Yep, that's what it looks like for now, only with "Crow's Rest by Angelica R. Jackson " on it. But if you'd like to add it, you can find it at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22573426-crow-s-rest
We don't have a cover yet, but Crow's Rest has a place on Goodreads! It was so thrilling to wake up to some activity on it: adds to Want to Read shelves, and even a few 5-star ratings! Whoohoo!
Yep, that's what it looks like for now, only with "Crow's Rest by Angelica R. Jackson " on it. But if you'd like to add it, you can find it at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22573426-crow-s-rest
Yep, that's what it looks like for now, only with "Crow's Rest by Angelica R. Jackson " on it. But if you'd like to add it, you can find it at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22573426-crow-s-rest
We started out going to Muckross House, which you are unfortunately not allowed to take pictures inside. But it does have an interesting connection to Empire Mine in Nevada City, California--the same family that owned the mine bought Muckross and its acreage for their daughter. They also were the family that owned Filoli, so they certainly have great taste in architecture and gardens! Here is a taste of Muckross:
That last picture cracks me up--do you see how the lion-dog-griffin creatures are sticking out their tongues?
Parts of the Muckross acreage are now Killarney National Park, and there are some gorgeous views there too
We rushed back to Kenmare to get there in time for the Seafari boat to see seals and sea eagles. No sea eagles on the day we went--plus it was so cold I couldn't feel my feet by the time we got back in port. And yes, I was wearing a balaclava, my snowboarding parka, jeans with tights underneath, and waterproof boots. Still damn cold! But we got lots of pics like these:
That last photo is obviously not a seal--it's the ruins of an ancient church as seen from the bay. We got to go there a few days later, so stay tuned for some pictures from the church ruins and burial ground.
That last picture cracks me up--do you see how the lion-dog-griffin creatures are sticking out their tongues?
Parts of the Muckross acreage are now Killarney National Park, and there are some gorgeous views there too
That last photo is obviously not a seal--it's the ruins of an ancient church as seen from the bay. We got to go there a few days later, so stay tuned for some pictures from the church ruins and burial ground.
Labels:
ireland,
kenmare,
killarney national park,
muckross house,
photos,
ruins,
seafari,
seals
0
comments
After a long hiatus, the Mystery Agent contest is back on Operation Awesome. There is an added step now--a Rafflecopter to enter for a slot in the contest. This will allow overseas/international folks to enter, and save the Operatives from having to camp out on the computer to close out the contest, yay!
July's Mystery Agent is looking for manuscripts in these categories:
- Young Adult horror/thrillers
- Contemporary YA with a hook
- Speculative fiction
- All kinds of adult romance
- Picture books
So if you have a polished, ready-to-pitch query, go here and enter the Rafflecopter for your chance at a contest slot! Good luck!
Our travel on May 5th got off to a rough start--we got up at 1:30 AM, out the door at 3:30, and onto the plane in Sacramento as scheduled.
Only to sit on the tarmack. Then the captain announced they were having a mechanical issue and everyone would be getting back off the plane. It was a race to be one of the first people to the ticket counter, to try to get another flight. We were probably about #30 in line, and it took us an hour to get to the front of the queue and be told that they could get us to Chicago, but no guarantees that we'd make our existing connecting flight.
Given the choice between staying overnight in an airport hotel in Chicago or our own bed, I voted for going back home and doing the entire thing all over again the next day. I went to bed at 5 PM that night (hubby didn't, which may be why I was ready to go in Ireland and he slept 18 hours straight of our first day there, ha) and was up at 1:30 on the 6th all over again.
And I discovered that airports are possibly the worse place in creation to try to eat with food allergies; fortunately, I'd come prepared with all kinds of bars to eat. I slept maybe 2 hours out of 24, but was mostly just bored. By the time we landed, I was feeling a bit queasy from hunger, so our first stop was kind of a blur. But thank goodness for pictures!
Bunratty Castle is quite near the Shannon airport so an easy way to kill some time since we couldn't check into our cottage in Kenmare (a few hours drive) until that afternoon. Bunratty has a folk museum, a collection of examples of cottages and homes taken from several counties, as well as a small village and pub. It rained on us off and on, but that's how we knew we were really in Ireland!
We arrived at our cottage that afternoon and so began the Great Sleep. It wasn't until late the next day that I was able to drag my husband out for a walk, and we discovered the neighborhood was full of newer holiday homes--but very tastefully done to blend in with old places like this one.
The next few days were spent shopping (groceries, yay!) and exploring the town. Love the paint on the buildings, and they even have an ancient stone circle outside of town.
And since we spent a fair amount of time in the cottage (had some really nasty storms in our time in Ireland), it's only fair to show you the view from Bar Cillatha (the holiday cottage we rented).
More to come from Ireland next week--if I don't get too bogged down with other projects, lol
Only to sit on the tarmack. Then the captain announced they were having a mechanical issue and everyone would be getting back off the plane. It was a race to be one of the first people to the ticket counter, to try to get another flight. We were probably about #30 in line, and it took us an hour to get to the front of the queue and be told that they could get us to Chicago, but no guarantees that we'd make our existing connecting flight.
Given the choice between staying overnight in an airport hotel in Chicago or our own bed, I voted for going back home and doing the entire thing all over again the next day. I went to bed at 5 PM that night (hubby didn't, which may be why I was ready to go in Ireland and he slept 18 hours straight of our first day there, ha) and was up at 1:30 on the 6th all over again.
