I Have A Flat Chest & Not A Lot Of Money: Tips and Tricks for Fashion (Esp. Flat Fashion) On A Budget

Credit: Hannah Morgan @ Unsplash.com

Hello, beautiful people!

Sorry this post is so late this month – I was dealing with some personal issues which set back my health a little bit, and thus my focus was on ‘get back to striving again’ and that took a lot of energy and time. Not to mention that I had 2 books set to release this month (Book4 of the espionage romance Corpus Agency series, and the French translation of Book3 of The Daimsbury Chronicles series). So yeah, March kinda flew by.

Now, back on track. Let’s talk fashion, and style. Most of you know I had breast cancer in 2005 and 2010 – both times resulted in mastectomies (aka surgical removal of the breast tissue), and I opted not to have breast reconstruction done after both (frankly, I didn’t have the money, and even when I found out the government hospitals would do it for free and that my insurance would cover the costs even in a private clinic, I was so not going to go under the knife again. Nope!) Anyway, so what this means is that, since 2010, it looks like I swapped my chest with an ironing board, because I am now flatter than a pre-pubescent boy. My chest is literally skin on the bones of my ribs … and I wouldn’t have it any other way – less chance of a lump developing on that surface and me missing it under my fingers.

Which brings us to fashion. Ever seen a man in a skinny T-shirt?

Nightmare in #Mauritius: the dark side of Casela Nature Park #tourist #attraction #avoid #placetovisit

Hey, ye all!

You guys know me as that girl who's always talking about her beautiful island - heck, I even use Mauritius as the setting for a good many of my novels. Yes, I do wax lyrical about my motherland...but I haven't got my head up my you-know-what so I don't recognise when there's awful stuff going on to tarnish that good image my country upholds.

Kitchen Klutz' Recipes: Chicken Fajita Salad

Sorry, my camera doesn't have great resolution
But this is what the salad looks like :)

Hey beautiful people!

For a long time, I didn't know how to cook. Yes, I could whip up something so the blokes wouldn't starve, but I didn't know how to go about cooking and making dishes, etc. That's how I used to term myself an undomestic goddess, especially in the kitchen.

At the PopCultureDivas today: An Indo-Muslim wedding in Mauritius!

Hey peeps!

Little update on my dad (since a lot of you asked - thank you!) - he's been discharged from the hospital and is coming home this afternoon. His surgery was a success, and recovery looks like a walk in the park, according to his doctor. :)

Catching Up & musings about my 2013 release schedule!

Hey beautiful people!

Funny how I find myself with some time on my hands when the hyenas are on break. I usually go nuts and all kinds of crazy haywire when they're at home, but this time, I tried to clear my sked a bit to be able to spend some time with them.

Not that I've managed to, really... I mean, I've arranged my schedule to fit everything I need to do within the hours when the kiddo is at school, and though on the whole I've accomplished my goals, I still find myself with a full plate at times.

That's what happens when your work is more akin to freelancing than having a set 9-5 jobs. As an editor, I don't really control when a project will land in my lap, and then I also depend on the author I am editing to stick to a certain schedule/deadline and the two of us need to work together. And most of the time, an editor is not working exclusively on one project, which means she'll be free when the work has returned to the author - there are other projects vying for attention in that time frame.

Not to mention that I find myself with a hectic publishing schedule this year. Lol, not that I'm complaining, but the work of an author doesn't stop when the book has been written and contracted. Then start the edits, which can get quite taxing and time-consuming (esp when you have other jobs to fit in, too)... and you also have promo and social media and all that lovely hoopla. Thank goodness I am a social butterfly who loves to keep in touch and maintain relationships; otherwise I'd be a basket case.

But publishing schedule, here's what mine is looking like right now:

May - Inescapable, Book1 of Eternelles with Natalie G. Owens

July - The Other Side, Book 1 of the Island Girls Trilogy with Decadent Publishing

September - Light My World, Book 2 of Island Girls

October - Indomitable, Book2 of Eternelles

November - Winds of Change, Book 3 of Island Girls

In the middle of all this, I suppose Transient Hearts (Western Escape with Decadent) will come out, too. I still don't have a release frame for that title.

And I'm trying to score a release for a Christmas story, which will (hopefully) mean that December will have a release, too.

Busy bee, eh? But that's how I love it! I mean, I've been writing for 8 years, and it's now that I'm really feeling like an author with a release schedule. Like, I know where I'm going and what to do to get there.

