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Entertainment Wrap-Up for April 2024. What Are You Watching and Reading?

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 Hi, and welcome to my entertainment wrap-up for April 2024.   Books 📚📚📚📚📚📚📚📚📚📚 Starling House by Alix E. Harrow I listened to this book on Audible. The narrator did a nice job, but the book's content was a different story. I finished it and gave it a 3 out of 5 on my reading scale. Genre is Fantasy, Horror, Gothic, Fiction, Romance, Mystery. Overview from Goodreads A grim and gothic new tale from author Alix E. Harrow about a small town haunted by secrets that can't stay buried and the sinister house that sits at the crossroads of it all. Eden, Kentucky, is just another dying, bad-luck town, known only for the legend of E. Starling, the reclusive nineteenth-century author and illustrator who wrote The Underland--and disappeared. Before she vanished, Starling House appeared. But everyone agrees that it’s best to let the uncanny house―and its last lonely heir, Arthur Starling―go to rot. Opal knows better than to mess with haunted houses or brooding men, but an unexpect

Journal Prompt-Describe Your Greatest Phobia

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Describe Your Greatest Phobia What is my greatest phobia, you ask? I looked up the definition of phobia to make sure I answered the question correctly.  A phobia is "an extreme or irrational fear of or aversion to something." With the definition of phobia firm in my mind, I would say that I have had two phobias in my lifetime. The two things that have scared me the most are bees (not honey bees, I am talking wasps, hornets, and yellow jackets) and public speaking.  I no longer have what I would have described as a phobia of bees. I wouldn't say I like stinging insects, but this phobia was a part of my life from my childhood into my twenties. I can tell you the source of this phobia. It was my older brother Jimmy. Jim was five years older than me, and he loved to scare me. One way he found satisfaction was in chasing me with half-dead wasps. Jimmy would somehow attach a bee to a stick and chase me as I went screaming through the fields and woods of our country childhood ho

The Joy. How to Find Joy Even in Difficult Times

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 Joy is relative. I may find joy in something that does not bring you joy, and you may find joy in something that does not bring me joy. That being said, we can find some type of joy in all phases of our lives.  During the most difficult and joyless time of my life, when my husband of 37 years walked out, I thought I would never find joy again. During this time, when I would have easily given up, I was determined, even in my weakened state, to strive to find some level of joy. It was hard work, but I fought to bring the joy I once had back into my life, and you can, too. So, what is joy? The Oxford Dictionary defines joy as... "a feeling of great pleasure and happiness" Happiness, according to Very Well Mind, is... "Happiness is a positive emotional state characterized by feelings  such as contentment, joy, and life satisfaction." Sometimes, our joy will be a great feeling of happiness or pleasure, as mentioned above. Other times, we may feel we have no joy, and dur

Recipe Review-Strawberry Spinach Salad

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I came across a photo of a strawberry spinach salad on Pinterest. After looking at the beautiful salad, I decided to make my own to enjoy. I wanted to modify the existing recipe, so I searched for a strawberry spinach chicken salad recipe on Google to see what I could find.  I decided to take a look at several recipes to see the salad ingredients to decide how I wanted to make my very good salad. I looked at the star rating of each salad, and if it ranked four or five out of five, I would read the recipe. First off, you will need baby spinach. I like to get fresh spinach that is bagged and usually pre-washed. Next, I decided to use a red onion. Several different kinds of cheese were mentioned in the recipe. Feta cheese, goat cheese, and blue cheese were mentioned as options. You have several chicken options. I am going to go with the feta cheese. You can use leftover chicken, bake chicken just for this recipe using chicken breasts or chicken tenderloins or, as in my case, use rotisseri

Monthly Motivation-Trust God To Help You Get Back Up Again

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 Have you ever failed at anything? I have. Have you ever fallen down, either physically or figuratively, and felt you did not have the strength to keep on trying? I have. Have you ever felt lost/confused and just did not have the motivation even to try to get out of the hole you have dug for yourself or the energy to attempt to get out of the pit in which life has placed you? I have. I guess most of us have been in these situations.  But there is good news! It is a new day and can be a new beginning; we can get back up and keep on trying to be the best we can be. I find this is only possible with God's help. Here are a few sayings to help us pull ourselves up by our bootstraps no matter what is going on in our lives. "This thing called failure is not the falling down but the staying down."  (Author unknown,  at least to me.) (I happen to know the person in the photo, and he did get up and had many triumphant sledding moments after this fall.  He could have given up, but h

Fashion/Amazon Shopping. What to Wear Line Dancing.

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 I have been taking Line Dancing Classes.  So fun!  As a beginner, I don't have the proper attire, not that it would matter what I wore, but it would be nice to dress the part.  With that in mind, I am going to look for something I could wear from Amazon.  Let's take a look... (I am an Amazon Affiliate.  If you buy anything using my link, I get a tiny percentage of the sale at no extra cost to you.  Thanks!:-) 1- Soda “BLAZING” ~ Women Western Stitched Pointe Toe Low Heel High Top Ankle Shaft Boot Bootie 2- Urban CoCo Women's Long Sleeve Boho Shirt Embroidered Top 3- ZESICA Women's 2024 Summer Wrap V Neck Bohemian Floral Print Ruffle Swing A Line Beach Mini Dress 4- Wrangler Women's Aura Regular Rise Stonewash Stretch Denim with Embroidered Pocket 5- Akivide Womens Boho Floral Print Short Sleeve Button Up Dressy Casual Blouse Shirt Tunic Top 6- DOCILA Unisex Western Cowboy Hat Faux Fur Felt Cowgirl Hats 7- ROPER Women's Short Stuff Embroidery Snip Toe Ankle Boot

Travel NC-A Few Events In North Carolina You May Enjoy, March 2024

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 I am always looking for fun things to do in the area.  I thought I would take it a bit further and see what events are occurring in North Carolina in a specific month.  Let's take a look at just a few things happening in March 2024 in NC that you may enjoy. I live in the Raleigh/Durham area, so I looked for exciting events to attend in March that are easily within driving distance.  I would love to attend them all! The Links to Each Event... (Be sure to verify event times and locations before attending.   You may need a ticket depending on the event) Things to do in March 2024  in the Triangle Area Plant Lovers Tour March 5th at JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, NC NC Symphony Rhapsody in Blue March 8-9 in Raleigh, NC Dinos Alive Feb 25-April 7th in Raleigh, NC Dogwood Comedy Festival March 27-31st in Raleigh, NC Cinch The World's Toughest Rodeo on March 30 in Raleigh, NC (I am going to this one:-) A Few Things to do In NC that are not so local to the Triangle Area. 2024 B