Kimberly A. Cook

Military Romance Author

Veteran Stories

Romance Books? Especially In Pandemic Times

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When last we chatted, my goal was to get my next book out pronto. Nothing happens fast during a pandemic, except transmission. Bollocks!

But with dogged determination, lots of cookies, and too many donuts in the house, my new book is out. Only about seven monthsMission: Canine Hearts behind schedule. I’m giving myself an A for effort. Because I could write like a wild woman in lockdown, but not edit. Brain fade, fog, or avoidance. Let’s assume all three.  Then family medical issues, not Covid. Focus can be a challenge. Right?

Please check out my new book, Mission: Canine Hearts.

Enough marketing. Back to our regular programming.

It seems, for some unknown reason, I can upload pictures again. Priceless! Through the power of procrastination, somebody in WordPress-land fixed that debacle from several months ago. Thank you so much. I hope it lasts. So, to celebrate before I lose that capacity again, let’s look at some pics!

@#$%^ Spoke too soon. I have to make my pics smaller. Argh! I’m sure it’s a pixel issue. Let me hunt down the frozen chocolate donuts first.

In that case, let’s look at some videos! This Oregon Zoo video made me howl a few weeks ago because it is exactly what’s been happening in my fiction critique group Zoom meetings. Someone’s tech is always going sideways. For no rhyme or reason, but we plow on. And look a lot like these humongo Hornbills in front of the webcams. Either Claudia’s smoke alarm beeps when we meet, never at any other time, or we can’t see Cindy.

She has tried to get us to see her face. Halfway through our last meeting, Cindy’s face popped up from a black screen and startled the rest of us. I’ve had to hack in from the main web site when the prior meeting email worked fine. Such are the times we live in. I like everyone’s creativity and the willingness to adapt.

Soapbox alert. The Army and Air Force taught me that masks save lives. Mine and others. Whether it’s a gas mask or an oxygen mask, they work. It’s an educational moment to be standing in the gas chamber in Army basic training. You can feel your skin crawl when they pop the gas. You learn to trust your mask in the chamber.

Then they make you take off your mask to really appreciate it. You have to repeat your name, rank, and something else unimportant, to keep you inside long enough to take a fine whiff of chemicals before getting permission to leave. Very educational.

Our scientists, healthcare personnel, and essential frontline workers have become our modern day fighter pilots, like in the movie Independence Day. As ground support crew to them, our cloth face masks are one crucial tool to fight this global enemy and support our new pandemic fighter pilots. Mask up America!

Off my soapbox. Where was I? See, this is what happens during these times. Squirrel!

I’d like to close with a few items I’ve been doing to keep me from going nuts. (And I bet you think it’s not working!) 

  1. Taking walks.
  2. Listening to Great Meditation on YouTube
  3. Following The Minimal Mom on YouTube to help edit out the clutter in my home.
  4. Watching way too many YouTube videos.
  5. Major League Baseball. (I’m an NFL gal, but I’m enjoying their efforts. Calms me down.)
  6. Giving myself a break. If we only get one thing done a day, bloody brilliant!
  7. Taking flower pictures.
  8. Laughing with friends on the phone and on Zoom.
  9. Filling up my local Goodwill with donations.
  10. Writing things in my After Pandemic To Do booklet.
  11. Being grateful to write the stories of my heart.

Hope you are all healthy, safe, and coping. Hugs to all. We are in this big earth SUV together, so let’s quit fighting in the backseat and get along.

Moving forward together is the best way to defeat this damn virus. Onward America! 

We’ve got a lot of work to do.

Right after I chomp on a frozen chocolate donut.

Blessings.  

And because we need it. The Red Panda cub at the Oregon Zoo!

 

 

Happy Veterans Day To All Who Have Served

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George W. Tuthill, Army, Union, 1861-1865. My great-great-grandfather.

I come from a long line of warriors. On this Veteran’s Day, I would like to thank all who have

John Tuthill, Army, World War I. My Grandfather.

served in the United States military. Past and present.

All who have served in the National Guard, Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard and all working military animals. I also salute those in the Merchant Marine who have endured hardship and sacrifice to support us on the seas.

With the United States population estimated at 329,064,917 million, there are approximately 23,234,000 living veterans, of those 16,962,000 being war veterans.

That works out to roughly seven percent of the entire United States population, of which five percent are war veterans. Numbers change daily with worldwide conflicts and deployments.

On this Veteran’s Day, I’ve decided to share photos of my family citizen soldiers who have taken the oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”

When you raise your right hand and take that oath, it is a solemn occasion. Three times I’ve felt the weight and responsibility of that oath settle on my shoulders.

