There’s a jaw dropping ending if I ever did read one.

Y’all, I finally finished Karen Kingsbury’s second novel of her Angel’s Walking series, Chasing Sunsets. 

If I can be brutally honest, I was not too pleased with the ending. As I neared the end of this novel, I noticed that there was so little of the book left and so much information to be given. I did a double take of the end of the book to see if I was just imagining the end only to be disappointed. I read the last chapter twice as I couldn’t believe it was ending the way that it did. 

My jaw dropped! Like completely wide open. 

Why? Why did you have to leave me with so many questions and very few answers?

If you haven’t noticed, I’m a detail oriented kind of individual. I have to know every last little bit of information. I despise being left to wonder what happens next. It tears me apart inside. Slowly but surely. 

And it’s not a surprise that this stuff happens. I am always left to guess what comes next and sometimes if I’m truly unlucky, I never find out. 

Per example, my two favorite television shows, The Secret Circle and Ravenswood both ended after the first season. Unfortunately, neither show tied up the loose ends before calling it quits. So to this day, I have absolutely no idea as to how the show would have ended. I have no idea what happened to the characters. I know nothing!

So for this novel to end the way it ended, I’m one very anxious lady. 

I’m left wondering what will happen to this character and what will happen to that character. I’m left wondering if someone will die or if that baby will ever be given a chance at life. 

I’m left with a million and one questions. And I would like to just dive into the third book and get them answered. 

But I can’t. The third book has not been published yet. It’s not expected until this fall sometime. 

So Karen Kingsbury, if you could just give me a release date, I would be forever grateful. I could begin my countdown and wait impatiently for the third novel to fall into my lap. 

Until then, I will wallow in disbelief and try to understand, as impossible as it may seem, at how the last novel ended. 

Psst! You there!

Yes, you! You, the one staring at your computer screen or phone screen. You, the one who is either sitting or standing up. I’m speaking to you! You could be green, blue or purple and this message is for you too! 

Ladies and Gents, it has come to my attention recently, and by recently, I mean in the last hour and a half that the majority of you in Atlanta, GA failed to read Driving Tips 101 with Yours Truly. 

Now you may be thinking “Cass, how have you come to that conclusion” and I will tell you. 

Yours Truly just spent 45 minutes driving from exit 78 on I-20 to exit 74 on I-20. If you aren’t familiar with this interstate, there’s only ONE exit in between those two exits. 

That’s right. Just ONE! It took me 45 minutes to go THREE exits. 

A six car accident had all three lanes backed up. 

You want to know why there was a six car accident? Because someone decided not to eat their awesome sauce this morning and acted as if they were the only driver on the interstate putting others in danger. So not cool!

What did I say in my blog Driving tips 101 with Yours Truly about respecting other drivers? If you don’t know, go read the blog!

My morning commute then proceeded to take another 45 minutes as there was another crash a few miles ahead of me. 

Ladies and Gents in Atlanta, Ga.; we must talk. We all know it’s raining today. If you aren’t sure what exactly rain is, I’ll give you a short science lesson. I’ll make it elementary simple.

Rain is what falls from the sky from these things we call clouds. If you aren’t sure what clouds are, they are those white and grey things that float in the air above us. When these clouds get too heavy, they release the water. This water is known as rain. 

Now Ladies and Gents, we know when it rains that we can’t drive as if the sky is clear and sunny and the roads are dry. There are safety precautions that must be taken. 

Obviously, some individuals forgot about those safety precautions this morning as they were entering the highway. 

With that being said, if you are driving today, use your brain. Eat some Awesome Sauce before you leave the house and have a fabulous day. Consider the drivers around you and have common curiosity for others. If you can’t or aren’t willing to do so, then please stay at home.

And EVERYONE, go read Driving Tips 101 with Yours Truly! ASAP!

Sorry, I’m not Sorry!

I’m SORRY! I’m really SORRY! I’m truly SORRY! I can’t tell you enough how SORRY I truly am! SORRY!

Have you noticed how often that word gets thrown around these days? It should be taken as seriously as the word Love is. It shouldn’t be used over and over again for every little thing. Why should you apologize a million times a day? 

