Thursday, April 30, 2009

Friday Fun Quiz: What's Your Medieval Profession?

I thought this an appropriate quiz for May Day. It'll be fun to see how many of us get the same results!




You Are a Playwright



You are a highly literate wordsmith. You love both reading and writing.

You are also a natural storyteller. You can turn a mediocre anecdote into a riveting tale.

You find people and all aspects of life fascinating. No topic is off limits for you.

In modern times, you would make a good filmmaker or novelist.



Linda

Monday, April 27, 2009

My Town Monday: Anaheim Public Library

Anaheim's public library began in a room in a candy store in 1901, but a mere seven years later, moved into a new building financed by a grant from steel magnate/philanthropist Andrew Carnegie in 1908. His original investment was all of $10,000.00. The old building still stands and became the Anaheim Muzeo in 1987.

The "new" central library building (pictured below) was authorized by a vote of the residents of Anaheim in 1960 and opened in 1963. Located at the corner of Broadway and Harbor Boulevard, the building comprised fifty thousand square feet designed to hold 200,000 volumes when it opened. With typical Cold War thinking, part of the basement was set aside as a bomb shelter. Now the basement houses multipurpose reading rooms, storage and a staff room.

Over the years, as Anaheim grew, so did the library system which now consists of the Central Library and five branches: Euclid, Haskett, Sunkist, Canyon Hills and East Anaheim.

The Central Library recently underwent extensive remodeling. The Children's Room was expanded, as was the Young Adult section, and encompasses most of the ground floor, along with the Computer Lab and video section. I love this mural outside the entrance to the Children's Room where I used to work.


All of the adult materials were moved upstairs, and the library's Anaheim Heritage Reading Room was moved to the Muzeo.

On the third Saturday of the month, my readers group meets in one of the cozy study rooms on the second floor to discuss the books we've read. Despite the wealth of data at my fingertips over the internet and my preference for reading e-books, I still visit the local library regularly and check out and read books. I've been a library lover since I was a small child, and I doubt that will ever stop.

Do you still use your local library? If not, why not?

Linda

My Town Monday is the brilliant brain child of writer/blogger Travis Erwin. Thanks, Travis! Go to his blog to read his latest post and find links to the other participants.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Celebrating Taurus

April 21 through May 21

It's so appropriate that Earth Day falls on April 22, after the sun has moved into the sign of Taurus.

Taurus is a fixed earth sign, and people born under its influence are typically described as "down to earth". Many, like my mother, have green thumbs and enjoy gardening. My mom loved nothing more than to get outside and dig her hands in the soil. I remember helping her plant tulip and daffodil bulbs when we lived back east. I never enjoyed it as much as she did, but it was fun to watch the flowers bloom come spring.

Taureans tend to be homebodies, not wanderers like Sagittarius, and their homes are often havens of peace and tranquility. My mother, the Taurus, hated to move more than anyone I ever knew. Unfortunately, she married a Scorpio afflicted with the Wanderlust. (He had some Sagittarian influences in his chart.) Generally, Taurus and Scorpio are a good match, and other compatible signs include Virgo and Capricorn, the other two earth signs, plus water signs Pisces and Cancer.

Taurus is "feminine" sign ruled by Venus so there's a sensual, "earthy" side to the sign. Taureans love beauty and all sensual experiences. They can be quite easy going, but watch out when they get riled up.

Is there a Taurus in your life?

Linda

For more about Taurus, check out this page at astrology.com.

Monday, April 20, 2009

My Town Monday: Record Heat

We're having a Heat Wave, but not a tropical one. It's caused by an offshore flow, the opposite of our usual ocean breeze. Temps in the area soared into the 90's and in some areas into three digits, far higher than the normal 73 degrees for this time of year. On Sunday Fullerton had a record high of 100 degrees and it was 101 in Santa Ana. This is very unusual weather for April, and I didn't envy the folks sitting in the stands at the Long Beach Grand Prix. The only good thing about it is the clear blue skies. It's hot but beautiful.

When the winds come off the desert, they bring intense heat and dryness, with humidity in the 15-25% or lower range. Yesterday a brush fire broke out in a gully next to the 5 Freeway in Mission Viejo, causing a Sigalert and damaging two homes, apparently not seriously. It took us well over an hour to travel the 38 miles from San Clemente to Anaheim, but my husband did get some cool pictures of the water-dropping helicopter while we were sitting in traffic.

Thankfully, the fire appeared to be out by the time we got to where it had started. We've had less than 9 inches of rain this season, so I'm sure there will be more fires.

I hope the weather is more pleasant in your home town.

Linda

My Town Monday is the brilliant brain child of writer/blogger Travis Erwin. Thanks, Travis! Go to his blog to read his latest post and find links to the other participants.

(Photos by B. A. Wilkinson)

Friday, April 17, 2009

Friday Fun Quiz: Are You Dusk or Dawn?

This one hits home with me because my DH is an early bird while I'm a night owl. It has been the cause of many an argument over the years. My MIL could never understand how I could sleep so late (8AM) and I could never understand how she could be alert at 5:30 in the morning. LOL, I can't even talk at that hour.

This quiz kind of fits me.



You Are Dusk



You are a naturally idealistic and creative person. You look forward to nights where everything is possible.

You spend most of your energy on play. Work is okay, but the true you emerges after the work day is done.

You're an offbeat type that doesn't like rules or schedules. Life's too short to waste at a desk in a cube.

Whether you spend your night socializing or working on side projects, you like that your time is yours.