Feels quite spiffy, actually... *grin*

Oh, and speaking of releases, I realize I haven't posted my latest cover here. My FB peeps and Twitter followers have prolly already seen this one, but to you my blog viewers, here it is (along with my apologies for being so late with this reveal).

Isn't this one a beauty? The designer, Valerie Tibbs of Tibbs Design, created the dreamy perfection I wanted to showcase in this cover. The models look pretty much exactly how Lara & Eric look like (Eric is slightly more blond,actually). But the whole effect is just perfect!

Here's the blurb for you, in case you have no clue what I'm referring to here!

Divorce paints a scarlet letter on her back when she returns to the culture-driven society of Mauritius. But this same spotlight shines as a beacon of hope for the man who never stopped loving her. Can the second time around be the right one for these former teenage sweethearts?

 

Lara Reddy left London after her husband dumps her for a more accommodating uterus—at least, that’s what his desertion feels like. Bumping into him and his pregnant new missus doesn’t help matters any, and she thus jumps on a prestigious job offer. The kicker? The job is in Mauritius, her homeland, and a society she ran away from over a decade earlier.

 

But once here, Lara has no escape. Not from the gossip, the contempt, the harassing matchmaking....and certainly not from the one man she hoped never to meet again. The one she’d loved and lost—white Mauritian native, Eric Marivaux.

 

Back when they were teens, Eric left her, and Lara vowed she’d never let herself be hurt again.
Today, however, they are both adults, and facing the same crossroads they’d stood at so many years earlier.

 

Lara now stands on the other side of Mauritian society. Will this be the impetus she needs to take a chance on Eric again? To take a chance on love?

Hopefully, I'll be back soon and posting regularly about my crazy mad schedule on here. You do know you can also join me on FB and Twitter (see blog side bar, left, for the widgets to join me) where I am always sharing a quick snippet about my life and career.

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

I write because... (a rant amid an affirmation & progress)

Hey beautiful people!

Lol, doing my best to have posts up regularly here. Though my brain goes awol sometimes, I have a whole crew of guests lined up for the coming weeks to keep the postings flowing. So this week might've been some hit&miss, after the staggeringly knackered kinda day I had yesterday, I missed the Links posting. Forgive me, and here's a glimpse of what I went through.

Imagine dealings with an ISP to make sense of their contract; banks conveniently 'forgetting' to cancel your standing order payments even after we've rolled into 2013; muggy heat and scorching sub with temps in and around 38degC at barely 10AM - and you have my day yesterday. On top of that, I had a scene to write in Inescapable, Book 1 of the Eternelles series, so my bestie and collab partner, Natalie G. Owens, could progress with her part on the project. Oh, and edits to finalize for not 1 but 2 clients.

In the middle of all this, I come across an email from my pub house's accountants, informing me that, as from February, they will be withholding taxes from all royalty payments, and any non-US citizen could fill in form whatever number to claim a refund under tax treaty laws.
Amount withhold? 30%
Issue for me - I'm from Mauritius... which doesn't have a tax treaty with the US.

Consequently, the IRS and US government just sent me a reeling 'up yours!' by chucking 30% of my earnings without any hope of me getting that money back.

Which made me wonder - if I lost 30% of what I made, was it worth it to continue working to earn a pittance? For a minute, I stared my projects in the face... Wouldn't it be the same for me to offer them all for free? After all the blood and sweat and time and energy that went into them, I also had to forego 30% of everything I would've made?

I must've hit the lowest pits of despair and self-doubt possible for an author yesterday. I had tons of projects lined up; in fact, so many projects I could derail my (somewhat fragile) health in trying to get them all on the rails. Was it all worth just 70% of what I can make on them?

But then I remembered. I recalled why I wrote, why I started writing, why I powered on when rejections were slamming me down from left, right, up, and down.

Why do I write? Because I want to share my stories with readers.

As simple as that. I won't go as far to say that I bring something totally unique to the book world - every author worth his/her salt does that. I won't say that my take on the cultural world of Indian-origin folks and Muslims in Mauritius is not seen elsewhere. Trust me, I know I have tons of competition out there.

But I also know that I have opened countless emails, and even met 'live' fans, who have told me I brightened their day with my stories. That they've loved reading what I have penned down. That my writing brought them something 'special' (whatever that might happen to be.)

