"THE END OF NORMAL" -My book of the week

"He's dead, Stepahnie. He's dead!" "What?" I responded. "What? What do you mean?"

"My soul predictably cycles through denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance and then loops back around again, but children don't follow this route; they don't "process feelings"- THE END OF NORMAL- Stepahnie Madoff Mack

Get an inside glimpse in the lives of the family members most affected by the Bernie Madoff scandal. Bernie's son Mark committed suicide and his young widow is left to take care of their two young toddlers alone. This is her memoir. I loved this book, it was well written and a fast read!

BUY IT!

pictures included in book 

If YOU won the lottery......

YOU JUST WON THE MEGA MILLIONS!!

Boy, wouldn't you like to hear those words! With the Mega Millions jackpot at $500 million, I couldn't help but do a little "day dreaming" this morning as I schlepped my 8 year old to school with my pajama pants and uggs. On our usual 7:30am commute to her school, I saw her gazing out the window, and I wondered what were the thoughts roaming around in her head.

What were the ones in mine? $$$$ dollar signs. I kept thinking about  HOW I would spend half a billion dollars if I got the winning ticket which is going to be drawn this Friday, March 30th, 2012. Hmm.... I start off buying a beach house in Malibu, no Hawaii, no Costa Rica... I could probably afford one in all three locations.

"Mom! the Light just turned Green!" My daughter yelled from the backseat, ohh yeah I forgot I'm still driving.  Now, back to daydreaming. What would I do with so much money? After buying myself a beach house, setting up my parents in a great house with no financial worries, making sure I put A LOT of money away for my daughter's college fund, I still have millions and millions more to spend!

Vacations to exotic countries done. Personal trainer, done! Shopping spree, done! What else?....
Well, I don't think I would give up working. I love what I do, which is basically freelance writing and reporting for various outlets where I've meet, been to, and seen things only a nosy prying Journalist can experience. Yesterday I did a story on an organization called "Deaf Latinos" which caters to Latino families who have a young child recently diagnosed with hearing loss. I got to meet the amazing founder of the organization and her three kids, who couldn't talk to me but signed with sass and spirit!

My next assignment is to interview the Latino Janitor who invented the "Flaming Hot  Cheetos!"  My hero! Whoo hoo! I've been to Egypt on assignment and got a VIP tour of the Pyramids. I've interviewed Ex-President Clinton and got to ask him what the biggest regret of his presidency was. I got to sit down with the ladies of "The View" for two days and talk to my idol Barbara Walters! I got at stuntman to set my arm on fire, all during "work" assignments, and that's just scratching the surface. The beauty of my job is, whatever I want to do, whoever I want to met, whatever question I want to ask, I try to find a story around it and make it happen. Thats something half a billion dollars can't buy!

As the wise Confucius once said "choose a job you love, and you will never work a day in your life." 
Confucius was right-but I'm still buying a lottery ticket!!

What would you do if you won the lottery? Do you love what you do? PLEASE COMMENT BELOW!

I got HITCHED!! My Wedding story...

Los Angeles is definitely a challenging city to date. Especially if your in your 30's, still live at home, and have a young daughter. So one crisp night in 2009 when my best friend Sky and her niece Ashley walked into "Jones" (pizza pub) in Hollywood, I never imagined I would meet "The One."

It was early in LA standards (around 8pm) and I ordered a beer as I listened to an old man read tarot cards and attempt to use his skills to impress us. Then I saw Jeff and his friend walk through the door and I whispered to Sky and Ashely, "he's cute!" They approached the bar but didn't even look at us. Bummer!

They ordered their drinks and proceeded to turn their backs to us. "I guess he's not interested," I told Sky.
Low and behold, Ashley played cupid, but instead of using a traditional bow and arrow, she used her fingers to pinch Jeff in the butt. He turned around, and Ashley pointed at me, "she did it." I turned beet red as I was extremely embarrassed. Jeff and I started talking and the rest is history. Im glad Ashley made the first move so to speak, as both Jeff and I are shy around new people and neither of us would have been brave enough to approach each other. Good work Cupid!

Disneyland!

Hawaii!

