The church down the street from my house has had this on its reader board for the last month or so: “Lighthouses don’t go looking for ships. They just shine.”

Every time I read that it rankles.

I finally had to sit down and think through exactly why it got on my nerves. After all, it’s true, right?

Sure. It’s true.

But, a lighthouse sits forever at the most dangerous point on the coast shining it’s light into the darkness to warn all of the ships of the danger at that spot.

In other words, the lighthouse exists permanently where ships wreck, to save them.

I can hardly imagine what point the church is trying to make with it’s readerboard. The easiest reading is that Christians don’t have to go out of their way to find people who need Jesus, they can just hang out where they are, being a “light.”

If that really is what they are saying, they are wrong. If we want to live like lighthouses, we need to move to the most dangerous places where people’s lives are wrecked on the rocks of sin, and show them where the rocks are so they won’t die.

That is not even remotely passive.

What do you think? Am I seeing the wrong thing on this reader board? How would you interpret the message this church is trying to convey?

I owe her the world’s biggest apology and a box of cupcakes because I was supposed to post this yesterday. MOLLY! I AM SO SORRY!!

Without further ado, cover your eyes, count to ten then open your eyes and…

TA DAH!

Gorgeous, non? (I think this Angel should speak French.)

Here’s a little more about both Molly and her book:

Teen angel, Persephone, is the only one in all of Heaven who can’t sing. In fact, her name literally means “Voice of Destruction.” So diving down one of Heaven’s portals, straight into singer Taylor Hamilton’s bedroom, seems like a good idea at the time. Maybe, just maybe, he can help. Plus, he is sooo cute!

Author Bio:Molly Snow is a Top 10 Idaho Fiction Author, awarded by The Idaho Book Extravaganza. Her works include quirky teen romances BeSwitched and Fallen Angel. Also a speaker on writing, her school assemblies have been featured in The Contra Costa Times and The Brentwood Press. Snow is married to her high school crush, has a set of silly twin boys and a bobtail cat named Meow-Meow.

Author’s Blog: http://www.mollysnowfiction.blogspot.com/

I linked this post to Small Town Big Wardrobe today because what goes better with fun fashion than chick lit?

Now I need to address the foods I MUST eat–a combined list from both the Paleo diet and the blood type diet.

Key: Bold=food I already eat lots of. Italic=food I can’t eat because of allergies. Underline= food that one of the diets says I can’t eat but the other one says I have to eat.

Almonds
Apple
Apricot
Artichoke
Asparagus
Avocado
Azuki beans
Banana
Beet greens
Beets
Bell peppers
Blackberries
Black-eyed peas
Blueberries
Boysenberries
Brazil nuts
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Cantaloupe
Cashews
Cassava melon
Cauliflower
Celery
Cherimoya
Cherries
chestnuts
Chicory
collard greens
Cranberries Carrots
Cucumber
Dandelion
Eggplant
Endive
Essene Bread
Ezekiel Bread
Flaxseed oil
Figs
Garlic
Gooseberries
Grapefruit
Grapes
Guava
Green onions
Hazelnuts (filberts)
Horseradish
Honeydew melon
Kale
Kiwi
Kohlrabi
Lemon
Leek
Lime
Lychee
Lettuce
Macadamia nuts
Mango
Mushrooms
Mustard greens
Plums
Prunes
Olive Oil
Nectarine
Okra
Onions
Orange
Papaya
Parsley
Parsnips
Passion fruit
Peaches
Pears
Pecans
Persimmon
Pine nuts
Pinto beans
Pistachios
Pineapple
Plums
Pomegranate
Pumpkin seeds
Pumpkin
Purslane
Radish
Raspberries
Rhubarb
Rutabaga
Seaweed
Sesame seeds
Sunflower seeds
Squash (all kinds)
spinach
Star fruit
Strawberries
Sweet potatoes
Swiss chard
Tangerine
turnips
Tomatillos
Tomato (actually a fruit, but most people think of it as a vegetable)
Turnip greens
Turnips
Walnuts
Watermelon
iodized salt
tea
Bacon Fat
Avocado Oil
Coconut Oil
Lard
Almond Flour (also called Almond Meal)
Coconut Flour
Coconut Sugar
Agave Syrup
Maple Syrup
Applesauce
Lean beef (trimmed of visible fat)
Flank steak
Top sirloin steak
Extra-lean hamburger
London broil
Chuck steak
Lean veal
Lean pork (trimmed of visible fat)
Pork loin
Pork chops
Chicken breast
Turkey breast
Game hen breasts
Eggs
Chicken (go for the enriched omega 3 variety)
Duck
Goose
Fish

Shellfish

Frankly, I was certain this list would have so many inconsistancies that I would starve to death, but once I had it all compiled I could see it looked rather workable. Like I might not actually starve to death trying to meet the needs of both plans.

