I keep hearing about empowerment. I hear the word bandied about quite often. Yet, when I tried to figure out ways to help people become empowered, my google searches kept leading to empowering people in a work environment. They all centered around empowering people by making them leaders…

Does that mean that we are all supposed to be leaders? Because, that could get a little awkward if everyone thinks they are in charge…

So- how do we empower people in a non-work environment?

Or is it only the work environment that people are supposed to be empowered?

What does empowerment mean to you?

What do you think you can do to help empower someone?

We hear the word.

Now let’s figure out how to do it.

Do you think that fiction books should include trigger warnings for topics that may be disturbing

No

50.00%

Yes

25.00%

Depends on the severity of the subject

16.67%

Not Sure

8.33%

Today’s question is again about books: Does a book need to have a happy ending to be considered a romance? If you want to participate you may need to go to my actual webpage.

For my Daughter’s history class, part of the final was to interview someone who was between the ages of 18 and 25 during the 60’s. Fellow blogger Lesley Kluchin was a star and talked to my daughter for hours about music and its impact on that decade.

So…

I am totally grateful to Lesley for agreeing to be interviewed!

And I am grateful to say that my daughter received an A on the paper.

May we never lose the ability to talk to one another about our specific generations, about the trials and tribulations, the good and the bad. We can learn about recent history by talking to people who lived through it…

Thank you Lesley!!

A few weeks ago my friends had a text chain. This chain was:

Top five top front person of a band whose name is not included in the title of the band.

eg. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band DOES NOT COUNT.

Mick Jagger as part of the Rolling Stones DOES

My choices are:

1. Freddy Mercury- Queen
2. Debby Harry – Blondie
3. Jim Morrison- Doors
4. Chrissie Hynde- Pretenders
5. Bono- U2

There are no wrong answers!!

There are only- Oh yeah I forgot about them- that’s a great choice!

Play here. Play on your own blog. Play with your friends.

Let’s have fun with music!!

I got into a war of words with one of my friends recently.

We know my stance on how too many liberties are taken when people write historical fiction. They take facts and twist them to fit their narrative. Or, they populate their novels with 21st century characters with 21st century ideals while they set their novels in other time periods…

My friend J disagrees. J argues that fiction is fiction and an author of fiction is entitled to write anything that they want because it is…fiction…

J argues that instead of complaining about the things listed as historical fiction, just stop using the term historical fiction…

And J has a point…

When we label things, we go in with a set notion as to how something is, or is going to be…

Now this makes sense when you want to labels bins for storage, or label your guest towels like Monica…

But when it comes to other things, should we be so quick to define something, to put it in it’s little box and say this is what it is…?

Or…

Should we let some things just be?

I just googled “Categories of Fiction books”. Do you know how many subcategories came up?

22

1. fantasy
2. science fiction
3. romance
4. mystery
5. historical
6. horror
7. fiction (why bother with this one- I mean- what’s left?)
8. thriller
9. western
10. science fantasy
11. literary
12. adventure
13. magical realism
14. fairy tale
15. children’s
16. crime
17. paranormal romance
18. fable
19. speculative
20. superhero
21. psychological
22. gothic

I’m sure if I tried something different I would probably get even more categories….

But…

Do we need this many separate genres of fiction?

Do we need to have this many labels?

Do these tags help you decide on a book? or is it just needless categorizing?

If something is tagged one of these genres and it doesn’t meet your expectations, are you going to be a harsher judge than if it was just labeled fiction?

Instead of sub genres, should things just be labeled as to content? Like, a list of possible trigger warnings?

Should the first page of a book say:

How do we manage our expectations when confronted with label upon label upon label?

Discuss

Alas, we are having internet issues! As I can’t imagine writing a post on my phone via 4G, no post today! Hopefully internet tomorrow!

If you have a dream, do you share it?

My blog was about two months old before I told my Husband and Daughter about it. Maybe six months old before I told my closest friends about it. And I still haven’t told my parents that I write a blog…

Why?