Three years, a trip to Hawaii, Costa Rica, the Maldives, Colorado, and Vegas later, Jeff invited me to yet another romantic stop: Malibu.

As we approached the restaurant where he made reservations he suddenly stopped the car on the side of the road. He has always loved the beach so, although I was itching for a proposal, I didn't want to jinx anything by making assumptions. As we walked towards the water on this dark, pleasant night, he went down on one knee and asked me to become his wife. I said yes.

Malibu Beach 

The Sunset Restaurant in Malibu

We went to dinner at The Sunset Restaurant in Malibu where he had reservations. I already felt like I was in a romantic movie when low-and behold, Pretty Woman herself (Julia Roberts) and her husband and three children walked in and sat at the table right next to us. As I observed her family dynamic I realized that family, your husband your kids, are the best thing life can give you. She's a mega superstar, but that night she was a wife, and a doting mother to her kids that kept getting out of their seats to sit on her lap and ask her a questions like "what kind of vegetable is this mommy?" I've seen her in interviews and I have even interviewed her myself, and I could tell that in this role she was the most herself. She often talks about her kids and husband in her interviews. And now, I was about to embark on a new adventure in my life, as a wife, and hopefully soon as a mother (again).

So now, the wedding. Who, what, where, when????

I love him. He loves me. We want to do this as soon as possible so I can move in,  lay down roots, and see if our DNA can combine to create another human being with a little bit of both of  our genetic makeup  (I don't like to play house if you want me, marry me.)

The L.A. court house it is. I brought a witness, he brought a witness. I pulled a dress from my closet that I had bought at Ross a few years ago (never imagining it would become my wedding dress!), and exchanged vows in front of a snappy Judge.

There, Im a wife! Im married to my best friend and the man I love... We do plan on doing a one-year-anniversary "re-newing" of our vows ceremony next year where we can invite friends and family, and hopefully celebrate other blessings to come....

That is my wedding story. It may not have been lavish, but it was the most romantic moment of my life, and in that day, it was only us that mattered.

HEALTHY QUICK Chocolate SNACK!

Im always looking for a quick healthy snack.... I ran into something thats quick, easy, cheap, delicious and best of all HEALTHY and chocolate is involved!

1. GRAB AN OIKOS GREEK YOGURT with Chocolate in the bottom

2.GRAB A SMALL CUP OF FRUIT (usually stores sell these in the produce section)

3. Dip Fruit (yum yum)

4. prepare to dip the next piece of fruit 

5. Look ma ! The Chocolate yogurt only has 100 calories! The yogurt provides Calcium and probiotics, the chocolate tames your "chocolate cravings", and the fruit is refreshing, full of Vitamin C, and fiber!

5 things that ANNOY me... are you on here?

I believe Social Media is the new "venting machine" ... hey if its gonna use me, I'm going to use it too. And its come in handy plenty of times. Those times when people, things, or circumstances annoy the expletive out of me and I can't yell like a madwoman because I'm in line at the grocery store or at work.

And God knows I don't want to get the nickname "Drama Queen" or get arrested at McDonalds because I was one minute late to the breakfast menu and screamed at the cashier.  So sometimes I take to twitter or Facebook or in this case my blog to express my inner frustrations, changing peoples names so I don't get in trouble. But, you probably share some of these annoyances  too.... and I'm pretty sure you've also tweeted about it.

1. People behind me in line at the Grocery store being nosy and .....commenting on what's in my shopping cart. Hey weird person I don't care if you also "enjoy" the same kind of toilet paper.  Come'on old guy, do you really have to say you also like that flavor of Metamucil too? It's an invasion of privacy for people to check to see what's in your shopping cart and a bigger offense when they make it a conversation piece.

2.Getting GAS. I don't mean the digestive kind, but thats kinda frustrating too. I mean the kind that you put in your car. I mean, gosh, I just filled you up last week and your on empty again! My car guzzles gas like if it were a ravenously hungry teenager. Not only are gas prices skyrocketing, but I'm always on EMPTY at the most inconvenient times, like when I'm running late, or dressed in heels and a cocktail dress and the last thing I want to do is walk to the Gas Station cashier to "filler up".

