What is Family?

 

Family. It comes in all forms, shapes, and sizes. Many people claim to have it. They even claim to know what it is. Some people don’t even like the family they have. But what is a family, exactly? Is it blood? Paper? Or something entirely more?

If you think family is blood, that that means you have to love someone because they are related to you through genetics. But there are thousands of people who can’t stand the people that they are connected to by genetics. There are even those who have been disowned by blood.

What about paper? I hate to break it to you, but that piece of paper means nothing if you don’t value the signature that you scrawled in a fit of passion.

That brings us to something a bit more nebulous. Bonds. Ties that bind. Experience. Life.

It is known that when you go through life with a person or group of people by your side they become closer to you. You could have a best friend that has been by your side through near-death experiences and heartaches galore. That relationship could be platonic or not. Your choice would then be to decide if that person was family.

The person obviously means something to you. Are they still a friend or are they more.

For instance, if you are in a long-term relationship with your significant other are they family. How would you expect your siblings and parents to treat them? Your significant other means something to you whether other people you know like it or not. Would you have your parents and siblings treat your significant other like family even though you don’t have a piece of paper and blood ties?

What I am trying to say is family is a nebulous concept that is completely bereft of little things like paper and blood. Family is what you make it and where you take it.

The next time someone tells you that you aren’t family because you don’t share their blood or have a piece of paper welcoming you to them, just smile and say ‘I mean something regardless. They chose to make me family. I have chosen them as my family. That means more than your societal concepts.’

What is Wrong With You??

As promised in the site description I tend to give the occasional rant. Keep in mind this has nothing to do with any of my works. This is a personal opinion piece. Happy Reading!

We all have people in life that will consistently come to us with their problems. They never seem to know what to do with themselves, and it’s often amazing that they can even feed and dress without guidance. I honestly have no general problem with these people, we all have our own issues from time to time. Unfortunately I cannot always help you with your life as I often have a life of my own to deal with.

Without trying to be unduly harsh, I have a few steps you might consider before hollering for help.

Do not bring your problems to me. I am not a witch from a fairy tale. I do not have a magic wand to wave that will make all of your issues disappear. Take responsibility for your own actions and watch how your life is better. You will find that stress will often disappear and arguments decrease. No one ever promised that everything would be fair, so accept it and move on, because whining doesn’t really help the situation.

If someone boils over like a volcano at you, ask yourself what YOU did to upset them. Think about what you may have said or done. Own whatever it was you may have said or done and strive to make sure it doesn’t happen again. I’m not saying that whomever is getting mad has a right to; I am just saying that you may have played more than a minor part in upsetting them.

Even superheroes screw up from time to time; no one is perfect. If you make a mistake acknowledge it. Afterwards strive to ensure it doesn’t reoccur. Life isn’t always without weeds, but you can help to control the weeds that you spread if you watch yourself.

The grass isn’t always greener on the other side, so quit always thinking it is. Just because your neighbor uses non-GMO products, doesn’t mean you have to. It’s not always a good thing to copy the monkeys. When you wonder why someone else’s life isn’t as difficult, find what you are doing wrong in your own life and see where YOU need to make changes. What YOU do makes the waves in your own life.

Oceans are exhausting to cross. When someone travels 4500 miles to do something for YOU, the only thing you should be is grateful. If you complain about something that person’s partner conceivably may or may not do, than the problem lies with you. If the only things you see are negative than you have an issue; not the rest of the world.

People are not ants in a colony. They have their own thoughts, emotions, and views. If you consistently tread on them and treat them like they don’t matter, resentment is the only thing that grows from it. Part of life is acknowledging other people are different and not sneering upon them because you don’t like it. Accepting these differences, is only going to enhance your own quality of life.

Just as plants need nurturing to grow, so do people. When YOU consistently degrade and humiliate another person, that tells them that they don’t matter to you. By dismissing other people you are doing yourself a grave injustice; and that travesty is allowing yourself to grow as a person. If you can’t grow how will you become the happy and capable person that you want to be?

The winners in life are the ones that are truly human. If you show true gratitude, own what you have done, and acknowledge your mistakes, I can almost guarantee you that your life will improve ten fold.

Countdown…

Alright folks, we are down to the last few hours for your free copy of Sweet Confections! Remember if you need a future read this is your chance to pick up a sweet book for free. Enjoy and remember reviews are always appreciated.

http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Confections-R-Stachowiak-ebook/dp/B00NB7MEV2/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Upcoming sale

Okay folks we have an upcoming sale for the book SWEET CONFECTIONS. Once you read it be sure to leave me a review. Thanks.

