A Time For Everything

Sadly, my Dallas Stars finally succumbed to the inevitable. They'd gone down 3-0 and clawed their way back to 3-2...they needed a win Monday night in the worst way and just couldn't pull that rabbit out of the hat.

Seeing grown men cry is the worst. :0(

One of the traditions in hockey is the handshake line at the end of a playoff series. I'm of two minds about it... It's gotta suck as the losing team to wait around for the winning team to end their initial jubilant celebration in order to shake your hand. As a fan, I like it. I guess it has that sportsmanship element that acknowledges that things could have just as easily gone the other way...

I'm sad for my boys in Victory (!) Green, but am relieved for myself. Playoff hockey uses up a lot of energy, and life can kinda stall out as you progress from game to game and series to series. But now I'm off the hook and can look forward to and move forward toward upcoming events.

Have a great weekend.

Hello again...

Two games into the Western Conference Final and the Stars are down two games. :0( The series comes to Dallas and the next two games are here: Tuesday and Thursday. I can't image the Stars losing two games at home, but the losses in Vegas were the first back to back losses they've had so far this playoffs. It's a whole new ball game. We're playing a team that is more our match than our first two opponents. It's going to a long series, even if it's a short one. *sigh*

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On a completely different train of thought...don't you just love it when the universe converges on you in a good way? I've been reading some books and working on some things. I'm not sure which came first, but they're intermingled and completely related.

And this fascinating phenomena is happening; the more I work on a thing or think about a thing, the more the universe feeds me more information on that thing. And most of the non-fiction books that I've read this say that this very thing could / would happen.

And it's amazing.

And the books that I've read (or plan to) have been recommended by different people in different tracks of my life.

And speaking of books... so this latest recommendation... I clicked the link that took me to Amazon. The Kindle version is $12.99--way more than I'm inclined to pay for an ebook--but the hardback version is only $6.49 or thereabouts. And so I was considering this, although I'm not keen on physical books that much anymore.

But then--lightning strikes. I have the online library remember--with not one, but two library systems now at my disposal. (hee hee) So I open up that library app and search for this book, and--lo and behold--it's available for virtual checkout! Not right away, mind, there's a four week wait, but I put a hold on it. And that's fine because I'm in the middle of another book I want to finish first. So it all worked out.

But man--there's the universe looking out for me again.

I finally finished one of the other non-fiction books I'd picked out and that was a slog, but more on that book later.

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I thought I had more to share today, but I guess I don't, so I'll sign off for now.

Have a great week.

BONUS POST!

My Dallas Stars took the second round against the Seattle Kraken with a game seven win last night. It was nail biter for Stars fans even though the many of the hockey writers / pod casters I read / listen to seem to think the series was boring...

The Stars now move on to the third round, also known as the Conference Final--Western--in our case and will play the Vegas Golden Knights who punched their ticket Sunday night.

Vegas has depth, but not as good of a goalie as the Stars do.

Our goalie, Jake Oettinger, is said to be the best tendy of the four teams left playing. We also have what's been touted as the best top forward line for two regular seasons running. And not just by me. :0)

We're looking at the Carolina Hurricanes or the Florida Panthers coming out of the Eastern Conference to play in the Stanley Cup Final.

Carolina has the more suspect goal tending and a few more injuries, although that hasn't slowed them down much... So I think I'd rather the Stars play Carolina. The Panthers' goalie has gotten hot at just the right time, so I think facing him would be a tougher challenge for our team.

Have a great week.

>

Let's Catch Up, Shall We...?

Mason Marchment hugs goalie Jake Oettinger.

Well, how 'bout dem Stars? Yup, our boys in Victory Green won the first round against the Minnesota Wild. In a shocking turn of events, the Seattle Kraken eliminated reigning champs the Colorado Avalanche, and so we'll play the Kraken in the second round. Round Two starts Tuesday at the American Airlines Center

DD and I had hoped to attend at least one game in each series, but tickets for series two are already over $100 each and I really can't justify that. Not with everything else I'm trying to do. Maybe when they reach the Stanley Cup Final... But in the mean time, it's gonna be watch parties.

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The author event at the library a couple of weeks ago went well. I had two titles at two different price points available and sold one of each. Woo hoo! I also donated one of the historicals to the library.

Shout out to Alison Long at the Haltom City Public Library, who is made of awesomesauce. The event was lovely as it always is. And... While I was there, I got a library card so that I now have a second library system's e-book collection to check books out of!

* * * * *

We're no longer trying to re-home Waldo and Rascal. I'm officially their new mom. I've been working on a post about Rascal so that'll be coming along in a bit.