Did you do the SORRY Challenge today? If so, how many times did you catch yourself saying SORRY? 

What is it that you apologized for? Saying SORRY used to be said when you hurt someone emotionally or physically. It used to be said when you made a mistake and realized what you’d done. It used to mean something.

These days, SORRY is used nine times out of ten and it’s used because you feel as if you HAVE to use it. Not because it’s needed.

I caught myself saying SORRY more times today than I’d like to remember. I apologized for everything and anything and honestly, I shouldn’t have. 

Even my boss told me to stop saying _ _ _ _ _.

For instance, I am a teacher so I work with children who sometimes have their listening ears on while other times you’re left wondering if they left them at home or just refuse to turn them on.

(I did apologize to a parent today for a similar situation but this situation is from recent times.)

Recently, a parent picked their daughter up and asked if her listening ears where on that day. As he’s told me before, he wanted the truth so I gave it to him. No, his daughter’s listening ears weren’t turned on and for that, she lost out on getting a treat that night. As you can imagine, this little diva threw a fit and I ended up feeling bad for him and told him I was _ _ _ _ _! 

You can fill in the blanks as to what I said to him. And I shouldn’t have! 

First of all, it’s not my fault your child knows that if she throws a fit, she’ll get what she wants from you. It’s not my fault that she is not disciplined. I’m sorry but I’m not sorry! That young child needs to learn to listen when given directions and that she can’t do as she pleases when she pleases. 

Life simply doesn’t work like that and I shouldn’t apologize for doing my job!

Another example of me using that word was when a child told me that my hair was a mess. 

Well excuse me! My mindset was on “Slow and steady wins the race” this morning and doing my hair was put on the back burner. But by golly, I have no reason to aplogoze or reason with anyone on how I look on any given day.

I realize the United States is consumed as a whole by appearances. Everyone thinks that they must look their very best every day and that they must look like they stepped out of the latest edition of Vogue. 

News flash: You’re going to have those days where you look like you rolled out of bed, was hit by the crazy train and had a toddler (say around 1 1/2 ) do your hair and make up.

Don’t be ashamed and don’t apologize! This is real life and you’re going to have a bad hair day every so often. You have NOTHING to say _ _ _ _ _ for. Absolutely nothing! 

One of my other incidents with this very overused word today was when I said “Yes ma’am” to someone. 

As it turns out, it offends some people when you call them ma’am or sir. It makes them feel old.

As for me, it’s a way of being respectful to those around you no matter what age you are.

Don’t you ever, and I mean NEVER, apologize for using your manners! It shows that you were raised right! That is not a reason to apologize!

My last example would be one that I almost did but I caught myself before it happened. 

My boyfriend text me while I was on my way home from work. As you can guess, I got distracted when I got home and didn’t text back for a long period of time. 

When I got ready to text him back, I started off the text by saying “Sorry, I was making dinner and…” You get the point. Instead of sending that, I deleted it. 

Don’t ever apologize when you’re busy being productive and don’t have your phone glued to your hand. It’s probably that rare 15% of the time when your phone isn’t attached to you. 

Luckily for me, my boyfriend has told me numerous times not to apologize for being busy.

So STOP! Quit saying SORRY for every little thing in your life. You don’t need to! 

You aren’t going to look like a model every day of your beautiful life. Some days are going to be rough. Get used to it.

You’re going to upset some people along the way. Quite a lot actually! Don’t feel bad for doing your job or speaking the truth. 

You’re going to forget to text or call someone. No worries. They’ll understand. Their lives are most likely just as busy as yours.

You’re not perfect and honestly, you’ll never be anywhere close to perfect. So stop apologizing as if you should have everything right in life. Stop apologizing as if your life depends on it.

Apologize when you truly need to! But do everyone including yourself a favor and stop saying SORRY! We’re sick and tired of hearing it! You don’t need to apologize to us for anything. We all know that none of us are perfect and we don’t expect you to be. 

Instead of being sorry for everything, be sorry for the things that matter and brush off the things that don’t! 

SORRY, I’m not SORRY! 

Sorry! But am I really?

Today, I want to challenge you to do a very simple task. 

How simple is this task, you may ask?

