tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11736996901759458682024-03-05T22:21:25.897-08:00The Blundering DiscovererTravishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07000608743521241210noreply@blogger.comBlogger202125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-62357046712075033862020-06-06T06:55:00.003-07:002020-06-06T06:55:35.967-07:00Seniors 2020, I Feel Your Pain. My Graduation Was ... Unique, Too.<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">The 2020 school year is in various stages of wrapping up, and COVID has taken the stage instead of the graduates. Seeing the graduate's disappointment reminds me of my high school days and how much I hated school, and just how fitting my final day in high school was. That day will always be one of the funniest incidences of my youth. I should preface by saying that I now have a GED.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">So, I was valedictorian of my graduating class, which might sound impressive until you discover that I was also the very first graduate of my school, Christian Fellowship Academy. Yes, I attended a small, private school, which was basically, a one-room schoolhouse attached to a church, which was out in the middle of a cotton field, which was out in the middle of no where. I would love to tell you that I was outstanding in my field, but I would have to clarify that I was actually out, standing in my field.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">Being a homeschool graduate in the 80s was being a pioneer in many ways, and it was certainly unprecedented. As the first graduate of a school, I was allowed some creativity, and the principal commissioned me to choose the school colors!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not many people can boast that claim, (if it’s a claim worth boasting.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I chose blue and white, the colors of Westbrook ISD, my former school before leaving the public school system. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">Being the first also presented some challenges that were unique. In order to graduate, I would have to acquire my own graduation gown. (In those days, you didn't simply order one on Amazon.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went down to Westbrook and asked if I could order an additional gown when they ordered their blue robes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They agreed to help me and we arranged to have the gown shipped directly to my school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The gowns were scheduled to arrive a week before graduation, but they were shipped late.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, the shipment came only two days before graduation, and I was highly stressed over my predicament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, the real stress began when I opened the box.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Somehow, the order got mixed up and they sent me nine red gowns, instead of one blue gown.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was too late to fix the mix-up, so I changed the school colors to red and white.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not many people can claim to have enough influence to change their school’s colors on a moment’s notice! But, it makes for a fun story, so let’s roll with it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">My family and I practiced my march down the isle of our small church, but realized that “Pomp and Circumstance” wouldn’t play one full round due to the short isle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, we decided that Vicky, our pianist, would play the song all the way through, and then I would step out, and walk as painfully slow as I could manage. (I must have looked like a bride’s maid slowly gliding to the altar.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We practiced until everything went smoothly. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrgdk3s6qth_NLs1kJdKZXJxRU2COX3Ivsf-nPEkeNlOVkYeTsIF9ksX6vGdlxHCDy8LfqgvP_FnV4nSjPsbEkt8d5nTbXI0PVn3zEnhjUydoaCk23_O7JNTxIDcV8-UTgb3ehmhDeWYY/s1600/Will+Graduation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1089" data-original-width="1600" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrgdk3s6qth_NLs1kJdKZXJxRU2COX3Ivsf-nPEkeNlOVkYeTsIF9ksX6vGdlxHCDy8LfqgvP_FnV4nSjPsbEkt8d5nTbXI0PVn3zEnhjUydoaCk23_O7JNTxIDcV8-UTgb3ehmhDeWYY/s320/Will+Graduation.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">An hour before graduation, Vicky called to tell us that she was not going to make it that night, but she had given the music to an alternate pianist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Barbara had never played “Pomp and Circumstance” but felt reasonably certain that she could handle the piece. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">When time came for the march, I stood in the back with my red gown and listened as Barbara started playing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In all the confusion, no one told her that she was supposed to play the entire song once through before I would start my painfully slow march.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When Barbara started playing and realized that I wasn’t marching, she assumed that something was wrong and stopped playing. I didn’t know what to do, but someone told Barbara to start playing again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She did, but stopped again when she didn’t see me marching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.800000190734863px; text-align: center;">The only other photo I have of graduation.</td></tr>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">In the back of the church, we huddled up and decided that when the music started again I would march without waiting for a full round.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately, Barbara was becoming rattled from all the confusion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While we were reorganizing my march, someone whispered the original plan to her, but we didn’t realize that she was up to speed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She decided to set a faster tempo for the first round, and slow down for the actual march.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">Alas, we didn’t know that she would play one full round.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, when the music started at that fast tempo, I stepped out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was making good time until Barbara saw that I was marching to her rhythm. Surprised, she slowed down in the middle of my progression.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had to alter my speed and almost fell down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fortunately, it was a short isle and I was at the stage in a flash.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I called it my “Prompt Circumstance.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The rest of the ceremony went fine, except that I was redder than my gown, and I dropped my graduation trophy and bent it in half.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh—and I should mention that there is no evidence of this event, as the only known recording was accidentally recorded over a few weeks later while hastily attempting to catch an episode of MacGyver.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">And the reason I have a GED—no college would accept my high school transcript and I had to get one before I could enroll. Not every valedictorian proudly displays a GED alongside his diploma! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";">My life is always eventful. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "times";"><a href="https://traviswinman.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-relay-disaster.html">Here's another fun high school story about the very last track meet I ran. It was a record-breaking event, and I was formally asked to leave the track by a man holding a gun … </a></span></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07000608743521241210noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-78426706730598881712020-03-26T07:40:00.001-07:002020-03-26T07:40:57.905-07:00Will’s Guide to Surviving the Apocalypse Trail Run …<br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
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You can’t just settle in on the couch and endlessly watch Netflix for more than a couple of days. You have to stay active and create a purpose for yourself.<o:p></o:p></div>
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First: Get out of bed. Sure, enjoy these lazy days, and get your full 8 hours. But don’t lay around in bed all day. Get up! Set yourself a schedule and stick to it. I make myself wake up around 06:00 and begin my day. I also set my target bed time between 10 and 11 in the evening.</div>
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2: I limit myself to two cups of coffee. No need to embrace the jitters on top of the isolation.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Third: Don’t watch the news longer than needed to grasp the state of affairs. There’s nothing on except updates on how bad things are. Just don’t go there!<o:p></o:p></div>
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4: Plan your big meal of the day early in the morning. Make it something special and enjoyable. Don’t resign yourself to bread and baloney. Make it a meal you’ll look forward to and begin the prep work early, so you’re really looking forward to it. Try something new. Something that will take some time to cook. What else do you have to do, anyway? Now is the time to experiment!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0OQ1VmCJdhXnppex8UT7RC8a2yH5IjKrQHxG8fw-omvywU_ZdNfp4BnHjLHUt9tLgg10m024MT6Dq9kifwJ0KRWbxGuLJREajx8BAibZRzv09V84HS-oYtZCLlx1MswROdR9il2Yro4/s1600/Diner%2521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0OQ1VmCJdhXnppex8UT7RC8a2yH5IjKrQHxG8fw-omvywU_ZdNfp4BnHjLHUt9tLgg10m024MT6Dq9kifwJ0KRWbxGuLJREajx8BAibZRzv09V84HS-oYtZCLlx1MswROdR9il2Yro4/s320/Diner%2521.jpg" width="320" /></a>Fifth: Don’t eat the same leftovers for more than two meals in a row. Don’t throw them out! Just keep some variety in motion. Avoid boredom as much as possible.<o:p></o:p></div>
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6: Don’t touch anything alcoholic until 6 PM. Nothing good will come from drinking away your entire quarantine from morning to night. Trust me on this! Plus, it gives you something to look forward to in the evening.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Seventh: Make yourself exercise! YOU MUST DO THIS! You will fight off depression and anxiety by burning calories, plus your mind will be clear and alert if you keep active. Find a way to make it happen. Climb up and down your stair case for 30 minutes. Find a workout you can do at home. Take that long walk! Just do something!<o:p></o:p></div>
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8: Be patient with each other. This is hard on everyone. A lot of grace and forgiveness goes a long way. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Ninth: Enjoy your kids. I KNOW! Right? But seriously, enjoy them. Maybe this is the trial run you’ve been searching for to see if homeschooling is the right choice for you. Find new ways to keep them busy. Research home science projects. Sit down with them and read The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, or dig up your old Harry Potter books. They’ll love reading those books with you! Teach them how to play card games. Avoid Monopoly at all costs. Teach them how to win and how to lose. Teach them how to survive this “crisis” with dignity. You won’t regret it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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10: Plan something you’ll do after this “crisis” ends. Plan a nice family vacation. Plan a weekend road trip. Plan something that will be fun and refreshing, and make is something out of the ordinary. Trust me on this! If you start planning an amazing vacation now, you’ll have something great to look forward to, and it will be a great diversion. It doesn’t have to be the day you’re released. It can even be a year out. Cruises are selling for pocket change right now! Airline tickets are cheap! Seize the day!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRVRihBxd7qcL_w_OAelLARnuDMIgxvHeleI_iDj2rT47-ZY7MPiSAlp1HY6opWAl_SKBxH4xsNV2Bm-7fwvpmUbCRL08mOG0bP6jZYnk7xtBLOuOPvXjRNA1OvFkaU9OuRFtPXMvia8s/s1600/EP4_luke_watching_battle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="375" data-original-width="500" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRVRihBxd7qcL_w_OAelLARnuDMIgxvHeleI_iDj2rT47-ZY7MPiSAlp1HY6opWAl_SKBxH4xsNV2Bm-7fwvpmUbCRL08mOG0bP6jZYnk7xtBLOuOPvXjRNA1OvFkaU9OuRFtPXMvia8s/s200/EP4_luke_watching_battle.jpg" width="200" /></a>Eleventh: Don’t take yourself too seriously. You see what I did with my numbering system on this post? I find little things to keep my mind fresh and active.<o:p></o:p></div>
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12: You can always take solace in the fact you have enough toilet paper to last into your nursing home days. Spend time counting the rolls and enjoy your wealth.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHjkpQNfDE_r95_XrgltgcZU_4r5pIJ4ndDEKZfPUffo9yjy3-tGwueFJV6dcXxerp8qA6jhmNvRpv9MvsQt34hGBnS3b1NBHp_sSvHJ7FQbBIxKRc_4p9EhHeajaFiGV-O9O4zwinhLQ/s1600/Toilet+Paper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="826" data-original-width="608" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHjkpQNfDE_r95_XrgltgcZU_4r5pIJ4ndDEKZfPUffo9yjy3-tGwueFJV6dcXxerp8qA6jhmNvRpv9MvsQt34hGBnS3b1NBHp_sSvHJ7FQbBIxKRc_4p9EhHeajaFiGV-O9O4zwinhLQ/s320/Toilet+Paper.jpg" width="235" /></a>Thirteenth: Do something nice and thoughtful for someone else. Make it a surprise. Make it meaningful. If you’re focused on doing something nice for others, you won’t be focused on how miserable or bored you are. You can make the difference in someone’s life. Just do it. Do it now!</div>
<o:p></o:p>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07000608743521241210noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-72000026244223076452019-05-27T09:05:00.001-07:002019-05-27T09:05:22.151-07:00Tractor Tales and Pickup Panic<div style="font-size: 18px; line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">
<span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">As a boy growing up on a ranch, I learned </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">to drive at the tender age </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">of five</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">. I remember helping my dad feed the cows. He would stack hay in the bed of the truck, put the pickup in granny gear, and I would stand on the seat and steer while he dumped hay over the tailgate. As I grew older, my skill set improved to the point that, by the age of ten, I was driving the old </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Farmall</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">—a tractor with no power steering, sun shade, or shocks.</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> But, I didn’t care. I latched on to the grain drill and followed my dad, who was turning fresh soil a few rows ahead of me. There were a few times I ran my tractor through the fence and got barbed wire wrapped around the axl</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">e</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">s. (I could do a whole series of stories about my tractor accidents.) Thankfully, my dad was a kind and patient father, who simply unwound and rewired the fences, and let that be the end of the matter.</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> I learned to respect the fence and stay on my side.</span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Once, when I was about twelve, my grandmother put me in her old Pontiac and sent me to the store to pick up a few groceries. </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">I drove a few blocks down and back without incident.</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">I have no idea why she did that, but it was a huge event for me!</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> I know</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Sweetwater, Texas</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> is not a huge town, but still! </span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">As I</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> got nearly old enough to take D</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">river’</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">s E</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">d, I felt pretty </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">confident with my driving skills. And then it happened … I’d been watching a Charlie Chaplain movie where he would drive his Model T to a gate and, without stopping, jump out of the car, run ahead of it, open the gate, and then close the gate for the driverless car. He would then run and catch up with the Model T and keep going. </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Lickity</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> split. </span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Several things went wrong when I tried it. First, I should have put the pickup in low gear. Second, I should have remembered the </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">iron </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">gate</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> was </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">chained and </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">pad locked. Third, I should have jumped out sooner and given myself more room to work. Fourth, I shouldn’t have tried it at all. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">I lined the pickup</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> on the road</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, and then jumped out and started running to the gate. The driverless pickup passed me before I got to </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">said</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> gate, which was still secure with a chain and a pad lock. I remember the sound the pickup made as it slammed into the gate, and the reverberating sound the gate made as it rang like a bell </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">while</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> the pickup continued down the road and was about to cross the highway. I managed to get back in and stop </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">the truck </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">before it hit the cattle guard across the highway. In retrospect, I should have let the pickup run over me rather than h</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">ave to conduct the drive-of-</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">shame to the house to tell my dad what I’d done. (I even tried to bend the gate back in place with the pickup before I concluded the entire situation was irredeemable.)</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Imagine trying to explain how this happened.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Gates and fences are important. They provide boundaries and protection. And they make for good neighbors! If you respect the fence and properly use the gate, it will help you keep your act together.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Writing is like this sometimes. Authors envision grand plans, but sometimes the characters refuse to cooperate and the plot laughs at you as the story takes a different turn than you anticipated. The gate that was designed to keep you safe </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">within the boundary </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">is busted open</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> and can’</span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">t be repaired without help. It happens. Fortunately, it’s only words on paper, and no one actually gets hurt. Well, not until the editor sees what you’ve done. But, that’s a different post! </span><span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Writers know they have boundaries and they usually respect them. When a gate is locked, there’s a protocol to open it. Just pushing against the boundary or gate is not something we should do without good reason. Busting through the barrier is something you should only do in an extreme response to something else. Sometimes, once the gate is busted, it can’t simply be put back in place without help.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">My promise to you: I won’t deliberately push the boundaries for the shock effect. That’s not who I am.</span><br />
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Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-44100165574878667432019-05-24T16:41:00.002-07:002019-05-24T19:14:01.688-07:00The Border Patrol--A Snap Shot<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOKGfLMgmhDnpVXNf4_TFIQzl-dkvQwJ_zv4flOqbDR8Gb1bHkM9dIVnLw3IonE2dpX4GA3VFxNChyManNW4hEA3H4NYzjH0rV0Bksp1HSYHiqLU-5yKAY3FISiZgut-Qfy8SXwEva_8E/s1600/CP.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1173699690175945868" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><img border="0" data-original-height="305" data-original-width="405" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOKGfLMgmhDnpVXNf4_TFIQzl-dkvQwJ_zv4flOqbDR8Gb1bHkM9dIVnLw3IonE2dpX4GA3VFxNChyManNW4hEA3H4NYzjH0rV0Bksp1HSYHiqLU-5yKAY3FISiZgut-Qfy8SXwEva_8E/s320/CP.png" width="320" /></div>
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Ah, the old checkpoint.<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Are you a US citizen?”<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Yes.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Have a good day!”<o:p></o:p></div>
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While not usually more than a minute or two delay in your journey home from either El Paso or Las Cruces, it is an annoyance at best and an inconvenience at worst. But, what’s the point and why are they there? And what exactly does the Border Patrol do anyway? Who are these men and women who make up one of the largest police forces in the world?<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’ll get the boring part of this journey over with quickly. The checkpoints exist due to a congressional mandate found in the Immigration and Naturalization Act Section 287 and 8 USC 1357. The authority of the checkpoint operations have also been reinforced by the Supreme Court in the Martinez-Fuerte case. But few people are worried about those kinds of details—which are too tedious to discuss here. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCzq-b9ELUNRxiVPxdiOW3BAVjPz2YH_ekGinrdzKDbWrF_kj-cOKnZk21FoKGEY6eY7OSQxb47-KqGU8X3tlE5KbR7FoKz1dp-lF59pyWZNKUfFkdt5qqOIiTHp7SUVxI3XleMF3Vws/s1600/Old+CP.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="373" data-original-width="409" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCzq-b9ELUNRxiVPxdiOW3BAVjPz2YH_ekGinrdzKDbWrF_kj-cOKnZk21FoKGEY6eY7OSQxb47-KqGU8X3tlE5KbR7FoKz1dp-lF59pyWZNKUfFkdt5qqOIiTHp7SUVxI3XleMF3Vws/s200/Old+CP.png" width="200" /></a>But, there’s so much more to the Patrol beyond a checkpoint in the middle of the desert. The history of the Border Patrol is long and rich, and some of the stories I’ll share will surprise you beyond measure! </div>
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The Border Patrol began its illustrious journey back in 1924 when the Labor Appropriation Act birthed the organization that would eventually become the US Border Patrol, which is responsible for patrolling the 6,000 miles of Mexican and Canadian international borders and 2,000 miles of coastal waters surrounding the Florida Peninsula and the island of Puerto Rico.</div>
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In the early 1900’s, the US government supported the Mexican government headed by President Carranza, a political rival of Pancho Villa. Angered by American support, Villa and his army of 400, rode into Columbus, New Mexico and attacked the garrison, killing 17 Americans. President Wilson then sent General Pershing with 5,000 soldiers to the border to protect the nation. Within a year, the military presence grew to several hundred thousand.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlA_99w6Pn0smhpWc9jQEgk2VkYTWXm3xDn0Q0ENAgqGS2vp2s-41EOA3TloAwfcDeY7JBCxlYo6arjUMwG-QIKeaxgTjoaseJX6Z2Zs7Nc5ydqSW21ra1lBMXJJH9dSxAlcE7p51SDT0/s1600/Old+Patrol.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="387" data-original-width="900" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlA_99w6Pn0smhpWc9jQEgk2VkYTWXm3xDn0Q0ENAgqGS2vp2s-41EOA3TloAwfcDeY7JBCxlYo6arjUMwG-QIKeaxgTjoaseJX6Z2Zs7Nc5ydqSW21ra1lBMXJJH9dSxAlcE7p51SDT0/s400/Old+Patrol.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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In 1916, the Mounted Guard was formed in response to increased alien smuggling and bootlegging on the Southern border. Originally a force of about 50 men, they found themselves overwhelmed with the work and begged congress for more help. Congress responded by changing their names to Border Patrol Inspectors and granted them more authority to board and search, arrest, interrogate suspects, administer oaths, and execute warrants. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirlMyA8mbzyWR4GH2cJVg9Am8vCrFZPaHe_K5h7rNELuoYzzJHGtBqNC844x2y9J_9TLXJPpUQIiSud9CqDvS4AtzpimnwZSO6429gMIsJG6tPcHgE-DD1fFPn-NEjidvH1xteebJJrIQ/s1600/Smuggler.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="238" data-original-width="145" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirlMyA8mbzyWR4GH2cJVg9Am8vCrFZPaHe_K5h7rNELuoYzzJHGtBqNC844x2y9J_9TLXJPpUQIiSud9CqDvS4AtzpimnwZSO6429gMIsJG6tPcHgE-DD1fFPn-NEjidvH1xteebJJrIQ/s200/Smuggler.png" width="121" /></a></div>
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As smuggling grew, so did the crime associated with this action. Smugglers protected their cargo at the tremendous cost in the lives of law enforcement officers.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Let’s skip through some of the tedious history and focus on a few amazing highlights. When WWII began, the Border Patrol was assigned security duty at internment camps during the early part of the war. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Fast forward to 1961 and the racial disturbances in the South. Patrol Inspectors were used to prevent violence and ensure the demonstrations remained peaceful, and help with riot control. In 1962, a Border Patrol plane transported James Meredith to the University of Mississippi for the purpose of enrolling in that institution. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Despite a crowd of more than 10,000 protestors, and the violence that ensued, the Border Patrol protected Meredith and secured the Registration Building so he could become the first African-American enrolled at Ole Miss.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPnsV0AO_PYfRKWlwWHqvBizKWUFNyiqpu0x9dUt1D1YXa_ZXqLLhTLJBb5bso2pfUUpJxaNL7MM4tV_f8FrePqcrRcC4G7vYuEUjXO-3YRHtS3w4Kibt9RQFvdxlnzdL_AvIHQvEIM6c/s1600/hijack.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="206" data-original-width="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPnsV0AO_PYfRKWlwWHqvBizKWUFNyiqpu0x9dUt1D1YXa_ZXqLLhTLJBb5bso2pfUUpJxaNL7MM4tV_f8FrePqcrRcC4G7vYuEUjXO-3YRHtS3w4Kibt9RQFvdxlnzdL_AvIHQvEIM6c/s1600/hijack.png" /></a> The Border Patrol was also instrumental in preventing the first domestic hijacking in El Paso, Texas, on August 3, 1961. Assistant Chief Patrol Agent Leonard Gilman was a passenger on the plane and subdued the hijackers, securing the aircraft.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The Patrol of today leaped forward and became a high tech organization following the events of 9/11 and the terrorist wars that followed.</span></div>
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And that brings us to today. We are all keenly aware of the border and the border issues simply by watching the evening news. While trying to catch nothing more than the weather, you’ll see images of Border Patrol agents working on the international boundary. And depending on the news source, the stories will be either positive or negative. And, as life is neither good nor bad, there will be truth to what you are watching. The political powers in Washington seem not to care about the people who are the agents of the Patrol. It seems the buzzword, CARAVAN is a favorite word on the news. What’s up with that? The answer might surprise you…<o:p></o:p></div>
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Remember when the Border Patrol was under fire for separating parents from their children, and sending the parents to jail to await their immigration hearing while the kids are kept in a separate facility until being reunited with their parents and sent home? Well, that was a huge deal, and a very effective enforcement strategy. Attempted illegal entries nose-dived while this practice was in place. And try to bear in mind that anytime an adult who has children is arrested for a crime, they are separated from their families and sent to jail to await their day in court. This has been the practice for centuries. But, the 9<sup>th</sup>Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that practice unconstitutional and effectively removed the Border Patrol’s ability to enforce immigration law on the border. <o:p></o:p></div>
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And it was a game changer! What resulted was something commonly referred to as “catch and release.” Catch and release is when an illegal alien crosses the border with a child in tow, and as long as they are a “family unit” the agents arrest them, issue them court documents for a future court date, and release them to further their entry into the United States. As remarkable as this practice is, the reality of it is quite startling. This began the surge of caravans to make the journey from third world nations to the utopia of the United States—and they are coming by the thousands. Clever smugglers figured out they could assign a child to an adult, and as long as they claimed to be father and child, or mother and child, the agents were forced to issue them court documents and release them into the United States. While this is certainly child trafficking, and highly illegal, it is almost impossible for the agents to combat. When thousands of illegal aliens make entry every day, each carrying a child, the agents don’t have enough resources to properly investigate to whom the child actually belongs. Reports are now emerging that the same children are being “recycled” by smugglers who use them over and again—for a fee—to the illegals who are willing to use the child to make an entry. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As horrifying as this is to think about, the agents are dealing with this daily, and they are suffering the effects of this new reality. To date, four Guatemalan children have died as a result of this practice, and they were deaths that will long haunt the agents who are giving everything they had to properly care for the aliens. And when they come by the thousands, the task is insurmountable. <o:p></o:p></div>