3.Getting dissed after a nice smile and a hello! This happens a lot in my "professional" world. I mean, I don't want my work life to be like high-school all over again, with some people having their noses stuck in the air and acting to "cool" to acknowledge a warm smile and hello! I will not stop saying hi, but if you ignore me, then I will probably tweet about it.

4.Wrong Drive-Thru Orders  I think this is the ultimate revenge that people that work at the drive thru have on the rest of society. They are probably a little bitter that they're stuck behind a hot, cramped window and have to chuck hamburgers and shakes at people all day long, so the jokes on us when we get home only to realize they put the wrong order in your bag. So, its unlikely you will get in your car and drive all the way back so they can fix it. This has happened to me so many times, that I got into the habit of checking what's in my bag before I pull away. One time, I kid you not, my hashbrown was half-eaten with clear teeth impressions! Yuck! Its particularly annoying when you've been specifically craving that one salad, or sandwich and you get home to a sandwich you can't stand.

5.IGNORING MY EMAIL. Okay, if Im emailing you its probably something you should read and reply to. I mean nowadays writing an email is equivalent to writing a novel. We are so used to short, small quips on twitter and facebook to check in with our friends, that if I email you, its probably very important. So write me back!

What things annoy you? Please VENT, let it out, and comment below!

A NEW BOOK that will make you think twice before checking FACEBOOK

As a kid I used to love reading books. As a matter of fact, I would enter reading contests at my local library where I won various prizes (pencils, erasers etc.) for reading the most amount of books in one summer. I loved escaping into books like "James and the Giant Peach" or "Little Women" and expanding my possibilities and my immediate reality. As I became an adult and  went on to college I started to associate reading with "studying" and "finals" ... so I fell out-of-love with it.  But last summer as I was about to lay out near the pool, I picked up Christopher Herz's first book "The Last Block in Harlem" so I could have something to read while I caught some sun rays.  I was hooked. Not only did it bring me into the story as if I was one of the characters in the book, but reading the book made me re-fall in love with the art of "reading". Chris made me remember that there are a lot of great novels, memoirs, and biographies out there that can take you to diverse places, different cultures and a world outside of your own. Now thanks to my IPhone, I read a book every night before I go to sleep. Here is my interview with Christopher Herz about his newly released second book "Pharmacology".

1. This is your second book, was it easier to write than the first one?

The first book (The Last Block in Harlem) kind of came through me - it was told by the block I was living on and I was just the medium for which it was told. The second book (Pharmacology) was interesting in that, I had the ending first, and then worked backwards. It took me a while to find the voice to tell the story in, but when I found Sarah Striker, things just started moving from there. The first one, I really had no idea what I was doing. With the success of that one, I guess there was a little more pressure on me to deliver, both from myself and from the publisher. I guess it's kind of like having children - Though you have one and know the pain and stress that's coming, it's still the same pain and stress, but the joy is just the same. My brain has stretch marks.

2. talk to us about what the book is about?

Pharmacology takes place in early 90s San Francisco just before the world made the final switch from analog to digital. It's told by Sarah Striker, who herself is a young girl going through transitions that cannot quite be defined. It's been interesting visiting with book clubs and reading the reviews - some people enjoy the look into how the pharmaceutical companies used advertising to create diseases, while some enjoy the "vampires" and other characters throughout the story who are all real life folks that I either lived with or knew during my time in San Francisco. For me, it represented how we all, in some way, have been "drugged" by the internet and our dangerous dance into looking into iPhones and checking emails 24/7. I hope it's a wake up call.

3. you are male but decided to make the protagonists voice female, how did you accomplish that?

My last book was so heavy and ego driven, so I felt that a woman character would be able to give the wide lens that was necessary to tell this story. I think woman have the ability to withstand and move through hardship and pain in a different way that men do - and I felt that all the things that were happening around the main character in the book needed someone to be able to stand strong among all of the madness. Sarah actually came to me as I was writing the story - she was screaming out to be the one to tell the story, so eventually, as usually happens with my characters, I let her take over. As far as how I wrote as a woman, I guess I spend more time paying attention to women than I do men - I find them more interesting and more complex than men in real life, so why not play that forward in a novel?

4.what do you hope is the take away for readers ?

