Sample Sunday....Swinging in the New Year

EXCERPT: 

“Hey baby, how’s your day?”

“Rough, but I won’t complain.”

“That’s good. Anyway, I won’t keep you on the phone long; the reason I called is because my co-worker, Natalie…you remember her?”

“Yeah, the white girl you hang out with?”

“Yeah, her. Anyway, she and her husband are having a little get-together at their house this evening and she invited us to come. I was calling to see if you’re up for it.”

“A get-together, huh?”

“Yeah, nothing fancy, she said it would be just a few people. I know you’re not a big fan of hanging around a lot of people you don’t really know.”

“I’m not, but I guess it can’t do too much harm to go, even if just for an hour or so.”

So far, so good, she thought to herself. She took a deep breath while she smiled and nodded thanks to the waitress who’d just walked over and placed her food on the table in front of her. 

“Okay, but before we get there, I should tell you a few things first.”

“Uh oh,” he said. “I’m listening.”

“Well, Natalie and her husband, Alonzo…they’re swingers and they  also want us to come to their New Year’s Eve party Wednesday night and…” she blurted out real fast.

“Whoa, hold up…wait a minute. You say they’re what now?”

“Swingers…you know, couples who like to have sex with other couples?”

“I know what swingers are, Val,” he said. “What I want to know is why in the hell they think we’d be interested in being a part of anything like that? The young folks these days will do just about anything, I’ll tell ya.”

“I thought that too, at first. But it can’t hurt to just go and see what it’s all about.”

“Wait, so…you actually thought about this? You would really want to have sex with another man?” he sounded hurt, as she suspected he would.

“Baby, we don’t actually have to have sex with other men and women, that’s totally optional. We could just watch…”

“So, I’m still not enough for you, huh? After everything we’ve gone through and that mess you got yourself into a few years ago, sex is still your top priority?” he interrupted her, raising his voice. This was only the second time since they’d been married that Daryl had gotten loud with her, the first time being when she told him she’d been having an affair with the strip club owner.

Val could tell he was getting angry. “Daryl, calm down before you run your blood pressure up. It’s not even like that. All I said was they invited us to come; nobody said anything about having sex with anybody.”

“But that’s what people like them do, have sex with any and everybody. Well, I want no parts of it. If I wanted to go sticking my dick up in every Jane, Suzy, and Mary, I would have stayed single.”

Of all the names he could have used to make his point, he chose Jane, Suzy, and Mary, Val thought to herself while rolling her eyes.  Just as she’d suspected, Daryl wasn’t even trying to hear her or what she was talking about. He might as well had been saying, ‘Fuck you and the train you rode in on,’ just now.

“You know what, just forget it Daryl. Bye!”

She disconnected the call and slammed her cell phone down on the table. She sat there and tried to finish the rest of her delicious sandwich, but she’d lost her appetite now, so she tossed the other half of it in the garbage, and walked out into the mall. She slowly window shopped while she made her way back towards her job. 

She loved her husband dearly, but the fact that he was so damn stubborn and closed-minded, got on her nerves. If it didn’t involve church, family, work, fishing, or drinking and playing dominoes with the fellas on Friday nights, he wasn’t interested in it. He rarely took her out anymore, other than her birthday and their anniversary, and other than the, wham-bam-thank you-ma’am sex they had, their lives were as dull as a butter knife. 

**This book is available on Amazon on both Kindle and paperback**

New Book Alert...

School is out for two weeks, so you'll have a little time on your hands...so check out this steamy novella from yours truly...

Synopsis:

Valerie and Daryl Watson (from My Secret Life: Confessions of a Housewife) overcame the obstacles when she cheated on him with a strip club owner/pimp, who also briefly turned her in an escort. Almost losing the love of her life after she told him the truth, Val vowed to never do anything that would put her marriage in jeopardy after Daryl forgave her. 
However, as good as things are between them, one thing remains the same- sex with her husband is extremely boring and predictable. 
When a friend invites the couple to attend her New Year’s Eve party swingers party, Val is excited about going, but she knows Daryl is not having it. Will she convince him to try something different for a change, or will this latest wild idea of hers to bring some excitement into their lives, have Daryl packing his bags and leaving for good? 

My Journey as a Self-Publisher...

Seven months ago, my life changed...and in a good way. I self-published my very first book. And no, I didn't just wake up one day and say to myself, "Hmm...I think I'm going to write/publish a book today."

I'm here to tell you, it doesn't (and CAN'T) happen that way. Reading and writing has been my favorite past time ever since I was a kid. In high school, our English teacher had us keep a journal that we had to write in the first five or ten minutes everyday, and while most of my peers groaned about having to do this, I couldn't wait. By the time she told us we could stop writing, I'd have several pages written, while some of my classmates had struggled to write even one paragraph. 

Growing up in a small town, I always thought that to have my stories (that's what I called them back then) published, I had to be 'discovered', much like scouts who go out and find singers and models. I thought that someone who knew someone more important, had to make my dream happen for me; and because I knew there was no way in hell anybody would 'find' me in a small (very small) town in southern Arkansas, I'd better stick with my day job. 

After I became a mom at the age of twenty, I put my dreams aside, and raised my two lovely children, who are now 16 and 10 years old. And now that they are older (and don't have much time for me) I had time to revisit my own dream- writing. I powered on my laptop one day and found documents from as far back as 2012, short stories I'd written when I had a moment of free time to myself, old notebooks where I'd written even more. Again, I had no idea as to what to do with my work, so I set it aside. Then, while chitchatting with a buddy on Facebook one day, she was telling me how she had written several books and was working on self-publishing them. I had no idea what she was talking about, but then she explained that you, meaning I, could publish my own books, without waiting to be signed to a traditional publisher. 

So, I logged off of Facebook, and logged onto Google, and searched 'self-publish' and the amount of information was overwhelming, at first. There were articles on top of more articles about the subject, and I read as many of them as I could. I happen to love researching things, so I read and gathered as much information as I could, and by the time I was done, I told myself to go for it. And let me be the first to say, it wasn't easy. There are many important steps to follow, such as creating a business/publishing company and getting it registered, getting a copyright for the book, finding a graphics designer to create a cover...it's not that hard, but definitely not as easy as it looks.

