Goodbye, Barbaro

When I was a young girl, I adored horses. They were my favorite animal. I even remember playing in my backyard, pretending that I was a horse. Yes, I was an odd child. But I tried to watch all the horse races on TV. I don't know what it was that captivated me. Maybe I loved the thrill of it all, listening to the announcer as he became so excited when the horses turned into the final stretch.

As an adult, my preoccupation with horses has dwindled. I still love them, but I no longer avidly search the networks looking for horse races or horse jumping. However one horse had captivated me, even before he was injured. That horse was Barbaro.



This horse was an amazing young colt, set to win the Triple Crown. Who wouldn't get excited about that? But then, this powerhouse of a thoroughbred had a horrible accident, shattering his right hind leg so badly, the x-ray of his foot after surgery showed more pins than bones. His owners decided to try and save him rather than destroy him right there on the track, and thus Barbaro's long road to recovery began.

But because Barbaro was in a cast and couldn't put weight on his foot, he developed laminitis in his other hind leg.

Since Barbaro's injury, and I found myself once again interested in horses. I tried to find out all I could about his recovery, because I do still love horses, but also because he was a horse who seemed as if he would defy the odds. My prayers were with him.

I am an animal lover. So if you have a story with an animal, you will touch my heart 100% of the time. I was brought to tears when a cat, separated from her owner during Hurricane Katrina, was finally reunited after a long and hard search by the animal shelters who'd found her. I love stories of perserverance and hope, stories that touch the heartstrings and strengthen that connection between man and the animal kingdom.

Barbaro's saga was just such a story.

Even though I'm saddened at the thought that Barbaro has succumbed to his fate, it broke my heart to watch him walk. You could tell the poor thing was in so much pain, shuffling his hind legs so much I'm surprised he didn't trip over his own hooves. And his leg wasn't completely stable, either, since they had to remove much of his hoof due to the laminitis. In a way, I'm relieved Barbaro has passed, if only to ease his suffering.

Many people don't believe animals go to Heaven. But who are we to say they don't have souls? Only One knows for sure whether or not critters get to see the Glory. But I am of the assumption God doesn't just love us, but the whole of His creation. And somewhere up there, I believe Barbaro is running on the fields of the Lord.



~~Becka

Gawd, I Think I'm Sick Again...

Is this the sign of getting old? I never used to get sick. But between 2005 and 2006, I've been sick more times than I can count. Now, I think I'm getting sick again.

If any of you have been around long enough to remember, you'll recall in December of 2005 when I had Walking Pneumonia. That was the WORST time of my life, literally. I wanted to die. I didn't know how severe I was, so I put off going to the doctor. A bad move. I remember laying in bed by myself one evening, crying and praying to God to make it all go away. It was so horrid.

So last night, I begin to feel a tightening in my chest and I'm coughing here and there. I even made mention that I thought I was coming down with something. But it didn't feel like a head cold, with the stuffy head/runny nose. Then the coughing started.

Gawd.

Once that began, I started having flashbacks. And I finally noticed a few symptoms of the very sickness that kicked my ass in 2005. My wrists have been aching like nobody's business. I chalked it up to typing all day long and the fact I'd just crocheted something, so I knew my wrists would be sore because of that. I fully anticipate getting full-blown carpal tunnel in a few years.

So I didn't think anything of it.

That is, until I realized my knees ache. And my toes hurt when I walk. And my elbows are creaking. Some of this stuff I thought could have been because of the cold. I've broken a few bones, and the cold isn't so kind. But aching joints is one of the symptoms of Walking Pneumonia.

So is dry coughing.

So is tightness in the chest.

So is sore throat.

And headache.

And sleepiness.

**sobs**

Even now, my wrists are yelling at me for typing this, but I'm not gonna stop! I'm going to give this another day or two. I'm not 100% sure I have it again. DH is always fond of me trying to self-diagnose my own symptoms. I'm obviously not a doctor, but I do like to pretend I know what I'm talking about. LOL

So we'll see. If this escalates, I might be popping the anti-biotics soon. I am NOT going to let myself get as bad as I was in 2005. I'll keep you updated...