It’s quite simple really. It’s easier than getting out of bed on a very cold morning. 

All I ask of you today is to count how many times you say SORRY. 

As crazy and as random as this may seem, people say SORRY a lot more often on a daily basis than they realize. 

And by “people,” I mean YOU! 

So as you go through your day, make a tally sheet and make marks for every time that overused S word comes out of your mouth. 

You may be surprised as to how often you actually use the word SORRY. 

At the end of the day, I will let you know how many times I used this lovely word and what the whole point of this challenge is. 

Driving Tips 101 with Yours Truly 🚗

It doesn’t matter if it’s in rush hour traffic in the morning or evening or you’re one driver out of five, there’s an idiot on the road and they shouldn’t be. 

I was driving in traffic this morning as I work in Midtown and traffic is awful at this time of day. Luckily for you, I have time to give a few driving tips to help improve your skills as an experienced driver.

Tip #1: If you are driving on a road that is two lanes or more, please figure out which lane you belong in. Everyone knows one lane is normally used by the slower drivers while the other(s) are used by the drivers who seem to be in a rush. Now if you’re on the interstate and you’re going five miles per hour under the speed limit, you best be in the far right lane. If you are in the far left lane, we have a problem. The far left lane is for those drivers who typically drive 10-15 miles per hour over the speed limit. So unless your heart just fills with joy as drivers must go around you when you’re in the far left lane going 60 mph in a 70 mph speed zone, I’d advise you to move on over a few lanes. 

Now if you don’t know your right from your left, bless your heart! You may need to go back to kindergarten and learn which is left and which is right. Trust me, no one will judge you! Well maybe just a little! 

Tip #2: If you are an 18-wheeler driver or a larger truck driver, we need to chat. There is NO reason at all that you should be that close to another vehicle. Given your size, you need to stay back 10 car lengths between yourself and another driver. If you feel like you have to ride someone’s ass, please remember that if they break because of traffic in front of them, their lives are in your hands depending on if you break in enough time or not. So back off! We realize you’re big and mighty but we’d prefer our distance. 

Tip #3: I know it’s difficult and for crying out loud, who ever invented it should be hung, but if it’s before sunrise or after sunset or it’s downright pouring outside, put your dang headlights on! I realize it’s hard to twist a switch or push a button. Trust me, it takes less than two seconds and it kills me every single time but it must be done! 

If you don’t care about your own safety then that’s perfectly fine. But we live in the United States and most of us are selfish and concerned with ourselves so we’re going to make sure our safety comes first. If you can’t do that for yourself, try putting your lights on for those around you. You’d be such a Good Samaritan. 

Tip #4: Do NOT and I repeat, Do NOT blow your horn at someone when a traffic light turned green 0.5 seconds earlier. If you do that, not only does it make you look like a butthole but it also tells the person in front of you that not only are you in a hurry but you’re also impatient. That would then give the person in front of you the drive to teach you patience. Instead of them driving five mph over the speed limit as they normally would, they will now drive 10 mph under the speed limit. 

Look at that! Your plan backfired because now you’re moving slower than you would have and you’re later than you would have been. Sucks to be a jerk! Stop honking your horn and be patient. Traffic will move and you will get to point B. 

Tip #5: Now if you don’t know your traffic signal now or what the colors mean then you need to take yourself back to preschool. Preferably the three year old class. They’ll tell you exactly what green, yellow and red mean. 

The last time I checked, red meant STOP. It does not mean hit the gas and speed through the intersection. It means hit the brakes and come to a standstill. If you haven’t figured that out yet, you may want to give up driving. Knowing the traffic signal is fundemental to being a well rounded driver. 

I’m sure the three year olds would be happy to teach you. Heck! A two year old could tell you what the colors meant as well.

Tip #6: Lastly, please refrain from applying makeup, reading the newspaper, candy crushing or any other distracting activities while you’re on the road. 

While I applaud your ability to multitask while driving, it puts yourself and others in danger. 

Plus, I’m just envious that you have the ability to do more than just drive. I can barely talk and drive, let alone drive. It’s ludicrous that you can read an entire newspaper from cover to cover while driving. You wouldn’t want a sea of jealous drivers around you, now would you? 

