Thinking of you

November 24, 2017

Let it be known

Hello everyone, fans, and friends alike, let it be known, that thinking of you is a welcome respite. However, as I sit here, at my computer typing this note, I’m at a loss as to what to write.

Thinking of you

About the only thing that comes to mind is that I am thinking of you and very thankful to all of you.

Thinking of you and wishing you a Sexy Happy Thanksgiving
Source: newselusivetightly.dtiblog.com

Here in my country, we are celebrating a holiday called Thanksgiving. It’s a national holiday commemorating the years before the founding of our nation, where Native Americans saved the settlers from Europe from extinction through starvation. It’s a grand sentiment and one that I love.

Struggles

What I don’t love is in this age of commercialism, it also marks the start of a season in which the buying of goods to give as gifts to others. In theory, that’s very nice. In reality, it’s more of a frenzy by companies to retail their goods to a public that may or may not afford their products. Come January; many will be burdened with bills and debts to pay off. For some, it may take an entire year to resolve by which time, they do it all over again.

I admit it. I struggle in this season of mixed messages. Be thankful to those that did right by us, to welcome others, despite our differences, and love one another in celebration of our diversity.

I wish someone could reconcile my feelings. Does anyone have any ideas? I welcome your insights.

In the meantime, Happy Thanksgiving.

Concussion photo

I’m Getting Lax

November 20, 2017

But really, am I getting Lax?

Alright, I admit it, I’m getting lax in writing to you. It’s just that I’m excited to get back into rejoining the human race, and going out with friends and family. While I am still recovering from my injury sixteen months ago, I’m down to the short rows in my progress. By that I mean, I’m probably back to 95% of what I was before my injury. It’s this last 5% that is getting to me. My progress slows the closer and closer I get to 100%.

getting lax in returning from my Post Concussion Syndrome

My doctors and therapists tell me, I may never get back to 100%. I won’t accept that. I will continue working hard to stop forgetting names, words, and concepts that are clearly visible in my mind, just not making it past my lips. Grrr…. And, I still have a constant, low-grade headache to deal with that gets me down at times. Rest assured, I’ll figure it all out. In the meantime, I’m enjoying getting back into the swing of things.

The Trafficking ConsortiumAlso, I am writing, though not at the pace I was when I had lots of free time on my hands. My followup book to ‘The Trafficking Consortium’ is well underway. It’s entitled ‘Perfect Prey.’ Anyone who has read the first book will understand the meaning of the title. The first draft is about 60% done, with lots of scenes that need integration into the overall story. Not to fear, I’ll figure it out. I also have a clear understanding of what the third book in the trilogy will entail. Unlike when I wrote ‘The Trafficking Consortium,’ which I expected to be a single, stand-alone novel, Avril’s story is evolving into a trilogy. I hope to finish it by the end of the holidays and begin editing it for real before turning it over to my editor for the heavy red-pen. 😉

More ideas

Plus, I want to finish these two books soon, as I have ideas for more normalized novels that don’t involve crime and punishment. Wouldn’t that be a change in direction? One might even call them romance novels, not that I have read any. I just like the snippets I’ve been writing and sharing with my female friends. They are encouraging me to take this turn, and I’m likely to do it.

In the meantime, sales of all of my books are doing well. I am thankful for the host of people out there who are reading my works. Please, consider writing a review. Good or bad, I enjoy reading them. Plus, they give me incentives to continue writing and refining my talents. Thanks, everyone.

maggicalExpressions
maggicalExpressions

Might I also suggest that you check out my online art gallery at maggicalExpressions. When I need to take a break, relax, and unwind, I tend to draw and paint. This gallery displays a collection of most of my favorite pieces. Let me know what you think. Most are available for sale, either as the original artwork or prints at a substantially reduced price.

So, overall, am I really getting lax? I kind of doubt it.

Have a great day and a better tomorrow.