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To be fair, not all aliens buy or borrow a child. Many of them are actually related to the child in their care. <o:p></o:p></div>
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And this topic is rapidly becoming unpleasant. So, let’s talk a little about the agents and try to figure out who they are—beyond the person leaning into your window and asking you personal questions. Yes, they seem robotic and indifferent when you see them at the checkpoint. You’re in a hurry and simply want to get back on the road, and you won’t want to roll down your window to answer a silly question. I get it! I hate the annoyance of it as well. <o:p></o:p></div>
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And I can only imagine what it must be like to stand there in the summer’s blistering heat or winter’s biting edge to carry out a congressional mandate. Yet, most of the agents are polite and courteous, despite the robotic repetition of the job. And a question comes to mind. Are they making a difference?<o:p></o:p></div>
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According to statistics released by Customs and Border Protection, the US Border Patrol has apprehended the following:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->2016—415,816<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->2017—310,531<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->2018—566,281<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Total: 1,292,628 aliens caught in three years.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What about narcotic arrests? (Only using 2018 statistics to save space)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Cocaine—6423<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Heroin—532<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Marijuana—439,531<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Methamphetamine—10,382<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Fentanyl—332 <o:p></o:p></div>
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What about gang members? (A three year total)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->1,966 arrested gang members who are illegal aliens<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Of those arrested, 858 were members of the dreaded MS-13<o:p></o:p></div>
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What about criminal aliens arrested? (A three year total)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->27,632 criminal aliens encountered<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->7,919 criminal aliens with outstanding warrants of arrest <o:p></o:p></div>
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(<a href="https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/cbp-enforcement-statistics" style="color: purple; text-decoration: underline;">https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/cbp-enforcement-statistics</a>)<o:p></o:p></div>
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Their job is dangerous. Most agents don’t work at a checkpoint. There are roughly 20,000 agents across the northern and southern borders, and the largest bulk of them actually work on the international boundary. The agents from Alamogordo are too far from the Rio Grande to work the river, so they are permanently assigned to the check points. The agents on the River and the Line are subject to gunfire from Mexico, rocks thrown (and if you snicker at that, remember how David killed Goliath. Rocks kill, especially when they are the size of softballs), physical attacks from aliens who don’t want to be apprehended, and disease exposure.<o:p></o:p></div>
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To date, the Border Patrol has experienced 128 line of duty deaths, four of whom were women.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’ve given you an overview, a snap-shot, if you will, of an organization that is too complicated to be properly covered with one article. And I thought I’d share some information with you that you probably didn’t know, or even stop to consider:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri";">Agents work a minimum of 50 hours a week, and regularly work an additional 2-3 hours each week trying to keep up with the volume of alien traffic.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri";">400 rescued aliens have been saved in the last few months. 46 saved from being locked and transported in tractor-trailers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaGJMBMkPhjyAv0cKAS31NFtUd2J14KGPQBQh3P3biZ-rkOepEbDilyqlKagPoKBp2ZPAbU5J6L_RSEdx-XTk0tlg4G6xCc91KC4TdFVH5W9W5zPxR1YNSESSnfPyYSFMl5WbFWqkse14/s1600/IMG_0484.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="539" data-original-width="960" height="111" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaGJMBMkPhjyAv0cKAS31NFtUd2J14KGPQBQh3P3biZ-rkOepEbDilyqlKagPoKBp2ZPAbU5J6L_RSEdx-XTk0tlg4G6xCc91KC4TdFVH5W9W5zPxR1YNSESSnfPyYSFMl5WbFWqkse14/s200/IMG_0484.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="color: black; font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri";">In certain locations, one or two agents apprehend as many as 50-250 aliens by themselves until transportation arrives to take the aliens to a processing station. It’s more and more common for the agents to apprehend as many as 300 at one time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri";">On average, it takes about 1 hour to process the court documents and issue the paperwork for an alien’s case for removal, or to send the alien to immigration court. Many areas catch as many as 1200 aliens a day. El Paso Sector generally apprehends between 800-1,200 aliens daily. These are “family units” of one parent and one child. </span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: small; text-indent: 0px;"> </span><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">Almost always, line agents work by themselves, and their backup is multiple miles away from them. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik0Mn5q96puDyNtWIJfltR9wHhJdC51zcDSGWIJBKBgoL5ajnOsF72j3OF73YddS0FmOXxCaK5ds1Mol84IkWY28q832mZw3Rt7NOPVJg_EA1vtt7Pe7mkTyV2USOBmAoGCWShaimEFiM/s1600/Children.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="311" data-original-width="234" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik0Mn5q96puDyNtWIJfltR9wHhJdC51zcDSGWIJBKBgoL5ajnOsF72j3OF73YddS0FmOXxCaK5ds1Mol84IkWY28q832mZw3Rt7NOPVJg_EA1vtt7Pe7mkTyV2USOBmAoGCWShaimEFiM/s200/Children.png" width="150" /></a><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Agents regularly conduct K9 demonstrations, citizens academies, stakeholder meetings, and other community events designed to help educate their communities about their operations, and give the citizens an opportunity to them feedback on the job they’re doing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium; line-height: 14pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Although agents have to work most weekends and holidays, a majority of them are men and women of faith, and sincerely observe their faith as a daily practice. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium; line-height: 14pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Most agents sympathize with the aliens they detain, and are compassionate for their circumstances, but are duty bound to honor the law as it’s written.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium; line-height: 14pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Many times, agents give their lunch away to hungry aliens they apprehend. Some even keep extra food in their vehicles to help sustain those who are starving. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Most agents keep up to five gallons of water in their vehicles to give to aliens when they catch them. </span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Ne3pBx11Pqp4YdU80dcirTM-hPyyVg8eMkhffKsufg0uSCfBhTUH3hobI6EmhyphenhyphenYgI60Vx_N40bZ2XLXJbv2xwNcDzNGQfpjU1Wutd2YRgDkePcr3talb9ltF6bjN3WsGzVqS6EbCL2k/s1600/image.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="111" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Ne3pBx11Pqp4YdU80dcirTM-hPyyVg8eMkhffKsufg0uSCfBhTUH3hobI6EmhyphenhyphenYgI60Vx_N40bZ2XLXJbv2xwNcDzNGQfpjU1Wutd2YRgDkePcr3talb9ltF6bjN3WsGzVqS6EbCL2k/s200/image.png" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14pt;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1173699690175945868" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">Sometimes, agents carry the weaker aliens on their backs until a vehicle can get to them. </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /><span style="font-family: "symbol";"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">Most agents have children of their own, and are careful to treat alien children with the same respect as they treat their own. They often give them toys and coloring books, which they donate from their own homes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">Agents have apprehended more than 700 gang members in 2018, about half of them were MS-13.</span></div>
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--><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium; line-height: 14pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Most agents don’t broadcast their job on social media for fear of hostile and hateful attacks against them and their families. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">While most of the aliens they encounter are generally good people, agents still regularly capture aliens who have open bench warrants for violent crimes, sexual offenses, and domestic violence. About one in three woman are sexually assaulted in their journey. Most young women are on contraceptives to prevent pregnancy during this journey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium; line-height: 14pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Every single alien is fingerprinted and identified by the FBI database before determining what to do with them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Many silver alerts and amber alerts are apprehended at Border Patrol checkpoints. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium; line-height: 14pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The agents provide a warm meal to the detained aliens as often as every 3-4 hours until their case is closed. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The Border Patrol apprehends more dangerous narcotics than any other agency. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Travelers through the checkpoints daily try to catch agents having a bad day and/or try to provoke them into losing their cool so they can post videos about them on social media. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">A large percentage of the agents are registered with the Democratic Party and vote as such. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Agents are required to take refresher courses every year on topics such as proper care of aliens in detention, preventing assaults and reporting violent crimes, ethics, etc. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">The Border Patrol Academy is almost 6 months long, and the agents are required to pass all subjects, including Spanish, before graduating. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: 14.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol";">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Agents are trained annually on how to treat their wounds in event they are shot or injured, apply their own tourniquets, and bandage their own wounds, just in case. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "calibri";">So, you’ve seen a snap shot of who they are and what they do. I’ll leave you with these parting words…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaRCRfwVS7LA2bCYaeeg1ji8E0o9LHloDyY3mgJc_SCC2FqkgMi29AliLymDT3Pi7WLDJBFYkcyYox6FKQjbb2DGyrBlFD0n7TZEXqZgRX-cIf9G2kEkQSreTO60ieTLKvQODw1gSmUVs/s1600/IMG_0491.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1085" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaRCRfwVS7LA2bCYaeeg1ji8E0o9LHloDyY3mgJc_SCC2FqkgMi29AliLymDT3Pi7WLDJBFYkcyYox6FKQjbb2DGyrBlFD0n7TZEXqZgRX-cIf9G2kEkQSreTO60ieTLKvQODw1gSmUVs/s200/IMG_0491.jpg" width="135" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "calibri";">I’m proud to be friends with many agents of the Border Patrol. I know them to be honorable men and women who’s priorities lie with their faiths and families, and, despite being used as political pawns by politicians, they are stubbornly determined to carry out their sworn duty: to protect America and the American way of life. They are from all races, colors and creeds. There are Muslims, Christians, Jews, and Buddhists. They are black and white and red and brown. They come from Europe, Asia, Africa, Mexico, and South America. They are mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters. They live and work in isolated areas along both borders and endure harsh summers and cold winters. They risk their lives each and every day to do a job with little to no thanks. And they all—each and every one—love this country. I’m proud to say that I, as a patriot, stand along side these great Americans!</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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-->Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-65368839810840867292017-11-07T14:46:00.000-08:002018-05-12T10:02:45.507-07:00A Walk to Remember<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw20Bz8rVj1lKE60ynR0QP9u3syqPoV2htrbhKAuOiFltOcbZmA3t9ZtZoSDsjHqI2KjPld5_khJdb7YnJu5QWAy2XIW2cDFcBS4DwdIfEqpKe1w4fFOplQHjl6X08psL9kPgqWm3DSE4/s1600/Butman.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw20Bz8rVj1lKE60ynR0QP9u3syqPoV2htrbhKAuOiFltOcbZmA3t9ZtZoSDsjHqI2KjPld5_khJdb7YnJu5QWAy2XIW2cDFcBS4DwdIfEqpKe1w4fFOplQHjl6X08psL9kPgqWm3DSE4/s320/Butman.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">In October 1995, more than 20 years ago, I journeyed on the Walk to Emmaus, a Christian retreat that is power-packed with 72 hours of food, fun, reflection, food, “true stories”, skits, glue, food, laughter, crying, food, and great friends. Did I mention the food? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">This post isn’t about the Walk. Well, not really. It’s about me. No, seriously! It’s about me. More so, about who I used to be before I learned I had ADHD. And no, this isn't a post about ADHD, either. But I know that because I have ADHD, I was/am vulnerable to what I'm about to tell you. And I’m really surprised I am able to expose this part of my soul to you…</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">All through my early years and into my teens, I hated who I was. I had zero respect for myself, and I could find almost no redeeming qualities. All I knew was—I was a big nobody, and no one truly cared about me, save my parents, who were supposed to care. I had no confidence in myself, and I had no expectations that I would ever amount to anything. I felt like an ugly person who was not likable. And I also felt like the friends I had only let me hang out with them because of pity. In my head and heart, I was rejected. So, I ignored the pain and accepted it as my “normal”, and lived my miserable life. In order to cope with the pain, I became very plastic and surface level. I hid behind my religion, and behind my façade, and refused to come out from behind my fortress. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">Thinking about it all these years later, I don’t know why I was so hard on myself. I have never been able to find a genesis of my self-loathing. All I know is that I had absolutely no self-esteem, and I carried it with me into my adult years. Like a first-year acting student, I walked through life trying to say all the right things, and not bump into the furniture. I hid my true feelings in my sarcastic sense of humor, and prayed that no one would try to discover the real me. Because if they did, they would reject me, and it would be too painful. Sadly, this was what I carried into my marriage, and my dear wife suffered for many years from my plastic, surface level relationship. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">Why am I telling you this? I’m not entirely sure, but there must be a reason. It took me decades to appreciate who I was, and decades for me to fall in love with myself. It wasn’t an “ah ha!” moment. It was a long, slow process for me to recover from my feelings of rejection and self-hatred. And the beginning of my healing occurred at Camp Butman, on the Walk to Emmaus. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">One of the really cool parts of the Walk involves letters. Friends and family are asked to send a </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX53VZKcrgRarcR3riGQETlPkjUQzoFvHzfW_Sxl4UldvZB6iEaiLKPkwi1GM9pDRgZDcOVCKx7FhYUJtJMWrS002seqdIYkjaNcOXvm_xpLDkl0IKrs_mc8BZXFo2Hcz1FNcNZ-Tb3h8/s1600/De+Colores.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX53VZKcrgRarcR3riGQETlPkjUQzoFvHzfW_Sxl4UldvZB6iEaiLKPkwi1GM9pDRgZDcOVCKx7FhYUJtJMWrS002seqdIYkjaNcOXvm_xpLDkl0IKrs_mc8BZXFo2Hcz1FNcNZ-Tb3h8/s320/De+Colores.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
personal note letting the individual on the Walk know how much they appreciate them.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">Recently, we moved from Texas to New Mexico, and my wife has been going through old boxes and trying to get everything unpacked. She opened one very old box and discovered my stash of Emmaus letters and handed them to me, asking if I wanted to keep them. Curious about them, I placed them on my desk and planned to glance at them when I got a chance. They sat there for several days. In truth, I was ignoring them. They brought back memories of how much I hated myself when I was much younger. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">I very clearly remember the day I sat down with my letters. They gave us about an hour to read them. And they warned us that we might shed a tear or two. I was not prepared for what happened to me. I looked at my stack of letters and notes, and counted more than 30 of them. I carefully opened one and read it. It was from someone I didn’t even know, but someone who knew who I was. They mentioned how they admired my sense of humor, and my casual demeanor, and my smile, and always thought I’d be fun to hang out with. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">My hands began to tremble, and my heart faltered. I set that letter aside, because it must be a joke. No one wanted to hang out with me. They never did, and never would. I was a nobody. I read the next letter. It said pretty much the same thing. My breaths were cut short, and my mind was on fire. Then I read one from a friend, who I’d known my whole life, and he expressed his appreciation for me and said he always valued me as a person, and kindly thought of me as a son. That did it…the crack in the dam broke, and my mind and emotions were out of control. I began to weep. Not simply wet-eyed tears, but full-blown lamentation, all of my brokenness pouring out of me. I managed to open another letter and saw the same thing. Some kind soul sent me a note that they always enjoyed being around me, and they hoped I was having a great day. And then I completely lost it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">Our group leader was watching me, and he was very concerned. He softly approached me, “hey, are you okay?” But, I couldn’t respond. I was crying with such vitality that I couldn’t even nod. I simply buried my head into his shoulder and let the poison in my soul flush out. For more than an hour I sat and cried, and the group even went to lunch and left me sitting there (at my insistence). I simply couldn’t function. I was truly broken, and I couldn’t get control. Never before had I experienced so much love and appreciation, and when it came to me, I was simply overwhelmed. I had no idea that people liked me. And I had no idea why. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">It took me weeks to read through all of my letters. Not because there were so many, but because I didn’t have the strength to continually pour myself out like that. Eventually, I read through them all, and placed them in a paper bag, and put them in a box. They have been untouched until today.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">It was quite a memory for me to read through the letters. Sadly, many of the people who wrote them are no longer with us. Some of the letters were funny. Joe Kelley wrote one, in which he claimed he was driving down the road in a moving van and had to cut it short. He sent a couple of letters, in fact. Most were very short. But all of them were written with love. Heck, some of them are not signed, and I have no idea who they are. Some of them are from people I’ve never met. And they changed my life. That was the day my healing began. It was a very long road for me, too. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">Today, I can say—I really like who I am, and I don’t mind looking at myself in the mirror and seeing that middle-aged man looking back at me. I’m at peace with who I am, and I’m proud of the things I’ve accomplished. As Indiana Jones once said, “It ain’t the years, it’s the mileage.” </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_obmKjzFQ5Dpzz0HDC2ZLaOTlmSDlA_RVdhffWTh4Jm1Dk6Z4Qsl-lYzBnFPiHM37Q2WZgDx3RoSqT7WIvKKH-qf1FSJCiYzbh8vYZ6oSbZPU_p-7VhxeiDHTE5Kv8h8E9DULM_0F2cc/s1600/De-Colores-Rooster.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="227" data-original-width="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_obmKjzFQ5Dpzz0HDC2ZLaOTlmSDlA_RVdhffWTh4Jm1Dk6Z4Qsl-lYzBnFPiHM37Q2WZgDx3RoSqT7WIvKKH-qf1FSJCiYzbh8vYZ6oSbZPU_p-7VhxeiDHTE5Kv8h8E9DULM_0F2cc/s1600/De-Colores-Rooster.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">So, if you were one of those who sent a letter to me at the Walk to Emmaus, I want to thank you. You had a hand in my healing, and I’m truly grateful. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">So, let me make some use of this vulnerability. Take time to let someone know that you appreciate them, and you like them. Such actions can really change a person, and it might make all the difference to them. Let people know you care. Because it truly matters.</span></div>
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And because I mentioned ADHD, I will mention this: All these years later, I know I was suffering the effects of ADHD, and these types of doubts and anxieties are common with ADHDers. But, I didn't know that back in the old days. Now it makes sense to me. For more information about ADHD you can follow my Facebook hashtag: #ADHDOverheard.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">De Colores!</span></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07000608743521241210noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-90080923203653051562017-09-24T06:16:00.000-07:002017-11-08T06:41:13.235-08:00Oy...I Missed the Rapture. Again.<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Over a very long September weekend in 1988, I anxiously awaited the highly probable return of Christ, based on 88 very solid reasons He would return. The Christian evangelical community waited with eager anticipation as Edgar C. Whisenant's predicted dates (somewhere along the weekend of September 11-13) drew close. We were so convinced Christ would return that TBN even began to interrupt regular broadcasting to provide special instructions on preparing for the rapture. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBVVTEguVw5Anqw7HiodXxmt4U-gt8vADtzCia8_nTTHSTaNKgwNPAuFGLt84T4TbnIqspPTY1DfN364EcG_C24dc2cjv5oTogSWkenObIXLm7jiFUVH1BmnYM3CBr2IJafXzJYTMBDVA/s1600/88-reasons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="484" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBVVTEguVw5Anqw7HiodXxmt4U-gt8vADtzCia8_nTTHSTaNKgwNPAuFGLt84T4TbnIqspPTY1DfN364EcG_C24dc2cjv5oTogSWkenObIXLm7jiFUVH1BmnYM3CBr2IJafXzJYTMBDVA/s320/88-reasons.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">On September 11, we all awoke and waited. Several </span>people<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I knew quit their jobs. Many gave their pets away to people who would not be joining them (at least until 7 years later). One man sold his business for dirt cheap and gave the money away to charities. We went to sleep slightly </span>disappointed,<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> but knew we still had the 12th and 13th, so no big deal. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">When the 12th came, people were calling home to say goodbye to their families (who would likely join them 7 years later). I </span>admit,<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> it was hard to sleep on the night of the 12th. But, we awoke to the 13th with great vigor! Today was the day! </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">And that was 29 years ago. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">And those of us who didn't reject our faith learned a very valuable lesson. "No man knows the time." Eventually, I researched the topic of the rapture on my own and discovered that, although incredibly popular, it was not even sound theology. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">So, what happened to the self-acclaimed prophet, Whisenant? He revised his prediction, realizing he made a small, but critical error, and made a second prediction in '89, and then '93, and then '94, and so forth until people finally quit following him when his '97 prediction went belly up. Since then, myriads of predictions have occurred. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEvRMNRFzI_XZuVmGV1SRmD9zGPpi3xI5KgPxzW2QjuVxrCyU39vDGMO08y_Vp44nHTMwx2IGyX4hYS-A5WAKtAil584w8GBbAA6drkphuyhgQgSPXFmGy1PXUrt7MozVjuC8dqKk2PbI/s1600/judgement-day-billboard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="620" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEvRMNRFzI_XZuVmGV1SRmD9zGPpi3xI5KgPxzW2QjuVxrCyU39vDGMO08y_Vp44nHTMwx2IGyX4hYS-A5WAKtAil584w8GBbAA6drkphuyhgQgSPXFmGy1PXUrt7MozVjuC8dqKk2PbI/s320/judgement-day-billboard.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Remeber Y2K? </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Remeber the Mayan calendar debacle? </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Remeber this last weekend. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC_UmXdfd4SygJ6ICNNmw9otXvLOiZrbSABwUosjleAh2oR1sGMkTP2IMJSL-p_zUE9q8MebEAiy0TxZ39NEV-O26fKhgRs9-N2_0w0GTxRfxjQDY2jfaVaqkud7aLRMOKep_MSl_N340/s1600/rapture+van.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="626" data-original-width="960" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC_UmXdfd4SygJ6ICNNmw9otXvLOiZrbSABwUosjleAh2oR1sGMkTP2IMJSL-p_zUE9q8MebEAiy0TxZ39NEV-O26fKhgRs9-N2_0w0GTxRfxjQDY2jfaVaqkud7aLRMOKep_MSl_N340/s320/rapture+van.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "sf optimized" , , , "blinkmacsystemfont" , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.11999999731779099px; white-space: pre-wrap;">And my heart really hurts for those who pinned so much hope on the prediction from the stars, the "birth", and the eclipses. I would say to you, please don't become disillusioned. And believe me when I say, "I've been there." It's really hard to go back to work when you made such an effort to cry out to people to repent, for the time is nigh. As hard as it was, brush it off, learn from the mistake, and drive on. Refocus living your life on a day to day basis with Christ, and trust that HE knows what's really going on. </span>Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07000608743521241210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-23628591917404610702017-05-21T16:01:00.001-07:002017-05-21T16:03:48.724-07:00Thirteen Reasons You Should Read This<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgznS66CcgCH8o4JU2ZV1NKNvJtIrMCE-XHx_bh5zNg7F7UynnvA_ukKFMwpPi3W1X5pJ_NN4L8pF7GwfOklGW6RiS4Y7qhkL0kfRQOfaXjXRLTUMNkXJ_t4KWz-dio1LkUfoJumQ-lDJo/s1600/thirteenreasonspng.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgznS66CcgCH8o4JU2ZV1NKNvJtIrMCE-XHx_bh5zNg7F7UynnvA_ukKFMwpPi3W1X5pJ_NN4L8pF7GwfOklGW6RiS4Y7qhkL0kfRQOfaXjXRLTUMNkXJ_t4KWz-dio1LkUfoJumQ-lDJo/s320/thirteenreasonspng.jpg" width="223" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Are you okay?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“No.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">How often do you hear those words? Have you ever heard
someone say, “No. You know what? I’m not okay.” Our standard response when
someone asks, regardless of whether or not it’s true, is, “I’m okay.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Jay Asher wrote a book. It was later turned into a Netflix series,
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thirteen Reasons Why</i>. I just finished
watching the story, and I have to say I’m unsettled. I’ve heard so many people
talk about both the show and the book, and they usually say things like, “I
refuse to watch it because it glamorizes suicide,” or, “I refuse to watch
another teenage drama that glorifies high school crap.” And then I hear people
talk about it who watched it all the way to the very last scene, and they
usually have a different take on it. For me, my reaction was nausea, and—no,
that was my reaction. Nausea. I literally felt sick at my stomach.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Why? Because I watched this very uncomfortable show and
managed to fight the tempting urge to dismiss it and gritted my teeth long
enough to get through it. It’s a story about a teenage girl who experienced
bullying at school, the subsequent embarrassment and feelings of isolation, and
eventually despair. Her pain spiked when she was assaulted by a fellow
classmate, but finalized when the people she turned to for help didn’t hear
what she was trying to tell them. She came from an ordinary home, with ordinary
parents who loved her and supported her. Sure, they had their life struggles,
but their daughter was a priority for them. Hannah made good decisions about boys
and drugs. She didn’t sleep around. Only once did I notice her consuming
alcohol, and that was in response to the pain of not fitting in and the desire
to do so. She didn’t sneak around and get into trouble. She was a good kid.
