Princess Diaries- 10/28/11

My step-daughter is 8-years-old, and even though she sticks with the trends (iCarly!), she's still a traditional girl at heart. She loves castles and princesses, and plans on living in a huge castle when she grows up. My hubby, J, and I asked her if we could live with her. Never too early to start planning retirement.

We have silly and inspiring conversations with her, and I love the profound ideas and quirky comments she comes up with. So I'm sharing my first blog entry of the "Princess Diaries".

Last Saturday when she came over, we were eating breakfast, and she was playing with a rubbery spider finger puppet (see above).
She was twirling him by one of his legs and I warned her,
"He might get dizzy!"
"And puke in your milk,"added my husband. Thanks for that image, honey!
It was dangerously close to the milk, and honestly I was more concerned that the milk would soon make contact with the floor.
She giggled, covering her mouth.
She stopped the spider merry-go-round,
"I saw a spider web at my Grandma's!" (I Love the things that kids get excited over)
"Oh yeah?" I said.
"It was beautiful!" she gushed.
She traced the web pattern in the air,
"Line, line. Spider. Line." (Yup, I could almost see it)
"So there was a spider in it?!"
"Yeah he's my friend."
"Does he have a name?" (I have a tendency to name everything, including plants)
"Yup, Webby!" she announced proudly.
"That's cute!"

An 8-year-old girl who's not scared of a spider, but befriends him? I was impressed.
"That was nice of you to leave his web. A lot of people would have ruined it."
Her shoulders sagged and hands went to her side,
"Xavier ruined it!" ( cousin Xavier the Destroyer-- how evil!)
"Oh no! I'm sorry."
Before The Destroyer came along though, she had been looking out for little Webby. She explained how she had caught flies, coaxed them to the web, released them near the web, and well, did her best so Webby wouldn't go hungry. Apparently, Webby had never heard the "Location location location" motto.

"So where do you think Webby went?" I asked.
"Florida because it's warmer and he can get a tan!" She was quite matter-of-fact about it.
Of course! November--the time of year to head South. Why would I think any differently?

We have a winner!

Congrats to Jennifer Armintrout for winning my first Giveaway!! Thanks to everyone who participated. :)

Soon I'll be starting my recurring feature "Princess Diaries", and you can be on the lookout for more Giveaways! I also posted a poem under the "My Art" tab of my blog, for those of you who have been asking to see my work-- it's a sneak peak of sorts.

Namaste~

Lynn

Official Blog Kick-Off and Giveaway!!

I'm committed. I tested this blog thing out, and I like it. Never really pictured myself as a blogger. When blogs first came out, I thought it seemed kinda conceited. But if I use Facebook, I'd be a hypocrite to think blogging was a vain hobby. And I like to write, so it's a good match. :)

It's a Friday, Pay Day, and I'm in a good mood. So lets get this started! Comment on ANY of my blogs OR subscribe to my blog (you'll have to email or FB me to let me know because I don't think it notifies me), and you'll be entered to win a $20 Amazon Giftcard. I'll do the drawing sometime early next week, and post the winner!

Also, let me know if you're interested in being a guest writer for my blog, or if you'd like to promote your book (or anything else) in one of my future giveaways. :)

Re-Imagined!! And my ADHD

I love everything creative and sometimes get frustrated that I only have time for well, one or two, creative hobbies--at least while I'm working full time. I find something new and think, "I would love to try that!" For example, I was window shopping, in Plainwell, and found a cute little sewing shop that offers classes. I immediately snatched up their info. But--time for it? On top of my other "priority hobbies"? Well, no. Sewing might suit (seriously --no pun intended!) me better when I'm 65, retired, and have a country grandma-like chair. Which brings me to the picture.... I found a local business (Allendale) run by a woman named Michelle who [re] imagines old furniture into something very shabby chic and vintage-y. So awesome! I subscribed to her blog immediately and started daydreaming about starting my own business. This is Wholesome Art. That's my term. I'm hoping to maybe have one of my own shoddy hand-me-down furniture pieces [re] imagined by her. I love this chair and desk, and others must too. She often sells her pieces even before she has time to sell them. From reading her blog, it looks like she's swamped with business, which I think is pretty awesome in today's economy. And it's recycling at its best!

So what might you [re]imagine? Something glossed in cobwebs in your basement? Something from her blog? Maybe something that's not even furniture. Use your imagination!

I'm going to [re]imagine an old piece of furniture and post it at a later date.

What are your long-forgotten-message-in-a-bottle dreams? Maybe you can dapple in one like me, even if it doesn't turn into a life long pursuit. I thought I had creative ADHD, but maybe a little dabbling is okay. :)

Here's her blog, if you're interested: http://reimaginedjustforyou.wordpress.com/
http://reimaginedjustforyou.wordpress.com/

Asylum Lake

So, I'll admit, I haven't been one to read local authors or even buy from local independent book stores. I take the easy way, click my mouse, scroll, click, and I've bought it from Amazon! A guilty thought is easily brushed aside. Why get your panties in a bunch? It's one book.

Then Borders, a national, yes national, book store chain went out of business. I have a friend who lost her job. Hmmmm..did I play a part in that? Well, not directly, right? ..Right? I can't quite convince myself. How far does the domino effect go? There's no real way to trace it.

I could go on about supporting local business. But I should get back on track.

Through my writer's group, I came across a former member's (R.A. Evans) book, Asylum Lake . I recognized that name, and was instantly intrigued. I used to go jogging at that lake when I lived nearby! I zapped an email and he confirmed that, yes, it was inspired by THE Asylum Lake, and the nearby state hospital. I was giddy!

I bought a copy from a local bookstore (Schuler's) which happened to offer $1 shipping if I bought online. I was pumped! None of this, your-total-reaches-$24.75-and-if-you-add-another-item-you-get-free-amazon-shipping!-- sometimes I really wonder how much money I've lost that way. Don't get me wrong. I love Amazon. It's one of those how-did-people-survive-without-cellphones type of things. But this was eye opening. Maybe Schuler's can compete, and has a fighting chance!

After two book hang overs (AKA staying up too late the night before and needing lots of coffee at work), I was finished. 200 or so pages in 2 days. I was mesmerized, and shocked. I don't read horror or watch horror movies. I tend towards historical fiction/romance/drama/comedy. Now maybe I was biased and wanted to like another beginner writer's (first?) published work. Maybe I was seduced by all of the local references and inside (Michigan) jokes, such as the losing Lions history. Maybe it helped that it had mystery... But it also takes a lot to grab me, especially when it's not a genre I'm not typically drawn to, and I think that has merit.

It was refreshing! Stepping out of my comfort zone in more ways than one.

I'm including the Schuler's link. I'm not including the Amazon link (although you could easily look it up) because that would just seem wrong after what I just said.

http://www.schulerbooks.com/product/asylum-lake

And the author's website.

http://www.asylumlake.com/index2.html