Apartment Life #47

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 20 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 20 years here in a weekly blog post.

This guy moved into the apartment complex across the street last year and has 2 dogs. The big dog he keeps on a leash. His little dog is never on a leash and likes to run up to other dogs and play or lick them in the face. I've seen the little dog almost get bitten several times because he refuses to keep it on a leash and it runs up to every single dog it sees.

I had my camera ready this time when I saw the guy walking his 2 dogs. I keep telling him that there are dogs in the neighborhood that are not dog friendly and he just nods his head and smiles. He says to me that his dog is friendly so it's fine. This guy is an idiot. Thankfully Falcor likes most small dogs or this would have been a bigger problem. Falcor doesn't like big dogs though. 

Just last week I watched his little dog run up to a pit bull on a leash and get right in the dogs face. The owner had a hard time keeping them apart and he had to bend down and keep his dog from biting the little dog because the owner wasn't even out of his apartment yet. When he did finally come out he yelled, "Paco" and the dog went running but the little dogs owner didn't even say sorry or anything to the other guy. We both looked at each other and just shook our heads. Someone is either gonna call animal control on this guy and he's gonna get a fine or his dog is gonna get bit by one of the non dog friendly dogs he runs up on one of these days. 

Oh and by the way, the people who had the bratty kids in my courtyard that always teased my dog...yeah they were evicted this week. Buh bye!

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

Review: Walmart Beauty Box- September

The Walmart Beauty box is a subscription box that comes out 4 times a year. You sign up for it and it comes automatically every 3 months. These boxes are free and shipping is $5. 

I have to say that I was a little surprised when I opened this box and saw what was inside. I was a bit disappointed because these boxes used to be a lot better. 

This month though I received 7 small sample packets of products.

What was in this box...

Garnier SkinActive 3 in 1 moisturizer day/night mask. 

Garnier Fructis Damage Repairing Treat 1 Minute Hair Mask. 

Village Naturals Therapy Muscle Relief body wash. 

Village Naturals Therapy Muscle Relief lotion. 

Kleenex Wet Wipes. 

Whole Blends Shampoo and Conditioner. 

Sleeping Facial Mask. 

I get that I'm only paying $5 for this box of samples but when I first signed up for this box the samples in the boxes were great and bigger. This box only comes every 3 months so they have plenty of time to get the boxes out on time and filled with great products like they used to have. More and more people are cancelling this box because it's so disappointing. But I keep hoping it gets better. 

Did you get this box?

Freebie Friday!

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

This week I received:

I cashed out my points on e-Rewards for a $25 Macy's egift card.
I received 66 free prints from Shutterfly when they had a promotion.
A sample of Organic Protein Powder.
A sample of Derma e moisturizer.
A sample bottle of It's A 10 leave in hair conditioner.
I won 2 Amazon giveaways. A book and 2 pairs of scissors.

I love the It's a 10 leave in conditioner. I've received a sample bottle before and love this stuff. I bought a new bath mat with the Macy's gift card. I gave my daughter the protein powder and she made a shake with it. I am always up for another Derma e sample because their moisturizer has always been good.

Did you receive any samples this week?

Review: Crossed by Karin Tabke

Book Description

When falling in love is the most dangerous option of all...

Brutally assaulted and then heartlessly betrayed, L.O.S.T. operative Jax Cassidy lives life on her terms. No friends, no family, no love. But when she comes face to face with assassin, Marcus Cross, the man she has been ordered to eliminate, she discovers his deadly secret. A secret that draws her into his dark world, jeopardizing not only her heart but her soul.

Marcus Cross sold his soul to the devil for a second chance at life. When dangerous beauty, Jax Cassidy's life is threatened by the one thing that can destroy them both, Marcus must make a bitter choice--her death or his.

It’s Jax Cassidy’s first mission for L.O.S.T.—one that will give the former cop who went rogue a chance to prove herself. Her assignment: gain the trust of assassin Marcus Cross . . . eliminate him . . . then take down Marcus’s mentor, Joseph Lazarus, a man with a bold eye on the White House. But the woman who’s known by her team for being a femme fatale succumbs to passion, only to discover Cross’s deadly secret. He’s a vampire, and Joseph Lazarus is his creator.