I never thought I'd write for money. Yes, it's a dream of all authors to be rolling in the moolah brought in by fantabulous sales and a movie deal and all that hoop-la, but that's just what it is. A dream. Something we all aspire to. Doesn't mean we'll make it... I remember a quote that I'm gonna hash up badly coz I don't recall it exactly and also who said it originally, but the gist was:

"Knowing we'll never reach the stars doesn't mean we can't chart our paths by them."

I don't know if my sales will ever be fantabulous. I don't know how much money my writing can and will bring me. I don't know how many fans I'll ever get, how many lives I might get to touch...

I do know that I have stories in me, and that I'd die if I didn't write, and if I didn't share them with the world. If I can do that, and still earn something beside those lovely words from fans, then awesome. If not, well... It's all God's work, and I accept it. I know who I am and where I stand, and that's what matters.

And speaking of writing, there is some progress to show this week! Worked on Book 1 of the Eternelles series, that takes a jump of nearly 6,000 words this week through my addition to the plot. Now Natalie G. Owens must work her magic. Who knows - by next week, we might've crossed the half-way mark on this project!

Oh, and Leila, the heroine from my upcoming 1Night Stand release, Once Upon A Second Chance, (releasing February 5) is in the demon Bunny's hot seat today. Come read a bit about this Muslim girl who's not had an easy life till now, but who, nevertheless, allows nothing, and no one, to cull her spirit! Here's the link!

Looking forward to a nice weekend with the hubby & hyenas now. Hopefully, these temps will lower and we'll be able to sleep at night.

Hope ye all have a lovely weekend!

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

What are you listening to? Let's Move To Some Tunes!

Hey peeps!

Another week on the way. Yep, I didn't post yesterday, because it looks like I'm gonna need a more rigorous schedule to get all the work I need to do done, so blogging is (not getting the axe! LOL) but it will have to be more structured. Monday updates will come every other week now. I know I babble a lot, but I really don't have that much to talk about. *grin*

No guests visiting this week, so I thought I'd jolly up the place with some music. These are tracks that have been on repeat lately on my phone, tunes I really like (and yes, I like fluff. Never hid that truth!)

So rock on!!


Love this girl's quirky style and her energy levels are just amazing. I always end up energized when I listen to this track.




Who doesn't like a little bit of diva attitude? This one is perfect for those times we all wanna indulge the spoilt princess that lurks inside us. :)




Good-looking men, and good-looking men who sing amazing well... and in Italian! What more can a girl ask for?




Latest one on this list - just came out in the UK, from the winner of the X-Factor. It's a cover version, if I'm not mistaken, but it's beautiful, anyhow. Love the lyrics, and I'm definitely thinking how and where to use that as soundtrack for a story.




What are you listening to?

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Progress Friday & Where I stopped by this week!

Hello beautiful people!
TGIF, innit? For once, I'm glad it's Friday (coz I usually dread having the hyenas at home on weekends!) because guess what? I finally got back to work this week. Yep, good, forthright, actual writing!
The madness of promo and guest posts and everyone falling sick with a cold (including me!) finally died down and I've been able to sit down with Transient Hearts for the past 2 days and make some progress on the word count. 4, 393 words in 2 mornings - not too shabby, innit? Quite stoked with myself!

It finally feels like I'm back in the driving seat of my life and my writing, not having some weird pumped-on-speed automatic pilot steering me this way and that and not bothering if I crash into the curb or slam into walls (kinda like those Advanced races on Need For Speed where you can't control anything and you end up crashing more than actually doing a race...?)

So hopefully I get to finish this WIP next week, when I plan to sit down every single day to write (hope I'm not jinxing myself here!). Still on track with the deadline for submitting this one, so all's well. Not perfect, mind you, but hey, I know it could be worse, so... beggars are not choosers, are they?
Looking forward to a not-too-crazy weekend now - and the new plan is to focus on doing the week's promo posts and interviews on Saturdays and send them off to their respective blog owners.

Speaking of weekly stops, check out where I've been this week!

Author Tory Michaels asked me over... and requested a character interview with Ash and Rayne from Before The Morning!
So I put these two in the hot seat - come see their answers to my rather-nosy questions!
A tidbit:

'... A few words with Ash Gilfoy – a London-based paramedic, and the hero of this book.

How do you feel regarding this interview?

