Quirky Heroines, Happy Endings
I loved this song when it came out because of Cyndi’s don’t give a durn attitude and her style. I also liked the way the video included different types of women – giving you the feeling that if you were in the vicinity while they were filming, Cyndi might have pulled you into the video too!
From songfacts.com:
Lauper co-wrote many of her own songs, but not this one. Like “I Will Survive,” it’s a girl power song written by a man. A Philadelphia singer/songwriter named Robert Hazard, who had a band called Robert Hazard and the Heroes, wrote it. Hazard recorded his demo of the song in 1979. Speaking with Rolling Stone, Lauper said that she had to alter the lyrics from Hazard’s original. “It was originally about how fortunate he was ’cause he was a guy around these girls that wanted to have ‘fun’ – with him – down there, which we do not speak lest we go blind,” she said.
Enjoy this 80s flashback.
Hello and happy Friday to everyone out there. March is National Woman’s History Month and since I am a woman, I wanted to take some time to take a look at some women who affected history.
Ida B. Wells-Barnett – I’m sure many of you have read my little ditties about Ms. Ida. In fact, my contribution to the HerStory anthology was a fictionalized version of what might have happened on the day that Mrs. Wells-Barnett was barred from marching with her Illinois delegation because the National American Woman Suffrage Association didn’t want to offend the “delicate” sensibilities of the Southern ladies. Despite the name “woman” in the association title, these Southern flowers threatened to pull out of the march if blacks marched alongside whites. She hid out until the Illinois delegation passed, then joined in.
Nannie Helen Burroughs – Black educator and suffrage supporter. She established industrial schools throughout the South where Black women could learn such skills as bookkeeping, sewing, home economics and typing. The goal of these schools was to give these women a skill that they could later use to become self-sufficient wage earners. Her motto? “We Specialize in the Wholly Impossible”.
Mary Church Terrell – Her father is referred to as the first black millionaire by multiple sources. Mary majored in the classics at Oberlin College and was elected to two of the college’s literary societies. She earned her master’s degree from Oberlin as well. She was the first president of the National Association of Colored Women and founded the National Association of University Women, which focused on educational initiatives for blacks. Interestingly enough, she and Ida B. Wells-Barnett were the only two black women invited to attend the first organizational meeting of the NAACP. Mrs. Church Terrell was also very active in the women’s suffrage movement.
I don’t claim that these are the only women that should be recognized during Women’s History Month. I chose these women because not only are they inspiring to me, they also either overcame extraordinary circumstances, worked under duress or used their privilege to better others.
I hope you will take a look at some of the women that inspired you. Post them in the comments!
I have three little ones, 10, 9 (going on 25, that’s my girl) and 7. Needless to say, mornings in the house are a bit chaotic. Though I try to mitigate the rushing around by helping them get things ready the night before, I am a mommy who is not a morning person. You will not find me smiling with bluebirds on my shoulder, cooking eggs and bacon and pancakes at the crack of dawn. Not over here.
But I still want my little ones to have a healthful breakfast that doesn’t require a lot of morning prep. Eureka! Baked oatmeal!
If I prepare the ingredients the night before, I can mix it quickly in the morning and pop it in the oven. Or, make it the night before and reheat in the morning. Either way, this baked oatmeal recipe is pretty durn tasty.
A note about my recipes – I believe in butter, eggs and whole milk. There are a lot of variants of this recipe that substitute applesauce for the oil and so on. Children are growing. They need fat/oils, and whole foods. As long as you are eating whole foods in your diet and getting exercise, I see no reason to take out the rich goodness of butter and throwing in some applesauce. Plus, eating butter, olive oil and good fats is excellent for the skin.
Here’s the recipe:
Baked Oatmeal
Ingredients
3 cups rolled oats OR quick oats
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup melted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup dried cranberries or raisins
Preheat oven to 350F
GREASE a 9 x 13 baking pan or use parchment paper.
*note on additives – you can a cup of anything you want.
It’s real easy, guys and dolls! Mix the dry ingredients (oats, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, cranberries). Then mix the wet (milk, beaten eggs, melted butter, vanilla). Then, have a party and mix ’em all together. Spread in the greased pan and bake for 30 minutes.