~~Becka :(

Becka's Hottie of the Week

One of my absolute favorite shows on TV has come back from winter break this week.



If you haven't been watching this show, you are truly missing out. Aside from the gimmicky "Save the Cheerleader, Save the World" and "Are You on the List?" slogans, the show seriously kicks ass. Why? Because there is no slow build-up to the story. Sure, the first few episodes introduce you to the characters and such, but once it gets going, it packs a punch that just won't quit!

If you're a regular reader of this blog, then you'll know DH and I also watch a show called The 4400. This is the same "kind" of show, with people who have extraordinary powers. They're not super heroes, but the comparison comes in with these extra abilities. We are now in the third season of the show, and it's great. I think it got a new slew of writers or something, because it seemed as if the entire first and second season were a build up to the third season. Each show was "freak of the week", and even though it still has a bit of that flavor to it, The 4400 has moved on into more of a "serial" feel of an overarching plot. Finally.

But Heroes had that from Day One.

And my goodness, there are a lot of good-looking men on this show. It's like LOST. Take your pick for whichever hottie you want--even Hiro, the Japanese guy who can bend time and space gets the "geek hottie vote" for being so darn cute you just want to pinch his cheeks and have lunch with him. But seriously, I could do a Hottie of the Week for a few weeks on Heroes alone. Mohinder is YUMMY as well. **drool**

But this week, I have chosen the man I find to be the hottest hottie on the show, Milo Ventimiglia.



This man plays Peter Petrelli, the younger brother to the man running for Senator. Good Lawdy Lawd, this man has it goin' on! Yeah, he's got a young, boy-ish face, something I complained about on my blog post about Leo being my HotW. (Yes, it's abbreviated now, like everything else. LOL)

However, for whatever reason, Milo really pulls off the "babyface" look with flair. Every time this man is on screen, I get all tingly.



His is a smile that will stop traffic. He's not hot for an exceptional body or GQ male model status. Milo is "hot" because he's got that "boy next door" quality about him that just makes you want to cross the street to his house and borrow a cup of sugar. If you know what I mean. **wink wink nudge nudge** :P

Congratulations, Milo Ventimiglia. You are Becka's Hottie of the Week!



~~Becka

Watch Out, a Controvertial Blog Today!

Okay, people. What's up with this?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16812223/from/RS.1/

For those of you who are link-click shy, this is the story that's been going around about the family who were kicked off an airplane because their child was throwing a temper tantrum. This particular link goes to a story about how this controversy has stirred up "nostalgia", most of all, raising kids the "old fashioned" way.

What has happened to discipline in this country? Hell, in ANY country? Are we so afraid to discipline our children that we let them run amok all over God's creation? Are we so afraid of the 'work' it might be to get Johnny to sit in his seat at the restaurant that we simply let him terrorize the other patrons by playing hide-and-seek a few tables down?

Since when has this become acceptable??

I'll tell you one thing, people. I have four kids. Aged 7, 6, 5, & 4. These are all small kids, just barely out of toddlerhood. And they are good kids. My husband and I are frequently complimented on how well our children behave in public (and at home), and it's not because we "got lucky" four times over. **rolls eyes** What-the frick-ever. "Got lucky." Pshaw. It was hard damn work, but it's paid off.

We rarely spank. We rarely smack our kids on the hand even. Why? Because when they were babies and toddlers, we set firm boundaries and expected those boundaries to be respected by them. We made it clear that "No" means "No", not maybe, not sometimes, ALL the time. Our children are not allowed to have temper tantrums. If they do, they are picked up off the ground and given a swift swat to grab their attention. If they insist on crying, they can do it all by themselves in isolation on the couch. This prevents them to have the "payoff" of getting what they want, therefore, the child stops their tantrum. And if they get off the couch, we smack them and put them right back until Mommy or Daddy says they can jump down.

Now I'm not talking about child beating here. People think "spanking" is some kind of evil thing. Well, you cannot get Johnny's attention by reasoning with a 2 year old. They just don't understand what you're talking about, even if they do answer you with "yeah" and "okay". The swat doesn't even have to be painful. Just enough to let them know you mean business.