But, once she became the target of some boys at school (and their girlfriends),
she fell into despair and ended her life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Sure, there are elements in the TV show that are overly
dramatized and likely exaggerated, but I think this story accurately reflects
what our teens face in school. Every day. Without end. Within the social
structure of an average school, you will find just about every type of kid
represented in this story. The “cool kids” are desperate to remain cool, so
they have their own form of bullying. The nerds are relentlessly harassed, both
physically and emotionally. And everything in between. Girls face judgement from
girls. Boys face judgment from boys. And they all judge each other. There are
few, if any, safe places where teens can go for help or safety. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Recently, I attended a service for a fifteen-year-old boy
who shot himself in the head after watching <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thirteen
Reasons Why</i>. I seriously doubt the show caused him to commit suicide. No,
pain caused him to commit suicide. In his life, whatever pain he was
experiencing was so overwhelming that he felt he had no other options. When
someone is depressed, his or her brain becomes unhealthy, and doesn’t process
serotonin properly, which alters how a person reacts to crisis and pain. It’s
as if that person has tunnel vision. No! It’s more like that person is looking
through a straw. They can only see one solution, and they truly believe they
are making the only choice possible. Killing themselves will end the pain. And
everyone will be better off without them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I know. I know! This doesn’t make sense to you, whose brain
is processing serotonin properly. But to many people in pain, suicide is like a
bell that rings with perfect clarity. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Let me make this a little more personal. I have a fourteen
year old at home. You think I haven’t had this on my mind all week? I’ve had
little else. I don’t know the circumstances in the other boy’s life which
caused him to see suicide as his only option. And I wish I did. He sent a text
message to his sister saying goodbye in the last seconds before his killed
himself. She found him at home just a few minutes later. They don’t know why.
They never saw it coming.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Hannah was a smart, fun, and pretty girl who smiled and
laughed, and rarely allowed her pain to show. In fact, no one saw it coming. NO
ONE! Only after Hannah revealed her reasons, the thirteen reasons, did the
pieces come together. And in hindsight, it was painfully obvious. But only if
you have all the pieces laid out before you. Each smaller piece didn’t tell
enough of the story to see what was happening in her head.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Parents, your children are watching this show. I don’t mean
to alarm you but—wait! Yes, I do mean to alarm you. WAKE UP! Your kids are
watching this show. And we all know that the young are incredible at recording
information, and the absolute worst at interpreting it. They very well may
watch this show and relate to the pain Hannah was experiencing, and feel
somewhat empowered by her courage to kill herself. Because they are looking
through a straw and can’t see the big picture.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Okay, you’ve heard me. Now what? Well, I recommend you watch
the show. All the episodes. Watch them by yourself first. And then invite your
teen to watch it with you. And then talk to them about it. Have the suicide
talk. You can do this!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Don’t accept the “I’m fine,” robot response. Hannah mentions
how she stormed out of the school counselor’s office and paused just out of
sight, praying that he would come after her, but he didn’t. And with that final
element of disappointment, she followed through with slitting her wrists.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Seriously. You can do this. You can talk to your kids about
suicide. They won’t enjoy it. Neither will you. But you might be surprised by
what you talk about once you get the ball rolling. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">One final thought about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thirteen
Reasons Why</i>, the Netflix series: I was praying the show would end, and the
entire staff would come back on and do an anti-suicide talk, and recommend
seeking help, but it didn’t happen. The show ended and went straight to the
credits. This is a hard fail, Netflix. And it’s unacceptable. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07000608743521241210noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-50594885036650449142016-05-03T08:18:00.001-07:002016-05-03T08:18:43.296-07:00The Amish Firefighter and Laura Hilton
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTLnA8aazecL3MRU_jiQLv7aEk6cLCdDCoktyfYlCXjR-bOJmv8RPJwbsgzG47SQ_W0OvZnwXhw9oxIQwz-t0_un0T4lk6ACEbhKC3N8JX-d7QDTvr1fNZeX4ClrHaTBxS5pDu6-jpx6A/s1600/Firefighter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTLnA8aazecL3MRU_jiQLv7aEk6cLCdDCoktyfYlCXjR-bOJmv8RPJwbsgzG47SQ_W0OvZnwXhw9oxIQwz-t0_un0T4lk6ACEbhKC3N8JX-d7QDTvr1fNZeX4ClrHaTBxS5pDu6-jpx6A/s320/Firefighter.jpg" width="207" /></a><b><span style="color: #505050;">What a great idea for a story!</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="color: #505050;">Check out Laura Hilton's novel, The Amish Firefighter...</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #505050;">Can they overcome their past?</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #505050;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #505050;">Abigail Stutzman’s life is about
to change – whether she wants it to or not. Her mamm is getting remarried to a
widower with a large family. Abigail is sent to live with her aenti and onkle
in Jamesport because she and her new step-brother had dated and their parents
anticipate problems. (Her step-brother is needed on the farm.) Abigail launches
a full-scale plan to return home to her family—and Mark—when she finds herself
in over her head…and heart. When Abigail and her new “wrong crowd” get into
significant trouble, her punishment includes helping a collection of crazy old
maids with housekeeping. In the midst of her atonement, Abigail uncovers family
secrets that run deep, and realizes she’s not the only one with a pain-filled
past. Abigail must decide if she’ll continue her messed-up legacy or embrace a
new beginning with the man who’s stolen her heart.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #505050;">Sam Miller has trouble of his
own. When Sam and his close friend Ezra Weiss are in a drug/alcohol-related car
accident in Pennsylvania, Ezra is killed. Though Sam survives, he is deeply
affected by the tragedy and vows to help other victims. Now a new Christian,
Sam is a volunteer firefighter and a college student working to earn his EMT
and paramedic license. But Sam has a past. When it comes time to confess his
crimes, he finds that the truth may set him free—but it might also land him in
some uncomfortably hot water. Will Sam and Abigail be able to find a future
together?</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #505050;">But wait! There's so much more
to this story! Here's another glimpse...</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #323232;">But now, just a week after her
arrival in Jamesport, Missouri, Abigail finds herself at the scene of a barn
fire. An intentional barn fire. And all fingers are pointed at her. She's
desperate to prove her innocence and protect her reputation, but nobody's
making that easy to do. And God certainly doesn't seem willing to help.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #323232;">Sam Miller is in the process of
turning over a new leaf. When local barn fires escalate, everyone suspects
arson. And since the Miller family are among the victims, no one is more
determined to see the perpetrators brought to justice than Sam.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #323232;">A Kindled Flame Neither One
Could Have Anticipated....<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #323232;">When their paths first cross, at
the site of a barn burning, the emotional intensity rivals the warmth of the
flames. Soon, they must decide whether this fire is one they should feed or
extinguish. And they'll discover that the truth can prove more dangerous than a
blazing inferno.</span> <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Right? You've got to read this
one! <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Not only is she an amazing author,
she is also an amazing woman. Check out this tiny glimpse of her life...<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. If you could have dinner with one person from today or history
(except Jesus) who would it be? Why? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>A. My mom. I’d like
to ask her questions about things I don’t remember and ask her advice about
things. I really miss her.</i><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
(This answer gave me a lump in my throat. So many people will
identify with it.)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. What is your favorite Bible verse? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>A. I have so many
favorite Bible verses, it is hard to pick just one. But for today, the one that
is coming to my mind is “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted
among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10 (NIV)</i><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. <span style="color: #181818; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What do you enjoy most about writing? </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="color: #181818; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A. Almost
everything. I love the creating process, getting to know new friends (in my
mind) and learning their story.</span></i><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #181818; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Q. What can your readers expect from you next? </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="color: #181818; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A. The Amish
Firefighter is releasing in May and it will be followed by three more Amish
books.</span></i><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #181818; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">(Talk about good news! Laura has some amazing things on the
horizon!)</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. What can readers who enjoy your
book do to help make it successful? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A. Review on your favorite online
retail sites, tell your friends, libraries, and book clubs, and others about
it. Word of mouth is the best way to support an author. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Just reading her bio should make
you want to read her books...<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Award winning author, Laura
Hilton, her husband, Steve, and their five children make their home in Arkansas.
She is a pastor’s wife, a stay-at-home mom and home-schools. Laura is also a
breast cancer survivor.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Her publishing credits include
three books in the Amish of Seymour series from Whitaker House: Patchwork
Dreams, A Harvest of Hearts (winner of the 2012 Clash of the Titles Award in
two categories), and Promised to Another. The Amish of Webster County series,
Healing Love (finalist for the 2013 Christian Retail Awards). Surrendered Love
and Awakened Love followed by her first Christmas novel, A White Christmas in
Webster County, as well as the Amish of Jamesport series, The Snow Globe, The
Postcard, and The Birdhouse. Other
credits include Swept Away from Abingdon Press’ Quilts of Love series. Laura is
contracted for another three book Amish series set in the Jamesport area, with
the first book, The Amish Firefighter releasing in May 2016, followed by two
more Amish books and a Christmas story releasing in Fall 2016, Spring 2017 and
Fall 2017 respectively.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
She has self-published a Christmas
novella, Christmas Mittens.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Laura is a member of American
Christian Fiction Writers and a professional book reviewer and blogs for
Putting on the New and Seriously Write.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Visit her blogs:
<a href="http://lighthouse-academy.blogspot.com/">http://lighthouse-academy.blogspot.com/</a>
& <a href="http://lauravhilton.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://lauravhilton.blogspot.com/ </a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Twitter: @Laura_V_Hilton<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Facebook:
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Laura-V-Hilton/161478847242512">https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Laura-V-Hilton/161478847242512</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Pinterest: <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/vernetlh/">http://www.pinterest.com/vernetlh/</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Purchase her books:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Laura-V.-Hilton/e/B004IRSM5Q%20CBD:%20http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/easy_find?Ntt=laura+hilton&N=0&Ntk=keywords&action=Search&Ne=0&event=ESRCG&nav_search=1&cms=1" target="_blank">Amazon</a> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/laura-hilton?store=allproducts&keyword=laura+hilton" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a> <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.deepershopping.com/index.php?query=laura+hilton&x=0&y=0&module=productsearch&_logmode=Y&querymodule=SPX" target="_blank">Deeper Shopping</a> <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment--><div style="background: white; mso-line-height-alt: 10.5pt; text-align: justify;">
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Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-50159660125887226132016-04-15T07:38:00.002-07:002016-04-15T07:38:48.234-07:00German, or Something Similar<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: left;">
This was written by my daughter, Kaitie Elizabeth....It's very clever and I thought you might enjoy it. It's also a true story.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/65736756@N08/10957432044" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: start;" title="024 by Sarah Inman, on Flickr"><img alt="024" height="375" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5520/10957432044_fe010ebc89.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kaitie, surrounded by a group of German tourists</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
German, or Something Similar</div>
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<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
Once upon a time, there was a
girl who was so socially awkward that she got herself stuck on a donkey. That
girl was me. And that was the day that learned to speak German—at least, I
think it was German.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It all started on a European cruise that my
family and I took. On this cruise, we stopped at Santorini, Greece. Santorini
is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. With beautiful black
beaches, spectacular scenery, ancient cities, and an active volcano, who
wouldn’t have fun? But in order to see all these amazing things, you have to
get to the top of the mountain village, and to get up there you can choose
between cable cars or donkeys. My mom and brother wanted to take the cable
cars, but my father and I wanted to have the traditional Greek experience. So,
we opted for the donkeys. My mom was a little skeptical, being that she read
every single horror story of people being tragically thrown off their donkeys
down the mountainside and never seen again. But we assured her that we would be
fine. I really should have seen this coming. This isn’t the first time I’ve
gotten myself into an awkward situation, you know.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyway, we stepped off the tender and the
moment our feet touched the ground my mom says, “Oh look! There’s the donkey
guy.” Thinking we were all on the same page, my dad and I rush through the sea
of tourists and into the back alley where they were loading people onto the
donkeys. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
Meanwhile, my mom has no idea that we'd left. She turned around, and
in that split second we were gone! Vanished into thin air. My brother kept
saying, “There’s no way that they would go get on the donkey without telling us
first.” But we did. And after a while of searching, mother decided that we had
gotten on the donkeys without telling her; she rushed to get on the cable cars.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Back to my side of the story. We had already
done our waiting in line, and a big Greek man picked me up and sat me on my
donkey and off I went. These donkeys were trained. They knew exactly where to
go. And there was no way to control them. They walked along a wide path all the
way up the mountain. It was like a Disney ride. You could simply sit there and
relax and take in the scenery. It was great. Except for about one minute into
the ride, my donkey stopped walking. I sat there nervously trying to think of a
solution. Nothing was coming to mind. So I just sat there awkwardly, rocking
back and forth, sort of nudging my donkey with my feet, whispering threatening
things into its ears, and petting it. Nothing. That stubborn donkey was not
moving. Meanwhile, tons of other donkey riders passed by. Including my dad.
They couldn’t help it. Like I said, the donkeys knew where to go. And they
couldn’t be controlled. So, my dad was now way ahead of me, with no hope for
return.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
I’ve been sitting there for about
five minutes now, and none of the workers noticed me. They were too busy
lifting people up onto their donkeys. I continued to sit there mentally kicking
myself. Then a group of about fifteen German tourists came along, and they were
screaming something in German at the very top of their lungs, and their donkeys
were moving. And I mean <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">moving</i>. Fast!
So, I leaned down and quietly repeated whatever they were saying to my donkey.
Nothing happened. I then nervously repeated it again, this time, a little
louder. Still nothing. I was beginning to lose my patience. I then sat up, held
on tight, and yelled that unknown German phrase as loud as I possibly could.
And ZOOM!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
My donkey started moving like it
never had before, and it smashed into every single wall that stood next to us.
And every pair of eyes in that area turned and stared at us, zipping up the
mountain like mad men. Soon we ended up with the group of fifteen Germans, a
woman wailing hysterically, and some person in the back who kept yelling,
“HAW!” (and every time he would do that my donkey would ram as hard as he could
straight into the wall that stood between me and a plunge down the
mountainside). So, whenever my donkey got to close to the edge, I would have to
scream in German again to get him to go the right direction. We were quite a
sight, and this continued all the way up.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
When I got to the top, a
similar-looking Greek man picked me up off my donkey and sat me back down on
the ground. I was relieved to be done. I said goodbye to my strange little
group of fellow donkey riders and walked away to find my dad, who got dropped
off at a completely different spot than me. Even after I found him, my troubles
weren’t over. My father and I then spent an hour and a half searching all of
Santorini for the cable cars. And my mom and brother did the same, only they
were searching for the donkeys. After what seemed like ages, we all found each
other and laughed about the whole ordeal.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
So, next time that your mother
says, “Hey, there’s the donkey man.” Maybe just take the cable cars instead.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The End<o:p></o:p></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-49492159297020339282016-03-26T09:36:00.001-07:002016-03-28T08:51:58.668-07:0016 Hours<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgszlT0PiqJj_4SPBSyuDYfFuQM2Gk-1BQ7GWqsmVYUXfRooCPfKUAV5x96aanivoUOMPqLcA7q3IDCNoNO-xJgn8mzvbJlshbUoblGHBmTXZXdKKUj2cU_383XxbHX5d3Zvdp-HDdEzE0/s1600/16+Hours.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgszlT0PiqJj_4SPBSyuDYfFuQM2Gk-1BQ7GWqsmVYUXfRooCPfKUAV5x96aanivoUOMPqLcA7q3IDCNoNO-xJgn8mzvbJlshbUoblGHBmTXZXdKKUj2cU_383XxbHX5d3Zvdp-HDdEzE0/s320/16+Hours.jpg" width="246" /></a></div>
I wrote a play and submitted it to American Lab Theatre and
they were excited and immediately wanted to produce it.<br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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And then a funny thing happened while I was at work….<o:p></o:p></div>
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Let me start from the beginning; what a proper place to
start. In 1991, I was out adventuring with a handful of my fellow seminary
students in South America. We stumbled across a Jewish settlement in the
mountains near Cordoba, Argentina. The little town looked like a series of
gingerbread houses and coo coo clocks. I learned that the community was full of
Jewish refugees who fled Europe during the War and resettled in Argentina,
which is why the settlement so strongly resembled Germany. <o:p></o:p></div>
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One particular thing deeply impacted me while I was touring
the town square. There was a large tree with a rope hanging from its limbs. I
asked them when they were going to repair the tire swing so the kids could have
a place to play. The man shook his finger and said, “Not a toy. This was where
they hung the Nazi who was hiding amongst us.” Several years before we got
there, the villagers discovered that a former Nazi was hiding in their town,
and they collected him and summarily hung him from that very tree. They left
the rope as a reminder. And boy, do I remember. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Many years later, I wrote a play about a Holocaust survivor
who lost his wife and children to the Nazis; a man who was determined to find
the men responsible for their deaths and kill them. He tracks them down at a
bank and takes the entire group hostage, fully intending on publically executing
these murderers as an act of justice. Only, nothing goes according to plan.
