Present Letters

Almost...

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Fri, 03 May 2013 19:48:00 +0000

Don't forget to look at the blogpost Need a Little Excitement below for details about some upcoming events.

Next week I have two finals and then I'm out of school! Whoo-hoo! I'm still trying to figure out how to post my programs on this blog....

And I'm working on my website... so stayed tuned.

Need a Little Excitement?

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 20:26:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

You weren’t around when your sister, Rose was diagnosed with ALS. However, it was incorrectly diagnosed… which was both good and not-so-good. Good in that she lived a lot longer not having ALS, but not-so-good in that she was diagnosed with a much more rare disease that basically left her immobile before she passed. Her mind was sharp, and she had a phenomenally great attitude right to the end. Her daughter, Sharon got involved with ALS and although retired now, she told me about an event involving one of St. Louis’ own – Elaine Viets and ALS.

I was fortunate to meet Elaine at the MWG Conference. Now that I think about it, I’m also in an anthology with her… Storm Country. Not that she has any idea who I am, but... With all of these connections in one way or the other, how could I not attend this event?

May 10, 2013

5:30-7:00 p.m.

J.C. Penney Conference Center

UMSL, Room 92

One University Drive

St. Louis, MO 63121

To reserve a seat and your book, contact:

The ALS Association St. Louis Regional Chapter, 314-432-7257 or

Dianna Wunning, 314-725-4832, wunning(at)sbcglobal(dot)net

For every copy of “Board Stiff” sold for $23.95 by the ALS Association, Elaine Viets will donate 40% of the cover price, $9.58! Is that generous or what?

Since I’m talking about events…

Here’s another event I plan to support. Lucky for me these events take place after I'm out of school! Whoo-hoo, what a way to celebrate.

“Listen to Your Mother” is a live, ninety-minute stage performance, which has roots in 24 cities across America. Now it’s time for St. Louis to shine. Thirteen cast members will read their stories about motherhood. My friend and critique group member, Linda O’Connell has been chosen. Another friend, Kim Lenhoff will also be performing.

May 11, 2013

Two shows only - $15 or 2/$25

10am

2pm

Emerson Auditorium at St. Luke’s Hospital Institute of Health Education

232 South Woods Mill Road – Chesterfield, MO 63017

http://www.listentoyourmothershow.com/stlouis/about/show-information/

50% of ticket proceeds will be donated to Connections to Success, helping break the cycle of poverty through resources, hope and a plan.

It’s a nice thing that so many people contribute in all kinds of ways to worthy organizations, all in the name of helping one another.

Classes, Funeral, Play

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 00:26:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

Study, homework, read, study, class, get up and do it all over again. That’s been my life. All work and no play makes Lynn a very dull girl—and that's been my thinking lately.

I attended the funeral mass for Uncle Bob—Dad’s brother-in-law. Uncle Bob’s oldest son got up to say a few words. A beautiful tribute. I had rummaged through my purse for my pen and notebook when my cousin said that his dad said something like, “When you stop playing, that’s when you become an old man.” Uncle Bob was 92, and even though I didn’t really know him other than what I've heard—he played right to the end.

Hearing this made me realize that I’m not playing at all. Although I've recently met with some friends for dinner. I also meet my critique pals every other week. There are a few other things I allow myself since I've been in school, but daily? I don’t play daily.

That made me think, what constitutes play? Enjoying what you’re doing? Yes? I mean, if you’re having fun, even if it’s so called work, then to me you’re playing.

I journal every morning—which I love and enjoy. Maybe I am playing every day.

If programming weren’t so frustrating and confusing to me most of the time, I might even consider that play. But not so much, yet.

That made me think of something else. (Oh, I can hear my husband, son and stepson now… oh here she goes… they're the ones who give me the most trouble about running my mouth) I suppose my chatting can be like a program that has an infinite loop – ha – I made an analogy with programming. Not surprising, I dream in code.

We had a mid-term final. This class is about an hour and a half long. After what seemed like ten minutes, some genius gets up because he’s finished. I tried not to panic. I was probably on question 3 (of 25). I finished after using the entire class time. I’ll be lucky if half are correct… yeah, and it was open book. Go figure.

Okay, back to my point. (Yes… an infinite loop.)

After the exam, I was feeling dumb again. How’d that kid answer all of those questions so quickly? Who knows really, and it’s not right for me to compare. Maybe he grew up with a computer in his mouth. Maybe that’s all he does in his spare time. I thought, put him in a kitchen next to me and we’ll see who’s the genius. He’ll still be breaking eggs while my soufflé is baking in the oven. Okay, not really because I don’t do soufflés, but most anything else. But that doesn’t mean geek genius is dumb… he’s just not as experienced in the kitchen. And it doesn’t mean I’m smarter either... just more experienced as a cook.

So that’s my point. None of us are dumb. Some of us apply ourselves more than others in certain things, and some of us have more experience in certain subjects than others. That’s what makes us all so unique and interesting.

Uncle Bob, I’m glad your son shared your words of wisdom to play.

