The First Vampire

Everyone thinks they know who the first vampire is. This guy right?

Vlad the Impaler or as Bram Stoker named him Dracula. Nope dead wrong. Vampire legends stretch back to ancient Greece. Myth has it that a young Italian man, Ambrogio, fell in love with a woman named Selena after visiting the Oracle at the Temple of Apollo. Since Ambrogio was madly in love after one meeting he asked her to marry him. Luck however, was not on his side. Jealous Apollo wanted her too, and being a god he wasn't going to be out done by a mortal. Apollo cursed Ambrogio so his sun would burn everytime he was exposed to sunlight. Sound familiar?


Ambrogio didn't give up though. He went to Hades for help and you know that never ends well. In order to get Hades' help he had to steal Artemis' silver bow. Just FYI if you steal from a god don't get caught. Ambrogio either didn't know that or he was a lousy thief because Artemis caught him and cursed him as well. Now silver burned his skin.

As time wore on Artemis eventually takes pity on Ambrogio and grants him gifts to compensate for all the burnt flesh. Super strength, immortality, and fangs to kill beasts for their blood to write love letters to Selena.

 Oh how romantic! Where are my love letters written in blood?

Somehow Selena eventually escapes Apollo, and Artemis who now has a soft spot for Ambrogio tells him how they can be together. Ambrogio can make her immortal by drinking her blood. YUCK! It would kill her body, but her spirit would live on. And hey, if you want to procreate just combine your blood and let someone drink it, poof new vampire. So if you ever meet a couple named Ambrogio and Selena steer clear, well unless you want to be a vampire...or their dinner.

My vampires stray from the typical vampire lore, but they are no less interesting. For Their Sins is a love story that spans 300 years available for purchase on Amazon and other fine retailers. Unlike the Rest is an erotica with a little horror thrown in for good measure available as a free download on my website. 

I am a mother, pharmacist, and author. I love all things fantasy and sci-fi. The Proposal and Everafter are two of my favorite chick-flicks. Wolverine, Batman and Wonder Woman are the best super heros out there, sorry they just are. And Sword Art Online is a great anime. I write what I love so my book genres aren't that surprising. Currently I am on a temporary writing hiatus but hope to get back to my fantasy and romance series soon. If you would like to learn more about me please check out my website. For more about my books please shop my store.

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I Am a Woman

Power Play in a Woman’s World

The Alpha, Omega and the Beta

~ Lorraine Carey

In a world of what we’d call ‘Power Women’ today, one may be quick to identify herself with one of these labels and understanding what role she has in society. Many believe we cannot move out of that trait but as we grow and develop we do indeed change, physically and emotionally. It is possible to identify with another trait.

So with that, let’s explore some of the common traits of each type:

The Alpha Woman~

Yes, the Alpha woman loves the spotlight—and she has earned it.  She’s the born leader and women gravitate toward her.  She never settles, be it work, love or play. She’s always up for the game—and most of the time she is the game. She is very selective when choosing a mate and even friendships. She gets a high from accomplishments and winning. It feeds her core only enticing her to power up.

It’s not easy being an Alpha. The goals one set are so high that sometimes they are impossible to reach. When an Alpha falls—she falls big time, but she picks herself up and gets right back in the game.

Some famous Alphas are: Angelina Jolie, Rhianna, Beyoncé, Oprah, and Hillary Clinton.

The Omega Woman~

If you find yourself to be more sensitive to other’s feelings, you may be an Omega. Most empaths and sensitives fall into this category. The Omega woman will be much happier to spend a night at home reading or thinking up brilliant ideas than out at a crowded social gathering. She is a constant giver and will put others first, sacrificing her own needs. Energy Vampires will seek her out—they sense the vulnerability. It is a known fact that the Alpha Male is drawn to this very type of woman. Giving off so much of her energy she often is left emotionally weak and physically drained. You will find teachers, nurses and those in caretaker roles fall into this category.

With that being said—I myself fall into this category.

The Beta Woman~

Beta women long to be Alphas but simply can’t see themselves filling that role. She talks herself out of Alpha women roles and playing up the defense.  Trying to keep up and afloat seems to be the routine. She may be high strung and stressed. Some do not see what she sees in herself and at times others assume she appears on the aggressive side. The Beta woman has all the traits of an Alpha but lacks the confidence to reach and maintain the high level an Alpha functions at. She knows how to play rough and doesn’t take the bullshit others dish out. She is possessive of the things she’s worked so hard to achieve.

No matter which type you identify with, there is power in each trait. I don’t think we need to let labels define us and we are capable of attaining what we want at different times of our lives.

~ I do tend to mix these traits with most of my female lead characters. I have also taken a Beta and transformed her into an Omega in my Women of the Willow Wood Series. That’s how we create a round character versus a flat one.

You can find my books here on Amazon~

https://www.amazon.com/Lorraine-Carey/e/B00ELQBUHQ/

Visit our pages

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Erika

Toi

Joe

Ruth

Chris

Spring Cleaning for your Inbox

Tidying up and de-cluttering is HOT right now. Everyone wants to do a little pre-spring cleaning for the New Year. But, what if it isn’t your house that’s got you feeling overwhelmed by clutter? Virtual clutter (Facebook messages, out-of-control emails, pop-up notifications) can be just as overwhelming.