Rose and Mr. Cato, along with the bank president, Miss Kincaid, don’t cooperate
with him.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The catalyst for change is Rose. Her presence and her story
so profoundly impact the gunman, that he is conflicted to the point of
hesitation. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXqGJJlz1_nV_h38t6j30gpmiARxoWLUHG57lB4YqRwLjyIL0HWwF82MXQHzzh2d8gKZOkV3k8p8NNss4S5loG4G8B3a_YycuEoR3m6GRH03cDeOJW6-ihO6jtXQ7v2eBL4qOcOwSwCOo/s1600/Jesus+and+Will.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXqGJJlz1_nV_h38t6j30gpmiARxoWLUHG57lB4YqRwLjyIL0HWwF82MXQHzzh2d8gKZOkV3k8p8NNss4S5loG4G8B3a_YycuEoR3m6GRH03cDeOJW6-ihO6jtXQ7v2eBL4qOcOwSwCOo/s200/Jesus+and+Will.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
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And now I must introduce Jesus Quintero, the Director. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Jesus is a man of vision, and his mind works like a van Gogh
painting. When I presented him the script, he saw an opportunity to do something
significant. He stuffed the entire story into a cocoon and allowed the
chrysalis process to transform that sleepy caterpillar into a work of art.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What emerged was an incredible interpretation
of my story, but with amazing theatrical elements that are almost impossible to
describe. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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For many months, I attended every rehearsal and offered
rewrites and updates to the script, and then it happened. My work got in the
way, and I was no longer able to attend the sessions. I could sense that
something was going on with the play. Jesus was slyly leaving me hints that he
was now interpreting the story. Now, I must say, he asked me for permission to
take liberties with the script. I’m not fragile, and I immediately granted him
discretion to take the story in any direction he chose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And in the few weeks where I missed
rehearsals, he took my script and “van Goghed” it. While I was disappointed
that I was not able to participate, I think my absence was necessary for his
creativity to be unfettered.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKDv9wVqzyE_L-UJcJxwaPYnhEn8AfVE8YX6ubzp4IxulJa8XM3aLjNexMvNeS9jCaD6tR7TEzZlRrWQZZCXiVISGfTAuuqU3QXzqDqWJAjs9hL3IwfMmJv1F4_YcUJt1K4z65z08CxOI/s1600/Death.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKDv9wVqzyE_L-UJcJxwaPYnhEn8AfVE8YX6ubzp4IxulJa8XM3aLjNexMvNeS9jCaD6tR7TEzZlRrWQZZCXiVISGfTAuuqU3QXzqDqWJAjs9hL3IwfMmJv1F4_YcUJt1K4z65z08CxOI/s200/Death.jpg" width="112" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Keely Gray is Death</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The first thing I noticed, he added a new character to the
script: Death.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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I know, right? DEATH! But it was brilliant! And his new
character was smug and manipulative. And enchanting. And tempting. And I loved
it. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Another thing to note is that Jesus chose to be quite unconventional
in another regard: he wanted to direct the play from the stage while it was
happening. It sounds like chaos, and in a way it is, but it’s controlled chaos.
And it works. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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So, Jesus chose to make the play a very intimate experience,
and deliberately selected a venue where they could interact with the audience
and actually make them unwitting participants (I’ll explain that in a few
minutes…). Rather than working from an elevated stage, he found Monarch
Mountain Coffee and transformed that small café into an interactive theatre.
The audience sits at their tables, and the play is performed all around them,
from one end of the room to the other, and it goes back and forth for the
entire performance. There is no perfect place to sit. At some point, your chair
will be right in the middle of the action, and it happens without warning. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhid4tt8y5OSYCT1-dIs7kSsaKC9AztB6kH7Wyln4yOpXBeL5UtupdFNTOmu3rIcB0j2IbD2Gd1yB79BfQi1pfGKqLubMVfXMtM10a9Ikx7qeRlwShLDf0rOqnZcFYtVdyz6KCLpyb9UTw/s1600/16+Hours+Photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhid4tt8y5OSYCT1-dIs7kSsaKC9AztB6kH7Wyln4yOpXBeL5UtupdFNTOmu3rIcB0j2IbD2Gd1yB79BfQi1pfGKqLubMVfXMtM10a9Ikx7qeRlwShLDf0rOqnZcFYtVdyz6KCLpyb9UTw/s320/16+Hours+Photo.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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So, having Death as a character creates an unusual macabre
atmosphere. But it’s not depressing. Rather, it’s quite intriguing. And I
really wish I’d thought of it myself. How can you tell a story about the
Holocaust without death? And once the audience figures out that the characters
are dancing with Death, then the play begins to make sense. And the flashback
sequences bring order from chaos. And the soliloquies from the characters are
so powerful that you will be thinking about them long after the play ends.
Perhaps for the rest of your life. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Okay, remember the audience participation? Well… Jesus and I
worked out an idea where the play would have two possible endings: mercy or
justice. Should the gunman execute the murderous Nazi, or should he grant mercy
and allow him to live? Well, you, Mr. Audience Member, get to decide just that.
You get to cast a vote and see whatever ending receives the popular vote. I
know, right? And as soon as you see the ending you voted for, you want to see
the alternate, but that won’t happen. You’ll be left wondering. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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So, after I saw the performance and experienced the
transformation of my story for the first time, many, many people approached me
and asked if this was my original vision. Of course, I have to say, “no”. It’s
not at all what I envisioned when I wrote it. But, it’s exactly the same story.
And it’s told through dance, song, dialog, and acting. And it’s uncomfortable.
There are some very painful moments that I won’t discuss. You have to
experience it. Having said that, this story is a celebration of life, and is
about the sanctity of life. And I’m so proud to be part of it. I wish I could
take full credit, but I wouldn’t dare. Jesus and I worked together to make
something that neither of us could do on our own. And from chaos comes art.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
Find out more about American Lab Theatre at: </div>
<a href="http://www.americanlabtheatre.com/">http://www.americanlabtheatre.com</a><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwOvz9n5P7XlTaOsBD80Ws6NNZZvbf4IhSajaY0yLoSTXEuH-H403f8EZGgrx-ab8bB66KoOmVOL92U2l-FTs39SwYesYJGJOfVpSP0aEpyHouZVbkmWVrksBWfO4Tjiw9z59KQ1yvHdw/s1600/16+Hours+Cast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwOvz9n5P7XlTaOsBD80Ws6NNZZvbf4IhSajaY0yLoSTXEuH-H403f8EZGgrx-ab8bB66KoOmVOL92U2l-FTs39SwYesYJGJOfVpSP0aEpyHouZVbkmWVrksBWfO4Tjiw9z59KQ1yvHdw/s640/16+Hours+Cast.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Keely Gray, Cory Repass, Jeremiah Guidos, Haley Nicholson, and Mason Jones are our cast of characters. <br />
Alex Cope and Savannah Stierle work behind the scenes </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-7105163769689889022016-02-23T09:57:00.000-08:002016-02-23T09:57:32.788-08:00What Texas Has Given UsEveryone has heard about Davy Crockett and the Tennessee Volunteers, whose valiant, but fatal stand at the Alamo changed the world. On April 21st, 180 years will have passed since the War for Texas Independence ended with an 18 minute routing of the Mexican army in the San Jacinto Valley in 1836. These are facts that are available in most history texts from high schools and colleges across the nation. <br />
<br />
But what, exactly, did the Texans accomplish in their grand opposition to the President of Mexico? The answer might surprise you: it changed the course of your life.<br />
<br />
Mexico decided to open its borders to immigration in the 1820’s following a costly war for independence from Spain. Texas was sparsely populated at that time, and Mexico wanted to encourage settlements in the area to help control the hostile Indian population. As a result, they created a very liberal immigration policy that encouraged settlement in the Texas hill country. The first settlers, the “Old Three Hundred”, arrived in 1822 from the United States to colonize the grant which had been given to Stephen F. Austin.<br />
<br />
By the 1830’s, an estimated 30,000 Anglo had settled Texas, compared to an estimated 7,500 native Mexicans. The population imbalance concerned Mexican President Bustamante, who implemented measures which prohibited further immigration to Texas and heavily taxed imports from the United States. The Mexican government ordered the settlers to stop producing the highly profitable cotton crops, and begin demanding that the farmers grow corn, grain, and beef.<br />
<br />
Things became even more difficult for the new settlers when the Mexican government demanded that the colonists convert to Catholicism, and required a mandatory tithe to the church. But the real indignations began when the Stephen Austin went to meet with the newly elected president, Santa Anna. Austin wanted Texas to become a separate and equal state within the Mexican Republic, in an effort to minimize corruption of local officials. Santa Anna had Austin promptly arrested and then abolished the Mexican Constitution of 1824. Next, he dissolved the current federalist government and suspended the legislative branch. He then imprisoned several cotton plantation owners with the intent of redistributing the cotton within Mexico rather than be exported to other countries. These actions triggered outrage—outrage that eventually led to war.<br />
<br />
In 1835, as the new centralist government was taking power, the Texans formed a committee, which staged a minor revolt against the taxes which had been imposed on them in July. The Mexican President responded by sending 200 troops into Texas. Stephen Austin was released, having never been charged. Fearing that stronger measures were needed to quell the growing unrest, Santa Anna ordered his brother-in-law, General Martín Perfecto de Cos to "repress with strong arm all those who, forgetting their duties to the nation which has adopted them as her children, are pushing forward with a desire to live at their own option without subjection to the laws”. Cos landed at Copano Bay on September 20, 1835 with approximately 500 soldiers. <br />
<br />
Austin saw little choice but to revolt against Mexico and form an independent nation. A meeting was scheduled for October to discuss formal plans for a revolution.<br />
<br />
However, before the meetings occurred, Santa Anna learned of the talks of secession and ordered the state militias disarmed. In the weeks that followed, the colonists banned together and formally opposed Santa Anna and his army in several indecisive skirmishes.<br />
<br />
General Santa Anna captured 300 Texas revolutionaries in Goliad when they were caught in the open; they chose to surrender rather than fight the overwhelming Mexican Army. He then ordered the combatants to be executed. Santa Anna began a “slash and burn” campaign across Texas and ordered any revolutionaries to be shot on sight—and take no prisoners. In February, 1836, Santa Anna surrounded a small garrison of 185 Texas soldiers at the Alamo in San Antonio and ordered their surrender. The Texans knew their fate if they surrendered, so they defied the 5,000 troops and fought to the death, taking as many as 600 of the Mexican Army with them into eternity. The Alamo was besieged for almost two weeks, which was the precious time the colonists needed to organize their resistance. <br />
<br />
The sacrifice made at the Alamo gave the struggling Texas colonists enough time to form a government and establish an official revolution against the tyranny imposed by Santa Anna. The Texas Republic placed the newly formed Texas Army under the leadership of Sam Houston. General Houston knew his army wasn’t strong enough to take on the Mexican Army in a face to face confrontation, so he successfully retreated to the San Jacinto Valley, where the odds of successfully confronting Santa Anna’s Army were more favorable. On April 21st, 1836, Sam Houston’s 900 man army attacked the Mexican forces, and in 18 minutes they virtually annihilated their enemy. To evade capture, Santa Anna donned the uniform of an ordinary soldier and hid among the troops. Only when his own people began to point and say, “El Presidente” did he finally surrender.<br />
<br />
Texas functioned as a Republic for nine years, proving it was a viable country and that it could survive on its own merits. President Sam Houston envisioned Texas joining the United States, a dream that was fulfilled in 1845. However, Texas and Mexico were still in conflict about the boundaries between the two countries. While Mexico was hot and cold about the surrender terms of President Santa Anna, and the boundary proposed between Texas and Mexico, they eventually fully recognized the Rio Grande River as the formal border between the two countries during the Mexican American War of 1846.<br />
<br />
So, you might ask, how did these events change the course of my life? When Texas was a republic, it claimed an area that encompassed most of present day New Mexico, and large portions of Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Wyoming, almost reaching Canada. When Texas joined the Union in 1845, that land mass transferred to the United States. As a result of the Mexican American War (1846-1848), Mexico, via the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ceded California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona, and the rest of New Mexico, Colorado, and more of Wyoming to the United States.<br />
<br />
It is distinctly possible that had Texas never declared independence from Mexico, and never joined the United States, the world as we know it would be far different. Can you envision a world where Mexico owned all the territory from Louisiana to the west? Can you imagine a world where the California Gold Rush would have occurred on Mexican soil? Our lives would be completely different had the colonist of Texas not chosen to fight the oppression that was being pressed upon them by the corrupt Mexican government. <br />
<br />
The United States is now standing on the precipice of socialism, and very nearly communism. The pundits and media elites are continually professing the virtues of our rapidly evolving government, praising the increasing power of the federal government. The power grab in Washington, DC is proving to be alarming, and is a distinct threat to the American way of life. We are now facing a government that is radically altering our culture and our laws, many of which are unconstitutional. What we are now facing is not dissimilar to what the Texas colonists faced in the 1800s.<br />
<br />
The colonists of 1836 Texas recognized the injustice pressed upon them by Mexico and the instabilities produced by a President who had the temerity to suspend the existing government. Despite the odds against them, the Texans gave us a model to follow of standing up for what’s right, even if the world is standing against us.<br />
<br />
Let us long remember the example of those who have gone before us, those who have given us an example of courage and duty.Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-89205418727853797412016-02-04T03:00:00.000-08:002016-02-04T03:00:13.398-08:00Eavesdropping on Dawn V. Cahill and the Twins<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;">Two amazing
young women are visiting us today. </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;">Please help me welcome identical twins Livy
and DeeDee McCreary, singers and dancers extraordinaire, who star in Dawn V.
Cahill’s new novel, </span><i style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;">Sapphire Secrets</i><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 12pt;">. We are also privileged to have Dawn join
us. Dawn is in the process of conducting a radio interview with the twins, and
I thought I’d provide you a transcript of that conversation…..</span></div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Dawn V. Cahill:
Livy, since this is your story, why don’t we start with you? Tell us why you
want to share your story with the world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Livy: Picture
this--a spooky graveyard at midnight. Howling wind. And a strange old man who
tells me to seek the truth about my mother’s death. Wouldn’t you be curious,
too?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DVC: Indeed I
would.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Livy: Sapphire
Secrets is basically my testimony. And what an incredible journey. Not only did
I find out the truth about my mother’s death, I also found God. Now, I just want
the world to know that God loves them. So many people have never experienced
His love. They don’t know what it’s like when God grabs ahold of you and pulls
you into His arms - so unlike anything you’ll ever experience.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DVC: But you
weren’t raised to believe in God. What made you change your mind?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Livy: I met
someone who wasn’t afraid to share Christ with me. At first, I was resistant.
Our parents and grandma raised us to be suspicious of organized religion. But
then, one day everything changed. I had an accident and…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DVC: Spoiler
alert!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Livy: Whoops.
Anyway, as a result, I might never dance again. But without the accident, I
might not have found God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DVC: DeeDee,
what do you think about Livy’s conversion?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DeeDee: She’s
always spouting religious mumbo-jumbo. Not my thing. But ask me anything about
dance. I can get into that.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DVC: Okay,
dance it is. One of my readers wants to know, were all those dance lessons
growing up a pleasure, or a chore?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DeeDee: I
won’t lie and say they were a piece of cake. Dance lessons are grueling. If I
hadn’t had Livy to learn and practice with, I’m sure I would have given up a
long time ago. But now, I marvel at what my body can do. I’m pumped that we get
to pay it forward by teaching other little girls the beauty of dance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Livy: Our
mom’s passion for dance rubbed off on us. I couldn’t have quit if you paid me. The
downside of dance for me was the memorization. Not only the choreography, but
all the French terminology. Like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pas de
bourres</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ronde jambs</i>…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DeeDee: The competitions…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Livy:
Outgrowing our favorite leotards…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DeeDee: Hardly
ever any boys in class to tease or flirt with.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DVC: How times
change! A couple of single fathers brought their daughters into your studio for
lessons. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Livy
[giggling]: Don’t forget to mention how cute they were.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DVC: And now
you’re dating one of them, aren’t you?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Livy: Spoiler
alert!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DVC: My lips
are sealed. Let’s let the readers find out for themselves, shall we?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DeeDee: Don’t
forget to tell them about your prequel, When Lyric Met Limerick, a short story
about a fateful meeting…the day our amazing and talented parents met.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DVC: Readers,
just click on my Amazon author page to find both books: </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dawn-V.-Cahill/e/B00QPRC2EY/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">http://www.amazon.com/Dawn-V.-Cahill/e/B00QPRC2EY/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1</span></a><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Check my
webpage, dawnvcahill.com, for future giveaways and updates on Livy and DeeDee’s
continuing saga. And thank you, ladies, for letting my readers get to know
you<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>today. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Livy and
DeeDee [in unison]: So long, lovely readers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">DeeDee: You
have to come back for Book 2, because this crazy author is going to put me
through an even worse ordeal than Livy’s. I have no clue how I’m going to get
out of this mess…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;"><i>Sapphire
Secrets</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnYACWLoMj-2KudPBH72HsFRspn5ZQM98b4BUVHlrqKbhpiwBBNFbZpf8gXlrJjBWIs-p5mc4U2wQFuIGbXQbP-GcmALCOY43UbxwF3osB91_WbqOOZN7m65QuNuBZqYNbTc-MH3lox7Q/s1600/SapphireSecretsFrontCover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnYACWLoMj-2KudPBH72HsFRspn5ZQM98b4BUVHlrqKbhpiwBBNFbZpf8gXlrJjBWIs-p5mc4U2wQFuIGbXQbP-GcmALCOY43UbxwF3osB91_WbqOOZN7m65QuNuBZqYNbTc-MH3lox7Q/s320/SapphireSecretsFrontCover.jpg" width="207" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Filled with mystery, romance, and unforgettable
characters, Sapphire Secrets is the story of a Seattle woman’s relentless
pursuit of truth and God’s power to heal and transform broken lives.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white;">Twins Livy and DeeDee McCreary open a dance
studio in honor of their late mother, whom they lost when they were six.
Problem is, Livy remembers nothing of the day her mother died. The more she
questions her family about that awful day, the more she suspects she’s been
lied to all her life. While she’s seeking answers to what really happened, she
keeps crossing paths with handsome engineer Scott Lorenzo, who compels her to
question the New Age philosophy she was raised on. What if there is a personal
God out there who cares about her?<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white;">Before Livy can discover answers, a brutal
accident interrupts her search. Her life flips upside down as she faces a
future she is not prepared for. Yet the unanswered questions continue to haunt
her. Can she find the strength to keep on with her quest, even if it means
losing the two people most dear to her—her twin, and the man she loves?<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white;">2015 Finalist, ACFW First Impressions Contest<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"><span style="background: white;"><span class="apple-converted-space"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 120%;">Dawn V.
Cahill’s bio:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #111111; font-family: Arial;">Author Dawn V. Cahill pens "Stories of
Victorious Faith for the 21st Century," nearly always with a crossword
puzzle, sudoku, or dark chocolate nearby. "The characters in my stories
face situations that would have been unthinkable even 20 years ago. We live in
a vastly different world than our parents did, and that's the world I write
about."</span></div>
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<span style="background: white;">Seeing an unfilled niche in the Christian market
for edgier fiction, Ms Cahill birthed Hot Topic Fiction (HTF) at an intensive
four-day writers conference. HTF isn't afraid to explore the question, how does
God want us Christians to live out our faith in this not-so-brave new world?
Without insulting the reader by offering pat or easy answers--because there
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Christ in a world of terror and violence, of upside-down morality, of hostility
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<span style="background: white;">HTF's first book is due for launch in June 2016.</span></span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-84081303206589272952016-02-03T08:18:00.002-08:002016-02-03T08:18:43.283-08:00A Couple of Days with Dawn V. Cahill<div class="MsoNormal">
Hello again! I have awesome news that's gonna tickle you sapphire. I was able to book Dawn V. Cahill for a two day visit this week, and I know you're gonna love her from the get go. She has a really awesome book series running that compliment each other and make for great reading. Check out her latest release: <i>Sapphire Secrets.</i></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHCkBJmw3po_j8eLJO2uYMo3RodpdWCQw9fTaP-SQIUIVoNtGFAWrvzZIwnvroUkUlj5v3LRn28hT9maRGauIqQwUC1FugyXsuITjb39YYHMgtJmU38vkiVo6sW1Mo_LrFdGd7lhcJFNQ/s1600/SapphireSecretsFrontCover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHCkBJmw3po_j8eLJO2uYMo3RodpdWCQw9fTaP-SQIUIVoNtGFAWrvzZIwnvroUkUlj5v3LRn28hT9maRGauIqQwUC1FugyXsuITjb39YYHMgtJmU38vkiVo6sW1Mo_LrFdGd7lhcJFNQ/s320/SapphireSecretsFrontCover.jpg" width="207" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; color: #333333;">Filled with mystery, romance, and unforgettable
characters, <i>Sapphire Secrets</i> is the story of a Seattle woman’s relentless
pursuit of truth and God’s power to heal and transform broken lives.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #333333;">
<span style="background-color: white;">Twins Livy and DeeDee McCreary open a dance
studio in honor of their late mother, whom they lost when they were six.