Halloween Bunny Outfit

Halloween 2017

November 5, 2017

Post Halloween

As many of you know, the Halloween holiday is my favorite one of the year. It’s a time when it is socially acceptable to dress up, appear in public, in garb that is otherwise inappropriate for everyday wear. This year, when it comes to costumes, I saw many new firsts.

Halloween Bunny OutfitI have many favorites, some pretty extreme. One outstanding outfit was a woman wearing a cape and shroud covering her face, and wearing nothing else but heels. It took me the longest time to figure out who she was. My favorite was going to work and sitting beside a co-worker as a full-blown witch, decked out in black and orange, tall pointed hat and matching shoes with the toes curled up and over the top of her feet. She wore foot-long fingernails and a hoop skirt. I can’t envision what it must have been like sitting behind the steering wheel of her car.

In case you’re wondering, I took on the persona of a speak-easy bartender from the 1920’s, including the garter sleeves keeping my white shirt out of the way when pouring drinks. I don’t wear a bow-tie too often, in fact, not much at all, but it was fun all around.

The holiday is now over, and I’m taking down my decor. The outside of my house joined the rest on the block as a drab, unremarkable home, utterly different from the haunted house look it was last week. I miss it already, but you know what? It’s a lot of work to set up, which would be easy if my neighbors appreciated it.

Jack-O-LanternsUnfortunately, it appears that they do not. I moved to this house a year and a half ago, and this is my second Halloween. Except for people putting pumpkins on their front stoop, only I decorated my house. The rest went through the season without even noticing its passing. I find it sad.

In my old neighborhood, I was one of the several homes on the block which decorated. Over time, my displays became much more outlandish. In case you haven’t figured it out, I’m not into cutesy decorations. I like the terrifying, horrendous displays that get people to talk about it to their friends and family.

In the past, I had a fishing theme, where skeletons fished in a pond, catching mermaids too hungry to ignore the tantalizing meal dangled in front of them. I’ve had a human meat market where a rotisserie roasted an entire human body with a smoke machine imitating the cooking process as fat drips onto hot coals and packaged meats available for purchase out from a meat counter. To a functional guillotine using a realistic blade dropping fast onto the neck of its victim strapped to the infernal machine.

Alas, those days are over. No one comes to the house to gaze upon the presentation, chat with the creator (me) and mingle among the elements of the display. It’s my own fault, I suppose. I now live in a 55+ community, and I do believe, I’m the youngest living here. I love my house, don’t get me wrong, but I do not like the neighborhood. But for now, I’ll deal with it. Besides, that means less work to set up my displays and more time to other endeavors, such as writing another chapter in my next book.

Speaking of which, I need to get back to it. In the meantime, have a great day and a better tomorrow.

The Trafficking Consortium

Shocking but Happy Discoveries

October 22, 2017

Discoveries

I discovered something fascinating the other day, discoveries that shocked me, and made me very happy. It has to do with sales of my books, specifically, my printed versions.

Amazon had sent me an email regarding the royalties for my sales for the past month. Usually, I just delete them as they do not contain any specific information that I am interested in, other than a payout is coming. However, the format of one of those emails was different than the rest. I was intrigued.

Upon opening it, I realized that it was different than the standard fare, and denoted sales from an unfamiliar source. Digging deeper, I logged into my Amazon account and checked. Nothing. Huh?

Investigations

Discoveries regarding paperback versions of 'The Trafficking Consortium'After following sales channel after sales channel, I was stymied. I couldn’t figure out who generated these sales. Amazon is good at identifying transactions. They just don’t offer the seller information on who the buyer is, that is without paying for it. They know how to make money.

After investigating all of the sales channels my books are available through, I checked one last source. A source where I don’t expect many sales, as it prices my books reasonably high, considering the costs of producing the book.

I realized that this email had to do with sales of my paperback versions. WhooHoo!

Findings

People are buying the hard copies of my books. What’s more, I dug deeper, finding that I had a spike in paperback sales back last January. I missed that.