Speaking of playing, take a look at Lavender Dreams and see what she’s been playing with…

Anniversary & Advice

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 14:44:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

I could have used the piece of advice that Suzanne shared with me the other night when I was getting ready for the Camp Wyman Gala.

As always, I let doubts and insecurities slip in while getting ready, when I know darn well it makes no difference AT ALL, really. So Suzanne said, “Here’s a piece of advice Mom told me when I was a teenager fussing around preparing for a date. ‘Suzanne, get ready the best you can, then forget about it, and focus on everyone else.’”

Such words of wisdom. How many times could those words have saved me from useless worry and anxiety?

I can apply this advice in many areas, not just getting ready for an event. Whenever I’m muddled in my own self-delusions of pity or pain, I have a choice to redirect that and focus on someone else. I will remind myself of this when I slip into that black hole, to remember: I have a choice. What do I want to pay attention to?

Today, I’m paying attention to you. On the anniversary of your death 43 years ago, and the anniversary of this blog, 3 years ago.

Mothers never leave us.

It's Christmas in March!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 18:12:00 +0000

Maybe you missed it during the holidays since we're all so busy during that time of year, but don't miss it now because you can have a Christmas gift FREE.

Fifty Shades of Santa by Welkin Press (Patricia B. Smith, editor) will be free as an ebook from March 1st (today, Friday) until March 5th (Tuesday). You can get your free copy here:

http://amzn.to/W9501h

Tell your friends, your relatives, your co-workers, your neighbors, your enemies (oh wait, none of you have those, do you?), tell anyone you know. I mean, what do you have to lose, but a little bit of your time? And what do you have to gain? Some really nice (not naughty) romance stories. Hey, and I'm in there!

Back in December, I crammed in one more thing during the busy holiday season and did a reading for my story, "Mistletoe." You can check out my blog that boosts about the event. It's too bad you missed it because I gave away some cute home-made ornaments (and chocolate!). But tell you what, if you get your free copy and send me an email with your address, I'll mail you an ornament that you can adorn your 2013 Christmas tree. Now, that's two gifts in one. I only have so many ornaments, so hurry. My email address: Lober13(at)gmail(dot)com and if you would, put in the subject line: Ornament.

HO HO HO - MERRY MARCH CHRISTMAS!!!

Happy Birthday Momma!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 03:02:00 +0000

I say "momma" but I wonder if that's what I'd call you if you were alive - or would I say Mom or Mother, or a combination?

I'm called all three names by my three children, depending on what kind of mood they're in.
"Oh Momma." When they are feeling more sentimental.
"Oh Mom." When I've done something they're not too pleased with and usually for general usage.
"Oh Mother." When I've really embarrassed them.
It's more the tone that says it all.

I also wonder when I'm long gone and it's my birthday, will my kids celebrate it anyway?

Over the past 43 years since you've been gone, I know I didn't acknowledge your birth every year. Sometimes the day presses on my heart and I can't let it slip by.

Happy 96th Birthday!

image from http://www.freepik.com/

***********************************

What are you called and does it matter to you? Or what do you call your Mother? Does it matter to her?

New Words

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 18:54:00 +0000

One of my critique buddies scribbled "sounds trite” on my piece. I was too embarrassed to say, “What’s trite?” I sort of understood what the word meant, but I wanted a better understanding so I wouldn’t be trite again. I got up and pulled the dictionary off the bookshelf. Okay, I didn’t. I wanted to. I like books better than the computer, but instead I opened up the laptop, searched the Internet for dictionary.com. These are the things I love about the Internet. Information at your fingertips. I don’t utilize the Internet as much as I could for the very reason, I’d never get anything accomplished, other than stuffing my already full brain with more info. Not that that’s a bad thing.

Trite: lacking in freshness, archaic, rubbed or worn by use. Hackneyed; dull

synonym: ordinary

antonym: original

Okay, it’s worse than I thought. I don’t want to be ordinary and dull in my writing. Now I have to admit, I didn’t know the meaning of hackneyed either, which I want to pronounce: hack-an-eyed (sounds like something my mom would have said when frustrated with her sewing: "Oh hack-an-eyed!") but it’s hack-need, I know. And the meaning of hackneyed: made commonplace.

When I’m reading a page-turner book and come across a word I’m not quite sure the meaning or simply haven't heard before, I am too lazy to get the dictionary. I want to keep on reading. I say to myself, “Oh, I’ll go back and look that up later.” I also get the jest of the meaning based on the sentence. And as you’ve seen by what I did looking up trite, it leads to looking up another word. I’d spend all day with my nose in the dictionary.

That is a poor decision on my part—not looking up the meaning of words—and it’s no wonder my vocabulary stinks.

Now that I’m going to school for Web Development, I MUST know certain words. Some of these words aren’t exclusive to programming. These are words one should know anyway… like integer. Integer means whole number. Seems most folks know that, but I didn’t. I thought it was a programming term and wondered why that couldn’t just say whole number.