And I discovered that airports are possibly the worse place in creation to try to eat with food allergies; fortunately, I'd come prepared with all kinds of bars to eat. I slept maybe 2 hours out of 24, but was mostly just bored. By the time we landed, I was feeling a bit queasy from hunger, so our first stop was kind of a blur. But thank goodness for pictures!
And since we spent a fair amount of time in the cottage (had some really nasty storms in our time in Ireland), it's only fair to show you the view from Bar Cillatha (the holiday cottage we rented).
More to come from Ireland next week--if I don't get too bogged down with other projects, lol
Be warned: the next several blog posts will be gushing accounts of our trip to Ireland and the UK!
I was a completely horse-crazy child (still am, but it's tempered with realities of being financially and emotionally responsible for a horse), so I was beyond excited to see Exmoor Ponies in their native habitat!
In fact, I was so excited that when we saw an entire herd of mares with brand new foals, I forgot to check my exposure in the camera. I think I've done that twice in my photographer's life! Those pictures came out overexposed, unfortunately, but with the magic of Photoshop I was able to salvage them somewhat.
The babies were so newborn that they were mostly sleeping--a rider on horseback spooked these mares enough that they rousted their babies and fled the field. There were about a dozen mares in this band--a few of them still hugely pregnant.
Earlier, we had stopped to take photos of an old church, and my husband called, "There's a horse up here with a baby." I thought he meant a regular horse, so took my time with photos in the graveyard. By the time I went up to the ridge, it was drizzling on the lone Mama Exmoor Pony and foal. She was doing her best to pretend that we weren't there, but otherwise wasn't too disturbed by our presence.
Her colt was eager to explore, but she kept calling him back if he got too far away. I think he's going to be a lively one!
I was a completely horse-crazy child (still am, but it's tempered with realities of being financially and emotionally responsible for a horse), so I was beyond excited to see Exmoor Ponies in their native habitat!
In fact, I was so excited that when we saw an entire herd of mares with brand new foals, I forgot to check my exposure in the camera. I think I've done that twice in my photographer's life! Those pictures came out overexposed, unfortunately, but with the magic of Photoshop I was able to salvage them somewhat.
The babies were so newborn that they were mostly sleeping--a rider on horseback spooked these mares enough that they rousted their babies and fled the field. There were about a dozen mares in this band--a few of them still hugely pregnant.
Earlier, we had stopped to take photos of an old church, and my husband called, "There's a horse up here with a baby." I thought he meant a regular horse, so took my time with photos in the graveyard. By the time I went up to the ridge, it was drizzling on the lone Mama Exmoor Pony and foal. She was doing her best to pretend that we weren't there, but otherwise wasn't too disturbed by our presence.
Her colt was eager to explore, but she kept calling him back if he got too far away. I think he's going to be a lively one!
I'm on Operation Awesome today with some short, jetlagged reflections on my trip to the UK and Ireland! Click on over to see!
Back in the Spring of 2010, my short story "Ebb Tide" won 3rd place in WOW! Women on Writing's Quarterly Flash Fiction Contest. Although I've always had it linked on my Short Fiction page, I've never actually posted it here. But I needed another "rerun" post for today, so I'm sharing it now!
Dear Diary,
Dr. Zimmer says I have to keep this journal as part of my therapy; he promised no one would read it. He thinks I have trust issues along with my “fascinating emotional complex.” Duh. I tried to tell him what happens when another person touches me, but he didn’t believe me.
I’ll try again here. Even the lightest brush of another person’s skin opens me up to their deepest sadness. It hits me like a tidal wave before seeping into my every tissue. Then their heartbreak is a part of me as much as it is a part of them, and I can't get rid of it. It’s like a sorrowful osmosis.
I used that word, osmosis, and Dr. Zimmer looked surprised. He’d probably read in my file about the low IQ I’d been saddled with early on, after all the tests ruled out a physical reason for my screaming and thrashing whenever anyone came near me. The autistic diagnosis came later, and I thrived under it, mostly because those therapists respected my physical boundaries as long as I made cognitive progress. And of course I made progress, there was nothing wrong with my brain, other than being cluttered with other people’s regrets.
Although I couldn’t really understand yet, by the time I was three I knew about my Gran’s first child, the one she gave up and didn’t tell her other children about. I saw that my mom had never gotten over her first love, even when he’d married another woman. And that my father knew about the whole thing, but he loved my mother so much he was willing to live with this shadow man lingering in her heart.
By fourteen, I learned to live with these backstories inside me—as long as nobody touched me and introduced new ones. I was doing so well that I got mainstreamed into high school, and that’s when it hit the fan.
Last week, this boy Gerome cornered me and held me down, while his friends gleefully took turns poking me with a finger. It left me raging (I broke Gerome’s nose and some of those poking fingers) and then catatonic, until I woke up in this facility.
Dr. Zimmer let my mom come see me today, and to take away the power of my “delusion,” he encouraged my mom to give me a hug.
She offered me her hand instead. Under Dr. Zimmer’s gaze, I knew I would have to touch her, and it wouldn’t be so bad since I already knew about her lost love.
But that’s not what rushed into me; instead it was her pain that she had this smart, beautiful, funny daughter, and she’d never been able to hold her. I gasped with the shock of it, and Mom let go, apologizing. But I was already stepping forward to put my arms around her, and after a moment’s hesitation, she hugged me back and our shared sorrow flowed away. Out of both of us.
WOW currently has their Spring contest open, btw, until May 31. There's a $10 entry fee if you're thinking of sending something in.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
