Strange Daze Indeed

Isn't life strange? And wonderful!

Win a $40 gc to Hautees! Bringing in Summer Hop

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We’re taking part in the Bringing in Summer Giveaway Hop hosted by Karma Media.

Once you have entered our fantastic giveaway,  please take a look at all the other giveaways listed at the bottom of the post

My giveaway is for a $40 gift certificate to buy whatever you would like at Hautees!


College Hautees has amazingly comfortable flattering tees, cardigans, tanks, dresses, hoodies and more! Check out my review and impressions here.

Pick out something as a gift or buy something for yourself. They have a great Basic Blowouts sale  going on too so your gc will go farther.

They have both branded and unbranded merchandise so enjoy bringing in Summer with some new styles.

This giveaway is open to the US and will run from May 26 – June 9.

Just follow the Rafflecopter and best of luck! And make sure to check out all the other blogs and their cool giveaways!

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Disclaimer – Please note that Karma Media are not responsible for any giveaway sponsors who do not fulfill their prizes on all of the participating blogs in the Bringing In Summer Giveaway Hop.

College Hautees – Flattering Fashion for College & Beyond

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College Hautees was started by Tamina Madsen, a lawyer who wanted a career change after several stressful years of practicing litigation. She attended both UC Berkeley and UCLA, but never wore clothing with her universities’ logos because none of the options available to women seemed flattering, cute, or fashionable to her. She left the law to stay true to her love of fashion and launch a new style presence.

College Hautees has styles for both on and off campus, branded and unbranded. You can find branded merchandise from  USC, UCLA, UC Berkeley, Arizona State University, Clemson University, Michigan State University, and Oklahoma State University. And you can find generally great comfortable stylish clothing including dresses, off-the-shoulder tees, tank tops, V-necks, hoodies, sweatshirts and cardigans.

I love that they donate a percentage of their profits to the Los Angeles County Bar Association’s Domestic Violence Project. The LACBA Domestic Violence Project has been providing legal aid to victims of domestic violence in Los Angeles County for over 25 years. 

Tamina generously sent me some samples of their styles:

First up was this black and white striped racerback tank. It also comes in red and white stripes.

I love this for spring and summer. It’s supersoft and comfortable and, with the longer length, it looks wonderful on. I love it with shorts, jeans and leggings.

She also sent me a deep V tee in Charcoal. I was amazed at how soft and comfortable it was. It’s extremely flattering and versatile. You can wear it with anything or under a cardigan. Dress it up or down with accessories. It comes in yellow, navy, white, charcoal and plum.

And, she also sent me an off-the-shoulder tee. This is my favorite piece. I love the way it softly drapes over my shoulder yet does not fall and it’s not heavyweight, but soft and thin. It really feels wonderful on and looks great. You can wear it as is or put a nice camisole or tank underneath. Perfect for both Berkeley students and anyone. Being a former Californian and Berkeley afficionado, I love it.

They are also having a Basics Blowout Sale right now so you can get some great deals!

Connect with Hautees:
Would you like to win some items from Hautees, maybe a gift certificate? Well come back to my blog for the Bringing in Summer giveaway hop starting May 26 and you can!

Disclosure: I was sent samples by the sponsor in order to facilitate a review however all opinions expressed are my own.

Birthday Post

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Since my birthday is Friday and I love making lists:

Things I am happy for

Helping raise some of the most awesome kids ever – the most blessed experience for which I truly have no words
Sharing unconditional love
Living in Paris for a year – traveling to Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Hungary, Sicily, Corsica, the French Riviera, Greece, the Greek Islands
Traveling to Indonesia
Visiting so many states in the US – from coast to coast
Working in the fields of Book Publishing, Writing, Editing, Art, Acting, Catering, Cooking
Being blessed with an amazing family and the best friends ever
Having some absolutely incredible magical relationships
Being a published author
Meeting the Dalai Lama
Meeting many spiritual teachers including Ram Dass
Facing my fears and making it through not one but several authentic sweat lodges
Walking across hot coals
Surviving getting caught at sea in a small sailboat during a bad storm
Falling madly, deeply in love
Meeting wonderful people
Studying at the Sorbonne
Kissing in St. Mark’s Square, Venice while everything else disappeared
Studying art in Paris
My vegetable gardens

Things I still want to do

Nothing specific. I have had all sorts of crazy adventures, loves and done everything I’ve set out to do. What I want to do now is keep growing, keep learning, share my heart and my life with those I love and give what I can.