What an honor. Sure, it’s easy to purchase and download an eBook and read it on your favorite eReader. But holding a book in your hand, smelling the paper and ink, and feeling its weight as you turn the pages, well that is entirely something else altogether. I know many a reader who prefers holding a real book as opposed to the electronic version.

Most sales were people buying the book ‘The Trafficking Consortium.’ I suspected that. However, I noticed that someone bought every one of my books on the same day. I’m astounded, pleased, no, happy. This one person is not the only one. I noticed several sales of all of my books over the course of the month. To be honest, I’m shocked but very pleased.

Gratitude

Thank you, everyone, for taking the time to read my books, including ‘The Taste of Honey,’ ‘Broken Steele,’ and ‘Her Client Trilogy.’ You don’t know how much that means to me. What can I say? You, my fans, are fantastic.

And, oh, by the way, thank you Amazon.com. None of this would be possible without you.

True Blood

Sunday morning bad things

October 15, 2017

Hello, my fans,

True Blood cast, season 3I’m sitting at my desk, trying to figure out what to write to you today. I’m at a loss, and frankly, I may do bad things. Not really of course. I’m a bit tired and off my game. I went to a party Friday night, and of course, got home late. Slept well enough but as usual, my body woke me at it’s appointed time, as if I had to go to work. Rolling over, I finally fell back asleep for a couple of hours.

Getting up, I knew that Sunday, today, would be a busy day and the house was a mess. There were dishes in the sink, the stove was dirty, and the table covered with stuff that needed putting away. After making a cup of coffee, and rolling up my sleeves, which of course wasn’t there as I was shirtless, I dove in started with the dishes. An hour later, the kitchen was clean, and I was ready to move on.

Decorating for Halloween.

Halloween is my favorite holiday of the year. It allows me to express my feelings openly, which I often keep bottled up all year round. I don’t know why I love this holiday. To me, it makes light and eases the pain of the horror that exists in this world today. The idea of witches, goblins, ghosts, spirits (which I do believe in), vampires, and mischief causes my soul to sing.

It’s like the theme song from the HBO series ‘True Blood,’ written and performed by the band, A3. In it, there is a verse that I particularly like. It reads ‘I want to do bad things with you.’

Bad things

I do. With my girlfriend especially, I always want to do bad things with you. Of course, it’s the definition of the phrase ‘bad things’ that is of most importance. I’m going to rob a bank or murder someone. But I do like the sense of doing things that some may find displeasing. Just as long as I don’t commit violence on another person, at least without their permission, I’m good.

Today and this coming week will be a busy one. I intend to make the best of it. Lots to do at work. Lots to do at home. Add doctor visits and gym visits where I am striving to work off the weight that my meds of the past year graciously gave me, I hope to write some more. I’m not hopeful, but I am determined.

In the meantime, I hope tomorrow finds you better off than today.

p.s.
This article came out a lot different than I intended. It came out better. Have a great one everyone.

Missing Person, Adult Female

Missing Persons, Human Trafficking

October 8, 2017

Reviews

I recently received a review of my book, ‘The Trafficking Consortium’ a story about missing persons and human trafficking. As much as I love five-star reviews, this reviewer gave a single one, and I love it.

The Trafficking ConsortiumSo far, readers are on one side of the fence or the other. To date, there have been zero mediocre reviews. They don’t comment on the writing, the grammar, or other such vital issues regarding a book. They all write about the story, either it’s terrific, or they’re too horrified, denying to themselves to think it might be genuine. Awesome. People are reacting to my story. Nice!

The latest review states:

“I don’t think this crazy sadistic world needs someone giving them horrific ideas to make people even worse.”

And the one that especially makes me smile is:

“Hope and pray this is truly fiction since it made me sick to THINK that a human could treat another human this way. “

Missing Persons

I have to tell you. It concerned me to write this novel, but probably not for the reasons you may suspect. The concept of the story may seem so far out there that it couldn’t possibly be real. While it is a pure work of fiction, I hope and pray that the agency I write about, ‘The Consortium,’ does not exist. Yet, I fear that I am wrong. I honestly believe that they might be real.