Now, on to the pros and why I love self-publishing: I am my own boss. I don't answer to anyone concerning what I write. I write what I want, when I want, as often as I want. I'm not on anybody's deadlines (other than if I set one for myself) but if something comes up and I'm not finished with a book when I said I wanted to be, that's perfectly okay. I've always been the type who loves doing things for myself and I hate asking people to do things for me (that's a pride issue that I've been trying to work on) so being able to publish my own book without waiting for a publisher to decide for me what genre I should write in, when I should release it, how many pages it should be, what the cover should look like- I get to make all of those decisions for myself. And while I have used graphics designers to design the covers of some of my books, armed with all the information I'd gotten from Google, I learned to design a couple of them myself. These are two covers that I designed myself. 

All it takes it a little time and know-how. Also, aside from being my own boss, the royalties I earn from my book sales, are mine to keep. On a daily basis, I come across authors complaining about 'some' publishers out there, who only pay their authors pennies in comparison to what they get. I don't have that problem. If publishing through Amazon, which is not a bad way to go, you get a check at the end of every month...you can even have it direct deposited to your bank account, like I did, and you don't have to worry about waiting for the mailman all day. Yes, the responsibility falls on me to market, distribute, and advertise my own books, but it beats working hard on a manuscript and pitching it to a traditional publishing house, only to wait for months to hear back, and then be rejected because the book is too short, or it doesn't fit their standards. Also, it can take over a year to have your book released with traditional publishing, because they have so many authors they're working with. However with self-publishing, you can have a paperback book finished in a few months and with Amazon's e-book publishing, that time is reduced to days. Also with services like Amazon's Creatspace Independent Print On Demand, authors can print as many books as they want or need at a time.

With the information that I found on Google, I published my first book, My Secret Life: Confessions of a Housewife, for less than $100.00, including sending in for the copyright, and opting to design the cover myself. If you have the money for a designer, that's fine...but a cheaper alternative is to do as I did and visit stock photo sites, such as dreamstime and shutterstock, purchase the photo, then use a photo editing site to design the cover. I spent about $15.00 on the covers I designed above, as compared to the hundreds of dollars a professional would charge you, depending on what you want. Also, while I'm searching through the hundreds of photos on sites such as these, I come across some of the same photos that I've seen as book covers that are designed by professional graphics designers. So you're essentially paying them to do the same thing you could do yourself, but that's completely up to you. 

Also, if you do have to ask other authors for assistance-as I did a time or two myself- make sure it's someone who genuinely wants to help you. Another thing I see often on social media, are publishers/authors who are obviously asked questions from someone who needs their help, then they take to Facebook to bash them after the fact. When I first got into publishing, I 'friended' other authors who I thought it would be good to network with. I have since deleted over half of them because unfortunately, the negativity on Facebook will have someone looking to write and publish (rather by themselves or with a publisher) change their minds. There is a lot of bullying, trash-talking, and discouraging comments from some people, but luckily I'm not a person who bought into all of that. I simply deleted them, and moved forward. I'm trying to accomplish something, build a brand, make a name for myself, and I don't have any room for negative people, trying to discourage me, so beware. 

All in all, I love it. Yes, there are moments when it can get frustrating, but it's very rewarding. I will say, don't write or publish books with the intent to get rich quick or make money, because you will be sorely disappointed. Because I'm a new author, it took a while before people even knew who I was. There are so many authors out there, most of them trying to achieve the same goal, so you must be patient and know that it takes time to see that your hard work has paid off. 

Another thing to keep in mind- once you hit that publish book button, you've now put your work, and yourself, out there for the world to see. Meaning, there are going to be some people who read your books, they make not like them, and they won't hesitate to let you know that. The customer reviews on Amazon can be brutal at times, so if you don't have a thick skin, you better get one...fast, or else don't even bother. The fact is, not everybody will like your work, and you have to be okay with that. Trust me, it's a huge blow to get a 1 or 2 star rating on something you've worked so hard on, but use that as motivation to do better, which is what I do. When I get a negative rating/review, I've learned to brush it off, keep writing, and do better next time. The reward comes when I have readers who love my books and encourage me to write more. I've published books that I wrote with the intent to be a single, stand-alone title, only to have readers request that I follow that book up with a sequel, which let's me know that I must be doing something right...somebody, somewhere likes it. I tell myself that if I manage to make even one person happy, then I've done my job, regardless of that the overall ratings may show on Amazon. Write what you know, what makes you happy, not what you think will sell, and you will be fine. Good luck! 

RHOA Recap...

Hey y'all (Paula Deen accent). I've been slacking in the writing/blogging department for the last couple of weeks, but I've been working. Aside from being wife, mom, and my torturous job as a cashier, I also released a novel on Black Friday, Passionate Christmas Kisses (which is currently still on Amazon's Best Sellers list) and I told myself that I was going to TRY to read some of those books that I've 1-clicked and were just setting on my Kindle, collecting...well just sitting there. I have made some progress, so like I said, I haven't totally been slacking.

Anyway, I did have time to catch my favorite guilty pleasure, Real Housewives of Atlanta and a few things have really annoyed me already, even though the season just started. First of all, WHYYYYY is Kenya Moore-whore (I just love saying that) still on the show? She hasn't had a man since Walter, two seasons ago, and even that relationship was a sham. Then, they brought in this Claudia chick- she is BASIC & BORING. She brings ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to this show, and I've yet to see the girl from House of Payne on the show, and it's what, the 4th episode already? Andy Cohen and them could and should have found someone better to replace Porsha, because this chick is just dry. I laughed my booty off last night when she invited Kenya over, and they had to sit on the floor on her bedroom...WTF??? She has no furniture and no man, all the more reason why she shouldn't be on the show. 

