#Animal #Rescuer's #Guide To #Staying ( #Relatively ) #Sane! #Free! :-)

Hey Everyone!! :-)

Just a reminder, for those who haven't checked it out yet, I've collected all my animal rescue/care posts together and published them as a small book.  If you'd like, you can download the book for free from Amazon, Smashwords, B&N, Kobo, and iTunes.

Amazon

Smashwords

iTunes

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

Thanks for stopping in today, and don't forget to check back tomorrow for the next installment of Mistral Dawn's Musings! :-)

#APC #Spotlight: Starblood (The Starblood Series Book 1) By Carmilla Voiez!

Hey Everyone!! :-)

I've got Carmilla Voiez in my APC spotlight, today! Carmilla is an active and supportive member of the  Authors-Professional Co-op Facebook group and her LGBT, dark fantasy, horror, romance novel, Starblood, looks great! Here's the description:

Star craves freedom, but her lover, Satori, refuses to let her go. He casts a spell to make her love him again, opening a gateway through which Lilith, mother of demons, enters their lives.

​Lilith serves no man. Instead she seduces Star, assuring her that there is no shame in love, only completion. Thus begins a strange and terrible love triangle that leads them to Scotland and the Cairngorm mountains.

​An LGBT love story full of horror and dark fantasy - be careful what you wish for.
​Winner of HFA's Horror Author of the Year, Fear Venture's Author of the Year (2014), Best Horror Release by The Three Bookateers (2014) and nominated for the Commonwealth Book Prize. Starblood is the first book in a series - Psychonaut, Black Sun, and Ribbons continue Star, Satori and Lilith's stories.

​A graphic novel based on this award-winning novel is also available, illustrated by Anna Prashkovich.

 If you think this sounds like something you might enjoy, go ahead and grab your copy here:

Thank you all so much for stopping by! Happy reading! :-)

#Agent Thoth's #Personal Log: Day 959

Hey Everyone! :-)

Agent Thoth discusses more of the trials and tribulations associated with living with hominids. Incidentally, if you've missed Agent Thoth's earlier entries, you can find them here: Thoth's Journal

Department for the Preservation and Confirmation of Intelligent Life (DPCIL)

Agent Thoth's Personal Log

Day Nine-Hundred-Fifty-Nine:

I am happy to report that the juvenile felid seems to have finally fully recovered from all of his physical woes. However, the local hominids have once again commenced with igniting small explosive devices for reasons that remain mysterious, and my young companion has not responded well to the resulting cacophony.

The hominids’ bizarre obsession with volatile chemical reactions seems to mainly occur during the portion of the planetary rotation when the part of the planet I am stationed on is turned away from the local star. I can only assume this is due to the darkness creating a more dramatic backdrop for the triggering of incendiary devices. But, since I have yet to decode the part of the hominid psyche that makes them so determined to make pointless noise, I confess this is mere speculation.

For his part, my youthful compatriot has apparently decided discretion is the better part of valor. He has retreated to beneath my hominid-servant’s sleeping platform and created a barricade with the baubles he has collected there between himself and the edge of the platform. Whenever the hominids release another blast, the little idiot hides himself behind his makeshift wall.

My hominid-servant informed me that he is “freaked out” and will return to normal behavior once the noise abates. Personally, I think anyone who is irrational enough to believe a pile of small offerings will protect them from noise is unlikely to be capable of "normal" behavior. Supporting this hypothesis is the fact that, in all the time I have known him, I have yet to observe any behavior that could be described as “normal" from the small pest.


Argh! A pox on noisy hominids! ;-) You may have noticed that Agent Thoth has a new look. I hope you like his new picture as much as I do, but I'd love to hear your thoughts, either way. Feel free to let me know what you think in the comments. ;-) Happy reading, everyone!

Sometimes Clarity Can Only Come From A Change In Framing...