Only three questions remain: Can I make a meal from this list that the whole family will eat (My best guess is “Sure!”) Can I afford to eat the items on this list? (My only reaction to that question is fear and trembling.) And finally, would I actually stick to a meal plan once I came up with it? (Judging from my dedication to decluttering, I highly doubt it.)

I’ve scratched the itch of curiosity on this topic. If I venture into the actual shopping, cooking, and eating part of the Paleo diet I will be sure to blog it!

The Paleo Diet (Job Era Diet for people like me who have a hard time swallowing a billions of years old Earth) is wheat free. Period. Cave men did not eat wheat. Therefore, there were a lot of recipes on the website that covered how to replace wheat-based foods with alternative carbs.

I’d rather not go “nuts” (ha! an almond flour joke!) replacing wheat bread in my diet with other breads. I’d prefer to just cut them entirely. So I dug around again looking for lists of what I can, and cannot eat.

The trouble is, on Tuesday I chatted with a friend about the blood type diet. Then I googled it. I find it’s “scientific” basis hard to swallow, and yet, the philosophy for my blood type is grain free, protein heavy, and designed for people who struggle with heart burn, and too much tummy acid. It was the first highly tailored diet that already included most of my food allergies on its Do Not Eat List. Considering I’m allerigic (or sensitive to, if you prefer) coconut, this is practically a miracle. Every diet on earth right now seems to think a coconut based diet will make you live in perfect health forever. So as much as I hated to do it, I just had to add this blood type business to my paleo leaning plan.

And, of course, I have to add my own food allergies to the no-no list. So…here is my list. Yours will be different based on your own allergies, and blood type. (If you feel the blood type diet match up makes sense for your “symptoms.”)

KEY:  Bold= Food I already have to avoid for allergies sake. Italic=food I am pretty sure I cannot live without. Underline= food that is currently considered indispensable to the modern but generic “perfect” diet.

• Coconut
• Shellfish
• Strawberries
• Corn
• Butter
• Cheese
• Cottage Cheese
• Non fat dairy creamer
• Dairy spreads
• Cream cheese
• Powdered milk
• Yogurt
• Pudding
• Frozen Yogurt
• Ice cream

• Soft drinks 
• All Grains

• Apple Juice
• Orange Juice
• Grape Juice
• Strawberry Juice
• Chinola Juice
• Starfruit Juice
• Mango Juice

• Cereals
• Bread
• English Muffin
• Crackers
• Oatmeal
• Cream of Wheat
• Corn
• Corn Syrup
• High Fructose Corn Syrup
• Wheat
• Pancakes
• Hash Browns
• Beer
• Pasta
• Fettuchini
• Lasagna
• Black Beans
• Broad Beans
• Fava Beans
• Horse Beans
• Kidney Beans
• Lima Beans
• Mung Beans
• Adzuki Beans
• Navy Beans
• Pinto Beans
• Red Beans
• Green Beans
• String Beans
• White Beans
• Black Eyed Peas
• Chickpeas
• Snowpeas
• Sugar snap peas
• Peanuts
• Peanut butter
• Miso
• Lentils
• Lupins
• Mesquite
• All soybean products and derivatives
• Spam
• Hot Dogs
• French Fries
• Ketchup
• Pretzels
• Chips
• Potatoes
• Sweet Potatoes
• Yucca
• Batata
• Butternut Squash
• Acorn Squash
• Yam
• Beets
• Bacon
•  Ham
• Goose
• Pork
• Barracuda
• Pickled herring
• Catfish
•  Smoked salmon
• Caviar
•  Octopus
•  Conch
•  Cottonseed oil
• Safflower oil
•  Brazil nuts
•  Cashew
•  Pistachios
• Poppy Seeds
• Tamarine
•  Lentils – domestic, green, red.
• Cabbage
•  Brussels sprouts
•  cauliflower
•  mustard greens
•  Alfalfa sprouts
•  shiitake mushrooms
•  fermented olives
• eggplant
•  potatoes
•  avocado
• cantaloupe
•  honeydew
• Oranges
•  Tangerines
• blackberries
•  Rhubarb
• White and black pepper
• Vinegar
•  Capers
• cinnamon
•  Nutmeg
•  Vanilla
• mayonnaise
• Beer
• Coffee
• Distilled liquor
• Black Tea

If nothing else that list just made my weekly shopping…easier? Maybe, maybe not!

 
.

As the gatherer-cooker in our family, I can assure you that I am not perfect.

