Category: Guest Posts

Guest Posts

A Single Mom’s Guide to Raising a Happy, Healthy and Safe Family.

jacquelineobyikocha10 Comments

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Raising kids by yourself is a lot of hard work but it’s doable. To overcome the stress, anxiety, and challenges that come with it, you need to have a lot of patience and the right strategies. Here are some ideas a single mom can use to keep her family safe and healthy.

Get A Work That Fits Your Family

As a single mom, it’s essential that you have a steady source of income for the family. This, however, shouldn’t be at the expense of your kids or your relationship with them. Even though you have work, you still need to make time for them.

One of your best options is to find a job that can let your work from home. There are tons of online platforms you can send your application to. If being home based isn’t an option, then you should consider reaching out to your present company and ask if you can be given a more flexible working schedule.

Ensure Your Kids’ Protection

If you worry about leaving your kids at home alone, then getting a security system is a must for you. A surveillance system is one of the most effective ways you can ensure their complete protection at home.

In selecting the right system for your family, it’s best that you consider its price, features, and coverage. You want to find a system that fits the budget but doesn’t come short when it comes to protection. If you are living in a rented space, there are a lot of DIY systems you can choose from. Most of them don’t come with high price tags and can be conveniently taken wherever you go.

Read reviews first and talk to some of your friends to get an idea of what type of system they are using and how it’s helping them out. Do not sign up with any company without doing any research and background check.

Spend Quality Time with Your Kids

Being physically present with your kids isn’t enough; you also must know what’s going on with them. Quality time doesn’t always have to be expensive. You can cook their favorite food for dinner, take them out for a short walk to the park or spend a night watching their favorite movies with them.

You should also make it a point to ask what concerns them or if they are having any problems at school. Encourage your kids to be open as much as possible so that they won’t feel the need to keep secrets from you. It’s also helpful if you can get to know their friends and the people they spend most of their time with. Since technology is easily accessible these days, monitoring your kids’ smartphones for any dangerous app is essential, too.

Have Patience

Raising your kids alone can be a daunting task. There will be times where you’ll get annoyed, stressed and even frustrated. If you feel this happening to you, try to engage yourself in some form of relaxation techniques. Deep breathing is one of the easiest technique you can do since it requires no equipment or special tools.

It’s also a good idea to get into meditation daily or you can try exercising. You can try Yoga since it relaxes both mind and body. Starting off with 10 to 20 minutes a day can set you on the right track. You can also try running. It’s a good exercise to improve your mood and thought process.

Know Your Limitations

As a single parent, you should expect tons of work and tasks to finish. This, however, doesn’t mean that you must do it on your own. One of the most common reasons why single parents easily get burnt out is because they feel overwhelmed with their responsibilities.

Don’t be afraid to reach out to your family and friends to ask for help or when you want to vent out. You should also go out occasionally and treat yourself as a reward for your hard work. Going to a salon or treating yourself to a pampering night with at-home spa products can ease your stress and rejuvenate you for the next day.

Andy Cho writes from  www.topsecurityreview.com/blog/, where they share resources and tips with consumers who are ready to take action in setting up reliable home security whether it is through a company or doing it themselves.

Guest Posts

Connecting With Jeanette Hall. A Personal Interview

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If there’s something that holds me spellbound to blogging is the immense connection that is possible in this space. Every day, I meet and interact with new people to such a large extent that I literally want to meet a whole lot of them outside the blogosphere. Today, Jeanette allows us to know more about her and I am truly honoured that she granted such a candid interview.

Thank you, Jeanette, I laughed, sighed, cried, felt sad and angry reading this unedited interview 🙂

 

A Bit About Me

Have been rotating the universe on the 3rd rock for over 42 long years. Was born in Sparta Illinois Community Hospital several weeks overdue, because I was smart enough not to want to meet my father! Was tucked up as backward as I could get in my mom’s belly. Had a fat head that had to be cut out! Caused both of my two little brothers to be born via cesarean as well, because back then once you delivered one that way your other kids had to be born the same way.Jeanette Hall Picture

Lived in the Marissa area (half way between St. Louis, MO and Carbondale, IL) in a farm house on Route #4 in IL. For the first 16 years of my life. Had a great apple tree (didn’t produce any decent apples, but I used to hide up in its branches when I got old enough to reach the bottom branch!

The fact that I was a female, when the doctor had told my mom I was a male pissed my father off. I was the first female born on my father’s side about in a century. I was released from the hospital a few days before my mom came home. The first night I spent at home, my father is reported to have given me my first spanking because I was crying!

Was reading by myself by the time I was about three years old. Learned the truth about Santa Claus by reading the funny papers over at my father’s parent’s house.  Mom used to read the poem “Twas the Night Before Christmas” to me before I went to bed each night. She thought she could cut through it faster by trying to leave parts of the story out until I corrected her telling her the rest of the story word for word in protest. So she had to find a different book to read to me!

Started kindergarten at the wise old age of 4 years old. Mom made me wear a dress that day (went to class each morning by riding the school bus (had a great bus driver who I became good friends with him and his wife)). Was too short to reach the bottom step of the bus, so either my mom or the driver would have to physically pick me up so I could climb on! My father saw me wearing a dress and for some sick reason, he was turned on by a little child’s body.

He started sodomizing me when he had no luck trying to cut me down below in my private parts to force my body to accept him in me. He had flunked out of college in pursuit of a veterinarian’s  diploma. So we all became his little experiments. Thankfully, he had enough knowledge from working with animals to know how to hide the scars that would usually form from cuts and other types of visible abuse. So he continued sodomizing me on a regular basis.

Once I started having my periods (you know the normal female problem that involves discharging blood every so often) it occurred to him that I must be big enough now! So he began to rape me whenever he could get me alone. He used a condom, but this started to make him dip into his personal supply for use with my mom, so he tried to have mom take me to my doctor to get me on the “pill” that would stop the chance of me becoming pregnant. I refused to visit the doctor because the doctor kept telling me all my problems were in my head (been having symptoms of my multiple sclerosis since grade school). So never went on the pill.