Look at the evidence. Each year, thousands of missing persons disappear, forever. No trace of them is ever found. No evidence shows what might have happened to them. And this is just in America. Similar numbers per capita exist in every developed country on the planet. Horrifically, most of the missing are children. Since I won’t write stories involving children, I will keep my numbers to adults.

Adult Missing Persons by race

According to CBS researcher, Tanita Gaither, published May 9, 2013, in Atlanta Updated, “Of the 900,000 reported missing persons each year in the U.S., 50,000 are over the age of 18.” The chart breaks down the missing by race. It seems to me that none of us is immune.

Fifty thousand adults in America, gone. most are never found. The rate of the missing person incidence is growing, from 150,000 in 1980 to over 900,000 each year. Those figures are just those in the U.S. They do not include those reported missing overseas. I can say with certainty, that thousands more go missing and unreported to authorities. I can’t even fathom the 850,000 being children under the age of 18. I’m appalled.

In 2008, 481 British adults disappeared while abroad, and 401 in 2007 and 336 in 2006. (Carole Moore, ‘The Last Place You’d Look,’ [Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 2011.]

Where are they now?

Missing Person, Adult FemaleIn researching this article, I wanted to find an appropriate image or two to use supporting the evidence. I was astounded and perturbed to see the sheer volume of pictures of missing people, from all sects of life, race, gender, nationality, what have you. Google images using the tag ‘missing persons’ and you will discover yourself just how fucked our species is. God help us from ourselves.

What happened to them? Are they choosing to disappear? Do they not want to be found? If not, who is culling them from their homes? Were they kidnapped, stolen off the streets? Where are they? Are they dead? If so, where are their bodies? If they are still alive, where did they go? Are they, in fact, slaves for someone’s amusement? Are they bound servants, performing to fatten their owner’s wallet?

A Ring of Truth

While writing my story, I started looking over my shoulder, wondering whether I was being watched and followed. I can’t tell you how many times I debated with myself whether to finish the story and then again, to publish it. I may not fit their profile of acceptable prey, but I believe that if I get too close to the truth, they may want to remove me as a threat.

You may think I am crazy, but I cannot control my feelings. They just happen, and I would be a fool to ignore them. I’ll be honest with you. I am scared and you should be too.

It’s true, I fear that my story may have more than a ring of truth to it. I wrote the story with the idea that the Consortium only culls a few hundred people a year, out of the billions who live on the planet. Could I be understating the number? I hope I am wrong.

I’m not saying that an organization like the Consortium is out there, snatching people for personal gain and satisfaction. I just raise the possibility that there may be such a global outfit.

Follow-up

And still based upon the feedback I’ve received, I’m writing a sequel, to turn Avril’s story into a series. She is one such missing person, a slave to someone’s amusement, and is the main character and victim of the book. It is unlikely that anyone ever reported her missing. The Consortium is superb at covering their tracks. I told her story from her point of view, and at the end, she seemed to accept her new station in life. But did she?

Did she really accept a life as own property, to do someone’s bidding or suffer the consequences? Can she accept her new life as someone’s slave? Can she willing suffer anguish and even learn to do the same to others? Will she learn to torture and kill another human being? Her owner seems to think so, but will she really?

I can’t wait to finish writing her new story.

If you read the first book, you’ll understand why I’m calling the sequel, ‘Perfect Prey.’

Las Vegas Massacre, the dead

Forgive me, audience

October 4, 2017

Forgiveness

That’s right. I’m asking forgiveness. On Monday I published an article I wrote on Sunday regarding quotes that I admire. I wrote it Sunday and scheduled its publication for Monday afternoon.

