SIX SENTENCE SUNDAY~8

HAPPY FIRST ANNIVERSARY to Six Sentence Sunday!  This week's participating authors have donated different prizes to commemorate this wonderful milestone.  To enter the drawings, all you have to do is leave a comment at the end of an author's Six.  Winners will be chosen at random by Sara Brookes, creator of Six Sentence Sunday.  My donation is a print copy of my book, The Doctor's Deception, which is where I took this week's Six from.  Have a great time reading everyone's sentences!
Enjoy the rest of your day!
Kathleen

Rummaging through all the books and reference material, he picked several up and read the covers.

"Merck's Medical Dictionary".  "MCAT Studying Made Easy".

God, the woman was obsessed.  By the looks of things, this test was extremely important to her--more than he'd realized. Guilt over his deception made the acid churn in his stomach.

THURSDAY FUNNY~ GERMAN CPR CLASS!!!

A while back, a friend of mine sent this to me.  It is quite funny! Enjoy your Thursday laugh!
Kathleen

LIFE HAPPENS TO YOU...THEN WHAT?

So, what happens when a series of unfortunate events assault you all at once?  It is like you are trapped in a giant snow globe,  its clear, glass walls surround you.  The solid footing you had in your life slips a bit as someone starts to shake the globe.  The first assault is small, barely perseptible.  Then as the globe is shaken harder and faster, the haze you find yourself in as you try to dig in your heels into the ground to keep from falling makes it nearly impossible to keep from toppling over.

How do you cope?  How do you shake a shroud of depression that can be almost overwhelming?  This is something that my character, Jett Avery struggles with.  Here's a small excerpt:

Jett slammed his fist into his pillow and turned on his side. Hell! He’d been over that night a million times. What was the point? A depressive fog threatened to descend, thick and heavy. An urge to burrow deep under the covers inundated him. The multitude of boxes from his recent move could wait.

Everything could wait.


The profound veil he’d staved off all week with his forced cheerfulness, pushed harder against his consciousness. He was tired. Tired of the front he portrayed, pretending he could still function normally. Maybe he should quit his job. That one night had changed his life forever. The dangers faced on a daily basis made each passing day more unbearable. It would be so easy to let go. Just let go and submerge himself in his own grief and loss.

So....what will happen to Jett?  Will he give up against the assault of shaking snow globe on his life? Or, will he find a way to stabilize the glass walls once more?

Happy Tuesday!!
Kathleen

SIX SENTENCE SUNDAY 7

Thanks for stopping by to read my Six!  I will definitely get to yours after I get up later.  My comments always get delayed because of my work schedule.  Sorry!  Seems I'm always working... Now this week's post has nothing to do with the picture...I just thought it was Super Hot! I'm sure my fireman badboy Jett Avery won't mind it!  Thought I'd follow up from last week's post.  Sorry about the length, but I couldn't figure out where to cut!  The hanky panky going on between Roxanne and Jett made them late to a BBQ...and Jett's Mom, (she is a little unconventional) Daisy--who like's her boys to call her by her first name, is not happy about the delay in his arrival...

***
 “How’s the most beautiful woman in the world tonight?”


“She’s very unhappy that you’re late,” she said as he set her down on her feet. “You were supposed to be here early to help your dad and brother set up the tables and chairs,” she admonished. “And why do you smell like lilacs?”


“Lilacs?” He sniffed his shirt. “I don’t smell like lilacs.”


His mother stood on her tiptoes, grabbed his shoulders forcing him in a stooped position, and inhaled deeply. “Yes. You do. I know my flowers, Jett. So don’t try to BS me. The smell is so strong it’s like you’ve been bathing in the stuff.”


Daisy’s intense glare went from Roxanne to Jett, then back again. “Why, exactly, are you late?”


“Well…” he swallowed.


“It’s my fault, Mrs. Avery.” Roxanne’s lips tilted into a tentative smile, although the expression aimed at Jett clearly screamed I’m not getting involved with this cooky family.