Cawing of the Past…

Keep in mind that this is still a rough draft but it seems that our heroine is in something of a quandary. Needing some help Morgaine is going to attempt to do what very few would dare.

I hope you are drawn into this snippet and would like to learn more. Either way let me know what you think.

Morgaine took a breath as she tried to push herself up from her fallen position. Leaving bloody handprints on the ice Morgaine stood. Turning to face the goddess once more Morgaine knew that pleading with the goddess of battle rage was useless.

Morgaine continued her best to dodge the goddess as she quickly trolled through her memories for a single spell. The spell she was looking for wasn’t the safest of spells but it was the only one she knew of that would help her in this fight. Not only was what Morgaine wanting to do safe but the ethics behind it were questionable at best.

Revivification was only possible with animals. Humans were far too unpredictable and complicated to revive after they had passed. Centuries ago Morgaine had heard of people trying to reanimate the bodies of the dead, and had been disgusted by the mere thought. When she had investigated the rumors Morgaine had found out that the Gods had been so displeased with the attempts that they had wiped out the human who had dared to attempt such a thing.

Luckily for Morgaine there was a raven lying in this chamber as well. Revivification wasn’t an easy spell to accomplish but it could be done if the caster had enough energy. And after centuries of not using her powers Morgaine knew that she had the energy to spare.

Ravens were a smart and loyal lot. Morgaine hoped beyond possibility that they still recognized her as one of them after all these centuries. When Morgaine had first walked the earth she had been one of their protectors and they had taken care of her in the end.

Someone is coldly creative in her insults…..

This is a very rough scene that I have sketched out. Somehow I don’t think Morgaine is very happy at the moment. Do you?

Morgaine opened her eyes to see a solid block of ice. As she let out a breath cold water escaped her mouth and travelled down her chin.

Almost instantly Morgaine began to shiver uncontrollably. Morgaine glanced down to find herself standing in a puddle of ice water. As her teeth chattered Morgaine took stock of her situation.

She was still in the Ice cavern that her family was visiting for the day. Morgaine was soaking wet and her radio was silent. No sound could be heard anywhere in the cavern. None of this was good.

Before Morgaine’s thoughts could go any further, she began to cough violently. As her body tried to expel the liquid from her lungs Morgaine felt something solid form on her tongue. Morgaine bought her hands to her melts as she was coughing to catch the object as it flew forth.

As she caught her breath Morgaine studied the object in her hands. It wasn’t very sick and one side of the white chalk on it. The object resembled a rough oval no bigger than her tongue.

Shivering with cold Morgaine looked once more at the block of ice in front of her. This time Morgaine noticed a glow deep inside the large queue.

That glow tickled a memory buried deep in Morgaine’s mind. Glowing. Magic. She knew this. Suddenly her cinnamon eyes began to take on a manic light. Suddenly Morgaine began to laugh wickedly. Oh, Melusine had been devious. Her mind was obviously as sharp as her jagged teeth. Memories indeed.

Before mirth could overtake her Morgaine felt a biting wind on her wet skin. As the cold settled into her bones Morgaine grimaced. Closing water logged eyes once more, Morgaine began to concentrate on the weight of the gem in her hand.

Morgaine envisioned every contour in her mind. This task was not as easy as it seemed. The frigid temperature in the cavern ensured that the water in Morgaine’s clothes turned to ice.

As the cold nipped her skin Morgaine felt icicles form on her eyelashes. The air coming out of Morgaine’s nose chafed at her lips causing them to crack and bleed.

The cold air stung her chapped lips causing her to lose her concentration.

“Damn,” Morgaine exclaimed bitterly. “May her scales dry out,” she finished in a vengeful whisper.

Some People

First off this post has nothing to do with my books. Just a rant piece today. I caught a glimpse of the latest SI cover and let’s just say that there are no positive images for young girls. If the model wants to pose like that, more power to her.

What I strenously object to is the fact that at a size 12 the model is considered to be a plus size. If you were to take and compare that size to your average person, that isn’t plus. Trust me on this, I wear a size twelve myself.

Not even a decade ago that same twelve was considered to be an 8. This just proves my theory that the industry is changing sizes to either demoralize women or to make more money by claiming they need more fabric to produce the garments. More likely it is a combination of both.

The words plus-sized intimates a larger person. Just as the word petite alludes to smaller than average. There is nothing wrong with those of us who are an average size and we shouldn’t be made to feel that there is.

The industry needs to wake up before it destroys what is left of the everyday person.

Someone Thinks Rather Highly of Themselves……..

These charachters are, without exception, the most prideful, imperious, and high-handed ones that I have ever met. What do you think?