Vegetarianism hasn’t been attractive to me since high school when I went meat free for a year. It’s fine and all, but it’s really just imperfect veganism, and isn’t the point of food to be perfect?

So Paleo, the meat-eaters vegan, caught my eye. (Rather, I was hit over the head with it repeatedly by the Paleo dance mom last year.)

But…is Paleo “the one?” If I eat like a cave man will my food be perfect?

Having the perfect diet is such a massive status symbol–I don’t want to just jump into it lightly. So, just because Paleo sounds scrumptious doesn’t automatically make it “the one.” I need to examine it from philosophy to menu before I leap in with both forks.

Today I will ask one simple question: Is the Paleo diet founded on something I can really get behind, philosophically speaking?

1. “Paleo” is short for Paleolithic period,  which is defined as roughly 2.6 million years ago to about 10,000 bc. The Paleo diet founders believe that this was a pre-farming, hunter gatherer era.

Problem.

I’m a young Earth Creationist, so like, there was no “Paleolithic” period the way that the science-y folks define it. Hunter gatherer types, and pre-farmers did exist, just not before the creation of the world. So maybe my objection is just semantics? Lets go with that.

What else can I call it? Is it a pre-flood diet?

Er, better not. In the era before the flood it was eating meat was a sin. God preferred vegetarians back in the day. We didn’t gain permission to eat meat until after the flood waters abated. We did eat meat, but we weren’t supposed to.

Lets call call it the Job diet instead. There’s a lot of snow talk in Job, more snow talk than anywhere else in the Bible, and also a good bit about the leviathan which I keep thinking is some great dinasaur-ish beast that is stuck in the fossils now.

To recap, the founders of the Paleo Diet aren’t young Earth creationists like I am so I have to alter their plan at it’s root, but that’s okay, because we can pin cave men meat eaters to a post flood time frame, to avoid adopting the diet that God condemned during the pre-flood era.

I’m a bit exhausted by my attempt to twist the Paleo diet to match my belief system, so that’s enough for today/ “Meat” me back here tomorrow to dig farther into this “Job Diet.”

I scoured the internet for the clip from Night Court where Bull Shannon “Publishes” a book to the tune of $10,000 and is saddled with a mountain of unsellable hardbacks. I couldn’t find a clip or a still or a summary that included that bit, but I remembered it because it made a huge impression on me as a kid. It’s lesson was clear: Never pay to publish a book. It’s what vain and stupid people do.

I need to tread very carefully right now, because I have a lot of friends who are traditionally published and I admire them and their hard work.

But I really feel like the cost of traditionally publishing is brushed under the rug.

I spend a good portion of time learning to write gooder. I ought to be cleaning the house, but no one pays me to clean the house, so I work on the writing thing instead.

While studying writing I have learned that agents and editors prefer to find their authors at conferences, because those writers are showing their commitment to the craft. I’d like to add they are also showing their commitment to the system.

I would like to compare the cost of  conferences with the cost of a popular “Vanity Press” and also with self publishing.

1. Vanity Press: Author pays one company to do all of the production work, and gets promises of help to sell their book in return. Westbow Press includes their book catalog which is sent to retailers, as one of their valuable services. Most bookstores will not order print on demand books because they can’t be returned, therefore I consider the catalog an empty promise which places Westbow firmly in Vanity Press category, despite their ties to traditional publishers. *Note you can now pay extra to be a part of a Returnable Book Program. So…tell me, does that change anything for you?

Line edits: .o35 cents per word, or $2100 for 60,000 words
Content edits: .042 per word, or $2500 for 60,000 words
Print format: $350
ebook format can only be bought as part of the elaunch program (ebook covers included): $499
book cover: $499
book return program for one year: $899
I couldn’t bring myself to add up their marketing services costs because it made me want to cry. Total without Marketing packages: $6517

2. Traditional Publishing Path, via a conference I would personally love to attend, and has very low prices for a conference of it’s caliber. I mean it. I really do like and respect this conference.

Edit Manuscript so it is ready to show to an agent: $400 (assuming we use the same editors I used and not WestBow Press editors.)
Membership to Writer’s Association: $60
Tickets to National Level Conference: $540
Registration fee: $25
Syllabus on CD” $19
Early Bird Session: $100
Gala: $85
Post Conference Special Session: $50
Paid Critique $35
Airfare: $300 (I’ve flown this distance several times at a lot of different price points. This seems like a fair average to get half way across the country.)
Lodging: $120 if you share a room.
Total Cost to get your book in front of someone who is looking for great new authors: $1735 (No promise your book will be published)

3. Self Publishing: Author works alone or with independent contractors. These are the base prices from my most recent novel.