So-so. Not too enthusiastic. (Grimaces) Okay, can we get this out of the way already? You asked me to the bloody Ritz, lady, and everyone knows I hate having to wear a tie!

*chuckles* It’ll soon be over, once I get the answers I’m looking for...

(watches the dapper-looking, Josh Holloway lookalike squirm in his seat, and loosen his silk tie and undo the collar button. What a fine specimen of male perfection... Anyhow, he’s not mine, so... *sigh*) ...'

Read the rest...

 

And author DB Moon (who I found out is a fellow shoeholic!!) invited me over to her blog for an in-depth interview! Come check it out.

A snippet:

'... If someone wrote a biography of your life, what would the title be?

How to be a headless chicken and still get everything done! ...'

The rest of the interview here...


Last but not least, the amazing Felicity Lennie, whom I met and befriended on Twitter, asked if I'd agree to become a Castaway on the Castataway Island of Books blog, and if I'd nominate a book for the island's bookshelves. Come see my turn on the Castaway Island!!

Little bit:

'... If you could choose any author to be your 'muse' or companion who would it be and why?

My bestie, author Natalie G. Owens. She’s my soul sister and my best friend, as well as my writing/brainstorming partner. We get on like a house on fire, and I’m sure we’d never run out of topics to talk about. J ...'

My Castaway Author Index card answers here!


Hope you all have a lovely weekend, peeps!

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Progress Friday

Hey peeps

Cannot believe it's Friday already, and my, what a week this has been! I started Monday as usual - not grumpy because school's in now and Monday means I get to pack the kiddo off and enjoy a few hours of peace and quiet at home to work (I know, bad. I'm a perfectly flawed & imperfect mum, remember? *grin*)

Was looking forward to a nice & easy week, where I'd hopefully get all my ducks lined up and finally be starting work on the staggering to-be-written pile of 2012. It was too much to ask, yet...

Monday took a different turn the minute I opened my inbox and saw an email from Valerie Mann of Decadent Publishing. A little while earlier, prompted and prodded by friends at Decadent (Jessica E. Subject, JoAnne Kenrick, & Rebecca Royce - yes, I'm looking at you, ladies!), as well my amazing beta reader & friend, Lynn Spangler, I had bitten the bullet and written a story for the 1NightStand line at Decadent.

And would you believe it - Valerie said they liked the story, and if I still wanted a contract, they'd offer one.

If I still wanted??? I'm like, seriously??? Lady, I'm ready to fall upon your feet to get a contract with your house and into the 1NS line!!! Back and forth we went that morning (I love it when US folks are at their work computers late at night - our times mesh just right when I get on in the morning!), and by the end of the day, I was...

A Decadent Publishing author!

How's that as a way to start the week? Next up came the sheets and sheets of paperwork necessary whenever you contract a story (and that's work I loooove to do, lol!), with me totally flying high... to having to crash yesterday when I burned and simply started to hyperventilate.

Not to mention that for once, I am so looking forward to the weekend, because
a) it's a long weekend, Monday being a public holiday here (Chinese New Year festival), &
b) we're making the most of the extra day by booking ourselves into a hotel for the next 2 days!

Yes, hubby, the hyenas, and I are going on a small vacation break this weekend, and I am so looking forward to that! Imagine - no cooking, for 2 days. No making the beds and cleaning. The gorgeous beach and sea... Gah, I wish I were there already, lol!)

So now I'm in that I-cannot-wait-for-cover-art stage where the 1NS is concerned - the title, btw, is Once Upon A Stormy Night, and the story takes place on my island. It's about the meeting of Lars Rutherford, a British/Swedish expat, and Simmi Moyer, a mixed race white/Indian career girl on a stormy night. Neither is looking for love, but love might just have found them nevertheless...

Hope you'll all have a lovely weekend, peeps!

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Random Thoughts' Monday: I'm in two different places today!

Hey beautiful people!

I've been MIA - I know... and I apologize. The reason - well, it's December, and though I don't exactly celebrate the holidays traditionally, well, it's also a month when my son and stepson are on holiday break. Usually, in December, they'll both have gotten their end of year exam results, and hubby will have earned his yearly bonus at work, which sees us going out a lot as a family and well, doing things as a family, esp to reward the boys for a year of studying well (hopefully! These exam report cards can be a total scary deal!). I always promise my son to work less in December, so I can spend the time with them, and this is what I've been doing.

