Gonna Marry My Kindle!

Every day, it seems, I find something new to love about my Kindle!  Of course, it's wonderful for comfortable reading in bed--so light, portable, changeable in position.  Of course, it's allowed me to discover dozens, if not hundreds, of new authors whom I love--and whom I never would have found if left to my own devices of visiting bookstores.  Of course, it makes transferring books--or any text--incredibly simple.  I just change my Word docs into pdfs and--voila!--they are Kindle-readable.  This is especially handy now that I'm an independent publisher (http://www.cozycatpress.com/)  and am receiving submissions from cozy mystery authors.  I really don't care to sit at my computer and read 60,000 word documents--and no author these days will submit their novel in paper form--so the easy thing to do is transfer that massive Word text to pdf for my Kindle and then go sit somewhere comfortable to read it at my leisure.

You would think that would be enough for me.  And it is!  But today, I discovered something else my Kindle can do!  It can read to me out loud!  And why is this wonderful?  Well, I've always loved audiobooks in certain situations--such as when I'm driving a long distance.  Listening to an audiobook always makes the drive whiz by.  Unfortunately, I sometimes arrive at my destination before my book ends, and I'll admit there have been times when I've sat in my own driveway just so I could hear how the story turns out!  Sort of ridiculous, I realize.  Now, with my Kindle's marvelous "text to speech" function, I don't have to do that any more.  If I'm going on a trip (or doing any other activity requiring my visual, but not oral, attention) I set my Kindle for "text to speech," choose the gender of my reader and the speed--and let 'er rip!  Then, when I'm at my destination (or finished with my task), I simply set my tab to "text" again, and I can read the visual text again.  This discovery is going to save me hours and hours of time (not to mention the fact that audio books are super expensive).  I'm already conjuring up new ways that I can use the "text to speech" function for my Kindle.

Now, if my Kindle could just cook!  Do you love your Kindle as much as I love mine?

Centuries and Sleuths

Today, dear readers, I had the pleasure of visiting an institution in the Chicago area.     It is the Centuries and Sleuths Bookstore in Forest Park, IL  (http://www.centuriesandsleuths.com).  As its name implies, Centuries and Sleuths is devoted to histories and mysteries.  Owner, August ("Augie") Paul Aleksy, Jr., kindly greeted this new mystery publisher and honored me by placing the books from Cozy Cat Press on his shelves.  While I was there dropping off my consignment of books and meeting Augie (and taking his photograph), I was able to peruse his shelves of mystery treasures and enjoy the homey interior of his bookshop.  I was immediately entranced with the bright red plaid rug on the floor and the high-back rocking chairs placed stategically throughout. 

Many thanks also to my friend Karen Bolek, who introduced me to Augie and helped arrange for Cozy Cat's books being placed in this bastion of mystery bookstores.  Karen is herself a writer, but as her non-fiction book about how men and women apologize is neither history nor mystery, she doesn't qualify for inclusion on the Centuries and Sleuths' shelves.  If you'd like to check out Karen's fascinating book on apologizing, here's her webpage:  http://howtoapologizetoyourwoman.com/.  Karen posed for my camera in one of Centuries and Sleuth's reading chairs.

Beaming Braeden

Here's my sweet little grandbaby Braeden--at about seven months old.  Isn't he a gem?  Look at that super smile!  He never stops smiling!  And this wonderful photograph was taken by my nephew Nick on Mother's Day.   

Happy Mother's Day to My Ninety Year Old Mom!

Here she is!  My super Mom Dorothy!  She's a pistol at ninety years old--and going strong.  She zips down the halls of her assisted living facility at break-neck speed behind the wheels of her new little red and black walker (the walker in the photograph is her old one) just as if she were driving a Ferrari.  She still has her wonderful sense of humor and her magnificent smile!  Today we will honor her by taking her out for lunch at Mimi's Cafe in Naperville--all fourteen of us!

Headache Hangover

It's been months (maybe even a year) since I last had a migraine headache.  So when that awful feeling that I immediately recognized as the beginning of one of my monster migraines began rolling in last night right in the middle of "Dancing With the Stars," I was really peeved.  I took one of my prescription migraine pills called Zomig and managed to hang on through "Castle."  Then, I gave up and went to bed, hoping that would calm down the earthquake that was taking place inside my cranium.

Unfortunately, even with an additional Zomig a few hours later, the pain intensified and only started to diminish towards dawn.  Now, I am left with what I call my "migraine hangover" which is the second part of one of my typical migraines.  It's certainly not as devastatingly painful as the first part, but it's no fun either and it lasts longer.  I call it a hangover because it feels very much like what I imagine a really bad hangover must feel.  I'm not much of a drinker so I've never really experienced a true alcoholic hangover, but from how people describe them, the aftermath of one of my migraines seems to be comparable. 

This morning, my head is sore (not unbearably painful).  It's uncomfortable to move, even to talk.  Any sensation is painful--such as light, sound, the movement of air.  I can't stand to have anyone or anything touch me.  Don't ask how I'm writing this post, but as soon as it's done, I'm going back to bed. 

I mention all of this just in case any of you also suffer from migraines.  I know all migraines are not alike.  However, mine seem to run this same course.  The first part is just horrible head pain.  That is followed by this migraine hangover which is more a long-term head soreness and accompanying sensitivity to just about everything.  Do any of my fellow migraine sufferers experience anything similar?

(photo from www.collectionarea.com)