Review: K.L. Montgomery’s “The Light at Dawn”

I have to admit that I have a guilty pleasure. Even though I am a middle-age man, I turned 60 last year, I also like to read romance novels. This week K.L. Montgomery, who lives in the Rehoboth Beach area will be releasing her fifth book in her Romance in Rehoboth series, Wedding Wars. I have the book on pre-order and will review it as soon as I can.

The following is my review “The Light at Dawn” that I published on the ChesaDel Crier.

Cover The Light at Dawn - K.L. MontgomeryRomance Author K.L. Montgomery, who lives in the Rehoboth Beach area released The Light at Dawn, on February 7, 2019.

It’s not part of a series, nor does it take place on the Delmarva Peninsula. I found it to be a story of heartbreak as well as one of survival. Ms Montgomery does “warn you that this book is emotional or would make you cry”. And that it is.

In the opening pages Angelia White receives the worst news that a mother can receive, the death of a child. And then things gets worst, her husband leaves her.

Five years later and hundreds of miles from her home in the Adirondacks she meets Mark Lyon. A man so much different than herself and beliefs. Soon afterward Lyon experiences the death of his daughter in the same way she lost her son.

K.L. Montgomery at a Romance Author event in Queen Anne's County June 2018 - Photo by SG Atkinson
K.L. Montgomery at a Romance Author event in Queen Anne’s County June 2018 – Photo by SG Atkinson
They develop a unique long distant friendship that only two with this same experience can have. An encounter a few weeks later brings them even closer together in a twist that brings their lives even more together.

The Light at Dawn is in ways your typical romance book, as those who read romances are well aware, but there are enough twists and unexpected elements that make this a unique and entertaining story.

Be warned, the book does contains sensitive subject matter that may be upsetting to some readers.

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Biography from Amazon:
K.L. Montgomery grew up in Greencastle, Indiana, and studied psychology and library science at Indiana University. After a career as a librarian, she now writes novels and wrangles three sons and four cats at her home in rural Delaware, which she shares with her husband and the aforementioned creatures. She has an undying love of Broadway musicals, the beach, the color teal, IU basketball, paisleys, and dark chocolate.

Visit K.L.’s website at www.klmontgomery.com and sign up for her newsletter. You can follow her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/GreenCastles, Twitter (@KLMontgomery8) or Instagram (k.l.montgomery)

Earth Day 2019

Today, April 22, 2019 is he 49th Earth Day. The first Earth Day in 1970 came about after Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, saw the aftermaths of the 1069 oil spill in Santa Barbara, California. His idea was to “national teach-in on the environment”. The date April 22nd was selected since it was a date between College Spring Break and Exams.

Now nearly 50 years later we are still seeing how we have hurt the earth. While I am a believer that the climate has changed, all one has to do is look at weather patterns that are so much different than it was when I was you. Fifty years ago I was 10 and I remember many cold winters in the 60’s and early 70’s with plenty of large snowstorms on the Eastern Shore of Maryland where I live. Many weird weather patterns in all seasons. And sights that I regularly that were seldom seen as recent as 20 years ago.

This past Saturday Chestertown, my hometown, held their annual Earth Day Celebration. While it was happening I decided to stroll down to the Chester River, just a couple of blocks away. It was a few hours after High Tide and this is what I saw at the dock at the foot of High Street.
Photo by SG Atkinson: High Water at the foot of High Street

This has become a common sight. And as I mentioned well past high tide and you can just imagine how high the water may have been by debris on the road.

Even with seeing this and admitting that there is a change in the climate, I am not convinced that what we are doing to the Earth today is all to blame. I’m sure others will greatly disagree. It is my feeling that what we are seeing today that we are still seeing the aftereffects of the Industrial Revolution and into the first half of the 20th Century. It takes time for the Earth to react and what we are doing today is making strides, strides that began in the 1960’s, to protect our home for our children and their children.

Let’s continue what we are doing and encourage more to do the same.

Note:
More Photos from Chestertown’s Earth Day, from my trip to the River and other activities in Chestertown on April 20, 2019 can me seen on my ShoreToBeFun Photographs page on Facebook

420

Today is April 20th or 4-20. 420 is now often seen as a code signify illegal drug use or more specifically Marijuana. Although with Marijuana now legal in some places it’s become a counterculture holiday. One where people gather to celebrate and consume marijuana.

But where did the term come from?
According to snopes.com it started to be used by a group of students at San Rafael High School in California as the time, 4:20 in the afternoon, that they would get together to smoke some weed. This was way back in the early 1970s.

Also on snopes it is said not to have any relationship to police codes for marijuana use in progress.

The California Bill that legalized the use of medical marijuana is Senate Bill 420, but it was signed in 2004, long after the term was in use. Although I suppose some may have started using the bill number without realizing that the term was already being used by others.

There are a few things that share April 20th as a special date. It is the birthday of one of the most despised man in History. Adolf Hitler, the most despised man in history was born on April 20, 1889. Boston’s Fenway Park opened on April 20, 1912. At New York’s Union Square, Major Robert Anderson with the flag that had flown at Fort Sumter was greeted with a rally of more than 100,000 people on April 20, 1861

Who am I?

