Kimberly A. Cook

Military Romance Author

military

Happy Holiday Wishes

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Cookies with some of my 1950s kitchen diner decor. Simple pleasures make me so happy. (Yes, there is milk in the teacup. Soon to be hot cocoa.)

A quick note to wish you all a happy holiday season. I went cookie baking crazy last Thursday and made Peanut Butter Blossom, Mexican Wedding, and a few gingerbread cookies. Now I need to stuff them all in the garage freezer to avoid munching on the leftovers.

Confession: I’ve already eaten all the New Year’s Eve potato chips and most of the dip. It’s the rain’s fault. And since I refuse to enter the grocery store until after the holidays, I will make do with Ritz crackers. Always have backup snacks.

Saturday, I watched The Six Triple Eight movie on Netflix about the World War II black W.A.C. Battalion that deployed to Europe. Those women were amazing and true examples of leading by example. They paved the way for women like myself, who joined the Women’s Army Corps in 1975. 

For those of us comfy at home, a big thank you to our troops serving around the world to keep us safe while we enjoy the freedom of their sacrifice and their families. It’s a 24/7 commitment that doesn’t stop for holidays or bad weather.

That includes the North American Air Defense Command, NORAD, making sure Santa has safe passage on his trip tonight. You can track him at https://www.noradsanta.org/en/map

As I write this, he is heading for Natal, Brazil. He is on track and on time! 

Wishing everyone a happy, safe, and calm holiday season.

P.S. Santa has just cleared Salvador, Brazil. He’s booking it! Go Santa!

 

 

Pumpkin Gratitude and Thanksgiving Wishes

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Just took this out of the oven. Should have stirred the drops in the middle of the pie before baking, but regardless, we’re eating it tomorrow. Bring on the whip cream!

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday. Food, family, and friends.

The best things in life.

I wanted to send a quick wish of happiness and gratitude to everyone this Thanksgiving Eve. I have so many things to be thankful for and I try not to take them for granted.

With that in mind, please remember our troops serving around the globe defending our freedoms at this minute. Having spent holidays away from home in the military, I know the troops make do and celebrate the best they can, but it is a sacrifice, part of the mission. Keep them in your thoughts.

To my fellow veterans, thank you for your service and know I recognize the challenges after service. Please seek help if you need support. You’re important to your warrior sisters and brothers.   

Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving with family, friends, and fur babies.

Spread kindness.

Hugs,

Kim

 

It’s Holiday Hustle Time! Or Not

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Holiday hustle
Walked into the big box store on October 17 and was greeted by this. Gah! But isn’t the penguin cute?

Everybody still full of turkey? Not me. Due to my sister’s dental surgery, we opted for spaghetti take-out this year. With garlic cheesy bread. I’d give up the keys to the kingdom for that amazing delicacy. Since I figured spumoni ice cream did not go with pumpkin pie, I adapted and made brownies instead. Worked like a charm. No complaints.

I’ve made my holiday gift list and pulled down the box of Christmas cards to mail. No idea when that will happen. The shoemaker elves appear to have gone to the North Pole for better wages, because they’re not in my house.

My current work in process has moved out of town with my editor, who sold her house and had to move in two weeks flat. It’s a miracle the manuscript isn’t in their storage PODS waiting for delivery. Yes, we are old school. She edits on actual paper. So do I. Computer screens are tricky and can disguise and change words without your knowledge. That’s my excuse and I’m using it.

Then this past week, I decided to rip my home office apart and purge and reorganize books. Do not attempt this without massive amounts of chocolate on hand. Everything was going great until I realized the cable connection would be behind the tall bookcase. Sigh.

A five-day craft project ensued to move the cable box using a sheetrock saw, drill, tape, mud, sanding, and texturing from my construction Ninja friend. My desk and office were draped in pink sheets. Dusting and vacuuming happened. Then I applied two coats of paint after hunting down the original color chip and getting it matched. 

Today the books go in the bookcase!

I think that epitomizes the past couple years. No matter what you start out to do, something is going to make it a challenge. For those of us not quite ready to go prime time with naked faces, heading outside to be with people seems like a complete Indiana Jones type adventure. More snakes and rolling rocks than fun treasure. And that’s okay.

I’ve always walked to a different drummer, expect during Army basic training, but every person on this planet has a story about this pandemic. We’re all doing the best we can, except for the usual outliers who prefer crazy all the time. I’m going for boring.

We’ve had enough drama. With all that is going on in the world, you have my permission to hide under your bed until 2023. I plan on doing that myself.

But I bet I will find dust bunnies I need to clean.

First world problems.

Know there are others out here with anxiety issues, holiday stress, lockdown syndrome, and obsessive-compulsive office rearranging impulses. I’ve got all of those on any given day. Reach out for help when you need it. That makes you a mental health warrior and a badass. Trust me.

We don’t know how to do all the things all the time.