Hey Everyone,

This is one of multiple posts I'll have in response to the anti-women legislation that has gained momentum thanks to the Tyrant in Chief stacking our Supreme Court with members of the corporately owned Christian Taliban. I won't apologize for my focus on this issue because I think it's a human rights issue that is being either ignored or framed incorrectly by the mainstream media. This attack on basic human rights for half the population is not something I'm going to let pass without commentary. So, buckle-up, buttercup, I'm about to speak some truth.

I was reading over the international war crimes statute as applies to forced pregnancy, which is both a crime against humanity and a war crime, and I think the argument can be made that it applies to the anti-women legislation that has been passed in several states. A forced pregnancy occurs when someone confines a woman or women and forces them to become pregnant against their will. And, as it stands, the laws in question seem to do just that.

Many of the women in those states are confined due to economic circumstances. Their access to birth control is limited both by some of these laws and functionally by availability and price. And several of the laws make no exceptions for rape. One of the laws also exacts legal penalties should a pregnant person leave the jurisdiction of the law to seek the termination of their pregnancy elsewhere. That all sounds like confinement and forced pregnancy to me.

Some of the definitions I read also stipulated that these actions take place during an armed conflict and for the purpose of altering the ethnic composition of a population. Well, there have been multiple violent attacks against abortion clinics, providers, and seekers in the US, and many of those attacks involved arms. And considering that all of these laws will disproportionately affect low-income women, who statistically are disproportionately women of color, it seems inevitable that they will alter the proportions of ethnicities in our society.

Overall, these laws seem to me to be an escalation of the war against women in this country. And they also seem to qualify under the forced pregnancy statute as a crime against humanity and a war crime. Which means that anyone who attempts to enforce such laws should be arrested and tried at the Hague.

Something Worth Watching?

Hey Everyone!! :-)

I'm back today with another video I wanted to share. Once again, our man Bernie has an outstanding policy proposal that will help regular Americans reclaim the American Dream. He wants to make it easier for everyone to get the education they need to succeed, and he wants to tax people rich enough to trade in the stock market to pay for it. But why not watch the video and hear all the details? Peace!

Delicious Bean Salad #Recipe!

Hey Everyone!! :-)

I'm back with another one of my favorite warm-weather recipes! Enjoy! :-)

Ingredients:
1 12oz can light red kidney beans
1 12oz can dark red kidney beans
1 12oz can black beans
1 12oz can pinto beans
1 12oz can chickpeas
3 cups raw kale
1 jalapeno or chili pepper chopped fine
1 onion chopped fine
2 cups cooked quinoa
1 cup and 2 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup red wine (or balsamic) vinegar
5 cloves garlic minced fine
Salt and pepper to taste


Pour all the cans of beans into a colander, rinse thoroughly, and set aside to drain. In a skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 cloves of garlic, the kale, the onion, and the pepper until the kale wilts. Mix the cooked kale and pepper with the beans and the cooked quinoa. In a separate bowl, whisk together the remaining olive oil, garlic, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss the dressing with the kale, pepper, beans, and quinoa. Serve chilled as a salad.

A shredded carrot is also good in this salad. If spice isn't your thing, just leave out the pepper or replace it with a sweet bell pepper. Also, any of the beans can be replaced with your favorite beans.

Bon Appetit!

#Spring Into #Reading Authors & Bloggers #Giveaway! $72 #Cash #Grand #Prize! #Free To #Enter!

Hey Everyone!! :-)

There's a new giveaway for Spring!  Please take a moment to check out the Spring Into Reading Authors & Bloggers Giveaway!!  There are lots of awesome books and prizes!! :-)  It's free to enter, there are over 40 prizes, and the grand prize is $72 cash payable through PayPal!! :-)  Now isn't that worth taking a few minutes to check out? ;-)   Here are all the details:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you so much for stopping by today!  And don't forget to check back tomorrow for the next installment of Mistral Dawn's Musings! :-)