Now, let's move on to Kandi. First of all, R.I.P. to Ms. Sharon and condolences to Todd & Kandi, that was really sad to hear that she passed away. However, Kandi has been acting reallllll messy this season, running back and forth between circles. She was so worried about TRYING to get the girls to make up, sit around in a circle, hold hands, and hum Kumbayah....she needs to devote that same damn time and attention to putting her disrespectful ass mama in check for totally destroying the house that she GAVE her. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Todd is going to leave her ass. He's going to eventually get tired of Joyce and tell her ass off, and leave Kandi's silly ass there with her..it always annoys me that she thinks that everything her mom does, is so funny, even though she's totally dissing the hell out of her husband. I give them two more years, tops.

Cynthia- I just want to reach through the tv and slap that smirk right off her overly botoxed face. She's trying to be so damn smug this season, and it's not a good look AT ALL!!! Her attempts to come off as hard, are soooo lame. Peter is hyping her up, as he should- that is his wife. But it's not benefiting her any. If people didn't like her before, we damn near hate her now, with this fake hardness that she's bringing to the table this season. You can stand up for yourself without being a total bitch for no damn reason...IJS.

Lastly, Phaedra. She's always been one of my favorites, and she still is. She has been looking better than ever, since dropping her dead weight (Apollo). Now, I know some people think that she knew about Apollo's crimes...how could she not know? Well, I think it's totally plausible that she was in the dark. I could tell last season at the reunion that Pheadra was so over him. Go back and watch when he was having his little confrontation with Kenya...he put his arm around Phaedra, and I promise I saw her tense up, and it took all she had not to tell him to move his damn arm, or do it for him. I saw it in her eyes. I've also been in relationships where I was over the guy and his bull____, however, I still stayed for whatever reason. But even though I still said we were together, I didn't give a damn about him or what he had going on. I'd be in one room and he'd be in another. It was all hi and bye..and half the time, I didn't even say that. So, again, I believe her when she said that with all she had going on, she wasn't paying attention to what he had going. Hell, I'm married now, and I don't know EVERYTHING my husband is doing 24/7, nor do I care. Our work schedules are so different, we rarely see each other most days. Also, this man (by his own admission) lied about the whole Kenya thing for what...2 years. So, why is it hard to believe that he wouldn't lie to his wife or just not tell her, about his wrongdoings? I have to say, I'm with NeNe on this one, I think he's lying about lying...

Anyway, Kandi trying to play mediator is making her look real messy. None of the girls were feeling it and other than NeNe reading the hell out of Cynthia's fake (looking and acting) ass, that dinner was a complete waste of time. I'm hoping the season will get better

Well, until next time....

Protect & Serve my A$$... #RIPMikeBrown

I've followed the Mike Brown case and as I already suspected, the officer who murdered him will walk away free. Was anybody really surprised that the jury wouldn't find cause to indict him, because I didn't. For one, he was black; also, once they immediately started saying he robbed a store and fought with Wilson, I knew it was a wrap. If he did in fact rob the store, he should have been punished, but when did death become the automatic sentence when it comes to black men? They don't even get a second chance. It's shoot first, then drag him through the mud and destroy his character after the fact. Stealing cigars or shoving a store clerk should not be punishable by death, yet that's exactly what happened here. 

I guess officers are being taught in police academy that if the suspect is black, to automatically pull their guns and shoot....multiple times. I'm still curious as to why a bullet to Brown's legs wasn't enough to take him down, since it's been reported that he was running with his hands in the air? Guess we'll never know. Not until the next time it happens...and it will. I'm to the point where I'm no longer angry that so many of our young black men continue to get shot down in the streets like animals, I'm just tired of reading the same stories over and over. Trayvon Martin, Jordan Davis, Mike Brown, Oscar Grant, Sean Bell....who will be added to the list next? They weren't all murdered by cops, but they were all killed for having the wrong skin tone. I pray to God it's not my son, or nephew, or brother that people are reading and protesting about next, because unfortunately, being black men makes them all automatic threats to society. 

This whole case, the many before this one, and the one's that are sure to follow, have truly saddened me. No mother should have to bury her child, especially when the situation could and should have been handled better. We need less trigger happy cops, and more who truly are there to protect and serve ALL citizens, not just certain ones, because I honestly believe that if any of the men named above were white, I wouldn't be typing this. And for anyone who wants to claim this makes me racist, save it. You can't and won't possibly understand, not until your sons are being targeted simply because of their race. 

This mess really needs to stop....too bad it won't! #SaveOurBlackBoys

Live Blog: Scandal Winter Finale

Doesn't it seem like Scandal just started, now its the winter finale already? And who came up with the idea of splitting the seasons of shows in half anyway? At least we don't have long to wait this time.

Mama Pope is bacckkkkkk!!!!!

DAMN!!!! Liv ain't playing: hunt him, find him, and KILL his ass!

Sexy time photos of Cyrus? Oh boy..

Oh Cyrus, gay hooker history...LMAO!

Close call, Jake...Rowan means business! 

Am I the only one who still doesn't like Quinn?

You better take that gun Liv. Rowan is just crazy enough to have you knocked off too...daughter or not!

Soooo...Liv is back in love with Fitz, now? Poor Jake.

I'm not feeling this hairpiece/toupee thingy Cyrus has been rocking this season. But waaaiiitttt, he can't resign. Come back Cy!!!

Are they really playing My First Love, right now? Poor David LOL! Red's been giving up the cookie to someone else...

Uh oh.....Papa Pope is coming for everybody. But is it sad that I wouldn't care if Quinn got knocked off??

Rowan is a cold, calculating, cocky S.O.B. Liv better start cocking that gun, I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him.

On a lighter note, I wonder how long it takes Joe Morton to memorize his lines every week...everything is a looonnnnnggggg speech.

Aww sheitttt......that shut him up, didn't it. Don't be scared Liv, pull the trigger. 

Liv is now on Rowan's hit list. Like I said, he'd kill her too, if it comes down to it...daughter or not...

Quinn is still alive??? (See pic below) 

Mama Pope is just as sadistic as the father.

