We're still alive....honest!

Not much new going here, just everyday life. The highlight was getting all our tax stuff together and sent off to our accountant. Phew...now we just have to wait for the bill. UGH!

We went to see the movie "Identity Thief". It was a funny movie with a feel good (almost) ending. So if you want a lot of laughs and don't get offended easily, give it a try.

Today we went for a nice motorcycle ride and ended up at the Miller's Orlando Ale House. We had eaten there once before and liked it. We repeated our beer order having discovered Rogue Dead Guy Ale...yummy!

Tomorrow the weather gets cooler and on Saturday we move to Bee's RV Resort again. Sunday we pick up our youngest granddaughter, Jesse, to Disney. WOOT!! The first couple of days will be cool, in the 60's during the day and down to upper 30's at night. By Wednesday another front will move through and then it warms back up.The last time we went to Disney it was early October and REALLY hot. This will be a nice change.

Jesse flies back home on Thursday and we'll take Friday as a day at Epcot for the two of us. ;-) Needless to say, don't expect another blog for at least a week. We'll be too busy having FUN!!

BOOK: This Restless Life by Levonne Gaddy

Fellow RVer, Levonne Gaddy has published an gorgeous coffee table book of her time in California. Available in both Kindle and print versions.

At the height of the Great Recession of 2008-2009, Levonne and John give up their jobs and a home in the U.S. southwest to chase their dream through California parks in an RV. They seek a new life with meaningful work in a Central Coast California community that they will love. They encounter many unexpected twists and turns."This Restless Life" includes the author's selected blog posts, photographs and collage images.

Same old, same old....

Not much news here. Today we ended our week at Bee's RV Resort and moved 30 minutes south back to Thousand Trails Orlando. The cold spell seems to have broken and today we have the windows open, letting in the gorgeous breeze. We're here till March 2nd when we move back to Bee's for a week. (Oh yeah, and I'm still fighting the last dregs of my cold...arrrgh!)

March 3rd starts our week at Disney with youngest granddaughter, Jesse. Her dad is flying down with her and her mom will fly back. Cost was the same and saves a lot of wear and tear on Stu (who had planned to fly both ways with her). Hoping the good weather holds for us, not too hot or cold and lots of sun. I know we'll have a blast but I also know we'll be exhausted. LOL!

As soon as Disney is done, we move back to Thousand Trails till March 20th when we move to the east coast of the state. We'll stay in Vero Beach (where Sadie saw her first "army pillow"). A week there and we'll drive to Maryland. A few doctor stops and then it's off to Ecuador for a month. WOW!

The highlight of today, though, was getting through to CMA Fest the first time and managing to transfer our tickets into the name of the new ticket holder. I had my phone on hold for 4.5 hrs yesterday and used Stu's several other times for up to an hour. Never got off hold. At least it's done now. Phew!

If you haven't gotten your copy of my new mystery, "Not a Whisper", hope you will soon. Here are some early reader review (others are on Amazon).

"What a great read. I didn't see the end coming. Can't wait until the next book is out. Fast paced, twists and turns and a little romance thrown in. WTG!!"

"Fantastic Donna! Best book I've read in a long time. Excited to hear more about these characters."

"I'm about half way through and loving it. Very hard to put down, a great read!"

We saw the new Die Hard movie last week...enjoyed it but wondering if the 'son' is the replacement for an aging Bruce Willis? Not sure what we'll go see this week, maybe the highly recommended Identity Thief? Oh, we saw the previews for the new Sandra Bullock movie with Melissa McCarthy, The Heat. It looks absolutely hilarious and is already on our must see list.

Cold and Rainy but good news!

Just a quick post. The weather here has turned cold and rainy. Unfortunately, the chest cold that I brought back from our cruise has returned with a vengeance. I've been a little under the weather and yesterday it started back up...concentrating on my head now. Not the way to spend Valentine's Day....

