The Blessing of a Soul Mate and Life Partner

So thankful for Lisa. I would not have survived all the hard times in my life without her endless support and patience. It's been a very challenging three years because of health problems and other painful struggles with several people, and I frankly would not have the strength to get through these things without her. Finding a soul mate and life partner is a blessing that I can't ever stop being grateful for. When it's tempting to get lost in the difficulties and put my focus there, I remind myself to pivot and keep my focus on us and what we're building. 16+ years strong and every year stronger. Nothing can shake us now. <3 span="">

Understanding and Acceptance

I always remember my 7th grade social studies teacher telling us, "You don't have to understand things, but you do have to accept them," regarding other cultures and other viewpoints. I've carried that with me for close to 20 years, and I live by it.

I'm proud of the people that I have become close to over the years, both family and friends, and I especially feel that way because the majority of you are so open minded and open hearted, not just with me, but with everyone.

We all have our misconceptions and misunderstandings, but in general, extending love and charity to people in a world that is often labeled as being cold and heartless shows me that it's not so cold and heartless after all.

We are making a difference here with the love and compassion that we show and with the decisions that we make every day. We make a difference in our small way. I love you all. ♥

The Great Beagle Caper of 2012

This is really a Facebook post, but I haven't blogged in FOREVER and I figured why not start with something totally different... I have some really good creative-related posts coming up, but here's a good slice of personal and not-so-serious randomness...

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We pulled off quite the caper tonight. ;-)

Most of you know that Lisa and I can't leave the house for even a minute without Jack, our 13-year-old beagle, crying and screaming (thanks Mom for teaching him that crying gets him attention! Argh!).

Tonight we were chilling in bed playing games on our iPads (day off! Woo hoo), and Jack was sleeping in his little bed next to ours. We decided we wanted a mocha coconut Frappuccino from Starbucks. (Note: I almost wish I hadn't discovered how good those are. Yikes.)

So... Not wanting to take Jack with us like we normally do, since he was sleeping soundly... We put the pillows under the blankets like you do when you're a teenager and you're sneaking out the window in the middle of the night. Lol! And we quietly left to get our Fraps!

When we got back, we climbed quietly back into the bed and he never knew we were gone! Lol... We high-fived and laughed about our little caper...

I wish I had a video camera going to see if he ever woke up and stared at the pillows thinking they were us sleeping. We might have to do this again sometime just to catch it all on video.

I realize this won't be nearly as entertaining to you as it was to me. But I wanted to share it anyway! :-)

Mailing list changes, new website, and new releases!

Just a few important updates...


NEW MAILING LIST!
I am moving all of my mailing list subscribers to a new system, and if you're a subscriber you will receive an email notification when I do so (if you're not sure, you can sign up here). I haven't been satisfied with the layout and the overwhelming ads on the current system, and I also want to have more control over the updates that you receive. I'd rather send you personally written notes than automatic updates, and I'm sure you'd appreciate that too! In return for all the support you have given me over the years, you deserve that and much more. And it's about damn time that you get it.


NEW WEBSITE!
In early October you will finally get to see the brand new website that I have been working on to replace the current blog, and it will also be at a brand new location on the web, so you don't have to keep pressing refresh on the current website hoping to see it! I'll let you know where it is when the time comes so you can delete your old links and replace them with the new one. I really think you'll love the new look...


NEW RELEASES
Of course all of these changes are really just me gearing up for the main event, which is a series of book releases! Everything is still on track for my first poetry collection, Kinetic Sculpture, to be released between 10/31 and 12/31 in various formats (print standard, print deluxe, Kindle, Nook, iBooks, etc.). Soon after that my first novel (the first in a series!) will also be released. I won't be resting any time soon, and there's still the music coming up somewhere in the midst of all that. I feel like I've been waiting a lifetime to share all of this work with you, and that's because I have. My 30th birthday is coming up on the last day of October and I can't think of a more fitting way to begin the next decade of my life than by finally throwing caution to the wind and putting my books out there for people to read. I hope that I have your support in this venture, and I promise you that I will always put 100% of my heart and soul into every single project.

Thank you, as always, for the support and encouragement that you have given me. Onward to the next chapter...

With gratitude,
Kelley Ann Hornyak

New Twitter username!

@kelleyhornyak
Kelley Ann Hornyak Changed from @OfficialKelley to @kelleyhornyak -- there's only one Kelley Hornyak in the world, might as well claim my name!
Sep 22 via webFavoriteRetweetReply

One Word Answers

It felt old school to do a survey. This was only going to be for facebook but I thought, what the heck, why not post it on the blog too? It may be the only time in life that I'll ever be concise... lol

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It's not as easy as you might think. Copy and change the answers to suit you and pass it on. It's really hard to only use one word answers.

1. Where is your cell phone? attached!

2. Your significant other? miracle

3. Your hair? messy

4. Your mother? loved

5. Your father? missed

6. Your favorite thing? creativity

7. Your dream last night? melancholy

8. Your favorite drink? coffee

9. Your dream/goal? limitless

10. What room you are in? basement

11. Your hobby? reading

12. Your fear? squandering

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? fulfilled

14. Where were you last night? home

15. Something that you are not? concise

16. Muffins? bran!

17. Wish list item? ipad

18. Where you grew up? downriver

19. Last thing you did? worked

20. What are you wearing? shorts

21. Your TV? paused

22. Your pets? spoiled

23. Friends? family

24. Your life? postponed

25. Your mood? indifferent

26. Missing someone? michael

27. Car? ranger

28. Something you're not wearing? makeup

29. Your favorite store? hollister

30. Your favorite color? blue

33. When is the last time you laughed? morning

34. Last time you cried? sunday

35. Who will resend this? nobody

36. One place that I go over and over? God

37. One person who texts me regularly? nobody

38. My favorite place to eat? home

39. My favorite food? sushi

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Feel free to copy and paste your own answers in the comments! If you're reading this I would definitely be interested in your answers. <3

New Lyrics: Call You a Star

I promised my Twitter followers that I'd post some new lyrics if we surpassed 500 followers, and we did, so here is your thank you! I'm tremendously grateful to anyone who takes the time to check out my work, and since the person reading this is obviously one of them, I would like to extend a very heartfelt thanks to you.

This song is dear to my heart and has one of my favorite melodies of any song that I've ever written. Very simple, almost like a lullaby, though there's a complexity to the structure since there are three full verses and different lyrics in each chorus. There's something about the rhyme scheme and rhythm of the words that I find really soothing.

I think you guys will enjoy the sound of this one when I release my album in 2012. For now, here are the lyrics, and I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoyed writing them. I hope you can find some personal meaning in them as well, because you should know that you are perfect, and that you don't need to wait for anyone else to call you a star. We all are. <3

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Call You a Star
(K. Hornyak)

You wanted to be perfect
Didn't know that you already were
Looking at your enemies' blueprint
Shoulda known they wouldn't
Call you a star (a star, a star)

CHORUS 1:
There won't be applause
Until you let them go
There will be no ovation
Until you give them permission
To call you a star
To call you a star

Happiness turned to hurting
Didn't look like there'd be a cure
Talking like you followed their footsteps
Shoulda known they were less
And you were the star

CHORUS 2:
There won't be awards
Til you show them the door
There will be no achievement
Until you give them permission
To call you a star
To call you a star

INSTRUMENTAL BRIDGE

I want you to see you're perfect
And to know that you always were
Paying tribute to the ones long before you
Now it's time to hear them
Call you a star

CHORUS 3:
There will be a legacy
That follows you
You will be their blueprint
And you'll always hear them
Call you a star
Call you a star