Case in point, my 3 y/o nephew came up for my son's recent birthday party. We went out to a mexican restaurant and the kids were wolfing down the chips. I told them no more because I didn't want them to fill up on the chips and salsa before they got their dinner. My nephew, after a few minutes, thinks I'm not looking and reaches for a chip. I smack his hand away (not hard at all, just swiped it away from the chips) and said sternly, "No!" He screamed at me. Screamed! I was in shock. So what did my sister and her hubby do? Coddled him and took him outside for a "talking to." If you hold the child in your arms when they are having a tantrum you are TEACHING THEM it's okay for them to act that way. Why? Because everytime they do it, they know you'll hold them and rock them.

Backwards logic, people.

To get back to the subject at hand, I applaud the airline that booted the family. Don't blame the airline because YOU couldn't control your child. If I had been on the plane, I just might have clapped when they were kicked off while my four calm children stared in bewilderment and asked my husband and I why that obnoxious child didn't listen to her parents. (Yes, my kids really do ask me that question frequently on jaunts around town.)

It's not the child who is at fault here. When people have unruly kids, 9 times out of 10, they have lazy parents.



/rant

~~Becka

Just When I Thought I Wouldn't Have Anything to Blog...

Today is Monday. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I pack up the kids and we go on a trek to the Karate dojo. Today was no different. We go, they have class, and I'm in the dojo, waiting for them to hurry up and go to the bathroom so we can go home and get some dinner on.

I'm minding my own business, trying to stay out of people's way, because the dojo is merely a converted house with a large warehouse-like garage in the back. So when there's a lot of people moving around in the house, it can get crowded.

So I'm glancing at the pictures on the walls and all of a sudden, I hear this SCREAMING coming from the hallway. Immediately, I recognize that scream as belonging to my youngest daughter.

"MOMMY!!" she's wailing. Loudly. We're talking "Holy sh*t, the child has broken a bone!" wailing.

At this point, I have no clue what happened, as she went into the bathroom with her sister. All I see is her face covered in foamy soap. My oldest is crying almost as hard as my youngest. "She ate the soap!" she yells at me. I'm like what the hell? My kids don't randomly eat soap. Besides, my youngest daughter is 5 years old. Well beyond the shoving things in her mouth stage (aside from her thumb, but that's an entirely different story).

So I take her into the bathroom to wipe off the soap and maybe get her something to drink to get the taste out of her mouth. Then I found out no, she didn't "eat" the soap, it squirted into her eyes.

Okay. NOW I know why she's screeching like a banchee.

Apparently, the soap dispenser wasn't working properly, and my oldest, in an effort to get soap in her hand, of course, forced it with both of her hands, thus making the soap fly across the room as some kind of foamy projectile, only to hit her sister square in both eyeballs. Bullseye, Hannah.

Oh, y'all are snickering. I can hear you. But at the time, it was traumatic for my poor little girl.

Both of them.

So I'm trying like the dickens to rinse out my youngest daughter's eyes in the dojo's bathroom, and of course it's not working too well. I do the best I can until she (mostly) stops her crying. But the poor little thing can't open her eyes to save her life.

We make it home just as DH comes home from work and we manage to flush the rest of the soap from her eyes. But her eyes were so red and bloodshot, I felt so sorry for her! She still couldn't open her eyes too wide or she'd be rubbing them with her fingers. :(

I mean, what the heck are the odds here? I've never heard of a soap dispenser squirting soap halfway across the room. Maybe directly out onto the counter, but this was like an Act of God, or better yet, Murphy's Law. "If something can go wrong, it will."

**Sigh**

We sent her to bed early tonight because her eyes started to sting again. It was probably due to all that crying and rubbing and, well, SOAP. I'm sure we got it all out, but her eyes are bound to be irritated for the next few days. I mean, just imagine. We're in deep hurting if we get a *drop* of shampoo in our eyes. My little girl got a giant GLOB of foamy handsoap directly in her baby blues.

I have no doubt she's going to be terrified of washing her hair from now on. And honestly, I don't blame her.

The moral of the story? Wear protective eye gear when trying to force a bottle of handsoap to dribble into your palm. You never know where that soap will squirt.