I'm sorry I have to cut down on the blog for that to happen, but I know you people understand. I'm not just a writer - I'm a mum as well, and the years my kids are growing up, I won't get those again once they're gone. If there's one thing life has taught me, it's to enjoy the moment and leave the future for later, for when it'll come.

But, that being said, I am still here, though less prominently! Been working on some changes and updates for 2012 on the blog here - should be able to share with you all shortly! Got big things lined up for next year - I hope you'll stick around and check them out. :)

And, going back to today's post title - well, I'm actually in 2 places at the same time today! 3 if you count this blog. :) How? The magic of the Internet! I didn't realise that I was scheduled for 2 guest slots on the same day, but anyhow, the more the merrier, innit?

So, first off, I'm at author Sandra Bunino's All Things Girl blog today, writing a guest post about... the recipe for the perfect hero! Sandra's been hooked on the Gentlemen's Etiquette Link Thursday posts I've had up in November, and she asked me over. Come check it out:

"....  Welcome to All Things Girl!
This week I’m joined by the beautiful Zee Monodee! Zee brings us a delicious recipe that you are sure to love. Get this – it’s calorie FREE! How awesome is that?!?

Hello everyone!
First of all, let me say thanks to Sandra for inviting me over to All Things Girl (with a title like that, how could I ever refuse???)
So, Sandra and I started hitting Tweets back and forth about today’s topic ..." Continue reading

Then, I'm also in my every-other-month established slot at The Pop Culture Divas blog! Come see how we celebrate the holiday season in my household, in Mauritius! The post starts as such:

"... Hey beautiful people!
I'll admit that when the topic came out for this month's posts, I was stumped - how on earth do you happen to have holiday traditions, of Christmas and all things white and snuggly... when it's 95 degrees outside and the sun is blazing, and in December, you're usually lazing like a lizard soaking up the sun on the grainy white sand of tropical beaches? Yes, can you say 'idiosyncracy'? I could! ..." Continue reading

Drop by, and leave me a little comment! I'm eager to find out what 'ingredient' you include in the recipe for your perfect hero, and I also wanna know how much I've 'shocked' you with my unconventional holiday celebrations!

Hope you all have a lovely weekend, peeps! XOXO

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Progress Friday

Hey peeps

See this here? Yes, the ice... That's what I'm craving right now! We've been slammed by a heat wave like I've never experienced in my whole existence during this past week! Temps way beyond 30C, flirting with 90F - which used to be inconceivable for where I live! If we got 25C we considered that hot weather! The sun out there - don't even mention. It will burn your retinas if you don't wear sunglasses, and liquefy your brain after 10 minutes out. Not to mention that said brain has already been scrambled and fried with the heat in the morning... and also at night when you simply. Cannot. Sleep! because it's way too hot and any fabric touching your skin feels like you're being skinned alive.

*side note - should I start writing zombie stories...? I got quite gruesome up there, innit?*

So, this week... Not much progress. At least not as much as I'd have wanted. 5,637 words... which is a far cry from last week's 15K+, but I didn't have the same routine this week as the past one. And the kids finished school earlier, which cut down on my writing time (and as I said, brain was scrambled and fried and ran the risk of liquefying).

Good news though - I'm nearly done with Chapter 12, and then I see at most, 3 chapters left to write on this before I can wrap up this story (hopefully! And preferably before this year is over!). Ever had a story grow on you? This is what happened with Before The Morning. It took a whole new dimension and I never thought I'd get so in touch with the characters. I hope that comes through, and not just as overkill, LOL. I'm jumping into that stage where I wonder what my editor will think of this baby - so I know I'm nearly done with a story when I'm contemplating this part.

Hoping to finish Chapter 12 this weekend, and get some reading and critting done. What are ye all up to this weekend? And how was your week?

Speaking of the past week, I wonder what my bestie has up on her blog today. Drop by later and let's check out what Angela Guillaume has been up to. :)

And don't forget to drive by my Facebook profile later - pic of the Tide-Us-Into-The-Weekend hunk going up. This bloke has inspired me a new story over the past few days.

Have a lovely weekend, everyone!

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Six Sentence Sunday - Walking The Edge: Snippet #19

Hello beautiful people!