“I know dear.” She gave Roxanne a wink. “But I want to hear from Jett that sex with you is more important than being at the dinner party in honor of him moving back to town.”

YUMMY FRIDAY!!

Ummmm....I'm at a loss for words!  LOL


TGIF!
Kathleen

THURSDAY FUNNY

First, I'd love to give a shout out to my son, Patrick.  He turns 11 years old today!  Happy Birthday, Baby! 

Given it was Valentine's Day earlier in the week, I thought this picture appropriate.  I have three real life experiences for you today posted on a website for nurses by nurses.  Funny little snippets I thought you would find entertaining... Enjoy!

1~As a student midwife a few years ago, it was my job to admit a woman who had been admitted to the delivery suite to be induced that morning.



As part of the admission process, it was neccessary to ask her if she understood why she had been admitted.


"Oh yes, nurse, " she replied earnestly. "I'm here to be seduced by the doctor . . . . ."

2~then, there was a young lady in the OB/GYN office for a routine exam and the physician inquired "are you sexually active?"



The lady replied "no, I usually just lay there"


3~I had to insert a foley catheter on a gentleman in his 70's. He had an enlarged prostate gland, and I ended up having to change tactics and insert a slightly smaller foley with much manipulation of the necessary parts. I was very relieved when the darn thing finally struck gold and urine pored out. Just as I gained success, the patient said "Well young lady, no matter how hard you yank at that thing, nothing is going to happen....and hasn't in years!



Have a great Thursday!!
Kathleen

INSOMINIA~IT'S A BITCH~#2

This is my second post on insomnia, as I still find many people I know are still affected by it.  For the most part, my issues with insomnia aren't chronic, so I don't have any problems on a daily basis. 

But, chances are, if you suffer from insomnia, you are like the lady above during your work day.  Instead of being productive, you drag your butt out of bed wishing that caffeine was delivered by an IV infusion at StarBucks not in a cup.  You've just had yet another restless night of tossing and turning, glaring at the neon beams of your alarm clock, wishing your mind would just turn off! 

You pray for those elusive Zzzzzz's.  You beat your pillow to a feathered pulp.  You curse at the pinkening sky as the dawn arrives... 

You thought you had done everything right.  Doctor told you to make sure and stop drinking caffeine by a certain time in the evening to ensure a good nights sleep.  Could there be more to it besides laying off the Red Bulls, coffee, or Rock Star energy drinks? 


In fact, I recently read that your diet may be to blame for the devil known as insomnia to show up in the first place.  The other day Yahoo listed these five foods that actually promote insomnia and the rationale behind each:

1. Bacon


Did you know that bacon contains tyramine, which increases the release of norepinephrine, (which in drug form, a doctor may prescribe to actually elevate blood pressure if your body goes into shock) a brain stimulant that keeps you up. Others foods that contain tyramine include chocolate, eggplant, ham, potatoes, sauerkraut, sugar, sausage, tomatoes, and wine.

2. Refined carbohydrates


These drain the body of vitamin B, which the body needs to release serotonin. When the body can't get enough serotonin, then tension, fear, and depression can keep you up all night.

3. MSG


Monosodium glutamate (MSG), causes a stimulant reaction in some people. MSG is almost always found in processed, prepared, and packaged foods.

4. Alcohol


While many of us drink to relax the body and mind, the fact of the matter is that wine, beer, and hard alcohol can keep you up at night. This is especially true if you drink more than one glass. While alcohol can make you tired in the short run, you're likely to awaken in the middle of the night.  Or you're up peeing & puking all night, but that's a whole other post! LOL

5. Chocolate


Chocolate can elevate your energy levels with bioactive compounds like tyramine and phenylethylamine. Chocolate also contains sugar which wakes you up as well as the other obvious culprit, caffeine.


So...Focus on your diet.  Are there any changes you might be able to make in order for you to sleep better?  Try not to eat anything of the FIVE listed in the evening if you can possibly help it--especially not in combination--then you're really in for a whammy of a sleepless night. 

