Friday, November 30, 2012

Episode Forty-four of Lilith's Escape


 
                                                                         
 

The man fought for his life as Lilith sucked it from his body. Edward watched in silence as the man became a dried stalk of his former self. Maybe he should have left the room; she did give him a warning. When Lilith had finished feeding, she climbed off the corpse and wiped her mouth.

“Should we leave the body outside for your beast?” Tzaddik asked Lilith as she walked away from the dead man.

“No…just burn it,” she replied. She stared at Edward as if trying to get a sense of his emotions. “Are you okay?” she asked.
                                                                            
“I don’t know,” he replied.

Tzaddik looked troubled and said to Lilith, “To win this battle, we will need your beast. Why not save this body for it to feed?”
                                                                           
“Priest, I have no angel to protect me in this battle. I have released him. What we do, will be without Heaven’s help.”
                                                                         
“This doesn’t fair well for us. You won’t be able to do this alone,” Tzaddik argued.

“It is what it is. Edward will find Lazarus and I will fight the immortals.”

Tzaddik wasn’t convinced, and countered, “Woman, you have an irritating habit of changing the rules mid-game. Is it futile to try and change your decision?”

Edward listened to their discussion, but only half-heartedly. He had his own worries. How would he find Lazarus in this place and time?

“It was cruel to keep Urim from his comrades…it was time to make amends,” Lilith replied to the priest.
                                                                        
“The dead are already walking among the living and it won’t be long before we are all infected.” Tzaddik countered. The priest was frustrated. Without the angel they would be defeated. He looked to Edward for support and to maybe help change the woman's mind, but Edward remained silent.

Lilith abruptly changed the subject. “We’ll make plans to capture Lazarus from our enemy, but I need to speak with Edward in private.” She then took hold of Edward’s hand and headed towards the door. Tzaddik stood aside for them to pass and as she brushed pass the priest; she gave the order, “Burn the body.”

Edward followed Lilith to a private area reserved just for her. After she had closed the door, she stood on her toes and tried to kiss him, but Edward stopped her.

“I told you to leave the room,” she said and tried once more to move into his arms, but he held her at bay.

“You haven’t told Tzaddik the whole story. He doesn’t know about your powers. You're weaker now. How do you expect to help these people and how am I supposed to find Lazarus in this place?”

“You will find him. Have some faith.”
"You're going to get us all killed. This is not a game, Lilith ."
"I will not fail you, or these people who have placed their very lives at my feet. I had to do the right thing and release my angel from his curse...
                                                            
 ...It was a bargain I was forced to make in order to save all of you... please don't push me away."
                        
This time when she tried to kiss him, Edward let her. No matter how angry he was, he could not stop from loving Lilith. He picked her up into his arms and carried her to the cot and as he laid on the bed with her, he asked, “What if I fail you?”
 
“Don't you understand, dear one? Everything depends on my not failing you."

                                                                         
 

Sunday, November 25, 2012

Turkeys and Biblical floods



                                                                          


On Thanksgiving day, I went to my daughter's house to help cook the big meal. I was there at nine in the morning to start getting the stuffing ready. We had a wonderful time with all the family, but I did not take home any left-overs. What I did take home was two of the grandsons to help my husband put up the outside lights.

                                                                                                                                                                                                  
Joshua and Nathan were a big help and they even helped me set up the tree. Later that day, we went on a very long hike and then we played Wii and pool.
                                                                         
The boys stayed until Saturday afternoon after we went on a second hike through the woods. After they left, I had some shopping to do and also I cooked my own turkey dinner with all the works for my husband and I.

I had planned on running out after dinner to do some more Christmas shopping
                                                                      
                                         but there was a disaster. More on this later.

My cousin Don and a good friend of ours, Carmen aka Bob Charger from 98.1 Wogl stopped by for a visit. We talked about the old days in the neighborhood and what changed, what didn't. Good times.
                                                                          
After a delicious dinner, I put the dishes into our old dishwasher.

                                                                           

 I was getting my Christmas shopping list together, which by the way, rivals Santa's list
                                                                     
and decided to throw all the pot holders into the wash. I heard this rushing of water as I entered the basement
                                                                   
 and was greeted by a flood pouring down from under the section where said old dishwasher stood.

                                                                     

Never got out to do any shopping, instead, my husband and I spent the night wiping up all the water and on top of that mess, I still had dirty dishes to do...bummer.

My husband tells me, "I guess this means that we'll have to buy a new dishwasher."