Left for dead by his platoon in the violent hills of Afghanistan, Special Ops sniper Marcus Cross was given a second chance at life. His newly heightened skills make him the perfect killing machine, and as Lazarus’s right-hand man, he’s quickly rising to the top of his dark empire, purging enemies with speed and precision. Only when Jax Cassidy is sent to bring him in does he begin to question Lazarus’s motives and his own actions. But when Jax’s life is threatened by the one thing that can destroy them both, Marcus must make a bitter choice—her death or his.

My Review

Jax is new to the L.O.S.T special ops organization after she was beaten, left for dead and got her revenge. She had been a cop and is now an assassin for this organization. 

Marcus has a lot of secrets and if Jax finds about about them she may or may not like him. He's a vampire who now kills for Lazarus. He had been a soldier when Lazarus found him almost dead and turned him. He has been working for a special ops team called The Solution run by Lazarus.

This book has no shortage or blood, murder and mayhem. The carnage starts right off from the start of this book. Marcus had been led to believe he was working for the good guys and doing the right thing but he was wrong. He slowly figures out what's really going on and why and that's when he changes his mind as well as the way he does things. Lazarus's special ops project had its funding cut off by the senator that had been backing it when he figures out that some things just aren't right. When he does that L.O.S.T. gets hired to keep the senators daughter safe from Lazarus. 

When Jax and Marcus start to get closer, they can't seem to keep their hands off each other. I really liked these two when they got together. She was sent there to get closer to him so she and her team can bring down Lazarus but her feelings have changed since meeting him and getting to know him. 

I love a paranormal romance and vampires are one of my favorite paranormals but we don't see Marcus use his vampire abilities a lot in this book. This is more of a romantic suspense book than a vampire romance, at least it was to me and I'm fine with that. There's a lot of action, drama and romance in this to keep you completely engaged from the beginning until the end. 

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Disclosure: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Favorite Picture of the Week

Ken called me in the bedroom to have a look at Falcor. He as laying on the bed but on Ken's pillow with his monkey. He raised his head when he saw me but he was tired and went back to sleep. 

Review: The Boss by Abigail Owen

Book Description

Finn Conleth leads his team of enforcer dragon shifters with an iron fist and a cold heart. Every dragon seeks his destined mate, but the process to turn the woman he once thought was his killed her and devastated him. He will never risk his heart again. His team is his family now. When his body eventually gives out, he’ll leave, living his last days alone.

 Delaney Hamilton moved across the country to escape the freak fires that plague her. But when another suspicious fire erupts and rapidly escalates around her, her hopes for a new life go up in smoke. She has no choice but to turn to the mysterious men who come to her aid.

 Finn knows the fire is dragon-caused, which puts Delaney’s problems directly in his jurisdiction. No matter how her wounded grey eyes call to every part of him, he refuses to risk her life in the mating process.

 Until another dragon threatens to claim Delaney for his own, and Finn has to sacrifice everything to keep her alive... 

My Review

Finn is a dragon shifter and a firefighter. Who better to fight fires than a dragon shifter? He's the leader of the firefighter enforcers who are kind of like police for dragons in their territory. He's been hurt and even though he wants to find his destined mate, he's not willing to take a chance that the female might be killed in the process. 

Delaney is running from a stalker as well as mysterious fires. So when she wakes up and yet another mysterious fire is blazing around her, she decides to take the help from the firefighters who saved her. 

Finn doesn't want to get too close to Delaney because he's not willing to risk his heart or her life but the sparks fly between these two and it's hard for them to stay away from one another. Finn and Delaney get along right away, there was just this great chemistry between them. So it wasn't a huge leap when they couldn't keep their hands from one another. 

Finn and his enforcers find out that a guy is stalking Delaney and putting her life as well as her friends life in danger so they step in to protect her even though they don't think she's a dragon mate. Finn is very protective of her and she gets along with all the enforcers and that's a good thing since she's staying at their headquarters while they track down the stalker. 

While trying to find the stalker and keep her safe, a lot of information comes to light, a lot of twists happen and a couple interesting people pop up that I'm sure we'll be seeing in upcoming books. I found this story so much fun! What's more fun than a dragon shifter romance that makes you laugh at times? I had a great time with this and am looking forward to reading all of the enforcers books. 

I read and reviewed this book before edits were made so my copy may be different from the one you read now.