Hope you found the information helpful.
Enjoy your Wednesday!
Kathleen

BUILDING BREAST CANCER AWARENESS

Since this is an issue that affected my family, I'm going to try and help build some awareness about breast cancer.   In 2008, my beautiful Mother, passed away from metastatic breast cancer.  By the time she was diagnosed, the disease had taken hold.  Early detection is key to your survival!  I can't stress that enough.  Most of this information, I posted back in 2008, while my mom was still going through treatment.  I decided to repost it as a way of getting back into the subject matter.  Warning!  Some of the pictures contained in this post are graphic and show how really ugly the disease is and how it affects a woman's breast.

The statistics are out there--and severely startling!!! Every year 200,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer. Of those 200,000 women over 40,000 women die! Pretty depressing, huh?

 Early detection of breast cancer is the key to survival. I know I said that already, but it bears repeating!   Monthly self breast examinations and a yearly mammogram can save your life. The National Breast Cancer Foundation states that if a lump is found early and treated, the five year survival rate is 96%.

Those are pretty good odds, wouldn't you say? And speaking from experience of having a loved one who suffered from breast cancer, if my mother would have sought treatment sooner, she might even be alive today.


I found this great link.  All you have to do is "click" on this button on the home page and then the sponsors will donate free mammograms to those that can't afford them! What a great deal that is!  And so easy!  Just a click of your mouse!


http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2


Also taken from this link are these facts:


-Every two minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer.


-One woman in eight who lives to age 85 will develop breast cancer during her lifetime.


-Breast cancer is the leading cause of death in women between the ages of 40 and 55.


-Seventy percent of all breast cancers are found through breast self-exams. Not all lumps are detectable by touch. We recommend regular mammograms and monthly breast self-exams.


-Eight out of ten breast lumps are not cancerous. If you find a lump, don't panic-call your doctor for an appointment.


-Mammography is a low-dose X-ray examination that can detect breast cancer up to two years before it is large enough to be felt.

Here is a picture of a woman where the cancer has eaten up the tissue.  Not sure what stage or type of breast cancer this is.  But see how the tumors go up into her arm pit?  She has definite lymph node involvement.  This is extremely painful as you can imagine...

Again, here we have a very large tumor growing.  This is to the left of the woman's breast, and there is a pretty good chance the lymph nodes are involved here, too.

In later posts, I will detail how to do a proper self breast exam.  It is the tiny hardened nodules you need to be looking for signs of when you palpate (feel) your breast.

These two pictures are of "inflammatory" breast cancer.  An extremely aggressive form of cancer.  It is not characterized by the typical "lump" one looks for while doing a self-breast exam.  Rather, it has pigmentation changes.  Or, more easily understood, a type of rash. 

If you see anything irregular, CALL YOUR DOCTOR IMMEDIATELY!!!  What seems urgent to us, is not urgent to doctor's office staff.  It does get frustrating when you want to make an appointment for something and you can't get in for weeks at a time.  Then, you get in to see your primary doctor and he refers you to a "specialist" and it takes even longer!  Time will be of the essance, so please...don't delay!

This is a subject I'll definitely be visiting again. I hope you'll stop by and maybe we'll learn more about this horrible disease together!

Take Care,

Kathleen

SIX SENTENCE SUNDAY 6

Hello!  It is Sunday and I have a fabulous post for you from my unpubbed book, Dating 911.  It is a little bit more than six sentences, but I found such a great picture, I knew exactly which snippet to use with it as my fireman and ER nurse heat things up a bit!  Thanks for stopping by to read and comment on my SIX!  Enjoy the rest of your weekend and don't forget to stop by and read the other fabulous posts by the other Six Sentence Sunday Authors at http://sixsunday.blogspot.com/

Kathleen

Jett Avery definitely wasn’t the type to think in terms of happily ever after. Eyes closed, she sighed heavily. Man, she picked winners, all right. A light tap on the shower stall glass interrupted her musings.

