Book Review: Lily (McDade Cycle) by Cindy Bonner

Title: Lily. Author: Cindy Bonner. Genre: Historical Romance. Hardcover: 350 pages. Publisher: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill; 1st Edition (October 1992). Description (from News-Bite.com): Loosely based on historical events and possessing a simple, frontier-legend plot-farmer's daughter and dashing outlaw fall for each other-this sensitive, winning western a la Larry McMurtry might easily attract fans outside its genre. The year is 1883. The town is McDade, Tex. Narrator Lily Delony, 15, can't stop thinking about 18 year old Marion Beatty, kid brother of three notorious ruffians known as "the Beatty gang." Marion begs Lily, "Don't judge me by them over there" meaning his robbing, murdering siblings and she trusts him, risking her reputation to sneak out with him at night. When McDade's citizens organize a posse to rid themselves once and for all of the Beatty gang, Lily is torn between loyalty to her respectable family and love for her gun-totin' Romeo. First novelist Bonner credibly conveys her heroine's sincerity, bravery and naivete as well as rugged Marion's charming yet dangerous persona. 

Even readers who ordinarily shun shoot-'em-up, rough-and-ready novels will sympathize with the lovers and become caught up in this exciting story. My Review: I read a lot of western-y books back in the day. Little me enjoyed reading about my country's history. Something about early Americans trying to survive hard weather, trying to get by without much, is very fascinating. I believe that the thing I liked most about the book was the setting descriptions. Not that there were tons, I credit my imagination. I have a set of brain pics that pop up when the book is about "the west," etc. Anyway, I like books with cowboys and farmers. So, I was kind of hoping I would like this better than I did. I was tolerant of the first 50 pages or so, but I started to get annoyed when the only development between Marion and Lily was that Lily was finding out that she really did not know her lover-boy all that well.

The thing I hated the most, and it is magnified by the fact that I read a review about the second book in the series, is that Marion is a big ol' d-bag. I hate him. He is a liar. A drunk. A gambler. A thief. A rapist (okay, maybe he's only a semi-rapist). And probably a killer too. I was so frustrated at how Lily easily believed that she was in love with Marion. The second book (spoiler) tells how Lily lives with and sorta-kinda-maybe falls for Marion's brother, who turns out to be a decent, loving and caring provider to Lily and her spawn of Satan... um, I mean Marion's kid. And still she goes back to her jerk-wad man in the end. (end spoiler) I couldn't really think about finishing the book after I learned that. I asked myself, "Why bother"? Rating: Did Not Finish. Side Note: The reason I put the ya in parenthesis is because this book wasn't initially aimed towards young adults... I am basing this assumption on the fact that the old covers look like romance covers for adult books. So I could be wrong. Okay, I would recommend this book to people who like their boys very bad. And for people who like old west-y type books.

Let it Snow Manicure

I don't know about you guys, but the snow here in the south of Sweden has been delayed for quite some time now. The last 2 years we've had one of the worst winters in 100 years, while this year it almost seemed as it skipped winter and went straight for spring instead. In a way I wish it stayed like that, I can't stand the cold but it sure would be nice with some snow at least... but then again I always get bored with it after a week. However, during the weekend the temperature went down and we got a tiny amount of snow which barely covered the ground. 

The manicure I have to show you guys is something which I actually wore for Christmas Ever, but it's a great winter manicure if you want to go for something more frosty or snow-like. The nail polishes I used to achieve my goals were the following: Ekineda - Purple 12; Orly - It's Up to Blue; Rubens - Hd 23; Opi - Alpine Snow; Le Man Colour - 14. I received quite a few compliments on this mani. It's quite fun and cute. I think I'll try out some more layering variations in the future, well more nail art actually. I've been quite inspired lately, so who knows what I'll come up with. And I just changed the layout of this blog and I want to start over. I felt the other one wasn't me any more and I needed something new with a better structure. Hope you like it!

What's Better than Asprin?

Cherries! Cherries are a great source of Vitamin C, Potassium, and Boron (which plays a role in bone health for women). Cherries also help fight inflammation. According to a study done at the University of Michigan, the anthocyanins that make cherries red could help relieve pain better than Asprin. The study found that anthocyanins were potent antioxidants that could prevent oxidative damage and also inhibited enzymes called cyclooxygenase 1 and 2 (cox 1 and 2), which is similar in the way anti-inflammatory drugs seek to reduce pain. The study appeared in the Journal of Natural Products published by the American Chemical Society. Lead researcher Muralee G. Nair, Ph.D., Professor at Michigan State University College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, noted about this cherry effect: It is as good as ibuprofen and some of the nonsteriodal anti-inflammatory drugs. Nair said that his lab results indicate that consuming 20 tart cherries could provide anti-inflammatory benefits. Finding a natural way to reduce pain is important, given the serious side effects from common pain relievers called NSAIDs, examples of which include Advil, Motrin, Aleve and aspirin.

