Wakela Runen's World

One of my passions is genealogy.  I absolutely love working on the family tree.  I have met some very interesting people while working on my tree. I found some cousins on my mom’s side that I never knew before.  Some are in Canada (where my mom is from) and some are in Great Britain (where my grandparents are from). We have had some mysteries in our family tree.  One of which is nearly solved.  I had already written about Louisa Needs and her loves to rival Erica Kane back on Nov 19 , Nov 30 , and Dec 6 .  I have found out a few more things since then.  First off, there were rumors that Louisa had kicked her daughter Mary Elizabeth out because she was unwed and pregnant.  The story goes that Liz had moved to Windsor after being kicked out.  Her brother Alex returned from WW2 upset to find out that she was kicked out.  He then moves to Windsor to help her out.  So she names her son after him. This is so false that it is unbelievable.  First off, we now have a copy of Liz’s marri

Earth Day is almost here.  What better way to spend it then the opening of Disney’s new movie African Cats.  In fact, a portion of the proceeds from the first week of viewing will go to the African Wildlife Fund. The movie is being narrated by Samuel L Jackson and is live action.  The movie follows Mara, a lion cub who wants to grow up to be strong and wise like her mother.  We also follow Sita, a cheetah who happens to be a single mother of five.  Finally, we will also follow Fang who must defend his pride against a rival.  In anticipation of the upcoming movie, there are a host of things that you can do to help raise awareness for their See African Cats, Save the Savannah program. Like Disneynature on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Disneynature By becoming a fan of Disneynature on Facebook, participants have the ability to interact with “African Cats” content daily. Furthermore, liking, commenting on and sharing the content with friends spreads the viral reach of the f

Book Description   Twenty-four year old Daniella is an architecture student living with her narcissistic artist boyfriend in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Abandoned by her father at an early age, Daniella always falls for the wrong type of man. Her most enduring male relationship so far is with her 30-pound Turkish angora cat. Thankfully, Daniella's mother is always there to offer a shoulder.  Several strange mysteries are threaded through Daniella's everyday life; her ex-husband, Ismael, has just opened an outlandish hotel for animal lovers that has her distraught; Ismael's wife, a rich woman Daniella fondly refers to as "Lady Dracula," has some gruesome ways to keep her skin looking young; Daniella's mother is founding a revolutionary, feminist society called The Praying Mantises; the island's national forest is being depleted of hallucinogenic mushrooms; meanwhile, young girls are disappearing and there's a nut loose dressed as Zorro slashing the rea

Book Description   The world has been fascinated by Hollywood, California, for years. The glamour, the sophistication, the scandal—the world can't help but follow the happenings of this incredible city. It is a city where stories are created, stories that come to life on a screen and allow viewers the chance to escape their everyday lives for a bit. But few people know the story of how Hollywood came to be. In this beautifully written biography, author Gaelyn Whitley Keith introduces readers to her great-grandfather, HJ Whitley, The Father of Hollywood. Keith uses her research and her great-grandmother Gigi's journal and memoir to recreate the story of HJ's life, a story as captivating as any film. You'll travel to the Midwest, interacting with cowboys and Native Americans. You'll cruise around the world. But most importantly, you'll watch the development of an unforgettable community. You'll witness the creation of Whitley Heights. You'll learn ho

Growing up, our next door neighbor was Ms. Frances L.  I always called her Ms. Frances.  She was my mom’s best friend. My mom told me of a time where I was going to run away.  I packed my bag and I was heading out the door.  Of course, I wasn’t going to go far.  I was just heading next door to Ms. Frances house.  My dad used to love playing pranks on her.  I remember one time when she was having a pool built in her back yard.  She was over hanging out by our pool with me and my mom.  The pool builders told her that her phone was ringing in the house.  She said to not worry about it because whoever it is can just call back later (this was way before answering machines).  The phone just kept ringing and ringing.  The guys kept telling her that the phone wasn’t stopping.  That is must be important for that person to just sit there and let it continuously ring.  So she climbed the fence to get to her house.  It was much quicker then going through our house to get around to her house. 

Book Description   Scotty and Charley find romance in the Highlands when a couple of cute guys in kilts look their way. How will Seth and Jeremy react when they realize the ladies who were interested in them have captured the hearts of a young bagpiper and a Scottish actor? Meanwhile, as Scotty and her dad look for answers to their questions about faith, they also look for Scotty’s mom. The search takes them deep into mob territory, where someone will go to any length to keep the past a secret. Will Scotty lose everything that’s become important to her? Book Review   First off, let me say that I had received the first 2 books ( Hollywood Nobody and Finding Hollywood Nobody ) free through the NavPress Blogger Review Program .  I had already read and reviewed them.  Then I noticed that number 4 is the next one available.  So I decided to go ahead and buy number 3.  I didn’t want to miss anything.  I love this series so much.  The characters are so much fun.  Its one o

Book Description   It's always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won't live past the fall. Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests. Kate is sure he's crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess. Book Review   When I first read the description of this book, I was all excited.  I absolutely love reading the various myths.  Greek and Celtic myths are my absolute favorite.  And when I realized that its Hades and Persephone revisited, I was ecstatic. The story was pretty decent.  It just didn’t live up