I’d like to excuse myself for not knowing integer because: A) I’m not good in Math, more so Algebra and beyond. [Ah, not really an excuse]; B) I only know basic Math [Well, there are whole numbers involved in basic Math, but I never knew integer.]; C) The last Math class that I had in 9^th grade, I was more worried about a girl in there who frightened me. And D) That Math teacher had the personality of a soap dish [and that might be giving him a little more than he deserves]; Oh and don’t forget: E) That was all the Math requirement needed to graduate from high school. [Having no real guidance, that was it for me for Math.]

Since I’m lacking in my writing due to learning coding, maybe I’ll pick a random word from the dictionary and blog about it. Increase my vocabulary and get a little writing accomplished.

What about you? Do you look up words when you’re reading?

Happy Valentine's Day!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 14:49:00 +0000

Image from: http://www.webweaver.nu/clipart/valentines/

Valentine's Day is my favorite holiday, however, I don't make a big ta-do about it. It's my favorite because it's all about love. What's not to love about love? So Happy Valentine's Day everyone, especially to those having a difficult time.

Sending love your way...

School and Other Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 01:49:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

School is going well, and as I figured, it is consuming most of my time. Hence, it’s already February! Haven’t blogged in three weeks, barely do any social media. I feel like a hermit.

Everyone who said I’d love school was right. However, my brain is on overload. Today I’m going to make flash cards to remember all the important lingo that goes with HTML and programming.

The other night when I was in the ER, I watched the nurse inputting info into the hospital system. All I could think of was the person who created that program had to be a Master Geek—and I use that term ‘geek’ in the highest regard of respect—considering how little I know at this point and how long it takes me. I marvel at what goes on behind the scenes.

I was hoping to display a program I’m working on for class as you creative folks might find it fun. Maybe next post.

Ever since school started, I’ve been dreaming in codes.

Needless to say, but I’ll say it anyway, I’ve managed only two weeks of the Mindful Writing Challenge. I was going to sketch daily… uh, that stopped too. I talked about writing an essay a day… errr, well, maybe I wrote five (rough at that). My weekly blog is more like monthly. Blog reading… hmmm, I try. Oh and I had to change my comment thing where you must enter the garbled words to comment because the spammers were bombarding me.

I want to thank Kathy from Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy for awarding me, which I may not deserve any longer (perhaps when school is over). Her blog is chock full of all kinds of things.

Sending love to my friend Kim who’s going through a difficult time. And my cousin, Jane.

My friend Michele makes beautiful stars—I had her make me some blue ones for my little Christmas tree (that I put away just a week ago).

Aren’t they beautiful? Let me know if you’d like some for your tree and I’ll hook you up. You know, Christmas will be here before we know it at the way time is flying by. She makes star jewelry too.

And last, but not least, although I’m sure I’m leaving a bunch of stuff out, but I’ll be attending a spiritual seminar here in St. Louis, Missouri in mid-February. If you’re so inclined, it’s free for guests. The guest speaker, Linda Anderson is an author. The seminar may or may not be your cup of tea, but I’m sure you’d enjoy Linda’s talk.

Hope everyone is healthy and happy! Now back to homework...

Inspiration and Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 16:13:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

My posts may slow up as I’m going to school this semester. Learning web production, html and all that techy stuff and then with any luck at all, I’ll be creating a new look with my personal website: lynnobermoeller.com. The “Dear Mom” may go bye-bye, although you’ll always be there in heart.

What I want to share with you has to do with another one of your creative grandchildren, Victoria. You know she’s a professor of music at Macalester College in St. Paul, MN, however, recently she has decided to share her own music with the universe. She started a blog where she will post a new song each week. The first song, “Hold On” brought me to tears—I cried like a baby. How could one not be moved by this piece? Go to Cool Awesome Whatever and listen for yourself. You won’t be disappointed. Scroll down to the first post - Welcome to my blog.

She already has a second song, "Why" posted. Thanks for sharing--it is more than cool awesome.

Last Saturday, I attended St. Louis Writers Guild’s (SLWG) monthly workshop, featuring Catherine Rankovic on essay writing. (You can check out more at her website BookEval.) Talk about another cool awesome.... Because I journal daily—free writing—it wasn’t difficult for me to use Catherine’s approach in free writing an essay. I’ve decided rather than ramble and whine like I normally do in my journal, I’d step it up a few notches and write an essay every day. Thanks Catherine.

Beautiful people doing beautiful things, how's that for inspiration?

Happy 2013 New Year!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 23:07:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

Amazing how fast time flies… just finished a book The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom on that very subject. Interesting. In the weeks leading up to Christmas until now, I also read Margo Dill’s, Finding My Place, as well as The Lifeboat by Charlotte Rogan, Talk Before Sleep by Elizabeth Berg and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. And don't forget Fifty Shades of Santa edited by Patrica Smith. I really loved all the books, page turners until the end. I couldn’t wait until I was at the end, and yet, I didn’t want them to end. Hhmmm. All different writers with their unique voices, which helped clear up some self-badgering I do… thinking I wish I could write like that. But how boring if all writing were the same. We all have different tastes… you know the saying, different strokes for different folks.