I ask your forgiveness, as, like you, my audience may think the article was crude, crass, and inappropriate for the somber mood of the day. The article was meant to be light-hearted, indicative of something other than the mood of the country, and possibly the world.

Life changing

Las Vegas Massacre, the deadUnfortunately, life changed once again between those hours when a lone gunman sprayed thousands of high-powered bullets on a crowd of 22,000 people enjoying a concert on the strip in Las Vegas. He killed at least 59 at last count and seriously wounded another 500.

In my opinion, the act was committed by a coward who wanted to inflict as much pain and suffering as he could. He set up his killing stand from a distant elevated perch over 1,500 feet away. He planned and executed this attack over the course of many weeks, if not months.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and the survivors who will forever be scarred by the experience.

Shock

I’ve been in shock since I learned of the attack early Monday morning. All thoughts of my previous article flew out of my memory, replaced with a kind of blank stare and need to do something, anything to be productive. I threw myself into my work. Suffering from a concussion-related injury, I went to the doctor for relief. While he helped my body heal, my soul is still in denial, outrage, and despair.

running for coverHaving just recently attending a concert in a sold-out venue of 49,000, I could only relate by imagining what I would do if the same happened at my concert. I was on the floor of a multi-purpose arena surrounded by tens of thousands. After the concert was over, it took nearly a half hour to get off the floor and approach a nearby exit. That was when everyone was leaving in an orderly way, still high on the positive vibrations of the performer, Paul McCartney by the way. I can’t even begin to imagine the chaos of what would have happened if those same thousands tried to run and hide, in panic. All of us trying to get out of the killing field I where I found myself.

What are we going to do about it?

The question I have for my country’s leadership is. When the fuck are you going to get off your asses? Will you find courage and tell the gun lobbyists to go fuck themselves and their money? When are you going to put people and country first? I abhor by my leadership’s behavior. I hate allowing their personal greed to outweigh the needs and wants of the people. When will you stop letting thousands die each year in senseless gun violence?

For the victims of the latest in a string of mass shootings, it is too late for them. Please, don’t let it be too late for your family; your brothers and sisters; your mother and father; and your children. Don’t wait until one of you die a senseless death because of some gunman takes out their pain on you.

You owe it to them, you owe it to your constituents, and you owe it to us. Pass a meaningful gun control bill now. Put all other concerns aside. Too many people have sensely died already. Will it take one of you to die before you do something? If that is what it takes, I’ll not sympathize your death.

Animism, Gaia, Mother Nature

Other Famous Quotes and Dirty Minds

October 2, 2017

Quotes that speak to me

Recently I wrote about a reference from Roald Dahl that I found. Fundamentally, it accurately reflects how I feel about my stories. However, finding it, caused me to go out and find other pertinent quotes from authors that I find reflect who I am and how I perceive the world.

One that I particularly like is:

Author, Patrick Dennis“I always start writing with a clean piece of paper and a dirty mind.” ~Patrick Dennis

I’m not sure how much a piece of paper means that much anymore. I always write on my computer or tablet. Rarely do I put anything down on paper anymore. However, the concept remains the same. When I open up my favorite word processor, it presents me a blank white screen, and I start typing.

Dirty Mind

It’s the second part of the quote that really caught my eye. I have a dirty mind, and I make no bones about it. It is whom I am. Anyone who has read any of my books, will know exactly what I am referring to. Of the myriad of images that flow through my head each day, ones that I can’t seem to capture fast enough and put to canvas or paper, almost all are lusty scenes of human nature.

As most people who know me well, I perceive the naked human body, the one mother nature gave us and society seems to want us to cover up, as the most beautiful gifts ever. In fact, as best as I know, only humans can notice the beauty of our bodies. While a few other animals partake in sex for fun, only homo sapiens can recognize beauty in our sacs of flesh and bone.