My grandfather on my father’s side fell off the roof of our hay shed at the main farm and damaged his legs extremely bad. Was at my church’s youth group’s Christmas party at church when my mom showed up early to pick me up, because I would have to help with milking. (Had never milked a cow in my life!) Thankfully all our animals are extremely tame, I used to be able to stand at the edge of the gates to the milking parlor and call them in for milking each night. Sometimes there would be stragglers who ignored me, but that just meant I got to go out for a stroll in the pasture lands to get them. One might have delivered a calf out there unexpectedly or an animal might have scared them like a coyote or fox, who knew what was going on in their minds?

So I went home with her to change clothes (had to get out of my good clothes and put on my work clothes) put on my rubber boots and went with mom to our main farm to do our afternoon chores.
Called the cows in for milking. Mom ran the cleaning cycles in the milking parlor to sanitize the pipes before milking. My brothers fed the older calves in the lower area while I handled the baby calves who had to be bottle fed. So had to wait for my father to actually get out of whatever he was up to at the time, so we could start milking.

Thankfully, it was not too cold out yet! Since the heater in the barn was not very good at keeping the cement building warm. Had to wash each animal’s udder to remove all the dirt and manure from them. Dip each clean teat in a chemical sanitizing dip. Then had to get the milk flowing from the teat by hand before placing the milking machine on it. (For the record, contrary to the kids on the school bus claim being able to do that is NOT an advantage when dealing with the opposite sex!) Grip required to strip (that is what getting the milk flowing is called) a cow’s teat is way too strong and tight for a male to endure! So this began my start to milking cows twice a day EVERY day began.

We had a hired hand that had been my unofficial adopted big brother since early  grade school named Jeff. He had Sundays off. So I was stuck being introduced to the process of milking by the man that terrified me! Was a VERY LONG two and a half hours. Made it through intact. Was cursed out several times, but words hurt less than his fists.

Started driving on farm property when I was around 12 years old. My grandpa was short too, so there was already blocks on the truck’s brake and gas pedals. By the time I turned 14 was driving on public roads (the local state police officer knew about it, his only comment was that I was probably better than most of the local drunks driving on the roads in our area!).

So since the next day was Monday (no school because of Christmas break) still had to get up at 4:30 AM for morning milking. Hadn’t had to do that before on days we had no school. Normally got to sleep until around 7 in the morning. Once I and my father got dressed he drove us over to the main farm for morning milking. I got the cows in while he got the pipes cleaned before we could milk. Jeff was due in at 6 to help.  At least when Jeff took over he changed the radio station to something besides ancient country music! Like most people I enjoy a variety in my musical tastes. A little AC/DC never hurt anyone! (Down the road Jeff and I would do a little experiment, the cows actually produced better with rock music as opposed to country music! Not sure why, but it is worth noting.) Once my father came in from eating breakfast (at his parents just across the driveway) he sent me in to eat mine. When I was finished went back out to help clean up the barn from milking.

As the winter wore on, I ended up catching a case of pneumonia from being in the poorly heated barn with a wet shirt from it getting soaked while cleaning the animal’s udders. This became a yearly event for me as long as I resided in the state.

Between my Junior and Senior year in High School, we traded houses with my father’s parents. So now we lived on our main farm, where the dairy parlor resided. This meant I was ALWAYS at work! Never got to go home after work. My grandparents modified our old house and chopped down my apple tree!

Love innocent animals and young kids over the age of 4 years old. Enjoy helping others learn how to do things. Dislike my father, for obvious reasons.

A Bit About My Blog

My blog is Saint P. Blogging. Since I reside in Saint Paul that is where the name comes from. Dislike the way our city is entered into various electronic devices (the whole G.P.S. phenomenon) it wants you to fully spell out the Saint. When filling out government paperwork you have to fully write out both words. So I chose to spell out saint (which I AM NOT!) and shorten Paul to the first letter. My purpose has changed so many times (am female, after all!). Originally was supposed to help make money through a program called GVO (STAY FAR AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY!) Wasted several thousand dollars we didn’t have with them. Then I tried affiliating with S.F.I. This time was smart enough not to waste any money on the company. Which might be why I never made a clipped penny with them. They claim it is possible to make money without an investment, but after sticking with them for several years logging on each day and following their suggestions, never made a dime. So now, I just blog!

Try to help other people with my blogging. Have taken as many free classes as I can from WordPress and other companies. My goal is to teach other people how to blog if they have a passion for writing like I have had since early grade school. Also, I write about living with chronic diseases. Am fortunate enough not to be cursed with Fibromyalgia like several of my friends are, or any type of diabetes like my mom has or several of my other friends suffer from.

I have several blogs:

Here is my About page from one:
Hallenterprises
Here is one I haven’t touched in a while:
Blogjob.com
Here is another I started posting on last month:
Niume.com

My main blog is here:

SaintPblogging.com

Went to college at Southwest Missouri State University on a scholarship my writings had helped win for me.  Between my Sophomore and Junior year of college met a guy.  We started dating.  Asked him to marry me before my senior year of college began.  He flat out turned me down! He wanted to ask my father’s permission first.  Told him if he asked my father, I would not marry him.  If he wanted my family’s permission he should ask my mother’s father.  So when we traveled back to IL we went to my grandparents for Sunday lunch like normal.  After we ate asked grandma to come sit in the front room with me to give my boyfriend a chance to speak with grandpa.  Jason came into the front room after a while full of smiles .  Grandpa had given him his blessings provided he promised to take care of me for the rest of my life!  We got married the day after my college graduation.  Was a long weekend!  That was way back in December of 1995.  Been together ever since!

Jason is actually 6 foot 3 inches tall to my 5 feet 1 inch.  We are sort of a funny looking couple back when I could still walk.  Came up to his elbows.  We would go investigating the caves of southern Missouri.  I had no problem getting in them, but he occasionally would hit his head from not paying attention.

Loved going caving, even though am claustrophobic.  As long as he was there, felt safe.

Another thing he had to promise my grandpa was that I would finish college before we got married.  That is why the wedding was the day after graduation!  See my mom married my father before completing college.  She never went back until I started taking courses at the through the local college while still in high school.  I was her live-in tutor.  Never gave her answers, just explained how to find the answers in a way she understood.  (Algebra terrified her.  So I worded the problems like she was just altering a recipe.  She was a great cook, so just put her on familiar territory.)  She ended up getting an A+ in algebra.