Problem is, Livy remembers nothing of the day her mother died. The more she
questions her family about that awful day, the more she suspects she’s been
lied to all her life. While she’s seeking answers to what really happened, she
keeps crossing paths with handsome engineer Scott Lorenzo, who compels her to
question the New Age philosophy she was raised on. What if there is a personal
God out there who cares about her?<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;">Before Livy can discover answers, a brutal
accident interrupts her search. Her life flips upside down as she faces a
future she is not prepared for. Yet the unanswered questions continue to haunt
her. Can she find the strength to keep on with her quest, even if it means
losing the two people most dear to her—her twin, and the man she loves?<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white;">By the way, Sapphire Secrets was a 2015 Finalist, ACFW First Impressions Contest!</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;">So, who is the woman behind the book? And as you have come to expect, I'll ask her questions that no one else will think to ask, so let's get started....</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;">Thank you for stopping by for a quick interview. Let's start with who you are:</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What is your favorite childhood memory? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgupOcMXwEgAfL4PCPfP7goc8e3C1I1zQv2OS7p_F8KV8U2P7GgcU7gUtVvNrKnyTeVcpirwGbLsWcfRHOAGJ-M08bFVPDMFFI_67-PBd8b2o4KYaX8Pn04SYFJh6cEy1kAldKJJr7fVZw/s1600/Cahill+Photo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgupOcMXwEgAfL4PCPfP7goc8e3C1I1zQv2OS7p_F8KV8U2P7GgcU7gUtVvNrKnyTeVcpirwGbLsWcfRHOAGJ-M08bFVPDMFFI_67-PBd8b2o4KYaX8Pn04SYFJh6cEy1kAldKJJr7fVZw/s1600/Cahill+Photo.png" /></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">When my sisters and I made up impromptu
plays…costumes and all. I remember “Red Coats Blue Coats,” in which we played
soldiers from opposite sides, getting all dramatic with our theatrical
greetings and tearful goodbyes. </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060; font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">
Sometimes we even attracted an audience!<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What is your favorite Christmas memory? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">When our grandma sent us Christmas
boxes, usually with identical dresses for my older sister and me… blue for her,
red for me. (Funny how the red/blue theme kept repeating itself in my
childhood!)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What was your favorite toy? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">It’s a tie between Spirograph, Creepy
Crawlies, and my brother’s Hotwheel set.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Who was your secret crush as a teenager? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">Now if I told you, it wouldn’t be secret
anymore!<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What was the first car you owned? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">An old beater, early-model Toyota that
needed a lot of fixing up!<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Where did you grow up? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">Various spots on the left, I mean West,
Coast.</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You have a passion to help single moms. How did you come to
develop that passion?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">Raising three sons largely alone was THE
HARDEST, most grueling job I will ever, ever do or will ever do. I wouldn’t
have survived without a support network. And my sons wouldn’t have grown up relatively
normal and healthy had God not heard my cries for help. If not for prayer &
God’s guidance, my sons might have ended up as just another statistic. So now I
want to pay it back and share encouragement with other single moms who struggle
with simple, day-to-day basics like I did.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What makes you really, really mad?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">When divorced women turn their kids
against their dad. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing makes me more
furious. Children, especially sons, need their dads, even if the parents are no
longer together. In my blog, it’s one of the things I caution women against.
Because once the tie with their dad is severed, there’s no going back.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What is your biggest disappointment from your childhood? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">That
I didn’t have any allies except my best friend.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Okay, we have a sense of who you are. Now let's talk about your book:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Is your book appropriate for young teens? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">Probably.
It does contain a romance thread, which might be a little beyond their scope.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Which of your books is your favorite? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">I only have two published so far. I
would pick my newest one, <i>Sapphire Secrets</i>, the full-length novel. The other is
a short prequel, an appetizer, you could say, for the main course.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Are there things you would change about your published
stories? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">Shh…don’t tell anyone, but I tweaked and
re-uploaded <i>Sapphire Secrets</i> four times before I was happy with the end result.
And, I revised When Lyric Met Limerick with edited content and a new cover. I’m
much happier with the new, improved version.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Who gets credit for your really awesome cover art? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">The talented Dineen Miller!<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you couldn’t be a writer, what would you do to release
your creativity? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">I would choreograph dance.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Can we get autographed copies? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #002060;">Sure, if I can figure out how to
autograph Kindle copies.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lightning Round:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Coke or Pepsi? <span style="color: #002060;">Water
(sorry, I’m boring)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Biscuits and gravy or protein shake? <span style="color: #002060;">Protein Shake<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lost or Lost in Space? <span style="color: #002060;">Lost in Space</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Pride and Prejudice or Little Women? <span style="color: #002060;">Little Women<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Dogs or cats? <span style="color: #002060;">Both</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Fishing or Hunting? <span style="color: #002060;">Ugh </span><span style="color: #002060; font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">L</span></span><span style="color: #002060;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Double dating or staying at home? <span style="color: #002060;">Double-dating<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Mac or IBM? <span style="color: #002060;">Mac</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
SUV or Prius? <span style="color: #002060;">Prius<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
10 million dollars or a time machine? <span style="color: #002060;">10 mil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Mega church with lots of stuff or small country church with
ancient pews? <span style="color: #002060;">Little Country Church
on the edge of town (remember the band Love Song?)<span style="font-size: x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #002060;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #002060;">Dawn, thank you so much for stopping by. And tomorrow we will have a special treat. I understand she has the twins with her, and we will have a chance to watch her interact with her favorite characters! </span></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-55604303902473506042015-12-19T09:15:00.000-08:002015-12-19T10:05:55.081-08:00Nightfall <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilwSlKq3FsYwVgUoX65f_mp_2zVkwpsajBGc7IsD9BLhmX9wHJllmv9YaNo-JpipreJREzmEcwPVx8nNBfsnChxGtrQ36CPBkoYD7bAP8RwdDH0jWLVeQgNcDgHwG6nKcoelvHlnVDFQ8/s1600/Fireplace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilwSlKq3FsYwVgUoX65f_mp_2zVkwpsajBGc7IsD9BLhmX9wHJllmv9YaNo-JpipreJREzmEcwPVx8nNBfsnChxGtrQ36CPBkoYD7bAP8RwdDH0jWLVeQgNcDgHwG6nKcoelvHlnVDFQ8/s1600/Fireplace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><br />
<br />
<i><u><br /></u></i>
<i><u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nightfall</span></u></i><br />
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<br /></div>
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</a><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: 10.8pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.5pt;">And Mama in a rocker sews<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: 10.8pt;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: 10.8pt;">
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilwSlKq3FsYwVgUoX65f_mp_2zVkwpsajBGc7IsD9BLhmX9wHJllmv9YaNo-JpipreJREzmEcwPVx8nNBfsnChxGtrQ36CPBkoYD7bAP8RwdDH0jWLVeQgNcDgHwG6nKcoelvHlnVDFQ8/s1600/Fireplace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;">
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-49760989743203245862015-12-13T10:31:00.001-08:002015-12-13T10:31:52.692-08:00The Man in the High Castle<div class="MsoNormal">
Based on a friend’s recommendation, I started watching a new
TV series on Amazon Prime called, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Man
in the High Castle.</i> <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Holy wow.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCXvvFa6RYRCLoLtBcr9dkIEPy2Sc4eE_mPQBdzUoF7t1erznTSNhSyC63HxdqjJlA6_GS-k9asNuFVdiWFcx6D4gvEvnvziZnxy8VcezpL8kq7j5wBejVhSFNOkhqnC3lEdQAN5Z4pwU/s1600/Nazi+American+Flag.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCXvvFa6RYRCLoLtBcr9dkIEPy2Sc4eE_mPQBdzUoF7t1erznTSNhSyC63HxdqjJlA6_GS-k9asNuFVdiWFcx6D4gvEvnvziZnxy8VcezpL8kq7j5wBejVhSFNOkhqnC3lEdQAN5Z4pwU/s320/Nazi+American+Flag.png" width="320" /></a>I’d never heard of it, and I had no idea what the show was
about. But, here’s a snapshot: In an alternate history, the Axis powers
defeated the Allies in WWII. The United States surrendered after a nuke was
dropped on Washington, DC. What remained of the United States was divided
between the Nazis and the Japanese, and only a small strip in the middle of the
former States serves as a buffer between the two empires. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The show is set in 1962, and in this alternate
history, we see what roughly 20 years of uninhibited Nazi occupation would look
like, complete with Jewish and Christian extermination, and super-sized kilns. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can honestly say, I’m unnerved.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr4OZ8CnQeMvwXlUXNoQUkcR8kF3lXPrZmFrNSKA4nLsyBDBfq3m-SQx7yLLJ549v8rqtaVAuhG8z81PQPpobrOjEge6XJ3QXxN7bAnlOBuWvQb3aXglbqXKv9Uml3rMjOvU40IOYNKnI/s1600/New+America.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr4OZ8CnQeMvwXlUXNoQUkcR8kF3lXPrZmFrNSKA4nLsyBDBfq3m-SQx7yLLJ549v8rqtaVAuhG8z81PQPpobrOjEge6XJ3QXxN7bAnlOBuWvQb3aXglbqXKv9Uml3rMjOvU40IOYNKnI/s1600/New+America.png" /></a>What would our lives be like had the Greatest Generation not
stood the gap and defeated one of the worst evils in world history? This stark
glimpse of what could have been has significantly frightened me. Can you
imagine having the SS Nazis serve as our police force? Or the <span style="color: #252525; font-family: Georgia;">Kempeitai, the Japanese version of
the Gestapo? Can you imagine how radically different our lives would be? No,
you cannot. That’s why you must watch <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Man in the High Castle</i>. Not because it’s enjoyable and intriguing, but
because we must all know and appreciate the sacrifice our Allied troops made in
protecting us from evil.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #252525; font-family: Georgia;">In the same
turn, I’m ashamed of how our Nation and the World is now cowering to a similar
evil in the Terrorist Wars of the last 20 years. This storyline should
re-awaken the proverbial sleeping giant, and rouse us from our lethargy, for we
could face a similar occupation. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #252525; font-family: Georgia;">Historically,
America has served as a bastion of freedom, a sentinel against evil, a beacon
of light to a dark and dying world. However, in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Man in the High Castle</i>, there is no stop-gap measure. There is
no Dutch boy with his finger stuck in a dyke. There is no one to stand against
the two world Empires. There is no America. There is only power and pain, and
suffering is a fact of life. Information is a commodity. Life is meaningless.
Hope no longer exists.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #252525; font-family: Georgia;">Am I
upsetting you? I certainly hope so. I highly recommend you watch this show.
It’s rated TV-MA, but not for graphic sex scenes. Be warned, there is bad
language and some brief scenes of nudity, but it’s the kind of nudity you’d
find in a prison camp. This is not a show you will watch because you enjoy it.
It’s a show you will watch because you should. And I promise you, the next time
Memorial Day rolls around, you will find deeper appreciation for our soldiers
than you ever imagined possible. It’s your duty as an American to watch this
show and utter a prayer of thanksgiving.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-79690123596322307342015-12-03T08:02:00.000-08:002015-12-03T10:41:37.156-08:00Marian P. Merritt, Author: Who is This Southern Belle?<div class="MsoNormal">
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<b>Today I want to introduce you to a new friend of mine, who
is absolutely fantastic. You’re gonna love her from the get go. Her name is
Marian P. Merritt, and she writes Christian Romance, and Woman’s Fiction, which
is my favorite of her work. But, I’ll get to that later. For now, I want you to
know who she is and what she’s about.</b></div>
<b><o:p></o:p></b><br />
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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<o:p> </o:p><b>But first, I want you to see why I wanted to highlight this amazing woman...</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd3hLFs3xqWGBSWELMU0Ix5CXpM3QzryVdsDFpI8i-OhanoJOfXlWmQirLxh70SzTOQg99NzRT9Vq4fq_0G1u0KwNJ9irl1OfyGuVSUiON1Kv85ugHbLSmTImsfq6Z_y-YEot7OIKe-NQ/s1600/TheChristmasBellsOfCavazzale.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd3hLFs3xqWGBSWELMU0Ix5CXpM3QzryVdsDFpI8i-OhanoJOfXlWmQirLxh70SzTOQg99NzRT9Vq4fq_0G1u0KwNJ9irl1OfyGuVSUiON1Kv85ugHbLSmTImsfq6Z_y-YEot7OIKe-NQ/s320/TheChristmasBellsOfCavazzale.jpeg" width="194" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>When Charleston Charly Maynard loses her job just weeks after her fiancé calls off the wedding, she decides to visit the cottage in the quaint village of Cavazzale, Italy she’s inherited from her grandmother. She’s hoping the time there will help her to decide what to do about her future. When she meets André Lagneaux, a handsome man from Bayou Country, who is visiting his brother in Cavazzale, Charly ignores the attraction. After all, she's not looking for romance. When André Lagneaux’s parents set up a family trip to Italy, André is eager to spend Christmas with his brother and godchild. Meeting the beautiful American woman at the airport adds to his excitement. He'd loved to get to know her, but her cool demeanor tells him she's not interested. Will she let down her guard and allow them to get to know one another? When Charly finds a prayer in her nonna’s diary that makes her realize God may have His own plan for her future, she must learn to trust. But, what if His plan includes the dark-haired Cajun?</i></span></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>How awesome is that? Right?</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYViSUhn7iU2TdEOBEub03v2GEgBwozKKh43Z5SSR4Ys1_4emoSNPcjkLZKQ2csngKop_SEnclDLrJa7r57HVepm28T0mFi0hCJ4jU856v47_d7lc4q8VvzjGy853I_OP2KVEL0qr4W0/s1600/Marian+Merritt.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYViSUhn7iU2TdEOBEub03v2GEgBwozKKh43Z5SSR4Ys1_4emoSNPcjkLZKQ2csngKop_SEnclDLrJa7r57HVepm28T0mFi0hCJ4jU856v47_d7lc4q8VvzjGy853I_OP2KVEL0qr4W0/s200/Marian+Merritt.jpeg" width="160" /></a><b>Q. You don’t appear to be from Boston…</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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A. Hardly! I grew up in South Louisiana in a small community
south of New Orleans. Although there were times my Cajun accent was mistaken
for one from the Northeast. Go figure…<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Q. So, you’re one of those bayou gal’s who was always saying,
“You know how those uppity folk are. They live way up north in New Orleans?”</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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A. Yes, I’m officially from “down the bayou” and New Orleans
was considered “town.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Q. I take it you love the South?</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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A.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love a lot of
things about the South. Especially the food and the people!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Q. You lived for a while in Colorado, and I gather you
really enjoyed your time there. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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A. Yes, I’ve lived in Colorado for the past eight years and
while I missed so much about the South, I learned to appreciate so much from that
state.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Q. You now live in Texas. How did that happen, and do you
feel like Texas is as much of a home as Louisiana? <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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A. My husband was transferred by his company to Houston.
We’ve lived here before so we were glad to come back to reconnect with friends.
While I’m happy to be living back in the south closer to family and fresh
seafood, I do miss the mountains, cooler temperatures, and low humidity of
Colorado!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Q. Writing is clearly a passion for you, and it’s something
you dearly hope will help inspire others. What was the key book you read as a
kid that sparked for you?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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A. I’m not sure there was one book in particular. I read so
many books growing up “on the bayou.” <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Island of the Blue Dolphin </i>and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Chita:
A Memory of Last Isle </i>were two books that have stayed with me. The
characters were so vivid that I felt I was in the story with them. I appreciate
the authors giving me that experience.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Q. You attended the University of South Alabama. What was
your field of study and how does it influence your writing?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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A. I have a Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy. My
medical background gives me another dimension to add to my characters. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Q. I saw on your fabulous website, http://www.marianmerritt.com, “<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">While this
bayou girl is glad to be back in the south because she loves her Southern
roots, doesn't wear white after Labor Day, says y’all and can make a
killer roux, she misses living in the mountains with
it's low-humidity air and white Christmases! That's why you'll find a
Louisiana/Colorado connection in each of her books.”<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">I have to admit, I was immediately reminded of the old television show,
Designing Women, which was set in Atlanta, NOT Louisiana. I know that show was
much before your time, but which of the characters mostly closely mirrors you?</b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. Actually, Travis, I remember the show well. It was one of my
favorites! I relate with Mary Jo. I know what it’s like to be a single mom
trying to earn a living. I can also relate to her sharp wit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b>Q. What is your favorite Christmas memory?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. Going to my grandparents house and getting the wonderful Christmas
fruit baskets they had for us each year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b>Q. What is your deepest regret?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. Deepest regret? Hmmm….I try really hard not to dwell of things of the
past. I believe God wants us to live in His plan for our future and if we do,
there’s no room for regrets.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Q. If you could live for one year
in any place on this Earth…<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. Wow, there’s so many places I would love to live. My number one place
would be on a farm/vineyard in Tuscany, Italy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b>Q. Is outer space something that interests you?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. No. I’m a bit claustrophobic so the space suit would really freak me
out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b>Q. Is there another creative passion in your life?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. I love photography and pottery. While I get to play with my camera
often, I don’t get to use my wheel as much as I’d like.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b>Q. Who was your secret teenage crush?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. Oh wow…blushing. That would be Donny Osmond. Big poster on my bedroom
wall and all the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Teen Beat</i> magazines
that he was on the cover.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b>Q. Sweet tea or coke?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. Neither. I try to avoid sugar so I go with Unsweetened tea.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b>Q. How far back do your Southern roots go?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. Good question. At least 6 maybe 7 generations or more. I haven’t
actually counted. But I know there are several generations of grandparents
buried in the same cemetery in the bayou town where I grew up.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b>Q. If you could go back and visit with your younger self, what age would
it be and what would you say?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A. Twelve. I’d take myself to lunch and say, “No matter what. Don’t settle
for anything less that your dream no matter how impossible it may seem.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4CHpbtjY77VndcLs2pjccWAdhctBfDVBxim0zdaOf3GJS3iHPk2sjnhi2GTh6pQDXmtXDr6ekPoq3KttiGSKtly7kmRVd9-UEwVqQ-EpZjroXRX863v6G1YO3DALPKDD_NrE-cRqgJHQ/s1600/Vigil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4CHpbtjY77VndcLs2pjccWAdhctBfDVBxim0zdaOf3GJS3iHPk2sjnhi2GTh6pQDXmtXDr6ekPoq3KttiGSKtly7kmRVd9-UEwVqQ-EpZjroXRX863v6G1YO3DALPKDD_NrE-cRqgJHQ/s1600/Vigil.jpg" /></a><span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";"><b>Q.
Let’s talk about your books. Which of your novels is your favorite?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">A.
Now Travis, that’s like asking me which of my children is my favorite! I like
each of them for different reasons. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Vigil </i>is a story close to my heart because God sent me so much of that
story in the middle of the night.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222221;">I'm going to insert ONE small sentence from the description of <i>The Vigil</i>. It was hooked immediately: "</span><span style="font-size: 15px;">While reading a dying patient's Korean War love letters, family secrets shatter Cheryl's beliefs about her family and herself and shed light on the reason she fled her hometown."</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";"><b>Q.
Why do you choose your current genres? Is there a genre you want to explore?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">A.
I love reading Women’s Fiction and can relate to those characters so it was a
natural path for me to write those stories. I may have a mystery swirling
through my brain that may one day materialize on the page.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";"><b>Q.
What’s next for you?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">A.
I’m brainstorming another Christmas novella. This one set in the fictional town
of Bijou Bayou where <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Vigil </i>is
set. Some of those characters will make an appearance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I’m
also working to complete a Women’s fiction story set in Tuscany, Italy and
Mandeville, LA.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";"><b>Lightning
round!</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><b>Q. List 10 things you like:<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman";">A. Here’s is
the list I have on my website:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Jesus</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">My
Family</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Sunshine</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Rain</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Snow
– only when it's falling</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Baby
Giggles</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Puppies
(who doesn't love puppies?)</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Optimism</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Vintage
Sports Cars</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Saints
and Broncos Football<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";"><b>Q.
What? You got something against the Dallas Cowboys?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">A.
Sorry, Travis. They are not on my list of favorites.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";"><b>Q.
List 10 interesting things about you:<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">A.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I
cried when I saw Michelangelo's David.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I
drive a truck.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I've
climbed Diamond Head in Hawaii.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I've
owned two Harley Davidson motorcycles: A Sportster 883 and a Road King Classic.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I
believe in pursuing your dreams.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I
can shuck an oyster.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I
graduated with a degree in physical therapy at thirty-four.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I've
walked on the Great Wall of China.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">Most
of my childhood was spent running around barefoot.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">I
"kinda" speak Cajun French. (I can understand a lot and speak a
little.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";"><b>Q.