The good news is that my first mystery novel, Not a Whisper, is now live on Amazon. Remember, you don't need a Kindle to read it. Amazon has readers for computers, tablets, smartphones, etc. HERE. You can also download the free Klondike Kompanion and learn a little more about the main characters.

Soon I'll be starting book two in the series, Barely a Spark, due out this year. Please pass the word and for those of you that buy the book, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

---

When Cherie Marshall catches her fiancé and best friend in a compromising position, she cancels her upcoming wedding and jumps at the chance to escape to quiet Klondike, Pennsylvania to care for her elderly aunt. She thought her biggest issue would be adapting to life in the middle of a National Forest, so very different from her upbringing in the deserts of Arizona.

But that was before she met State Trooper Fire Marshall Jamison "Jazz" Maddox at the scene of a mysterious fire. As they both become acquainted with the close-knit Klondike residents, things get complicated as Cherie and Jazz find themselves in the middle of a local crime wave where arson, kidnapping, embezzlement and a decades old murder are just the tip of the iceberg.

 

The four year search has ended!

Four years ago we flew to Orlando from Arizona for Stu's retired Firefighter reunion. There is a Denny's next door to the hotel that we used every year. In that Denny's there was a photograph that Stu fell in love with, a photograph of a bunch of guys standing around a car looking under the hood. Stu wanted it.

We have searched high and low online for this photograph. Poster sites, photography sites, eBay and more. Nothing, not even close. We found other nice retro pictures but Stu had his heart set on that one. I had given up hope of ever finding it.

Yesterday one of my lady riding friends posted a picture of a photograph she bought at Hobby Lobby. It was sitting on the hallway floor and her dog growled every time he passed it. Guess what the photo was? You got it....Stu's much wanted guys gathered around a car.

[Hobby Lobby]

I searched the online story for Hobby Lobby and found it! $50, a bit pricey but it's mounted on wood. Nice presentation of it so I sent the link to Stu. Needless to say he wanted it so tonight I added it to the store cart. Before I clicked the BUY ME button, I did a Google search for "Hobby Lobby Coupon Code". Wonder of wonders, there was a 40% coupon for the highest priced item in your cart...and it expired today. I applied the code and saved $20. Can you say HAPPY CAMPER?

A fun afternoon's diversion....

We took the afternoon off and headed over to Epic Movie Theater in Clermont, about 15 minutes north of us. It was Stu's turn to pick a movie and he choose "Warm Bodies", a light thriller-comedy mix. If you liked "Zombieland", I think you'd like this. Great dialogue and mostly unknowns other than John Malkovich.

We headed around the corner for an ice cream but never expected the treat we found. The store is Abracadabra Ice Cream Factory and it is truly a unique experience.

From their website:

Abracadabra Ice Cream Factory is one of the hottest new liquid nitrogen ice cream concepts in the country. We use liquid nitrogen to freeze your very own ice cream creation within seconds. With temperatures reaching -328 degrees below 0 we are able to flash freeze the ice cream right before your eyes. Every child loves the quick little magic show as our “Magic Clouds”, flow across the countertop creating an exciting experience for all children. Come by and create your own flavor of ice cream or try one of Abracadabra’s suggestions.

Here are some photos I took today...we'll definitely go back. The ice cream was really good...as good as any we've had at Marble Slab or Cold Stone Creamery.

[click to enlarge]

They have two locations, the one in Clermont and another in Kissimmee.We'll be back for sure since we'll be in the area until March 20th.

Stu will be busy with his Firefighter Reunion through Saturday and I'm busy trying to finish up my mystery novel, "Not a Whisper". Watch for the release date!

Helping a friend...one more time

My good motorcycling friend, Amanda Adams, now has to have her thyroid completely removed. She is still trying to raise funds to help in her medical costs. I know many helped earlier, if you can send a little bit more I know she really needs it. Thank you!

Medical Fundraising Made Simple

I've been published in another anthology!