Motivation and Challenging Moments

I love writing since I was little! My parents told me it was a waste of time, so I destroyed my earlier works, Then I entered junior and senior high school  – small town graduating class, a number of 34. Started writing reports and essays that took 1st place every time. Saved them to help me later in my college career.  Upon graduation from high school was the Salutatorian (the one who received valedictorian cheated on her chemistry finals, or I would have won it).

It is just another daily habit for me!

When my site was hacked was a challenging moment. Had to get my hosting company to restore the site from back 4 weeks earlier. Lost a lot of work over that mess. Now I personally back up my site every other day!  Live and Learn!

YES!! I would encourage anyone to blog because everyone has something to add to the world. They may know something the rest of us don’t know. They might be the next best selling author! They just have to pick up the pencil or type on a keyboard like I do to let it out where we can read it.

A Typical Day Spent With Mejason-picture

Get up each morning when the alarm on my cell phone goes off if I did not wake up before it went off like normally happens.  Go use the bathroom and change my underwear (you said you wanted to know what I do…)  Then go back in the bedroom to make sure my husband gets up and moving. Get dressed for the day.  Venture out into the front room to put my daily pill case on the arm of my recliner, make sure the humidifier still has plenty of water in it.  Then head into the kitchen,  Get my morning breakfast shake out of the refrigerator.  Head back to my recliner.  Turn the morning news on the television (Mon. – Fri.).  Take my asthma medicine.  rinse my mouth out with water afterward by swishing the water around then swallowing it.  Take the rest of my medicines (I am still able to swallow pills thankfully!) The weather report should have been on and over with by the time I am finished.  Go water and feed my demon, devil cat named Dash.  (Humane society in Hastings named him Dash.  He earned the rest of his many nicknames!)  P.I.T.A. is one (Pain In The…You get the idea)  He was adopted back at the end of 2010 after my cat Tennyson passed away.

Back in 1997 while we lived up in Lombard, IL following my job we adopted 2 kittens from the Downers Grove Humane society. Mine was jet black with 5 solitary white hairs. Tennyson His looked like Sylvester from the Looney Toon’s cartoons. The 2 animals journeyed with us through all our moves. From Lombard, we moved to Colorado in 1998. First to a crappy apartment. Eventually, we tried purchasing our first house at 1717 S. Mobile Street, Aurora, CO. It was on a cul-de-sac. The neighbor directly across the street had a girl and a little autistic boy. The girl came over to use our computers and I taught the little boy how to write on snow with a squirt gun filled with water colored with food coloring during the winter. During the summer had the kids decorate our driveway with the colored chalk I gave them. Had the boy practice writing his letters where he could easily erase them by washing them off. Lived there until 2004.

When my husband decided we had to move to WI to try buying a bar. Mind you I am a recovering alcoholic and he will occasionally drink a little.  (He is not a mean alcoholic, or he would have gotten the crap knocked out of him.  We both took Taekwondo  classes while we were dating.)  That disaster ended with us filing for bankruptcy and me calling a friend to say goodbye for the last time since I was planning on committing suicide.

Her husband called to local police where we were currently living.  Was in the process of getting the medicines lined up that I planned on overdosing with when I heard a knock on the front door.  Figured it was a stranded driver on the highway on which we were living, so I answered the door.  Turned out to be a state policeman coming to take me to a mental lockup because I was considering suicide.  Took years for our marriage to recover from that evil place.  We left there after living there only 8 L–O–N–G months.  We retreated with our tails figuratively between our legs to live in my deceased grandparents on my mother’s side of the family’s house.  We spent over a year there with my father having keys to our place of residence.  As soon as we had accumulated enough money we returned to Missouri where we had met and married .  His cat passed away while we lived there.  Lasted about a year there before Jason decided he hated the city so we relocated to Hastings MN.   Lived in that non-handicap accessible HADES for around 7 years.  Tennyson, my cat passed away there back in November 2010.  We adopted the cat that I have lots of names for at the end of December 2010.

Guest Posts

Meet Mick Canning – Story Teller, Writer and Photographer Par Excellence

jacquelineobyikocha11 Comments

I love to interact a lot with my male counterparts in this space because I glean so much from their intelligent discourse and inspiring posts. Mick has been a supportive friend in here and I appreciate his acceptance to grant us a view into his life.

Thank you,  Mick and I wish you all the best with your endeavours.

Bits About Mick 

About me? Gosh, I’m not that keen on talking about me, although I’m aware that I should be a lot better at it than I am since this is the sortportrait1 of thing I get asked at, well, interviews! A native of the UK, I’ve spent a number of years working abroad, mostly in the Middle East, and generally traveling, particularly in the Indian subcontinent. I’ve always been a bit of an artist, writing and painting on and off for most of my life, but since my first visit to India, I found that both the writing and painting has been largely focused there.

Otherwise, I make a tenuous living as an outdoor activities instructor, especially climbing, although as I get older and my back gives me more problems, I find that I am looking forward more and more to retirement from that.

I like a quiet life, which is probably why I am drawn to writing rather than, say, night clubs and politics, although the things that get me fired up are injustices. I try to avoid controversy on my blog posts, but I’m sure that it does come through at times. I do care passionately about the environment, hate all forms of discrimination and intolerance, and cannot understand why anyone of any gender or race can be considered as inferior to any others.

I try to be a positive person, but when I read the papers or hear the news it seems difficult.

A bit about my blog

I started the blog a little over a year ago, being persuaded that it was the thing to do if I was to promote the novel that I was then working on. I’m not, as I’ve mentioned already, all that keen on talking about myself, and up until recently, I’ve regarded blogs as rather narcissistic self-indulgences. While there are obviously a few like that, I’ve been delighted to discover that there are (naturally) a whole range of blogs out there and that the majority are both interesting and informative.

I had assumed, at first, that all my posts would be about my book or at least my writing, but quite quickly it seemed to morph into a mixture of posts on writing, travel, a little about my other artistic endeavours (such as painting), a few slightly political pieces, and, naturally, a few pieces about myself. This wasn’t particularly intentional, and certainly not planned that way. Naturally, some of them I was more pleased with than others, and some generated much more interest from readers than others – certainly not always the ones that I expected to! A slightly random selection:

The Mad Woman of the Hill Station

Nepal – Everest Region

And finally, a couple of months ago I published a post about why I sometimes stopped following blogs, never anticipating the huge interest it would generate:

Oh heavens, why on earth did I follow that blog?