~~Becka

Becka's Hottie of the Week

I usually try to choose my Hottie's of the Week from something I saw or did through the week. This week, I have been planning my son's 4th birthday party, which just so happens to be tomorrow (Saturday). I'm theming the party, the whole nine. And he's going to have a great time.

And this week's Hottie was pulled directly from my son's birthday theme. :)

This man has been known most of his life as a sex symbol. We first saw him in the 80's, and drooled over him, either with pin-ups of his face on our bedroom walls from Teen Magazine, or we at least KNEW of someone who pinned up his face on their bedroom walls.





I am talking, of course, about Mr. Johnny Depp.





I don't know what it is about him. His boyish smile? The light in his eyes? His sultry voice? Or his eclectic taste in movies? I must say I have not watched ALL of Depp's movies. But he has the ability to act, amazingly, instead of being just another pretty face. You can believe he's different characters, unlike "wooden" actors such as George Clooney, who is Dr. Ross from ER fame in EVERY role he plays (with the exception of "O Brother Where Art Thou?" which is in a class all it's own, but we're not talking about George right now. :P).

I don't remember the first movie I saw Johnny Depp in. But I can remember the really GOOD ones.

Benny & Joon (I really need to watch this again.)
Edward Scissorhands (we love vulnerable Johnny!)
Finding Neverland (mmm, GQ Johnny *swoons*)
Chocolat (a surprisingly good movie!)
Pirates of the Caribbean 1 & 2 (Yes, I liked the second one. Get over it! LOL)

Which brings me to my son's themed birthday party. Lately, he's been in love with pirates, and that is thanks solely to Captain Jack Sparrow, perhaps one of the most beloved characters Depp has ever portrayed.




Johnny as Capt. Jack is amazing. His swagger, his slurring speech, his sex appeal... It's enough to make this damsel cry out to be pilaged! Whee! :D

Sure, Capt. Jack is dirty. He probably doesn't smell too good. He's got some dreads and bling on his teeth. But do any of us CARE?? ;)

Here's some Capt. Jack trivia for you in case you didn't know... Disneyland just added a Capt. Jack Sparrow animatronic to the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Awesome. Disneyland also has a *character* you can *meet* of Capt. Jack. Dh and I haven't seen him personally, but we've heard the man who plays Capt. Jack in the park is SPOT ON and looks just like Depp. I cannot WAIT for our Disneyland trip this year!!

Oh, and I read an interview with Depp recently in a magazine where he said when he plays with his kids, he'll often do Capt. Jack impersonations.

Best. Dad. Evar.

Congratulations, Johnny Depp. You're Becka's Hottie of the Week!




~~Becka

When it Rains, it Pours

Here I was, minding my own business, when I got a phone call this morning. Come to find out it's a local talk radio station. And guess what? They saw my article in the Argus this week and want me on their show!!

To make a long story short, I'm going in tomorrow (Friday) to talk to them between 8am - 9am on a show called "Washington County Today", which is a talk show about the happenings in Hillsboro and around Washington County.

Can you believe that?! Talk about out of the BLUE!

Their frequency is 1360 AM, KUIK, so if any of you live in the Hillsboro/Portland area, tune in tomorrow! It's an early show, I know, but I'm still excited. How awesome! I've never been on the radio before (aside from winning concert tickets and announcing my Work Day Triple Play selections I had won. LOL) And those instances were just over the phone.

I get to actually go down there to the studio and talk into the microphone this time!! I hope I don't sound like a tool on the radio. LOL I'm excited, and extremely nervous at the same dang time. :P



WOOHOO!!! I thank the Good Lord every day for steering my career in positive directions. I truly believe it is not I Who is driving. :)

~~Becka

I'M FAMOUS!!!

Well, in Hillsboro, that is. :P Here is a picture of my interview I did with the Argus. I was floored when I opened the paper and saw it. HALF A FRICKEN' PAGE in COLOR?!? Thank you, JoAnn Boatwright!! :D



If you would like to actually read the article, you can click on the link below and it will take you right to it, sans the pictures, unfortunately.