To those serving on active duty and in the reserves today, I salute you, thank you, and look forward to welcoming you into the veteran family when your duties have come to an end.

For those of us who are veterans, we celebrate this day given to us by the service of those who have gone before us.

Betty Cook, Marines, World War II. My Mom.
James Cook, Army-Air Corps, World War II. My Dad.

Men and women of each generation step up to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

Hats off to all who have dug deep and sacrificed to protect our freedoms.

I am here because of their legacies.

Happy Veterans Day!

Rod Tuthill, Marines, served during Korean War. My Uncle.

 

Gordon Hubbard, Army, served during the Vietnam War in Berlin. My brother-in-law.

Memorial Day – Never Forget

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Last week I was watching a YouTube video where widows of service members were being brought together to make new friendships and heal. The Gary Sinise Foundation hosted their visit to Los Angeles, California.

One widow voiced the pain of all families and friends of fallen service members: their worst fear is their loved ones will be forgotten.

That is why this Memorial Day, pause and take time to remember, reflect, and respect the sacrifice of those who gave all when asked to by our country. This holiday is to show these families we will not forget their loss and their loved ones service, whether man, woman, or military working animal.

Let us also remember the families who still don’t have answers about the fate of their missing loved ones.

World War II  72,719

Korean War  7,661

Vietnam War  1,589

Cold War    126

Gulf Wars   5

El Dorado Canyon   1

Enjoy the holiday weekend, be safe, and never forget.

A Veterans Day Reminder

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ARCTIC OCEAN – (From left) Carl Felten, U.S. Coast Guard Ensign Annabelle Gagnon, Merchant Marine Academy Cadet Taylor Crisci, Luc Rainville and Jeremy Wilkinson pull a buoy across the Arctic ice Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018, about 350 miles northeast of Barrow, Alaska. The buoy was deployed in the Arctic and contains a series of sensors to measure wind speed and direction, air temperature, barometric pressure and other measurements to study stratified ocean dynamics. The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Healy (WAGB-20) is underway in the Arctic with about 100 crew members and 30 scientists to deploy sensors, buoys and semi-autonomous submarines to study how environmental factors affect the water below the ice surface for the Office of Naval Research. The Healy, which is homeported in Seattle, is one of two ice breakers in U.S. service and is the only military ship dedicated to conducting research in the Arctic. (NyxoLyno Cangemi/U.S. Coast Guard)

Election Day. Brought to you by the good women, men and military animals of our armed forces, Coast Guard, National Guard, veterans and their families. The first time I voted was by military absentee ballot on a pool table at Fort Carson. Colorado. My Lieutenant had to observe to make sure I complied with the then rules for voting out of state. The Recreation Room seemed the logical place.

For the past twenty years Oregon has had vote-by-mail and I highly recommend it to all the other states. Except Washington and Colorado, they have it too. No online, no clunky machines, mail with a stamp or drop off and a complete vintage paper trail.

This year I even got to track my ballot through the mail using www.ballotscout.org by way of my ballot address bar code. Simple. Effective. Private. And nobody messes with United States Postal Service employees; a lot of veterans work there too.

For those of you who might think twice about getting to a polling place stateside if you need to, don’t. Do it. Vote. The men, women and military animals in these photos are working hard right now around the world to make sure we all keep our right to vote. Use it or lose it.

It’s not like you’re a Marine hiking in Iceland!

Happy Veterans Day on Sunday to all who have served. Thank you for your service to your country.

 

Members of Team Andersen load water purification equipment onto a 36th Airlift Squadron C-130J Super Hercules to be delivered to Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Oct. 28, 2018, at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam. Service members from Joint Region Marianas and Indo-Pacific Command are providing Department of Defense support to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands’ civil and local officials as part of the FEMA-supported Typhoon Yutu recovery efforts. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Donald Hudson)
Candidates participating for the Expert Field Medical Badge disassemble and reassemble an M4 rifle as quickly as possible during the standardization phase of EFMB testing on Fort Bragg, N.C., Oct. 30, 2018. The first week of testing introduces the candidates to all the tasks that they’ll be expected to complete to earn the coveted badge. The EFMB was established to showcase and recognize medical Soldiers for their exceptional skill level and competence in the medical field. The testing consists of a written exam, land navigation, three separate combat testing lanes and concludes with a 12-mile ruck march. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Liem Huynh / 22nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)
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NORWEGIAN SEA (Oct. 27, 2018) An F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to the Sunliners of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 81 is prepared for launch aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) in support of Exercise Trident Juncture 18. With more than 50,000 participants from 31 allied partners, Trident Juncture 18 is taking place in Norway and the surrounding areas of the North Atlantic and the Baltic Sea, including Iceland and the airspace of Finland and Sweden. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Thomas Gooley/Released)
U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Angela Cardone, a military working dog handler with Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, conducts training at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, Oct. 19, 2018. Military working dog handlers are military police who are trained to employ a military working dog to conduct searches in open areas, buildings and vehicles. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Seth Rosenberg)
U.S. Marines with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit hike to a cold-weather training site inland, Iceland, Oct. 19, 2018, during Exercise Trident Juncture 18. Trident Juncture training in Iceland promotes key elements of preparing Marines to conduct follow-on training in Norway in the later part of the exercise. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Menelik Collins/Released)

