Brian Takes His “Home Office” on the High Seas! – Days 12 -15
"SNAKES?? Forget the snakes! Look out for the GATORS!!"…
From The Home Office
Brian Takes His “Home Office” on the High Seas! – Day 11
Times like this give one ample opportunity for reflection. You know - all the "ifs" and "hows" and "whys." I try to avoid "wouldas," "couldas," and "shouldas." Those rarely do any good. But, I do like to take a personal inventory, and ask myself if I'm happy and, if not, what I am going to do about it. And, honestly, I realized that, indeed, I'm the happiest I've been in a long, long time. I had a big dream of living on a boat and ...…
Brian Takes His “Home Office” on the High Seas! (Well…almost) – Days 5-10
I crawled out of my cockpit, stood out on the middle of my deck, lit a cigarette, and stared at that captain and crew with my best peed-off, backwoods Florida-boy look that said, "I'm about to SWIM over there just to slap you around a bit."…
Brian Takes His “Home Office” on the High Seas! – Days 1-4
I put it back into forward gear, and tried to shift into reverse again. Nothing. You cannot stop a boat without reverse and I was running out of deep water quickly!…
Treacherous Seas Force Us to Turn Around!
Once we hit Tampa Bay, however, it got really rough, really fast. Brian got to test out his safety harness. It worked! If he hadn't had it on, he'd have taken a dive while working on the sails...…
Please, PLEASE Yank This DEMON Out of My Mouth!!!
"But, my blood pressure was too high from fear and pain! What if they couldn't or wouldn't remove the tooth?! I'm really not the type of person to lose it in public but I was terrified, and in so much pain. I started begging and pleading, and loudly said, "If you don't pull my tooth today, I damn well will!"…
When Homeschooled Kids Get Sick…
"I'm not so sure I could shoot a gator but I could probably stab one!"…
READERS RESPOND! “When Was the EXACT Moment You KNEW You Wanted to Be a Writer?”
"I knew I wanted to be a writer when I was twelve years old. My mother wanted my Birthday gift to be a sewing machine, but I asked for a typewriter. She said NO! Pa bought me a Remington portable typewriter anyway..."…
The EXACT Moment I KNEW I Wanted to Be a Writer
Most writers remember a specific moment in their past when they realized they wanted to be…
Angela is SWAMPED!
We’ve been so busy helping former Tate Publishing authors into our lifeboat, there’s been little time for…
This Week’s Hate Mail!
I received one email that was sent at around 5:00 a.m. (our time) by an obviously VERY drunk or high individual. The email, which was FULL of misspelled words and other nonsensical jargon, said...…
A Single, Beautiful, Mysterious Bead Arrives by Mail…But, Why???
I posted a note about this mystery on my Facebook Page the other day so I apologize…
From The Home Office – 01/18/2017
News from the Home Office…
It’s Bleepin’ COLD Here in Florida!
MASON - "I wouldn't be in the mood for sex if I wasn't in love anyway."…
More Sneaky Drone Shenanigans!
"A drone! Look at the drone!" …
Please! Don’t Feed Me ANY More Party Food!!
On Christmas Eve, we had our traditional family fondue dinner. It was relaxing, until we pulled…
Only 3 Weeks Until the Winter 24-Hour Short Story Contest!
SATURDAY, January 14, 2017, at 12:00 p.m. (noon) Central Time, we’ll be posting the topic for…
It’s That Blinding Froggy Time of Year Again!
Each year on the gulf coast of Florida, around Christmas, we don't get snow but we do get tremendous, creepy, blinding fog. It's really cool! The other morning, we woke up to our first foggy day of the season. …
I’m Buried – In Books!!!
We thought the pre-Christmas publishing rush had come to an end last week when we had two slow days - the slowest days we'd had since early August. So, we let our guard down...…
Holiday Trip…to the E.R. :(
Mason was, literally, completely full of sh**.…
For the FIRST Time in 17 Years!! Whoop!!!
For the past 18 years, we have hosted the big family Thanksgiving dinner at our house,…
Yes, it DOES get “cold” in Florida!
The rainy season is finally over so the weather is absolutely perfect! We're no longer sheltered indoors, constantly checking the air conditioner to see why it's not keeping up with the heat and humidity.…
I’m SO Glad the Election is OVER!
After the most contentious presidential contest in my memory, I am SO relieved it’s over. I…
Pictures of Truly Disgusting Halloween Treats from The Party! Yum!
Each year, our daughter and her husband throw a huge, crazy, extreme Halloween party. It's truly a family effort, with everyone pitching in to decorate their house, inside and out, with every imaginable orange twinkly light, blood on the windows, ghouls, ghosties, and much more.…
We Need to Go Back Home…So We Can REST After Vacation!
We've fallen into bed exhausted each night. It'll be nice to get back home so we can rest!…
Leaf Peeping, Hiking, Eating, Hot-tubbing, and more!