Did Liv call Cyrus a bitch baby???? Oh well, it got Cy back on board.

I wonder if Fitz doesn't know (or doesn't care) that Mellie has been getting her groove back with the V.P.? And where the hell is Jake?

Umm, Liv???? This bish done lost it...

Yeah....she's officially lost her damn mind. I hate the way she plays with Jake's feelings. 

What's about to happen??? V.P. got Liv???? 

Ain't that bout a _______!!!

Welp, it's a wrap. TTYL! 

How to cook a turkey...

Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Besides watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade, eating is the best part of this holiday. I can just taste the dressing, ham, turkey, collard greens, mac & cheese, and all of the other sides that come with one of my favorite holidays. (side-bar- once again, I'll be slaving in the kitchen cooking this mean, so that takes away a little of the excitement).

Anyway, I came across a few steps that may help you in the kitchen if you want to cook the perfect turkey. You can thank me later, LOL! 

Sample Sunday: Passionate Christmas Kisses (Excerpt)

“I thought you might need this if you‘re going to stay out here,” Michael said.

She turned and saw that he was holding her leather coat in his hands.  She snatched it from him hands, not bothering to thank him. 

“You’re welcome,” he said sarcastically. 

She ignored him as she quickly put the jacket on, welcoming the warmth of the leather. She silently thanked her mom for always keeping it hot as hell in her house during the winter.

“Hey, don’t be mad at Shelby, she didn’t mean anything by saying what she said.”

“And how the hell would you know? You just met her like, two minutes ago; now you’re an expert on her thoughts?”

“No…but she’s still in there apologizing, so I’d assume if she’d known how upset you’d get by her telling them your business, she wouldn’t have told everybody about the breakup.”

Raquel rolled her eyes and turned her back to him. “Well, thanks for the jacket, but you can leave now. I came out here to get away from everybody so…”

“If you’re going to stay outside by yourself, I’ll keep you company…I don’t mind.”

“Well, I kind of do mind,” she snapped at him again.

He held up his hands in defeat. “Okay, okay! No need to bite my head off. I’ll leave; I was just trying to be nice.”

He turned to go back inside the house, but before he went inside he said, “You know, there are a few of us still out there.”

She turned to face him again and scowled at him in confusion.

“Nice guys,” he explained. “You can’t judge the entire male species just because one of us did you wrong. Although, I have to ask, how could you not know the guy had a fiancee?”

“I beg your pardon?” This was the second time he’d overstepped his bounds and inserted himself into her personal business.

“Come on, you look like a fairly intelligent chick and…”

“First of all,  I’m not a chick, I’m a woman.”  

“My bad…you look like an intelligent woman; but I’m sure there were some signs this guy put out there to make you realize that you weren’t the only one he was involved with.”

“Like what, since you seem to have all the answers about everybody, even though you don’t know shit about us.”

“Well, for instance, did he ever once take you to his place?”

Raquel diverted her eyes away for a second. Now that she thought about it, she’d never gone to his house. She didn’t even know where he lived. They’d always either hooked up at her place or at a hotel. He told her he was living at home with his parents because he hadn’t found a place he could afford at the moment, and she’d been okay with that. She assumed that was why they never went to his place.

“I’ll take that as a no. Did he ever talk about a long-term relationship or marriage with you at all? Did you ever catch him flirting or stepping out with other chic…I mean women?”

Damn, he had her again. While she’d hoped that the relationship would eventually head in that direction, he’d never brought it up and when she mentioned it, he’d shut her up by whipping his dick out and screwing her brains out, causing her to forget what she was even talking about. As for the other girls, she was well aware of his flirtatious ways and deep down, she’d suspected a couple of times that he’d screwed other girls at their job, including Ashley Hampton- the cute white girl with the big booty-  but she told herself that she was his one and only woman and the other’s were just jump-offs, wishing Jasen would pay them some attention.

“You ask too many damn questions,” she said annoyed.

“Questions that you’re having a hard time answering…which means there were signs that he wasn’t as into you as you were into him, but you ignored all them. Let me guess, it’s because he was good in bed, right?”

Raquel folded her arms defensively across her chest, but didn’t answer him. He walked up closer to her…so close that she smell the cinnamon from the Big Red gum he was chewing; so close that could feel him breathing on her.

“I’m right, aren’t I? You ignored all the signs that he was cheating on you because he was blowing your mind in the bedroom? 

**Passionate Christmas Kisses is available for #PreOrder on #Amazon now, and will be auto-delivered to Kindle on Black Friday; or you can buy the Paperback book NOW at https://www.createspace.com/5100846 **

Live Blog: RHOA Season Premiere

Pizza, pickles, Chips A'hoy, and a glass of wine...I'm ready for the new season of #RHOA

First of all, let me just say, I hate that Porsha has been reduced to a 'friend' to the show and that psycho, Kenya Moore Whore (Phaedra's voice) is still here...ugh!!!!!

I'm not feeling this finger wave look NeNe has going on.

I like Todd, but I wonder if when his REAL personality is going to come out???He seems too good to be true sometimes..

Okay, here comes the drama...Todd disagrees with how Kandi spoils Riley (which she does) 

I was about to say, is Phaedra living in a hotel room??? On the other hand, she looks great!

Apollo is handsome, but he's an IDIOT!!!! I don't blame Phaedra one bit for moving on. He embarrassed her on national tv several times.

I was about to say, Apollo & his bro can't have the same parents....IJS

Does Apollo think the beard will make him look harder once he gets to general population???

All jokes aside, I feel so bad for those boys...growing up without their father.

Yeah, Kenya needed to get away. It's hard to live down that ass whipping she got on national tv after running her mouth so much. 

Porsha is a doll...love her on Dish Nation. 

I've never liked Kenya and Cynthia..she just irks me. Two-faced heifer. 

Oh please, cry me a river. Is Kenya really trying to play the victim? And Cynthia's dumb ass falls for it every time..smdh 

I know that's right, I wouldn't apologize to that witch either, Porsha.