So for the safety of yourself, let’s just stick to driving and leave the newspaper for when you’re at work avoiding work! I won’t tell your boss! 

I feel as if I’ve covered all the important areas of driving. At least for now. I must make my way to work with my newspaper in tow. 

This has been Quite lovely with Yours Truly! Have a fabulous day folks and a safe commute to and from wherever you feel like going today and every day!

Good Ole Southern Comfort

I recently started watching Hart Of Dixie on Netflix and it is simply wonderful. I am loving every second of the show. 

If you haven’t given this show a chance, I highly suggest you should. I was wishy washy at first as I would see it advertised but would choose another show or movie instead but I finally caved in and after the first episode, I was hooked. 

Now it’s about a young doctor who moves from New York City to a small town in Alabama. If you can imagine how out of place one would feel after making that drastic move, you are on the same page as how Zoe Hart feels. 

I haven’t even made it through season one yet and this show has inspired me to find a small town in the middle of nowhere in a southern state and live there for a year or two. 

Wouldn’t that just be nice? 

I can’t imagine anything better right at this second. 

To live in a small town where everyone knows everyone and where southern hospitality is the norm. Where people look out for their neighbors and have fish frys on a Saturday evening. Mind you, I’m not a fan of eating anything that comes out of the water but I could settle for some southern cooking.

To have community get togethers and town functions would be a nice change of pace. I come from a town that isn’t large but it’s not at all small either. You could meet someone new here for the rest of your life and you’d still only know maybe 30% of the population. 

Not to mention, to raise children in an environment that is safe and that rarely faces any danger is such a bonus. When do you hear of small town’s in the south causing ruckus other than when rowdy teenagers go cow tipping? And you rarely hear about that! 

I’ve always dreamed of being a stay at home mother raising my children in a safe community. A beautiful house with a picket white fence and a large green yard for my children to roam and play in. Raising my children amongst family friends who have youngsters as well. What a lovely and wonderful life that would be! 

But-

I suppose it’s a bit adventurous for me because I’d be the stranger in a town full of people who have grown up with each other throughout the years. Everyone knows I like to know people wherever I go or the shy card automatically comes out to play, but I feel like it’d be a nice change for myself. Meeting new people would be delightful. 

Another perk about moving to a small town in the south is that people are proud of where they come from in these towns. To celebrate their roots and to become a part of a town like such would be a different change for me in a good way. No one ever said they were proud of being from Conyers, GA. For crying out loud, we’re still associated with the Lost Children of Rockdale and that happened years and years ago. 

Although moving to a small town in a southern state won’t happen in the next few months to come and probably not in the next couple years but it will happen.

Until then, I will visit these small towns and take in all that they have to offer from their good southern hospitality to their sense of community. And then one day, perhaps I’ll be able to belong to one of these small towns.

Blood Sucking Monster

There’s this one parasite that I’m deathly afraid of. Unfortunately, having a dog who loves the outdoors brings me into contact with these suckers a little bit more often than I would personally like. 

The other day I was speaking to my coworker about how I used to, keywords “Used to” be a tomboy. There was nothing more that I loved than playing outside, running through the woods and getting downright dirty. 

That was until I met this parasite. 

You see, in Upstate New York, it is a very rare occasion when you get one of these filthy arachnids stuck on you. But the good ole south is a different story all together. 

The first time I came into contact with this parasite, it was attached to my arm. I remember this day like it was yesterday and it was 12 years ago.

On this one day it was a beautiful sunny day outside and I was getting ready to jump into our pool. For some reason I looked at my left arm and there was a spider looking thing on my arm. As you could guess, I flipped. I ran to the nearest towel and tried to rub it off. To my disbelief, it wouldn’t come off. I tried again and failed. It was stuck and it had no plans of leaving. 

So the next thing I did was go running into the house yelling at the top of my lungs. “Mom! Dad! Get this thing off of me!” 

Now mind you, we’re a Yankee family who just moved down to Georgia so they had NO idea what they were dealing with either. 

It was a new experience for all of us.

After much debate and after finding a pair of tweezers, that sucker was finally pulled off of my skin. We ended up putting it in a sandwich bag so we could ask a family member who lived in the South for awhile what this creature was.