I love to write, always will and whether or not it measures up to others doesn’t need to be a concern. It’s about putting my heart and soul into it and to just be. Just be… a writer. My own kind.

And with that, I’d like to invite you all to check out The Writers' Lens as there’s a little ole interview with me. Thanks Teresa for inviting me.

May you all have a safe, healthy, prosperous and creative New Year… whether you write, paint, sculpt, play music, do photography, crafts, film, sew, cook, whatever you create… get a move on and do your thing!

Writers, here’s something you can submit to: Cupid’s Quiver. Don’t waste any time as the deadline is January 15^th. Click on the poster for submission details.

And if you’re looking for a challenge to get you in the habit of writing every day, maybe try this—I’m going to... try. I heard about it from my friend Estrella from Life's a Stage. Check out: Mindful Writing Challenge

Yes, Yes, Yes! I'm Pretty Sure... Success!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 20:32:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

Yes, socializing is exhausting. Do you feel that way? As an introvert, it wipes me out. I had three days in a row of it… Saturday and Sunday, I helped my daughter Rita with her two craft fairs. Yesterday (Monday) was the event Rita created for me to do a reading of my story, Mistletoe, published in Fifty Shades of Santa, by Welkin Press. Fifty Shades of Santa is 12 (Nice, Not Naughty) Humorous Holiday Romances.

I worked through my nerves all day long… researched mistletoe, bagged the prizes for the drawing, tried on what I was going to wear. Had I filled my mouth with any more of Sioux’s fudge, my pants may have split… I practiced reading. I made numbers for the drawing, and a sign-in sheet. I piddled around all day getting prepared for the event.

Then the time arrived for me to leave. I couldn’t find my phone before I went down to hubby’s work to get the sign he made for me. He had been waiting… what can I say? However, I did give up looking or he might still be waiting. I stopped for gas and when I got back in my car, I could hear my phone vibrating. It was in my purse. Nerves will do that, right? Hubby was calling to see if he could hear it in the house some where.

Rita and Terry (her beau) met me a The Gelateria to set up for the event.

All set and ready to go

Ho Ho Ho!

We’re a pair, aren’t we?

Rita and Lynn

Then people started trickling in… Kristine and her mom, Karen. My sister, Sue. My WWWP gals, Sioux and Tammy. Sioux drove some other writing friends, who are also published in Fifty Shades of Santa… Donna Volkennannt and Marcia Gaye. Marcia’s husband, Jim came along too! Other friends of Rita’s, John and Krista joined us. The gelato maker, Carrie stepped on in. My other sister, Ruth and her hubby, Bud and son, Josh arrived. It was past the starting time, and I wasn’t sure if anyone else was going to make it. My BFF, Susan said she was coming, but you never know about these things, so I got the show on the road… err… the stool and began to read.

To the left where that door opening is,

there's a little cubby hole, Bud and Josh were in there!

That's my favorite spot to sit and write at The Gelateria.

Nearly half way, three more of Rita’s friends popped in, Bryan, Kristin, and another young lady, but I didn’t get her name. If you read this, tell me who you are!

I finished reading without my tongue getting too twisted. Yes, a success. And I’m so grateful to all who ventured out as I know it’s a pretty good trek for some. Let me say, I really appreciated it from the bottom of my heart. You made me feel comfortable and I hope you all had a jolly good time… that was my intent… fun and silliness... and let's not forget the love... or the chocolate. Rita made the container holding the chocolate that looks like Santa’s sack.

Terry and the Santa Sack

I had to get some pics with the other authors from Fifty Shades of Santa.

Donna Volkenannt (left), me, Marcia Gaye (right)

Here we are, just the three of us (pretend you're singing that one song),

but here we are with the sign.

If it weren't for my WWWP peeps, chances are my story might not have made it... those gals are wonderful.

Tammy (left), me, Sioux (right)

Missing in action are Linda and Beth.

After it was over, I hung out with Rita, Terry, John and Krista to settle myself down. Gelato will do that, don’t you know?

John, Krista, Terry chilling

Rita chilling

When I was in my car on my way home, I checked my phone and had a voice mail from my BFF. "Hey Lynn, it's Susan. Give me a call." It was late and I didn’t want to wake her. By the sound of her voice, I didn't think anything was wrong, so I chalked it up that she’s like me and just plum forgot.

I called her this morning and found out that she was on her way to the reading with her mom Elsie, her aunt Audi and her other BFF Cindy when they were rear-ended. Smacked hard! Eye glasses, soda, hair barrettes flew through the air. Elsie felt the worst of the impact. Paramedics were called and they checked her over. Having a pace-maker raised concern. She refused to go to the hospital. Susan took her home and called her sister, Katie who’s a nurse and she came over and took care of everything.

Nothing serious, thank God. The paramedics made Elsie promise she’d see a doctor today and she plans on going. I sure hope everything is fine.

And Yes again, I’m incredibly grateful the accident wasn’t any more serious. They were all sad they missed it, so I promised them a private reading of their own!