It's a bright, beautiful & sunny Sunday here in Mauritius today. Still a slight chill on the wind though, otherwise this would've been perfect weather to go laze under the shade on a sandy beach while the boys go off to explore the grand bleu of the lagoon here.

So, short of getting the wind to stop blowing, I won't get to go laze on a beach, but let's swap that for lazing on a sofa in the sun-basked living room, laptop on my thighs, a glass of ice-cold green tea with a splash of juice in hand, and awesome Six Sentence Sunday excerpts to read.

This week, I'm still in that hotel room in Marseille, located along the iconic Corniche JF Kennedy road that borders the sea and which overlooks the superb, upscale beaches of the Prado.

Remember - Gerard's gut tightened when he watched Amelia come out of the bathroom clad in only a skimpy towel. She makes him yearn... like he'd yearned for someone before...

Today, we go into Amelia's POV, and here's a little explanation to put you into the picture. She has amnesia, and the man who pretends he is her husband plies her with psychotropic drugs to keep her biddable. During a drug-filled haze, Amelia dreams of her French lover... who turns out to be Gerard, whom she recognizes on a news clip on TV. She come to Marseille to see him, and the first thing she tells him when they meet is "You and I were lovers."

But he doesn't recognize her, yet she is sure he is a part of her past, and not a figment of her imagination.

"...

Amelia saw how coiled tension made him stand rigid and tall - his face was hard, and the fire in his eyes took her breath away.

While she'd been under the cascade of water, she'd tried hard to blank the thoughts from her mind, and she had managed, focusing only on the warmth that flooded over her clammy skin.

The cold had blanketed her as soon as she'd stepped out of the shower, but now, under his intense appraisal, heat started building from deep and low inside her.

He would make things right, with his touch, with his heat, with his love...like he always did, like only he could.

The certainty settled inside her of its own volition, soothing her mind, pacifying the storm raging inside her.

The surroundings blurred around her peripheral vision, taking her to a place and moment when he had looked at her that way, and she had experienced that same irresistible pull toward him. ..."

Thanks for coming over to read my excerpt today, and double thanks if you leave me a comment (and brighten my week's start!).

Catch the rest of the amazing SSS posse here with their awesome tidbits.

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Random Thoughts' Monday: The resilience of mothers...

With each day of this winter break that passes by, I am more in awe of my mother. I had no idea what she put up with when I was growing up! My boys are home, and half the time I have only one on hand, but even then I hardly manage to get anything done. Just look at last week - I preferred to stave off the blogging because I knew I wouldn't be able to do do it, full stop.

I recall my mum cooking lunch, and cooking dinner, and even cooking something for tea every single day! She also found time to do all the housework, and she even caught some TV during the day. And never did she complain, or go, like me, wailing about not enough time to do everything.

Today I'm convinced she is the original Superwoman. I mean, leave my mum in a kitchen and she can whip you up a three-dish meal in under 2 hours. And clear out the sink too in that time. I'm lucky if I can cook dinner in 2 hours!

Not to mention that I was always talking and pestering and trailing after her when I was growing up... How ever did she do it?

Here's to my mum, and to hoping her wisdom and patience did not skip my chromosome pool!

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Updating...

Hey peeps

I'm in full throes of harried motherhood right now. Kiddo is on winter break, and since the weather is so dismal and awful here, we're stuck inside the house and all I get to hear is video game music or surround-sound TV noise.

And when you know my kid - mind, he's a good lad, just talks waaaaaayyyy too much! - you also know that within one hour of being with him, you're fit enough to book yourself for a lobotomy, stat.

Not in any position mentally to do anything but read and hope to understand what my eyes are picking up to send to my scrambled brain. Plus time just zips by, and when you're temporarily one parent down in your household (my husband is at a workshop and leaves and gets back home when it's already dark), it's not easy being 24/7 with a rambunctious 8-year old who can talk the hind leg off a donkey.

So that's why I'm not posting much this week. Things should get back to normal next week when my husband's job goes back to normal, but in the meantime, I have to hang in there.

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Progress Friday--strikethat Saturday!

Hey peeps

Sorry I couldn't get round to posting yesterday. I'll tell you why - check the right-hand margin here. See the Book Trailer gadget? Guess what - I sat down and made the video for Walking The Edge 's trailer yesterday. And let me tell you that takes time! Yet, it's also exhilarating and a different kind of rush!