This is just one of the players in this story that acts in such a manner. I may have to strangle all of them.

The last forty-five minutes of the drive were anything but quiet. Elaine, Sierra, and Nora (the triplets) were as boisterous as ever. The amount of noise they made tended to give Morgaine a headache. Of course the ruckus gave her parents migraines as well, but Morgaine had little sympathy for them as they were the ones to bring the triplets into the world. At this point Morgaine wished dearly for something resembling silence. In all her lifetime’s Morgaine had usually been a quiet and proud person who was in control. The only exception to this was French Incident where she had been forced to the sidelines, by baseborn revolutionaries who cared little for the exalted blood they spilled. To this day that still irritated her to no end

Something a bit more polished

This is the opening two paragraphs of what I am currently working on. Any comments?

The air was chilled and the fog thick. The mist seemed to be heavy and cold – almost as though the souls of the dead were trying to cling to life. There was no wind in this, the darkest hour of the night – even the banshees had stilled their shrill cries. Ill fate abounds on nights as eerie as this. Even more superstitions ran amok about this Great Stone Circle that lay buried under moss and the heavy mist that hung in the air. Upon each pillar of the Great Stone Circle sat a proud raven –black beady eyes gleaming in the moonlight that provided a blue tint to their feathers. The ravens lent a somewhat sinister feeling to the air.

A man and woman endured the chill present in the center of the Great Stone Circle that had stood for centuries untold. The stones under the moss seemed to glow with an ethereal light. None but the two of them were on the ground and neither of them looked happy. The deep scowls on their faces indicated that they were livid beyond the point of rage. Their frozen faces resembled the cold carvings that adorned the stones around them. The heated blood roaring in their veins giving a blush of color to their pale pallor.

A Rare Sight

In the following description we have an image of the elusive Melusine and her watery abode.

Outside of the cave were several decorative mosaic style stones that looked like a path, on either side of the path were waving patches of kelp that bared more than a passing resemblance to bushes along a path in a castle garden. Around the cave’s opening from seafloor to peak Morgaine could see colored, glittering sand. On one side of the cave’s mouth was a solid rock post that appeared to be wrapped with an electric eel to provide illumination and on the other was a bronze pedestal that stood waist high and on top of it appeared to be a rock bowl that gave off a pearlescent mist into the water, the occasional colored bubble provided an extra sparkle to the area.

Directly in front of Morgaine sat an old log that looked like it was fossilized (and had seen better days judging by the deep cracks in the sides of it). On the fossil sat the fairest (in a cold and cruel sort of way) creature that Morgaine had ever laid eyes upon – and she had laid eyes on more than one creature in her many lifetimes. Morgaine had heard the legends of Melusine. It was said that she occasionally saved sailors that were battered and bruised by the waves of the oceans and fate. By turn Melusine could have fins, wings, or even human legs. What she was doing in Elaine’s pond Morgaine did not know, but it did give Morgaine hope.

Morgaine couldn’t begin to count the times that she had walked the wharf and docks on behalf of Cantorix. In all her business there Morgaine had heard more than one sailor (and several of the tavern wenches – with their filthy, ragged hair and torn clothes, and more often than not dull eyes) talk of the Lady of the Seas as they called her. Every last one of them said that she was kind and would help out a troubled sailor in a heartbeat.

There were even darker rumors about the coldly beautiful and elusive Melusine. There was more than one hoarse whisper about how a sailor had lost both heart and life for her affections. It was usually a watery grave that awaited the person that dared to be that bold – or so the stories went.

Morgaine had always believed those rumors and looking at Melusine now, Morgaine knew that she was right to listen as she did on all those business trips. Melusine simply stared at her with lidless green eyes. Her skin was tinted a light shade of green that caused her to look ill. She had heavy black hair and thick eyelashes that rimmed her lidless eyeballs.

After several moments of silence Melusine noticed that her guest was awake, and gave her a toothy smile. It was a smile that caused Morgaine to shudder because her teeth were not the pearly white that she was used to dealing with in this day and age. Instead they were a mottled yellow and grey and had flecks of brown rot dotting them. Nor were they smooth and even – Melusine’s teeth were sharp as fangs that allowed the blood red of her tongue and gums to be seen.

That same smile crinkled the pale green skin around Melusine’s eyes causing her black pupils to brighten causing her eyes to go from dull to glassy. All in all it was a rather fearful effect that the rather frigid smile created on the face of an ancient beauty. Those glassy black eyes reminded Morgaine of the piles of glittering jewels that dragons of old tended to collect. Those treasures were often lethal for mortal man to go after – just as it was often said that for you to willingly seek out Melusine’s help was a fool’s errand.