P.S. A special thank you to Chris, the owner of The Gelateria! And those who worked that evening… a big thank you.

And now for some more pictures…

Santa's little helper, Rita

They look like they're having fun.

In the hand of Kristin is a little hand-made by me ornament,

something all attendees received. Purchase a copy of Fifty Shades of Santa

and I'll send you one... while they last.

UhOh, Mistletoe! UPDATE!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 19:22:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

You know that my story, Mistletoe, was one of 12 stories that was accepted and published in the anthology, Fifty Shades of Santa, by Welkin Press. Fifty Shades of Santa is 12 (Nice, Not Naughty) Humorous Holiday Romances.

Don’t you just love the cover?

Your granddaughter, Rita thought it would be a good idea for me to read my story at the Italian dessert café/coffeehouse where she works as the baker… all homemade pastries, breads, etc. In addition to coffee, they make their own gelato, hence, The Gelateria. Never had gelato? Well you may want to make the trip just for that experience. Did I mention the owner and all the people who work there are super-dooper nice? And it’s such a cool place. They’ve recently renovated the upstairs—where I’ll be located…

On Monday, December 17^th at 7:00 p.m.

The Gelateria

3197 S. Grand Blvd., St. Louis, 63110

314-776-3500

directions

… and where I hope to entertain you with my story… and if you’re coming straight from work, The Gelateria has food-food too... you know, not just desserts and sugary items. Check out the menu.

I suggested that Rita, the brains behind this shing-dig, bring some of her hand-made egabrag crafts to sell for anyone who has some last minute holiday shopping to do.

The fun doesn’t stop there… I’ll be doing a drawing for some silly prizes. And there will be free chocolate…

Not only that, but I have a special item for the first 25 people who stop by.

AND, we might have another special guest (or two) also doing a reading from Fifty Shades of Santa!

Now if that doesn’t entice you to come with bells on, maybe you’ll want to purchase Fifty Shades of Santa when it’s available. UPDATE: Now available on Amazon - Kindle only - for just $3.99!

If I don’t see you, have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Ho Ho Ho on the Go Go Go and Mistletoe!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 19:28:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

Last Friday I told you about the packed day I was going to have on Saturday. Thought you might like to see a few shots from that non-stop, action-filled whirlwind.

The craft fair -

My daughter, Rita and my sister, Ruth

Book signing one at All on the Same Page Book Store in Creve Coeur -

Left to Right: Nina Miller, Patt Pickett, Tammy Goodsell, Theresa Sanders

Book signing two at Main Street Books in St. Charles -

Linda O'Connell, Lynn Cahoon, Cathi LaMarche, Pat Wahler

Book signing three at The Book House on Manchester -

Donna Volkenannt, Sioux Roslawski, Beth Wood

I must add that I had a blast at each one. I'm so proud and grateful for all my friends. After the last book signing, I went home, showered and then hubby and I went to a Christmas party. No pictures for that.

Oh and what about Mistletoe? I'll get back with you tomorrow for all those details.

Don't Forget...

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 14:47:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

Tomorrow I have a packed day. I'll start off helping my daughter, Rita and little sister, Ruth set up for a craft fair at the Hazelwood Community Center.

Check out Rita's blog for details, if interested.

After setting up, I'll shop around and see if I can snag a few more presents. Then I'll hop in my car and head to the first of three Chicken Soup for the Soul book signings and canned food drive. YAY for all my fabulous friends!

Check out Tammy's blog for the first book signing in Creve Coeur. I've never been to this book store before, so I'm looking forward to this new adventure. What writer doesn't love a book store? Then I'll zoom over to old St. Charles.

Check out Linda's blog or Pat's blog for the second book signing. I'll be in that area tonight celebrating my best friend's birthday. It's her birthday today... HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUSAN! I've been to this book store and it's charming. The owner is as sweet as she can be.

Next I'll travel closer to home to one of my other favorite book stores to see more friends.

Check out Beth's blog, or Sioux's blog, or Donna's blog. They'll all be there. This book store is an old house and I just learned it's haunted. I can't wait!

When I get home with my pile of signed books, I hope to get a nap in before hubby and I venture out to a Christmas party. I'll be recouping Sunday, don't ya know?

Stay tuned, there's more fun to come... ho, ho, ho.

The Next Big Thing

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Tag! I'm it! Sioux from Sioux’s Page, tagged me. She answered these same questions on her blog. Because Sioux was so kind as to say that I inspired her to write her book in progress that she wrote during this year’s NaNoWriMo, well… I wanted to oblige her.

And like Sioux said, after you read my answers, hopefully Pat Wahler will accept being "it" and will post next Tuesday. I know Pat has also participated in NaNoWriMo more than once. Also as Sioux says, “Inquiring minds want to know...”

You’re tagged Pat: http://critteralley.blogspot.com/

And here are my answers:

What is your working title of your book? The Locked Heart. I haven’t changed the title since I wrote it last year as a NaNoWriMo project.

