author – Page 2 – Dahlia DeWinters

Country Music Classics

“Music has always been a matter of Energy to me, a question of Fuel. Sentimental people call it Inspiration, but what they really mean is Fuel. I have always needed Fuel. I am a serious consumer. On some nights I still believe that a car with the gas needle on empty can run about fifty more miles if you have the right music very loud on the radio.” – Hunter S. Thompson All kinds of music are all right with me – I decided to take today to share with you some of my favorite country songs. Please, feel free to list yours in the comments! Friends in Low Places – Garth Brooks Funny story – I was never a Garth Brooks fan until I went to one of those “lookalike shows”. The fake Garth Brooks sang this song, and I had to look it up when I got home.… Continued

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Music Monday: Favorite Frank Sinatra Song Quotes

I’m not sure if I’ve done this before, but I was going through some old playlist and got to remembering. Yes, I love Fuel, The Police, Imagine Dragons, Hozier and some new/old stuff, but some of the time I switch to the old 1940-1960s song book of The Chairman of the Board, Ol’ Blue Eyes himself, Mr. Francis Sinatra. I am from New Jersey, so, yeah, natch, right? As a romance writer, it helps me get in the mood to write love scenes and the interaction of people becoming lovers when I listen to some of the great lyricists of the American Songbook. Those writers had a way of turning a phrase and of creating metaphors and similies that evoke the feeling of love, falling in love and being in love. I wanted to share a few of my faves with you and who better to demonstrate than Sinatra himself?

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Save Everything, Everywhere

Ever get that feeling of cold fear in your heart when you’ve typed out the best chapter ever, putting the cap on 5k words, clicking save and having your computer crap out on you? Or worse, going to turn on the computer to start your morning work and seeing a black screen? As authors, we should do things to protect ourselves and our work. If we lose wordage, that sets us back, steals our time and our creativity. Yes, we can type it over, but we’ll never get those hours nor the the unique quality of our words again. That can drape a wet blanket over the next chapters that we try to write. I know we’ve seen the posts about the hard drive that failed, the thumb drive that failed, the CD that failed and I truly sympathize. It’s a terrible, terrible feeling. Never fear, there are cures for

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Football Friday – The Season Begins

Broncos vs Ravens And football season is upon us with a vengeance. Super Bowl champs the Baltimore Ravens paid a visit to the Mile-High City for a rematch. If you remember last year, the Ravens bested the Broncos in overtime to move on to the Super Bowl. Mind you, the NFL Channel never let us forget it – I have seen enough replays of the end of that game to last me a lifetime. I would venture to say that Peyton Manning and the Broncos gave the Ravens a bit of “get-back” last night. Yes, the first half was slow. A thirty-minute rain delay coupled with the slow saunter of the Ravens onto the field didn’t bode well for the Broncos, especially when it started to rain. When the Ravens drew first blood with a touchdown, Broncos fans may have thought that the Super Bowl champs were back stronger than

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Retro Saturday – Slow Jams

A party on Saturday wasn’t fun unless you brought the slow jams out. After the fast dancing, where you got sweaty, a slow song was just the thing to keep the heart rate up while the feet got a rest. Some of the time, that was when most people took a seat and you saw who the real couples were. Let’s take a look at some old-school retro slow jams today. Maybe you can whip them out on your significant other later on today. Enjoy! Between the Sheets – The Isley Brothers The Isley Brothers knew how to sweet talk a woman with their 1983 hit “Between the Sheets” . Though a little fast for a “slow jam” it still got the blood moving in the right direction with the smooth melody and sexy words. Sade-Is it a Crime? Sade, Sade, Sade…there’s more in that one name than anything else.

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Retro Saturdays – Crochet and Knit Patterns

My mother was an avid crocheter. There are bags and bags of yarn in the attic that can attest to this fact. She taught me to crochet, knit and do something called “broomstick lace” when I was a child and the yearning to create with yarn hits me on and off. I try to stay out of AC Moore and Michaels when they have the yarn sales, but sometimes the colors are too eye-catching to resist. Which brings me to crochet patterns. My mother was not an idle crocheter, no. Everything she crocheted had a purpose, whether it be a hat, scarf or, dare I say, funny looking sweater. She used to have a subscription to a magazine called Workbasket, and when I was at her house a few weeks ago, I found some old issues. Take a look at these totally retro crochet outfits. Crochet Wedding Dress…plus hat!