Becka's Interview Linky

But how cool is that? And seeing my books up there floating above the article? Just too cool! That pic was taken of me at my desk, hovering over my stack of books. From top to bottom, we have THE B*E*A*S*T* WITHIN, ON EAGLE'S WINGS, MISTLETOE MAGIC, BY GRACE PUBLISHING'S SHORT & SWEET ANTHOLOGY (featuring HOPE IN THE LORD & SINCERELY YOURS), LEARNING TO LOVE AGAIN, BRIDES AND BOUQUETS 2005, & HEART OF GOLD. Wow!

All of these books can be ordered in print, however only three of them, TBW, OEW, and MM can be ordered directly from any bookstore. The others are "print on demand" that can only be purchased online at this point. You can go to my bookshelf for details on that:

http://www.rebeccagoings.com/bookshelf.html

If you click on my Inspirationals, there is a "buy" link. That link will take you where you need to go to buy those print books. :)

But just today, I went to my local Fred Meyer, which is kind of like a grocery store merged with a Target... Anyhow, I go there all the time, and I was literally tackled by the guy who helps me out with my groceries, who said he'd seen my article in the Argus. I was thinking SWEET! I haven't seen it yet, but yeehaw! I gotta go buy me some copies! :D The lady who I always go to in check out was also shocked to see me in the paper. It was great, but I got some strange looks by people who were passing by, hearing me talk about my "interview", like wondering, "Who is she??" LOL

But wow, I'm so amazed right now. I never thought I would have gotten such a huge piece. That is the front page of the arts & entertainment section. I even had a smaller pic on the front page of the paper that said something about "Local Romance Author" section C1! :) Too, too cool.

Well, my 15 minutes of fame are up. :P

~~Becka

Oh My Gawd, I have an iPod!

Okay, so perhaps I'm one of the few who's the last to jump on the iPod bandwagon. DH got one a while back and he LOVES his. I've only recently been struck by iPod envy. Every time we hop in the car to go somewhere, out comes the iPod and we're raring to go with thousands of songs at his fingertips.

Granted, I only listen to my certain music and I've been fine with that for many years. But lately, I realized how much I really HATE digging around for that random CD in the van. Or trying to find that darn CD I know is around the house somewhere because I gotta listen to that ONE SONG!!!

"If I only had an iPod," I said one day and DH looks at me all funny. "You'd never use it," he says. "Oh, no!" I vow. "If I had an iPod, I wouldn't have to rummage for that one CD, I could have ALL of my special music at my fingertips."

So DH calls me today from work saying, "Do you really want one?" He happened to be passing the store in the mall when he called, and I'm like "Oooo... iPod goodness! Heck yeah!"

(Actually, I said, "If you can get a good price..." LOL I rarely want to spend money on myself, but that's neither here nor there.)

One of DH's co-workers is in the military, and he was able to get a 10% off discount. How sweet is that?!?!? So now here I am, loading up my iPod with all my music and happy as a clam. I never thought I would ever want one of these things, thinking CD's would do me just fine. But I have this massive library of songs on my computer... Why not have it handy in the car as well?

Woohoo! Now I just gotta buy a skin for this darn thing before it scratches all to hell!

Yay! :P

~~Becka
(Who has the shiny black iPod pictured above)

Can You Say "Deep Hurting?"

So my hubby and I went out yesterday on the prowl for some new beds for our kids. We have four of them, aged 7, 6, 5, & 3 (who will be 4 in 10 days). The two younger kids were still in toddler beds, and the two older kids shared a queen. (My 5 year old is very short and petite for her age, so the toddler bed still "fit" her.)

Anyhow, we visited a whole bunch of furniture stores yesterday and finally ended up going back to the first store we went to. We ended up buying the kids two sets of bunk beds, however, we only made "one" set of them into bunks. This is because three of the girls share one room, and the boy has a room all to himself. So we made the other set of bunk beds into single beds. We did this because we wanted all the beds to match.

And trying to find a triple bunk bed for our three girls was very hard. All they had were the "barracks" style bunks, the bunk on top of a bunk on top of a bunk. But eeww. We didn't want that.

Then we thought about getting a triple bunk that was "L" shaped, with two bunks and a loft bed that had a desk underneath. But trying to find one at the local furniture stores was slim to none. We wanted them that day, not order them online and wait two weeks, not to mention pay exorbitant amounts of $$ for the shipping charge...