We learned quickly what to do when we came into contact with these suckers since that experience.

If you haven’t put it together by now, that filthy anarchid was a TICK!

That day changed it all! Instead of being that careful tomboy, I became a paranoid girly girl.  

To this day, I don’t step off the paved path. I refuse to sit on the grass without having a blanket underneath me and you best believe Sadie gets checked for Ticks as I don’t enjoy when they come to visit me. 

That experience was not my last experience with ticks and it makes my skin crawl every time I see one. 

But I will say I’m more prepared mentally and physically now. My emotions still run high during times when the ticks decide to come visit but I handle it a tad bit better. 

I’m not saying there isn’t any yelling because there is. A lot actually but I do eventually get the tick off. 

Life without ticks was quite lovely. Not a care in the world. If you don’t live in an area where ticks are the norm, consider yourself lucky! 

More to life

I recently started reading Karen Kingsbury’s new book Chasing Sunsets. It’s the second book in her new series Angels Walking and so far I’m in love with the story line. 

If I’m completely honest with you, I haven’t read a book of hers (and I’ve read many) that I haven’t liked. Her single novels and her series are phenomenal. 

But as I was saying…

Back to Chasing Sunsets, this novel is based on two individuals who live in Los Angeles. One of the individuals recently opened up a youth center in the middle of a broken community where two gangs run the streets.

In this novel, as I don’t want to give much away, a lot of violence happens as you can imagine when a gang is involved. As I’ve been reading through this novel, the experiences that certain individuals go through have torn at my heart as I couldn’t imagine ever having to deal with a situation quite like theirs.

You see, I was born in a very small town in New York. Just to give you a glimpse of exactly how small it was, we weren’t even called a town. My hometown was and still is today known as The Village of Sandy Creek. There is one school (that I know of) in the entire village. K-12. When I say everyone knows everyone, it’s crazy how quickly word gets around in a small town. Sandy Creek is living proof of that! But Sandy Creek was also a well rounded community where everyone felt safe in.

When I was 12, I moved to Conyers, GA with my family. Now I can’t speak for this community now as a lot has changed over the years, but 11 years ago, this was a nice community. You could hang outside after dark and not be afraid of who would come walking into your yard. You could leave your car doors and house doors unlocked without fearing that someone would break in. Unfortunately, this community isn’t what it was 11 years ago and taking precautions is necessary now. 

With that being said, this community is NOwhere near what the Los Angeles community is like in Karen Kingsbury’s book Chasing Sunsets. 

Gang violence has never been a problem in any community that I’ve lived in. It just hasn’t but that doesn’t mean I care any less about it because it doesn’t affect me personally. I do care.

I work with children. I adore children. No matter the age of a child, I care deeply for them. 

I try to see potential in every child that crosses my path in life. As you’ll learn from being around children, each child possesses a gift that is specific to them. Whether they can argue up a storm (lawyer) or can talk you into anything (sales rep), each child has a gift or talent that they can use in life to better theirselves if given the opportunity to. 

Even gang members! 

Unfortuantely, most young children and teenagers join gangs because they sincerely believe that’s the only place they belong in the world. They truly believe that those other gang members are the only family they’ve got. And sadly, that’s probably the only thing they’ve ever known. Their parents most likely were in a gang and they want to follow in their footsteps. 

To you and I, that would not be our first choice. We’re surrounded by family and friends who love us. They most likely don’t have the same support group as we do. But I couldn’t imagine not having my family and friends around and I most definitely couldn’t imagine giving my life for people who wouldn’t do the same for me.

I don’t know much about gang families but I do know the second you’re out (killed/dead), you’re replaced with another indivudal. Another person whose fate is sealed as long as they’re in the gang.

Why would anyone want to put their life at stake for people who could replace you in a matter of seconds if needed? It just doesn’t seem like it’s worth the risks at the end of the day. 

Not to mention, every life is precious and to die fighting over trivial things such as street cred or territory seems like such a loss. 

These young individuals could grow up to be amazing individuals if and when given the right opportunities. But even without the opportunities, avoiding the gang life all together could still give you a chance at a better life. But you’d never know if you never give it a chance.

To me, loss isn’t something I’ve had to deal with but I can imagine how exhausting it must be to feel as if the weight of the world is on your shoulders after losing someone near to you. And it doesn’t necessarily have to be someone close to you. It breaks my heart to hear of anyone passing but especially young children and teenagers who had their entire lives ahead of them only to have it cut short. 

How can children and teenagers go through their day to day knowing that part of their job as a gang member is to hurt or kill other indivudals their age? Unless their hearts are made out of steel, that must take a toll on them at some point in time.

I realize most of those individuals are hard asses who don’t think before they do something. They act impulsively and don’t worry about the consequences that are to come but they always do and they must take a toll.

I just don’t understand why it’d be worth it in the end? So much bleed is shed, so much hate is shared amongst each other and yet that’s life for many individuals. That’s every day life for some and they go about their days as if that life chose them.

The sad part is that the life they’re living didn’t choose them. They chose that life and once you’ve chosen that life, it’s hard to come out alive. 

I wish for every child to be given the change to choose a different life. A life full of love and positive guidance and a life that lacks hatred and negativity! 

So if there’s a teen out there or a young child that seems like they’re looking for somewhere to belong, even if there aren’t gangs in your community, I encourage you to reach out to them. They are given many opportunities on a daily basis and not all of them are positive. Be a light in their lives and help encourage them to live a life that is worth living because at the end of the day, there’s more to life outside of violence and hatred. You just have to be given the chance to find it.

It’s happened! It’s really happened!

Guys, I’ve become that crazy dog lady! You know, the one who feels their dog is more important than the air you breathe. Yeah, I’m that girl.

I can honestly say besides buying food for myself, I spend more money on things for Sadie than I do on myself. 

It’s quite ridiculous!

Everyone knows I can’t go into petsmart unless I truly have to because I’ll come out with five more items that I didn’t necessarily need. Not at that moment in time. Not ever!

I walked into petsmart last weekend and saw the cutest, I mean cutest collar you’ve ever seen. 

  
Now by no means did Sadie need a new collar but just look at that bow! It’s adorable! So as you’ve seen in the photo above, I bought it for Sadie Mae.

But the story doesn’t end there. As you can imagine with me being a tad bit OCD, Sadie’s new collar did not match her almost neon but not totally pink harness. Her harness matched her old collar and leash so that presented a new problem for me.

Matching is EVERYTHING! Especially when I take Sadie Mae out in public for social events, matching is a must. 

So after a day of fighting myself about switching collars when I take her out in public, I decided just to buy her a matching harness. And I defend my decision with the simple fact that her new collar is super duper adorable and she looks fabulous in it. Not to mention, her old one is plain and nothing to write home about.

Oh, and I bought her a new tag so she can have one tag on her new collar and one on her almost neon but not totally pink collar.

That’s beyond ridiculous!

Even I think that’s crazy dog lady status right there! 

To make things crazier, Sadie has three collars, three harnesses and four leashes. 

Why does one need all of those you may ask?

The answer is fairly simple.

Her human mommy is quite possibly the worst decision maker in the world who spoils her puppy nine times out of ten. 

Not to mention I think my baby deserves the best and so she always gets the best of the best. 

Crazy dog lady = ME 

But she’s adorable, ain’t she?

  
In the above photo, Sadie is wearing her almost neon but not totally pink collar. 

Don’t you agree the newest collar is a step up from that one? 

I certainly do! 🎀

Rain or shine, she takes her time!

Do you have a dog that simply takes their time while finding a spot to pop a squat? If so, I feel your pain!

Sadie Mae can’t ever just go outside and handle her business. She has to run around in circles for five minutes, sniff the SAME exact spot 20 times and then decide that’s the perfect spot.

It drives me absolutely insane! 

Especially when it’s raining! It’s as if she knows her mommy is the wicked witch of the west and is waiting for me to melt. She takes extra time when its down pouring.

So my question to you is why?!

Why are dogs so picky as to where they poop? I mean they should be thankful they have a variety of options and just pop a squat in the first spot they find. 

I know that is wishful thinking when it comes to Sadie. She’s just too dang picky!