ANSWERS TO MUSIC & LYRICS QUIZ #1

Did you know the answers to yesterday's Music & Lyrics Quiz? I posted them below. I think I'm on such a music kick right now because my wonderful husband bought me an i-pod last month and I take it everywhere with me! I really don't know how I got along without it.

The answers are:

1) "....I'd stare a lifetime in your eyes...." SKID ROW--"I REMEMBER YOU"

2) "....Life is a journey, not a destination....." AEROSMITH-"AMAZING"

3) "...I'm not like this. I'm really kind of shy, but I get this feeling whenever you walk by. I don't want to doubt you, I want to make you high...." BOSTON-"LET ME TAKE YOU HOME TONIGHT"

4) "...You make me weak, I want to die. Just when you said we'd try....." JOURNEY-"LOVIN' TOUCHIN' SQUEEZIN'

5) "....You put the magic in me. I feel the magic when we do what we do...." BILLY SQUIRE-"MY KINDA LOVER"

Now to me, these were straight love songs. But after posting yesterday, I thought it would be fun to do songs that dealt with the sensual and breakups. There are a lot of interesting lyrics out there. Who knows? It might even trigger another novel idea!! I love it when that happens.

MUSIC AND LYRICS QUIZ #1

When you write, do certain music lyrics spark any ideas? I was driving to work tonight and heard a lyric in one of my favorite songs. I thought, what would happen if..... In fact, that is how the opening scene to my current wip, DATING 9-1-1 came to me.

But as I thought about it more, there were several phrases in songs that really strike a chord in me. Some just make me melt. Some are so prolific and deep and make me think. Here's what I decided to do. I took some of my favorite phrases from songs and wanted to know if anyone out there can name that tune. There are five lyrics listed below.

Test your music knowledge!

1) "....I'd stare a lifetime in your eyes...."

2) "....Life is a journey, not a destination....."

3) "...I'm not like this. I'm really kind of shy, but I get this feeling whenever you walk by. I don't want to doubt you, I want to make you high...."

4) "...You make me weak, I want to die. Just when you said we'd try....."

5) "....You put the magic in me. I feel the magic when we do what we do...."

OK! There is the first five. Tomorrow, I'll post the answers and you can see how you did! If you need a hint, the kind of music I enjoy is listed on my profile on my MYSPACE page at:

http://myspace.com/kathleengail789

GOOD LUCK!

HEART DISEASE AND WOMEN

After I went to bed last night, my mind started spinning. I would be remiss if I didn't let all the women out there what signs to look out for when they are experiencing a heart attack. Just keep in mind that some people have NO SYMPTOMS at all. Those are called "Silent MI's". MI is short for myocardial infarction or in plain English, a heart attack.

It is important to note, that the symptoms you experience as a woman, could be different from men. Here is a generalized list of symptoms men and women may experience when suffering a heart attack:
1) Obviously, chest pain is the first. People describe this to me as a pressure; an achiness; squeezing of the chest; or tightness. The feeling may come and go or last several minutes.

2) Anxiety. I see this often in the ICU. A patient of mine will try and crawl out of bed and leave. They have no real reason why they need to "get the heck out of here", just this sense of impending doom that settles over them.


3) Sweating. Your skin will be moist, cold, and clammy. It will be different than when you sweat from physical activity.

4) Stomach pain. This is a huge one! People may feel like they are having a severe case of heartburn, when instead, it is your heart trying to tell you it is under duress. So, if you take your usual antacid remedy and don't feel any relief, have it checked out immediately.

5) Nausea and vomiting. This is self explanatory. You may feel sick to your stomach and just can't hold anything down. But this symptom is very vague because it can be related to almost any medical problem.

6) Upper body pain. You may experience pain or numbness that radiates from your jaw/arms/shoulders.

7) Lightheadedness. You may experience a sensation like dizziness or feel like passing out.

8) Shortness of breath. Your breath may come in short pants and you may experience a sensation like you just can't get enough oxygen in your lungs. Sometimes, this will occur before your chest pain or other symptoms are apparent.

OK. So, there is a list of eight signs and symptoms for both men and women. Of the ones listed above, the symptoms most common for women are #1, #4, #5, #6, #8. But we can add one more that men don't usually experience--unexplained fatigue.

If you experience any of the symptoms above and are at risk for a heart attack, call 9-1-1 or have a friend or family member drive you to the emergency room. Your best chance of survival and decreasing the damage done to your heart is receiving treatment within 90 minutes of the onset of your symptoms! YES!!! 90 MINUTES!! Get yourself checked out. Don't dismiss it as nothing. YOUR LIFE MAY DEPEND ON IT!

SHOCKING NEWS!! BUT SHOULD IT BE?

Another late post. I apologize for the lateness of the hour, but hey, I'm here now! I received an email today from an online friend of mine. She has a friend who is 47 years old and had suffered a mild heart attack. Needless to say, my friend was shocked. But should she have been?

I don't know anything about the woman. The only thing my friend had said was that the woman had been the person everyone went to when they needed something done. This tells me this was one busy lady.

But what were the factors that put her at risk? Let's examine a few below:

Does she smoke?

Is she overweight?

Does she do a sedintary type of job?

Does she have a family history of heart disease?

Was her cholesterol high?

Is she stressed?

These are just a few of the risk factors that face women. And actually, women in general are at a higher risk than men right now for heart disease. I'll touch on more about heart disease when my book is closer to it's launch date. My hero, Dr. Stone Lassiter is a heart surgeon, so I wanted to go over heart disease in deeper depth here on my blog.

If you're a woman and have any of the risk factors above, be sure and check with your doctor to see how you can decrease your risk of heart attack. Or, check out the American Heart Association's website for further information.

WHAT MOTIVATES YOU?

When people learn I have a husband, four kids, work about 48-60 hours per week as a registered nurse; and on top of that just received a contract from The Wild Rose Press for my first book, they often ask: "Where do you get your motivation?"

This question surprises me. Even as a child, if I wanted something, I went after it. I wanted to be published in romance fiction. So I went after my dream. After I'd written my first book in complete ignorance and received several rejections, I started doing some research. What had I done wrong? How can I make this better? That first book is still on my shelf, but I knew I could do better.

Keep your dream alive. Do whatever it takes to make it happen. Because, ultimately YOU are the only person who can make your dreams come true. No editor was going to knock on my front door to look for me. I had to do my homework. I read a lot on what novels were selling, which agents and publishing houses would be interested in what I write, about passive versus active voice, three dimensional characters, and became involved with a couple of different critique groups.

Writing is WORK!!! Hard WORK! You pour yourself into each page you type. Some days, you may only write a paragraph. Others, ten or twenty pages. But it is your willingness to write and put yourself out there by submitting your work which is key.

Use whatever works! My positive affirmation is, "OPTIMISM IS LIFE CHANGING!!" This has certainly been true for me. I kept myself motivated by my belief that I'd someday be published. I continue to write, working on my next novel. I have an idea for a sequel to my fireman book, and plotted a feminine spy series in the January Plotting Boot Camp Class I recently took. I WANT to succeed and continue to be successful!

How about you? What keeps you motivated?