We left for our annual trek to Tennessee on Saturday. We usually break the drive into…
We’re OUTTA Here! Trekking To Tennessee In Search Of Fall!
Each year, we grow weary of the Florida heat, and get homesick for a real fall.…
Really?? ANOTHER Hurricane?!
We’ve already had a tropical storm and a hurricane here this year. Now, Hurricane Matthew is…
Homeschooled Kids Don’t Get Sick Often, Unless…
Max and Mason, who are homeschooled, joined a new homeschooling co-op. Over the past few years, they've only attended museum classes every other Wednesday, and only during the afternoon on those days. This new co-op meets all day long every Wednesday, and includes five different classes and a lunch. I warned the boys and Richard that they'd be exposed to lots more kiddos with cold and flu symptoms and that we'd all catch more germies this year.…
We’re Knee Deep Here!
This is always our busiest time of the year. Everybody wants their book published before the Christmas shopping season so we always get a glut of new manuscript submissions in September and October. We're working 12-16 hours per day right now and we're all exhausted. I haven't been to the gym in three weeks but I did manage a short swim one afternoon last week. We also took a therapeutic evening sail one night last weekend. I miss my afternoon "sun breaks."…
LAST CHANCE! THIS SATURDAY!! What will the Fall, 2016 24-Hour Short Story Contest topic be?!?!
THIS SATURDAY, at 12:00 p.m. (noon) Central Time, is start-time for the WritersWeekly.com Fall, 2016 24-Hour…
Here’s How We Fared in the Hurricane Last Week!
We had a super fun time riding out Hurricane Hermine! The morning before it rolled in was overcast, windy, and quite cool. So, we all walked to breakfast, and ate outside. It was heavenly! Later, the sky slowly darkened, the wind increased, and big, fat raindrops began to fall. Then, those big, fat raindrops started flying sideways. It was quite a ride and it was beautiful!…
Should I Make the Boys Take a Ballroom Dancing Class?? Heh…
For the past four years, Max (age 14) and Mason (age 10) have been attending a…
Virus (of the Stomach Variety!) Knocks Me Offline for Two Days
This issue will be a bit abbreviated. I'm running waaaay behind this week because a stomach virus attacked the "home office." We were falling like flies! We're all MUCH better now but I'll be spending all weekend trying to get caught up on email. :)…
That Story About the Extremely Lifelike Doll in the Hot Car!
There was another story in the news this week about a lifelike doll being left in…
Spinning, Churning, and No End in Sight…
A low pressure system stalled over us last weekend and we've had four straight days of heavy, oppressive skies. Dark gray clouds as far as the horizon and barely a wisp of breeze. Every two or three hours, the wind will quickly pick up and we'll get slammed with a deluge of rain. Then, the clouds will churn again, crawling back into themselves, and hoarding their moisture for just a little while. …
Go Karts…That Go 50 MPH?!?! What???
These go-karts ("electric Italian pro-karts") were going SO FAST! I got nervous because Mason is only 10 years old and he'd never ridden one before. I voiced my hesitation and Mason said, "Don't worry, Mom. The kids only get to go 25 mph." 25 MILES PER HOUR?! ACK!!! I looked around and none of the other parents appeared anxious so I pushed my fears aside, and sat down to watch. A couple of races later, they called Mason's name for the kids' race. He listened to the instructions, put on a cloth head covering (I thought, 'Oh good, he wouldn't get lice!') and a huge helmet, and got into his "pro-kart." The employees helped strap the kids in the cars. Of course, I watched to make sure they strapped Mason in really tight!…
How To Avoid Smeared Mascara And Drama At Your Adult Child’s Wedding Reception!
I received the following email from a reader last week: Hi Angela, I loved reading about…
9 Surprising Benefits Of Homeschooling…And Why It’s SO Easy! By Angela Hoy
Several years ago, our daughter, Ali, an adorable red-head with freckles, was bullied relentlessly in middle…
Ack! Has Anybody Seen Toto?!?! Cool Storm Pics from the “Home Office!!”
We'd never seen a sky the likes of this!…
Lining Our Arteries with Fat is FUN!
On the 4th of July, we joined our children (except Matt and his wife, Sarah, who…
My Poor Muse Was Bound and Gagged for Two Months…But, Now She’s FREE!
It's been two weeks since our son's wedding and, finally, after several days and nights of fingers-glued-to-the-keyboard, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!…
Wedding Photos!
As promised in last week's issue, we are sharing some wedding photos today...…
We Have a New Daughter!
We are honored and thrilled to announce that our oldest son, Zach (almost 30), blessed us…
First Week in St. Pete? A Car Accident AND a Tropical Storm! Whoop!
We're all moved in, cozy (and still surrounded by boxes) in our 18th floor "home" overlooking beautiful Tampa Bay. Five days later, we got hit by Tropical Storm Colin, and what a fun ride that was!…