My opinion...God was telling me that I didn't have to cook or wash dishes anymore.

Friday, November 23, 2012

Exciting News on Several Book Launches

This month, the South Jersey Writer's group will be having a book launch for their Short Story Anthology. Tall Tales and Short Stories is a collection of stories ranging from slices of life to the afterlife.

Our Book Launch date is for December 2nd from 2 to 4 p.m. and it will be at the Treehouse Coffee Shop on 120 Merchant Street, Audubon N.J.
http://www.treehousecoffee.net

Come visit us. There will be games and door prizes and books to buy.


                                                                             




My friends at Biff Bam Pop! have also published  a Short Story Antholgy. Please check out their site.

http://biffbampop.com/2012/11/20/strange-world-a-biff-bam-pop-short-story-anthology-now-available/

                                                                           

Carmen DeSousa has also published a new book called Pit Stop. Check this and her other great books.
                                              http://www.carmendesousa.com/

                                                                           

I just posted a new episode of Lilith's Escape on my blog site. Check it out.
 http://gilbertcuriosities.blogspot.com/2012/11/episode-forty-three-of-liliths-escape.html

I have the grandsons for two days and they will be helping my husband and I put up the Christmas light.  I'll let you know if we survive this.

Keep safe and drive carefully during Black Friday.

Episode Forty-three of Lilith's Escape

                                                                                                                                              
The prisoner sat in the only chair in the room, his arms tied behind him and his head covered by a burlap bag. Edward took notice of the bruises on his arms and bare chest. Lilith walked over to the man and pulled the cloth bag from his head. The man squinted trying to focus his swollen eyes, but when he saw who stood in front of him, his eyes widened.

“Are you here to torture me?” The prisoner tried to act brave, but Edward could smell the fear on the man.

“The people you follow are evil and the man that rules over them brings death to your kind.” Lilith spoke softly to the man.

Edward was surprised when she raised her hand and ran her fingers through the man’s thick head of hair. It was a gentle almost intimate touch and Edward felt himself clenching his teeth, but when Lilith lowered her head and kissed the prisoner, Edward made a move to stop her.
                                                                      
“Let her be,” the man known as Tzaddik whispered and grabbed hold of Edward’s shoulder.

Edward jerked his shoulder away from Tzaddik, but remained where he was, fuming and jealous that someone else was enjoying her touch.
                                                                          
“How many have they infected?” Lilith asked the prisoner while still playing with his hair.

“There were at least two hundred people infected, dissidents who dared to challenge the Illuminati, but they were released some time ago, maybe a week or more…”

“Were you part of this? Did you help infect those people?”

“Yes, I was in charge of picking the subjects that were used for the experiment. It wasn’t that hard, I got them from our prisons.”

“This didn’t bother you?” she asked him.

The prisoner challenged her with his eyes, daring her to attack him. “The madness has spread and you won’t be able to stop it.”
                                                                       
“I will do my best to try,” she replied.

“They’ll know that I’ve been captured.” The man struggled against the ropes that held him as she continued to play with his hair.

She let out a sigh before saying, “Yes, I guess they will, but it won’t matter for you.” She kissed him again and added, “I need to feed.” Her features began to change.
                                                                       
Edward watched as Lilith straddled the man. The prisoner, knowing that he was going to die, fought to dislodge the wisp of a woman from his lap, but Lilith hung on.

 “Edward, if you wish to leave the room, I suggest you do it now,” Lilith called over her shoulder to Edward.

But Edward stood frozen to the spot and watched as Lilith opened her mouth and lowered her fangs to the prisoner's neck.

                                                            

Monday, November 19, 2012

Come out and visit us!!!!



I'm counting on all my friends and family to come out to the Treehouse for the Book Launch





The South Jersey Writer’s Group is proud to announce

the

Book Launch for their Anthology Collection of Short Stories.

Tall Tales and Short Stories from South Jersey

December 2nd

2 to 4 P.M.

The Treehouse Coffee Shop

120 Merchant Street

Audubon, New Jersey

&

Book Signing at

The Audubon Library

239 Oakland Avenue

Audubon, New Jersey on December 6th

6:30 to 7:30 P.M.

http;//www.treehousecoffee.net

http://www.audubonlibrary.org

 

Saturday, November 17, 2012

A great read and recommended by yours truly


This is a good friend of mine and a talented writer!! Allow me to introduce Carmen DeSousa:


Did you know that you are able to buy now and gift later?

Yep! Take advantage of this special pricing on the romantic-suspense bestseller, She Belongs to Me, for yourself, and buy one to deliver to your avid-reader friends for Christmas.