For me, I'd like to have them realize how addicted they are to their electronic devices, and look critically about how they are medicating themselves. I think many of the addictions we have now are self-inflicted or just digested - by that I mean that much of what we do now is not natural.  There was a big switch in the way we live - in what we digest around us. We are distracted and consumed by things that, let's say 10 years ago, didn't exist. How many times do you check your facebook everyday? How many Words with Friends Games are you playing? What kind of medication are you putting your children on? What was that point in your life that you gave up what you believed in for what others told you was important to believe in? This book has a lot going on beneath the words, so I'd like readers to take the time to watch what's happening. I think that it could be an illumination for how everyone is living right now.

5.tell us how social media, self-publishing, and technology have helped young writers like yourself.

That's an interesting question. Though I have a publisher now, I self-published my first book before it got picked up. Actually, I sold it on the street for half a year before a publisher noticed it and offered me a contract. However, with the Kindle and Nook and other electronic reading devices, I think it allows writers the ability to put their work out there for everyone to see. When that happens, you can get honest feedback from folks who are not your friends or don't have a vested interest in seeing you happy. You can get honest feedback, and that's important.

As for technology and social media, I've used Skype to go into bookclubs all over the world - from Dubai to Alabama - and because of that technology, I have been able to sit with people from all different cultures and talk not only about my books, but about how the stories relate to them and their lives. It's amazing how similar we all are - and I think that's what I'm after with these stories I'm telling. I like to lift up the hood and see what's making this whole crazy thing run - and it turns out, we're all running on the same things: Love, fear, desire, confusion. I think novels have a way of working all of that out in a way that doesn't preach, but exposes.

Social media is an interesting tool because it's so new. At the onset of my use of social media, like all people, I was very self-promotional. This can work in the short term, but in the long term I believe that the inclusion of others in your story is the best way to use social media. After all, who wants to go to a party where one person is always talking about themselves? I've been working with some school kids around the world using Skype to develop a global writing workshop - it's been highly rewarding. That's in the first stages right now, but it's been pretty amazing.

6. whats next for you?

The writers workshop with young people around the world is something I am very interested in. Currently, each kid is creating a character and uploading that to a database. Then, other kids take characters from that database to create a story. I've done it in Australia, and am looking to expand that. So far, so good.

As for book #3, I'm grinding away on that right now. The characters are fighting for me to let go, and once I do, it should turn out just fine. After all, the writer, after awhile, has very little to do with the book when it's done. If the characters are right and the story is good, the people inside the words will take care of everything. All the writer needs to do is stay up late at night and nurse them to health. That's the exhausting period and it's kind of where I'm at with the next book.

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Author Christopher Herz

 If you are interested in buying any of Chris Herz's books you can find them on Amazon, just click on the following  link: AMAZON CHRISTOPHER HERZ AUTHOR

Surprise!....I got the Baby! Now time to pay up on "Dia de Candelaria"...

I got the Baby (a plastic toy baby) on January 6, during the "Dia de Reyes" !

"Dia de Reyes" or "The Day of the Three Wise Men" is Mexican tradition celebrated every Jan. 6th. Family and friends gets together, have a meal,  and eat a delicious "Rosca de Reyes" cake.  The oval shaped cake is very colorful (yes we love flava!) decorated with red, green, and orange dried fruit slices . Statues of the Three Wise Men are placed in the middle of the cake  Hidden inside the cake is a plastic baby!

Rosca de Reyes

 The baby represents the plight of Jesus, fleeing from King Herod's wishes to kill all babies since the prophecy predicted that one of the babys born in that era  would grow up to be the Messiah.

As I cut my slice and placed it on my plate, I noticed a small white plastic figurine snugged inside my piece! I got the baby! They say its good luck to get the baby! The fun part of this tradition is that whoever gets the figurine has to throw a party for all  family and friends the following month on February 2nd called "Dia de la Candelaria" or in English its called Candlemas Day. ! The tradition is to bring  Tamales to all.

partying on Dia de Reyes with a live BANDA!

after some "Happy punch" we decided to pretend to be cheerleaders! 

I love my Mexican heritage. We always use any excuse, to get together, have a great meal, and enjoy time with friends and family. What do you love most about your culture?