Book Description   All paths lead to war... Marcus' hero days are behind him. He knows too well that even the smallest war still means somebody's death. When his men are impressed into a doomed army, staying out of a battle he wants no part of requires some unorthodox steps. Cithrin is an orphan, ward of a banking house. Her job is to smuggle a nation's wealth across a war zone, hiding the gold from both sides. She knows the secret life of commerce like a second language, but the strategies of trade will not defend her from swords. Geder, sole scion of a noble house, has more interest in philosophy than in swordplay. A poor excuse for a soldier, he is a pawn in these games. No one can predict what he will become. Falling pebbles can start a landslide. A spat between the Free Cities and the Severed Throne is spiraling out of control. A new player rises from the depths of history, fanning the flames that will sweep the entire region onto The Dragon's Path

Mother’s Day is coming up in less then a month on May 8th.  It brings back so many wonderful memories of my mom.  Plus my mom’s birthday is right after Mother’s Day on May 18th. One thing my mom taught me was that no matter what is thrown at you, you just have to keep going.  My mom had persevered through so much in her life. When she was only 12, her parents got divorced and moved to different sides of Canada.  Her sister and her dad stayed in Ontario.  While she went with her mom over to live in Alberta.  My mom only stayed with her mom for about a year more. At the tender age of 13, my mom got a job and moved out on her own.  She lived in a boarding house in Ontario.  Thankfully, the owners of the boarding house were really nice and they watched over her.  You have to understand, that back in the 1940s things were much different.  Child labor laws were completely different then they are now. My mom didn’t have anything past a seventh grade education due to the fact that you had to p

Image via Wikipedia Edgar Allan Poe has always been my favorite author.  I absolutely love everything he has written. I remember one year, my friend Beth and I went to Barnes & Nobles because they were having a reading of his works to celebrate his death.  Not only did they read some of his works, but they also told about his life.  And since the anniversary of his death is the day before my birthday, we made it an extra special outing. At the end of the reading, they had a leather bound gild edged book of his works that they were giving away.  Everyone had to write their name on a slip of paper and put it in a box.  Then they randomly pulled a name out.  I was ecstatic when they called out my name.  That to me made it the most special birthday ever. I still have that book and it will always hold a place in my heart. It has everything he ever wrote.  All of his poems, short stories, novels, reviews, and newspaper articles. And just a little trivia for you.  John Cu

Book Description   Already a sensation around the world:  family life meets historical romance in an astonishing novel about two people who find each other when abandoned by everyone else, marking the signal American debut of a writer who richly deserves her international acclaim. On the outskirts of a small town in Bengal, a family lives in solitude in their vast new house.  Here, lives intertwine and unravel.  A widower struggles with his love for an unmarried cousin.  Bakul, a motherless daughter, runs wild with Mukunda, an orphan of unknown caste adopted by the family.  Confined in a room at the top of the house, a matriarch goes slowly mad; her husband searches for its cause as he shapes and reshapes his garden. As Mukunda and Bakul grow, their intense closeness matures into something else, and Mukunda is banished to Calcutta.  He prospers in the turbulent years after Partition, but his thoughts stay with his home, with Bakul, with all that he has lost – and he knows tha

Book Description   King Theodicar of Borgund needed an heir. When his wife, Queen Piacenza, became pregnant, he'd hoped for a boy. His wife, along with her nurse, Salvagia, had other plans. With each cast of the runes, Salvagia's trusted divination tools yielded the same message: "A girl child must rule or the kingdom will fall to ruin." As such, the women were convinced that the child would be a girl. When the queen finally gives birth, the nurse and the king are equally surprised. The king is faced with a terrible choice, and his decision will determine the fate of his kingdom. Will he choose wisely, or will he doom Borgund to ruin? Book Review   At first I wasn’t sure what to expect because it is very difficult to write a fantasy novella.  However, Kelly A Harmon did exactly that and she succeeded.  The book starts with Queen Pia pregnant.  Her nurse, Salvagia, can see that the life is being drained away from her during this pregnancy.  During this ti

  Product Description   Great Day is Milkshake ’s fourth CD for kids and kids at heart. In keeping with the bands desire to grow with their own children, the songs on Great Day touch on issues of friendship, age, self-esteem, goals and desires among other things--things that matter to a 6 - 10 year old. In Milkshakes short seven years together, the band has released three award-winning CDs, a Parents Choice Silver Award for their DVD Screen Play, and had music videos on Noggin, PBS KIDS and Discovery Kids Emmy-winning ToddWorld. As Parents magazine says: If kids don't push the replay button, parents will. Product Review   If you are ready to have your kids leave behind the sickening kids music that runs rampant then this is the music for you.  Milkshake introduces your kids to more adult sounding music while still delivering the messages that help to shape them into emotionally healthy people.  This album has twelve songs on it that have a very wide range in the

I have been thinking a lot about this lately.  I have been divorced now for almost 15 years now.  I had dated quite a bit after my divorce.  However, in the last 6 or 7 years, I completely stopped dating. The reason that this has been on my mind is because I am nearing the scary age of 40 (this October).  I am way overweight and need to really lost a lot of weight.  I am more then 100 pounds overweight.  Plus with my health issues, it just doesn’t make it easy. I miss having someone to go out with.  I miss waiting for them to call.  I miss getting excited as they are on their way to pick me up.  I just miss the thrill of dating.  I also miss just knowing that someone is there.  I am just afraid that if I wait too long that I will end up alone for the rest of my life. 

