Wuv. Twue Wuv. (I am such a product of the 80s ... Princess Bride, anyone?)

What is love?

Webster's Dictionary defines love as: An intense feeling of deep affection, or, a deep romantic or sexual attachment to (someone).

Reading a definition of a feeling, is like going to the doctor and having him explain everything to you in medical terms. It's cold. Feeling-less. Unnatural.

So, I've decided today to share with you some morsels of information on love and Valentine's Day (get it? morsels, as in chocolate ... hehehe ... I make myself laugh!).

Wow! I just read J.A. Konrath's blog and I'm sitting here with my mouth agape, astonished. That man never ceases to amaze me. Seriously! Not only does he churn out some really hot best sellers, he's been professionally published and yet, STILL, chooses to self-publish making, $100,000 in just 3 weeks. That's AH-MAY-ZING! I can only hope to sell that many books some day.

Which gets me to thinking ...

I'm about to be totally honest and personal right now, and it's only because of something I read. One of those chain e-mails that goes around every holiday, to remind us each to be thankful for what we have and to think of others during trying times.

I also just read an article online that was about a mom in her thirties, that had 2 children aged 10 and 12. She had moved to Texas from Ohio about 8 months prior and had applied for food stamps sometime in July. Unfortunately her application was denied. I guess she hadn't filled out enough information. Because her application was denied, she decided to take her two children with her to the state assistance office ... along with a gun. A standoff and hostage situation ensued, ending with the mom wounding her children and fatally shooting herself.  Her children were critically wounded and are unconscious right now.

My questions are ... did anyone ever reach out to that mom to try and help her? Did anyone know their situation and offer a helping hand? Something had to snap for that woman to go about in the way she did.

Let me begin by saying, in no way am I going to pursue this because I find it incredibly funny. Leave it to me to be the one candy is "attracted" to, and ultimately be the one that candy has caused pain. Now, I know that candy can be a cause of the dreaded "tooth-decay", but who knew getting whipped in the head with a Fifth Avenue candy bar could leave one with a headache that's lasted over 24 hours and a head welt. *wince*

It's that season again ... the dreaded cold and flu season. I am no doctor, I'm just a mom of three kids, but I am so sick and tired of hearing the same warnings year after year; "You better button up, you're gonna catch the flu," or "Throw away your toothbrush, if you keep it you'll get sick again," or my all-time favorite, "Here, here, use this." *Squirts a ton of Germ-X or Purell or whatever name brand hand sanitizer there is within arms reach*

When I go to work and have to take one of my fifteen minute breaks, I take the opportunity to hop online and check out the latest news on Yahoo!. Of late, the site seems more gossipy than it has ever felt in the past, and I've been an avid Yahoo! user since I was 13-years-old. I choose to ignore the majority of the "gossip" stories and try to stick with the news, to see what's going on in the world.

On Monday, one headline read, "200 Pound 3rd Grader Put Into Foster Care." Being a foster child myself until the age of 13 (technically 10, as I was adopted by the family that I moved in with at age 10), I was intrigued (if not, morbidly curious) at what this child's parents had done to make the state intervene in such a manner. Did this child's mother force feed him, like that mother that killed her baby by force feeding it? Or, did the child want to win some sort of Guinness Book of World Records contest by being the largest 8-year-old, and did the mother allow that? Instead of coming up with other wild and weird scenarios, I decided to read the story.

_While Olivia Martin observed life through her camera, the abyss gazed back at her. She discovers mysterious men follow her around, people close to her are dying, and her dreams are no longer her own as she falls head over heels for a perfect stranger. A chance encounter leads to an obsession that could destroy everything she has ever known or loved. Olivia is about to find out there is a lot she doesn't know and sometimes what you don't know can kill you.

Available for $.99 only a short time  (eBook versions), so get it while it's on sale!

Available:
AMAZON
SMASHWORDS
BARNES & NOBLE
PAPERBACK

Today only (11-22-11), Liz is having a giveaway and scavenger hunt on her blog. Check it out now to win a free eBook version of Secrets, Dark Corners (her first novel, a paranormal mystery), and a $15 Amazon gift card. WWW.LizSchulte.COM

Today I feel silly. I feel feisty. I don't know if it's because I've been going to bed at 9pm these past few days, or if it's because as I'm getting older I'm slowly losing it. It's probably the latter of the two. But regardless, I'm wanting to write but have absolutely no idea what to share with you all today. What better way to write about nothing than to share with you some of my favorite useless facts. Facts that have been stored in my head, taking up space for no clear reason. I want to unload these useless facts on you, so sit down and just enjoy them! <-- Wow, that sounds awfully pushy, don't it? Well . . . not my intention, let's be happy shall we? Click on, my friends, and learn a thing or two that you may not already know! :) <-- Yeah, that's my lame attempt at a smile . . .

Let me ask you, are you guilty of thinking like these scenarios:

1. Your friend works at a call center. You think, with a roll of your eyes, 'Her job is so easy! All she does is answer the phone all day and transfer the calls. How hard is that?'

2. Your father comes home exhausted. You can't understand why, he's just an electrician! Despite the risks in his career,  you don't think it's particularly physical. You think, 'All he does is connect wires all day, what's so physical about that?'

3. Your sister is complaining to you about her day; she's a stay at home mom of three kids under the age of ten. You work over 40 hours, have 2 kids in school, and have to drive over 30 minutes to and from work. You think, 'Why the heck is she complaining? She is so lucky she gets to stay home and play all day. I'd never complain if I got to stay home all day!'

What do you do when you find out your family isn't your family, death is knocking at your door, and that guy you can't stop thinking about knows more about who you are than you do? Amelia Hoffman was just a normal 15-year-old until she found out the truth. Now ancient myths, supernatural beings, and murder have changed everything. Tests and school dances are no longer the biggest worry in her life-- she has to figure out how to save everyone she loves and accept the future in front of her before its too late.