Linda

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

One Million and Counting

Sometime last week the video trailer for my erotic pirate story Marooned passed the milestone of one million views at YouTube. It took almost two and a half years, so it hardly qualifies as viral video, but I still think it's pretty impressive, though occasionally I have to go into my account and clear out the porn spam from the comments section.



I wish I could say this translated into fabulous royalties, but it didn't. If only 1% of the viewers had bought the story, I'd be a happy camper. But at least I have bragging rights to over a million views at You Tube!

What do you think? Do video trailers sell books?

Linda / Lyndi

Marooned is available from Amber Heat by electronic download. Click here to read an excerpt.

Monday, April 13, 2009

No My Town Monday Today

Sorry, no My Town Monday post from me today, but pop on over to Travis Erwin's blog for his post and the list of My Town Monday bloggers.

Linda

Friday, April 10, 2009

Friday Fun Quiz: What Easter Candy Are You?

LOL, this could not be more true, except for the little brother part. There's a caramel Cadbury egg this year and it is decadent!




You Are a Cadbury Creme Egg



You're the type that stole little brother's easter basket so that you could have MORE CANDY!



Linda

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Nearly Wordless Wednesday: Ocean View


We had a beautiful day on Sunday and I couldn't resist stopping to snap this photo. We're supposed to have a little rain this week which would be nice.

How's the weather in your neck of the woods?

Linda

Monday, April 6, 2009

My Town Monday: Downtown Disney

When I first moved to Anaheim 23 years ago, there was a strawberry field where Downtown Disney us now located. The resort added this outdoor dining and shopping mall in 2001, and it was an immediate hit with visitors and locals alike. It's adjacent to both the Disneyland Hotel and Disneyland, with its own monorail station. Best of all, visitors get three hours of free parking, though visitors to the park are discouraged from parking there.

Downtown Disney (DTD from now on) has a number of restaurants including a Rainforest Cafe, House of Blues, ESPN Zone, and my personal favorite, Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen. I love the colorful umbrellas hanging from the ceiling.



You can smell the beignets as you approach the Jazz Kitchen, and the architecture is reminiscent of New Orleans's French Quarter, one of my favorite places in the world. The menu reflects the Big Easy's signature Creole and Cajun cuisine, but with "Disney" spices, probably because DTD caters to families and kids aren't always very adventurous in their food choices. Cajun food can be red hot, but not at DTD. The Jazz Kitchen's food is subtly spiced, much to the relief of my finicky stomach. We went there on Christmas day and dined on Cajun roasted turkey breast, probably the best turkey dinner I've ever had. They're very good about letting people split an order, and believe me, it was more than enough food for the two of us.


We recently returned and split California Club Sandwich: Toasted sourdough bread, smoked bacon, Cajun roasted turkey breast, sliced tomatoes and avocado mayonnaise. (Yes, that's half of the sandwich.) We asked for Creole seasoned French fries instead of the jalapeño and bacon potato salad that normally comes with the club sandwich. The Jazz Kitchen Cheeseburger, made of ground filet mignon cooked to order with Jack cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions and pickles is also delicious. LOL, can you tell I love to eat?

DTD also has a movie theater and a number of retail stores, including the Lego Imagination Center, and Compass Books, the only retail bookstore in Anaheim.

There are disadvantages to living in a tourist mecca, bad traffic being the worst one, but there are advantages, too. One of the latter is being able to to visit during the off season. Another is that there's always a restaurant open, even on a national holiday. One of the bad things is the cyclical nature of tourism and it's ups and downs as the economy fluctuates. Anaheim relies on hotel taxes for much of its revenue, and the downturn in the economy has hit hard here. The library system has had to cut back on hours. I don't expect things to bounce back soon, but I'm hoping I'm wrong.

It's spring break, but when my DH and I visited Downtown Disney in late March, the crowd was sparse to say the least. I asked our waiter if business was down this year compared to last and he said that it seemed to be, though things had picked up after a slow winter. Let's hope they pick up soon.

Linda

My Town Monday is the brilliant brain child of writer/blogger Travis Erwin. Thanks, Travis! Go to his blog to read his latest post and find links to the other participants.

Saturday, April 4, 2009

What 's your name?

I discovered this meme at Travis Erwin's blog and thought it would be fun to play with.

1. Your rock star name (first pet/current vehicle) - Lucky TL

2. Your Gangsta name (favourite ice cream flavour/fave type of shoe) -DDL Sandals (for Dulce de Leche)

3. Your Native American name (fave colour/favourite animal) - Red Dog

4. Your soap opera name (middle name/city of birth) - Anne Pittsburgh (boring)

5. Your Star Wars name (first 3 letters of last name/first 2 letters of first name) Mclla

6. Your Superhero name (second fave colour/fave drink) - Blue Leinie (since my favorite beer is currently Leinenkugel's Sunset Wheat)

7. Your NASCAR name (first names of your grandfathers) - Wade John

8. Your dancer name (favourite scent/fave candy) - Juniper Chocolate

9. TV Weather Anchor name (5th grade teacher/city that starts with the same letter) - Smith* Sacramento

(*Ack, I can't remember the name of my 5th grade teacher, so I'm using my 4th grade teacher instead.)

Update: I remembered! Her name was Mrs. Deaver, so I'm changing my weather anchor name to Deaver Denton.

10. Your spy name (fave season/flower) - Autumn Lilac

11. Your cartoon name (favourite fruit/article of clothing you are wearing) - Blueberry T.

12. Your hippie name (what you had for breakfast/favourite tree) - Atkins Maple
(corrected 4-5-09)

13. Your porn star name (first pet/first address) - Lucky Wisconsin

Feel free to join in the meme in the comments section.

Linda