Good luck everyone! And again, thanks for all the support.

Blodeueed Reviews: How to Stuff Up Christmas by Rosie Blake

'Tis the season to be jolly. Unless you've found an intimate picture of another woman on your fiance's phone... 

Eve is heartbroken after discovering her fiance is cheating on her. Being surrounded by the joys of Christmas is more than Eve can bear, so she chooses to avoid the festivities by spending Christmas alone on a houseboat in Pangbourne. Eve gets an unexpected seasonal surprise when handsome local vet Greg comes to her rescue one day, and continues to visit Eve's boat on a mission to transform her from Kitchen Disaster Zone to Culinary Queen. 

But where does Greg keep disappearing to? What does Eve's best friend Daisy know that she isn't telling? And why is there an angry goose stalking Eve's boat? 

My thoughts:

A sweet xmas story. 

A story about Evie, whose boyfriend cheated on her, xmas is coming up and she just wants to get away. I get that, everything in town reminds her of him, and xmas with family, no. And he was such an asshat with wanting the dog back too. Good riddance I say, good riddance.

Greg is the vet in the village she "escapes too". A nice guy, who reads fantasy! Oh, you got me there Greg, I love you, ahem, I mean he was a sweet guy ;) But he is hiding something...

Evie gets her passion back, and with that I mean, she starts to draw again and takes a pottery class. Oh and she obviously meets a cute guy.

Each chapter also starts with a recipe, yum, I always like that.

Conclusion:

Friendship, romance and food. What is there not to love. 

Cover

cute

Paperback, 304 pages
Published November 5th 2015 by Corvus
Romantic fiction
For review

~~Note From Carole: Happy Birthday to myself!! *throws confetti and cookies*  ~~

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, & So Forth

And a special holiday wish from Mamyia "Myia" (my new kitty) and the Boys - Rei and Toki. :3

"Chinchillas are so hard to please"....and get a good pic of both together LOL

Guest Post: Eco-Horror Films - What Are The Consequences of Energy Consumption, Pollution, and Radiation?

Happy 1st of December!

I would all like you to give another warm welcome to my guest here at CRR's! 

Maria is a writer interested in comic books, cycling, and horror films. Her hobbies include cooking, doodling, and finding local shops around the city. She currently lives in Chicago with her two pet turtles, Franklin and Roy. You can follow her on Twitter @MariaRamos1889.

******

Eco-Horror Films: What Are The Consequences of Energy Consumption, Pollution, and Radiation?

There’s nothing more terrifying than a force we cannot physically fight or a threat that we have unleashed upon ourselves. Eco-horror movies tap into the very real fear of mankind destroying themselves when we abuse and destroy the environment for personal gain. About 82 percent of global warming emissions come from energy consumption, like cars and electricity, according to Alberta Energy. If we continue down this destructive path there’s no telling when exactly Mother Nature will decide to fight back with the fiery vengeance of these movies.

Godzilla (1954)

Godzilla stars Akira Takarada (Hideto Ogata) and Momoko Kochi (Emiko Yamane) along with a few other actors who have played a part in the franchise since its birth. It tells the story of a massive dinosaur-like creature who has awoken due to excessive hydrogen bomb testing. Godzilla goes on a rampage upon her awakening and it’s up to Emiko and Hideto to figure out a way to stop her, but how do you stop a beast that has become immune to radiation and explosives?

C.H.U.D. (1984)

Police Captain Bosch (Christopher Curry) must team up with Shepard (Daniel Stern), a local volunteer who works with the homeless, and Cooper (John Heard) to uncover the truth about what’s really going on in the sewers and how to stop it. The NRC has been secretly transporting toxic waste beneath Manhattan, in the sewers, even though they were strictly advised not to. Unfortunately, as a result of storing the toxic waste, the homeless population who live in the sewers began to mutate into cannibalistic humanoids pulling people down into the sewers to devour them.

The Bay (2012)

Donna Thompson, a young news reporter (played by Kether Donohue), recalls the tragic events that broke out in a small town in Maryland. The Chesapeake Bay has been receiving factory runoff for years - a problem no one really took too seriously until the day of an annual seafood festival when parasites from the runoff infects the town’s water supply. During the festival, panic and confusion ensues as people are being devoured by mutated fish and become violently sick and deformed by the water itself. This film is sure to make you think twice about indulging in seafood.