What’s the best way to follow you?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";">A.
I have a readers group on Facebook that I share information with my readers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/marianpmerritt/">https://www.facebook.com/groups/marianpmerritt/</a></span><span style="color: #222221; font-family: "times new roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: inherit;">Marian
Pellegrin Merritt writes stories that blend her love of the mountains with her
deep Southern roots. Her tagline, </span><i style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: inherit;">Where
the Bayous Meets the Mountains, </i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: inherit;">grew from both loves.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #1a1a1a;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">She is
a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Women's Fiction Writers
Association. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #1a1a1a;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Th<span style="font-family: inherit;">is Louisiana
native writes her Christmas romances and Southern women’s fiction with a
Louisiana/Colorado connection from the Texas home she shares with her husband
and a very spoiled Labradoodle. </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">Connect with
her through </span><a href="http://www.marianmerritt.com/">Website</a><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">, </span><a href="http://www.marianmerritt.blogspot.com/">Blog</a><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">, </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/marian.p.merritt">Facebook</a><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">, </span><a href="https://twitter.com/MarianPMerritt">Twitter</a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/marianpmerritt/">Marian P. Merritt's Readers Group</a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Buy links to Marian’s Books: <a href="http://www.marianmerritt.com/#!/cnec">http://www.marianmerritt.com/#!/cnec</a><br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-20642567255044310082015-12-01T08:08:00.001-08:002015-12-01T08:08:45.340-08:00It Is a Wonderful Life<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvuMYSiunTX60ZcYqYFAUj2kNyn5Fj2OU4VHXawLTe1ebzSZwttD76Z2J2yr9TMKidpsENfEtE0NgU2bQvf2abrIpJnJcnrSX8K4aHxWY6PN9gulrn3Qsd0PniVFtDfeiWTqX-RyGOLuo/s1600/ItWonderfulLife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvuMYSiunTX60ZcYqYFAUj2kNyn5Fj2OU4VHXawLTe1ebzSZwttD76Z2J2yr9TMKidpsENfEtE0NgU2bQvf2abrIpJnJcnrSX8K4aHxWY6PN9gulrn3Qsd0PniVFtDfeiWTqX-RyGOLuo/s320/ItWonderfulLife.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times;">I'm
stepping a little out of my safety zone and doing something I rarely do: an
article about myself. I am comfortable with fiction and short stories, because
I call the shots about what I want reality to be. However, I am going to reveal
something personal, and I think it will be therapeutic for me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">As
is tradition in our home, we watched <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">It’s
a Wonderful Life</i> on Thanksgiving. I’d like to share a short segment of that
movie. George Bailey has locked horns with Mr. Potter, who wants to dissolve
his mom and pop Building and Loan Company. In a moment of protest, George
offers the following statement. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHo-5QWJyrTmR2Oud8_sGbjdB_fubVuh2J6sLWj5AZRnGta9E_HzdxmzHfOSWAt32bjtp4R_HS9SkNOgJchQibPrseVlApprCej-kyQU3pvO-kFslQ3CxxiCHC4xpQM09O9whiq4FDro8/s1600/ItsAWonderfulLife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHo-5QWJyrTmR2Oud8_sGbjdB_fubVuh2J6sLWj5AZRnGta9E_HzdxmzHfOSWAt32bjtp4R_HS9SkNOgJchQibPrseVlApprCej-kyQU3pvO-kFslQ3CxxiCHC4xpQM09O9whiq4FDro8/s200/ItsAWonderfulLife.jpg" title="" width="200" /></a><a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000071/"><i><span style="color: #0000e9; font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">George
Bailey</span></i></a><i><span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">: Just a minute - just a minute. Now, hold on, Mr. Potter. You're right
when you say my father was no businessman. I know that. Why he ever started
this cheap, penny-ante Building and Loan, I'll never know. But neither you nor
anyone else can say anything against his character, because his whole life was
- why, in the twenty-five years since he and Uncle Billy started this thing, he
never once thought of himself. Isn't that right, Uncle Billy? He didn't save
enough money to send Harry to school, let alone me. But he did help a few
people get out of your slums, Mr. Potter, and what's wrong with that? Why -
here, you're all businessmen here. Doesn't it make them better citizens?
Doesn't it make them better customers? You - you said - what'd you say a minute
ago? They had to wait and save their money before they even ought to think of a
decent home. Wait? Wait for what? Until their children grow up and leave them?
Until they're so old and broken down that they... Do you know how long it takes
a working man to save five thousand dollars? Just remember this, Mr. Potter,
that this rabble you're talking about... they do most of the working and paying
and living and dying in this community. Well, is it too much to have them work
and pay and live and die in a couple of decent rooms and a bath? Anyway, my
father didn't think so. People were human beings to him. But to you, a warped,
frustrated old man, they're cattle. Well, in my book he died a much richer man
than you'll ever be.</span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvMzTNn0Y58pqLS1rcKG4VjeJACd_mB1pFNfeXE1ClRpwGScMej2H2LvXqu-I8EiKdaH-686ZLKo-celTHTejQgmOIARWFCL5sUqB8z1fEbiJAKqoZ472VYFzwlzK9_v6voe_icJmo0e4/s1600/Mr._Potter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvMzTNn0Y58pqLS1rcKG4VjeJACd_mB1pFNfeXE1ClRpwGScMej2H2LvXqu-I8EiKdaH-686ZLKo-celTHTejQgmOIARWFCL5sUqB8z1fEbiJAKqoZ472VYFzwlzK9_v6voe_icJmo0e4/s200/Mr._Potter.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">To
be Mr. Potter or George Bailey? This is the struggle I wrestle in my heart as I
lay in bed at night, and as I walk the street during the day. To most, the
choice is clear. George Bailey is a noble, selfless man who continually makes
the responsible choice to serve his fellow man, while Mr. Potter is a warped,
frustrated old man who seeks his own way and his own purposes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">But
allow me a moment to expose my heart and define the struggle I suffer. For just
a moment, I want to remove the immoral, greedy element from Mr. Potter and
examine him as a practical businessman. He is a businessman of profound
abilities, and uses his influence to advance his business interests. One might
accurately describe him as calculating. And his calculating business mind does
benefit society. After all, it was his business that made housing affordable to
the good citizens of Bedford Falls, and without men like Potter, a large piece
of the puzzle would be missing. In fact, to some, the Potters of this world are
not simply a piece of the puzzle; they are the corners and edges of the puzzle.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">At
my work, I am surrounded by Potters—men who are focused, driven, and
calculating. They are the men who drive the business machine forward. The men
who make decisions that aren’t influenced by compassion, but rather by
necessity. They operate on cold, hard facts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">George
Bailey, on the other hand, is a man who has embraced the passion of life and
empathizes with the common human condition. He is a man who will continually
take the high road, even at his own expense.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">At
my work, I could count on one hand the George Baileys. I should know, for I am
one. I am continually criticized for my “weakness”—that is, my compassion. I’m
often confronted by my peers for being too easy, too nice. “Don’t get me
wrong,” they say. “You’re one heck of a nice guy, and I think a lot of you, but
you are way too soft…” and you can probably finish the sentence for me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">Criticism
is a unique gift. You can either dismiss it entirely, or you can embrace it and
own it. Or, and this is the harder, better choice, you can examine it for
truth. Am I too weak? Too soft? Perhaps. Christ never called us to be
weaklings, but to be men of valor who stand for truth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">Am
I, on the other hand, willing to discard my faith or moral fiber in order to be
more like the other cogs in the machine—like the ones who actually drive the
machine forward? Talk about disingenuous! I would be forcing myself to act and
behave in a way that contradicts who I am and what I believe. And yet the
struggle—the conflict, gnaws on my bones at night as I struggle with what
others see in me. Or think they see. Is it possible my peers are simply
critical because I’m different than them? Ugh! I thought I was done with peer
pressure when I left high school.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">My
struggle may not mean anything to others. Some might not even understand what
I’m expressing, but I examine my criticisms and extrapolate that which is
beneficial. The question haunts me. Am I too weak? Perhaps. But is that a
weakness? Perhaps not. Perhaps the weakness the world sees is nothing more than
compassion for others and lack of selfish ambition. The fact that I would
rather relive someone’s pain, and to do it at my own expense, rather than drive
the machine forward would offend the Potters of the world. We do need Potters.
But we also need George Bailey. Together, they create balance, even though they
are at odds with each other and are never at peace.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">Well,
I will struggle with these ideals for my life. I pray that I will never be the
one who tries to buy off George Bailey because I’ve become a Potter. At one
point in the movie, Potter realizes that George has beaten him in the game. In
order to remove George from the competition, he deceitfully offers him the deal
of a lifetime, and basically throws everything at him that he’s ever wanted. In
a weak moment, George is tempted to take the offer. However, after a greasy
handshake, George comes to his senses and flees temptation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-family: Times;">May
God grant me the strength to hold to my principles, even if the world offers me
the world in exchange.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-1784662428576770202015-11-03T05:00:00.000-08:002015-11-03T09:51:48.232-08:00Candee Fick - Catch of a Lifetime<div class="MsoNormal">
Look what’s happening! Candee Fick has released her debut
fiction novel, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Catch-Lifetime-Candee-Fick-ebook/dp/B013Z1S33Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1446568391&sr=1-1&keywords=catch+of+a+lifetime+by+candee+fick" target="_blank">Catch of a Lifetime</a></i>,
which is now available. Here’s what it’s about: <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqfv3Y1RXcJp1TjBZ2qHx6rCQ8oHke6vSz-bFz553fDdpujOxn-4Jqf5FMWVdxPjm6oVqGSFB7WfAwBXLWyY3U-l_ZaaxUVYaMb9R_NffiCkaks3V5p97xXXfcDFQQsWK8F7TNppseTJ0/s1600/CatchOfALifetime_800.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqfv3Y1RXcJp1TjBZ2qHx6rCQ8oHke6vSz-bFz553fDdpujOxn-4Jqf5FMWVdxPjm6oVqGSFB7WfAwBXLWyY3U-l_ZaaxUVYaMb9R_NffiCkaks3V5p97xXXfcDFQQsWK8F7TNppseTJ0/s200/CatchOfALifetime_800.jpg" title="http://www.amazon.com/Catch-Lifetime-Candee-Fick-ebook/dp/B013Z1S33Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1446492578&sr=1-1&keywords=catch+of+a+lifetime" width="133" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">He breathes football.
She shudders at the very mention of the sport. After a tragedy involving a
football player destroyed her family, athletic trainer and graduate student
Cassie moves across the country looking for a fresh start, but a change in
financial aid lands her in the middle of her worst nightmare. Meanwhile, rookie
coach Reed worries his dream career will slip away as injuries plague his
players and his star receiver teeters on the brink of ineligibility. As the two
work together to salvage the season, sparks fly, and Reed must eventually
choose between the game he cherishes and the woman he loves.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have a real treat for you today. I was able to score an
interview with Candee, which I will post below. I’m excited about this book
because it will be unique, and focuses on a topic that is largely overlooked:
FOOTBALL!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And let’s roll!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Hello Candee Fick! And welcome to my humble blog. I’m so
proud to have you as my guest today, and I’m very excited to share the news
about your new book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Catch-Lifetime-Candee-Fick-ebook/dp/B013Z1S33Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1446568391&sr=1-1&keywords=catch+of+a+lifetime+by+candee+fick" target="_blank">Catch of a Lifetime</a></i>!
I have a few questions for you and thank you for stopping by.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. Let’s start with your new book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Catch-Lifetime-Candee-Fick-ebook/dp/B013Z1S33Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1446568391&sr=1-1&keywords=catch+of+a+lifetime+by+candee+fick" target="_blank">Catch of a Lifetime</a></i>. This is a fictional story that has football in
it. And love. And FOOTBALL! And a few other things. Would you take a moment and
tell us about those few other things? What else does your book offer other than
football?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Well, you already mentioned
love, which is a good thing to include since it’s a romance. The story also
tackles the topic of stereotypes and how we judge by a person’s outside while
God looks at the heart. And there’s this not-so-little thing called forgiveness
that the heroine must wrestle with because she has a reason to hate football.
Oh, right, other than football. How about an example of integrity under
pressure, fitting faith into a competitive arena, and discovering there are
some things more important than a game, even if that game is football.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, this is not simply a sweet romance. It has a much
broader message to it. And it sounds like it would make a fantastic Lifetime
movie of the month!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. You started your writing career with devotionals. How did
that happen? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I wanted to write
fiction but the big idea that jumped to mind was a comparison between the walk
of faith and the game of football. That non-fiction book led to a writing
course, a dozen-or-so published articles, and then a blog. I intended my blog
posts to offer encouragement for the journey called life, but when several
random readers thanked me for “today’s devotional” it caught me by surprise.
Looking back, I could see how I had a knack for seeing a spiritual lesson in a
physical example so I packaged together several of my blog series into
devotionals. I also took back the rights to that first non-fiction book and
re-formatted it into an 11-week devotional called </i><u><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pigskin-Parables-Devotions-Game-Football-ebook/dp/B005F79M7A/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8" target="_blank">Pigskin Parables:Exploring Faith and Football</a></u><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHTc60-H2vJjWe9gq5hI4wpeheqEW7SLwb7ADabkS6dpGJLZigjj3ZrMjK7_sQUOKzsvqy7Xd0gPUrtXTcnfhaJx6lXVRVdf4Px1AoS3QPoqH6tSlWwrTDMdB7ML3w9VUPQ3eD7kplAE/s1600/Joel+cross+country.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHTc60-H2vJjWe9gq5hI4wpeheqEW7SLwb7ADabkS6dpGJLZigjj3ZrMjK7_sQUOKzsvqy7Xd0gPUrtXTcnfhaJx6lXVRVdf4Px1AoS3QPoqH6tSlWwrTDMdB7ML3w9VUPQ3eD7kplAE/s200/Joel+cross+country.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joel running cross country</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. You have a fantastic family. Tell us about them and how
they’ve changed your life.</div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">They are pretty
fantastic. I’ve been married to a high school football coach and math teacher
for almost 20 years. In fact, we met when we were both teaching at a Christian
school. I left formal teaching behind when we started our own family. Our
special needs daughter graduated from high school last spring and is now in a
transition program to teach her practical life and job skills. Our oldest son
is a high school senior, multi-sport athlete, and all-around smart kid who
we’re praying gets the chance to play college basketball on a scholarship. Our
youngest son is in middle school and he’s more the music-loving,
fantasy-book-reading, “what if?” asking personality who recently found a niche
running cross country when not busy doing typical boy things like hiding a
whoopee cushion on my desk chair and giggling. They’ve all taught me to cherish
the moments and not take life too seriously.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You can’t hide how proud you are as a wife and mom, and I
think you and your family are swell!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv9-q1J1FGt5GjIk9ahdeyU3BKtBYobtgK4fNuuTzUp6KV24uZf7iJIPDZp5H-K5I-5l4nWJHvtoY1-5MqHsyJX8WQSA2wTUu5I17qfXoMtebyJ4zJklDEhu-JLiSw5IVIEGILXyQyKkY/s1600/Anna+and+me+Graduation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv9-q1J1FGt5GjIk9ahdeyU3BKtBYobtgK4fNuuTzUp6KV24uZf7iJIPDZp5H-K5I-5l4nWJHvtoY1-5MqHsyJX8WQSA2wTUu5I17qfXoMtebyJ4zJklDEhu-JLiSw5IVIEGILXyQyKkY/s200/Anna+and+me+Graduation.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Anna and Candee at graduation</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. Your daughter has a rare genetic syndrome, which has
significantly impacted your life. Could you offer some encouraging words to
other parents who are struggling with a life-altering event in their lives? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Without faith in God,
I’m not sure how well I would have weathered this storm. Knowing that God is
good, that the pain of this broken world is not the end, and that He never
leaves us alone as He works everything together for our benefit helped me leave
the really hard days in His hands. I’ve learned so many invaluable lessons
while loving my imperfect princess. I actually compiled a book for parents with
special needs kids titled </i><u><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Making-Lemonade-Parents-Transforming-Special-ebook/dp/B0055OPTX4/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1446568472&sr=1-1&keywords=making+lemonade+by+candee+fick" target="_blank">Making Lemonade</a></u><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> that describes the mixture of sweet and sour through the stories of
other families facing a multitude of different issues.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXhKmk1Oc3e89XEzHzjsUvbTLtEM5KBNeMCpDvyhWxGQoqq45PuQDIJhacse1GXUCcSwLUEIU88s8NGI1ZlAqy-pEz9M8LqT0QopwA8SFZh-6L2RL-SFwsL8v7j932UEjxlEDMC-qivW8/s1600/Making+Lemonade+cover+image+lg.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="http://www.amazon.com/Making-Lemonade-Parents-Transforming-Special-ebook/dp/B0055OPTX4/ref=la_B0056B94VE_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1446493272&sr=1-4&refinements=p_82%3AB0056B94VE" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXhKmk1Oc3e89XEzHzjsUvbTLtEM5KBNeMCpDvyhWxGQoqq45PuQDIJhacse1GXUCcSwLUEIU88s8NGI1ZlAqy-pEz9M8LqT0QopwA8SFZh-6L2RL-SFwsL8v7j932UEjxlEDMC-qivW8/s200/Making+Lemonade+cover+image+lg.JPG" title="" width="130" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. Who is your favorite author? What type of stuff do you
read in those rare moments you have enough time to do so?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">My favorite author
used to be Dee Henderson with her O’Malley family and Uncommon Heroes series.