She Belongs to Me by Carmen DeSousa has sat alongside such writing greats as Nicholas Sparks and J.D. Robb, and this weekend it’s only $0.99 cents, so don’t miss the savings!

Book Description:

After secrets and a mysterious background leave a wife’s life hanging by a thread, a husband must look for answers in the only place he knows—the past.

When wealthy construction company owner and Charlotte detective, Jordan Monroe, meets Jaynee for the first time he is awestruck and determines to make her his wife. Jaynee, however, has a history she cannot easily overcome and is fearful to submit to love. Jordan succeeds in making her his wife, but five years into their marriage, he realizes she is keeping secrets.  Before he can decipher her duplicity, he discovers her unconscious in their home from a gunshot wound only hours after giving her an ultimatum concerning their relationship.

With Jaynee’s life hanging in the balance, the mystery of her past drives Jordan to investigate. But what appears to be an attempted suicide turns out to be something far darker. Is someone from her past stalking her? Or worse, is someone close to Jordan trying to kill them both? As Jordan edges closer to the truth, it may be deadlier than he could ever have imagined.

What readers are saying:

A passionate romantic-suspense of love, betrayal, and obsession, She Belongs to Me will have you falling in love and wondering who you can trust right up to the last page.

"You'll be swept off your feet along with Jaynee as she discovers the man of her dreams. You'll be drawn into the drama. And you'll flip the pages fast as Jordan must desperately figure out the truth in time. I was and did!" — New York Times bestselling author Jaime Rush

“Carmen DeSousa has written an incredibly stunning book, full of spot on visuals that put you in the midst of the conversations, like a ghostly guest that spies on a romantic dinner date.” — International bestselling author Ashley Fontainne

“If you love a romance read with a dash of danger, intrigue and suspense sprinkled in, this is the book for you.” — Bestselling Author and The Examiner's "Top 12 Fiction Books of 2011" Carolyn Arnold

Download She Belongs to Me:

A writer of modern-day fairytales, Carmen DeSousa’s stories overflow with romance, mystery, suspense, and of course, tragedy. After all, what would a fairytale be without a tragic event setting the stage? All of her novels are sensual, but not erotic, gripping but not graphic and will hopefully make you cry, laugh, love, and hope.

Carmen loves talking about all things books, so please connect with her via one of the links below.

Friday, November 16, 2012

Mummies and More Day Trip



Philadelphia has some of the best museums in the world and with the temperature getting cooler, my ghost hunting friends and I changed our routine. Instead of hiking through cemeteries or visiting haunted buildings, we do museums. This week we had the pleasure of visiting  The Universtiy of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.
                                                                    

We began with the North American Gallery where we learned about the key cutural aspects of the four Tribal groups of the American Southwest. After going through the equally educational African Gallery, we found ourselves at the Human Evolution Exhibit.

                                                                            

                      We were there for a few hours and now feeling a little tired


         
                                                        Jean channeling Joseph Leidy


                                                                             
                                               We have fun, no matter where we are.

We were hungry and stopped at the Pepper Mill Cafe, which is located on the 2nd floor of the museum, and ordered the best pumpkin soup ever!!!

After lunch, we continued our tour of this amazing internationally renowned educational and research institution until we arrived at the Egyptian Gallery. They had a model of an Egyptian temple.

                                                                                                                      

               I took these pictures through one of the windows of the scale model.
                                             
                                                                          

We happened upon a new research area inside the museum called the Artifact Lab.
This lab is located on the third floor and while there, we spoke with Molly Gleeson. She is the Project Coordinator for the Artifact Lab and explained to us what she and the others did in the lab. The Conservation Team studies, cleans and mends the Egyptian artifacts that the museum houses, including some mummifed bodies. Molly Gleeson, give us her undivided attention and answered all our questions. Please make sure that you stop and say hello when you visit the museum.

                                                                            

Check out the link below to find out more about the Artifact Lab


http://weeklypress.com/inside-look-at-the-penn-museums-artifact-lab-p3378-73.htm

Episode Forty-two of Lilith's Escape


                                                          
                                                                          

At the end of the tunnel, the group came upon another metal door, which was locked until Jones used her clenched fist to tap out a different code then she had used on the first door. The door was opened by another soldier, also female. When she saw Lilith, she smiled.

“It’s good to see you,” she said to Lilith and then stepped back to allow everyone to enter.