Children of Men (2006)

In Children of Men, constant pollution has caused a flu pandemic that killed many and destroyed humanity’s ability to reproduce. Clive Owen plays Theo, a man who must escort the only pregnant woman in the world, Kee (Clare-Hope Ashitey) to the safety of a scientific group determined to solve man’s self-inflicted infertility. Along the way they must evade many who wish to stop them with any means necessary, even if it means mankind becomes extinct as a result.

The Day after Tomorrow (2004)

This movie is the worst case scenario for the effects of global warming and the best depiction of just how Mother Nature’s wrath can annihilate humanity. Dennis Quaid plays a climatologist intent on warning the president of the impending intense shift in climate change. His son, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, is trapped with his friends in New York when flood waters rise and super storms begin to pound the continent forcing the world into the next ice age.

Conclusion

Perhaps some of these situations seem implausible but they’re still worth contemplating. If we aren’t quick to change our ways or work on better sources of fuel, some fear we may be destined for these types of devastating outcomes. Though who’s to say, maybe we need a Godzilla or an ice age to initiate a new renaissance and make us appreciate the beautiful destructive resilience of our planet Earth.

A Random Adventure of The Family-Tree Creating

Yes, a random post. I so do apologize. It's been a while since I've posted one myself. 

Have you ever heard of Ancestry.com? It is a fun little website that allows you to track your ancestry. I tried this website many years ago and there was little there. However, I decided to give it another go since they are have a two-week free trial. Why not? I'm into that history and my family history has always had me curious. Plus, you can actually view many of the documents that provide "proof" of the existence of that supposed ancestor. 

And yes, they do have some pictures from time-to-time

They seriously have upped their game! They now have access to international documents, so those who have family did not come from the country they currently live in you can still track back as far as possible. I have made such progress! There is still much to do. Currently, I decided to just follow my biological Dad's direct male lineage, because I was getting overwhelmed since I have his side, my mom's adopted family, her biological, and my step-dad's family. One family tree at a time. The biggest mystery is my mom's biological family since they put her up for adoption when she was a baby. My mom gave me permission to go over her paperwork and track down her biological mother. THAT is going to be a journey for another day. The easiest line to follow was my biological Dad's male line. Plus, it has produced the most so far.

I have gone back the 12th century! I did not except that to occur. Of course the further I went back the harder it was to find even names about their poor brides (many were acquired through pillaging the Scottish villages in theory). The male line last name is Deaton. This last name had many alterations throughout history: Dighton, Dyghton, deDeighton deDyghton and Deighton. The name was changed to Deaton when Thomas Elijah Deaton made the daring jump to come over to America with his wife Mary Corington in 1701. All these last name changes and modifications intrigued me, so I did some research.

Before the last few hundred years the English language really had no fixed system of spelling (which I had learned in my History of the English language). Due to that, spelling variations not only occurred in every day words, but in names as well. This occurred with the Anglo Norman surnames the most. The family Deighton/DeDyghton brought these two names over to England after the wave of migration after the Norman Conquest in 1066.

The family and name scattered from Northern England on the border of Scotland to York. Some even hopped over to Ireland. In the late 1600s and early 1700s many migrated to American, Canada, and Australia.

The last person I could track on my Dad's male line was Sir Walter deDyghton who was born 1130 in Yorkshire. He was a little boy when he joined the Knight's Templar's (possibly with his father?) to their journey to the Second Holy Crusade. The war ended roughly around 1146 when he was 11. He, himself, then became a Knight and joined the Knight's Templar's. He only had three sons who lived to adulthood. His second son was my greatX grandfather, who was only 8 when Sir Walter died.

I'm so curious to see what else I will find! I doubt any of the other branches will go back this far particular branch did.

Honestly, this has become such an adventure, I plan on helping my friends with their family trees once I've exhausted myself and am done with my own family tree (many branches to go yet). Fair warning, there will be facts that pop up that may not excite you as much as others. One of my ancestors married a 7 year-old girl and that said girl had a child had 8 years old. I knew that this happened back then, but I was flabbergasted and not proud of this. However, I had to remind myself that this was extremely common especially in that time period. 

Have any known anyone or have done your own family tree? I highly recommend Ancestry.com as a source to complete your dreams of learning about your family tree. Not only is it fun, but it can be a family-bonding experience. My biological father and I have not had the best relationship, but this experience have made us a little bit closer. Many family secrets/mysteries have been brought to life and has been clarified. So far this has been a great experience. Again, I highly recommend this to those that are interested. 

P.S - Some of the stories and people in my family I've learned about has sparked some ideas in writing. :D I can't wait until I am graduated then I can work on my novel ideas.