Are you drowning in emails? Do you have heart palpitations every time you try to confront your out of control inbox? If you’re like many of us, and you have dozens or even hundreds of new emails every day, these simple tips might help you make your inbox more manageable.

1. Unsubscribe. I don’t do a lot of online ordering, but somehow I ended up on a ton of mailing lists. Most of the online stores who emailed me with special deals and sales offer the same ‘deal’ to everyone. There was no benefit to staying on their list, and if I want to shop with them again, chances are, I’ll still be able to cash in on a special promotion or deal. Unsubscribing from these various online stores was quick and easy, AND it had an immediate (positive!!!) affect on the number of emails in my inbox each day.
2. Opt Out! If you’re like me, you follow a lot of blogs and newsletters. I signed up to receive immediate emails from several of the blogs I enjoy, which meant I received dozens of emails every day! I decided to opt out from receiving daily emails, and instead receive a daily or weekly digest. I still visit my beloved blogs, but usually on the weekends when I have time to do so. Now, instead of receiving a constant stream of notifications, I am enjoying a much cleaner inbox. And I’m still enjoying my favorite blogs.
3. Create folders and labels. Sometimes you don’t want to delete an email, but you’re not quite sure what to do with it. Yahoo allows you to create folders. Gmail allows you to create labels or to archive emails to save for later. Once I read an email, I either delete, sort, or save it. The only emails that stay in my inbox are those that still need to be addressed in some way – they require a response or some sort of action on my part. Everything else gets shifted out of my inbox.
4. Get serious about spam. Most of the spam I receive goes into my spam folder automatically, but not all. In the past, I simply deleted spam emails. It was quicker that reporting it and moving the message to the spam folder manually. But once I made the decision to tackle my inbox, I knew I had to be aggressive in eliminating these unwanted emails. I reported every single piece of spam and that has made a huge difference! I rarely see spam in my regular inbox anymore.
5. Change your notifications. I used to receive an email every single time someone followed me on Twitter or liked my post on WordPress. Every. Single. Time. Facebook sends you emails too, depending on your settings. If you’re getting tons of emails from WordPress, Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest, there are ways to make it stop. Each social media site allows you to customize the way you receive notifications. You’ll have to go to each site and puzzle out how to make these changes, but it’s worth it. A little time spent now will save you tons of time (and clutter) later.

Happy Decluttering! 

To read more articles by Tricia Drammeh, please visit her blog! Be sure to visit the Post Gallery to read more articles by Our Author Gang! 

COMMENTS

Erika M Szabo

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Great tips Tricia, thanks for posting this! It's worth the time spent on decluttering on the long run

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Erika M Szabo via Google+

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Today Tricia Drammeh gives us great advice on how to declutter our emails at #OurAuthorGang

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Tricia Drammeh shared this via Google+

6 days ago  -  Shared publicly

 

 

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Chris Weigand

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Thanks for the helpful tips.

 

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Tricia Drammeh

6 days ago

 

 

You're welcome!

Ruth de Jauregui via Google+

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Tricia Drammeh​ shares tips on keeping your email under control on #OurAuthorGang.

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Ruth de Jauregui

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Great post Trish. I'm not so good with my personal emails, but work? I rarely have more than three emails (that need to stay in my inbox) showing. Everything else is archived, sorted or deleted.

 

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Tricia Drammeh

6 days ago

 

 

Same. My work email is super organized. My personal email...not so much. I've gone through the spring cleaning process a few different times, but when I first decided to really tackle it, my email was so out of control I was getting hundreds of emails per day! It was so overwhelming.

Joe Bonadonna

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Great advice, Tricia. I clean out my Spam almost every day and delete emails and other notifications as soon as I read them - unless I need to save - and then clean out my Trash almost nightly. I unsubscribe all the time, too. So much we think we need we eventually find out that we don't.

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Joe Bonadonna via Google+

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Today on #OurAuthorGang, Tricia Drammeh​ offers some helpful suggestions for "uncluttering" your virtual life, such as your email inbox, spam and website notifications.

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Chris Weigand shared this via Google+

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Toi Thomas

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

I usually declutter once a year, but I forgot last year and now I'm overwhelmed. Thanks for the reminder to get this done.

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Tricia Drammeh

6 days ago

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You're welcome! I do this periodically, but lately it has gotten bad again, so i decided to go through spring cleaning once again.

Cindy Smith

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Great advice!  I have done most of that already except the reporting all the spam, every time  I did that I ended up with twice as much.  LOL 

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Tricia Drammeh

6 days ago

 

 

Oh no! Those spammers are tricky. You have to read the unsubscribe instructions carefully because they always find a way to put an option in there that sounds like you're unsubscribing, but you're really not. I've been burned by those too.

Toi Thomas via Google+

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Today, Tricia Drammeh offers tips for de-cluttering your email. #OurAuthorGang

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Cindy Smith shared this via Google+

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Eva Pasco

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Helpful reminders for decluttering!

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Rick Haynes

1 week ago  -  Shared publicly

 

Receiving emails every day from Pinterest was annoying. But thanks to you, Tricia, I have changed my settings. Great article.