How to Lose Belly Fat

Are you troubled with unsightly belly fat?  If so, then you may wonder how to get rid of it. So many people are plagued by that bulge of fat that is right there in the midsection. It may seem that no matter how much dieting you do, it never goes away. The good news is that there are plenty of ways to get rid of it. You just need to know how to work on it to target it effectively and quickly. Do not give up, instead, figure out the ways that you can get rid of it fast, sometimes in even one week! Another thing that you must know is that it does not have to be hard. You can do it easily, if you set your mind to it and stay motivated.

There are several ways that you can get rid of belly fat. Sometimes, it just means making a few small changes in your lifestyle or follow diet plans for men for a little while (2 - 4 weeks). First of all, you will want to make sure that you are not drinking too much along the lines of alcoholic beverages. The sugars and calories in alcohol tend to go straight to your belly, which does not help you out when trying to lose that fat. Another thing that you can do easily is just to stop eating fast food.  Most fast foods are filled with grease and other calories and high fat products. Make sure that you are not filling your day with fast food meals.

He is Heading out to Sea

And on Wednesday he is heading out to sea... Getting in some Mike snuggles while they still can. Mike has been home for the last week working his way through a tedious set of instructional modules and taking online tests for certification in something I have no hope of understanding. Then yesterday he got his 'ship out' orders and he will be leaving on Tuesday for his first Gulf offshore well project. It will be good to start having those nice paychecks rolling in again but still, we will miss him and worry about him being out there on deep water. It will all be worth it when we can get settled into a more or less reliable routine instead of the long stretches we went without him being able to come home over the last two years. I'm always a little shocked and puzzled when women tell me how much they look forward to their husbands being gone on hunting trips and so on...Mike and I actually like each other and the separations are definitely not the part of our relationship that we enjoy! I want to be Ellie in my next life! We have gotten to have a couple of good work sessions with the horses and as always, I have been impressed at how quickly Mike grasps the fundamentals of horse training and how deep his connection to his horse is.

Most adults new to working on those levels struggle with it and for Mike it comes intuitively. Llego even tested him a bit and they worked through it. I'm always glad to finally see the 'challenge' in a young horse, it lets me know just what we might be up against in the future. With Llego it was so benign that it made me appreciate him all the more. Duffy in the spotlight. Don't you love that face? The winds are still blowing and the fire danger is still on red alert here. There is a new chance for rain towards the early to middle part of next week though, and we can certainly hope for a bit of relief from 9% humidity and skin scouring winds. At least we don't live down in the valley where it is even more relentless. What are you looking at?' Do you think they get tired of me constantly pointing a camera at them? And for me, my back pain is creeping back up because I thought I could make two weeks between acupuncture appointments. I was maintaining because I had an appointment scheduled for Monday, then got a call saying my acupuncturist would be gone for two weeks because her daughter-in-law had a baby! Jody, I'm thrilled for you and so very glad mom and grandbaby are well and healthy and I can't wait to hear about them...just hurry back please!

Valentine's Day '13

Guess what important day is coming soon? Yes, you guessed it right: Valentine’s Day is only a few weeks from now. Single or committed, you can’t ignore this internationally celebrated day. The only difference is that those who are in love will spend a little bit more money than the single ones. Speaking about spending, a beautiful present offered to your loved one on this day should give you a free pass to more "yes, dear" than the regular "hell, no!". This could actually turn into your favorite holiday if you play your cards right. So, here are some tips for all men without a plan: 1. This year, you will start impressing her one day earlier. On the 13th, surprise her with a simple "Would you be my Valentine?" card. I don’t care if you have been married for a few years now, just do it. A little traditional touch couldn’t hurt. On the contrary! 2. It’s Valentine’s Day, of course she expects red roses when you see each other after work. If you insist on giving her red roses at least be a little bit less predictable. Make sure she finds them when she wakes up so she knows you are willing to make her feel special all day long.

3. Telling her how much you love her is crucial on this beautiful Valentine’s Day so check this website www.shortlovepoems.eu for great love poems. It never fails. 4.  You have to give her a present that is not flowers or chocolates. Women think they are in title of getting those every day of the year so surprise her with something else (anything besides kitchen tools; that is never a good idea)! The shortest way to a girl’s heart is showing her you don’t care if you make a fool of yourself in order to show her how much you love her. You have got to do something stupid that you wouldn’t normally do: wear pink underwear to work if it’s her favorite color, take her out wearing a T-shirt "Happy to date the girl of my dreams", take her to karaoke and sing for her love ballads, learn love poems by heart, etc. You won’t have to worry about the present she gets you; it won’t be half as good as yours so she will have to repay you one way or another. Happy Valentine’s Day to all of you!

Dolores Poacelli Studio Visit

Dolores Poacelli worked for many years as a graphic designer before turning her attention to being a full-time artist. She often works in series that can have up to 90-something pieces, depending on how obsessed she is with any certain idea. Her studio is dead in the heart of the Italian Market, where she says that she's the "Last Italian Left", and that's only a slight exaggeration since the demographics of the area have moved over the years from primarily Italian immigrant families to a mixture of asian, Mexican and South American immigrants. Dolores Poacelli will be showing work at AxD Gallery in a two-person show with Paul Davis Jones. "Resonances and Reflections" runs from May 20 to June 18th.