Check out the vid, and let me know what you think. :)

Other than that, I'll rinse and repeat once more - where on earth did the past week go? I barely got any work done. I just had to blink and the day was over. Maybe my brain is hibernating too. I don't know why else I'd be so slow.

Still, some progress to mention. Against The Odds is moving ahead. Not as fast as I'd want to, but it's still progress. Hope to get myself in check and write more on this ASAP. Book 2 of the Corpus Brides, Before The Morning - the story of Rayne & Ash - is totally poking me in the gut to get written, but I can't do that before I finish with the other WIP.

Hope you're all having a nice weekend. We have some God-awful weather here right now and all I wanna do is head back under the covers with a good book.

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Random Thoughts' Monday: I confess, I'm an imperfect mum...

Hey peeps

Cannot wait - another few hours until Walking The Edge goes up live and for sale! But that's not my point today, at least, not now. :) The topic is me as an imperfect mother!

I guess you know I have 2 boys at home. My son is 8, and my stepson is 12. Both are going on 30 and of course, know everything better than me or their dad. And if you look at the pic right next, that's how they both see me. Every time they watch Dexter's Laboratory, the very-blonde, very energetic, very airhead-y and maniacal Dee Dee is the one who gets them going, she is totally like you! *me rolling my eyes here*

But yes, what can I say? I love the colour pink, I do flit around with a light step, I do like to sing (especially Abba tunes when I'm cooking). And unfortunately, I do look like an airhead too. Almost all the people I deal with physically, slow their speech around me and take extreme patience (especially the older men - afflicted by paternal patience, I tell you!) to explain and communicate with me. As if there are no brains inside my head. Duh! I am not ashamed though - I'm a girly girl and proud of it, but do credit me with some good sense and some grey matter too!

So how does a girly girl bring up boys in today's world? It's a hard world out there, for any kid, boy or girl. I don't have daughters, so I don't know what it's like to bring up girls and all they face in that arena out there. For me though, I do know I need to bring up those boys so that they respect others, and women, now and when they'll be grown men. Of course they need to do well in school, etc, but I'm an imperfect mum - I don't harp at 1 mark lost or that each will not be topping the ranks in their class, that sort of thing. I also want them to have manners, consideration for others, compassion.

On the whole, I think I'm on track. But sometimes I despair. Why? Well, yesterday we were without power for a whole day! Stuck at home between 8-5 with two stir-crazy boys who are not getting their Playstation fix, and even the batteries on the GameBoy has gone flat. So what was left to do? After playing Uno and Monopoly for 2-3 straight hours, we sat down and.... talked!

Now what do young boys talk about? No - you'd be surprised. Not girls! We're still in the stage where they'll make gagging noises when you mention girls, and this is what I despair about. Why? Check out what my son has said yesterday.

He just got a new GameBoy cartridge where there's about 100 games or so. All boy stuff like Tekken and Street Fighter and what else other bash-me-up stuff. But, guess what - there's also a version of the Disney My Little Mermaid game on there. I pointed it out, and my son came running towards me, screaming:

"Muuuuuum!!!!!!! Nooooooooooooo! Don't play that game on my GameBoy - you'll contaminate it!"

I was like, huh? Since when does something girly contaminate guy stuff?

But we're not out of the woods yet! My stepson starts telling me how there's this new game called Fashion World (or something like that) and how it's totally eeeek for him (typical guy, innit?). I ask why, and he goes,

"Well, you have this girl in there, this model, and you have clothes and accessories--"
At which point my son interrupts, to say,
"I know! You have to decorate her like a Christmas tree!"

By the time I finished with those lads yesterday, I was ready for a double dose of Mamma Mia and me singing along to all the tunes! I know I'm a imperfect mum, but tell me I am still on track with bringing those boys up... Pleeeeeeeease!

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Tidbit Tuesday: Recipe - Pumpkin & Red Split Lentils Soup

Hey peeps

Last week on Twitter I mentioned I was cooking this dish, and my friend and fellow author Annie Nicholas asked for the recipe. I promised her I'd put it up asap, so here it is!

This is totally my invention as soup, but I do attest that it tastes very good!