Sometimes I will sit back and wonder just that. Who am I?

I am a man who is about to turn 61. A man with 6 decades of experiences. But also one that wonders at times that simple question of Who am I?

I’m a son. Although both of my parents have died. So I suppose being that me being a son is now past.

I am a brother. A brother and a sister.

I am a husband. A father.

But who am I?

There are folks that have an interest in one thing and that is their life’s passion. I am not one of those type of people. I have many vary interests. Although I suppose one could say that most of them deal with Art and Entertainment. I am a fairly good photographer. But it’s not something I do everyday. I know many will go out and just take photos. It’s not me. I usually have a plan when I go out. Either to photograph a certain event or part of a project.

I would really like to photograph people, but I’m not one to ask someone to pose for me. I’m somewhat creative, but often can’t think of anything creative to shoot.

I like to find out what’s happening in the area and telling others about it. That’s how my Website (blogs) were started. I suppose in a way it’s also the reason for this one. Although generally it’s for my thoughts as much as anything.

I like to read, watch TV and movies. Although there are plenty of times that I just can’t seem to want to do much of that. But there are times I’ll start watching a series on TV and hours later I’ll find that I spent most of the day doing that.

I guess when looking at the question Who am I? I really have no real answer other than I am me.

What a Difference a Year Makes

March 16, 2018 was the worst day in the history of Men’s Basketball at the University of Virginia. The Cavaliers had been seeded first in the South regional bracket and first overall in the NCAA Tournament. They faced the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, the 16th seed, and became the first Number 1 seed to lose in the first round of the tournament. And unlike other upsets of a higher seeded team, the UMBC Receivers, didn’t win with a last chance desperation shot. The game final was 74–54, a 20 point upset.

The 2019 NCAA Tournament began with the Virgina Cavaliers as a Number 1 seed. This team had a mission. To win the tournament. On April 8, 2019 they did exactly that with a 85-77 win against Texas Tech. It did take overtime with Virgina scoring 17 to Texas Tech’s 9 in the 5 minute overtime period.

St. Patrick and His Day

St. Patrick is considered the Patron Saint of Ireland, but he was born in Britain. He was born near the end of the 4th Century to wealthy parents and was abducted by Irish Raiders and held in captivity in Ireland for 6 years. During this captivity he became a devote Christian.

He is believed to have died on March 17, 460 AD and it is on this day that the Irish and those once a year Irish celebrate St. Patrick Day.

St. Patrick is credited as banishing all snakes from the Ireland. However there weren’t any snakes on the island so he couldn’t have banished any. He was a converted Christian and helped transform the island from their pagan beliefs to Christianity.

St. Patrick Day has a celebrated history of parades. The first St. Patrick Day parade was not in Ireland, but in New York City. On March 17, 1762 Irish soldiers serving in the English military marched through the city.

Leprechauns and St. Patrick are classic symbols of Ireland. Now a natural combination. Leprechauns have their origins from old Celtic folklore and were cranky souls known for their trickery to protect their much-fabled treasure. It wasn’t until Walt Disney and the film Darby O’Gill & the Little People which introduced a cheerful, friendly leprechaun, that they became a part of the Irish celebration.

Many of us will have Corn Beef and Cabbage on St. Patrick day, but this too is a fairly recent invention. Cabbage has long been a Irish food, it was usually served with bacon. That was until around the beginning of the 20th century when immigrants in New York City substituted corned beef to save money. This idea came from their Jewish neighbors.

The Six Three Stooges

The Three Stooges began in vaudeville in 1922. Moe joined Ted Healy, one of the highest paid vaudeville performers as a stooge. A stooge is a planted audience member who is invited on stage. Shemp joined his brother Moe shortly afterward with Larry joining in 1928. The name Three Stooges weren’t used formally until the group parted ways with Healy in the early 1930. By this time Shemp has left and Curly, Moe and Shemp’s brother, had taken his place.

There were six different people that were the Three Stooges between 1922 and 1970 when Larry had a stroke ending his acting career and the Three Stooges.

Moe Howard was the leader of the Three Stooges. He was born Moses Harry Horwitz on June 19, 1897 and died May 4, 1975.

Shemp Howard
Moe’s older brother, Samuel Horwitz born March 11, 1895, was one of the original stooges of Ted Healy. Shortly after they arrived in Hollywood he left the stooges, partly because of his dislike of Healy’s abrasiveness and drunken bouts of anger, to pursue a solo career. When Curly suffered a stroke in 1947 he returned to the Stooges remaining one until his death on November 22, 1955.

Larry Fine
It was Larry who turned the Stooges into the Three Stooges when he was hired by Ted Healy. Larry Fine was born Louis Feinberg in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on October 5, 1902 and died on January 24, 1975.

Curly Howard
Jerome Lester Horwitz, the younger brother of Shemp and Moe was born on October 22, 1903. He took Shemp’s place in the act when he left beginning in 1932. Curly suffered a stroke in 1946 that required him leave the act. He would appear once more with his two brothers and Larry in the 1947, Hold That Lion!. This was also the Stooges 100th short. He would die on January 18, 1952.