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Disclosure: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Happy Raturday!

*Picture courtesy of Rat Logic*

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

Apartment Life #46

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 20 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 20 years here in a weekly blog post.

Most of this week was petty uneventful but there was one day that made me laugh. The day started out nice. I got up early, took Falcor out at 6am and even got an interesting sunrise picture. 

Then later in the day Ken calls me in the bedroom because this woman who is laying on the engine of her car and the 2 guys out there were screaming at each other. When I saw her laying on the car like this I knew I had to get some pictures. And of course I took them right from my bedroom window. Why does everyone park right in front of my bedroom window? So first, why is she not wearing her shoes? Her feet are black with dirt and grease from the street. I sure hope she washes them off before tracking that into her apartment. I've never seen anyone lay on their engine while working on their car before. 

They were out there for a few hours and every so often I would go back and take another picture. The tall guy always seemed to just be standing around not doing much. While the woman sat on her engine and the other guy looked like he was trying to fix something.

Maybe this is the new way of working on a car. Just lay in the engine compartment. 

Then about an hour later Ken yells at me to bring my camera back in the bedroom because I have to get a picture of this. So the tall guy is still standing around and the other two are still working on the car but now... there's a guy laying on the sidewalk. Ken tells me to just wait because that guy lying there was smoking marijuana out of what looked like a homemade pipe made out of aluminum foil. Sure enough I wait a minute and he sits up, adds something to the foil pipe and puts the flame of the lighter to it and even with the window closed we could smell it because he's laying right in front of our window. When he laid back down he has the bowl part of the pipe hidden in his hand. 

I enlarged this picture so you can see how he's holding his pipe. The bowl part of it is hidden in his hand but we saw what it looked like when he sat up to smoke it. Then he left.

I told you about my speed freak neighbors who the guy is the manager's son last week, well this week he hung an empty bird cage from the tree in front of his apartment and put a couple of plants by his door. The bratty kids in our courtyard have knocked over his plant a half dozen times and he's screamed at them twice. He stopped the kids from throwing rocks at the empty bird cage once and one of the kids father came outside to tell him to stop yelling at his kid that if he has a problem to come talk to him. Well, that didn't go over very well at all and at one point I heard the guy tell the kids father, "Your apartment manager is my mother. Keep lipping off and I'll get you evicted." Then he went back inside and slammed his door. I knew it wouldn't be long before he said something like that. Oh and the kids knocked over his plant again this morning. lol 

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

A Look At Literary Book Gifts and a Promo Code for you

I've been talking to Melissa over at Literary Book Gifts for the past week and taking a look around her site. I really like the merchandise she has over there so I thought I would let you all know about it too. As you can see above she has T-shirts in different colors and with different pictures and sayings on them. I love Frankenstein so I really like this one.

She also has hoodies in different colors and with different pictures and sayings on them. You can't go wrong with Edgar Allan Poe. 

If you'd rather have a tank top, she has those too. Huckleberry Finn looked like a nice one. 

And then there are the tote bags. This Black Beauty tote bag looked like a nice one but there are a lot more on her page. 

Melissa was nice enough to give my readers a promo Code for 20% off your order. This promo code never expires and there's no minimum purchase. Just enter DARKTHOUGHTS20

at checkout. 

Freebie Friday!

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

This week I received:

I cashed out my points on Crowdtap for a $5 Amazon gift card.
I cashed out my points on MyPoints for a $25 Amazon gift card.
Revlon mascara and lash curler from Crowdtap.
A bag of Kaytee small animal bedding. I gave it to my daughter for her rats but tried to get a picture of it before and Falcor photobombed me.

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Review: The Duke with the Dragon Tattoo by Kerrigan Byrne

Book Description

The bravest of heroes. The brashest of rebels. The boldest of lovers. These are the men who risk their hearts and their souls—for the passionate women who dare to love them…

He is known only as The Rook. A man with no name, no past, no memories. He awakens in a mass grave, a magnificent dragon tattoo on his muscled forearm the sole clue to his mysterious origins. His only hope for survival—and salvation—lies in the deep, fiery eyes of the beautiful stranger who finds him. Who nurses him back to health. And who calms the restless demons in his soul…

A LEGENDARY LOVE

Lorelei will never forget the night she rescued the broken dark angel in the woods, a devilishly handsome man who haunts her dreams to this day. Crippled as a child, she devoted herself to healing the poor tortured man. And when he left, he took a piece of her heart with him. Now, after all these years, The Rook has returned. Like a phantom, he sweeps back into her life and avenges those who wronged her. But can she trust a man who’s been branded a rebel, a thief, and a killer? And can she trust herself to resist him when he takes her in his arms?