Where did the idea come from for the book? Originally it was to be the thread in a previous book that I had written which was an accumulation of one-sided letters written to an aunt in a nursing home (who was unable to write back)… but I needed something to tie all the letters together and thought this idea would do it. However, it turned out to be a story in itself.

What genre does your book fall under? I wanted it to fall under epistolary, guess that would be fictional epistolary, as that’s the structure of all five drafts of my books – in some form of letter writing/journal writing/diary type form. But about half way through the book, the story just took over – so the first half is in journal form while the second half is in regular (?) form. Now I have to decide which way I’m going to go…

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition? Ellen DeGeneres comes to mind to play one particular character. I’d love for Viggo Mortensen (that one is for you, Sioux) to play a role, and gee, I have no idea about the main character. Any thoughts WWWPs?

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book? A niece and aunt resolve their estranged relationship over preconceived issues and the magic of a locket opens the door to truth neither wanted to accept.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency? I’ll consider either when that time comes… who knows what the publishing world will be like then. But if there’s an agent out there interested, bring it on.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript? Less than 30 days. Like I said before, it was a NaNoWriMo project that I wrote in 2011. I’m still working on it – that’s the hard part: rewriting, revision, rewriting, editing, rewriting. Did I mention rewriting?

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre? I have no idea. I’m pretty sure I’ve read every epistolary type book that is out there and I haven’t read anything like this.

Who or what inspired you to write this book? I’ve been inspired by so many people. One leads to the other that leads to the other… over the years I’ve been blessed by so many writer and non-writer friends/family that have been supportive. You all know who you are… and a huge thank you to all of you.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest? I think there are a lot of different layers of universal themes running throughout… or that’s my hope anyway. Love, intimacy/non-intimacy, prejudices, misunderstandings, misconceptions. People are most important regardless of their beliefs concerning anything. It’s all about the love, no matter what kind of love.

Chicken Soup and Santa

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 13:00:00 +0000

For you Chicken Soup for the Soul lovers, you better head on over to my pal, Sioux’s blog and get the scoop of the various book signings going on. All of my WWWP gals will be signing books that have their stories in them. Some other friends of mine will be there too! At least one of us WWWPs will run around cheering them on. I’m just grateful that they’re all at different times since they’re at different locations. I’m excited for them.

I’ve come to the conclusion that I may not be a Chicken Soup writer, even though I’m told I write better non-fiction than fiction.

One genre in fiction that I didn't think I could write was romance… humorous romance, and go figure, I’ve received a contract for my story to appear in Fifty Shades of Santa anthology. When I told my youngest daughter, Rita, she said, “That makes sense.”

“How?”

“Well…you’ve been married four times.”

Gee, thanks Rita. I’m pretty sure that doesn’t qualify me to write humorous romance, but…

This is the same daughter who came home from kindergarten or first grade with a little booklet—a fill in the blank—I believe it was for Mother’s Day. My mom is good at _____________. My mom helps me with _______________. My mom says that I’m _________________. I can’t recall the exact wording, but they were filled in with sweet words written like a beginner, misspellings and all.

The last fill-in sentence threw me for a loop in two ways. One, because it was on the negative side. It said, My mom isn’t very good at _______________. Two, was Rita’s answer. In all her innocence and honesty she fills in “finding a husband or boyfriend.” ACK. This was shortly after my third divorce.

We learn from our mistakes, eh? Maybe Rita’s right. She was right in first grade! When the book is out, you can decide for yourself. I still wonder…

Don’t forget, head over to Sioux’s page.

Do You Share Recipes?

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

I’ve had a hard time writing anything worthwhile—even to blog. I’ve written every day—mostly journaling, and well, who really cares how much time I spend writing on any given day? I know I write. Some days more than others. I also know I can’t NOT write… otherwise they’ll haul me away and throw away the key.

While cooking for Thanksgiving I’m reminded of how I tell this story at the feast I prepare each year… the one where I’m trying to perfect sweet potatoes—the sweet potatoes that I had one year at a friend’s house. Not really sure if he was my friend because he wouldn’t give me the recipe. He stated, “Oh, I just add a little of this, and a little of that.” I can still picture him waving his arms, prancing, all giddy. He knew these sweet potatoes were, well, sweeeeeet. He wouldn’t even say what was “this” and “that” but since I’m not the dumbest rock in the box, I figured butter and brown sugar were key.

These sweet potatoes haunt me every year, and this was BC – Before Children. I was dating the soon-to-be dad of my three children. He was living with this friend—the same friend who made the yummiest sweet potatoes I’ve ever tasted. The same friend who wanted to date me after I got divorced. Had I been thinking… maybe had I dated him I’d have that sweet potato recipe.

However, 30 years later and I’m still at it. Still trying to make the sweet potatoes the way he did. Who says I’m a quitter?

At my own Thanksgiving dinner, I hear, “These are the best sweet potatoes.” or “I don’t really like sweet potatoes, but these are good!” That’s when I step on my soapbox and rant about my saga of the sweet potatoes. I look up and curse Billy Bob (made up name) because bless his soul, he’s deceased and he took the recipe to his grave. Think of the pleasure he could have given many and the honors he’d receive in his name. When I’ve mastered it, I will share it with the entire world! But it will be my recipe, not Billy Bob’s.