Gaia

Gaia, Mother NatureThank you, Mother. Mother Nature or Gaia for those of you who read my previous sentence wrong. I am a strong believer in the spirit of the universe. Some would call it God, and others would call it ‘The Force,’ as described in the world of ‘Star Wars.’ No matter what you name it, I believe it pervades our entire universe, existing in everything from the stardust floating in space to living human beings, and who knows what else. This spirit is everywhere, and I see it best described and most abundantly in the beauty of the naked female form. You’re beautiful, and I thank Gaia for the gift you give us, every day.

It is my hope that every day, I honor your gift in my words and deeds.

Thank the Stars

Returning to normalcy, part 2

September 26, 2017

The second return to normalcy

Last time, I wrote about a return to normalcy in my private life. My dear girlfriend, the love of my life, returned home after several weeks traveling along the west coast of the U.S. Not that I would fault her for taking the time with her daughter. I just missed her, and I’m ecstatic that she’s home. But enough of my personal life. My business life is another story.

Thank the StarsSince early September, my business life has been in turmoil. And not just for me, but my teammates as well. The full weight of this storm rested solely on the team leader. Fortunately for him, and the rest of us, our senior leadership and officers recognized that we understood the seriousness of the problem and supported our efforts to resolve it.

We brought in specialists, vendors, and superstars to assist. Do you know what they all said? That they could find nothing wrong, nothing that they could find to cause the problem. In fact, they were all at a loss, considering we configured our equipment in line with what they would do. Frankly, they all said, they didn’t know what was wrong. All they could say was, start replacing equipment, one unit at a time.

So? We did. Everything we did, following all the suggestions of these experts, failed. We spent hundreds of thousands of dollars putting together this equipment, after spending almost a year researching and choosing the devices.

Relief came when using a loaner unit from a different manufacturer seemed to solve the problem. The resolution came out of nowhere, and if it weren’t one of our partners offering to loan us a device costing over $100,000, we’d still be fighting this losing battle.

Since Friday, we were crossing our fingers, believing the issue resolved, but worried it would return with a vengeance. So far, my fingers remain crossed, but I’m feeling much better.

Lastly, a huge thank you to my team leader, taking on the responsibility to lead the charge in getting my business life back to normal.

Life is returning to normal. Thank the stars.

morticia addams normal is an illusion

Returning to normalcy

September 20, 2017

Normalcy, Webster’s Dictionary defines it as:
“the state or fact of being normal, a return to normalcy after war.”

Dictionary.com defines it as:
“the quality or condition of being normal, as the general economic, political, and social conditions of a nation; normality:
After months of living in a state of tension, all yearned for a return to normalcy.”

Synonyms for the word include: “normality; ordinariness; uniformity.”

morticia addams normal is an illusionWhy am I starting this article off like this? That’s an excellent question. Unknown to most people, my girlfriend, the love of my life, has been traveling the country for the last three weeks.

I’ve been a bachelor for the entire time, sleeping in an empty and cold bed. Frankly, it sucked. I missed her, and now she’s back. Whoo Hoo!

Now, some of you out there could think that I could live the bachelor life, the single life. You could believe that I looked for opportunities to party, go drinking at bars, even picking up women. I’m sorry to disappoint you. I didn’t.

I will say that my close friends and family kept an eye on me, inviting me to visit, come for dinner, and otherwise make sure I wasn’t lonely. Their efforts, while appreciated, failed. I missed her too much. She is a part of my life that while she was gone, I felt like a fish out of water, a bird with a broken wing. As much as I loved the time to myself, the house felt empty as I walked around.

So, instead, I worked on small projects around the house that I hadn’t yet gotten too. I finished an electrical wiring project that I started just before I suffered my concussion. Now, all I need to complete setting up my studio so that I can set it up are a series of shelving to stack and store my art supplies. Time to go shopping, or building depending which is cheaper, and easier.

Yesterday, she returned, and I took the day off from work so that we could be together and reconnect. What am I going to say? I love the girl.

Honey, my love, I missed you. Don’t you ever do that again. Alright!