Cia

I do the cooking thing. Baking, candy making, gift bag giving. I spent 3 hours at a cookie decorating yesterday, made 4 dozen of my own at home last night, a cookie exchange today, a cookie decorating/caroling event next weekend... Honestly the holidays are what you make them. You can't force family to participate. My kids and I decorate the house together and we always bake a batch and decorate a fresh set of cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve. We also take hot cocoa and go look at all the neighborhood lights in the car as a family each year, my kids are little so they enjoy that. We also go with a club we belong to and take cards and do caroling at an assisted living facility each year. If you have adults only your best bet is to put out some snacks (store bought are fine) and some drinks, perhap's Dragonfire's punch , throw on some holiday music and have a 'get together' with no pressure. No plans, no silly holiday traditions, just family/friends being together. Or you can do something different, a game night. You could do a Christmas movie trivia game, or a music trivia one. You can have guests name Christmas songs from the lyrics or even play them and then hit pause and see who can guess the next lyrics properly. The holidays are what you make of them. We all get so caught up in gifts and all the craziness, sometimes it's nice to just relax with family and remember that they are what is really important, no matter who the 'family' is.

People with SAD can get help. The short story of the disorder is that it affects the hormone levels in the body. Some antidepressants can help as well as the sun lamps. Unfortunately this isn't something that will just go away on it's own for a while. You are the only one who can decide if his disaffection with you is something that indicates more. Sometimes we just have to weather our partner's lows because you can't make them all better. He has to want to get help and be able to. You can support him as best you can but don't forget to take care of yourself. Putting yourself into a state not much different from his by allowing his disorder to cause you depression would not be healthy. While I hate to play devils advocate I do also have to somewhat agree with Chase. I don't know how long you have been with him but what you describe, if not caused by SAD, would make me suspicious that he is not committed to your relationship. Long distance is especially hard to deal with when one person is distant emotionally as well. This is one of the biggest pitfalls that tend to be the main reason that couples that only have online relationships break up. Only you can really figure out if this is going on or if he is really suffering from SAD and only you can decide if the relationship is worth the struggle. If your partner won't meet you halfway or at least try to it will most likely not work out. Whatever it turns out to be, I wish you the best.

Happy Birthday Nikolai!! I hope you have a great day!

Because it applies even more this year than last: Happy Birthday and many hugs!!

Tarenna has a rich history, one of vast technological achievements and yet the natives now live in the wilds of the swamps. The leaders of the Trialedes must take action when invaders take over and try to find an ancient artifact, one that could spell the doom of the entire galaxy.

The Lord's Sacrifice by Cia Thud thud, Thud thud, Thud thud... There was a dual note in each heartbeat, the only sound I could hear as we sat crouched in the corner, huddled into a ball. The paired tattoo was proof that we still lived, though not for long if I couldn’t get us out of here. I had to figure out some way of getting past the security on the door. My head tumbled around the different escape routes I could take from the facility. I knew Ch'ial waited in a hover car not f

This is all simply a case of "Me thinks thou dost protest too much!" You're going to win CJ, it's inevitable. Just sit back and enjoy the notoriety.

One man wakes to find himself alone...and not where he expected to be. Who is the strange man that appears..and why is he...blue? Follow the story of Cale and Bel'loc as they find out where their honor will take them, and what they will pay to keep it.

Marc went back to his own apartment after we got back from dinner while I went upstairs to work on my new case. I set up a file folder; I did keep some things in a paper file in the locked cabinet. I fired up my main computer, taking the stick and copying the information into a new folder on my desktop. But before I looked at that I pulled open the folder that Sally had made for me. Inside was a copy of the emails sent to Mr. Alterson along with the documents that had landed upon his desk. I

Mr. Alterson's secretary looked how she sounded. Cool, professional, a dark blue tailored pants suit was paired with a snazzy pair of dress shoes. Her hair was short but styled in carefully crafted waves showing her face with its subtle and sophisticated make-up. Her expression was welcoming when she stood up to usher me into the plush outer office. The nameplate on the desk said Miss Daschel. “Good morning, Mr. Verset. I trust you had a comfortable ride over?” She said her voice smooth. Def

