Nerd Girl Gives Secret Shopper 5 Stars and a Glowing Review!

"The romance is chivalrous and fairly chaste which is a refreshing change from the current trend."--Julie

The 5 Star review by Julie of Nerd Girl has been posted on their website, Goodreads, Library Things (which I have to join now), Facebook, and Twitter; and she also took the time to support my indie efforts by adding the review and rating on Amazon.

The Nerd Girl Facebook page is followed by nearly 4,500 folks. I hope this boosts my story's reach.

I love the cool chicks at NERD GIRL! Click here to read.

Just Saying Friday....

I may have to start a Just Saying weekly blog post...I tend to notice trends, patterns, but not at a genius level...just a mere mortal level.

Rachel McAdams has met her quota on romantic movies involving time travel (Time Traveler's Wife and the upcoming, About Time). I get it, men will risk their molecular structure to travel time to be with her, again and again....she may as well be in a Dr. Who episode or two--give her a tardis (or this sexy dress), stat!

*Just saying.

I will say this red headed actor is intriguing.

The Perks of Being a 'Chamorro' Wallflower

"We accept the love we think we deserve."

In the span of 24 hours, I rented and watched (twice) The Perks of Being a Wallflower. And, aside from waiting to hear the lovely Emma Watson (aka Hermione Granger) slip in her American accent, I was totally engrossed in this movie. Logan Lerman plays the main character, Charlie, a flawed, hurt, nervous and shy car wreck, who despite all his history is determined to feel normal. He fortunately finds friendship with an older crowd and later realizes that his dark secret of abuse is shared by the one he loves. “I feel infinite.” Is a great mantra in this movie.

I’m a bit late in this review and revelation, but that happens, I’m a mom busy with other things in my reality. Don't let me go off on a tangent about the movie's awesome soundtrack either.

The movie I fall in love with always leads me to the author and book I want to sink my teeth into and sometimes, vice versa.

Stephen Chbosky was hands on with this project from day one. Writing the novel, penning the screenplay and ultimately directing the movie. I love when that happens and I’m happy for his literary and film success.

I’ve always loved teenage angst movies, from being a preteen and devouring flicks such as Sixteen Candles, Pretty in Pink, The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo’s Fire. I always rooted for the shy girl/boy who was the wallflower. One who comes out of the shadows when he or she finds the strength. In many ways, I’ve been that late blooming wallflower.

I’ve found inspiration in Perks and I’m edging towards the final first draft edits of my Young Adult novel, Wonder Summer. I have my very own wallflower and she is finding her strength to bloom.

Author Erin Albert interviews me...check out 12 Random Facts!

I've found a great circle of author friends who share their spotlight with a generous heart. Erin Albert is one of them. She is a YA writer. Albert's debut novel, The Prophecy is due November 2013! Please support her by liking her Facebook page.

CLICK HERE to check out the fun interview I did with her. Find out why I freaked her out...read random fact #8! And, discover why I'm excited to have this guest blogpost come out today, July 24...Lynda Carter/Wonder Woman's 62nd birthday...random fact #4.

Bruno Mars Packs So Much YUM!

Date night with the hubby ended up being a Chamorro group fieldtrip to Seattle's Key Arena to watch Ellie Goulding open for the tiny and terrific, BRUNO MARS.

He was charismatic, sexy, musical (playing electric guitar and drums), and entertaining. He had my husband dancing and me and my girls hooting and hollering.

Just blogging for posterity. We sat as usual in our nosebleeds seats (still a whopping $50.00 each/parking another $10.00), section 206, row 13 (my special number), seats 1-7. Thank goodness for the large screens.

Footage from YOUTUBE, by fans with more expensive seats.
LOCKED OUT OF HEAVEN (Encore)



GORILLA



WHAT A MAN!

Jackson Baer Interviews, Tanya Taimanglo

"I’d say Scotland. I’d like to learn more about kilts and sip tea in J.K. Rowling’s castle, talk shop with her perhaps and dance to some Celtic jams." Tanya Taimanglo

Thank you to author, Jackson Baer for taking the time to interview me for his blog. Authors supporting other authors is so important. Check out the interview by clicking on the link below his picture. Be sure to follow his Facebook page too! His upcoming novel, The Earth Bleeds Red comes out September 2013.

Tanya Taimanglo INTERVIEW-Click Here!

I ♥ Boy Bands 4-Eva!

A 1980s/1990s teenage dream fulfilled with my bestie since the 10th grade this past Tuesday. We attended The Package Tour at the Tacoma Dome featuring Boyz II Men, 98 Degrees and The New Kids on the Block aka NKOTB. It was packed with women (and some men mercilessly attending with their chicks) who share the same rabid boy band obsession as me.

One thing about these now nearly middle aged men. They have all aged well, like wine, maybe a few like cheese--but I like both. And, they were punctual! Show started at 7:32 which was great. And, more impressive, no one in the audience (at least in my area) sparked it up....if you attend concerts, you know what I mean.

Boyz II Men sang gloriously and I was reminded of how much I love "Water Runs Dry."

98 Degrees were still hot. Nick Lachey, what can I say (my bestie's fave) and Jeff Timmons (my fave) still have the biceps and singing chops. Not such a fan of "Una Noche" but I was ecstatic that they ended with my favorite song, "Because of You."

The last two hours of the concert were reserved for the main attraction, NKOTB. Men in their 40s, they still have it in all senses of the phrase. Donnie was still the bad boy, six pack to match. At one point, he knelt and sang to a fan off stage. Cameras zoomed in and this bold lady beckoned him. They engaged in a twenty second french kiss which had the dome raving. He even looked at the camera and mouthed, "What the F*ck?!"-but went right back to kissing her. Shocking. Jordan Knight (my bestie's fave) moved very much like Michael Jackson, and sang falsetto flawlessly. He gave us some skin too and obviously, this father still works out. Danny did some athletic break dancing moves and Joey, the baby of the group was a raunchy dancer, much to my surprise. My fave of the five is and always will be, Jonathan Knight (yes, he likes boys) but, I've always liked his face and personality. He and Danny remained clothed through the whole show. While the rest of the boys did crazy pelvic thrusts to the audience, he was lukewarm and mainly stomped his feet a lot. Call me crazy, but I don't like overt. Oh, Jon--in another life, I'll be a dude.

It was nice to experience this concert with my bestie and my 17 year old god-daughter & Co. She laughed a lot, mostly at us, but had fun too. Donnie invited a surprise guest, Seattle's own Sir MixALot-whom up until that night I didn't know he was a Seattle-lite. He brought about 10 brave women on stage to shake their healthy butts, singing "Baby Got Back!" We were all dancing in our nosebleeds seats.



During Jordan's falsetto a story line was conceived in my writer brain and it's been festering and growing non stop since Tuesday night. It's shaping up to be a YA, sci-fi, comedy thing. I'll keep you posted.



Overall, seeing this wonderful grouping of boy bands is now off my bucket list--a great night.

Here are some YOUTUBE clips of the concert I found.