Masters of the Veil by Daniel Cohen – Guest Post

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MAGIC FAQ + A SHORT LESSON FROM BARIV THE CONDUIT
Congratulations! You can do magic!
Here’s what you need to know about your exciting new ability:
Q: WHAT IS MAGIC? AND WHY CAN I DO IT?
This can be a very thrilling, confusing, and even frightening time for a young sorcerer, so let’s start with the basics. Magic is just another way of saying, “Connecting with the Veil.” As you may already know, the Veil is an ancient energy that lies all around us that some fortunate few (YOU!) can even use.
The Veil gives the sorcerer communities everything we need to survive. The more the Veil is used, the more She gives us. All sort of wonderful plants, animals, food, clothing, and shelter… they’re all there, waiting to spring forth.
There is no conclusive evidence explaining why some people can use the Veil and some people cannot. Some speculate it’s genetic, while others believe it’s spiritual. Alas, we will probably never be sure, so just be thankful that you are one of the lucky ones.
Q: HOW DO I DO MAGIC?
There are two methods of doing magic: A “grip” and a “drape”
A Grip: Connecting with the Veil to perform a specific feat.
A Drape: Essentially it’s wrapping the Veil around an object to give it extraordinary properties.
As you may have seen from the older sorcerers in your magical community, we use something called a “Second-Skin” to access the Veil.  A second-skin is a covering for your hand that allows you to grip the Veil. Second-skins must be made from materials that have sprung from the Veil in order to work. One of the first things that you will be instructed to do is create your own second-skin in order to create the deepest connection. You can use anything from dried aansi leaves to the bark from a zigzag tree, just know that attempting to do magic that is beyond your reach with break your second-skin.
Q: HOW SOON WILL I BECOME A MASTER SORCERER?
Whoa there! Don’t get ahead of yourself. Magic is extremely difficult and it’s going to take some time for you to become proficient at it. You have a magnificent, bumpy road ahead of you.
Q: BUT WHO IS GOING TO TEACH ME?
The sorcerer community doesn’t take your new ability lightly. We will provide you with the finest teachers available. Train hard enough and you might even get to be in Rona’s group (but don’t get your hopes up)!!! You will be matched up by your skill level and organized by the type of magic you’ll be pursuing.
Q: IS MAGIC DANGEROUS?
It can be if used wrong. To avoid causing unnecessary pain, make sure you study hard, respect your clan elders, and eat your vegetables.
Q: VEGETABLES?
Yes, vegetables.
Q: WILL I HAVE TO LEAVE MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY?
For a short time, yes. Whether you’re from the flathand (those who can’t grip the Veil) world or a magical community, you will be brought to Atlas Crown to study with Bariv. Bariv is the conduit to the Veil, and he will be the first—and probably the most influential—teacher you will have. After learning about your ability from Bariv, you will have the choice of returning home or staying in Atlas Crown.
*Special note for those who come from the flathand world. In the rare occurrence that you choose to return to the non-magicworld, you will be draped with the inability to speak of our world or perform magic outside of a magical community. Sorry. The good news is that if you choose to join a magical community, your immediate family will be invited to come with you and will be provided for.
NOW TAKE A SEAT AND ENJOY A QUICK LESSON FROM BARIV ON THE THREE DISCIPLINES OF MAGIC
Welcome. Please have a seat. Before you are three second-skins that I have created for choosing purposes. As you may already know, there are three disciplines of magic that come from the Veil.
First, there are natural magics, which are best gripped with the aid of plants. The green second-skin is made from the leaf of the grampith tree.
Natural magics are very useful. They feed, they clothe, they help us interact with the world around us. We would not survive without them. Nature is dough and you shape it to your desires—if you are skilled enough. Mountains can be leveled and water can fall upwards. Nature’s secrets will whisk you away to another plane where you can realize the awe-inspiring connections we hold with the world around us.
Next, there are the mystical magics. The metal second-skin you see on the left was mined from beneath Grus’ pass and made from silver-palladium mixed by my own hand. A mystical sorcerer would use this second-skin. The mystical magics keep true to their namesake. Even I don’t fully understand all that can be accomplished with this, and I have been close to the Veil for a very long time. Those who excel at the mystical arts can reach into the deepest, darkest parts of the mind and cast dreams into reality. They can navigate the vast and powerful river of time. Reap gold out of metals like a glorious harvest. Harness fear, and ride on its back until it tires.
 And last… there is the second-skin made from the hide of Sectus remisican, the skull-wolf. This is a tool of power magics. These tools work best if taken forcibly. In Atlas Crown, we do not kill when we do not have to; however, in this particular case we had to. The power sect is a dangerous one, yet it brings with it the ability to forge oneself into the greatest ruler and purveyor of dominance. Authority is a given. Supremacy is taken. The true power sect is scarcely found here. Those who have chosen it, or rather have been chosen, usually take the road down another path, a false path that can only lead to death and misery. However, when applied for good, the power sect can be the most useful of them all. An iron body has no need for a suit. That is what the Veil is at Her heart. She is power. She holds possibilities so grand, we can never understand, only observe.
Now why don’t you try one on?