“Rox? Ready for company?” Jett slid the door open and popped his head inside, a boyish grin on his handsome face.


Optimism slightly deflated, her eyes feasted on the perfection of Jett’s male body. Stomach banded in a wad of knots and heat simmering her core, she inhaled a deep breath.


Live in the here and now. There was always time to worry later.


“Maybe,” she said in a husky tone. Forcing all depressing thoughts away, she tossed him a bottle of lilac scented body wash. “Depends on whether you’re any good at washing all those hard to reach places.” She winked.


One handed, he caught the soap easily with eyebrows raised. “A doubter. I see I have my work cut out for me.”

YUMMY FRIDAY!!!!

Morning!  TGIF everyone!  Hope your day begins better than mine did on my way to work...woke up and was informed I had a flat tire.  Complete and total bummer--especially since the tires are barely a month old.  So the bright side?  It is the weekend!!!

Have a safe and happy one!  See you all on Sunday for SSS!!!
Kathleen

DATING....WHO?

Morning!  I saw an interesting article in the newspaper the other day.  Basically, the gist of the story states that elderly couples still believe that meeting a person face to face is the only true way to find love and enjoy romance.

They fore go "virtual matchmaking" in lieu of checking out handwritten profiles of other single people attending dances, like the young lady above is doing.  There are a variety of places where singles go to meet, but the point is, they are doing it face to face.

Pretty interesting because they are really putting themselves out there.  Dating is awkward at any stage, but it takes a lot of character and inner strength to face possible rejection face to face.  I mean, if a person you meet online refuses to go have a cup of coffee or have dinner with you, there is no real personal connection there.  Right?   Would you have the guts to get out from behind your computer and use what social skills are at your disposal to get a date?   

I found the people interviewed for the article very charming and full of life.  I hope they find their own happily ever after.

Enjoy your Thursday!
Kathleen

COLD AND FLU SEASON IS HERE WITH A VENGENCE!!!

That is soooo gross!!  Don't you think? Unfortunately, it is the reality of too many people at the moment.  Unless you live in a box, you may have been sick with the cold or flu or, know someone who is.  A recent poll stated that this cold and flu season is worse than it has been over the last two years. 

As a nurse, this really surprised me because I haven't thought a flu season was as bad as when H1N1 broke out. 

Here are a few tips to avoid getting sick:

~Handwashing!!!!  This is the number one tool you have to protect yourself against germs.  We touch everything with our hands, so make sure you wash for at least 15 seconds or use a hand sanitizer before you touch your face with your hands.

~If you are sick, stay home!  Don't go to work and snarfle on everyone around you.  No one wants your germs!

~Take lots of vitamin C.

~Get plenty of rest.

~Get your flu shot!!  Even if you get a strain of the flu, at least if you have had your flu shot, your symptoms and length of time you have the flu should be lessened. 

Take care of yourselves out there, folks!  Its bacteria/viruses 1, people 0!!!

Happy Wednesday!
Kathleen

DIABETES MONDAY~FACT #24~THE LINK BETWEEN DIABETES & GLAUCOMA

Good morning to you!  Ugly picture, huh?  Since this morning I'm having eye surgery, I thought I would talk about the connection between diabetes and glaucoma.  Seems like a timely subject, and one I haven't really touched on before.  I did learn a few things while reading up on this subject, so hopefully, you will too!

Surprisingly, the connection between diabetes and glaucoma is weak.  Each disease by itself may lead to progressive loss of vision, but one does not cause the other.  Glaucoma is defined as~a slow progressive disease that shows no obvious symptoms until in its late stages.  Unfortunately, that is when people have noticeable vision loss.  This loss of vision is characterized by damage to the optic nerve by a decrease in vascularization (or blood flow) to the eye and increased intraocular pressures.