That’s why coaches get big bucks to teach the rest of us how to do things from football to writing.

Same goes for mental health; get a coach if you need one. That might be a friend, a pet, or a professional counselor.

Last time I checked the majority of us were not around during the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic, so this pandemic rolling dumpster fire is new for all of us. And apparently relentless. Nobody make a song about Covid, flu and RSV unless the Minions sing it.

For those of us in the sexy senior category, it does feel a bit like we have targets on our butts. But don’t count us Baby Boomers or our older scouts out. We grew up without seat belts, bike helmets, the Internet, and cell phones. We have vintage skills, survival know how, and power tools.

And we are happy to welcome the Zoomers, aka Gen Z born 1997 – 2012, to the table who have gotten a baptism by fire and appear up to the challenge. Whatever the cool word is now, you folks are that. I salute you.

As we move into holiday central, be kind to yourself and others.

And feel free to make brownies. It helps.

Thank you to all our veterans, active duty, reserve and guard military members, hospital and medical staff, law enforcement, and fire fighter personnel for keeping us safe 24/7 around the globe.

Santa has you on the very nice list.

Digital hugs to all and to all a good night!

P.S. There are never enough cat videos and this month our local feline celebrity is my favorite! I give you OwlKitty!

 

“It’s Holiday Hustle Time! Or Not,” copyright © 2022 by Kimberly A. Cook. Image at top of the blog copyright © 2022 by Kimberly A. Cook

 

Prepare For Pumpkins And Comfort Food!

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Gala apples in full beautiful bounty at Packer Orchards and Bakery. Harvest time!

Dashed up the Columbia River Gorge for a pre-harvest comfort food haul before Labor Day. What to my wondering eyes appeared but a pile of mini pies at my favorite bakery and fruit stand, Packer Orchards. With the first of much needed rains coming in tonight to help drown our forest fires and clean the air, I am secure in the knowledge that tucked in my freezer are two huckleberry and peach mini pies. Plus a bunch of huckleberry empanadas. Emergency rations for the coming winter.

This is the time of year I’d like to gather a fuzzy blanket, a pumpkin pie, a can of whip cream and head for my overstuffed chair with a pile of books. Not only does the coming cold wet weather give me a chance to snuggle in and read, but the eats are amazing. Which is why I also have an electric treadmill. Actually using it seems to be an issue. But even my stretch jeans have limits.

Tower of mini pies! Heaven on earth.

Its been a summer of three months of August, according to my temperature chart. I find one month of August quite enough, but the three we had this year kept everyone confused. And holding our breath. At this time last year we were coming off fire evacuation alerts and trying to breathe in a smoke inversion which outdid Beijing, China, on their worst day. Hoping we can all take a deep breath and relax after this weekend. We are supposed to get a couple inches of rain. The trees will be so happy. And the wildland fire fighters. I may frolic in the drops myself.

This has been a summer, a year, and a couple years of crazy for everyone. For me, I’ve learned to really appreciate the little things and keep life simple. My decluttering work goes on, so maybe by next year I can find my carpet and the garage floor. Gives me something to do when it rains.

Monday is the Harvest Moon and Fall officially starts on the twenty-second. The Halloween candy in the stores is getting picked over and I just bought my new Christmas gnome decorations at Dollar Tree. Tis time to shop for the seasons. Or hoard mini pies.

Enjoy these waning days of summer and the glory of the changing leaves. We’ve been through a lot lately, my fellow earthlings. But we’re made of tougher stock than we realize.

Spring will come again. And boy howdy, do I have some pent up adventures to take. Make your travel list now.

A day trip to anywhere counts. Including the backyard or a city park.

Cans of whip cream and holiday cookies count too. COOKIES!

Fall Ho!

P.S. Filbert at the Oregon Zoo shows the exact attitude that makes him our state animal. His work is never done on that blasted dam and he has to cut and haul major snacks back to his den. I appreciate his commitment. We snack seriously here in Oregon. He illustrates me getting food ready for the NFL football season! Did you SEE the RAIDER game Monday night? Good times!

 

Kick 2020 To The Curb!

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I’m sitting here with Crunchy Cheetos dust on my fingers while I fire up a send off to 2020. A year that defies description. But like steel, when forged in fire, we get stronger. And part of that is to acknowledge the staggering loss of life here in the United States and around the world, due to the pandemic. A moment of silence with respect and compassion for all the families and friends grieving right now.

Things will get better. Our science and health care warriors are geared up and wearing invisible capes every day.

So let’s celebrate what makes us human. Joy and laughter. Because without the pain, we wouldn’t appreciate the joy. And we will work together to make sure this doesn’t ever happen again. I’m thinking AI robot dogs virus sniffer teams. They’re working on them!

So let’s dance with robots, appreciate the animals, support our troops serving around the world and thank our veterans. 

Happy 2021 everybody!

 

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!