Happy Veterans Day

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by Kimberly A. Cook

On Veterans Day eve I want to send out Veterans Day wishes to all our military vets, two and four-legged. Thank you for your service and your dedication to our country.

Since those of us who have served in the military are a smaller and smaller percentage of the United States population, veteran stories may not reach all our citizens.

For veterans struggling with the return from war, deployments and even sexual assault, know you are loved and hugged by your fellow veterans. Reach out and get help. We’re all still in the buddy system.

Whether you prefer Veterans Day ceremonies or choose to spend the day in reflection and quiet, know you have served our country with true citizenship in action.

Thank you. Enjoy your day.

 

 

Legacy and Sacrifice Live On 75 Years Later on National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

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by Kimberly A. Cook                       (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

The importance of military veteran stories grows with the passing of time. For those who have not experienced combat, military service or being in a war-torn country as a civilian, aid worker or journalist, the catastrophe of war can drift away like a mirage.

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Looking from the deck of the U.S.S. Missouri Memorial to the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial. I took these pictures in November 2012. This photo always gives me pause.

 

 

December 7, 2016 is the 75th Anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The U.S.S. Arizona lost 1,177 sailors and Marines from her crew that day. There were 333 U.S.S. Arizona survivors.

According to the Time Special Edition “Commemorating 75 Years since Pearl Harbor,” seventy-five years later only six of the sailors who survived the sinking are still alive. Four of the five of them hope to be at the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial tomorrow to honor their fellow shipmates.

Some Pearl Harbor stories you might not know:

Doris Miller, an African American serving as a Cook Third Class in the segregated U.S. Navy, fought back manning a machine gun he had never been trained on when Japanese planes fired on the U.S.S. West Virginia. Miller received the Navy Cross for his actions. The first African American to receive the Navy Cross, he died in November 1943 when his next ship, the U.S.S. Liscome Bay, was torpedoed and sank.

“In four years at sea, I sat through 78 air attacks, but nothing was as frightening as the attack on Pearl Harbor,” Warren K. Taylor, ensign, U.S.S. Sumner in Time Special Edition.

The U.S.S. Oklahoma lost 429 sailors in the bombing. While being towed to California in 1947 after being lifted from Battleship Row, the ship was lost at sea. In 2007 the National Park Service opened a memorial to the ship and her crew on Ford Island in Pearl Harbor.

After the bombing a total of 2,403 were killed or missing, half of them from the U.S.S. Arizona, and 1,178 service members and civilians were injured. All the U.S. casualties from sailors to civilians were listed as noncombatants since the U.S. was not in a state of war with Japan.

After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Congress passed public law 503 which ordered the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans, two-thirds of them born in America. There was no due process of law for these United States citizens.

All proceeds from her autobiography, “Wherever You Need Me,” by Anna Busby, go to the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial Fund. Busby was an Army Second Lieutenant in the Nurse Corps who witnessed the attacks on Pearl Harbor and Hickam Field from the lanai at Tripler Hospital in Honolulu.

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The plaque on the U.S.S. Missouri’s teak deck where the surrender was signed. My Dad’s ship sailed past the Mighty Mo two days after the surrender signing in Tokyo Bay. He was part of the occupation forces first into Japan with the Army Air Corps. After she was discharged from the Marines, my Mom sailed into Tokyo Bay on a Liberty Ship to work as civilian staff for the Army Transportation Department for a year. Mom and Dad both sailed in and out of Pearl Harbor on their deployments.

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One of the U.S.S. Arizona’s three anchors. The U.S.S. Arizona Memorial and U.S.S. Missouri Memorial are in the background on the left.

 

“It’s so important that Americans don’t forget this day,” Donald Stratton, 94, Seaman First Class, U.S.S. Arizona.   

IMG_8920.JPGVisit the National Park Service’s World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument web site below.

www.nps.gov/valr/index.htm