Did I already say that Cynthia REALLY irks me??? She's going from one manipulative 'friend' to the next. She's as delusional as people says she is if she thinks Kenya is going to be a good friend.

Aiden and baby Dylan are just too cute for words. 

Oooohhh, so that's Apollo's mom....she must have snuck across the river to find Apollo's dad. IJS

I agree with Kandi. The justice system is a joke. Men get life for non-violent crimes, yet some murderers get out in ten years sometimes. Apollo was wrong for what he did and he's definitely a jerk who deserved to be punished, but eight years IS a bit much.

Who would you rather see holding a peach, Peter or Mama Joyce?

Nene looks real drag queen-ish with those finger waves..and why does it look like she doesn't have any teeth??? No shade...

I included the pic so y'all won't think I'm being messy. Still love her though...

Soooo the Bailey Agency...a bootleg version of America's Next Top Model?

Sigh...Peter stays looking for new spaces for his 'businesses'... and him wanting Cynthia to go into business with him is code for, I can't do this without your money!

I love Kandi's and Phaedra's friendship..I hope they never let this show come between them. Keep your head up Phaedra.

I'm not into women like that, but Phaedra does have a big ol' butt...oh yeah!!! Y'all remember that song from the 80's- 'Doin' the butt...hey, sexy sexy....ain't nothin' wrong, if you wanna do the butt, all night long.'

Apollo helped Phaedra...oh, okay. He really is delusional.

Umm, Apollo, love is...not picking up other women in front of your wife and throwing her in the pool, along with yourself. Love is, not talking to the home-wrecking heifer after your wife has continuously told you both that it upsets her. Love is, not telling this same woman you could have hit if...if you had wanted to. #HaveSeveralSeats 

I know it's just the commercial, but these messy queens (Lawrence & Derek J) reeeeaaallyyyyy annoy me. Especially Lawrence; he's another ass kisser, like Cynthia. 

Phaedra said, alright, bye bye! LMAO

Apollo is a prime example of why women should do background checks on potential dates. #PsychoAlert.

Hellll nah...I just wanna reach through the tv and drag Kenya's messy ass some more. Where's Porsha when you need her????

That's a wrap. I'll holla!!!!!

Poor Management in the Workplace

All my life, I've heard, "There is no I in team." And it's true. In order for a business to run and operate efficiently, the WHOLE team needs to work together and RESPECT each other, especially the manager/boss, who is like the coach of a football team. If a coach doesn't believe his players can win and he/she doesn't encourage them to do their best, but instead yells at them for any and every little thing, rather than help them work on strategies to make them better and stronger, the players will eventually give up, stop trying, or quit the team altogether.

The same applies at work. It's the managers job to work WITH the employees who work underneath them to ensure the business reaches it's full potential and everything runs smoothly. It seems though, that a lot of managers forget that they were once in the same place as their employees, that they are people too, not robots or dogs, not worthy of his/her respect. Instead, they yell, talk down to, and bark out orders...as if the employee is a disobedient child who needs chastising, rather than try to find ways to encourage them when something is not done right. You can always tell when a person gets a little authority, because it goes straight to their head.

One thing I don't react well to, is someone yelling at me, like I'm a child or an animal, especially over something simple that requires a few seconds to fix. I had this experience at work yesterday, and I almost lost my cool. My heart was racing, tears formed in my eyes,and let me tell you, I'm not really mad...unless tears start to form. If that happens, watch out. 

Now, I'm a 36 year old woman, okay. I've been working since I was 16. (Damn that was 20 years ago...I'm old- but that's another story) Anyway, what I'm trying to say is, I have no problem taking orders from someone, I'm used to it. But even as a teenager, I didn't react well to people getting ignorant with me for no real reason, other than the fact that they could, because they were my boss. And I haven't had this experience too many times, but when it did happen, my reaction to it wasn't good. I'm a firm believer of, "It's not what you say, it's how you say it!"There is a way to speak to someone and get your point across to them, without making them feel like shit...like they are the bottom of the barrel, lowest of the low, poor excuse for a human being, type of shit. This, I have a problem with and it's not something I respond well to. Most people don't know, because I don't broadcast it, but I was in an abusive relationship before...as a matter of fact, I've been in several of them. I was talked down to, made to feel like I wasn't shit by the men who claimed to love and care for me. After the last relationship went from being verbally & emotionally abusive, to becoming physical, I'd had enough. I told myself, I would NEVER let another man (or anybody for that matter) speak to me in a way that made me feel I wasn't worth a damn. That includes bosses. I wouldn't care if it was President Obama, I will not tolerate being talked down to, for any reason. 

So last night, when I found myself in this situation, I was immediately taken back to that dark place, when my exes told me I wasn't shit and would never be shit. I have a tick, like Smokey had on Friday when he tried that angel dust that his homies gave him. And the situation wasn't even that serious, which really made me mad. Now, again, I'm a grown woman.. I don't need to be coddled like a baby. I've been called everything but a child of God, so I can take it, okay. But again, there is a way to communicate without yelling at someone, or telling them what they'd BETTER do. All I could think of was Morgan Freeman on Lean On Me, when he played Joe Clark saying, "I don't have to do nothin', but stay black and die." I'm getting chewed out on the phone, while trying to stay calm and assist my customers at the same time...I was taking deep breaths, counting to 10...even saying "WOOSAH" wasn't helping, as my chauvinist, misogynistic boss yelled at me. Rather than tell him to kiss the blackest part of my ass, I told him I'd handle it and hung up the phone, before I said the wrong thing. I don't even know if he was done talking, nor did I care at that moment. Now, he's my bosses, boss. My actual boss is a very, cool woman, who treats her team with respect. If she has an issue or we do something wrong, she let's us know without making us feel like crap about it. Obviously, he'd called her, because she called me, asking what happened, and I lost it.  I was balling my eyes out while telling her, he had one mo'gain to speak to me in that tone, and she'd be short one employee. All that is not called for. She's all, "No, calm down, Joyce; I'll handle it..I'll report him first thing Monday morning," but the damage was already done. If I thought voodoo dolls actually worked....I'll just leave it at that.