Editing: $400
Cover: $80 (Covers for ebook, print, and large print)
Distributing to all major online retail outlets: Free
Advertising cost for this title to date: $300
Total: $780

Frankly, I’m horrified that a legitimate traditional publisher would do something as vulture-y as WestBow press, but that’s why ignorance is the enemy.

I do not think the fees of the conference are at all out of line. But if an author is going to a conference to try for a contract, it seems a lot more expensive than self publishing.

What do you all think? Is it fair to consider Self Publishers the same as Vanity Press or is everyone “Paying to Play” the publishing game?

And with the average first book selling between 200-500 copies no matter who publishes it, how much would YOU be willing to invest up front?

I went away with the girlfriends this weekend for some “glamping”–or at least, our version of glamorous camping. It may just be my mom and I, but something called glamorous camping calls for at least one new outfit!

Plus, I never go anywhere, so I never buy clothes, so my stock of jeans was running pretty low (down to one pair! How could I let it get to that?)

Today is Whatever Works Wednesday over at my darling Catherine’s fashion blog “Small Town Big Wardrobe.” (The link there takes you right to today’s Whatever Works post.) That means she has a kind of link party where everyone shares their fashion blog posts.

This is not a fashion blog.

I mean really. Me? Write a fashion blog? Certain notable clothing disasters immediately leap to mind.

But I got a couple of adorable pieces for glamping, and even while I was shopping I thought it would be super fun to link up with Catherine for Whatever Works Wednesday.

Now’s the moment where I want to apologize for the pictures: my husband isn’t a photographer, I didn’t do my hair, I, I, I…but you know what? I’m a writer. I rarely get out of my bathrobe. So, yeah, my hair is a little funky, but it kind of always it. And the pictures weren’t all that bad, considering they were taken with a hot pink Sanyo point and shoot!

I keep talking because I am nervous to hit the “add media” button. I really want to do this? I don’t want to wait until next week so I can do the pics again with make up, a fresh hair cut, a week long liquid fast?!

No! I can do this. *Screwing my courage to the sticking place*

I have slowly come to accept that pants have narrow ankles these days. I think my top heavy figure looks better in boot cut pants, but I couldn’t find any polka dot boot cut pants. And really, who wouldn’t rather have polka dot pants than pants that suit their figure?

The heart sweater was another must have. It is funky, shiny, girly (every now and again I dip my toes in the girly clothes waters,) and on clearance. I didn’t realize it would do that weird lop sided thing to my chest, or make me feel so much like Big Ang, but…ah well. My seven year old thinks its awesome.

I’m a firm believer in quality underpinnings (and a big fan of the show Double Divas) so I had to toss in another picture to show I don’t really walk around with my bubbies in different time zones. The issue with this heart is probably a good example of why you should never go shopping alone. Every girl needs a friend who is wiling to say, “No. Just no.”

However, now that I have it, I am sure I will wear it, a lot.

Now, about the hair issues. I’m looking fairly bedraggled in the picture, which is a fair representation of my daily life. I have an appointment for Tuesday, which is a rare thing. I usually do it myself. Yes. I am that cheap. I have a hair appointment because my friend Mandy needs a hair model. She’s good, and she has done my hair before, but generally speaking hair modelling means things could go from bad to worse. I have no idea what style she is planning on practicing.

I kind of hope it’s an asymmetrical faux hawk.

If it is, I will absolutely do another Whatever Works Wednesday next week!

I craft, therefore I create clutter.

Nothing like four days of rain over spring break, and a birthday party, to remind me that we have waaaay too much stuff in waaay too little house.

I get to send the kids back to school tomorrow, which is kind of like de-cluttering, except they come back at 3:30 everyday so it doesn’t make the lasting change I am after.

Last year or the year before, I did some “30 days” of clutter removal kind of thing. Maybe it was more days. I don’t know. I just know it was too long ago and it wasn’t nearly enough. So, I’m gonna do it again.

100 days, 100 removals. 100 pictures on my blog. Every day I’m gettin’ rid of something, and I’m taking a picture of it, and once a week I will post them all here.

It’s not writing, or writing related. It’s not going to help me make my word count or sell my books, but it sure will feel great!

Wait. 100 days is really long! In 100 days I’ll be in Disneyland with my family. That’s madness. That’s some serious dedication to both de-cluttering and to posting pictures of the excess stuff I am ditching.

Are you up for it? Are you excited? Are you glad you are following a blogger who has suddenly dedicated herself to recording her clutter free journey? I knew you would be.

And, for the final bit of “Shoot, I said I’d do what?!” I will be posting the daily pictures at my brand-spankin’ new tumblr blog “100 Day Declutter” at 100daydeclutter.tumblr.com.