Masters of the Veil – Win $100 Amazon gc

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Life can’t get much better for Sam Lock. Popular, good-looking, and with a future as a professional football player. every guy at Stanton High School wishes he were Sam. That is, until his championship football game, when Sam accidentally links with an ancient source of energy known as the Veil and reveals his potential to become a powerful sorcerer. Sam is whisked off to Atlas Crown, a community of sorcerers who utilize the Veil as a part of everyday life. Once there, he trains beside a mute boy who speaks through music, an eternal sage who’s the eyes and ears of the Veil, and a beautiful girl who’s pretty sure Sam’s an idiot. As it becomes clear Sam’s meant for power magic-the most feared and misunderstood form of sorcery-people beyond Atlas Crown learn of his dangerous potential. An exiled group of power sorcerers are eager to recruit Sam, believing that he is destined to help them achieve their long-held goal. If they succeed, they could bring about the downfall of not only Atlas Crown. but all humankind.

LINKS:

BLOG
GOODREADS
FACEBOOK
AMAZON LINK
BN LINK
TWITTER

Author Daniel A. Cohen   

Daniel A. Cohen was just your average business student. Microeconomics, finance, marketing… you name it, he had to do a PowerPoint presentation on it. One dark and stormy night, he was bitten by the radioactive realization that memorizing business jargon could possibly be the most boring activity known to man.

After gaining eagle-eye vision, abs that could grate cheese, and a talent for imagining things (including his cheese-grating abs), he wrote his first novel and began his epic battle against the formidable business jargon. He continues to fight the good fight by playing saxophone and writing YA fantasy, forever hoping his Veil trilogy will help inspire others to join his cause.

Giveaway Details

Author Daniel Cohen is offering one lucky person a $100 Amazon.com Gift Card.

Last day to enter is May 31st

Open to anyone who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com
Gift Code. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must
be 18 or older to enter or have your parent’s permission. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and
announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.
This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless
otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. VOID
WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Kindle Fire Giveaway!!

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DonnasDealsAndMore has teamed up with Giveaway Scoop and an awesome group of bloggers to bring you an amazing giveaway!

Have you seen Giveaway Scoop yet? They recently launched with the goal to make finding giveaways super fun and easy.

Here’s the fun part: all giveaways are displayed in large image-based tiles for the “wow” factor. Plus, infinite scrolling lets you effortlessly scan through hundreds of active giveaways.

And, the easy part is: all the giveaways are just one click away!

Oh, and if you’re a blogger, you can add all your giveaways to their site for free. Thumbs up for more traffic and entries to your giveaways!

So, head on over to Giveawayscoop.com and discover how fun finding and winning free stuff can be!

One lucky fan will win a Kindle Fire! This awesome giveaway is brought to you by Giveaway Scoop and DonnasDealsAndMore, and co-hosted by BabyCostCutters, Couponer’s Corner, Smartchicology, Family, Love and Other Stuff, Trinkies, Be radiant by mark, Mommy Moments with Abby, and This Girl’s No Expert

All you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter Below. Remember you can fill out as many or as few extra entries as you want on the Rafflecopter form! This giveaway will run from 12:01 am on May 24th to 11:59 pm (eastern time) on June 21st. You can tweet and share this giveaway daily for extra entries…so come back daily to increase your chances! The winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be drawn! This giveaway is open to US and Canada. Entrants must be 18 years are older.

Disclosure: I received no compensation for this publication. My opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Strange Daze Indeed is not responsible for sponsor prize shipment.

 

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Noxicare – Natural Help for Pain / Review & Giveaway

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Yesterday we had rain, lots and lots of rain. While I love the sound of it and the beauty of it as well as loving what it does for my vegetable garden, there is one thing I don’t like.

The rain seems to bring more pain for some reason. Now, of course, I don’t know if this is an old wives’ tale or truth, however, I’ve read that when the air pressure changes it can cause the amount of fluid in the joints and the pressure to change.

True, or not, yesterday I was in a lot of pain. I refuse to write a long laundry list of aches and pains here, however, I am seeing a knee surgeon due to an accident which tweaked my knee very badly. And, on the short list, I think, most of us have some sort of pain. Mine seems to kick up in my right shoulder a lot.