Employers just don't seem to get it. If you treat your employees like humans, like we have feelings, then we will gladly work our asses off for you, to make sure the business runs smoothly. Because while you're at home with your feet kicked up and a beer in your hand, your employees are putting in the long, hard hours-late at night or early morning, spending time away from their kids and families, dealing with rude, disgruntled customers, all while barely making enough money to put food on the table, because minimum wage is a joke. I don't get paid enough to deal with that type of bullshit, on top of everything else. 

I need these managers/bosses to get your heads out of your own asses, climb down off of your high-horses, and learn how to communicate effectively and respectfully with those people who are working their butts off for you. 

Come to think of it, that's one of the advantages on being an author, I can take out my frustration on a character, based on Mr. Don't Know How To Talk To People, in my next book. 

(click here for evil laugh)

50 Shades of Dicmatized: *****AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT*****

**AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT**

Check out my interview with Author Dyphia Blount, author of Fifty Shades of Dicmatized...

50 Shades of Dicmatized: *****AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT*****: J. L. SAPPHIRE     BIO:  Joyce L. Thomas, also known by her pen name J.L. Sapphire, is a self-publisher and the founder of Lady Vir...

Coming Soon Holiday Romance Novel- Passionate Christmas Kisses...

What’s worse than spending Christmas alone? Spending it alone after finding out that the guy you’ve been seeing for the past year has a fiancee.

Raquel Stevens is no stranger to a broken heart and this latest fiasco with Jasen has pushed her over the edge. She vows to leave men alone indefinitely, even though it means she’ll continue being the butt of her family’s jokes for never having a man-or being able to keep one for very long- which is why she avoids her family at all costs.

However, after her philandering ex threatens to come over to her place if she doesn’t respond to his calls, she decides to leave and head home for the holidays-so she won’t be tempted into caving and allowing Jasen back into her heart and her bed.

While at home, she meets Michael Martinez-a friend of the family- and the attraction between her and the Puerto Rican cutie is instant. Raquel however, shades him and tries to avoid him at all costs because she refuses to fall victim to another smooth talking man and end up looking stupid again.

No matter how hard she pretends to be though, she’s unable to resist Michael’s sexiness and charm and she gives in. Michael ignites a fire in her heart-and between her legs- but  she still carries a torch for her ex and she’ll have to make a choice between the two men. Will she choose Michael-a guy she barely knows- or stay with Jasen and end up burned again? #NationalNovelWritingMonth 

Click the link below for an excerpt for Passionate Christmas Kisses...coming Thanksgiving Day.

https://www.facebook.com/jlsapphire?ref=bookmarks

Bye bye Halloween, hello Christmas...

These days, Thanksgiving is a non-factor. The same can be said for Halloween. I went in the dollar stores in town looking for Halloween decorations and had a hard time finding anything because of all the Christmas stuff. I'm like, "Can we do one holiday at a time?" People do still celebrate Halloween and Thanksgiving, right? I've never understood the rush. Putting Christmas decorations out in September is not going to make it come any faster. 

Sample Sunday, Masquerade: Nina's Revenge

Chapter 1

Nina Montgomery expertly maneuvered around the dining room, setting the table in an elegant, romantic tablescape design that included red roses in a clear vase that had red glass beads in it, and red votive candles which cast an intimate glow off the crystal clear champagne glasses and silver flatware. The delicious meal she had just prepared for Braxton was arranged on white Corelle dinnerware, which set atop red placemats and were accentuated with red silk napkins. She had been happily married to  her husband for twenty-one years, as of today. 

Nina and Braxton met in college at UCLA back in 1990 when Braxton was a junior and she was a freshman. It wasn’t exactly love at first sight for Nina. She preferred the laid back, nerdy, boy-next-door type of guy, and Braxton was exactly the opposite. A jock and a smooth talking ladies man, Nina initially found him repulsive and arrogant, although she couldn’t deny that he was incredibly handsome. His parents were wealthy- his father a successful defense attorney and his mother the daughter of an oil tycoon in Texas- and Braxton had grown up with a silver spoon in his mouth, never really knowing the value of hard work, as he was accustomed to having everything given to him with the snap of a finger. That included women.

It was a Thursday night when they met- finals week was almost over and there were several parties happening all over the campus. It was at a frat party on this night that Nina actually saw Braxton up close for the first time- he was doing body shots on a skinny blonde chick as a crowd of students stood around them, cheering him on. Nina thought it was gross and immature on both of their parts. 

Throughout the night, Nina saw Braxton flirting with several girls at the party and labeled him as a player and she decided then and there that she wanted no parts of him or any of the guys at this party for that matter. She’d only gone to the party because her best friend, Selena had begged her to come because she was trying to hook up with one the guys at the party and she didn’t want to go alone.

Nina had just walked over to the refreshment table to get herself some punch when Braxton walked up beside her. “I wouldn’t drink that if I were you,” he said just as Nina brought the glass up to her lips to take a sip.

“Why not?” she asked as she peered into the glass trying to see what was wrong with the drink.

“A few of the guys spiked this punch with a couple of bottles of gin. A couple of sips of that and you’ll be on your back in no time and a sexy, drunk college girl around a bunch of rowdy, horny jocks…that wouldn’t be a good idea.”

She immediately set the glass back on the table and rolled her eyes. 

Guys are so immature, she mumbled to herself. She’d had enough of this scene, she was leaving now, with or without Selena.

Nina walked away from him and headed across the room to where she‘d last seen her friend and roommate flirting with some guy. She pushed her way through the crowd of  drunk and horny males and females, trying to locate Selena. Her eyes zeroed in on her- she was sitting on the lap of one of the guys on the football team, her tongue down his throat as he groped her ass and breasts.

Nina made her way over and tapped Selena on the shoulder, telling her that she was leaving. Selena waved her away and said she would be home later as she continued heavily making out with her companion. 