* * * * *

I have finally taken the plunge back into writing. Well, revisions mostly. As I've mentioned more than once, I put writing aside last year when Mom happened. I was right in the middle of a book at the time, so it's been sitting there and those boys have been waiting patiently for me to finish telling their tale.

In June, I'm going to my annual writers retreat, and I wanted to work on this particular book. I know it isn't ready for me to make any kind of writing progress on it and that I'd need to read it through to figure out what's what.

Well, I dove in and let me tell you--that manuscript is a hot mess on fire in a dumpster. So many inconsistencies not only in the timeline, but in the story path I wanted to take. So that's what I've been doing. Asking and answering questions, making decisions, and untangling the knots I created for myself.

It's challenging and frustrating, but it also feels really good. :0)

* * * * *

On a writing side-note, I got the cover for book six in hopes that it would motivate me to finish book five. I want to complete the series sooner rather than later, and I can't move on to Six before I finish Five.

I'm pleased with it.

Have a super week. Catch you Thursday. Also:

The Dallas Stars have made the playoffs! But you knew that right??

*Clicking on the image will show you the largest version...

According to the chart above, created last October, the Stars had a 58.3% chance of making it to the playoffs and a less than 6.2% change of running the gauntlet of four rounds and winning the Stanley Cup.

Well. they made to the playoffs and they've secured home ice. Which means the first two games are at home to give them the lift of a hometown crowd to support them and cheer them on to early victory. DD and I have tickets to Wednesday night's second home game... :0)

Fast forward six months from the date of the original chart and there's new chart with the sixteen teams (of thirty-two) who made the cut.

Our chances of winning the Cup, today, before the playoffs even start, is 4.6%. It's not the lowest but it's close. They thing about hockey, though, is that once you're in, anything can happen. There are a lot of factors outside the players' control that help or hinder a team's progress.

Injuries to your own players or to the players of your opponent are a big factor, as is "puck luck" and the capriciousness of the officials on the ice making calls. The frustration of many teams is that the officials put the whistles away come playoffs because they don't want to affect the outcome of the games.

BUT... They affected every one of the eighty-two games that led to these teams being in the playoffs and they affect the outcome of a game by not calling penalties when penalties are due anyway. So please, for the love of the Hockey Gods, call the penalties as required.

Okay, enough of that. The officials that get assigned to the Stars' games are all going to call penalties properly. I'm putting that into the universe.

If you don't have rooting interests in another team, will you please send your well wishes and winner vibes toward our boys in Victory Green?

Many thanks!

And on a sad note, the Pittsburgh Penguins, captained by my favorite player Sidney Crosby, didn't make the playoffs for the first time in sixteen seasons. >>sad face<< That's basically Captain Crosby's tenure in the NHL...

Hope you have a great week and don't forget to:

BE LOUD while WEARing GREEN and cheering on the GO STARS!!

Have a super week.

Best of all--the home opener is on a Saturday for a change. So...!! DD and I can attend all the pre-game events this year. Which usually includes what they call the Victory Green Carpet Walk. That's when the players walk into the arena on (obviously) a Victory Green carpet. Fans get to line the carpet for pictures and possibly autographs.

There are usually other events taking place in Victory Plaza, as well, so DD and I are gonna make a day of it since we actually can. I've had the tickets for a month already and I can't even say how excited we both are.

Others look forward to Halloween...I look forward to hockey season. :0)

However, for the first time in five seasons, we do not have season tickets or even half-season tickets. DD and I will be going to games as the mood strikes us and not because we have to because we already paid for the seats. Are there things I'm going to miss about being a season ticket holder? A few yes, but not enough to keep on right now.

Last year, I didn't opt out and wished I'd had. Way before Mom's cancer was known to me and before we even thought we'd be moving Mom to Texas, I just wasn't feeling the energy needed for that kind of commitment. Also, I had other reservations, which ended up coming to pass, and so this year, I said, "No."

Mostly for the same reasons, but also because after the hiatus of many things due to caring for Mom, I need to decide if the things I wanted to do are the things I still want to do; if so or if not--how do I move forward.

I've reached a crossroads...there is lots of pondering and consideration and prayer to come for me over the next weeks and months.

In the meantime...

You know what that means...

Dallas Stars Hockey is back and the Stars pulled off a win.

It was super game and the boys did us proud.

Being back at the AAC with a full-capacity crowd was mostly awesome. :0) Awesome because, of course, the crowd yelling "Stars" as one during the National Anthem is amazing. The sound of the goal horn and the cheering of the fans is music to our ears. Just feeling the excitement of the crowd and the all-encompassing reverberation of the whole crowd yelling "Dallas" "Stars" "Dallas" "Stars" after a goal is a unique experience.

It lacked a bit of awesome because we lost the elbow room from when social distancing was in place. But it's time to re-build normalcy. And this was a super start.

