Kimberly A. Cook

Military Romance Author

Kimberly A. Cook

Are You Retro Too?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                       (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

It’s official; I’m retro. Was shopping at Target the other day and happened upon this display of “retro” games. Hah! I dearly remember Candyland. And Twister, And Rock Em’ Sock Em’ Robots. But besides the fact I prefer the word vintage, I’ll go with retro. Sounds kind of cool.

Pretty sure this was a plot to addict me to candy for life. It worked!
Pretty sure this was a plot to addict me to candy for life. It worked!

I also noticed retro games are not necessarily cheap either. So maybe being retro is cool and expensive. According to the three pit crews it takes to keep me together, that is correct.

So in honor of the last days of August, I’m going to take my retro butt over to the couch for a nap and leave you all with games to ponder. What was your favorite game growing up? Do you still own it? Do you think they will make it retro too?

My friend Michelle loved Mystery Date and that summed up her social life until she met her husband. Me, I was more into the Clue game, still do love mysteries! Which also sums up my dating life.

This is what I need to do to get rid of the bingo wings on my arms. Not the game, in real life!
This is what I need to do to get rid of the bingo wings on my arms. Not the game, in real life!

Enjoy these August days of summer. I’ve noticed the summer morning light changing from yellow to a golden hue in the morning. I’m also watering the garden in the dark these days, which is a clue to the change of seasons.

Might just be time to stock up on some retro board games. Personally, I’m going to go dig out my vintage Yahtzee game. I’m in the mood to roll me some dice!

Let’s All Flip Potato Cakes On Saturday!

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by Kimberly A. Cook           (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

Tomorrow is Julia Child’s birthday. The woman who brought fun cooking to tv and an amazing French Cook Book to us all deserves our respect and imitation. You can watch many of her shows on YouTube, but I love this short clip  where she takes a normal kitchen muck-up and creates something new. Fearless in the kitchen she is!

We can all learn a lot from Julia. So tomorrow take a shot at being brave in the kitchen. Julia would want us to flip with the courage of our convictions. Have a great weekend and Happy Quirky Friday!

Can You Command A Star Ship While Tipsy?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                    (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

Creativity is everywhere. Spent last Friday at the Willamette Writers Conference here in Portland and had a great day. Attended several classes including one about web series and the up and comers who are using YouTube to get noticed by Hollywood. The web series faculty were all locals and it was fun for me to discover these talented folks.

Seems like the perfect time in August to let everyone see this “Star Trek” spoof they filmed while the actors were drunk; they planned it that way. While not my cup of tea, too many sugar calories in alcohol, it was a kick to watch. Even more fun were the production descriptions of how they had to measure alcohol to keep the actors from napping, then finally came up with getting each actor blotto separately.

Auditions were a challenge they said too since some folks can drink alcohol and act and others, not so much. They even have a sponsor, a local distillery. Seems like even the creative video storytelling industry is getting more complicated.

And imagine my joy when later in the day at the Visual Storytelling Panel one faculty member/film producer talked about the universal appeal of film, video and photographs reaching beyond language barriers; he mentioned the “Minions.” They really are taking over!

So in these Dog Days of August, what better way to waste some time than being entertained by a local production. Seems when some of the Star Drunk cast members went to DragonCon, this Captain Kirk was recognized from his starring YouTube role. The world is indeed getting very small!

So enjoy and remember; don’t walk drunk, don’t drive drunk and for heaven’s sake don’t pilot your space ships drunk! Let’s all be careful out there!

Are You Ready For Hamster Drag Racing? Move Over NASCAR!

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by Kimberly A. Cook           (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

It’s summer, we’re all acting crazy and what better way to cruise the streets than in a dragster? Even better, let’s let hamsters cruise in their dragsters! These little guys are obviously training at an undisclosed warehouse location to hone their skills before they pounce on the competition.

Not sure these power machines are street legal, but these furry drivers are handling them with ease and athleticism. Forget “Fast and Furious” and NASCAR, these drivers are in shape!

Have a great weekend and Happy Quirky Friday!

Can We All Downsize In Place?

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by Kimberly A. Cook               (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

I’m reading a book about getting organized titled, “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up – The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing,” by Marie Kondo. She has two rules of getting organized and the first one is the hardest; discard what doesn’t give you joy. This includes sorting everything in your entire house.

Goldmine! Not that I need these, but I had to bring a few home! For decorating. Really!
Goldmine! Not that I need these, but I had to bring a few home! For decorating. Really!

It sounds simple, but she recommends a six-month process to make this happen. I think I’ve been trying to do this for sixteen years myself. Truly, I have a collection of decluttering books! Case in point.

Perhaps one of the biggest challenges is realizing our lives and activities have changed but we hang onto the clothes or sports equipment or artwork from the past.

Another favorite organizing book had some powerful advice; “storage is sorrow.” Whether past triumphs or tragedies or both, if we don’t love the items or display them as keepsakes, storage is not honoring the role of those items now, so set them free!

Easier said than done. Lately I’ve been shopping my clothes closet. While pretty organized, I have more stuff than I can remember. Found some shoes I’d forgotten about which are just the right sandals for this summer. Breaking in one pair of them today.

I’ve also been watching a lot of style tv shows, a favorite is “Love, Lust or Run” with Stacy London and “Dare to Wear” on TLC. Think I must be craving a change in fashion. Part of it comes from getting used to my thinner bod and wearing clothes that actually fit. New experience.

So today I boxed up some clothes to donate that I truly loved but am not willing to pay the cost of tailoring. I’m going to set them free so someone else can enjoy them and I have a cleaner closet. Now, I have drawn some lines so far; beads, yarn and books. Yes, I will sort them, but I’m not going to be brutal about it. Luckily they don’t take up much space. Okay, if I’m truthful I’m not going to get rid of beads – period. But the books and yarn are smaller than a bass boat! I think.

Of course, my fun trips to my favorite antique mall are not stopping either, but I’m trying to be very careful what I bring home. Last visit I came across a basket of 45 RPM records and sorted through. Pounced on one by Elvis and several made in Hawaii with the label in a red and white floral print. Plan on using them as wall decorations in the Maui/Elvis in Hawaii bathroom. Now if I can just find where I put them …..

P.S. For those of you keeping track, I finally switched out my cable tv modem this past weekend. With cussing and lots of chocolate, I made it work. Then I downgraded my tv package, kept football of course, and they sent me a new DVR to switch out. Sigh. Now I have to actually watch the shows on my old DVR. Stop the insanity!

Of Bunnies and Blue Moons?

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by Kimberly A. Cook             (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

It’s been a week here in the land of “Portlandia.” Between a 103 degree heat wave, protestors hanging from one of our bridges and today’s Blue Moon, it’s actually pretty normal for us. And people wonder why I’m quirky.

While Spec Ops Cat is hunting something with the sound of small feet in my kitchen wall, which I’m ignoring for the moment, time for a fun video. In honor of Beatrix Potter’s birthday this week, what better way to enjoy tonight’s full Blue Moon than watching two species get along, one being Bubbles the bunny!

Stay cool, drink water and Happy Quirky Friday!