That got me thinking about recipes… do you share recipes? I mean, I get how certain businesses can’t share, but what about just an ordinary person? Take for instance when my niece was married—her husband's grandmother was Italian whom supposedly had the best tiramisu. I wanted an authentic recipe to enter a work-related dessert contest. I had to swear on my life that I wouldn’t share the recipe with anyone. Not a soul. I’m sure my niece did lots of begging just in order for me to have it. Seriously, he almost did not share it. And no, his grandmother didn’t own some sort of bakery.

I don’t know what all the fuss was about because the recipe wasn’t all that great. (Sorry Grandma Whatsyourname.) I lost out to a cheesecake, and I haven’t made tiramisu since. And no, I won’t share the recipe because I promised I wouldn’t. I will share any of my recipes, but mostly they’re from someone else or a cookbook.

Oh, but you can bet I’ll share the candied sweet potatoes once it’s mastered. Hopefully that’ll be some time in the next 30 years.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving and may you walk away with recipes that you love!

Update on WiWoDoNaNo

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 14:43:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

It's clear I'm not as disciplined by being a WiWoDoNaNo versus an official NaNoWriMo participant, but I am writing every day. I write every day anyway, it's just I'm more aware of how much I'm writing.

I was out of town this weekend, but I scribbled a few words. I'm using amounts of time versus word count this November.

November 1: One hour, 35 minutes
November 2: One hour, 45 minutes
November 3: One hour, 10 minutes
November 4: 15 minutes
November 5: 15 minutes

I think I can add a little time to a few of these days, if I include some writing that wasn't personal. On November 4 and 5, I could add an additional two hours and 30 minutes--and that's for each day.

Hey, it's writing, right?

Oh, and here is a picture of my sweet niece, Victoria and me. We were in front of Lake Minnetonka in Excelsior, MN. The photo was taken by Victoria's partner, Kate--photographer extraordinaire!

Photo by Kate Lockhart

WiWoDoNaNo

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

Every year on November 1st, writers from all over--at least those that choose to do so--participate in NaNoWriMo. I've told you about it before... like, last November. I participated in NaNoWriMo for the past two years and was on the fence about it this year.

So... I'm unofficially going to do NaNo, with my critique group (WWWPs - that stands for Wild Women Wielding Pens - that name came from the clever Sioux), and the other clever one, Tammy created our little unofficial official shield for Wi(ld)Wo(men)DoNaNo. Yes, the other two (Linda and Beth) are clever too. Yeah, me too. I guess that's why we all gel so well.

We'll be writing/rewriting whatever we feel like versus strictly fiction. This way we can ride the wave of NaNoWriMo! Woot! Woot! I learned about Woot! Woot! my first year doing NaNo. I'm not sure if it still exists, but I'm Woot! Wooting! anyway.

Good luck to everyone participating or not... just keep writing.

Stay tuned here for reports of my November daily writing... or in my case, rewriting.

And if you want to see a few photos of where I spent a day in MN, Kate at A Curious Endeavor shows it quite well.

Kitty Kitty

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

I know you were never much of a cat fan, but how can you resist these little stinkers? Which kitty do you think is the most adorable?

Myrtle the Turtle

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

Not only does watermelon remind me of you, it is my favorite fruit. I just bought one at Trader Joe’s and I was a little worried it might not be very good since it’s towards the end of the watermelon season. But oh, was it delicious. I think that’s the last one I’ll purchase for the year so as not to ruin the watermelon season for myself.

What does this have to do with Myrtle the Turtle? Hang on, I’m getting to it.

I cut up the watermelon and put the rinds in a bag to carry out to the woods—hoping some critter would find it a tasty treat. And surprise, here’s what I saw…

Can you see him in the lower left corner?

Here he is!

As soon as I spotted it, it reminded me of my younger years when we’d go to Uncle Harold and Aunt Mary’s farm. Once we got there, you’d let Ruthie roam wherever we wanted and off into the woods we’d go… seemed like we’d always find a turtle. Sometimes you’d let us take the turtle home.

Remember when we found a three-legged turtle that we named Myrtle the Turtle? And Myrtle the Turtle lived in our basement… that is until the day Myrtle was in the wrong spot—where Dad pulled the car in and….

I guess you cleaned up the mashed Myrtle before Ruthie and I got come from school. You never told us what really happened, but that Myrtle must have gotten away. We found out from Dad many, many years later that he ran over Mrytle. I never held it against Dad, after all, it was an accident. But as an immature kid, would I have seen it that way?

Do you think that was the right decision looking back? To protect children from knowing the truth—fearing it’d be too traumatic or that we would’ve resented Dad for not being more careful?

I did the same thing to my daughter, Rita. She was in Kindergarten when I broke the news that her black cat, Spaz ran away. In reality, I drove Spaz to the Humane Society. Trust me, I had a good reason why, and I didn’t feel Rita was mature enough to understand. I too, had protected her from seeing the truth about someone.