I’ve since added many more authors to my favorites list including Rachel Hauck,
Susan May Warren, Mary Connealy, Karen Witemeyer, and more. There’s a mixture
of contemporary and historical, fairy tale and suspense, plus comedy thrown in
to their stories. I’ve also been known to read dystopian (when vetting books
for my youngest), fantasy, and Amish. Bottom line, I love a good story full of
twists and turns with a happily-ever-ending where the good guy wins.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yes, I’m very familiar with Karen Witemeyer, and I think she’s
fantastic as well! You follow some amazing authors. Each of them is a class act
for sure.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. You’re the wife of a football coach. In Texas, that
means, “Don’t get too comfortable, ‘cause you could be sent packing if we don’t
win enough games.” Is this true for your family? Living a life around sports
can be both fun and stressful. Do you have any fun or horrifying anecdotes to
share? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHm1-sigHccgyor99NX2Xi9_p0GajypaK_1HX9MzMtyjxnku-I30qRiuTB1qBEQHjQhXwmerO76uywsCA10-Akm9FfHwpLcWFGRte3T8tPSYzJ3kj-6gq1kuBVmLPZkaVCevlqu4bhxjs/s1600/Luke+senior+night+football.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHm1-sigHccgyor99NX2Xi9_p0GajypaK_1HX9MzMtyjxnku-I30qRiuTB1qBEQHjQhXwmerO76uywsCA10-Akm9FfHwpLcWFGRte3T8tPSYzJ3kj-6gq1kuBVmLPZkaVCevlqu4bhxjs/s200/Luke+senior+night+football.jpg" width="166" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Luke senior night football</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Here in Colorado, a
head coach makes about $4000 total if he’s lucky so everyone has a day job
(usually teaching).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While no one is
likely to put For Sale signs in our yard after a loss, coaches still get fired
and there are a lot of politics behind the scenes. My husband once took over a
relatively new program that had never won a game and took them to the playoffs
in the second year. You’d have thought he walked on water. Then we jumped up in
classification to face bigger and tougher competition and he asked to teach a
weights class to get the players physically ready for the challenge. The new
athletic director told him to stop whining, assigned the class to the girls
basketball coach, and then fired my husband when he later pointed out that the
students spent most days in the gym playing dodge ball instead of lifting
weights. Weak players were getting hurt on the field and my husband felt like
he had to stand up for their safety. (The new football coach got to teach a
weights class so at least the kids got what they needed in the end.)<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Oy… sports are so complicated! Sometimes, God just has to
make things happen, eh? Thanks for sharing!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. If you were not able to be a writer, and you were allowed
your heart’s greatest desire, what would you be? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A singer in a worship
band. I guess I have a creative, artistic bent that needs to express my faith
in a way that points others to God. Then again, I totally love a wide variety
of other clean music especially from musicals so I could also see myself
singing in a musical revue group in Branson, Missouri. But definitely in a
group. No solo albums for me.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Well, I pray you will be able to pursue that dream when the
time is right. No reason you can’t write AND sing!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. Readers often think that authors live special and
extraordinary lives. What is the most ordinary thing about you? What is the
most extraordinary thing about you?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The most ordinary? I
hate dusting and ironing and cleaning toilets. The most extraordinary thing? I
do those things anyway because I love my family and would like them to live in
a clean house and look nice when they go out in public. And I can’t afford a housekeeper.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. What’s next for you in terms of publishing?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">While this story was
about football, my next contracted book features my love for musicals and is
set in a dinner theater. Think Broadway meets small town, a cast of tap dancers
pounding out a rhythm, and Big Band trumpet music. Oh, and there’s an adoption
reunion element to the story. Dance Over Me is scheduled to release in
September 2016 and I’m currently plotting a sequel. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That sounds fantastic! Good things are coming, that’s for
sure!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And now our lighting round…drum roll, please…<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. What was your first car? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A turquoise green
Suzuki Samarai (a wanna-be Jeep)<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. Can you share your secret to a fabulous lasagna?<br />
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-indent: 0.25in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.25in;"><i><span style="color: #10131a; font-family: Times New Roman;">I can. The secret is using cheaper cottage cheese instead of ricotta and not boiling the noodles ahead of time. Just let them cook in the
sauce while baking.</span></i></span><br />
<span style="color: #10131a; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-indent: 0.25in;"><br /></span>
Q. What was your favorite Christmas gift?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">True story. The year I
asked for a Strong’s Concordance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My dad
was a pastor and I think he cried.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. Coke or Pepsi?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Coke<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. John Elway or Peyton Manning?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John Elway.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. Dogs or cats?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cats<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. Beach bungalow or mountain cabin?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mountain cabin.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. Common core math or…oh, never mind…Let’s keep this PG.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Yes, let’s. My husband
teaches Algebra to low-level math students who can hardly add or subtract when
they get to high school and I hear too much of his opinion on the subject.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. What is the best way for readers to contact you or stay
up with your progress?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thanks for asking. The
most reliable place to be guaranteed to receive updates is through my email
list and readers can sign up at <a href="http://www.candeefick.com/">www.CandeeFick.com</a>. </i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Next best place is my
Facebook page at <a href="http://www.facebook.com/Author.Candee.Fick">www.facebook.com/Author.Candee.Fick</a> and I’m also on Twitter at
<a href="http://www.twitter.com/CandeeFick">www.twitter.com/CandeeFick</a>.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Thank you for such a great, even if unconventional,
interview! I know God has big things in store for you, and you have a special
niche, for which you are perfectly suited. Candee’s books are available now,
and I highly recommend you take time to invest into what she’s doing. <o:p></o:p></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-3974811038760808492015-10-29T08:00:00.001-07:002015-10-29T08:00:14.577-07:00Choosing Good Will<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjV0xZhxJoNdi85nJeAKelCOKiuTLyXQcsOKb2iqhv4pVprlNnOuRCFb1RnZE9JVLo69-szLPmpCIbxuTQiDmb-IkRymxDU_V53-UvML08RA4szrGFgLhJFA7KbUZbeoNUL_v9eV90IZQ/s1600/GoodWillHunting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjV0xZhxJoNdi85nJeAKelCOKiuTLyXQcsOKb2iqhv4pVprlNnOuRCFb1RnZE9JVLo69-szLPmpCIbxuTQiDmb-IkRymxDU_V53-UvML08RA4szrGFgLhJFA7KbUZbeoNUL_v9eV90IZQ/s320/GoodWillHunting.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">In 1997, I watched a movie called </span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Good Will Hunting</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">, which is a movie about a young math prodigy who
refuses to take a chance and become the world changer he was destined to be. I
hated the movie. It was ripe with profanity, irreverent humor, and horrible
language. Despite the fact that the storyline of the movie is one of the best
I’ve ever seen, I chose to be offended and I hated the movie. I was appalled that
anyone would enjoy the film.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">In 1997, the main character, Will Hunting, played by Matt
Damon, was rude, arrogant, snobbish, trash-talking, low life who selfishly chose
to engage in underage drinking, sexual carousing, and generally wasting his
life. Robin Williams played the part of the therapist who helped Will find his
way and to heal his past so that he was able to embrace his destiny. His
character was rude, abrupt, filthy mouthed, and disrespectful. I hated how
unprofessional he was.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">18 years passed and I held to the memories of how horrible
that movie was.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Yesterday I watched <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Good
Will Hunting</i> after a gap of 18 years. I was floored at how brilliantly
written, character rich, and otherwise awesome the movie is. Will, the main
character, is a kid who is hurting, and who learned to push people away as a
defense mechanism, because he was orphaned as a child, and was abused by the
adults entrusted to care for him. All through his life he survived by laying
low and making do, all the while self-educating at the library because he
couldn’t afford to go to college. He was an undiscovered math genius who would
some day change the world, but he was afraid to commit to that course because
the pain he lived in was too real for him to see beyond his modest life. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">His therapist was a man who was reeling from the loss of his
one true love, and was withdrawn and bitter from losing all he once had. He was
a man who was barely hanging on, desperately seeking shelter from the storm.
Because of the pain he embraced, he was able to reach Will and help him find
healing from his broken, abused childhood, and gave him the courage to step out
and take the risk of living beyond his modest life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">18 years ago I hated this movie because it offended me. Why?
Because I was a self-righteous, arrogant, selfish, religious zealot who chose
to hate the world and reject it before it could harm me—again. Yes, again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You see? I was a Will. No, I was not abused as a kid. I was
not hated by my family, but I was still afraid to step out of my comfort zone
and find depth and meaning. I was comfortable living my modest life. But, I was
inflicting pain and misery upon my friends and family, and I was a horrible
Christian who was hiding his fears inside of his religious façade. I was afraid
of the world and what it represented and I chose to hide behind what was
comfortable. I rejected anything that was not religious. And I inflicted pain
on those around me. It was my defense mechanism. And I was wrong. Is there
anything worse than a self-righteous, religious, snob? Sadly, it was the life I
chose.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Why am I baring my soul to you now? Because I have grown. And,
like Will, I learned how to step out of my comfort zone and live my life and
take risks. One of the risks I’ve learned to take was to write. Yes, I’m an
author. I write books, and I make myself vulnerable to you and allow you the
option of filleting my stories, which are microcosms of my soul, and grant you
the ability to reject me. I’ve chosen to put myself out there. And to be
honest, it’s a bit overwhelming.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">My newest release is titled, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Shadows</i>, which is a book about choices, and the inevitable
conclusions of our choices. Due to the magic of fiction, I allow one man to
make two choices, and create two realities that reflect those two choices. In
one choice he remains true to himself and reaps the benefits of that choice. In
the other reality, he chooses to defile himself, and watches in horror as the
consequences cause his life to spiral out of control.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">18 years ago I made a choice to hate a movie. I chose to
reject that movie because it offended me. And why not? It was not a movie that
reflected Christian values. Therefore, I must reject it. I chose to do so.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">And now, 18 years later, I’ve grown. After seeing the movie,
I realized that I never really saw it the first time. I was too busy judging
and rejecting it to see what it was actually trying to say. Yesterday I saw the
movie for the first time. Instead of seeing the things that offended me, I saw
people. People who live in pain. People who don’t want to live in pain any
longer. People who are desperate to break free and live free. Free from pain.
And I chose to feel the depth of their pain and experience it with them. Rather
than reject them, I chose to hear them. I chose to understand them. I chose to
appreciate them. And my life is richer for choosing to do so. These are people
I can appreciate and I can share their lives. I can be their friend. I might
even be able to help them with their pain. None of us want to live in pain. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Look, I still don’t enjoy bathroom humor. I probably never
will. It’s not my personality type. I will probably never use the language used
in this movie, and I will never tell the jokes in this movie, BUT I will not
reject the characters because they do. I choose to accept them as they are, and
not cast judgment upon them for not being like me. Our choices really do make a
difference in who we are and how our lives play out. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">One choice a future makes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-2523513999967055622015-10-24T07:00:00.000-07:002015-10-24T07:00:00.792-07:00Sara Vinduska and The Drowning Man<br />
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An Interview with Sara Vinduska<br /><div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyHXeXGwGbpyOAA2j8UDDPnkfrnrwIkyZ5qMMZ5cT87PL2EHuzqqASTkXezITHAfYEIJ3c62mFXkJ4FWfX9foiElqvB4nY2gXsVnrWvD28l6Azd9f5_Ctg2WdCcYpepcVqfbQb8g_PMQ0/s1600/DrowningMan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyHXeXGwGbpyOAA2j8UDDPnkfrnrwIkyZ5qMMZ5cT87PL2EHuzqqASTkXezITHAfYEIJ3c62mFXkJ4FWfX9foiElqvB4nY2gXsVnrWvD28l6Azd9f5_Ctg2WdCcYpepcVqfbQb8g_PMQ0/s320/DrowningMan.jpg" width="213" /></a><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times;">The Drowning Man</span></i><span style="color: black; font-family: Times;"> is an intense romantic suspense/thriller
that will grab you by the shirt collar from the very first pages, and will
plunge you into a world of fear, regret, and revenge before surfacing into a
very satisfying victory. This incredibly well written book will make you hold
your breath so many times—you might need oxygen therapy in order to survive.
That's how intense this book is! I've long maintained that Sara Vinduska is one
of the best writers I've ever encountered, and this book confirms my assertion.
So, what's it about?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Times;">Well, </span><span style="color: #323232; font-family: Times;">after watching his best friend drown
when they were children, Kansas City firefighter Trent Barlow has devoted his
life to saving others. Twenty years later, Dr. Caroline Newberry still blames
Trent for the death of her son. Pushed over the edge by not being able to save
a young child at work, Caroline abducts Trent, intent on retribution.</span>
Essentially, she snaps and executes a diabolical plan to drown Trent in
retribution. Relying on her skills as a doctor, she drowns him, resuscitates
him, only to do it again. And again. And again. How long can he endure before
finally giving up? <o:p></o:p></div>
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But, Trent is not forgotten. A savvy police detective, Lora
Tatum, refuses to give up hope. She can see Trent as more than a victim, and
believes in him. But, Lora carries her own baggage as well. Can she save Trent?
Can she save herself in the process?<o:p></o:p></div>
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This novel offers so much more than intensity. There is
depth and meaning to this story, and, despite the dark subject, there is a
message of hope and healing. And it’s so well written! This book deals with
adult topics, so I’ll let you know, it is rated R for language, violence,
sexual content, and sheer grittiness. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Rather than me offer you a review of the book, I thought
maybe you’d rather hear from the author, herself. So, I asked her a handful of
questions:<o:p></o:p></div>
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______________<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnt3Ot1qBEy7PPsLhxGL98KusNChiKkLeJp569ivzlO0pMhqTIJqHeNJ2yHtd__pi2zMxUc_3jCrptQv2zKJy2cc_xSR9IbWNhIOethHANHlvF4BqpmkcQVGKL8v-6fcOuqow3-wTxbCQ/s1600/SaratheAuthor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnt3Ot1qBEy7PPsLhxGL98KusNChiKkLeJp569ivzlO0pMhqTIJqHeNJ2yHtd__pi2zMxUc_3jCrptQv2zKJy2cc_xSR9IbWNhIOethHANHlvF4BqpmkcQVGKL8v-6fcOuqow3-wTxbCQ/s320/SaratheAuthor.jpg" width="240" /></a>Sara, I loved your newest release, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Drowning Man</i>! This book kept me guessing and never let me
relax. You’ve become a master suspense author. I truly could not guess how you
were going to end your novel until the very last few pages.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thank you! I
especially appreciate that coming from a talented writer like yourself!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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Q. Tell me, why do you write about such dark topics?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I believe that the
more the characters are tested, the more challenges they have to face, this is
what makes them become the man or woman they are destined to be. It also makes
for more interesting reading and makes it so rewarding when they do triumph
over all the obstacles in their path. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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Q. You tell much of this story from a firefighter’s point of
view, and you actually make me believe you have first hand experience on a
ladder company. How much research went into your story to make it so
believable?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A lot! I first did
extensive online research and watched every firefighting movie I could get my
hands on. After that, I toured a firehouse in North Carolina where I was living
at the time. That was a great experience, they let me sit in the truck, try on
all the equipment, and patiently answered my questions.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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Q. You place your main character in a position to be drowned
and resuscitated multiple times as a torture technique. Why did you choose this
method to tell your story, and how much research did it require to make the
story so believable?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The basic concept of
this story, a man at the bottom of a tank, being drowned over and over actually
started out as a dream I had. I know it sounds like a nightmare, but I woke up
and immediately thought, I have to write that down. Then came the research.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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Q. PTSD is a real struggle for so many people, and your
characters each experience some form of PTSD as the story progresses. How does
this shape the story and define the characters?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Overcoming their own
struggles with PTSD is definitely a fundamental part of the story. The main
characters have to become strong enough on their own before they can have a
relationship. And by opening themselves up to each other, they continue the
healing process.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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Q. How much of this story reflects the life of Sara
Vinduska? In what ways did you weave elements of your personal life into your
story?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Very little actually.
That’s the fun for me of being a writer; I get paid to make things up. I do
think the one thing I want to resonate in my writing and that is a big part of
my life, is that true love can overcome any obstacle. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKUhGHaZZEOY12iRbju9gYkEtLgVKdHz8nno5MEO_ZSB0rnf-WpN5lQPPgEUnlO9umuRuv1EufrUadTHY9B5OqI8zkVUSVuA5pX70pH9yVoFr0VpJ58sazrATztfOLzVOzL6KxCUH1coU/s1600/Sarabooksigning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKUhGHaZZEOY12iRbju9gYkEtLgVKdHz8nno5MEO_ZSB0rnf-WpN5lQPPgEUnlO9umuRuv1EufrUadTHY9B5OqI8zkVUSVuA5pX70pH9yVoFr0VpJ58sazrATztfOLzVOzL6KxCUH1coU/s1600/Sarabooksigning.jpg" /></a>Q. Could you tell us a little about your first novel?</div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sure! <u>Reflections</u>
is the first in a romantic suspense series that centers around Lash Brogan, an
Irish actor, and his friends and acquaintances. It is much grittier than your
typical romantic suspense book, but it sets up the rest of the series and
future characters.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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Q. What other genres have you tinkered with?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I’ve written a few
articles and played around with writing a book about my journey starting out on
a farm in Kansas, to wanting to get away from rural life, to finding my way
back to it.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">But mostly, I write
what I love to read, which is romantic suspense.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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Q. What’s next for you?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I am finishing the
next book in my Lash Brogan series that picks up where Reflections left off. I
hope to have it done by the end of the year.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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Q. You are a very diverse woman, and you have a second
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I love making natural
bath and household products and sell them at our local farmers market. I am a
registered yoga instructor. I also love cooking, wine tasting, and K-State
football. And chocolate. I’m going to take a master chocolatier class starting
the first of the year.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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Q. What is the best way for people to follow you or contact
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<br /></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Book Antiqua";">My email is </span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span style="color: #4687ff; font-family: "Book Antiqua";">scvinduska@yahoo.com</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Book Antiqua";"> and I can be
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Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-61948397273354101962015-09-11T09:58:00.000-07:002015-09-11T09:58:15.469-07:00A Letter Home on 9/11<div class="MsoNormal">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsJm5ZnfsJ6AnSGOfen1y6mmn8Paq8xtKcrVIMAMBgxFjDa00wovXWGygpEEwZga2bL_yhZzjDYcFjyMGgmEnPyGY1SeLEwpqqND7UD3e3qXt1C0LwPEu71J4JhDitIQAHW8JuQ1ob208/s1600/93+crash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsJm5ZnfsJ6AnSGOfen1y6mmn8Paq8xtKcrVIMAMBgxFjDa00wovXWGygpEEwZga2bL_yhZzjDYcFjyMGgmEnPyGY1SeLEwpqqND7UD3e3qXt1C0LwPEu71J4JhDitIQAHW8JuQ1ob208/s200/93+crash.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="color: #101010; font-size: 12.0pt;">United Airlines
Flight 93, crashed down in a field in rural Pennsylvania, never reaching its
intended target because its crew and passengers fought back against the
terrorists. I offer you a first had story of what happened:</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #101010; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">September 11, 2001<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">My Dearest Caroline,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">My heart was heavy as we left you and the kids this
morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Somehow I felt a special
connection with you as we warmly embraced and tenderly kissed goodbye.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, how I hate saying goodbye to you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My only consolation is that I will get to see
you again soon, to feel your gentle arms surround me in welcoming me home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even though I will only be gone a few days, I
will miss you tremendously, for I am incomplete when I am separated from those
who fill my heart with love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">James whispered in my ear to tell you hello, then
proceeded to tease me for writing such emotional words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes I think that he belittles me for my
expressions of love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s a man's man
and doesn't seem to find much time for love in his life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can only imagine how lonely his wife and
kids must be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet, despite his brash
criticism of me and my ways, I still find an appreciation for him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is James, and can be nothing else.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">I know that you hesitated to let me take Little
Charles with me on this trip, but he will soon be a man and must learn how to
function in this world as a man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sometimes I find it hard to remember that he is only 10, for he is so
confident and mature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I smiled this
morning as we boarded the plane.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He held
open the door in the terminal for an elderly couple, and then he looked at me
to see if I noticed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I pretended not to,
for I don't want him to act unselfishly just to win my approval.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead, I want him to do what’s right
because it’s the right thing to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Right
now he’s sleeping, his poor little head is dangling awkwardly, but he seems
content for the moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As soon as we
land, I’ll call and let you know that we made it safely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then I’ll email this letter to you at
home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I marvel at our new technologies
that allow me to communicate with you in so many fashions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hold on a minute, someone is trying to tell
us something...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Dear, I have bad news.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One of the passengers was talking on the phone and was telling us that a
plane just flew into the World Trade Center in New York.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If that is so, we may not be able to return
for several more days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They think that
it was a terrorist act, but that seems impossible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing like that would happen here in the
United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, that passenger just
told us that a second plane has hit the towers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Oh my, I guess that we are under attack...<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll take a few minutes and explain to
Charles what’s happening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the
other passengers are afraid that something might happen to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I doubt that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It would be way too hard to orchestrate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Imagine that, in only a few minutes, our whole world changed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>May God have mercy on us all...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Well, I'm back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Charles is sitting wide eyed next to me, trying not to be afraid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him that it’s okay to be afraid, but
not to let his fear control him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
asked if we were going to die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I almost
told him yes, as we are all going to die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We all know that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is
appointed a day for all of us to die, and few us know when that day is
coming.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I told him that we would land
safely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I wonder if I lied to him
just to make him comfortable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why am I
unwilling to tell him of the distant threat that we might all be in as we fly
through the sky?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess that I just
want to protect him, but he will be a man someday and he must know how to deal
with the truth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Charles has now asked me what we would do if we knew
that our plane was going to be flown into the World Trade Center.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him that I didn't know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then he became fearful of dying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A natural reaction, I suppose. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we have guided him to live a life where he
would be ready to die if God called his name.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He said that he wanted to make sure, so he closed his eyes and appeared
to be praying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We then talked about
those people on the planes and why they didn't stop the terrorists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him that we need to have the courage
to do what’s right, even if it meant our own deaths.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We seldom hear of people unselfishly
sacrificing themselves for their brothers any more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it was a good opportunity for me to talk to
Charles about being a hero.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To me, if we
were to be taken over by terrorists, then I would find a way to stop them or
die trying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not that being a hero is a
great reward, but I couldn’t face my family if I dishonored them by cowering
down behind my seat. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, how many
lives could have been spared if the people on those planes had stopped the
terrorists?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Wow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have
something to tell you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A group of Arabs
just stood up and started to take over this plane.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh my gosh... this is real.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have so much to tell you, but I am out of
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the highjackers weren't
looking, a guy named Todd just came past my chair and we are organizing a
resistance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Baby, I may die, and Charles
with me, but I have to do what is right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We can't let this group kill any innocent lives, we have to stop
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Imagine the odds of me talking
about this exact topic with Charles and then me having an opportunity to
actually instruct him for real!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sweetheart, these are probably my final words to you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Know that I love you with all my heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am sorry that I couldn't have loved you
more and I am sorry for all the times that I chose to be selfish instead of
giving to you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I deeply cherish all that
we are....<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don't regret one minute of
what we shared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, how I love the
kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tell them to serve God with all
their hearts and strength.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tell them
that I love them and that I am proud of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Tell them that I was given an opportunity to choose between being a
victim and a hero.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tell them that I
chose not to die an ordinary death, but I died defending my family and my
country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is there a greater honor?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have to go, its time, at Todd said, “Let’s
roll.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">I love you and I hope that you receive this
letter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See you at the East Gate!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Your loving husband,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--StartFragment-->
<!--EndFragment--><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;">Bill<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: small;">I don't know how many lives were saved because these </span>heroes<span style="font-size: small;"> sacrificed their lives to </span>protect us, but may God bless their survivors. These few are not forgotten.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxXerK9QZLo5Gz0UMq9NxtTAXMuZufhcjiAuVuo4lVkS1Zgfa1FpTgEw864sdCGZTVGsLfK2UDUzLXMPSuDZ-37vxwV_HY3tJxThmmd6RC9vNtpqT67ug8M3olJ9xKEwwVGWjBZdkERrM/s1600/Flight93-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxXerK9QZLo5Gz0UMq9NxtTAXMuZufhcjiAuVuo4lVkS1Zgfa1FpTgEw864sdCGZTVGsLfK2UDUzLXMPSuDZ-37vxwV_HY3tJxThmmd6RC9vNtpqT67ug8M3olJ9xKEwwVGWjBZdkERrM/s200/Flight93-2.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-language: JA;"><br /></span></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-42934686132367842622015-09-07T13:27:00.001-07:002015-09-07T13:36:38.914-07:00Leah Atwood<div class="MsoNormal">
My day with Leah Atwood:<o:p></o:p></div>
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But first, a peek at her newest release: </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u>Come To Me Again</u></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsyDr28-F3g33TPkOHFDdhlVzW2dPA6mh0txGPhut1U91cVR1hDyAmRC3cwu0px9Pb64vAo-nyae0OudZ6AR2pLBFgzx9mwynz8JmDBBbWP10MRLqcZC14RYWA0BJA8Rr21XUa-XLjW8A/s1600/ComeToMeAgain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsyDr28-F3g33TPkOHFDdhlVzW2dPA6mh0txGPhut1U91cVR1hDyAmRC3cwu0px9Pb64vAo-nyae0OudZ6AR2pLBFgzx9mwynz8JmDBBbWP10MRLqcZC14RYWA0BJA8Rr21XUa-XLjW8A/s200/ComeToMeAgain.jpg" width="133" /></a><span style="color: #373e4d;"><i>Dominic Sellers dreamed of
escaping a life of poverty and making a living playing music. On the brink of
giving up, he’s offered the chance of a lifetime to be the new guitarist for
Bryce Landry. His life finally aligned with his goals, but something was
missing. <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #373e4d;"><i>Four years ago, Maisy Rothchild
walked away from her fiancé—her best friend and the only man she’d ever loved.