Nina walked out into the cool night air. She really hated to walk alone at night- flyers had been posted all over campus warning women not to do so- but she couldn’t stand being at this party for another minute. Her clothes and hair reeked of cigarette smoke and she needed to study anyway for her last final in the morning.

She had just started up the sidewalk when she heard someone say, “Hey wait up!”

She turned around and noticed Braxton running to catch up to her.

“Where you going?”

“Home.”

“You really shouldn’t be walking alone at nighttime; lot’s of crazies around here.”

“How do I know that you’re not one of them?”

“Do I look crazy?” they stopped walking and faced each other.

“No…but most serial killers are quite handsome,” Nina said as she turned to continue walking.  “I’ll be fine. I don’t need you to walk with me, I have pepper spray,” she said. 

His presence was annoying her.

He laughed sarcastically as he fell into step beside her, “Oh well, that makes all the difference.”

“What do you want?” Nina wished he would leave her alone and go back to his stupid party.

“I just want to make sure you make it home safe, that‘s all.”

She peeked at him from the corner of her eye. She would be lying if she said he wasn’t fine as hell. He was tall, 6’2, lean, had smooth dark skin, and big feet…which supposedly meant he had a big package between his thighs.

Braxton was on the basketball team so he was extremely athletic and his biceps bulged underneath the sleeves of his t-shirt. 

“What is it with guys and showing off their muscles,” she unintentionally said out loud.

“Excuse me?”

“It’s fifty degrees out here and you’re wearing a t-shirt. You’ll catch pneumonia.”

“Well thanks for caring mom,” Braxton said sarcastically, “But I’m not cold.” 

Nina shrugged and they continued to walk towards her dorm, making small talk along the way.

Once she’d made it to her building, Nina thanked him for walking her home and was turning to leave when she felt him grab her by the waist. He pulled her into him and gently kissed her cherry lipgloss flavored lips.

Braxton was a good kisser and she kissed him back for a moment before coming to her senses and placing her hand on his broad chest, pushing him away. This was the same guy who had been licking alcohol off another girl’s body only minutes ago. He wasn’t about to make her another notch on his belt, so he could brag to his friends about it later.

She slapped him hard across the face, “You don’t know me like that. And I‘m not one of those girls who easily gives it up to you just because you show her a little attention.”

He laughed and rubbed his cheek, “Well now that we’ve  gotten that out the way...”

He pushed her up against her door- trapping her between it and his body- and kissed her again, this time with more intensity while holding her hands above her head.

Nina didn’t know what to feel as his tongue danced around hers and the hardness between his thighs rubbed up against her. They moaned softly as they made out on the front steps. Nina didn’t bother putting up a front this time, pretending like she didn’t like it. She grabbed the back of his head as he sucked on her neck and rubbed her crotch.

“Invite me in,” he said pulling away and staring her in the eye.

Without hesitation she asked, “Do you wanna come in?” 

She led him up to her dorm room and once inside, they shed their clothes as they kissed and moved over to her bed. Braxton’s hands and tongue explored every inch of Nina’s body. She almost had a heart attack when she felt him lower himself between her legs and start sucking on the inside of her thighs, before licking her already moist private parts. By the time Braxton put on a condom and entered her, she had already had an intense orgasm.

After lovemaking, they lay in bed talking and watching Midnight Love videos on B.E.T. for a few hours. Before he snuck out the next morning, they exchanged phone numbers, then giving her one last passionate kiss, he left. 

 Nina would have sworn the previous night had been a dream had it not been for the passion marks all over her neck, breasts, and the insides of her thighs. 

She would have never thought that a guy like Braxton would be interested in a plain Jane like her. Although she was constantly told how pretty she was- for a big girl, with her caramel colored skin tone, long black hair, and big beautiful eyes- she had always been on the heavy side and no amount of dieting seemed to work for her. Nina was half-black, half-Puerto Rican and came from a family of large beautiful women so genetically, she was never meant to be a skinny girl.  The last time she’d stepped on a scale she was at 185 pounds, although her size 40C breasts probably added to some of her weight. Luckily, she wasn’t particularly short or she’d resemble Humpty Dumpty, which would be all bad. 

She knew Braxton could have any girl he wanted but for some reason he really seemed to be interested in her. They started dating soon after they slept together on the night of the frat party and when Braxton graduated a year later, she dropped out of college in her sophomore year and they got married after she found out she was pregnant.

She miscarried the baby early in the first trimester and didn’t have the desire nor energy to enroll back in school after that. 

Braxton was studying to become a realtor at that time so Nina chose to be a stay at home wife- cooking and cleaning, helping him study, and anything else she could do to help him accomplish his dreams. If Braxton was happy, she was happy.

Eventually all of his hard work paid off. He passed the real estate exam and  started Braxton Montgomery Realty Company. He got his big break when one of the first homes he managed to sell- a 1.5 million dollar home in the Hollywood Hills- was to that handsome young actor who used to be married to Demi Moore. 

After that, Braxton told Nina she never had to work and that he would always take care of her because she had stood by his side while he was working so hard to earn his realtor license and they had been living a lavish life in LA ever since. Nina wore expensive, designer clothes, they lived in a beautiful mansion, and she drove a BMW. She never wanted for anything and in return all she was required to do was look good, have her husband a gourmet meal on the table every night-unless they went out for dinner- and keep him satisfied in bed. She’d never had a problem doing either and everyone she knew thought she lived the perfect life but this was all about to change. 

***

Braxton walked into the dining room looking as sexy as ever in his designer suit and Gucci framed glasses.

Nina took one look at him and was instantly aroused. It was true what people said- some men got better looking as they got older- and the years had definitely been good to Braxton. She hoped that after they ate dinner they could make love, something they haven’t done in a long time. These days Braxton just didn’t seem to be interested in her at all and Nina was sure it had something to do with her weight, even though he’d never said it. He didn’t have to though- it was in the way he looked at her, with disgust. Most nights, Braxton acted as if he couldn’t stand the sight of his wife and she supposed she couldn’t blame him. 