So we compromised, buying two sets of the same bunks (for a great price, I might add) and just made single beds out of the second set. Let me tell you, these beds are huge compared to what they had before! It's a defining moment when you buy your "babies" twin-sized beds, let me tell you.

So because of this. DH and I are all sore today. Of course the beds needed to be assembled. Yesterday we went shopping, bought the beds, assembled the beds, rearranged the rooms, and then went out late at night to the local Target and Fred Meyer to buy bedsheets. The poor kids didn't go to bed until around 11pm. But I think they had a lot of fun sleeping in their brand new beds. If you want to look at pictures, you can visit my hubby's Flickr account and see for yourself. I love the Tinkerbell and Pirates bedsheets!!! :D

Bunk Bed Pics!

~~Becka

Becka's Hottie of the Week

Okay, what the hell is wrong with me?? Chalk this one up to bands I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole 5 years ago. Lately, I've been listening to Disturbed, and dear gawd, they RULE!! They're definately a certain taste, and they have a specific sound due to the da-da-da-da-da-da of their guitar riffs.

But when I listened to their latest album, Ten Thousand Fists, where they did a cover of "Land of Confusion" by Genesis, I was hooked. There isn't a single song on their latest that doesn't suck. That prompted me to go back and listen to albums from years past. Where have I been?!?



This is only proof positive that my tastes change as I get older. I would have totally thought their music was crap only five years ago. Now, however, I find myself turning them on whenever I want to rock out, and their music is perfect to listen to when you're writing a good chase/fight scene. :P

But since I've been listening to Disturbed lately, I've noticed their lead singer, David Draiman, is kinda hawt!!



Sure, he's got weird piercings everywhere (lol) but wow... I'd love to see these guys in concert, if only for the eye candy! :D And you know, I gotta say I really love his voice. In a lot of his songs, it's almost like he's singing/rapping. It's not "rap" like hip hop, definately not. But he sings along with the beat of the music to the same cadence as rappers do. However, I really despise rap (unless it's Will Smith). Anyhow, I really think this guy is good looking. But I have a penchant for bald men anyhow, since my hubby is one. :D

Congratulations, David Draiman. You're Becka's Hottie of the Week!



~~Becka

My Kids are Testing Today

My kids are testing for their new belts in Karate today, so send them good thoughts. LOL Currently, they hold the advanced white belt, a white belt with a black stripe through it. Today, if they pass their tests, my boy will advance to the advanced white belt (as described above) and my daughters will get a yellow belt with a white stripe through it.

See, they're still all technically "white" belts. Apparently, there are different degrees of white belts for kids, since obviously, a little kid doesn't really have the coordination to become a true black belt. At least, not until they're teens.

So keep them in your thoughts and I'll post later to let you know what happened. Since the kids' tests are always much easier than the adults, I doubt very much they *won't* get their belts.

Oh, and here's a cute pic I "altered" with my cool computer drawing pad. LOL



~~Becka

So I Found Out This Weekend...

...that the Hillsboro Argus isn't "just" a mailed little newspaper for Hillsboro. I mean honestly, how dense can one be? I've lived in Hillsboro for HOW long and I don't know this?

Apparently, the Argus is an honest-to-gawd newspaper that is distributed via normal newspaper routes. You can buy it in the grocery store, in those newspaper cage thingies in front of restaurants, etc. It is only the *abridged* version that gets mailed to the residents. DOH!!

How could I possibly NOT know this?

However, I cannot help but feel this is one of those times where you can sit back and say you've received a "Bank Error in Your Favor".




Usually I'm the one making the big mistakes... The "Oh no, it IS a big newspaper!!" only to find out it's just a dinky mailed rag with barely five pages. **snicker**

But nope! This time, it's the other way around, baby!

Woohoo! How awesome is that?!?

Hillsboro Argus, how could I ever doubt you?



~~Becka

I Was Interviewed Today!