Here goes:

Pumpkin & Red Split Lentils Soup
(Makes about 4-5 cups soup)

Ingredients

1 large onion, chopped finely
250 g red split lentils, washed and soaked for an hour
1 pound pumpkin, cubed (or canned. I've never tried it with canned but it should work too)
Spices: 1 teaspoon each of
            Cumin powder
            Coriander powder
            Turmeric powder
            Paprika
            Ground black pepper
A dash of nutmeg (don't use too much coz this can get overwhelming. You want just a hint of flavour)
Tomato puree (or sauce) - 1 Tablespoon
3 cups water
Salt
Olive oil
Pasta shells (optional)

How to:

1. Heat oil in pan and brown onions.
2. Mix spice powders and make into a paste by adding a little water. Add this paste to the onions and fry for 1-2 minutes.
3. Drain lentils and add to pan. Stir.
4. Add pumpkin and water. Stir and bring to boil.
5. Lower heat, leave to simmer, covered partially, for 20-30 minutes (you want the lentils to have softened and lost their shape, and the pumpkin to have 'melted').
6. When soup is at the consistency you want, stir in the tomato puree. Add a little salt, and taste (add more if it needs!).
7. If you want to make this a full meal but still keep it light, throw in some pasta shells towards the end of cooking time.

There you are - a quick and easy soup! Bon appetit!

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Blogging Today about Indian Weddings!

Hello beautiful people!

It's time for my every-other-month post at The Pop Culture Divas today! The ongoing theme for May and June is Weddings - so I'm inviting you to get my take on the weddings I attend in Mauritius, in my world.

It's kinda drastic for us attendees, but I'm sure you can get a chuckle or two!

Come take a peek, and leave me a comment! :)

http://www.thepopculturedivas.com/2011/06/indian-wedding-in-mauritius.html

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Random Thoughts' Monday: When it rains, it pours!

Hello beautiful people

Hope you started your week well. No such luck on my end. Still carrying forward the remnants of last week's cold, and combined with my particular health state, let's just say I don't bounce back as easily as I should. Let's not kid ourselves - I'm doing no bouncing at the moment. Sigh.

And as always - everything needs to happen this week. I've got my writing challenge and deadline to meet, but let's just say trying to think up 3 words in a coherent fiction sentence right now is tedious, courtesy of the massive headache happy-banging against the inside of my skull.

But this I can deal with. It's the other deadline that's got my knickers in a twist - the work one. Yes, I work. I have a job too, even if I work from home. I get commissioned for writing articles and reports, and it's one way I've found of using my love for words to earn some money. Coz that's the 'problem', innit? Money, money, money, as ABBA sang. Unfortunately for me, I'm not a rich (wo)man so it's not funny in my world. Not to say that we are forced to scrimp and salvage here but we're not happy-rolling in the moolah either. Who manages to exist on a single income nowadays? (Unless of course you're a CEO or some other big-shot executive). So I try to contribute to my household budget, but the disadvantage of freelance work is that you're set with really tight deadlines and there's really no room for you to get sick or feel lousy.

Okay, enough of the ranting. Thanks for letting me take a load off, peeps. I know I can - and will - make it, but no one said it was gonna be easy. Sigh... Wish me luck and energy, pleeeeaaase!

From Mauritius with love,

Zee

Tidbit Tuesday: A Funny One!

Hey peeps!

Rolling with my word count - clocked down some more this morning, and Chapter 1 is done!

That's the writing news of the day! Now on to the Tidbit for this Tuesday...

You know I'm a rabid tennis fan, right? I spent the past 2 weeks immersed in the French Open at Roland Garros on my TV. The ending was a disappointment - I mean, Federer at one point giving away a 5-2 position in the first set, that start of his downfall (and fall from grace in my eyes!). Yes, I know I'm not there, not the one playing the game, but that was such a disappointment. My husband tells me I should stick to watching tennis just to ogle the male players, and I'm starting to agree...

Anywayz, speaking of players - this one seems like a true darling! Novak Djokovic is currently ranked world's No2, and he appears to be on the rise to become the next big tennis champion (especially if the rumours are true that Rafael Nadal is considering retirement soon).

But Djokovic - nicknamed Nole, and/or The Djoker - is not just a brilliant tennis player. He's got a terrific sense of humour, evident in his many impersonations of his fellow tennismen and tenniswomen.

Check out this clip - it'll have you in stitches!



There's another one here, but the Embed feature has been disabled so I couldn't post it up. Check it out if you have a minute - the impersonation of Federer is to die for!

That's it from me for today! Hope you had a laugh. :)

From Mauritius with love,

Zee