  Book Description   Most of us don’t use our yesterdays very well. With our cultural obsession with “living in the moment,” we neglect to engage in creative reflection on our personal histories. In The Power Of Your Past, John Schuster systematically demonstrates that our pasts are the biggest, most accessible, and most under-utilized of resources for anyone wanting to make positive changes. In contrast to other more technical, spiritual, or therapeutic guides that address working with one’s past, he offers a balanced, practical and accessible approach through an actionable three-phase model: Recalling, Reclaiming, and Recasting. He provides exercises that link past events to achieving sounder interpretations and illustrates the process with inspiring histories of those who have experienced transformative results through embracing their own professional and personal pasts. Schuster provides insight, encouragement, and steps for essential professional and personal development.

Product Description   Stop your bad breath and end chronic halitosis by using TheraBreath Oral Rinse after brushing with TheraBreath Toothpaste. This amazing rinse uses the odor-obliterating power of OXYD-8 for treating bad breath, stopping halitosis and eliminating sour, bitter and metallic tastes in your mouth. Product Review   This is the third product by this company that I have had the pleasure to review.  The first was the TheraBreath Mouth Wetting Lozenges .  The second was the TheraBreath Tooth Paste .  And finally we have the TheraBreath Oral Rinse.  This was a clear liquid that had a pleasant smell to it.  So I poured some in the cap to measure out how much I needed after brushing my teeth.  I quickly poured it into my mouth expecting either something way too minty or way too mediciny.  This was neither.  This has a nice pleasant flavor.  I also didn’t feel like the flavor of the toothpaste was battling with the flavor of the rinse.  Most of the time it seem

Book Description   Are you fascinated by the laws of reincarnation? Do you ever wonder who you were in your past lives or who those close to you were? Often the people who are close to you in this life were relatives in a former life. A brother/sister relationship in a previous life can lead to a failed marriage in this one. Would you like to know how much longer you have to live or whether a public or violent death can be avoided? These may seem like mysteries that can't be solved, but Joanna Marks gives the reader a step-by-step analysis of natal charts, or Wheels , that will answer these questions and many more. She explains how your nodes of the moon can give you hints as to your identity in past lives. In some cases, an early death can even be avoided by simply moving to a new location. Marks also shows you how to find your daughter- or son-in-law in your astrological sign. Diagrams of the various wheels are included, as well as an in-depth analysis of her own wheel

  Book Description   Those yearning to create more healthy treats will learn how to bake without the fats and hydrogenated oils found in common dessert recipes with this lavishly illustrated cookbook. Designed specifically for baking with olive oil, the recipes eliminate key ingredients—butter, hydrogenated oils, margarine, and shortening—that are staples in many traditional desserts. In addition to household favorites such as toll cookies, brownies, and apple pie, the cookbook features instructions for making more than 60 mouth-watering treats, among them chocolate chip buttermilk cake, silky cheesecake with strawberries, lemon sugar cookies, pecan coconut bars, and apple cinnamon rolls. Hints such as using egg substitutes and other ingredients to further lower cholesterol intake, substituting lactose-free options for those suffering from milk sensitivities, and a guide to the many varieties of olive oil are also included. Book Review   Micki Sannar has created a wonderf

Image via Wikipedia One of my favorite types of TV shows is the crime drama.  I get so involved in watching the mysteries unfold. Of course, my all time favorite is NCIS, with Abby being my favorite character.  I try my best not to miss an episode.  The interaction between Gibbs and his team is incredible.  I have to admit that I like Ziva more then I liked Kate.  I so want a Burt The Hippo.  He is so awesome!!  And why can’t we get a decent cup of Caf-Pow? Another great crime drama is Criminal Minds.  I don’t always get a chance to watch this one when it is on.  So I have the DVR set to record it.   Shemar Moore (the guy who plays Morgan) is HOT!  I loved watching him on Birds of Prey.  What are your favorite shows?

Book Description   Nerves make us bomb job interviews, first dates, and SATs. With a presentation looming at work, fear robs us of sleep for days. It paralyzes seasoned concert musicians and freezes rookie cops in tight situations. And yet not everyone cracks. Soldiers keep their heads in combat; firemen rush into burning buildings; unflappable trauma doctors juggle patient after patient. It's not that these people feel no fear; often, in fact, they're riddled with it. In Nerve , Taylor Clark draws upon cutting-edge science and painstaking reporting to explore the very heart of panic and poise. Using a wide range of case studies, Clark overturns the popular myths about anxiety and fear to explain why some people thrive under pressure, while others falter-and how we can go forward with steadier nerves and increased confidence. Book Review   I tend to be one of those people who is always nervous.  I get nervous going to new places, meeting new people, and so on.