So, this book just came out, and it looks pretty awesome. I hadn’t heard of it before, but it’s made it to my reading list pretty fast.

The science fantasy adventure about aliens invading from beyond our galaxy continues in the second high-octane installment in the Dark Tide Trilogy.

The battle against the Krai’kesh was won but the war is just getting started. As the second wave of the Krai’kesh invasion rains death and devastation on human worlds near the edge of the milky way galaxy, veteran Federation navy captain Martin Rigsby and his fleet struggle to survive until help can arrive. Even the awesome magical power of the Eternals may not be enough this time.

Join the adventure on the far side of the galaxy today!

Here’s a link to check the book out for yourself.

I’m making an effort to get information about great indie science fiction and fantasy books out to you guys. Let me know if you’re liking this.

There’s this eye shadow pallet I’ve been wanting. It’s the Too Faced White Chocolate Chip pallet if you’re the sort that cares. I love this brand, especially their chocolate collection. So when I saw this tiny little pallet, I wanted it desperately.

Now, as you know, my family isn’t super well off. We do okay, for the most part. Mostly I wear drugstore brand makeup, but I do occasionally indulge in something a little more pricey. So, when I saw that this pallet was $26, the most affordable pallet I’ve ever seen this brand do, I figured I could probably swing that. I went back and forth a lot. I have two cons to support, Easter and one other thing I’ll tell you about at the end of this post.

There was a time in my life when it was just me and my older daughter when $26 was a stupid amount of money to spend on makeup. Not just for one piece of makeup, mind you. If I blew more than $15 on myself at a time I was likely to go into a panic. $12 for a foundation? Forget that. I wasn’t at drugstore prices, I was at Dollar Store prices.

Flash forward to today, and I consider $12 for a foundation a fine price. I even routinely buy a $23 mascara.

So, after having talked myself into getting this pallet, I made a special trip to my local makeup store just to buy it. We went in, and my kids made a beeline for the Urban Decay section to try on eye shadows. I went to the Too Faced section. It wasn’t there.

Before disappointment could sink in too much, I asked a sales clerk if they had it. “Oh yeah, it’s up here,” she said and led me to the travel size/ compulsion buy section over by the registers.

I have to say this took me down a few pegs. This thing, this material thing that I’d obsessed with, was in the compulsion product section.

Now, I get that there are people in this world to whom a $26 product is nothing. It’s an easy pickup. Not to me, though. I can’t even imagine that being just an add-on item for me. Hell, a $12 product isn’t an add-on item for me!

Even so, I was exceptionally grateful to be able to comfortably afford a $26 pallet. I could do it and not go without, you know, food. As I mentioned earlier, that was not a thing I could always just do.

Recently I had a talk with another local author who was getting ready for her own book signing. I told her how many copies I sold at my signing. The look of horror on her face was, to say the least, daunting.

But when I had my signings, I didn’t give a damn how many books I actually sold. I just wanted people to show up and talk to me about my writing. I wanted to hand out my business cards, meet some people and get my face out there. Because I’m a brand new author, and I don’t expect people to give me their hard earned money yet.

There was a time when I dreamed about having a book signing. Screw that; there was a time when I dreamed of having my book published. Nope, not even that. There was a time when I thought I’d never actually finish the damned book to start with! There was a time I thought I’d never have 100 blog followers, never have people reading my blog, never have people reading my books.

I know that there are bloggers who have thousands of followers. People do make a living on their writing. People do have millions of screaming fans who wait eagerly for their next book. People casually pick up $26 freaking eyes shadow pallets like it’s no thing! People go to Starbucks just because they want a cup of coffee, and not as a special and rare treat!

But I’m not one of those people. I’m insanely grateful for everything I have because all of it is something that I once never thought I’d have. I thought I’d never have my own house, or get married, or have a published book, or make any freaking money writing.

The point is that your perception is going to alter as you go along your life. But I hope that your gratitude for your life doesn’t.

Also, as a great example of perceptions changing, mine changed a whole bunch today. My oldest daughter turned 13 today. I’m having trouble breathing, for real you guys. Please join me in wishing my monster a happy birthday and encouraging her to not act like a teenage girl.

So how about you? What do you have today that you thought you’d never in a million years have? Let us know in the comments below. What are you super grateful for?