Having been blogging now for over a year, I am now hooked on it! I think that the best thing about it, for me, is that after I had been blogging for a while, I discovered that I had become part of a community.

On staying motivated

Motivation is quite easy, actually. I usually find I have something I want to say, and a blog post is just the right length for what I want to write. In my case, somewhere around 1000 words seems adequate, which is about the length of blog post that I am also comfortable reading. Anything much longer, and I find I am put off. Perhaps this is because I also follow a lot of blogs, and to see one that is several thousand words long makes me avoid reading it. There just isn’t time!

I do keep a notebook, naturally, as all writers do. And I have maybe a dozen unfinished blog posts at any one moment, so when I feel a little stuck, I can go to one of those.

A little down but more ups

That’s a difficult one! We all have times when we feel that, despite everything, we can’t think what to write. But so far, the blogging journey has been a pretty smooth one.

As for my other writing, I think the worst thing is when I have been working on a story for a long time and I read it back and have the sudden epiphany; ‘this is complete rubbish!’

Would you encourage others to blog?

Absolutely! Next question?

A day spent with Mick

Oh dear, there’s no such thing as a typical day. If I don’t have any outdoor work, and as a freelancer that happens quite a lot, then I declare the day a writing day. This means that I begin by catching up with blogs I follow, perhaps posting a new one myself (I try to post twice a week, but it is a bit flexible!), which might take from an hour or so up until lunchtime. Afterwards, I would try to work on my novel, or perhaps on a short story, for the rest of the afternoon. I usually try to go for a walk at some point, often to try to resolve sticking points in my stories. I find I think best that way.005-1

To distract me, of course, are all those little jobs that we all have to do. Everything from housework (my wife has regular work, so I do a certain amount during the week) to shopping, and then, of course, we all have family to see. I can usually rely upon the cats to distract me regularly, too. They seem to think they should be fed at least once an hour.

The future and beyond

I’ve had the blog for just over a year, now, and am quite happy with the way it is going. Without any real effort by me, the number of followers is regularly rising and I’m not yet experiencing any difficulty thinking of topics to post about. I do have plans to add a few extra pages so that I can put in extra pictures and details on various topics, but I’m in no rush!

As for my other writing, I’m currently working on a new novel, after publishing my first one earlier this year; Making friends with the Crocodile, which is set in Northern India and explores how women are treated by society there. I’m delighted that although I have not sold a huge number of copies – it is available as a print on demand paperback as well as Kindle on Amazon, and now an e-book on Kobo – I have had some lovely and generous reviews for it. Unfortunately, the POD book is not currently available in India, but I am now speaking to an Indian publisher with a view to releasing it there in a few weeks.

My new novel is also set in India, but this time in a fictitious hill station in the Himalaya.

Thank you for hosting me today, Jacqueline.

making-friends-with-the-crocodile

Guest Posts

Bernadette is a friend to have in this place. She’s a lovely, smart, warm and totally inspiring woman.

jacquelineobyikocha12 Comments

I follow a lot of bloggers and interact with most of them as often as I can, but in this blogging journey, there are some people who you connect with and you see the beauty of their soul shine through their work. I read Bernadette’s posts every week and I never leave empty handed.

Her thoughts are enriching and uplifting. She’s supportive of her blog friends and to take it further, she and I (with other volunteers) are starting off ‘Writers Quote Series,’ this November.

Bernadette is a friend to have if you are not following her already. Please check out Haddon’s Musings, join the 52 weeks of thankfulness series or the senior salon 🙂

Thank you, my lady, for granting this interview. I appreciate you and wish you all the best in getting that publication done.

Hello, my name is Bernadette and I blog at www.HaddonMusings.com. Jacqueline has very kindly invited me for this interview.bernadette

My entire marriage my husband has told me I was a writer and encouraged me to sit down and take out the pen and put it to paper. I always demurred and explained to him and there are readers and there are writers and being an avid reader does not make a person a writer. But then about four years ago during my morning walk, I started to feel a need to express my appreciation for all the beauty my small village holds.

So I started to write about Haddonfield and its citizens. Hence the name HaddonMusings. Surprisingly, I became confident in my writing and was fascinated by the fact that anyone would possibly be interested in my scribbles. As I started to meet these fascinating bloggers from all over the world, my blog became wider in scope.

One of the outcomes of meeting so many people was I became curious about how many bloggers were of my generation. I wanted to see and read about their creative journey during the aging process. So, I actively sought out people over the age of 50 and formed a regular column called the Senior Salon.

At the Salon, I have been able to form a warm community of people who are doing many different and fascinatingly creative things during these bonus years. It has been my great pleasure to watch them interact with each other and form new relationships.

Three years ago my granddaughter was born and this led to a rekindling of my feminist ideals. I want her to know about the true strength of being a feminist. I want her to know that a woman can be whatever she wants and she doesn’t have to be strident or dislike men in order to do that. So, I started writing my regular feature called Feminist Friday. I have really enjoyed doing the research for these columns and I have been gratified by the number of woman of every age from all over the world that have supported this project.

This year I started writing another regular feature called 52 Weeks of Thankfulness. I am writing this in response to all the negativity and acrimony that I am encountering on a daily basis in my country. My hope is by refocusing attention to the good in the world, I can help eradicate the rampant negativity.

Jacqueline asks how I keep myself motivated. My motivation comes from reading so many other fabulous blogs and wondering if I can, as a writer, achieve the same quality of writing.

My Muse – Haddonfield

Jacqueline wanted me to share my most challenging moment during this blogging journey. I know that my biggest challenges when I started blogging was learning the etiquette of blogging. I had two very nasty encounters with long-time bloggers’ due to the fact that I didn’t understand the etiquette of this format. If you are just starting out, I would strongly suggest learning those rules quickly.

And yes, Jacqueline, I would very much encourage others to blog. Circling back to the Senior Salon, I think that blogging is a splendid creative outlet and as we age it become more and more important to find new creative enterprises in which to participate. Creativity is important for the mind and the spirit.