Well, with my husband and daughter, I wanted to see if it stuck- if blogging was going to become a part of me, a part of my day to day. I wasn’t sure if I was going to enjoy blogging- I did it to get into the habit of writing every day, but I knew if I immediately told my family I would feel pressure…what kind of pressure I’m not sure, but pressure just the same…

With my friends, i guess I wanted to know that I had some talent, or some point of view, or something that made blogging more real…

With my parents, well, I haven’t told my parents because my Mother is a dream killer…

She would say-

“Why don’t you get your Masters in Writing?”

or

Why don’t you write something else

or

This is just a waste of time for someone who is as smart as you are

Because nothing I’ve ever done has ever been good enough for my Mother.

Whenever I have told her I was interested in doing something, she always has a comment about it. According to her, the things that I want aren’t good enough, my dreams are supposed to be different.

Because she’s the Mother and she knows….

One day I’m going to look back and say that my Mother knew everything…

And that I knew nothing…

that I know nothing…

So you see that why I highlighted that quote when I read it…

Because I felt like SBB was writing to me…

She was telling me that my dreams matter, and it’s OK if I don’t share them with everyone…

Because they are my dreams, and mine alone…

And the only thoughts about them that matter are my own.

Has the internet changed the way that we look at sex?

I recently read “The Last Couple Standing” by Matthew Norman. The book talks about four couples that have know each other since college. As they hit their forties, three of the couples end up divorced. I’m guessing you got that from the title…

Now I am about to give some spoilers from the book, which really aren’t exactly “Rosebud” moments, but I am telling tales out of school so to speak…

So…

After the divorces, the three couples have some regrets. They say that dating and sex in the ’10’s is just not the same as earlier generations.

1. Facebook makes it so easy to find old loves and reconnect with the ones that got away, or that you secretly had a crush on
2. Tinder makes no strings sex with others right there in the palm of your hand, and it isn’t always what you expect
3. Because of the capability of search engines, what people want to see on your sexual menu have expanded- they expect a menu with at least five courses and multiple options for each course
4. The internet makes you feel like there are MANY other options out there, so you have to be on your A game at all times. Make one slip and your partner is searching away for the next possible mate

So my next questions bring it right back to you:

If you are presently in a relationship, do you think you would want to be in a relationship now, with all the new rules and bells and whistles?

If you are not currently in a relationship. do you find expectations of potential partners in too daunting?

Have your expectations changed of what you want/need/expect in a relationship?

Do you think the whole concept of sex and sexual relations is different now?

Has the internet brought dating to a whole other level, and if so, is it good, bad or just different?

What do you think the best way to navigate the brave new world of sex is?

Does the fact that this is written from by a man matter?

Pick any, or all parts of this….and…

Discuss…

Does the Gender of an author matter to you when choosing a book?

PercentVote Count

No

38.46%

Haven’t thought about it

23.08%

Yes

23.08%

Depends on the subject

15.38%

This Weeks question will also focus on books: Do you think that books should come with trigger warnings. If you can’t see it on reader and want to participate, please go directly to my site.

My stove recently broke.

Of course- 2020…

When I needed a new stove, the following were important to me:

1. five burners
2. electric pilot light
3. self cleaning
4. convection capabilities
5. storage drawer

When I looked at the website of our local appliance store, I pulled up the filters: four of the five things that I really wanted in a stove were not available as features to be filtered for (the only thing I was able to filter for was self cleaning). I needed to manually look at the features for every stove that was self cleaning and in my price range.

I am grateful though, that they had filter options for the following:

1. WIFI connected
2. Wi-Fi control
3. Voice control
4. Amazon Alexa Compatible
5. Google Assistant Compatible
6. Samsung SmartThings Compatible
7. Apple Homekit Compatible
8. Nest Compatible

I am grateful that to have finally found out what the most important features of a stove are…

To think that I thought you turned it on and cooked…

Wow

Mind Blown