“You're a real bastard, you know that right?” I could not believe the way the fed was treating Demarcus. He sat there in his dark suit, cut from the same cloth as every other suit I'd ever seen. That was what Marc called them 'the suits', nameless and faceless minions of the government. This one was a little higher up than your average g-man though, and puffed with that knowledge. “He has to testify against the men that Mr. Mestrick had been working with. His associates are trying to restart

This story continues a few months after we left Nat and Marc in Double Down, now told from Nat's point of view. He's a private eye with a busy business, one at times boring. This newest case though...

'Don't waver; Don't stop; Go.' Some say it's quitting. Some say it’s self-preservation. When a person faces this in life, they are left with a very personal decision. Balance. That's what this was about for me. Could I stay and give up parts of who I was? Could I live that way? Perpetually off-kilter; missing those bits of, well... me? I had no idea what I was in for when this all began. It had felt like adding to me in a way, like there was this other half of me suddenly there.

Brandon is everything to me. The choice I face is unbearable.

I woke up confused. It sounded like someone was weeping and my left hand was gripped almost painfully tight. I blinked my eyes several times, trying to get the feeling of grit out of them. When I looked to see who had a death grip on my hand I was surprised to see my brother holding me with both hands, crying hot tears. How did Ry get here? Wait, where was here? I was in a soft queen bed with a light blanket over me, pulled up snug to my shoulder as I laid on my side. The small room I was in had

I stretched the next morning when I woke up, feeling better than I could remember in recent months. For the first time in what seemed a very long time I had a sense of hope. It was as if my entire body had been filled with a breath of freedom, I just felt lighter. I rolled out of bed and decided to take a shower. Cranking up the heat, I enjoyed the feel of the water cascading over my head and down my body. My skin had felt tight before, as if drawn across my bones, shrinking tighter as my world

The next morning came sooner than I was ready; Ry ran out and got coffee and doughnuts. I snickered a little when he came back into the apartment holding on to his goodies. “What,” he said indignantly. “It's not like you have anything here to feed anyone. Besides, they're kind of like cops.” That got a laugh out of my other guest where he was folding up my cheap futon. “Typical you, Ry,” Nat chuckled, “always thinking about what to put in your stomach.” I laughed with him. “I s

Marc is a man with a dangerous problem. When his brother won't give up trying to help him will he accept that help?

Someone recently said to me that all I would ever be, all I could ever do, was what I was doing now. Just floating along on the surface of the sea of life, never challenging myself. I'd just shrugged in response, not knowing if they were right, and not really caring either. I got up, I went to work, I came home to sit on my ratty futon before I hauled myself off to my lonely bed. “Jeez…Demarcus, when are you going to give this crap up?” asked my brother in disgust when he showed up out

For You! Have a great day!

Welcome! Don't feel alone. I, too, have only been writing for a year. There are people here at all different levels of writing skills. This is a great place to get feedback and learn those little touches that make a good story great. I hope you enjoy the community you find.

Changing Focus By: Cia Sean plucked his damp t-shirt away from his sweaty back, balancing on the crotch of the tree he had climbed in pursuit of a perfect blossom he had spotted from the ground. The weather was cool, still in the 60s but the afternoon sun beat down on his shoulders and head, making him a bit warmer than he would like. Oh well, he'd be going home tomorrow with the results of his labor, surely a few of the images he had been able to capture would fit in with his projec

Sean was out in the woods taking pictures alone, at least he thought he was...

Light and Dark are opposing forces, destined to be apart forever. Everyone knows that until someone decides to take what he desires, consequences be damned!

Eren's Light By Cia The sun had sunk behind the earth but still lit up the clouds until they looked as if they were on fire, lit from behind, painting the sky with flames of orange across the blue that was deepening into the indigo that presaged the coming night. I sat in the field, surrounded by grass and flowers and peace. But I was anything but peaceful. I wondered how it would feel if I was lit up as bright as those clouds, my own personal sun having been lit insid