CELEBRATING CONNECTIONS & BLOGGING

 

Last Sunday was my birthday, and I spent it with family.  On the left is a photo of my daughter and me, snapped last Mother’s Day.

Top photos, left to right:  my second oldest grandson, Dominic, and Noah, my youngest.

Heather and her BF are on the bottom right, and dead center:  a slice of birthday cake, wearing all the candles.  And a scoop of Vanilla Bean ice cream.  Yum!

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Today I had a birthday lunch with an old friend…I’m talking longevity, here.  We met as colleagues back in the 1970s and became good friends over the years.

Today’s lunch was at Pismo’s, where sea food reigns.

 

 

 

Here is the dessert we had:

 

 

 

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I am still stuffed, and it is hours later.  No dinner needed tonight!

Earlier, I clicked on some posts here via my Archives and realized how so much has changed on the blog.  First of all, I started this site at Blogger, then moved here in May 2010.

My “twin” granddaughters —cousins born in February  1997—were the inspiration and on my header for quite a while.  The name was inspired by a photo in the snow of the two girls in 2004, at age seven, and also derived its name from mine:  Snow.

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I’m reading a book by Wendy Corsi Staub called The Perfect Stranger, and it features bloggers…and how someone is targeting the members of a close-knit blogging group of cancer survivors.

 

 

 

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Here is a photo of the two girls snapped in February 2004, at Big Bear:

 

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Do you ever examine your blog’s history?  Check out earlier posts and remember what it was like back in the beginning?  And when you think of those moments of connection—with family, friends, and other bloggers—do you celebrate?

I celebrated by changing up my theme here….and the look of the blog.  And I’m going back to read more of the book about bloggers.

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THURSDAY SPARKS — THURSDAY THEMES & BOOKING — JUNE 9

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome to another day when sparks might fly.  Join in the discussions to see what might happen.

At Booking Through Thursday, our leader poses this question:

All things being equal (money, space, etc), would you rather own copies of the books you read? Or borrow them?

I love being surrounded by books.  My books cocoon me and provide that feeling of comfort in a way that nothing else can.

This shelf sits beside my couches....

Hallway Shelves

Some shelves in my bedroom....

Shelves in my office....

 

These are just a sampling of the shelves in my world.  I even have a new shelf in the bathroom, now, and shelves in the dining room.

Do you get the picture?  I think I can count on one hand the number of books I’ve borrowed, but I love owning them.  I do occasionally visit the library.  Back in the day, the library was my first choice, as I didn’t have the room or the funds to buy.

What about the rest of you?  What’s your choice?

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Now curl up for Theme Thursdays, hosted by Kavyen, at Reading Between the Pages.

 

Theme Thursdays is a fun weekly event that will be open from one thursday to the next. Anyone can participate in it. The rules are simple:

• A theme will be posted each week (on Thursday’s)
• Select a conversation/snippet/sentence from the current book you are reading
• Mention the author and the title of the book along with your post
• It is important that the theme is conveyed in the sentence (you don’t necessarily need to have the word)
  Ex: If the theme is KISS; your sentence can have “They kissed so gently” or “Their lips touched each other” or “The smooch was so passionate”

This will give us a wonderful opportunity to explore and understand different writing styles and descriptive approaches adopted by authors.

This week’s theme is

NUMBERS

 

My selection today is from Dismantled, by Jennifer McMahon.

 

 

To the right of the clearing was the path that led down to the water.  The lake and the land around it was a protected watershed area and threatening TRESPASSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED signs were nailed to trees every twenty-five feet or so.  The lake, referred to on maps only as Number 10 Lake, was not accessible by the main road and theirs was the only cabin even close.  About fifty feet up the driveway to the cabin, there was a turnoff leading to the little beach they used….

I’m really curious about how the numbers here set the scenes….

I know that it’s a story about long-held secrets and the aftermath of a long-ago time….

 

Stop on by and share your own Thursday events….

A BLOG MAKEOVER HERE — MAY 28

SPARKING CREATIVITY & ENTHUSIASM

In the spirit of the Bloggiesta (a month early!), I decided to do a major overhaul of this particular site.

Many of you probably are familiar with my frequent blog background and header changes over time, and some may have witnessed my blog mergers over the past year or so.

This little blog began over at Blogger as Snow Impressions, and had a familiar snowy image of my granddaughters.  When I decided to bring the blog here, I merged it with Snow Connections.

At that time, I changed the name to Snow Connections & Impressions.

Now that I’ve “sat” with it awhile, I wanted something shorter, quirkier, possibly even edgier, so now, voila!  Meet Snow Sparks (with a tagline of My Connections & Impressions).