My Review

I won this book in a blog contest and even though I don't usually read historicals that much anymore, I decided I wanted to read this one after reading the blurb...so I'm glad I won it. 

Lorelei helps save The Rook when she is but a teenager and she finds herself drawn to him but he has no memories of his past of how he came to be where she found him. Lorelei is disabled and mostly at the mercy of her horrible older brother. Good grief I hated her brother so much. He's an ass and gambles their money away then tries to marry her off to someone she doesn't want to marry. 

The Rook or Ash promised to come back for Lorelei but when years passed and he never showed back up, she figured he just forgot about her but that wasn't true. Before she can be married off Ash comes back for her but he's not the same man that she knew. He has a bad reputation and is not a man easy to get along with. At first she's scared of him but as time passes she can see the boy she once knew and holds out hope that he's still in there somewhere. 

Lorelei has no idea what happened to him to change him so drastically but that story is a sad one and I won't say more about it because I don't want to give too much away but this book made me sad. I think that's why I stopped reading historicals, a lot of times they have this sad or shocking aspect to them that makes you just want to cry for these people and this was such a story. 

This is the first book by this author that I've read and the first historical that I've read in quite a while but this story was a real page turner and it kept me reading until way past my bedtime because it was so hard to put down. 

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Review: Revlon Volumazing Mascara and Salon Pro Lash Curler

Crowdtap sent me both of these products to try for free. I've been using L'Oreal Voluminous mascara for a while because it makes my lashes longer and fuller. But I have to say that this mascara also makes my lashes look longer, fuller and doesn't clump which is nice.  

I don't actually use a lash curler most days and the last one I received in a beauty box I gave to my daughter. But I tried this one out and it did curl my lashes quite well. I wore this mascara on 2 different days and on the website for the product it claims it won't smudge or flake off and I have to say it didn't. It didn't come off until I took it off at the end of the night. 

It's also affordable, at just $8.99 for the mascara it's comparable to the other mascaras that I use and have tried for that price. 

Disclosure: I was sent the mascara and lash curler for free via Crowdtap. 

Favorite Picture of the Week

My daughter was over for dinner last week and she started laughing. Then she sent me these pictures. I'm guessing it's one of those filters you can use on the smart phones. Falcor looks too funny.

He doesn't mind having his picture taken. 

Review: Target Beauty Box - September

This months Target Beauty Box was just $7 and totally worth it in my opinion. 

Each month Target releases a new Target Beauty Box but supplies are limited and it's first come first serve until they run out. These boxes go fast so I try to grab one as soon as I see it being talked about on Twitter or fb.

What was in this month's box?

Weleda Wild Rose Body Wash

Olay Facial Cleansing Infusion, Crushed Ginger and Citrus 

Garnier Rose Mist Spray

NIVEA Smooth Daily Moisture Body Lotion

Schmidt's Naturals Charcoal Magnesium Deodorant

OGX Coconut Miracle Oil Dry Shampoo

L'Oreal Paris Voluminous Primer Base

I already have that same dry shampoo and it's alright. It doesn't leave a visible white powder in my hair so that's good. I also like the Body lotion, most of their products are good. 

I'm not thrilled with that deodorant but it's ok. 

I love anything rose scented so that mist and body wash are great. They smell so good. The primer base works great. I've started wearing makeup primer more often and it really does help makeup stay on and last longer. This is however the first mascara primer I've ever used but it does seem to make my lashes longer. Olay is a great brand so I am always happy to get any of their products. 

Not a bad box at all.

Did you snag one of these boxes?

Happy Raturday!

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of Picture courtesy of Count Furcula, Doctor Poo, Ratchie McCaw & Peego Mortensen*

"We has a teddy"

*Picture courtesy of Count Furcula, Doctor Poo, Ratchie McCaw & Peego Mortensen*

"Kids aren't the only ones who like stuffed animals"

Apartment Life #45

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 20 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 20 years here in a weekly blog post.