Apparently, from what I read, glaucoma is found in people with diabetes because they go to the doctor more often.  Actually, 1 in 4 people are diagnosed with glaucoma!!!  That is how common the disease is.  Here are some interesting stats on glaucoma that I found to be interesting...

~Glaucoma may develop in anyone at any age! Not a very discriminating disease if you ask me.

~By the time a person with glaucoma notices any sort of vision loss and goes to the doctor because they are having trouble seeing, 75% of the damage has already been done!  75%!!!! 

~While everyone is at risk, people of African descent are especially at risk. One in 13 has glaucoma, and the disease occurs 4 to 6 times more often in Blacks than in Whites. In addition, glaucoma often occurs earlier in life and more frequently results in blindness in Blacks.

Early detection and treatment is crucial in order to save a person's sight. There is no cure for the disease, but its ravaging effects can be controlled and blindness prevented. Testing for glaucoma is simple, quick and painless. The best way to detect the disease is through comprehensive eye examinations on a regular basis, including checking sight at various distances, testing the fluid pressure in the eyes, inspecting the optic nerve for signs of damage, and, if necessary, measuring visual field to determine if any peripheral vision has been lost.


The most common form of treatment is eye drops.  Other treatments may include pills, laser surgery --  performed when eye drops do not stop deterioration of the field of vision.

One doctor who studied the link between diabetes and glucoma suggested that some studies have shown that if diabetes is controlled within the first five years, the chances of eye damage can be reduced.

To summarize, it is important to get your eyes checked on a routine basis whether you have diabetes or not.  Glaucoma affects everyone and you will not notice its blinding symptoms until it is too late.

Happy Monday!
Kathleen

SIX SENTENCE SUNDAY 5...

Thanks again to all of you who take a moment to comment.  Moving right along to the good stuff... Let's see what Jett's twin brother, Dr. Cruz Avery has been up to in my current wip, Dating Impossible...

A pink tipped tongue slid across her lips, and all thoughts fled his clouded mind.  Gaze glued to her mouth, he leaned in, breath caught in his chest as he attempted to resist that old familiar magnetism between man and woman.  Somewhere in his desire muddled brain alarms blared a warning, but he couldn’t quite remember why he shouldn’t taste those lips. 

We will get back to Cruz and JJ later... Check out these other Six Sentence Authors for more fun snippets! I will be off to bed soon, but when I get up I look forward to dropping by this link to read all the great Sixes!   http://sixsentence.blogspot.com/ 

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Kathleen

YUMMY FRIDAY POST!

He's a little bit upside down....LOL....  Just kidding!

TGIF everyone!

Kathleen

THURSDAY FUNNY!

Three nurses died & went to heaven where they were met at the Pearly Gates by St. Peter. To the first, he asked, "What did you do on Earth and why should you go to heaven?" "I was a nurse in an inner city hospital," she replied. "I worked to bring healing and peace to the poor suffering city children." "Very noble," said St. Peter. "You may enter." And in through the gates she went.


To the next, he asked the same question, "So what did you do on Earth?" "I was a nurse at a missionary hospital in Africa," she replied. "For many years, I worked with a skeleton crew of doctors and nurses who tried to reach out to as many peoples and tribes with a hand of healing and with a message of God's love." "How touching," said St. Peter. "You too may enter." And in she went.


He then came to the last nurse, to whom he asked, "So, what did you do back on Earth?" After some hesitation, she explained, "I was just a nurse at an H.M.O." St. Peter pondered this for a moment, and then said, "Okay, you may enter also." "Whew!" said the nurse. "For a moment there, I thought you weren't going to let me in." " Oh, you can come in," said St. Peter, "but you can only stay for three days..."

Enjoy your Thursday!!!
Kathleen

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT~WELCOME TO FEATURED AUTHOR SHARON BUCHBINDER!