As Edward entered the room, he took notice that the soldier was pregnant, very pregnant. “Hello,” he said to her.

“This is Rita, and as you can see, life does go on…even at the most inconvenient times,” Lilith answered. Her sarcasm was not lost on Edward.
                                                                                                                   
“When is the baby due?” Edward asked Rita.

“Any day now,” Rita replied and then faced Lilith, “We haven’t heard a thing from the scouts…from Roger or Rick in the last twelve hours…nothing.”

Lilith, ignoring the soldier's distress, placed her hand on Rita’s swollen belly and asked, “Does it hurt?”

“What?” Rita wasn’t the only one confused by Lilith’s question

“Does it hurt to have that inside you?”
                                                                     
“No …it's just uncomfortable. Look, I'm worried about my husband and Rick...we don't know if they’ve been captured.” Rita was upset and wanted answers.

But for Lilith, the conversation was over. She dropped her hand from the woman’s belly and said to Tzaddik, “Bring me to the prisoner.”

As the group went further into the compound, Edward saw that there were many people living in the tunnels. The children and women seem to outnumber the soldiers and like the soldiers, all were showing signs of malnutrition. Edward could not help but notice the pathetic expressions on all the children’s faces. When had they last eaten? He was about to question Bradley, but they had reached the area that held the prisoner.
                                                                        
“Leave me,” Lilith ordered Bradley and Jones. She only allowed Tzaddik and Edward to follow her into the room.

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Book Launch from the South Jersey Writers Group

                                                                          



A collection of stories from South Jersey. Celebrate with us!

The South Jersey Writers' Group is publishing its first book! "Tall Tales and Short Stories From South Jersey" is a diverse collection of stories from all stages of life (and the afterlife). We're celebrating our accomplishment with a party!

Join us at the Treehouse Coffee Shop on Sunday, December 2nd at 2 pm for cookies, coffee, door prizes, games, shared stories, and a few open mic-style readings. Most of the authors will be on hand to scrawl their soon-to-be-famous...signatures on your copy of the book!

Publication date is 11/30/2012. Retail cost $9.99; ebook downloads $8.99. Amazon.com page coming soon!

With stories by:
Joseph Arechavala
Kitty Bergeron
Dawn Byrne
Robert Cook
Joanne Costantino
Jennifer M. Eaton
John Farquhar
Marie Gilbert
Barbara Godshalk
William Harden
Christine L. Hardy
Amy Hollinger
James Knipp
K.A. Magrowski
Shelley Szajner
Mieke Zamora-Mackay

Here are some of the authors at our big meeting last night. We're making plans for the Book Launch!!

                                                                          

Me to the left, Bill holding the manuscript, Amy holding the Book Cover and Shelley who designed the book cover.
                                                                       
                                                            Christine and Jim

 



                                                      Mieke, Jennifer and Dawn
 
                                      
                                                                                                                                 

 

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Friday, November 9, 2012

Episode Forty-one of Lilith's Escape


 
                                                                          
 

“The attack began in 2017, but it wasn’t a war. It was a global massacre,” Bradley replied.

“What happened?” Edward asked the marine.

But Lilith was impatient and called out to them, “There’s no time for chit chat, Edward. You’ll get the facts after I interrogate the prisoner.”
                                                               
She and the female soldier were standing next to a doorway and although the lighting was poor, he could see how pale Lilith had become. She would need to feed and soon and he was guessing the prisoner would be the one on the menu. Jones gave a few precise taps on the door, a code and one that Edward recognized. The door was unlocked from the inside and opened by another man in uniform.
                                                                            
“Oh…it’s you. Are we slumming today, goddess?” the man in the Israeli uniform teased. He was in his late 50’s maybe early 60’s and where his left arm should be; the sleeve was rolled up and pinned.
                                                                        
“Hello Tzaddik,” Lilith replied and then kissed the soldier on the back of his remaining hand.

The man smiled and replied, “I’m glad you’re here. We saved the dirt bag for you.”

“Who is that?” Edward asked Bradley.

“He’s some type of priest…and…” Bradley was interrupted by Jones who told them to hurry. Lilith had already entered with the man known as Tzaddik and as Edward followed Bradley and Jones into the tunnel, Bradley whispered, “That old man…can kill.”

“I hope so, he’s a soldier,” Edward replied, watching as Jones secured the door.

“With his mind,” Bradley replied and then hurried after the others.
                                                                           
Edward glanced back at Jones and asked, “Did he say…?”

“Yep, now keep up with the others,” she replied and gestured for Edward to start walking.