Back in 2016 right after we had gotten Falcor, some women from the local meth apartment across from us knocked on my door and asked Ken if she could borrow our dog. She said she dropped a cup of noodles on the floor and wanted to know if Falcor could come clean it up for her. He said no. People are nuts.

On May 20th, 2014

 I heard this coming from loud speakers out front.

"This is the Metro Police Department, please return to your homes we are in pursuit of a suspect." They also warned the have K9s and they will bite. I look out my window and see people standing around not leaving and the police are yelling at people that they are letting the K9 off the leash to find someone and that they have to go back in their apartments or they might get bit. Police chopper was circling above.

I saw people standing around outside and while I was looking out my apartment window a police officer told me to go back inside and shut my window. I'm inside my bedroom and he's mad I'm looking outside. Wth?

This week on Wednesday morning, I go to take Falcor for a walk and get stopped outside by a police detective. He was asking about one of my neighbors, if I knew who lived there and what they looked like. A little while later several more police officers showed up and they questioned everyone who came outside and even searched one lady's car. They milled around outside for about an hour and then they all left. At first we thought maybe someone had died in that apartment but no, nothing like that. The about an hour later we see the lady that lives there come out of another apartment where she had been hiding from the police. lol My neighbors are nuts. There's always something going on around here.

Oh and I have a new neighbor!

😢

My apartment manager told us when the apartment next door to us went vacant that she would be moving in quiet 'normal' people in this courtyard. Well, she moved in someone and right away this guy and his girlfriend started fighting really loudly. I've now seen them both over at the neighborhood meth apartment buying what I assume are drugs. Everyone just does it out in the open like they don't give two shits if you see them. My neighbors are up all night and all day banging on the walls, and yelling and screaming in their apartment. I got a good look at him today and realized....get ready for this....it's the apartment manager's son!

He, his girlfriend and their toddler had been living in the managers apartment but now they're living next door to me. Oh joy. They've been in that apartment for a week and they've had a big screaming fight every single day. This should be interesting.

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

Review: Star Gazer by Shannon Rouchelle

Book Description

When Christine Monroe finds herself unemployed and homeless, she turns to a life on the street. One night as Christine is looking up at the night sky, she prays for a family and a better life. Kent Peterson, a successful doctor, has recently lost his wife and is raising his little daughter, Sally, on his own. That same night, Sally prays for a new mommy to complete their family. Soon their two worlds collide and a relationship unfolds. Will their prayers for a happy family be answered in time for Christmas? Only time will tell.

My Review

Let me start by saying that I received this ebook many years ago and left it with others in an email folder. Most of these books were won in blog giveaways. I just recently figured out how to open the attachments of seemingly lost pdf's that wouldn't open because they were years old and am going to read and review all the books that I kept in that folder so some things may have changed or updated from the copy that I have, including the covers.

Star Gazer starts out sad for four different people who's lives are quickly connected. Sally, a sad young girl missing her mommy who died, wishes for a new mommy for Christmas. Her father Kent wants a woman in his lonely life and a woman in his daughter's life. While Christine only wants a safe, warm place to rest and maybe a dinner roll to eat.

We find Christine with other homeless people, one woman in particular tells her that she doesn't think their life on the streets will ever change because no one will hire her while she looks dirty, and tattered.

Christine finds herself in a dangerous predicament and Kent comes to her rescue. Their lives are intertwined from that point forward and she is able to help out the homeless lady she used to hang out with near the fire to warm up on the streets. I liked watching Kent and Christine get to know one another a bit more and get closer over time.

While I like the story, I did find it peculiar that young Sally seemed so much older than what she was. She is either very smart or should have been written as a teenager.

This book is only 26 pages long so if you are looking for a quick-feel good story, I recommend this one.

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Freebie Friday!

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

This week I received:

A free 2019 calendar.
A free tote bag.
A free note pad and birthday cards.
A free dreamcatcher.

A free Daily Goodie Box. (I reviewed the contents this week)

A $25 Sally Beauty gift card. (Cashed out points on e-Rewards)

A free L'Occitane gift set with the purchase of the shower gel. I spent $6 for all of that.

I won The Duke with the Dragon Tattoo from Adria's Musings and Reviews blog.

Did you receive any freebies this week?