Jacqueline asks what is my next goal in blogging and I would say that I have a great desire to publish an online journal featuring the work of my peer group. From the research that I have done so far, the last time a journal featuring the creativity of the senior population was printed was back in the late 1960’s. It seems to me that such a publication is long overdue for resurrection.

Thank you, Jacqueline, for this opportunity.

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Guest Posts

Sublime Scars – From Kavita Chavda

jacquelineobyikocha1 Comment

Displaying sublime scars.jpg

She loved moonlight, raindrops and

the beauty of nature around the fields of crops

and as other things that have soul

because she often feels the universe’s call.

All her scars shined bright in the moonlight

when universe asked about her ugly scars.

The things she could not reveal

to anybody but herself

because she bleeds in colours

that this world does not understand.

They said, understand soul?

Soul with ugly scars?

She said it’s the

soul that reveals love.

Soul that reveals purity.

After the years of pleading,

purity of the soul finally shined

under the moonlight

with love shred like raindrops.

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I am Kavita Chavda from India. I am an Introvert at heart, a writer by passion, an engineer by profession, a philosopher, a counselor, a dreamer and an over-thinker. I love relationships at soul-level. Writing is my passion and I talk my heart out through writing. According to me, words are the greatest invention of mankind! They create magic. They make us relive moments. They take us to places we’ve never been.

My blog ‘Playing with Words’ is all about these enchanting words that in some or the other way relates to all of our lives.

You can connect with me on my blog WriteKavita

out-of-the-silent-breath 2

Guest Posts

Meet Robin Baldwin and Her Gorgeous Family

jacquelineobyikocha24 Comments

I simply love getting to know folks better in this space. I keep thinking that one day in the near future, there’ll be a facetime opportunity to meet with all those whom I’ve connected with over these past months of blogging.

When you interact with someone for a while their warmth seeps through their words and Robin is one of the lovely souls I have been interacting with in this space and I believe in connecting my friends. Please, I implore you to take a bit of time to visit her blog and say hello.

Thank you, dear Robin, for sharing bits of you with us 🙂Image result for images to thank you flower

 

 

 

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A bit about me

My name is Robin Baldwin. I was born and raised in Southern California, where I still live. I have a Bachelor’s degree in business and a Master’s degree in mass communication. I am a senior manager at IEEE Computer Society and have worked there for 21 years.

I have been married for 19 years to my amazing husband, Michael. He is a wonderful life partner and father to our daughters.

I am a Christian and believe in the power and beauty of God. I converted to being Catholic about a year after my daughters were baptized at our church. So spirituality is an important theme in my poetry.

I try to have a positive outlook on life whenever possible. I treat others like I want to be treated and I always want the underdogs to win.

A bit about my blog

On my blog, you will find thoughts, mostly poems, about what’s going on in my life through the views of the various roles I assume in any given moment: mom of twins, wife, daughter, friend, manager, woman, spiritual seeker.

I’ve written poetry on and off throughout the years since I was a teenager. In the last several years I’ve been busy working and parenting, but lately, I’ve found small windows of opportunity to write. It has made me want to write more, so I decided to start a blog as a creative outlet.

I have been amazed at the generous support and love this blogging community gives. It keeps me motivated to keep writing.

One of my initial poems for my blog is at https: My Table

I also write a lot about my daughters, so this is my most recent post about when my husband and I decided to let our twins room in separate rooms for their class field trip: These Girls

How I keep motivated with blogging

I keep writing about the things that matter most to me. Seeing the likes, comments, and follows really helps!

What’s your most challenging moment in your blogging journey so far?

None so far and Yes, I would totally encourage others to blog! Especially if you ever wondered if you have what it takes to be a writer. The feedback from this wonderful WordPress community is empowering.

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My typical day

I am up by 6:30 am to get ready for the day. Then I wake up my girls up and get them going for school. I take them to school and then go to work. I usually have several meetings each day either with my team or with colleagues to discuss various projects we’re working on.

After work, I meet up with my family at home where we have dinner together (my husband is the cook and makes fabulous meals!). While the girls finish homework, my husband and I try to catch up on each other’s days.

In the near future

I don’t have any specific plans for my blog other than to continue to keep nurturing it by posting at least a couple of times per week, visiting other blogs, and participating in blog parties like the ones you host each month.

However, my next goal in writing is to submit to poetry publications. And, now that I think about it, some day in the future I might publish a book of my poetry.

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Guest Posts

Robert Doyle. The Charming, Talented and Wonderful Blogger Friend of Mine.

jacquelineobyikocha8 Comments

There’s something to say about a man who loves and has good taste in music and that’s what I first noticed when I met Robert in this space.

His posts not only give you a glimpse of the beautiful soul of the man behind the blog, they are equally rich in knowledge and the way he spins his posts around selected soundtracks is just awesome. He simply doesn’t spin just any vibes, but the post always reaches in and grasps me and leaves me better for it.

I’ve enjoyed following Robert since we connected over a year ago. Thank you, Robert, for taking the time to answer my intruding questions. I appreciate your friendship and support.

A Bit About Robert

My name is Robert Doyle, and I live in New York City along with my wife Jennifer, and our two cats. I grew up in and around the NY area and had a normal life with my parents and two older sisters. In college, my major was Foreign Affairs, which explained why after college I worked for 14 years in a Garden Center and Plant Nursery! In terms of likes, I love photography, baseball, and hanging out with good friends. In terms of dislikes, I dislike how difficult it is to find a meaningful and good paying job these days. I have dreams…but it’s tough. My general outlook on life is to always find something to smile or laugh about. There is always something silly or funny (even in the darkest moments) on the surface, and it helps to remember that.

Soundtrack Of A Photograph and it’s purpose

My blog is called Soundtrack Of A Photograph, and it explores the connection between my own photography and the music I love.When I started it almost three years ago I was having a bit of a personal crisis. I wasn’t happy with a lot of things, and I saw a video on Vimeo about some guys who made a documentary about a remote island. I read their story and thought…why didn’t I push myself to do those sorts of things. I had scrapped an earlier attempt at a blog a few months before, because after writing it, I realized there was no hook to it. So I took a day off from work, got out of my apartment, and sat in a coffee shop doing some research and writing things down. I decided to write my passions down on paper to help guide me. At the top of the list were music and photography, my true passions. A few moments later I had defined it as ‘soundtrack’ and ‘photograph’ and the blog was born!

