Kimberly A. Cook

Military Romance Author

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Las Vegas Education?

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by Kimberly A. Cook           (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

Still processing all the things I saw in Las Vegas, but I’ve come up with some lessons learned that might be helpful to others.

Did not see any books in Las Vegas on the Strip. Okay, I saw a couple children’s books at the Siegfried and Roy Dolphin and Tiger Sanctuary, but the only other books I saw were in the Elvis exhibit from what he had on his nightstand. Elvis loved to read. Yes!

White tigers and lions are amazing; tiger cubs even cuter! Tigers are bigger than lions. I had no idea. Cubs make the cutest growly noises when they play.

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McDonald’s has some killer oatmeal and it’s way cheaper than $7.99 for a bowl of room service oatmeal. McDonald’s is also smoke free, which cannot be said about any other place on the Strip practically, except Denny’s.

I gamble very little, bet a buck and cashed out at $1.11. Don’t drink much and didn’t go to a show. I wasn’t there for a convention, bachelor or bachelorette party. So I am not their target demographic. I’m good with that. Las Vegas hosts 22,000 conventions a year. That is NOT a typo.

The street performers are everywhere. Personally ran into KISS, Chewbacca, Mickey and Minnie, Hello Kitty, Catwoman, Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, multiple Minions, the snowman from Frozen, show girls, dominatrixes (how do you make that plural?) some guy in cowboy boots, cape and red, white and blue underwear who must have been freezing and Darth Vader. To name a few. All I did was walk outside.

Took in the night lights bus tour of the casinos and when everyone was taking pictures of The Mirage volcano erupting, I was taking pictures of them and the rest of the Strip. Another rule from photojournalism; when everybody is looking in one direction, look the other way!

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Highlights were seeing the dolphins, lions and tigers and learning about the conservation program to save them all. Enjoyed the Elvis exhibit from Graceland very much. Got to see his actual Army uniform too. The end of the exhibit had a 26-minute film of Elvis performing from 1956 to 1973. You can only see it at this exhibit and it is amazing.

One song in particular he sang hit me pretty hard and I wasn’t the only one tearing up. I’ve thought of it many times since returning home.

In these days before Thanksgiving, I am so glad to live in the USA and be grateful for all I have. Because no matter what happens, America was built by dreamers for dreamers. We have to keep dreaming big.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

Do You Have A Mog At Home?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

Spec Ops Cat gifted me with a hairball in the early hours this morning and it reminded me of this video my friend Carol shared with me. Many of us have a Mog at home. So in the interest of warning y’all to watch out for pet hijinks this holiday season, take a look at Mog’s Christmas morning.

Have a great weekend and Happy Quirky Friday!

It’s Snoopy Happy Dance Friday!

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by Kimberly A. Cook             (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

It’s time! The new “Peanuts” movie opens today. Does life get any better than that? Snoopy is my hero from his military service to his Joe Cool shades and fantastic Latin dance moves. Plus he’s a writer, I have his books. Looks like this movie has it all.

What better way to spend the weekend than a visit with the Peanuts gang. Crank up the sound and let’s all boogie with Snoopy! A dog’s work is never done.

Happy Quirky Friday and have a great weekend!

Curiosity Begets Creativity?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                 (Twitter@  WarriorTales)

A couple Sundays ago I dragged, er invited my author buddy Cindy Hiday to go see author Elizabeth Gilbert talk abut her new book “Big Magic – Creative Living Beyond Fear” on her book tour.

My reading copy on the left, I take the dust cover off. My autographed copy on the right which lives on the special signed first editions keeper shelf in my office. Very "Big Magic" indeed.
My reading copy on the left, I take the dust cover off. My autographed copy on the right which lives on the special signed first editions keeper shelf in my office. Very “Big Magic” indeed.

I was so excited to attend even on a Sunday night in downtown Portland. On our way into the theater I saw piles of books. We were each given one. Seventh heaven. I’d already bought the book and had been reading it using pink highlighter and flag tags, but this one was autographed. Yeah!

Listened to Liz read from “Big Magic” and then she answered questions from a huge stack of audience question cards. It was a fun and brilliant evening which ended with everyone singing “Country Roads” with the help of John Denver piped into the theater. Perfect.

It’s so nice to hear an accomplished author speak about creativity as a good thing which everybody has and not some burden guaranteed to drive us all nuts. Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book so far.

“(because in the end, creativity is a gift to the creator, not just a gift to the audience).”

“You do not need anybody’s permission to live a creative life.”

“Possessing a creative mind, after all, is something like having a border collie for a pet: It needs to work, or else it will cause you an outrageous amount of trouble.”  

‘If you’re alive, you’re a creative person.”

“I’m talking about living a life that is driven more strongly by curiosity than by fear.”

That last one really hit me in the brain. Wow. I am a very curious person and I’m never more happy than following some research topic or article down the rabbit hole in search of something new. The act of discovery through curiosity is better than chocolate.

Plus fear sucks, so let’s all bypass it with curiosity. Liz Gilbert rocks! I am reading her book in little bits each night before bed, savoring it like a pint of Rocky Road ice cream. If you’re looking for a good book about the joy of creativity, this book is for you.

“Big Magic” is divided into six parts; Courage, Enchantment, Permission, Persistence, Trust and Divinity. There are topics ranging from road trips to fairy dust. Who can argue with fairy dust? Put it on your wish list for Santa or snap it up now for yourself.

Got curiosity? You’re creative!

Squirrel Shakes? Shake Squirrel? Who Knew?

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by Kimberly A. Cook             (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

So it’s not just me. Even the animal kingdom knows it’s Fall and they’re stocking up on food. This little squirrel went nuts over a milkshake. I can’t blame him I have the same problem with chocolate shakes, including trying to get the lid off the dang cup.

Of course, I don’t think we need squirrels high on sugar too. Chaos! So people, finish your milkshakes. Save a squirrel from sugar.

Have a great weekend and Happy Quirky Friday!

Can You Capture The Sun Rays Of Fall?

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by Kimberly A. Cook          (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

When I took a three-month camping trip to Europe in 1983, I carried 70 rolls of film with me. Some of my best shots were sticking the camera out the window and just shooting. Shit shots, I called them. Nothing to lose!

The rolling clouds, the Washington gorge hills, the bridge and the Columbia River; without ever leaving my car!
The rolling clouds, the Washington gorge hills, the bridge and the Columbia River; without ever leaving my car!

On our recent adventure to Hood River we went to one of the Columbia River parks for a look-see before heading home. It had started to rain and the wind was whipping up in the gorge, so I did my usual and took a few pictures from the car window. Just like in Europe. (Yes, I rolled the window down.)

Sometimes the most important thing as a photographer is to just take the shot. I had some cars coming toward me and I was about to hold up someone driving behind me, so I grabbed the shot. I’m pretty happy with it.

One of the reasons I always carry one of my little Canon Elph cameras with me is I never know when I might see a photo I need to take. Kind of like the Boy Scouts, always prepared. Which includes a fully charged backup battery too.

With the leaves starting to change colors and the pumpkin decorations everywhere, this is a great time of year to capture the golden light in the morning and evening. You don’t need a ton of equipment or to even get out of your car; be lazy and creative. You might be able to use the photo for a blog post.

Whether taking pictures on the road, in your own backyard or trying to capture your pet’s latest antics, for us photo freaks it’s always a good day to take a picture. The weather folks say the rains are coming in this week. Yeah! Cloud and rain pictures! Woo Hoo!