Joe Besser
When Shemp died there was a short search for his replacement and that role went to Joe Besser. Joe Besser was born August 12, 1907 and appeared in 17 shorts as a Stooge. Before becoming a Stooge he worked with Abbott and Costello in their TV series. He played his same whinny character. One that wasn’t a big success with the Stooges. After about two years as a Stooge he left to tend to his sick wife. Besser died on March 1, 1988.

Joe (Curly-Joe) DeRita
Born Joseph Wardell on July 12, 1909, Joe DeRita became the sixth and final Stooge in 1959. By this time TV was discovering the Three Stooges. Joe DeRita resembled Curly and he shaved his head for the role. He remained with the act until Larry suffered his stroke in 1970. DeRita died on July 3, 1993 as the Last Stooge.

A Strange Feeling During the Night

Photo by SG Atkinson: Forward to DST

Last night was the annual Spring Forward to Daylight Savings Time.

As I often do on Saturday Night I fell asleep with the TV on, but set to turn off automatically. As usual I fell asleep with it playing.

Around 1:45 I was waken by my phone buzzing. I had received a text message from a friend. I didn’t answer the text, but I did get up to use the bathroom. Which at my age isn’t unusual.

A few minutes later I heard my wife’s alarm go off. I knew she had needed to get up early to go to work, but I didn’t think it was this early. As she said goodbye I noticed it was almost 3:30.

I was pretty certain that I hadn’t gone to sleep and it felt like I had only been awake for a short period of time. That’s when it hit me. Her alarm did go off at 3.

It may have been the first time I was awake when we skipped from 1:59 and 59 seconds to 3am. It became the fastest hour I even experience. I didn’t even have a chance to blink.

I know I have lived through this blink of time change for Daylight Saving Time, but usually I am asleep and don’t notice the hour that expires in less than a second.

Bell’s Telephone

The telegraph was invented by Samuel Morse in 1835 and it was Alexander Graham Bell’s intention to improve on the telegraph that lead to his invention of the telephone. It was on March 10, 1876 when Bell in one room and his assistant Thomas Watson in another he shouted the words, “Mr. Watson – come here – I want to see you” into the transmitter. Watson was able to hear what was said and reported back to Bell the exact words. With this the first working telephone was born.

Bell’s experiments with the telegraph was an attempt to transmit multiple messages over the same wire at the same time. He felt that this could be done if each signal would have its own different pitch.

On February 14, 1876, both Bell and Elisha Gray, with his Western Electric Manufacturing Company, submitted their patient to the United States Patient Office in Washington DC. Bell’s paperwork with application fee was completed first, Gray’s caveat was entered first, but his filing fee was entered after Bell’s. On March 7, 1876, three days before the successful experiment, Bell received Patent Number 174,465.

Gray would file lawsuits challenging Bell’s patent. He would lose them all, mainly because it was determined that because he failed to take actions to complete his caveat until others had demonstrated a working unit. Gray still wasn’t left in the dark since he did receive a patent for the telautograph, a way to transmit handwriting through telegraph systems. It can be called the first fax machine.

The Bell Telephone Company was created in 1877 and by 1886, ten years after the first voice transmission over 150,000 people in the United States owned telephones.

There really isn’t a sole inventor of the telephone. Bell’s ideas closely resembled Gray’s. The telephone’s transmitter was greatly improved when Edison’s carbon microphone was introduced. Not to mention that the entire idea of the telephone is really just an improvement and enhancement of Morse’s telegraph.

Baseball Wars

Since the end of the 2018 Baseball Season fans of the game have been wondering where Manny Machico and Bryce Harper would be playing and for how much. With Bryce Harper signing with the Philadelphia Phillies we now know. Machado signed with the San Diego Padres on February 20th.

Both signed for Huge contracts. Two of the largest in baseball. They join Giancarlo Stanton with long-termed contracts. Machado at 300 Million for 10 years and Harper 330 Million for 13 years. Stanton signed a 13 year deal for 325 Million in 2014 while a member of the Miami Marlins. He was traded to the Yankees after the 2017 season and 9 years remain on that contract. Staton does have an opt-out after the 2020 season.

So who won this years Free-Agent Baseball War?

I suppose time will tell, but from my looking at it today, I would say the winner was Harper. While Machado per year salary will be greater, Harper’s contract ends when he is 39. Machado will be 35 when his end. It’s doubtful that at nearly 36 Machado will be able to get a 3 year 30 million dollar contract.

Machado’s contact does have a opt-out clause after 2023. Which he could opt-out and sign another 10 year contract that is even larger than this one. It’s easy to say that with contracts like these both are big winners.

Are they worth this much money?

Looking back on their accomplishments for the past several years, one would think they could be. Personally I find it hard to imagine being paid that much money, but there are plenty of people making more per year. But looking at some of the long term contracts that have been signed in the last 10-15 years one would say that the teams are making a big gamble. There are many factors that can happen over the next 10-13 years that could keep Machado and Harper, and Stanton too, that could have them being paid and not play.