As a result of being a pampered housewife, Nina had a lot of free time on her hands. She spent a lot of time in the expensive kitchen that Braxton had built for her. It was complete with all the latest stainless steel appliances, black granite countertops, and cherry wood cabinets which all accentuated the huge island that set in the center of the room. 

She absolutely loved her kitchen and spent most of her time in here, cooking and baking. Nina made sure that she had a hot meal on the table everyday when her husband got home, but for the last several weeks he’d opted to eat out at some fancy restaurant and would say he wasn‘t hungry when he came home from work, leaving her to eat all of the food she cooked by herself.

Over the years, Nina’s weight had skyrocketed from the 180  she’d been in college, to 280 and even though she was 5’8, she still looked frumpy no matter what she put on. Braxton had even called her Miss Piggy one night as she undressed for bed. He’d said he was joking but her feelings had still been hurt and rather than apologize and take back what he‘d said, he told her it wasn’t his fault that she’d gotten so fat. After that, he turned his back to her and went to sleep as she lay beside him, silently crying.

Nina had tried diets and going to the gym, but she just couldn’t seem to shed the weight, while Braxton still maintained the same athletic physique he’d had in college. He didn’t even really have to work out- he was just naturally fit- but he still went to the gym and kept his muscles defined. She’d gone with him one day about a month ago- dead set on shedding some pounds- but when she saw all the younger women flirting with her husband- and he was flirting back- she stopped going.

Because tonight was their anniversary, Nina was hoping for a romantic evening. She had bought some lingerie and she planned to rekindle the flame that had long since died out in their marriage. She’d even taken to watching porn so she could learn some new tricks that would help her blow Braxton’s mind in bed tonight. She couldn’t wait until dinner was over so they could get to the dessert-Braxton’s sexy bodied covered in whipped cream- that she couldn’t wait to lick off. 

Nina uncovered the plate that set in front of her husband. She had made baked tilapia with garlic butter, stir fry green beans, and rosemary garlic potatoes- Braxton’s favorite. She poured Pinot Noir into his glass before taking her seat at the opposite end of the table. Her meal was far less appealing. Because she was on another one of her diets, she was only eating a garden salad with a Balsamic vinaigrette dressing. 

Nina stabbed a tomato with her fork and lifted it to her mouth. Braxton seemed distracted and she didn’t know what to say at the moment. There was awkward silence between them, other than the sound of their forks scraping the dinner plates. 

“I want a divorce,” Braxton said suddenly, dropping his fork on his barely touched plate of food.

Nina looked up, not sure she’d heard him correctly. “What did you just say?”

“I said I want a divorce,” he repeated.

That’s what she thought he’d said.

Nina put her fork back down as Braxton continued, “I’ve thought a lot about it and I just can’t do this anymore. I’ve gone over this in my head for months now, trying to think of the appropriate time to tell you this. I’m not happy Nina. I haven’t been attracted to you for years. I mean…look at you. You’ve let yourself go, our sex life is nonexistent. I know you’ve noticed that I haven’t touched you in a very long time.”

Nina tried hard not to cry but she couldn’t stop the tears from falling down her face. Through blurred vision, she watched tears drop into the soggy salad she had been about to eat a few minutes earlier. She took her napkin and dabbed at her eyes, but the tears kept falling.

“And there’s more…”

As if he hadn’t already gut punched her, he has more, she thought.

Braxton removed a manila folder from his briefcase which had been setting on the empty chair beside him and slid it down the table towards Nina.

She opened it and saw her husband in various photos, posing with a pretty black woman and a teenaged boy. Some of the pictures were when Braxton was in his late twenties and thirty’s and one looked to be more recent, when he’d turned 40 a few months ago. The boy in the pictures went from being a toddler to the handsome young man she was now staring at, but she literally stopped breathing when she recognized the woman in the pictures. It was Selena- her best friend from college. Nina looked up at her husband, confused.

“He’s our son Nina.” Braxton had just delivered the final blow…the kill shot. 

“Your… son?” 

“Yes, our son…Selena‘s and mine. He‘s 15.” Braxton took a deep breath and a sip of his wine before continuing, “We’ve been seeing each other for years now and we’re tired of sneaking around and hiding our family. We want to get married- our son deserves to have his parents live together, like a real family- but I have to divorce you first.”

Nina looked at him with a murderous look in her eyes. At that very moment, she suddenly identified with the women she watched every Sunday during the Snapped marathon- because she wanted to kill this man. For a brief moment, she had a vision of her jumping up, grabbing the butter knife, and stabbing him in the neck with it. 

“I’ll take your ass for every dime you’ve got, you asshole,” she slammed the folder shut and threw it at him, purposely aiming at his head.

He ducked as the contents of the folder scattered all over the floor. “That won’t be necessary. I’ve already contacted my attorney and I’ve admitted my wrongdoing. I take full responsibility and I plan to provide you with a very generous amount in the divorce settlement. Also, you can keep the house- it’s already paid for- you just keep up the taxes on it. I’ll be moving into the new home I’ve had built for my family in Calabasas.”

Nina’s heart stopped when he’d said his family again, as if she had only been a roommate or something for the last twenty years. 

I’m being punked right now, that’s it, Nina thought.  When Braxton sold Ashton the house in the Hollywood Hills, they had gotten together and decided to pay a joke on me, even though Ashton stopped filming that show a while back. He and his crew probably thought it would be cute to play one last joke-only this shit ain’t funny, Nina thought to herself as she turned her glass up and drank all of the wine in one gulp. 

Braxton stood and walked over to her, placed a check on the table, and turned to leave the room.

“I hope you’ll accept my apology, although I know you must hate me right now. I’ll just grab a few of my things and be on my way. Goodbye Nina!” 

She continued to sit there- drinking glass after glass of wine- while waiting for Ashton and the camera crew to come running out of the living room with Braxton in tow at any minute yelling, “Gotcha!”

Nina realized it wasn’t a joke about 15 minutes later when the only thing she heard was the front door slam behind Braxton when he left the house- and her life- for good.

Masquerade Nina's Revenge can be bought on Paperback & Kindle on Amazon.com