Isn't this a gorgeous cover?  I'm bringing back my "Author Spotlight" section of my blog.  My first featured author of the year is Sharon Buchbinder!  She has a new upcoming release, titled, "Desire and Deception" which she explains about in her own words below:  

Similar in heat levels to noir movies like Body Heat and The Postman Always Rings Twice, my first novel, erotic thriller Desire and Deception differs because it ends on an upbeat note. In Desire and Deception, polar opposite sex siren Isabel (Izzy) Ramirez and goody-two-shoes Sarah Wright-Rosen become fast friends and seem destined to be BFFs until Izzy’s terrible secret is unearthed--literally and figuratively. Convinced that she is unworthy of redemption, Izzy goes down a take no prisoners’ path, halted only by her younger lover, Sean Richards. Izzy discovers the redemptive power of love and realizes that she can change, despite her horrific past.


For her part, Sarah discovers shades of gray in her formerly black and white world and learns the powers of forgiveness and love can transform not only how she sees the world, but also her own self-image. In the end, Izzy becomes more like “good girl” Sarah--and Sarah becomes more like her “bad girl” friend. Izzy is the larger than life embodiment of all that is forbidden to “good girls”: she embraces her sexuality and desires and takes control of her life and the men in it--and pleases herself. Sarah is “everywoman”: she works hard, plays by the rules, collaborates and works by consensus--and wants to please others.


This binary, yes/no reasoning is faulty, but I believe many women struggle with this duality in our lives. The question is not to be or not to be, but who are we supposed to be versus who do we want to be? Our role models may or may not be good ones, depending on how healthy our parents’ upbringing was. If you come from a dysfunctional household, one with crime spoken daily, can you break out of that mold? Or are you ever going to be able to explode from those constraints? Likewise, if your home appeared to be the epitome of perfection to the outside world, but was hell behind closed doors, can you ever overcome the damages of a self-righteous hypocrite?


As seen with Izzy and Sarah, with love and honest relationships we can grow into who we want to be, not who we think we should be. On behalf of Izzy and Sarah who have been badgering me to tell their stories for quite some time now, I hope you will look for Desire and Deception on April 1, 2011 when it comes out with Red Sage Publishing.

Thanks, Sharon for taking the time to visit us today!  Congratulations on your new book!  This sounds like a fascinating read!  Definitely going in my TBR pile!  Everyone look for it at http://www.redsagepub.com/  April first!  Tod read more about Sharon you can go to these links:

http://www.sharonbuchbinder.com/


www.sharonbuchbinder.com/blog


Happy Wednesday!
Kathleen

TO DO LIST UPDATE....

Morning!  Like the new design of my blog?  My sister, Rebecca is an absolute genius! The theme is the same on my website.  I just need to figure out how to update the information on there. I especially love the script!

Okay, things to check off my "to do" list are the following:

-basics on the web design (Thanks to Becca)
-contest entries are judged and emailed off
-re-writes have begun on my Synopsis for Dating Impossible
-re-wrote another chapter on Dating 911
-I've kept up with the Six Sentence Sunday blogs for the last month.  THAT has been an absolute blast!
-For the most part, I've missed a couple of blog posts here and there due to eye doctor appointments, but I've been posting regularly on my blog
-I'm 35 days into exercising and eating right--Yeah for me!
-I've also scheduled my ACLS, PALS, and BLS re-certs for the first two weeks of March.
-Mandatory two hour neuro inservice is done!
-And last, but not least, I've renewed my nursing license!

Next up-I need to re-think my submission possibilities, since I just received a rejection letter for one of my wips.  So, it's time to get out the query letter and polish it up.

I was off Sunday and ended up sleeping the entire day away.  I did get up and go to the gym.  Had a bad headache in the evening and ended up not getting on the computer.  Went to bed because I was on call for work and ended up sleeping my entire Monday away, as well.  That, my friends, was a complete bummer.  I had things to do!  But as someone close to me said, "You needed the sleep!"  I guess so,  but that doesn't make it right. 

As you all get started on your lovely Tuesday morning, I will be crawling into bed...Have a fabulous day!

Kathleen