I had no set goals in mind when I started, other than hoping that people would like it and that my concept made sense and would draw people in. The long form description of my blog is- Have you ever looked at a still photograph you have taken and had a song pop up in your head? Something that fits the mood of the photo, the season, or maybe even the weather? Just like with a movie soundtrack, I think music can really fit nicely with a still photo.

As to the blogging phenomenon itself, the reason I think it still is vibrant and growing is because unlike other social media, you really interact in a more meaningful way with a blog. So much goes into a blog, be it a travel, cooking, photography, or lifestyle blog that you tend to take your time when reading it. Blogs are a way to slow down this fast paced, short attention spanned World, and it is a big reason why I continue to do it.

My Blogging Experience

It has been wonderful, interacting with fellow bloggers from all over the world in a big shared community. Stats are great of course, but I’m more tickled by the fact that my posts have been read by people in over 80 countries now. It’s the coolest thing to know that someone in Guyana liked something I wrote. Or Norway, or Argentina. It doesn’t matter. The meaningful conversations I have not only on my own posts, but by so many others is perhaps the best thing. Its hard to pick a favorite post..I think of them all as ‘my babies’ but here are a few-

The Soundtrack of A Photograph – My First One

The Vinyl Edition

The Greenlands

Soundtrack of a photograph, Part 12

Motivating Myself To Keep The Blog Going

This is a tough one. Because of the dual nature of my blog; music and photography, I get stuck sometimes. I might have some great photos I want to show, but I can’t find the right musical match for it. Or I have an artist I really want to feature, but don’t know how to accomplish that with my photos. What has helped is to continue to take photos. All the time. Even of the most simple things because I found I never know where the inspiration will come! That is the big reason why I always keep my camera with me if I can now.

My Challenging Moment So Far

I think this was probably when I wrote a 4 part autobiographical series called My Four Seasons. It was a massive amount of work, and I wrote it while we were in the process of moving. I had spent the previous year photographing trees using a new technique. I realized I had these shots in all four seasons, and decided to use them as ‘markers’ to describe my seasons of life-spring for birth, summer for growth, fall for change, winter for a decline. Aside from the writing and layout work, the actual emotion behind the writing, about my youth, the worst period of my life, and then the happiness of meeting my wife was an emotional and exhausting journey. But it was still worth it!

My Typical Day

Oh! A typical day for me starts with an early morning run, which depending on if it’s a work day or not might be anywhere from 3-6 miles at the moment, though I want to get back up to 10. Then a cup of that magical elixir coffee, before I hop on the subway to go to work, where I typically read the newspaper, and then whatever book I’m reading while listening to music. After work, or on the weekends, I like to meet my wife for dinner and a drink or to sit out on our little balcony and watch the world go by. In between any of these moments, I may spend time thinking, or actually writing a new blog.

Going Forward

I am currently planning on a few options which are all directly related to my blog posts. One is that I have been urged by several people to produce my own photo book. I have massive self-doubt about my work, yet I know people do enjoy my work, so I do plan to have this happen some day.

I also am thinking of using the My Four Seasons idea and combining some of my other posts to become My Musical Autobiography. Key moments of my life, defined by the music that means the most to me. In some cases, I will expand my existing posts, or trim them back, but writing a book has been probably my number one bucket list item, and after three years of writing over 100 posts and thousands of words, I think I have a good head start!

A Word To Others

I absolutely encourage others to blog. If you have passion, you should blog. Be it music, cooking, poetry, travel, crafting…whatever. If you are passionate, you should blog!

Thank you so much, Jacqueline. I feel deeply honored to have been selected by you for this.

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Guest Posts

Have you met delightful, warm Brigid? You Should!

jacquelineobyikocha12 Comments

The wealth that you receive in life is that which society entrusts you with and can only come from friends. Each day, I’m thankful for discovering the beauty of blogging, it not only gave a voice to speak but gives me friends like Brigid whose succinct words come enriched with soothing wisdom.

Thank you, Brigid, for your support and for letting us get to know you some more.

A bit about me

Greetings from County Donegal in the north-west corner of Ireland.  My name is Brigid and I moved here in 1999 after living in Scotland for 44 years.  I have had an “interesting” career path – I originally wanted to be a doctor but God had other plans!Displaying IMG_5428.JPG

Instead, I entered the world of Life Assurance working in the Actuarial and Life Underwriting departments before following my heart into a 20-year career in Natural Medicines.   I was a bit of a pioneer back then and fell into teaching which I really loved; I eventually set up a two-year training in healing skills and I also opened a healing centre and shop.

After the death of my father and the breakup of my marriage, I moved to Donegal – the home of my ancestors.

I retrained in Organic Horticulture in 2006 after a two-year hiatus due to a mystery illness which was eventually diagnosed as Fibromyalgia and autoimmune disease.  I taught Organic Horticulture in schools until recently.

About my Blog – Watching the Daisies. 

I started my blog as a social media platform for my book of the same name – “Watching the Daisies – Life Lessons on the Importance of Slow.”  I write to inspire others on their self-healing journey, particularly those who have a long-term illness. Slowing down has been one of my major Life Lessons – I used to be incredibly busy!

I am very proactive and I have shared many of my own self-healing tips in my posts such as:

https://watchingthedaisies.com/2016/08/31/walking-the-wild-atlantic-way/

I initially wrote posts on flower essences, Natural Medicines, and my personal healing journey but my blog is constantly evolving with new posts:

“Thought for Today” and “Small Steps Up Mountains” which includes links to other inspiring posts illustrating a SLOW route through life’s challenges.  I also link into Bernadette of www.haddonmusings.com weekly post on gratitude “52 Weeks of Thankfulness.”  I have kept a daily gratitude diary since the onset of my illness.

I am overwhelmed by the generosity of other bloggers and the incredibly supportive community on WordPress.

MOTIVATION

I find it easy to motivate myself to write my posts.  In fact, I look forward to creating them and to reading comments and likes.  I love to read other blogger’s posts and I am continually inspired by their wealth of creativity and ENORMOUS support .