What do you think of when you hear the word “sparks”?  Well, I did name my Kindle “Sparky,” because of how it generates reading moments.  It sparks enthusiasm from some.  I hope that Snow Sparks will be a place in which I can “spark” creativity, connections, and all kinds of enthusiasm. 

Is this too much to expect from one little blog?  Perhaps, but I know that I am already excited about the feeling I now have, with my new title; my new theme; and the header that is a photograph of the reconstructed Berlin Wall, created by my son, the Berlin Photographer.

In the next few days, I will be thinking of some kind of signature event to further elicit the feeling of sparks.  Any ideas, anyone?

Note the blog button at the top of this post.

A BIT OF ME (ME) — CHANGES — MARCH 5

Welcome to A Bit of Me (Me), hosted by There’s A Book, our place in the blogosphere in which we reveal bits and pieces of our “real” lives.

This Weeks Question: What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done? Anything.

The year was 1970. Many recent events had stirred me, from the protests of the sixties over Vietnam; women’s issues; my own search for who I was; and as a graduate student, I was reexamining everything that I had thought I had known and believed.

I had been in a marriage for seven years, and like many people have experienced, we were not a “marriage of true minds.”  But I had two kids.

It seemed to unfold in a crazy way, at least that’s how it seemed to onlookers. Family, etc.  One day, while my husband was on a business trip, I rented an apartment, hired a moving van, and left.  With my two kids.  Just like that.

Over the weeks and months ahead, I would face all the scrutiny and censure of those who had thought they knew me. Only my closest friends in my new life really understood.  They supported me.  But as everything around me changed, and as I became a truly different person, I would realize, too, that even though I didn’t regret what I’d done, the consequences would follow me…always.

Nearly a decade later, I had become a much happier person, even though I had left one life for another. By then, I had two more children.  I had found my niche in a career and loved making contributions to the world around me (as a social worker).  I had visions of someday writing about my experiences.

I have done that.

My Creations: Click the picture for more info

So what’s your story?  Share the “crazy” parts, if you will.  And don’t be surprised if everyone else has something equally “crazy” to tell.

A BIT OF ME (ME) — THE WRITER’S LIFE — FEB. 26

 

 

 

Good morning, and welcome to A Bit of Me (Me), the event that allows us to share bits and pieces of our lives—outside the blogging world.  Hosted by There’s A Book, each week we are presented with questions to ponder.

This Weeks Question: What would your dream job be?

That’s a good one, isn’t it?  Would you be surprised to know that I’m actually doing my “dream job” now? From the time I was a kid, I wanted to write.  I had to put that dream on the back burner while I worked for more than three decades at a profession that paid the bills.  Not that I hated that career, or anything, but it wasn’t what I’d dreamed about…back in the day while I read and imagined my own name on a book cover.

Here is one of my earliest visual images of the writing life…probably gleaned from the pages of old favorite books like Little Women.

The Writer’s Life

Later, my vision expanded and here’s the writer’s world I imagined.

Gorgeous Writer’s Den

Actually, now that I look at it, that chair doesn’t look too comfy!

But here’s what I actually have, and here are some of my creations.

My Daily World

MY CREATIONS – Click image to visit my website

My favorite part is waking up, hurrying to the computer, and, still wearing pajamas, beginning my day, with only my coffee, my computer, and the world inside my head.

Of course, now that blogging is also part of that picture, I can connect to others, too.  Writing and blogging…my dream life!

What about you?  What do you imagine as the best possible job for you?  I hope you’ll stop by and share….

CAT THURSDAY — JAN. 27

 

Yay, it’s Cat Thursday again! This event, in which we share the hilarity of cats and those special cat moments in our lives is hosted by Michelle, at The True Book Addict.

Today I took a trip on the web and found some delightful cat moments to share.

This one captures that special blase thing cats do.  Some call it “snooty.”

Ah, yes, nobody can give you “the look” more than a cat!

What about you?  Did you find something delightful on the web, or are you sharing your own cat moments.  I hope you’ll stop by and tell me about it.

TUESDAY IMPRESSIONS — JAN. 25

Berlin Festival of Lights: Craig Robinson, Berlin Photographer

Here we are nearing the end of January, and my NaNoBloMo challenge will be at an end.  Unless I sign up for next month, too.

Hmm…maybe not.  I do this kind of thing only occasionally, partly because I have so many blogs.

Today I am thinking of family. Not unusual for me, especially when some of my family members are SO FAR AWAY!  I’m especially thinking of my eldest son, who lives in Berlin.  His web moniker:  Berlin Photographer. One of the ways I feel closer to him (other than Facebook, Skype, e-mails) is to post some of his photos.

I love the one in my header today…and at the top of this post.  The Berlin Festival of Lights is an awesome visual treat, don’t you think?