They added a new thing, at least for the home opener, but I'm hoping it sticks around--three long sheets of fabric acting as a projection screen:

For opening night they handed out battery powered glow bracelets:

Normally, I'm all in on just enjoying an experience. I grew up before cell phones, and I don't take a lot of pictures...but...if you're so inclined to get an inkling of what it's like at the AAC, I perfectly-timed hitting record to catch the game winning goal and the resultant crowd response.

It looks as though we have a new group of fellow season ticket holders on our little area and one guy is going to get really annoying really fast. But we'll see how often our paths cross. Not often I hope.

Anyway...

Be Loud. Wear Green. and..

 GO STARS!!!

I'll be home sometime this afternoon and then it'll be a nice looong stretch of being home.

Thank goodness. I'm tired.

Of course, hockey season starts this week, but luckily our boys in Victory Green start the season on the road. DD and I are cutting way back on games this season. We've chosen the must-attend games (opening night (of course) favorite opposing teams, bobblehead nights, and the like) and the rest of the tickets will be listed on the secondary market. If they don't sell, we'll go.

Speaking of hockey--I'm sure you missed all my hockey talk, didn't you?--DD and I have some crafts planned.

From last year, wee have these lovely Nutcrackers...

And this year, we found gnomes(!!) while we were out and about trying to get ideas for our annual Stars ornament...

Ornament idea yet to be determined.

Recap and pictures of the conference to come. Hope you had a great week last week and here's to a good week this week.

In an upset that no one in the hockey world expected--the Montreal Canadiens advance to the Stanley Cup Final.

Last night, the Habs, as they're sometimes called, beat the Vegas Golden Knights in seven games. The Knights were one of three odds-on favorites to go all the way and win.

The Canadiens, on the other hand, finished 18th in the NHL at the end of the regular season (behind my Dallas Stars) but 4th in their division and earning themselves a spot in the playoffs.

Once making the playoffs, they took down the Toronto Maple Leafs, the League's 6th best team (by points) and then swept the Winnipeg Jets (only 14th best).

 This is their first trip to the Final since 1993--that's twenty-eight years!

After tonight, we'll know who they'll be playing--last year's Stanley Cup champs (the Tampa Bay Lightning) or the New York Islanders, who themselves haven't made the Finals since 1984. They've made the playoffs plenty of times, as have the Habs, but neither team has gotten to the Final in decades.

Despite losing $15 on my Stanley Cup Final wagers--$5 when the Stars didn't make it to the post-season, $5 when the Colorado Avalanche lost to the Golden Knights, and then last night when the Golden Knights lost to the Canadiens--I'm tickled red, white, and blue for the Habs.

LET'S GO HABS!

As always, have a great weekend. :0)

The application I was using for y'all to receive the blog directly is disabling that feature in July...

Soooo...if you're still so inclined to get my my blog in your email, then I've researched other options and implemented the most highly recommended one.

You can subscribe there to the right in the box with the green outline. What that means is that you'll get notified twice for maybe two weeks and then I'll delete the other one and remove all y'all's email addresses from the original. (May 4th--I'll delete)

And if you no longer want to hear from me, that's fine too. I get it. :0) I'm not terribly exciting and have a bit of a three-track mind.

Good thing I no longer bite my nails. ;0)

Hope your week is going well...and, you know...

Happy Friday!

Hope you're well.

The new car continues to surprise and delight. Not only does Google Maps show up on the HUD, but the car will read my texts to include emojis. I got a laugh out of that the other day. I can also pick podcasts from my HUD if decide, in transit, I want to listen to one.

I also discovered that my driver's seat can move in several additional ways. The front edge, over which our knees hang, can be levered up and down! The seat itself can be moved up and down as well as forward and back. The seat back can also be  angled forward and back. All electronically!! No pumping the lever.

It's not a great picture, but I was in a moving car. (DD was driving, not me.) But you know what it means, right? After all this time...?

Yes, after my sad post on Wednesday, the heavenly stars aligned on Thursday night and my boys won in regulation. That means they got the two winner points and the other team got no loser points. And on top of that, the two teams ahead of us in the standings lost last night, meaning we had a four point leap toward the team in that 4th place position we're trying to acquire...

Of course, we have to keep the winning going... :0)

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In other news, I opted against moving forward with that online publisher I'd submitted my cookie book too. She wanted more and more revisions before coughing up a contract and I just don't have the time to devote to that process at the moment. There were a couple other reasons, but that's the big one.

Have a great weekend!

I tried to get something up on Monday, but the inspiration, the words just weren't there.

And now it's Wednesday. I don't feel like I should let two official blog days pass without a post, so have a general life update...