I wonder whether I would have acted differently if you had told us the truth about Myrtle?

Courage

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Sun, 14 Oct 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

I had a 40^th grade school reunion about a week ago. A few traveled from out of state: all the way from California and two from Texas. Several drove hours from Illinois and the outskirts of Missouri. It was nice that those who came made the effort.

I personally was impressed with one classmate. One who was bullied—it wasn’t called that back then, but that’s what it was… I feel shame for not being brave enough to have put an end to it. Or for not truly being her friend. I was kind of dumb.

I think about my own kids and how they were brave enough to help the underdog. I thank God that I at least taught them better. I found out years later that my own baby had been picked on in high school… she never told me then. But talk about a heart breaker.

I’m not a poet, so my critique friends gave me a few tips. Thank you.

This poem could be for my daughter too, but I wrote it for my classmate.

Courage

I could never be that brave.

Day after day after day

teased, tormented,

Ugly words slapping her face.

Nearly everyone participated

in some shape or form.

I don’t know how

she held her head high.

“Sticks and stones may break my bones,

but words will never hurt me.”

They hurt me just watching.

I wasn’t brave.

I didn’t stand up and

say, “Stop it. Leave her alone.”

Darkness settled near me, I feared I’d be next.

No, I wasn’t brave.

I wondered when she got home

from school whether she dreamed

of a better life. Did she write in her diary

who she hated, anger filling page after page?

Or were the pages soaked

from tears spilling out, endlessly?

Because sticks and stones…

words do hurt.

There are choices

wallow in self-pity, or pick up

all the pieces and put yourself back together again.

Make a difference in the world.

To be so brave.

I’ve always admired

and will always admire

her beauty, her strength

her courage.

With love,

Lynn

Kale

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 18:30:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

You cooked and served a lot of odd things before, but I don’t ever remember kale being one of them. I read somewhere that kale is good for my body type, but I’ve never eaten it. Until…

At one of our critique meetings, Sioux brought us each a little bag with some kale chips that she had made. I devoured the entire bag of the little curly crisp leaves. Then I craved them.

My daughter, Rita and I went to Tower Grove Farmer’s Market one Saturday. Rita thought it opened at 7AM and wanted to get there on time in the event a vendor had fresh milk and butter—since she heard it disappeared fast.

The market didn’t open until 8AM, so we sat on the steps and watched the farmers set out their produce. There was honey, coffee, tea, breads, pastry, poultry, beef, gelato, soap, flowers, crafts, and of course, fruits and vegetables—whatever was in season. The Holy Crepe (love that name) served crepes out of this converted short bus that is now a traveling crepe feast. Ten Lives had cats for adoption (another cat-chy name - oh, I couldn't resist). I can’t forget Praise the Lard (who sold pork). Rather clever names for a farmer’s market.

I was on a mission to find kale and had no idea if it was in season or not. I spotted two vendors selling kale. The first bunch of kale I purchased was an oval shaped, flat leaf. It didn’t look anything like Sioux’s kale. The next batch had some weird looking shapes in the bag, but I bought it anyway. Part of me wondered if they were passing off some greenery as kale. As we were leaving, I spotted a craft vender that had some herbs and the curly kind of kale, but I was out of money…

After I got home, I washed, dried and prepped the leaves in olive oil and sea salt, then baked the kale in the oven. I searched in the Internet for kale and found there are different varieties. The following came from Wikipedia.

Kales can be classified by leaf type:

· Curly leaved (Scots Kale)

· Plain leaved

· Rape Kale

· Leaf and spear (a cross between curly leaved and plain leaved Kale)

· Cavolo nero (also known as black cabbage, Tuscan Cabbage, Tuscan Kale, Lacinato, and dinosaur Kale)

I’m not sure which variety one particular leaf I bought falls under, but it reminded me of a pin oak leaf (see top photo, middle leaf). Kind of tasted like one too—or at least how I imagined a brown, crunchy fallen pin oak leaf might taste. Forget about eating the stem. You’d need to be a horse or a cow that had plenty of experience chewing hay. The curly leaf was light and crisp and nearly melted in your mouth.

I’m a curly leaf kind of gal, what about you?

Grand Dogs

noreply@blogger.com (Lynn) — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 18:30:00 +0000

Dear Mom,

Guess you didn’t know you are a great grandmother… to dogs. Sorry, you never were much of a dog person, at least from what I can remember.

I visited Rita one day at her house on The Hill and she pulled out different crafts that she was working on for her business, EgabragCrafts. She left the room and came back with one of her babies—a pug named Gramma.

Gramma, "Oh for the love of..."

Doc looks up, "Where's mine?"

Gramma: "You'll be sorry..."

She left with Gramma and came back with Computer. I have no idea what kind of dog he is, but if you put Computer in a Star Wars ewok costume, he passes for an ewok hands down. I’m pretty sure he was less than thrilled to be dressed like a skeleton.

"Please, don't ever do that again."

Their beagle, Goddie cried out...

"Whoooooo.... stop the madness.”