No, not by:



Although I wish!! But by JoAnn at the:



LOL

The Hillsboro Argus is a local paper that's mailed to every home in Hillsboro. So in that way, it's "better" in my community than the Oregonian, which people have to pay to have delivered. The Argus is a very thin paper that's free and comes in the mail. And while it's true, many may throw it away as junk mail, use it as kindling, or line their bird cage with it, there are still many more who read it. :)

JoAnn was a very nice woman; she came out to my house and took some pictures of me at my desk and a pic of me "reading" one of my books on my deck. We chattered for about an hour and a half while she scribbled notes and whatnot. It was really great.

The funny thing is, I've never really talked about myself as a writer to the people I know around town, so no one knows what I do. I've just never been one to brag about how great I am. **snort** LOL But I know for a fact the people who own the Karate dojo my kids go to read the Argus because the owner wrote them an article once as a freelancer. And I have a few other friends in the community (mostly at grocery stores lol) who have no clue either. So it will be kind of cool to see if anyone actually knows who I am when they read the article. Probably not. Heheh It's not like I have this entire "secret" life that I live. :P

Perhaps I'm the reverse of Clark Kent. LOL



When he's got the glasses on, he's the "nobody". But DON'T REMOVE THOSE GLASSES OR YOU'LL RECOGNIZE HIM!! Hahahah! I'm the other way around. I don't wear glasses when I'm "Jane Housewife". But when I'm on the computer writing, I do have prescription reading glasses that I have to wear lest my eyes will cross. :P So perhaps my "power" as "Rebecca Goings the Author" are in these glasses. I put them on and "Jane Housewife" disappears.

Hmm...



~~Becka

Becka's Hottie of the Week

Dark and mysterious, you can't deny there is "something" about Joaquin Phoenix. I remember seeing him for the first time as the adorable little boy in Spacecamp, who's robot friend launches him and his Spacecamp buddies into space while on a "test ignition" of the space shuttle. Back then, he was billed as "Leaf Phoenix", but either way, he was my age, and I've watched his career ever since.

I'm ninteen days older than Mr. Phoenix. I was born on October 9th, 1974, while he was born on October 28th, 1974. It's kinda cool "growing up" with an actor, seeing where their lives lead in comparison to your own. Joaquin became a vegan and he smokes too damn much, so no doubt kissing him would taste like licking an ashtray. (No offense, Joaquin lol)

But that doesn't detract from the fact that he's pretty to look at and a damn fine actor. If I were an artist, I would probably find his face fascinating, because his features are smooth and striking with great lines. He'd be a great subject to draw or sculpt.

However, his eyes are what get you, deep and green and piercing, making your heart go all a-flutter. And his thick, dark hair makes you want to grab a handful. LOL

Congratulations, Joaquin Phoenix. You're Becka's Hottie of the Week!

~~Becka

Not Safe for Work

(This post was edited because the original video had been deleted. I found this video again on You Tube and edited this post. If you didn't get to see this video before the other one was pulled, you should be able to see this version.)

If you read this blog at work, then go away and come back after 5pm. :) This video is not safe for work, but oh my GAWD is it funny! I saw this actually a couple of weeks ago before Christmas, and only just now thought to add it here for your crude enjoyment. Don't worry, it's not porn or anything. It's just kinda raunchy. An SNL skit. (Saturday Night Live for you venerable folk).

Enjoy the best Christmas gift of the season. Oh, and btw, that blond guy in the video is Justin Timberlake. After seeing this skit, I have to say, I've got a newfound respect for the guy. LOL If you've already seen this vid, partake again. Dear Lord, I almost peed my pants watching this.



~~Becka

HOLY CRAP I'M DIGGIN' THE PINK!!!

I just switched this blog to Blogger's new "blogger" edition-thingy-who'sa-what'sit, and I found a section with NEW TEMPLATES!!! I was never fond of that green, even though green is one of my favorite colors, NEON green leaves much to be desired. However, pink... Hmm. I might have to get used to it, but I like it! I wish they had this template in purple, tho. Might not be too hard to tweak the code...

heheheh...

>:D

What do y'all think about the pink? Strange? Ugly? Cool? Better or hideous-er than the green?

~~Becka

This and That -- 2007 And All That Rot

Well, this is the "official" first post of 2007...





