My Mailing List

I've got a mailing list!
I have no idea why it took me so long, but from now on you can subscribe to my mailing list and receive news about promotions, sales, and new releases.

And no, I won't do this to you:

 

But once in a while I plan to do this:

I plan starting promotions, giving away gift cards and other prizes, so if you're interested, subscribe to My Mailing List. Be sure that I won't share your email, and remember that the unsubscribe button is always there ;)

Click here: http://eepurl.com/9xCv9, and join the list. It will be fun :)

Hobbit and LOTR bloppers

I thought you and I needed some fun and laughter.

I need to rant!

You know that moment when you think that everything in your life is at last starting to get better, when you say, "Hey, it's not really that bad," and then something happens that makes you feel even worse than you were? Well, that moment has just knocked at my door. Sadly, I didn't suspect it was so close. Yes, I'm that naive, I stupidly considered that the days of my forever depression might come to an end. At last my eyes were getting better. In case you care, I have had trouble with my eyes for the last twenty years. It's something that doesn't want to go away. I could tell you all the types and names of eye medication, but I probably will never be able to count the times my eyes have been injected. Yes, it's painful. Yes, I go through that a few times a year. Yes, I'm  tired. And yes, it's the shittiest thing that can happen to a writer. When your eyes behave like that you have to admire Life's sense of humor. Ah well, it doesn't stop me from writing 2000 words per day.

 

Wish I could write more, but I'm happy for these 2000. It could be worse.

So what was I saying? Oh, right, everything seemed to be going well. I had at last found a way to receive my Amazon royalties. I was in so much dept and the bank interest was so high, that it was gone almost immediately. "Never mind," I told myself, "at least you received your hard-earned money."

So what happens next? 

Shit happens. I mean, this happens:

And they are costly. Oh boy, very costly. And not mine. I don't care about expensive china, ceramics, vases and sets, but those are not mine. And I'll have to pay. No idea how much, but probably no less than $400 for each. Have been searching for similar vases everywhere, but no luck so far.

Yes, that sucks! And I wonder why I'm laughing so hard now. Maybe I'm going crazy?

Nah, not for two vases. I guess I should appreciate Life's sense of humor. But I will repay. Ohh yes, I will repay you, you cruel, sadistic, cold-hearted Life! And that will happen sooner than you expect! X-)

Do you have en elderly friend?

I just watched a sweet, beautiful video and have been crying for the last ten minutes. Watch this video and join me in this heart-warming moment. Brazilian students are learning English via interacting with retired Americans. This is why I love internet. It's a blessing for the humanity, as much as the new technologies are, when they are used for the good. They make the communication so much easier. And what do we need so often if not communication?

These elder people are so sweet, so generous, and so happy for helping the younger generation that I began crying again.

I have an elderly friend too. We met while we both were in the line to an ophthalmologist. I don't even remember how I started the conversation with the old grandpa sitting next to me in the hospital's corridor, but some time later we were already on our way to the store on the other side of the town to find the eyeglasses he had lost a few days before. Sadly, we didn't find the eyeglasses, but we found something better: a friendship. I encourage you to do the same. Find an older friend for you, you both will gain a lot from that friendship.

I always had a soft spot for elderly people; I love to hear them talk, tell me about the times when I wasn't even born, tell me how it was in the Soviet Union, how it was after, how it is now. I love stories, and who has the longest stories if not older people?

I'll leave you with this video (in case you're too much embarrassed to cry in my presence) and go call my old grandpa friend and see how he's doing today.

Stay well,

Irena

I have found Pemberley!

Mr. Darcy's house exists! Jane Austen didn't just made up Pemberley, she was inspired by an enormous, astonishing, incredibly big British estate called Wentworth Woodhouse. And here's how it looks:

 

 Photo via The Telegraph

Yes, it's amazing. I hate adjectives, but Wentworth Woodhouse is jaw-droppingly incredible. With 365 rooms (one for each day of the year), 5 miles of corridors, the longest facade in whole Europe, it had to be tended by 1000 servants.

Just look at this lovely drawing room:

 

Photo via Dine

Seems that the Dashwood sisters will now come in and have a nice conversation with you about the weather or the bad roads.

And just imagine attending a ball in this marble salon and meeting a handsome but secretive gentleman, who awards you with a dark, long stare:

Photo via Dine

Now good news: Wentworth Woodhouse is for sale. 7 million pounds. And needs repairs that will cost 42 millions! While I'd never pay such money for this house even if I were the richest person in the world, I'd still love to walk across its corridors that stretch for miles, enter all the 365 rooms one after the other and feel the haunting presence of the people who have once inhabited the estate starting from the 1725.

Photo via Dine

Maybe one day I will visit this incredible place and feel a touch of history, as well as interact with the spirits of Austen's characters. Let's wait and see.

More on the estate HERE and HERE.