In any event, I’m always on the lookout for natural pain relief and when I was sent a tube of Noxicare to try out, I was happy to do so. As mentioned before, I have Fibromyalgia and my mom has Arthritis, so I also shared with her.

Noxicare was developed by Dr. Reza Ghorbani, a Harvard-trained physician board certified in pain management and with over 15 years experience in the field of pain relief. Noxicare is a combination of 7 natural pain relievers that, working in synergy, can safely help with inflammation, muscle aches and nerve pain and help promote the body’s own healing process.

Noxicare has had good results for helping to relieve pain of those suffering from arthritis, athletic injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome, neuropathy pain associated with diabetes, musculoskeletal disorders, fibromyalgia and tension headaches.

Here are the all-natural ingredients:

Turmeric: an anti-inflammatory
Willow Bark: for pain and inflammation relief
Ginger: has many benefits and is a catalyst for improving the effectiveness of other herbs
Holy Basil: anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial and antiviral
Rosemary Extract: helps with joint or musculoskeletal pain.
Alpha Lipoic Acids: antioxidants help increase blood flow to the nerves
Boswellia Extract: an anti-inflammatory used to help arthritis and joint pain

My experience:

I like that Noxicare is all-natural, simple to use and that it’s non-greasy and completely odorless. A little goes a long way and I use it when I start to feel pain. I’ve used it on my knee, ankle, neck and back and I do feel some relief. It’s nice to have something in your arsenal. Last night, I put it on my right shoulder and experienced relief from a bad ache when I wrote or typed. It also helped diminish the intense pain in my knee.

I don’t believe there is a miracle pain-killer that I know of, at least not an all-natural one. However, my experience is that Noxicare has definitely helped me when flare-ups occur and helped me stay more active. My mom has Arthritis and she has found that this also helps reduce her pain and stiffness in her hands.

Would you like to try Noxicare for yourself? They have generously offered my readers the opportunity to do just that. So, please enter via Rafflecopter. I wish you good luck and less pain!

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I was sent a sample of this product for review purposes, however, the opinions expressed herein are strictly my own.

Win a $50 Amazon gc – Colors Like Memories Book Blast

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Colors Like Memories by Meradeth Houston

Julia has a secret: she killed the guy she loved. It was an accident—sort of.

Julia is a Sary, the soul of a child who died before taking her first breath. Without this ‘breath of life’ she
and others like her must help those on the verge of suicide. It’s a job Julia enjoyed, until the accident
that claimed her boyfriend’s life—an accident she knows was her fault. If living with the guilt weren’t
enough, she’s now assigned to help a girl dealing with the loss of her mother, something Julia is not
exactly the best role model for. If she can’t figure out a way to help her, Julia will lose her position in the
Sary, something she swore to her boyfriend would never happen.

From now until May 23rd Colors Like Memories is just $1.99.

Links:

Website

Twitter

Facebook

Goodreads

Blog


Author Meradeth Houston


I’ve never been a big fan of talking about myself, but if you really want to know, here are some random
tidbits about me:

  • I’m a California girl. This generally means I talk too fast and use “like” a lot.
  • I have my doctorate in molecular anthropology. Translation: I sequence dead people’s DNA and
    spend a whole lot of time in a lab, which I love.
  • I’ve been writing since I was 11 years old. It’s my hobby, my passion, and I’m so happy to get to share
    my work!
  • My other passion is teaching. There’s nothing more fun than getting a classroom of college kids fired
    up about anthropology!
  • If I could have a super-power, it would totally be flying. Which is a little strange, because I’m terrified
    of heights.

Giveaway Details: 

$50 Amazon.com Gift Code

Last day to enter is May 29th

Open to anyone who can legally enter and can receive and use
an Amazon.com Gift Code. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase
necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent’s permission. The winner will be chosen
by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new
winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any
other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of
winning. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Win a $3000 Disney Cruise!

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Acadiana’s Thrifty Mom has teamed up with American Family and an awesome group of bloggers to bring you our BIGGEST giveaway yet! One lucky fan will win a Disney Cruise for a family of 4 valued at $3000! That’s right, a Disney Cruise ♥ This awesome giveaway is brought to you by American Family and Acadiana’s Thrifty Mom, and hosted by Frugality For Less, and Debbie Does Coupons. GOOD LUCK!

*This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. You must be 18 years of age to enter to win. The winner will be responsible for transportation to and from the port of departure. This giveaway is not affiliated with Facebook, Google, Pinterest, or Twitter in any way. Please read HERE for complete rules.

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