How boring. :P

Seriously, folks, did you think I'd have something cool to say? You've been reading my blog for how long and you don't know that yet?

Actually, I'm trying to figure out why THIS blog is more popular than my author blog (http://www.rebeccagoings.com/blog.asp) Prolly because that blog is just not... well, exciting. Does anyone actually read that one? I don't know why I don't post over there more often. However, with this busy-as-hell year, (EIGHT books releasing) I'm sure I'll be postin' over there more and more. Didn't have a lot of exciting "news" to post on my author blog this year. :(

So what exactly is the "draw" of Becka's Babble? Inquiring minds want to know. Is it the lame attempt at humor? The amusing photographs? The frequent updates? Or a combination of the lot of them?

I know for a fact that one of the members in DH's and my circle of friends "outted" this blog to the rest of our "circle" (thanks a lot, Kyle! :D) a few weeks back by posting a linky to one of my Avatar posts and now they read it every now and again. Don't think I don't know you read this drivel, guys. . . Oh yeah, we're all Avatar: The Last Airbender geeks in the Pacific Northwest. Was there ever any doubt? :P




My 3 y/o son knows the entire spiel of the beginning of the show and even acts it out. "Water, Earth, Fire, Air...." DH wants to shave our son's head next Halloween and dress him up as Aang with an arrow painted on his head. LOL That would be sweet. If we do that, I'm sure I'll regail you with pics. :P

I read a fabulous book over the New Years weekend. DEVIL IN WINTER by Lisa Kleypas.



Yes, it's so good, it deserves a big-ass pic on my blog. Loved, loved LOVED that book. RUN, don't walk, to buy your copy. And if you've already read it already, let's collectively sigh together.

**LE SIGH**

I'm a sucker for emotional love stories, and a book that can make me cry and shout and read until the wee hours of the morning is a keeper. I've never read one of Ms. Kleypas's books before, but hot damn, I'm gonna stock up!! :D I can only wish my stories will be so awesome once I've been doing this writing gig nigh on 20 years.... I've had people compliment my writing up and down, saying I need to be with New York, yadda yadda yadda. But you know what? I can tell when a writer is just plain better than me and Lisa Kleypas is better that me. :) I'm not ego-tripping, merely stating a fact. However, I did just start my writing career two years ago, so I've got 18 more years to go before I'm up to her caliber.

Yup, 2 years ago my first book was released, HOPE IN THE LORD from By Grace Publishing in January of 2005. Seems like so long ago now. I knew nothing of promotion. I still feel clueless and I'm just feeling my way along, but judging by sales, I guess I'm doing something...write (pun intended nyuk nyuk).

Okay, I'm aware that I'm rambling, but I really have nothing of importance to say. I have absolutely no idea how to start the third book in my BEAST series and my publisher needs the first chapter by mid-January in order to get it ready as a "teaser" for the print of B*E*A*S*T* OF BURDEN. (perhaps this is news for my author blog, but screw it, I'm rambling so I'm just gonna do it here. No one reads that blog anyway. lol) I have an idea of where I want to go, but I'm just not feeling that first chapter. I gotta get this third BEAST book done by April 1st, I've got to do my brutal self-edits on THE WOLVERINE AND THE JEWEL, the 2nd book in the Legends of Mynos series, I gotta then write an historical novella *and* finish 3rd Legends book, THE WOLVERINE AND THE FLAME, by June 1st.

Thankfully, I did finish and self-edit PROMISE ME FOREVER, a book that was *taking* forever to write (TWO years.) **whew** Am I glad to get rid of THAT book... It's just a "vanilla" contemporary, about ordinary people, and it was so damned BORING!!! I don't think I'm going to write a "vanilla" contemp again. Don't get me wrong, the BEAST series is contemp, but it's got suspense and paranormal stuffage going on, so it keeps my interest. Now this is not to say you shouldn't BUY this book. lol The story itself is good, but it was just so very hard for me to write. Ugh. With a capital Uh.

And dear Gawd, this post is going on forever. I'm sorry folks. If you've gotten this far, thank you for faithfully reading my ramblings. If you've fallen asleep, ZZZZZ...

:P

~~Becka
Over and out.