MY MOST CHALLENGING MOMENT

I began my blog back in February while doing an online blogging course.  My posts took me a long time to write as I was working part time and my energy was low.  In April, I lost a dear friend – Danny and I wrote a post in his memory: For Whom The Bell Tolls

I lost a dear, dear friend on Thursday. His name was Danny; he played the guitar for our church choir and he helped me adjust to a new role, as the newest choir … For Whom The Bell Tolls

The shock of Danny’s death floored me and it was not until I had a mini break in Belfast to see Bryan Adams that I was able to pick myself up and post on a more regular basis.

Bryan Adams Rocks Belfast

I first saw Bryan Adams in Edinburgh on 20th February 1984, supporting Tina Turner on her “Private Dancer” Tour. On Wednesday last, I watched Bryan play live for the third time, in Belfast.

WOULD YOU ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO BLOG?

Definitely.  Blogging flexes your creative writing skills and is a huge platform for positive change.

MY TYPICAL DAY

I like to walk regularly, weather permitting!  I also love to spend time in my garden “pottering,” planting and admiring nature’s gifts.  I belong to a Women’s Shed that meets weekly, to learn crafting, photography, make up… and share in a bit of FUN.  I continue to enJOY singing in our church choir.  My favourite hymn is “Holy Night.”

I meditate morning and evening, I pray daily; I take things gently and listen to my body if it needs to rest.

NEXT STEP

I am really excited about promoting my book which is on target to be published in e-format on 14th November.  I am delaying publishing any hard copies until I monitor the response.

Thank you once again, Jacqueline, for this interview.

Blessings.

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Guest Posts

Getting to know Anna.

jacquelineobyikocha8 Comments

One thing that venturing into blogging has done for me, is the exposure to a plethora of beautiful, interesting and smart folks that I get to interact with such as Anna. I’ve followed Anna for some time now and one thing that strikes me is the conscientious effort, thought through information, and research that goes into her brilliant posts.

I’ve hinted to her that she has a wealth of experience that she can tap into and create a practical self-help handbook for Diabetes patients, from the standpoint of a person living with Diabetes. Well, we’ll just have to wait and see what time brings. Anna also happens to be one of my strategic partners in this place which in small words means a lot of support to me.

Thank you, Anna,for allowing me to poke my nose into your life a little 🙂

  • A brief introduction of yourself

Hi, my name is Anna; I’ve been a WordPress blogger for a year and a half now.  I was born & raised in what is Ukraine now; back in the day, it was USSR.  I have lived in the USA for a few decades. I am divorced and have two wonderful daughters; both graduated from OSU and live in Columbus, Ohio area.  Now I am happily divorced, although it wasn’t this way from the beginning.  But it is now; I’ve come a long way.

I have worked in the nursing field in both the old country and here in the USA.  Now that I am retired and on disability, I am trying to adjust to the changes in the scenery, so to speak, as well as to the studio living.  Things are so different when you don’t work anymore.

I like traveling, seeing sights, trying new food and meeting new people.  I dislike it when people have attitudes but generally get along with most everyone.  I enjoy being independent and take care of everything myself, DIY, crafts, selling on eBay, mastering my photo taking skills, and of course, writing.

  • Tell us about your blog and your purpose for starting it. How would you describe it? Did you have any set goals in mind when you were setting up your blog? What do you think about the blogging phenomenon itself?

I’ve been thinking about starting my blog for a while now.  Before that, I kept a diary but this was like writing in a vacuum.  I craved the audience, the comments, the feedback, the constructive criticism, and the whole nine yards to help me get on the right track.  What finally prompted me to start blogging, was a major life event when I was diagnosed with diabetes.  Initially, I was in shock but when this passed, I decided that the time has come to start blogging and registered with the WordPress.  The rest is the history.  

I have grown to be a big fan of blogging.  It helps to learn new things as well as thinking in a new way and sharing all this with my readers.  Spreading awareness when necessary.  Improving my writing skills which comes with practice.   I believe in the power of blogging, and love to capture life moments through printed words.  I derive satisfaction from knowing that my blogging articles provide help and inspiration.

  •  What has your blogging experience been like? Here, you can share some links of your top posts or blog posts that you particularly like with us.

Most of my posts are about type 2 diabetes, its complications. and related issues.  Prior to publishing a post, I always do a research on the subject.  Besides, I strive to write in a simple language that is easy to understand for those who are not in the healthcare field  and will avoid complicated medical terminology whenever possible.   

For example, last year I have blogged about describing Morning Highs which is a blood sugar spike that can occur in the morning hours to those having diabetes.   My goal was to demonstrate a connection between blood sugar levels and sleeping patterns.  I conducted a self-study that lasted a few days and involved checking blood sugar more often than I usually do as well as waking up in the middle of the night, then go back to sleep and up again in a few hours.  Keeping up with this sleeping pattern was inconvenient, to say the least, but I was determined to continue for the sake of my experiment.  Over a period of several days, I was able to establish a pattern that I graphed on Excel and included in my post.

https://comeinsitdown.wordpress.com/2015/06/19/my-self-study-of-morning-highs/

  • How do you motivate yourself to keep the blog going?

I have set up a folder on my computer, titled Unpublished.  It contains blogging ideas that I come across or happen to think about every once in a while.  This serves as a reminder of what I have to post and is a great motivator. I keep adding to it on nearly a daily basis so it becomes a long-term goal.  Pretty similar to what Obama calls rhymes-with-bucket list.  

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/em-and-lo/why-everyone-needs-a-rhymes-with-bucket-list_b_7156196.html

In addition, the feedback or comments from my readers are invaluable and present a great source of motivation as well as continuous learning.  Recently, a follower has requested that I write about sleep disorders, and I sure did. Here’s my first post on the subject.  https://comeinsitdown.wordpress.com/2016/09/23/five-stages-of-sleep-and-what-affects-them/   More to follow.  

  • What’s your most challenging moment in your blogging journey so far?

Realizing that exposing certain details of my life on a large blogging platform that WordPress is, makes me vulnerable.  There is always a possibility of being misunderstood or labeled.  But I am a doer and not a quitter.  