I wrote a lot of flash fiction last year for various sites. One of those was an entry in the weekly flash fiction contest at my #1 Indie Author site, IndiesUnlimited.com. Many of you voted for my entry and I won. Indies Unlimited has now published all the stories in a compilation at Amazon. I hope you'll check it out...there's something for everyone. Oh, and it's only .99! You can't go wrong...

Indies Unlimited: 2012 Flash Fiction Anthology

The Indies Unlimited 2012 Flash Fiction Anthology features a year’s worth of winning entries from the IndiesUnlimited.com weekly flash fiction challenge. It contains 56 stories by 38 different authors from around the world, with full color pictures by award-winning photographer K. S. Brooks and thought-provoking prompts by five-star author Stephen Hise.

From the comic misadventures of a caveman named Og to a deranged zombie picnic, there are a myriad of genres and stories to appeal to every taste.

Authors with stories in the anthology include: David Antrobus, Gabrielle Baer, Brian Beam, Robert K. Blechman, Laurie Boris, William C. Busch, Sandra Campbell, Lynne Cantwell, Kent Chapman, Ed Drury, E.J. Fechenda, Terveen Gill, Yvonne Hertzberger, Jacqueline Hopkins, Chris James, Jerriann Law, Bob Lock, Pam Logan, Monica Baguchinsky Lunn, JD Mader, Brianna Lee McKenzie, Teirrah McNair, Donna B. McNicol, Rich Meyer, SP Mount, J. L. Murray, Stephanie Myers, Angela Rigley, Betsy Riley, Marc Emile Samuel, Irina Serban, Shiri Sondheimer, Dianna Stover, Krista Tibbs, Dick C. Waters, Sally Whitney, Renee Pierce Williams, and Carol Wyer.

$50/$30 off Kindle Fire Coupon Code

Here’s a new Kindle Fire coupon for some great discounts -

1. Kindle Fire Coupon is FIRELOVE. You have to enter it at checkout. The final page, where you have to press ‘Confirm’ to send order, has a spot on the right to enter this Kindle Fire Coupon.
2. $30 off on the $299 Kindle Fire HD 16 GB  That makes its price $269.
3. $50 off on the $499 Kindle Fire HD LTE  That makes its price $449.
4. Coupon can only be used once per customer.
5. Valid only in the US.
6. Valid only till February 8th.

Terms and Conditions
• The promotion is valid for a limited time only. Amazon reserves the right to modify or cancel it at any time.
• If you do not purchase the qualifying item when the promotion is in effect, the promotional code will not apply.
• The promotion is limited to one per customer.
• U.S. customers only
• The promotion applies only to Kindle Fire HD 8.9” and Kindle Fire HD 8.9” 4G LTE Wireless devices sold and shipped by Amazon Digital Services. It does not apply to the same products sold by other sellers.
• If you return items purchased using a promotion code, we will subtract the value of the promotion code from your return credit.
• Promotion codes may not be combined with other offers.
• Does not apply to orders placed with 1-Click.
• Offer good while supplies last.
• Void where prohibited.
• If you violate any of the Terms and Conditions, the promotion will be invalid, and the promotional code discount will not apply. 

Enjoy - I love my Kindle Fire HD.

It was a great day for a ride....

The weather has been near perfect since we arrived in Clermont area, well other than a little wind here and there. Saturday we took both motorcycles and met up with our good friend Duane Wegley and some of his friends at the Escapees RV Park in Bushnell, about an hour from here.

We ended up with 7 or 8 bikes (several of them trikes) and took a leisurely back road trip over to the Sleepy Hollow Biker Bar in Floral City. Nice thirty minute ride but marred with an accident about a mile from the restaurant. Three bikes involved but looked like no serious personal injuries (the bikes were a different story).

Sleepy Hollow serves a great steak dinner with boiled potatoes and corn for $7. Everyone raved about how good it was. They also have a live band and a couple of vendors. We enjoyed our food and the music, although we sat at the tables furthest away so we could chat, and then browsed the vendors before heading back home.

Here are a few pics: