Once Upon A Time

Well, you know how the story goes, right? It starts out with, "Once upon a time," and it takes you into a magical world filled with wonder – and chaos. Then, after fighting monsters and gaining the respect of the people for whom you fought the monsters, you live life happily ever after.

I am in the monster stage, battling breast cancer and trying to stay abreast of my writing. (Did you like the play on words?)

It has been a while since I've posted anything on this blog, so I'd like to update you on some of my writings in case you would like to click on anything you find interesting.

Articles first:

On Associated Content I posted Diagnoses: Breast Cancer – Part II, which journals my recovery process from the beast in breast cancer.

I also posted on AC Pedophilia in the Workplace, which offers lots of resources to help parents whose children, knowingly or unknowingly, work for pedophiles.

On Xomba, I explore the question – Ouija Boards vs. Angel Boards – Are They Just Games? Read it and see if you agree with my perspective. (As an aside, if you would like to write for Xomba, read my previous post to find out how to write for them.)

Blogs next:

On Help For Single Parents I offer 14 Top Coupon Sites to Help with Holiday Shopping.

On My Heart Blogs to You I write about How You Can Prevent Car Accidents with the Bubble Rubber Bumper Buggy. (Be honest – you're wondering what that is.)

And, on MHBTY, I tell you about a little episode with The McDonald's Police. (Didn't know they had one, did you?)

In my Wordpess blog you can read about How My Most Embarrassing Moment Won Me a Prize. You can also read about Those Sabotaging Sisters. And you can read about How the iPhone Helps Me Write Even After I Go To Bed.

Well, I must say, this makes me look like I've actually accomplished some things despite my bout with cancer.

And so I must end this blog writing, "happily ever after."

Writing Through Cancer

Balancing writing with everything else going on in my life right now is quite a challenge. I hate to use the symbol of a juggler, but that is exactly how I'm feeling. With so many doctor visits and with everything that accompanies breast cancer treatment, my writing life has slowed so much I can barely find the time to sit down at my computer.

But here I am, lying in bed, writing to you on my laptop getting ready to share with you what I have been doing lately.

I resurrected two poems I wrote in the 1970s, but I'm waiting until after surgery (which, if the MRI came out well, will occur this Tuesday) to post them. When I do, I will link them in a future blog.

I am also scouring my blogs to find appropriate ones to place as Xomblurbs on Xomba. If the language sounds a little bizarre, let me explain: Xomblurbs are little "blurbs" that link your blogs or articles from their original sites to Xomba. Xombytes, on the other hand, are articles you write specifically for Xomba.

Before I go any further – if, after you read this blog, you want to write for Xomba or you want to post your articles and blogs there, go to my profile page on Xomba and sign up. Please use my referral number – 777d7f91. You won't be sorry. You can draw more traffic to your previously written articles and blogs by posting them on Xomba. It's a win-win-win (win for Xomba, win for the site you write for, and win for you).

Another benefit (I think I mentioned this in a previous blog) is that they share ad revenue with their writers, so if somebody clicks on an adsense ad on a page where your Xombyte or Xomblurb appears, you get 50% of the revenue from the ad!

So that's what I've been doing, looking through all of my old blogs and posting ones that I think other people might want to read. The process is time consuming but also rewarding when I see the number of readers increase in all three areas of my writing (blogs, Associated Content, and Xomba).

Through a friend at Associated Content I have discovered another site that I will explore after my surgery. It, like Xomba, offers writers a place to post their blogs and articles and encourages them to bookmark articles written by others. I'll check it out after surgery and let you know if I think it's worth pursuing.

So far I'm very happy with Xomba and Associated Content. The reason I like Associated Content is because I am not committed to writing a certain number of articles there. With my health as it is right now, I'm grateful that I don't have to apologize for being unable to meet deadlines. The only deadline I have to meet is for Xomba, but only in its paranormal category. As one of two featured authors in that category, I had to commit to one article every two weeks.

After I'm in remission (yes, I fully expect that to happen within the year), I will try writing for other sites that expect a contractual agreement. For now, I'm happy with blogging and article writing.

Don't forget to visit Xomba. Click their Help Section and you'll easily maneuver your way around the site. After you sign up (don't forget to use my referral number 777d7f91), let me know which name you've chosen for yourself and I'll invite you to be one of my friends. I'm known as BlogWriter there.

More to come...

UPDATE on Newest Posts

If you read my previous post, you already know I have breast cancer. It has slowed me down considerably, but I have been able to post some articles and blogs. If you have time to read them or comment on them, I would love to hear from you. I list them below:

Can Dreams Foretell the Future?

I've had many prophetic dreams in my lifetime and I list some of them in this article. If you have had some dreams that have foretold your own future, I invite you to share yours with me.

Thanksgiving in a Homeless Shelter

Two women decide to help out at a homeless shelter and are surprised by the way it turns out.

How to Get Rid of and Prevent a Nasal Spray Addiction

At this time of year, many people rely on nasal sprays to help them through colds and flu. Not many people know, however, that they can become addicted to nasal sprays. This article serves as a warning and offers some advice for getting rid of a nasal spray addiction.

Interview with Xomba Founder and CEO, Nick Veneris

I started writing for Xomba a couple of months ago and wondered how the whole idea started. So I decided to interview Nick Veneris. He agreed to the interview. Nick came up with an idea to help writers promote their previously written articles and Xomba allows them to post new articles. Xomba also offers amazing contests where writers can win hundreds of dollars. This winning combination invited me and I haven't looked back. I invite you to read the interview.

Domestic Violence – the Story of an Emotionally Abused Wife

We all know somebody who is living through emotional torment at the hands of a spouse. We may even be the spouse. This article offers advice to men and women who are suffering at the hands of an abuser.

Attention Deficit Disorder in Adults

Years ago nobody paid much attention to Attention Deficit Disorder, and when they did, they paid attention to children who suffered from it. When ADD became more well known, some adults started paying attention (well, except maybe for those with ADD), and learned that maybe the malady belonged not only to children, but to adults as well. This blog discusses one adult's possible ADD problem. (I just realized that the blog I just referred you to is old, but since I already wrote it, and since I obviously wasn't paying attention, I'm leaving it in :)

Well, as they say at the end of every Bugs Bunny cartoon, That's All Folks! More will come in the days ahead. Thank you for reading.

My Bravest Blog Yet

I started losing my hair a couple of days ago, the result of an aggressive form of treatment for an aggressive form of breast cancer.

As a result of that significant amount of hair loss, I decided to shave the rest. Hair cascading down my back and legs felt like a bunch of wet chinchillas racing for the drain. Scary feeling, even though I knew what it was. I had to shave, because I didn't want that experience anymore every time I showered.

As far as this blog is concerned, I'll be honest – I hesitate posting it – partially because I feel embarrassed by the way I look. But I am only one of an enormous number of women who are experiencing the same problem, and I thought – why should I hide in shame?

Through it all, I try to write, but my writing has slowed significantly. I used to say that my 11-hour a day daycare was the reason I couldn't devote much time to writing. But now I have another reason – the chemo completely drains me and makes me feel as if I'm carrying a thousand pounds uphill through quicksand.

I lie in bed and rest. A lot. I can do almost nothing else. I try to drink lots of fluids too.

I'm probably losing weight, because eating is no longer enjoyable. My tongue feels as if it has sores covering the surface (it doesn't), and my lips feel as if they are on fire – always.

Added to that problem is a respiratory infection I developed, something that usually accompanies me every October with the high mold count and my asthmatic allergy to mold. But, because my resistance is low due to the chemo, cancer took advantage of my weakness and quickly turned what could have been just a cold into a full-blown infection. My breathing is now labored and I have difficulty carrying on a conversation. I am taking medication to fight the respiratory infection and hope to be rid of it by early next week.

And so, with some trepidation, I am showing you just how the chemo has affected my looks. I saw no point in putting makeup on myself in the bald photo. Nor did I see any reason for getting out of bed. Even a trip to the shower exhausts me. I do practically everything from my bed now, at least for the first week after chemo, and my last infusion was delivered on Tuesday.

For comparison, I've included a photo of the me that I was (the day just prior to my first chemo treatment) next to the me that I am (three and a half weeks later). What a difference, huh?

My fight has just begun. I am a worthy opponent to this cancerous invader. What was a 4 cm. wide tumor before my first treatment was not even detectable by my oncologist just before my last treatment. The tumor had shrunk that much!

Today, on Halloween, I received a shipment of hats and scarves from one of my dearest friends, Denise (thank you, Denise). I have a wig on hand and a wig on order. I can now change my looks every day, and as soon as I feel up to going anywhere, I will put on some makeup, walk out of my house with my head held high, and nobody who sees me will know that I have cancer.

At least until the hat or wig blows off. Midwestern winds are fierce! My second oldest daughter, Lindsey, told me the story of a woman (wife of her boss) whose sister had cancer and made the mistake of crossing a bridge when the wind picked up her wig and blew it into the Chicago River. I used to work just across the bridge on North Michigan Avenue (Michigan and Wacker) and I can attest to the wildly windy conditions. I will not be making any trips there any time soon.

One positive – I may look younger with my new wigs (I decided to get them without any white or silver at all). I haven't been without white hair in ten years!

So while you congratulate me on winning this fight, as I continue to write and hope that people will read what I write, I invite you to read some of the things I have been able to post (see below), and I wholeheartedly accept every prayer you send my way.

For more about my breast cancer journey, read Diagnosis: Breast Cancer – Part I.

(I wonder if, after I post this blog, I'll see hair replacement ads accompanying it.)

LINKS:

American Cancer Society

Laugh at Cancer

Mills Breast Cancer Institute

Susan G. Komen for the Cure

Writing Tips from a WINNING Entry!

I entered a writing contest and WON!

My 21 BEST Writing tips are culled from the many mistakes and blunders I've made over the years. Like any writer, I am constantly looking for ways to improve myself, and I include lessons I've learned along the way.

Much of the information I gathered and shared in this article came from my many writer friends who cared enough to impart their wisdom to me and from instructors who chiseled a writer from the blob of creativity that awaited form.

From the first amazing choice I made of returning to college to finally being able to congratulate myself for finishing projects amidst the chronic, incessant, and unrelenting interruptions that define my life, I now consider myself to be an accomplished writer. I invite you to click any of the links in this blog so I can share with you my discoveries.

Writers are a helpful bunch of people, by the way and, with that thought in mind, I would like to share one more thing with you. If, after reading the article, you think you would like to write for Xomba, please use my referral number: 777d7f91. I'm known as BlogWriter there and the article, My 21 BEST Writing Tips, won $250 in their most recent writing contest. They are a very generous site and I enjoy writing for them.

Diagnosis: Breast Cancer – Part I

One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. I am one in eight. Today I experienced my first round of chemo.

I wrote an article about everything leading up to today and posted it on Associated Content. If you are one in eight, or if you have a friend or relative who is affected by breast cancer, I invite you to read about my experience with the diagnosis by clicking Diagnosis: Breast Cancer – Part I.

Forgive me for this post being so short. I am feeling a little tired today.

Life Interrupted – with Breast Cancer

As a writer who has more ideas for writing than time to write about all of them, I am usually in the midst of writing several articles at the same time.

Right now, for instance, I'm putting together a new interview for my paranormal post at xomba.com (I recently had an engaging interview with Neil Tobin, Necromancer, of Supernatural Chicago, which, if you haven't read already, is located HERE), and I am putting together two surveys while writing a very personal article on how it feels to discover a diagnosis of breast cancer.

My writing career will be put on hold temporarily as I deal with the physical limitations brought on by the surgery. I'm not worried about it. I'm actually more concerned with my finances, but I was concerned about money before the diagnosis, so nothing has changed there.

I am also aware that I am one in eight women who are diagnosed with breast cancer. I have an amazing support system, lots of really great friends, all of whom I love with every ounce of love I have in me. And though you would think with that statement that I had no love left for my family, you would be wrong.

I think the more people you love, the more love you have to give. As more and more people enter your circle of love, a circle that begins at birth with your parents, your grandparents, your siblings, aunts, uncles, and cousins, eventually the circle widens to include children and grandchildren and the people your friends and family love.

Once word got out that I had breast cancer, I heard from loved ones that their friends and family members were praying for me. And that's all in a period of less than a week.

I have found great resources beyond friends and family to help me through the process of getting a mastectomy. Carle Clinic has an amazing staff at their Mills Breast Cancer Institute. And places like Laugh at Cancer offer so much support I will never want for anything.

So while I go through this surgery (date yet to be determined, but it will be within the next couple of weeks), I will write as much as I can until my life is interrupted again with the surgery and the aftermath of the surgery.

Guess I'd better start writing...