  •  Would you encourage others to blog?

Absolutely.  Blogging has lots of benefits to it.  It is a great way to voice your opinion and learn in the process while building your writing strength.  The more blogs you write, the more confidence you build to eventually be able to discuss them verbally.  

Last but not least, you can eventually start making money from blogging.  What can be better than working from home while doing what you enjoy?  You can blog in your pajamas.  

As Katherine Graham once said, “To love what you do and feel that it matters — how could anything be more fun?”

  • Take us with you on a typical day spent with you. Show us a bit of your World and yes we love photos of your pets if you’ve got any.

In my typical day, I do some driving around, grocery shopping, visit with friends, take photos or just walk in the street.  At home, I read books, listen to music, and watch videos whether from YouTube or my own DVDs.  After having “cut the cord”, no more cable TV.  Chores, cooking etc.  Then if one of my items is sold on eBay, will pack and ship it.   And of course, writing.  Or just sit there and do nothing.

  • What’s the next pit-stop for your blog’s outreach and publishing?  Any plans in the offing? You can also share some of your published works here.

I am still in the process of further polishing and improving my writing skills, especially working on writing introductions.  A good introduction is an integral part of a well-written blog.   

Once I am through with that, will likely consider hosting my blog, to enable it see more of the wide world and further expand the circle of my readers.  

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Guest Posts

Say Hello To The Beautiful, Smart Professor Kathy Garland.

jacquelineobyikocha16 Comments

This space has been a flourishing opportunity to meet with people from all walks of life and I find inspiration from each person whom I’ve interacted with.

They help me to grow in the mind and to push my self-progress envelope. My guest for today is Asst. Professor Kathy Garland.

Thank you, Kathy, for sharing bits about you with us. On the side, I smiled when I saw your book cover for ‘The Unhappy Wife’ which shows similar taste to mine ‘Out of the silent breath’ 🙂

Let’s get to know a bit about you.

Displaying kgarland.jpg

Hi, everyone! My name is Katherin Garland, but I write under the name K E Garland. I’ve taught high school English for ten years and post-secondary courses for fifteen years.

My most recent positions are at places like Georgia College and Florida State University. I’m currently an assistant professor teaching education courses at a community college in Florida while focusing on a writing career.

There are two concepts I live by:

1. Anything that you can think of can be actualized, and

2. What’s for you is for you and will always be revealed if you’re aligned with your passion and purpose.

Why blog? 

I began my blog when I wrote my first book, Kwoted. Like many authors, my editor suggested a platform was necessary. At first, my blog was just a place for me to house my quotes and hopefully sell a few books.

After a month, I realized that having a blog is about more than just creating a promotional space; it’s a community.

I was in awe of how many bloggers are here, writing about any and everything. Then, discouragement set in. I thought, Man, if there are so many people already here, then my voice might get lost.

It’s only after I participated in a few Blogging U classes, right here on WordPress that I began to get the gist of the blogosphere. Blogging really is about writing and sharing whatever your little heart desires while maintaining whatever you see as your niche.

After Blogging 101 and 201, I fine-tuned my purpose towards a more inspirational blog that includes authenticity through real stories and personal photography.

My blog is a place where people can come have a conversation about what they read and see.

I write about myself a lot, but the posts are not really about me, but rather some overarching theme. For example, Why I Refuse to Judge Any Mother is the first post I shared publicly. It includes feelings I’d harboured about my own mother, but it’s more focused on releasing judgment for those we call mom.

What’s your typical day like?

I’m not sure that I have a “typical” day and my Gemini self, likes it that way. However, my days are always structured. On any given day, you can find me doing the following:

Exercising: Five times a week, I either join a yoga class, run/walk a couple of miles or take a walk with my husband, Dwight.

Displaying kgarland_and_dwight.JPG

Meditating: Everyday I meditate on my balcony. If I’m pressed for time, then I take 5-10 minutes to get centred and focus on my breath. If I have more time, then meditations last at least 20 minutes. Sometimes, I do a guided meditation with Deepak and Oprah; they offer a 21-day free one every now and then.

Writing: My daily writing schedule consists of blog drafts, new projects (e.g., self-published books), contests, or publications. It depends on what I’ve decided for the day, but I make sure I write something, even if no one else will see it.

One month I decided to write each day and ended up writing an entire memoir. It’s saved somewhere safe until I feel the urge to publish it.

Teaching: Every semester, I teach five classes. Three of them are online, so that makes structuring the day a little easier for me.

The other two require a one and two-hour drive. On those days, I hop in my Honda Fit, turn on my Kanye West playlist and make my way towards educating future teachers.

Wifing/Mothering: As of September 21st, I will have been married 20 years. My husband and I know one another very well. Sometimes we spend massive amounts of time together, and other times, he’s watching Netflix, while I’m writing.

The same goes for my teenage daughters. Sometimes we hang out at the beach or the movies, and other times they’re closed up in their rooms on Snapchat, while I’m writing. However, every Sunday we eat together at 7:00 P.M. My youngest daughter came up with the idea ten years ago and we’ve kept it up ever since.Displaying kgarland_and_girls.JPG

For the past decade, my dog Rascal hung out with me during each of these activities. Unfortunately, I had to euthanize him in March. My post, simply titled, Rascal describes how difficult it was for me to release my beloved.Displaying rascal.jpg

As I continued to read advice from people like, Janice Wald, some posts were centred on offering advice and admiration for the blogging community. According to the stats, Three Reasons the Blogging Community is Better than Social Media is the one the WordPress community appreciated the most.

So, what plans do you have in the offing?

Right now, I’m doing a lot of marketing for my recently published book, The Unhappy Wife. It’s interesting because now that I have a platform, I don’t want to ruin my blogging relationships because I’m talking about my book all the time. You know? I don’t want to be that blogger.The Unhappy Wife by [Garland, KE]

There’s definitely a balance that I’m still in the process of figuring out. Other than my book, I’m maintaining inspirational posts based on photography and narratives. One of my goals is to connect with readers through my own raw and shared emotions. I always want readers to leave inspired to do something a little different or what I like to call #RethinkYourRhetoric. That’s what you can count on when you visit my blog, whether I’m marketing a book, or not.

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