Now you have a lovely, sweet baked oatmeal that you can serve in a bowl with a little milk or cool and cut into crumbly-ish bars.
Enjoy!
“It has been established that persons who have recently died have been returning to life and committing acts of murder. A widespread investigation of funeral homes, 
morgues, and hospitals has concluded that the unburied dead have been returning to life and seeking human victims. It’s hard for us here to be reporting this to you, but it does seem to be a fact.” – Newscaster, Night of the Living Dead, George Romero
It’s been a while since I had a new release, hasn’t it? Well, here you go. For fans of The Walking Dead, 28 Days Later and the post apocalyptic genre in general, here’s my take. And how awesome is that cover by Victoria Miller?
Loving Among the DeadShort Blurb: After a zombie apocalypse, two survivors find love. (Of course, right??)
Excerpt:
****Contains explicit language****
The banging of the intruders covered the mindless, grating sounds of zombies. He hoped the gang would be overcome, allowing them to escape. If they were lucky. Because the closet was so small, she remained crammed against him, his arm still around her waist. He could feel her rib cage expanding and contracting with each breath, and her bottom pressing into his lap. Sky closed his eyes, praying his dick wouldn’t choose this time to stand up and introduce itself. It had been too long since he had kept company with any female, much less had a firm ass shoved against him. He hugged the good-smelling woman to him and enjoyed the weight of her body against his. If a grinding lap dance was what he had to endure to keep her, and him, safe, then so be it. It might be an awful, terrible burden, but someone had to take the job.
Her heart beat like a jackrabbit’s against his chest. She had no pack, no gear. She must be staying nearby. He inhaled her scent again, an intoxicating mix of vanilla and something floral.
Male voices interrupted his thoughts, and Sky saw the beams of her pursuers’ flashlights through the crack at the bottom of the door.
“She’s gotta be in here. No way she could have gotten out the front without getting nabbed,” one of them snarled as they pulled the back door open with a screech. The men from the alley joined the conversation.
“That cunt fucked up my balls, man. I can feel ’em swelling up. And she almost took off Jay’s ear.”
“Fuck yeah. When we find her, first thing I’m gonna do is– What the fuck? Collie, look out!”
The woman pressed back against him, crushing him into the back wall. The gun dug into his back, grinding against his vertebrae. He slid his arm under her breasts and pulled her still tighter against him.
“Don’t be afraid. Nobody’s coming in here.” He didn’t know this for sure, but he hoped she would draw some comfort from his words. She trembled so much he swore he could hear her teeth chattering even over their confused shouts, then bellows of terror.
Sky put his mouth close to her ear. “We’ll wait till they’re busy with your friends; then we’ll go.”
The shrieks and cries continued as well as the soggy ripping sounds of human flesh being consumed. The groans of the zombies grew louder and more frantic as the attack continued, the flashlight beams jerking around as their owners were either attacked, torn apart, or ran for their lives. Bodies smacked wetly on the concrete floor as the wails of the living dissolved into pitiful moans, and their pleas for help went unanswered.
The woman shivered and shook against him, no matter how firmly he held her. There was moisture on his bare arm, and he realized she was crying. “Don’t cry for them, honey,” he whispered in her ear. He smoothed her hair back away from her sweaty face. “They woulda done worse to you. I can guarantee you that.”
After the cacophony of mindless hunger and zombie carnage, an eerie silence reigned, punctuated by the occasional groan and tearing, squishy noises. His watch ticked off the seconds.
“Come on.” He stood the best he could in the cramped space and helped her up. “We can go.”
“No, no,” she pleaded, a death grip on his arm. “I can’t go out there. I won’t. We’ll wait until they leave.”
“They can’t leave,” he whispered. “We need to go now, while they’re distracted with their eating.”
“But–”
“Be quiet and come with me. It’ll be fine.” Something in his voice must have convinced her, because she relaxed against him.
With his gun at the ready, he nudged the closet door open with the toe of his boot.
####
Loose Id
Amazon
All Romance E Books
Be sure to check all door locks and window latches before going to sleep tonight….
Interested in more? Sign up for my newsletter – it’s real simple!