Downsizing material things.

If you knew you had to downsize from a three-story home to two carpet bags, what would you eliminate?
Here's Joe and Ellie's story.
It was time for this doctor and his wife of many years to retire. Their dream, now that the children were grown, had always been to own a boat. One that would sleep eight, possibly six people comfortably. Their land home, situated on a lake with acres of surrounding property, sold immediately. They held an auction and were able to sell almost everything. The boat was purchased, restored and updated. Why they even installed some kind of solar panels.

"How does one decide what to keep?" I asked.  "I have photos from babies to adulthood and albums galore."
"You make piles of those photos.  Keep the ones that make you smile or bring back a strong memory,"  Joe's gaze dropped.  "That was the hardest part."
"Why didn't you put things in storage?"
"Our goal was to have everything we owned on our water-home."  He inhaled deeply and put his arm around Ellie.  "We walked away with our two bags, some instruments to play on board, and now that we're traveling, our life's dream has become realized."
"Will you ever live on land again?"
Joe caught Ellie's gaze and held it.  He shrugged. "Maybe. But for now we want to see all the waterways we can and take long needed walks when we anchor."
Ellie lovingly grabbed his hand and held tight.  "We've met some amazing people on this venture."
"Are you keeping a journal?" I asked out of curiosity.
"We are," she smiled. "Now that Joe has retired and has all of this time on his hands, he just might get back to writing novels."
"Are you kidding?" Joe laughed.  "We actually have less time here than we had on land.  There's so much to learn about the functions of a water-home. Plus, we have so many places to see.  Nope, not likely I'll get to writing for awhile."

If you'd like to see more by this author, go to:
http://www.amazon.com/author/ckalber

From my window to yours.

From my window to yours, no matter where you live, may this weekend be filled with peace and love for all mankind.

Betrayal. Terror. Death. Love.

Read excerpts at: http://www.amazon.com/author/ckalber
Go to: www.bookstrand.com/c.k.alber
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Waiting for ---?

Waiting for his person? Waiting for a walk?
What goes through our animals minds? I do know this. I can be missing for a day or a month and I get the same wet licks, tail wags, and high jumps until I put everything down to pet and hold.
Luna has a favorite red ball. Is it the color or the shape that attracts her? Do animals even see color? Bulls do, right?
And that unconditional love they dole out every waking minute of their lives --- wow, why can't humans learn from that. We'd be a peaceful earth if that could happen.

Happy reading.

Read  an excerpt from The Promise Series by author C.K. Alber @ http://www.amazon.com/author/ckalber 
Her favorite saying is: "In my stories, animals never die --- only people do."

Why we celebrate "Women's Day," March 8th, around the world.

We celebrate this day because of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, March 25th, 1911, in Manhattan, New York City.
Stairwells and exits were locked to keep the garment workers from taking breaks. At approximately 4:40 p.m.when the fire erupted, no one could escape from the horrendous upper-story fire. 146 died that day --- most of them young women.
We celebrate their lives with the Mimosa flower. Never let us forget March 8th and let all women be honored for their rolls in life, no matter where they are or what they've done.

One way to profess your love on Valentine's Day.

How one romantic person professed love in the narrow streets of Naples, Italy. The sign reads: 'One day, suddenly, I fell in love with you.'
Does true love exist? Is it ever lasting? What about soul mates?
I have had more than one true love. I believe that my own personal romantic stories are leaning experiences in life and they have made me the person I am today --- a great story writer.
One of my loves took place as in the movie "Sliding Doors" and it also happened in Italy.
How did your true love take place and where did it happen?

To learn more about the author of Romantic Suspense and "The Promise Series" go to: http://www.amazon.com/author/ckalber  --- or follow this blog.

Happy Saturday and may you have a happy ever after love in your life.

Appreciation for our Teachers

Never stop telling our teachers how much we appreciate them. They work overtime at school, prepare at home, console parents about problem children and on and on. We all know that, because most of us either have been teachers or know one personally.
Today, I would like to acknowledge one teacher in particular,
She's a single parent on a teacher's salary. That means --- she holds down two other jobs, when she doesn't have her kids, to make ends meet. But she never stops loving the tiring work that she does in education and never gives up her smile. Not even the day she was moving out of her large home, to downsize, and received the call that she had stage 1 cancer. The Monday she was completely moved in, was the day she had her surgery.
Behind every window, teachers have their stories too. I wish we could give every teacher, past or present, a large bonus for all of the years they have dedicated to their profession. Maybe this year, the new chosen government (by the people) will see fit to do just that.
Until then --- bless each and every one of our teachers worldwide.

Learn more about author C. K. Alber at http://www.amazon.com/author/ckalber