Recently, I read a book that was set in Germany, albeit Munich.  1920s Munich, with the malevolent presence of Hitler on the rise shadowing everything for the characters in this story.

Straight Into Darkness, by Faye Kellerman, is an awesome read.  (Click the title for my review).

Currently, I’m reading some more books from my TBR stacks: one of them is featured today in my Teaser Tuesdays post.

Okay, now that I’m winding down on this topic, I know that a part of me is procrastinating…avoiding working on my WIP for the ROW 80 Challenge.  Tomorrow will be another check-in, and I’ll have to report that, in the past few days, I’ve missed writing on 1/19 and 1/24!  Not good!

So why is this happening?  I know that I need to tie up loose ends and bring this story to a conclusion.  Even though the characters seem to be leading me, they aren’t heading toward a conclusion.  Maybe they want to hang around for awhile!  LOL

I need to get them under control!  What do you do when you want to end a story and your characters are fighting it?

MONDAY IMPRESSIONS — JAN. 24

A SERENE, YET MESSY, COMPUTER STATION....

This past weekend has been a busy one, with Bloggiesta activities, etc.  Plus, I had reviews to post and thoughts to assemble for the upcoming reading week.

Today’s thoughts are about the effects of computer “glitches” on how I face the day.

This particular glitch has actually only happened to me about three or four times over a period of four years or so.  Not a lot, when I look at it from that perspective.  But each time, I go into panic mode.

FREAKING OUT!

The first time, I was totally at a loss, and even called my son, the electrician/computer person to see if he could sort it out.  Well, he tried a few things and fixed it.  I observed some of what he’d done, and the next time it happened, more than a year later, I was able to go through the processes and sort it out on my own.

My other computer-expert son, who lives in Europe, told me that the power strip could be a factor, so I made sure to have an extra one on hand.  Today when my computer wouldn’t turn on (yes, that’s how the glitch expresses itself!), I went through my usual panic mode, and then recalled his advice.  I pulled out the new strip, changed it out, and voila!  Fixed.

FINDING SOLUTIONS!

Of course, my mind is going to be on red alert for awhile.  Why is that?  My paranoia about the computer and its various possibilities for failure could keep me up at night.

Well, one of my biggest fears, of course, is that someday nothing I do will work and it will mean a new computer!  And my budget is not ready for that!  LOL

PILE OF "DEAD COMPUTERS"

Do you ever freak out over these kinds of things?  What do you do when, or if, that happens?  If you’re lucky, you have a resident computer expert…ah, wish I did!

A BIT OF ME (ME): TO LISTEN OR NOT — JAN. 22

 

Good morning! I’ve had a late start today due to Bloggiesta tasks.  Don’t you love that challenge and how it offers an opportunity to tweak, polish, and improve our blogs?

But this post is our A Bit of Me (Me) meme hosted by There’s A Book. Our opportunity to share bits and pieces of our lives outside the blogosphere.

Here’s Today’s Question:

This Weeks Question: Do you listen to audio books? Why or why not? If yes, do you have a favorite?

There is an easy answer for me on this one.  Not a fan of audio books!  Okay, that sounded harsh, but there’s a reason.  In order to fully concentrate on the content of a book, I need to visualize it. I’m a “visual learner,” you see.  If I listen to something, I don’t fully attend to it; other distractions seemingly zero in and take me away.

However, if I’m in a car, without any passengers, and on a boring road that doesn’t require my full attention (Hwy. 99 to LA), an audio book might work for me. I know that I’ve put in audios for my granddaughter (okay, I know I said no passengers, but the book was for her!), and I’ve actually “listened and comprehended.”

BORING JOURNEY!

A fascinating journey would not be the place for audio books—in my opinion.

A RT. 66 JOURNEY

 

I guess that just about covers my reactions to audio books.  However, I did receive James Patterson’s Private in audio book format, and I will listen to it at some point.  On one of those boring trips.

What about you?  Are you one of the fortunate ones who can enjoy audio books?  Come on over and tell!

 

 

CAT THURSDAY — FAMILY/CAT CONNECTIONS — JAN. 20

Good morning!  How can it be Thursday already? I can’t believe how quickly the days are flying.  The good thing about Thursday, though, is CAT THURSDAY, which is our celebration of the fun and hilarity of cats, our little animal family members. This event is hosted by Michelle, at The True Book Addict.

Click on the link to join in.

Here’s a cat after my own heart….

AN INTERIOR DESIGNER KITTY???

When I saw this one, I had to laugh and say to myself that it was perfect for me, since I’m a “frustrated interior designer.”

 

How about the rest of you?  What delightful, funny, cute, and lovable cat photos do you have to share?