Posted by
Leslie on
May 18th, 2007
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1) My “baby” turns 15 today. Wow. I can’t believe it. Although she still sleeps with her blankie and wants me to “put her to bed.” Gotta love that!
2) I’m over at Romance Readers at Heart. Stop by and comment!
Posted by
Leslie on
May 17th, 2007
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Many people don’t like crows. Perhaps it’s the creepy stories of them at Halloween or seeing a whole flock of them overhead at once. Were they ‘the birds’ in Hitchcock’s “The Birds” movie? 
Maybe that’s the reason so many people either are afraid or just plain can’t stand them.
I’ve been fascinated by them. They are extraordinarily smart. Sort of the same as the rat – most people hate or fear them, yet they are very intelligent creatures. Crows actually use tools when needed and can figure out complicated locks to get into food stores. They’re actually rather fun to watch.
Whether you like crows or not, they are fast disappearing in the area of the country I live in. West Nile Virus is knocking them out. For good. It’s also taking down many other local species of birds:
In some places, such as Maryland, crow loss was at 45 percent, and around Baltimore and Washington, 90 percent was gone…Maryland appeared to be the epicenter of bird deaths…Chickadees, Eastern bluebirds and robins in Maryland were 68 percent, 52 percent, and 32 percent below expected levels in 2005.
I just moved to a beautiful new house with a gorgeous backyard. Hopefully this virus will be eradicated soon and the bird populations will rebound.
Posted by
Leslie on
May 17th, 2007
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Perhaps you’ve already noted that I’ve changed the link on the left from Secret Intentions to A Tarnished Heart. If you click on that page, you’ll see the book cover is gone and the novel is no longer for sale. It’s true. Just two months after release I’ve asked for and received my rights back for this story. It was a difficult business decision to make, especially so soon after release – when I still have a lot of promo lined up. But in the end, I was determined to see this story in print and my current publisher could not provide that to me.
So, I’m afraid this book won’t be for sale again until it finds another home. If you’ve already purchased and read the book, THANK YOU! In fact, I’m offering up the bottle of “Secret Intention” perfume to the first person to respond on my blog with either the name of Markham’s son OR proof that you’ve purchased the book.
Don’t think I won’t have anything to talk about. There’s always something going on and new stories to write.
I hope to hear from some of you soon!
Posted by
Leslie on
May 16th, 2007
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I’m sure most of us have heard of the “Big Bang” theory. You know, the one that says the universe started with a big band and in a single second matter was flung everywhere. However, according to laws of physics, we shouldn’t be here. When matter was created, anti-matter should have been created as well.
According to physics, the Big Bang should have produced matter and its nemesis, antimatter, in equal quantities. Antimatter is the ‘mirror image’ of matter, being the same size, but having opposite properties such as electrical charge. Because of their differences, when these two adversaries meet they completely annihilate each other, resulting in a brilliant flash of light. So, by rights, early on in the history of the Universe all the matter and antimatter should have exterminated each other, leaving nothing apart from an afterglow from these cosmic fireworks.
Scientists today are smashing particles together in an effort to reproduce the Big Bang and find out what happened to the anti-matter. Or, at least, hazard a guess as to when it might show up and bring doom to us all!
Posted by
Leslie on
May 16th, 2007
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Sorry not much else I can share at this point. Just sigh.
Remember – I’ll be guest blogging at Romance Readers at Heart this Friday. Hope to see you there!
Posted by
Leslie on
May 15th, 2007
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If so (and why else would you be at my site?), go over to the Romance Readers at Heart blog. Today’s guest blogger is Cindy Miles whose new book SPIRITED AWAY is a huge hit. I just love the mix of history and paranormal (it’s the next to write on my list!) and this book has it in spades. I can’t wait to get a copy of it!
Oh, and guess who will be the guest blogger on Friday? 
Posted by
Leslie on
May 15th, 2007
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Especially when it’s…a monkey and a capybara. And what and a who, you say? These creatures, who would never normally cross paths in the wild, are sharing an enclosure at a zoo outside Tokyo. It took a while for the huge-sized rodents to get used to the little monkeys, but now it seems they’ve struck an accord. I guess you just never know when love will be truly blind. 
Posted by
Leslie on
May 14th, 2007
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On Monday. I actually tried on Friday to get these up, but had ISP issues. And the weekend was CRAZY busy! Well, enough excuses. Here are five more amazing Earth facts!
6. How much space dust falls to Earth each year?
Estimates vary, but the USGS says at least 1,000 million grams, or roughly 1,000 tons of material enters the atmosphere every year and makes its way to Earths surface. One group of scientists claims microbes rain down from space, too, and that extraterrestrial organisms are responsible for flu epidemics. There’s been no proof of this, and I’m not holding my breath.
7. How far does regular dust blow in the wind?
A 1999 study showed that African dust finds its way to Florida and can help push parts of the state over the prescribed air quality limit for particulate matter set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The dust is kicked up by high winds in North Africa and carried as high as 20,000 feet (6,100 meters), where it’s caught up in the trade winds and carried across the sea. Dust from China makes its way to North America, too.
8. Where is the worlds highest waterfall?
The water of Angel Falls in Venezuela drops 3,212 feet (979 meters).
9. What two great American cities are destined to merge?
The San Andreas fault, which runs north-south, is slipping at a rate of about 2 inches (5 centimeters) per year, causing Los Angeles to move towards San Francisco. Scientists forecast LA will be a suburb of the City by the Bay in about 15 million years.
10. Is Earth a sphere?
Because the planet rotates and is more flexible than you might imagine, it bulges at the midsection, creating a sort of pumpkin shape. The bulge was lessening for centuries but now, suddenly, it is growing, a recent study showed. Accelerated melting of Earth’s glaciers is taking the blame for the gain in equatorial girth.
Posted by
Leslie on
May 14th, 2007
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If you’re a writer, you’ll totally get this joke. If not, you’ll at least see what we endure!
A writer died and was given the option of going to heaven or hell. She decided to check out each place first. Descending into the fiery pits, she saw row upon row of writers chained to their desks in a steaming sweatshop. As they worked, they were repeatedly whipped with thorny lashes.
“Oh, my,” said the writer. “Let me see heaven now.”
Moments later, as she ascended into heaven, she saw rows of writers chained to their desks in a steaming sweatshop. They, too, were whipped with thorny lashes as they worked.
“Wait a minute,” said the writer. “This is just as bad as hell!”
“Oh, no, it’s not,” replied an unseen voice. “Here, your work gets published.”
Posted by
Leslie on
May 10th, 2007
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you’re an alien and can’t find any decent clothing to wear, check out this site. They’ll have just what you need…