I submitted the cookie book to an online publisher this past Sunday. My receipt email arrived Monday. I should hear back within 60 days if it was accepted or not. *fingers crossed* If it's not, then I'll get a cover made and publish it myself next Christmas. No harm, no foul.

I've got three writing projects on my plate at the moment--finishing the epic historical, percolating hockey book 5, and character development for a future series...

I think I'm just about ready to dive into writing hockey book 5--yeah that's only book five, not six like I thought. My list of hockey books included the box set of the first three. So I thought I was on book 6 for a minute there, but then realized that no, I've only got four individual titles out. Book 5 is for this year, book 6 will come next. I've fixed the list, moving the box set to separate list/section to avoid future confusion. :0)

Aaaand....

Hockey is back!

After a false start (half the team ended up in COVID protocols and games were postponed), we--I should say: the STARS hit the ground running with four straight wins. Then they lost two. And got back into the winning column again last night.

Be Loud. Wear Green. Go Stars!

Whelp--

We made it through January, but 2021 goes marching on.

I made a good start on my goals. I cooked meals. I mopped the kitchen and hallway. I sent a letter to my grandma. I worked on character worksheets. I completed and submitted a book. I worked out.

Now that we've turned the calendar page... 

I'll keep cooking and mopping and writing letters and writing books and  watching/attending hockey games.

The temperatures will keep warming and the days will keep getting longer and I'll keep making progress.

Hope you're well. Catch you on Friday!

Two games, two wins.

It's only two games, but there are so many things that came out of these two games. I won't bore you with them all, because I know you don't care and it could change in a heartbeat. But what a way to the start the season.

In lieu of my trip to Buc-cee's which I did earn, I bought a new puck for my collection:

I also tried a new dish, which turned out sensational. It's also versatile--I can use fish or pork instead of chicken if I want.

I'm having leftovers for lunch. :0)

Hope you had a great weekend...

Very few people picked my team to get past the first round against the Calgary Flames, much less get all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals and be a threat to actually win the most prized trophy in sports.

BUT!!

Here they are.

And on Saturday night, they won Game One against the Tampa Bay Lightning--one of the best teams in the League. Granted, Dallas had four days of rest and Tampa only had one, but that's hockey. And they'll be gunning for us come Game Two tonight.

Here are some pics from Saturday night's game.

That there is our MVP--the goalie, Anton Khudobin, without whom we wouldn't be here.

And last picture--my favorite thing to see after a win--the Reunion Tower Ball lit up!!

Have a great week!!

And I have a long week ahead of me. But I'm ready for it!

The time has come for me to finally get my dental work done. However-- I chose to postpone the first appointment by a week because I didn't want to be down and out with pulled teeth and mouth pain while enjoying the Stanley Cup Finals and cheering my team to victory. :0)

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

We got the win...

...and we're headed for the Stanley Cup Finals!!!

 The boys will get a much needed extra few days to rest and then it'll be on to the Finals.

And just for shits and giggles...we used to see this clip in the arena during games but not often anymore...and I miss it.

Have a great week. Wheeeeee!!!!!!!!!!

I know you're probably getting tired on my hockey posts, but this is what's going on with me right now...

Our boys are now up 3-1 in the best of seven series. A win tonight sends us to the Stanley Cup Finals.

HOLY COW.

In other news...

There is no other news. :0)

I've been going to work and going to hockey watch parties. There has been no writing and no editing. Because I'm out late, I'm sleeping in because I need my sleep. I know this about myself. So I'm using this as an opportunity to take a break from the book so that when it's time to dive back in, I'll have fresh eyes and a fresh perspective.

BUT LET'S

Have a great week! Mine may be a roller coaster...

Once upon a time, DD would only watch Dallas Stars hockey. Didn't care about news of any team other that of our home team. She was a more a Stars fan and less a general hockey fan. It was challenge to have a hockey conversation with her sometimes. But five months after the world went on hiatus and my girl is watching all kinds of hockey.

Of course, other games have ramifications for our team, provided they move forward.

It's really nice to have hockey back, but we've both become realists about the chances our Stars have to get past the first round. Could it happen? Sure it could. Anything can happen during the NHL playoffs. Will it happen? Sadly, the play of our team and decision of the coaches on whom to put in the lineup greatly reduces our chances.

We've both made other picks as to who the winner of the Stanley Cup will be. Neither of us has picked our Stars to go all the way. We're each rooting for one of the other's most hates teams. I'm rooting for Colorado Avalanche and she's rooting for Philadelphia Flyers. Since they're in different conferences, they could end playing each other for the Cup. Wouldn't that be a hoot?

Anyway, it's been an exciting week of hockey with more to come this weekend.

Hope your weekend is whatever you're looking for it to be! Have a great one.