She’d give anything to go back and change that day, but that wasn’t possible.
There were factors that complicated the situation, things she couldn’t tell
anyone. <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i><span style="color: #373e4d;">When she makes a bold move to
restore their friendship, can the same love that tore them apart bring them
back together?</span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="color: #373e4d;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><i>___________________ </i></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1S3bk4w5-nu5AbXaO7NE37ipB5SmdM6Fj7-XQgFoXEJe3Me0eY4TsxD95r4zMm4DePWR6FGFAjZ_Z9a2GciCZqvQ7e3RuUTxr7xlqhvSiURCqqJfQ4eD0TKFTNh0rXT-BZf39kGGXiVo/s1600/Leah+Atwood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1S3bk4w5-nu5AbXaO7NE37ipB5SmdM6Fj7-XQgFoXEJe3Me0eY4TsxD95r4zMm4DePWR6FGFAjZ_Z9a2GciCZqvQ7e3RuUTxr7xlqhvSiURCqqJfQ4eD0TKFTNh0rXT-BZf39kGGXiVo/s200/Leah+Atwood.jpg" width="143" /></a>What a privilege for me to hang out with Leah for a little
while and chat with her about her books. I’m so proud for this opportunity. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. How many books have you published? How many series?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Oh man, you didn’t tell me I’d have to do math. <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I began with the Mail-Order Matches short stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are nine of those.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Brides of Weatherton series currently has
three book, but will have five total and the Come to Me Series has three, and
will get a bonus Christmas novella. Last but not least is the Freedom Bride
series on which I collaborated with Susette Williams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are six in that series, three of them
from me. So let’s see—that’s eighteen that I’ve published and are available.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. What do you enjoy most about writing historical fiction,
and how did you get started in that genre?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They say to write what you love and the period of American
westward expansion has always fascinated me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The men and woman who pushed west and paved new roads for everyone else
have such stories or bravery, courage and perseverance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would love if time-travel existed so I
could experience it firsthand, but since it doesn’t, I have to live vicariously
through my characters.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. You excel at historical fiction. Why did you decide to
venture away from that and start a new modern day series?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Contemporary romance was always part of the equation, but
the story I was working on never felt right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A conversation with a friend was the catalyst for Come to Me Alive and
the characters came to life, begging for more stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Funny, that series had spurred new ideas for
the original series I planned but could never get the plots where I wanted, and
it will now be a spin-off from the Come to Me books.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. You have a unique talent for making your stories light
hearted and charming. Is that something you do deliberately, or do you even
realize you do so? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Is there such a thing as a deliberate subconscious?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I write “inspirational romance to make your
heart happy,” so there is a definite decision to keep them light-hearted, but I
let the characters write the story. Seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If you ever see me talking to no one in particular, I’m not crazy, but
probably talking out a conversation between two characters.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. You have a series about mail order brides. How did that
come to be?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Again, the idea absolutely fascinates me. Marriage is hard
enough under normal circumstances, but to a complete stranger? And to move
clear across the country in many cases?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My husband (then fiancé) and I knew each other a very short time when I
moved across the country to stay near him when he transferred, and even though
I knew him that was scary (but very rewarding!).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know that I would have had the
courage to make that move had he been a complete stranger.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Q. You have been transitioning several of your novels into
audio books. Do you plan to make all of your novels available with audio? <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I do. I actually made a contract offer today for another
one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not a quick process, but
hopefully by next summer my entire backlist will be available and all new works
will have an accompanying audio version within two months.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Q. What is next for you?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Right now, I’m working on two Christmas novellas that will
tie up the Brides of Weatherton and Come to Me series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have a fun little contemporary series
planned for this winter about modern day marriages of conveniences, and then
next year, the to-be-titled Come to Me spin-off and a new historical series set
in South Dakota.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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Q. You are completely a self-start author, beginning with
your first book, and you are very successful. Why did you choose to be self-published,
knowing that you had opportunities to be traditionally published?<o:p></o:p></div>
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For me, this was the best choice. I have the freedom to
write as I please, juggle contemporary and historical series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have full control over everything I put out
and I can get it to my reader’s in a quicker timeframe than traditional
publishing would allow. Each person has to make their own decision based on
what’s best for their goals and needs—which might be going the trad pub route
for someone else, but for now, I’m very happy with my choice.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Q.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How much
discipline does it take to be a full time writer? Can you describe your
ordinary work week? <o:p></o:p></div>
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It takes a lot! I don’t have a set schedule because I try
very hard to maintain a balance between work and family. Until the last few
weeks, I still had a child home with me, so it meant a lot of late nights and
early mornings to maintain a full writing schedule. Now it’s a bit easier and I
can do a solid six hours during the day and only a few in the evening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On any given week, I probably put in about
fifty hours, but not all of that is strictly writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s a lot of behind the scenes work that
also comes with the territory, but those tasks help break up the mental wear of
straight writing.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Q. Who is your favorite writer?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Other than you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Haha.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s see, that’s another
toughie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I absolutely love Rosanne
Bittner’s books and really hope she publishes more faith fiction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Where
Heaven Begins</i> is one of the most beautiful stories I have ever read! It
stays with you long after you read it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Q. What advice would you give an emerging writer who wants
to follow in your footsteps?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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Writing is a fun and rewarding job, but it requires a
tremendous amount of work and dedication. Learn your craft. Find a network of
other writers from whom who can learn and grow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Always be willing to learn, and in return help others who are just
beginning. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Bonus round:<o:p></o:p></div>
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Q. What was your favorite Christmas present ever?<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m not sure that it’s my favorite, but it’s the most
memorable. Back in the day when Nintendo first came out, my parents bought it
for me and my brothers to share. For some reason, we were allowed to open it
Christmas Eve. (Generally, the Christmas Eve present was reserved for pajamas,
but knowing how my mom, she was super excited to give it to us.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At some point during the middle of the night,
my brothers and I all woke up and sat in front of the TV playing Super Mario
Brothers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My dad came in sometime around
three and made us go back to bed, but I still look back with a smile every time
I think of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s one of those fun
memories we still joke about. By the way, Santa’s cookies were still on the
table when we first started playing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Q. How can readers keep up with what’s going on in your
world?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Follow me on Facebook <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/LeahAtwoodAuthor?ref=hl">https://www.facebook.com/LeahAtwoodAuthor?ref=hl</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Or Join my <a href="http://www.leahatwood.com/join-my-mailing-list.html">Newsletter</a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What a great interview with a top notch writer! I deeply
respect Leah’s writing craft and I look forward to what she has in store for
the future. Leah has a very positive and light hearted way of expressing
herself and those qualities define her characters. If you’ve never had the
opportunity to read her books, I strongly encourage you to do so—sooner rather
than later. Leah delivers time and again, and I think she will continue to
improve her flawless method as she goes. Perfection being perfected.</div>
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You’ll see!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-80101227829109209622015-08-25T07:32:00.001-07:002015-08-25T07:32:59.366-07:00Connecting with your Kids: Fort Bella<div class="MsoNormal">
Difficulty level: high</div>
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Tools needed: Axe, shovel, power drill, level, power saw, tape measure</div>
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Build time: 1 week<o:p></o:p></div>
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Cost: around 300.00<o:p></o:p></div>
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Spending time with my kids? Priceless!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I love spending time with my kids, and they are always at an
age when they need to spend time with me. This project took us two years to
finish. TWO YEARS! It should have taken 1 week, but, shortly after we started
building, I fell down and broke some ribs, and then winter came. The next year
I was sent out of town for my work and didn’t have any summer time left, and
then winter came. Well, this year, I hurt myself again! (Apparently, I’m not 20
anymore, but I still try to work like I am.) But, despite it all, I was
determined to finish this project. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Living in the Idaho panhandle, we have resources you might
not have. For instance, I was able to buy enough logs to build this fort out of
real pine trees. But, you can do the same thing using fence poles, especially
if you buy the poles that are already pointed. They look like pencils!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
So, our first step was to select a building site. This is what our back yard looks like....<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg90BnIqXf65c6bpwcwOprR-b2oCHoybJgAkXLRg5CJHQp2TR_5uA1u8UQriCM2GazxVeb7R7cQ-LPao4-kJzs0t1dUhVQLwjX7lgu_GFysHzMn9LX1JzgV1j2FllbDv44B4IKpNqAiAr0/s1600/IMG_0169.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg90BnIqXf65c6bpwcwOprR-b2oCHoybJgAkXLRg5CJHQp2TR_5uA1u8UQriCM2GazxVeb7R7cQ-LPao4-kJzs0t1dUhVQLwjX7lgu_GFysHzMn9LX1JzgV1j2FllbDv44B4IKpNqAiAr0/s320/IMG_0169.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
The previous year, we built a teepee for the kids near the neighbor's fence on the side of the yard. That site only allowed for two walls to be constructed, but the kids wanted the teepee and the fort to be close together.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVU5bP9LU0ySDsC5JJnGg59FhyY_I4FzfAqOvU_tGKRSCLzWNMQc6yHr4mNrDfKZPmig6G4Dqo49YmiIFsfyndnpd5tkT9b5fknfpEdMvmFry8CGG4wqeXr5FuU6iiigD5yexXluGvV88/s1600/IMG_0172.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVU5bP9LU0ySDsC5JJnGg59FhyY_I4FzfAqOvU_tGKRSCLzWNMQc6yHr4mNrDfKZPmig6G4Dqo49YmiIFsfyndnpd5tkT9b5fknfpEdMvmFry8CGG4wqeXr5FuU6iiigD5yexXluGvV88/s320/IMG_0172.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We will place it next to the teepee</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We began the task of digging out the footings...<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCKiBuJSqhapHm3u9XRuCcHV-xPyt0MIM19PYgFfXCm-wyt69vesV92TSjdO7rhdz3mC5GWg_ry0F0xcM_go340oh0GjjTCcwzmH3Xk6y-yqrla1amCDBHBHzFqgAY6asNhLs4NRKV0Y8/s1600/IMG_0173.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCKiBuJSqhapHm3u9XRuCcHV-xPyt0MIM19PYgFfXCm-wyt69vesV92TSjdO7rhdz3mC5GWg_ry0F0xcM_go340oh0GjjTCcwzmH3Xk6y-yqrla1amCDBHBHzFqgAY6asNhLs4NRKV0Y8/s320/IMG_0173.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We never found gold...just river rocks.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnmMrzVgsOpeZ9-HZW912Zv-pCE7PwD6fUATei11TNy2dVcrUv25ZwopLIjBZQB48lHMeBHglwT-IhCMWiHLBoi-Oyj0Lnn3yPbFqM1t-B6sK0EydTMVOV-f6nZkZVV24EJ8vPhKYW7UU/s1600/IMG_0183.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnmMrzVgsOpeZ9-HZW912Zv-pCE7PwD6fUATei11TNy2dVcrUv25ZwopLIjBZQB48lHMeBHglwT-IhCMWiHLBoi-Oyj0Lnn3yPbFqM1t-B6sK0EydTMVOV-f6nZkZVV24EJ8vPhKYW7UU/s320/IMG_0183.JPG" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGs0dYoKqN-4IpzTHFlPz4apShp1yx-pyzzW3tqsw5BlvbcffBEvFW4mU_Bdw7FisQMcp_jLHUOgKokhytWnK6e0zHQDekp6fiGuUSIVbszMrv5yOIIhlEph9-52pLxqPOqNgqCMoRQk/s1600/IMG_0182.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGs0dYoKqN-4IpzTHFlPz4apShp1yx-pyzzW3tqsw5BlvbcffBEvFW4mU_Bdw7FisQMcp_jLHUOgKokhytWnK6e0zHQDekp6fiGuUSIVbszMrv5yOIIhlEph9-52pLxqPOqNgqCMoRQk/s320/IMG_0182.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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The footings were dug 18-24 inches deep. In some places, 18 inches was all I could get. We will use the rocks later to place around the logs and help reinforce them. So, footings are dug, we need logs. I ordered a load of logs to come to the house. I paid 10.00 for each log. They were 12 feet long and about 10 inches across. I wanted logs that were 6-8 inches, but that's what was delivered. </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2AZlJDNaej4kz1d0_im5YbddcZR8zl7UaGb6J9Z7DG74R0ADkUT-xDvVdTUTh9zSzU0CvWBiwPWbnlc-qJbellvWimTOGa3rjGoKsxLpaCqqAN0p4SMSnbEVwktgBguCqEzQd68hCLZs/s1600/IMG_0175.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2AZlJDNaej4kz1d0_im5YbddcZR8zl7UaGb6J9Z7DG74R0ADkUT-xDvVdTUTh9zSzU0CvWBiwPWbnlc-qJbellvWimTOGa3rjGoKsxLpaCqqAN0p4SMSnbEVwktgBguCqEzQd68hCLZs/s320/IMG_0175.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb4B5y9B4XkAyFb5Cnn-B0Cb1Hv0eVEEnGLOB_x9NBAg3Ta3ZvG6suq8_W913AXnxLMxGOTU23KUnCKvOgwX_cRHlqlmzfHdPi93_9ABGFAbchuHHO4KWGwNiu0_aMjJDLTjmAhRH88pc/s1600/IMG_0178.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb4B5y9B4XkAyFb5Cnn-B0Cb1Hv0eVEEnGLOB_x9NBAg3Ta3ZvG6suq8_W913AXnxLMxGOTU23KUnCKvOgwX_cRHlqlmzfHdPi93_9ABGFAbchuHHO4KWGwNiu0_aMjJDLTjmAhRH88pc/s320/IMG_0178.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdb99Ilj-XPeCwNaPm6r1Q1yKXPj9n5eglQQhoSB2Dy7apyoPZBKGXZsPvzev5iR3MlWCI-at5w7BWiMOm7HIjpGOKnY6IiEe2GtBgOtHCSmlGleTvKxfsl6kiOxNsZectUHqmbNc5kjE/s1600/IMG_0179.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdb99Ilj-XPeCwNaPm6r1Q1yKXPj9n5eglQQhoSB2Dy7apyoPZBKGXZsPvzev5iR3MlWCI-at5w7BWiMOm7HIjpGOKnY6IiEe2GtBgOtHCSmlGleTvKxfsl6kiOxNsZectUHqmbNc5kjE/s320/IMG_0179.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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You have to be super careful doing this. The axe will glance off the log. Trust me. This is not something you do carelessly. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8j61Fpho1wFP1ZMwGZZ-oVConETOEuS7hQta_muVeL-glEZRfTk0sNaIClIrdkNnJnzHpvb0yCwhfT8IJ6cpJT-RM-amfY_M6KvvV9WuHR3Gv7TGMe8Nlyk5wi-Xg7A_nsYYFS-EajZs/s1600/IMG_0186.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8j61Fpho1wFP1ZMwGZZ-oVConETOEuS7hQta_muVeL-glEZRfTk0sNaIClIrdkNnJnzHpvb0yCwhfT8IJ6cpJT-RM-amfY_M6KvvV9WuHR3Gv7TGMe8Nlyk5wi-Xg7A_nsYYFS-EajZs/s320/IMG_0186.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
The next difficult task is to get the logs from point A to B. I decided to use some furniture moving straps, which allows my arms to be the forklift. It worked, but it was a hard task. The kids helped, too. They weren't as happy about this part of the process.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj_tEEPaToGzi9_JlKzIk7wgnOE4Q0c7PWAXqemYEC3_uXn00H1aScc1ZZ8QAD3XKPkcMvSCfBFS6uHd6wSwYxiaSoLIOa9ndbBnyKJDzQGJ3ejIXepR91jJGXNiIklWaxvHcri6K1lus/s1600/IMG_0187.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj_tEEPaToGzi9_JlKzIk7wgnOE4Q0c7PWAXqemYEC3_uXn00H1aScc1ZZ8QAD3XKPkcMvSCfBFS6uHd6wSwYxiaSoLIOa9ndbBnyKJDzQGJ3ejIXepR91jJGXNiIklWaxvHcri6K1lus/s320/IMG_0187.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The kids each held one end of the straps</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsqjgtmvv3VK9Eajd-WjqkAAQgob-tkkpokWNaKFSHxDD0XSZFGsaAXhMJBSF1wGt_4X3puY4O2lkxSklofSkL1ECaOSh3DiOeOGErHH8eENv9c0C-4_sAcW_ZU_iBd9EJzCkt9yH8uaI/s1600/IMG_0190.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsqjgtmvv3VK9Eajd-WjqkAAQgob-tkkpokWNaKFSHxDD0XSZFGsaAXhMJBSF1wGt_4X3puY4O2lkxSklofSkL1ECaOSh3DiOeOGErHH8eENv9c0C-4_sAcW_ZU_iBd9EJzCkt9yH8uaI/s320/IMG_0190.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It took coordination and patience to get a rhythm together.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp8czGh1YQEiDhs8V4xUo-APaCQCcg-GdN1gnpOxtufmAV8UEfvCL70Ix_nDizj6uNFb7oBV3wi9T_gdtT1vmDELpME6mK65gxFevP5cas2lkFTpizrZ4jEnCUb7kpp9Tz0cgH7bItzS8/s1600/IMG_0191.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp8czGh1YQEiDhs8V4xUo-APaCQCcg-GdN1gnpOxtufmAV8UEfvCL70Ix_nDizj6uNFb7oBV3wi9T_gdtT1vmDELpME6mK65gxFevP5cas2lkFTpizrZ4jEnCUb7kpp9Tz0cgH7bItzS8/s320/IMG_0191.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was not as easy as it looks, but we figured it out.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Next, we have to place the logs into the footings. The kids had to help me. I did the lifting, and they helped brace them in place until I could secure them using some 2X4s and five inch decking screws.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjKZv-Akb2ocbieW-dnFuynabMdT756MKmGiWmUVBKX9OV5hA9ZPWZIA2eteqVBUaoS1GPHeI7Ix6H669ZaLotVhy84qrGzyamyTwKNiR-DaDPPb4k0Ktkknu6t4VQajBrkmWMCyGUz6A/s1600/IMG_0195.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjKZv-Akb2ocbieW-dnFuynabMdT756MKmGiWmUVBKX9OV5hA9ZPWZIA2eteqVBUaoS1GPHeI7Ix6H669ZaLotVhy84qrGzyamyTwKNiR-DaDPPb4k0Ktkknu6t4VQajBrkmWMCyGUz6A/s1600/IMG_0195.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
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You want to make sure the 2X4s are level, as they will be used to for the decking in the next step.<br />
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I placed some cross braces took keep everything from moving around. This is the point where I was injured and we had to put the project on hold. For 2 years! When we got back in motion, everything was just as we left it, which is a good thing. Next, we needed to build the decking. We designed the fort to have two decks. The lower deck serves as a step to get to the upper deck. This is why we didn’t cover the entire surface of the lower deck. Plus, my son thought it would be cool to have an opening to crawl through to the ground below. The first level is more of a stepping platform to the upper level. I placed some concrete blocks to use to support the decks across the length of the triangle shaped decks. The span from one end to the other was about 11 feet long. So, I placed the block, and used a 4X4 post to help support the 2X4 frame. We then used 2X6 boards to cover the decks. Don't forget to place at least 1/8 inch between the boards to allow for drainage. </div>
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Seth learned a lot about using power tools on this project, and demonstrated skill in his work by the end of the day. He and I had a blast working together! He’s already talking about doing the same thing with his own kids in the future.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNe79gdpVxRb5fklLJ5rsvxszVM6abCrVnaDga5mTgnu31CTgd_y1C9rjWg2PqiJLZRvNfBWWJBJ4YvnfJx6Vt19lDKjqNtKvrTGMwlEIxBV5zZItIdPQ2Pw2og50kneTMx2Dk9PyfSpU/s1600/IMG_2270.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNe79gdpVxRb5fklLJ5rsvxszVM6abCrVnaDga5mTgnu31CTgd_y1C9rjWg2PqiJLZRvNfBWWJBJ4YvnfJx6Vt19lDKjqNtKvrTGMwlEIxBV5zZItIdPQ2Pw2og50kneTMx2Dk9PyfSpU/s320/IMG_2270.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The concrete piers help reinforce the span.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwRMwpjvIvJsogCfooQZR5eyhFboWyg1OgRyDCLFBG78rlgyNLwlMQpdAsPbdngzc9rNclGSct7b5gVXKZpdHrhsBcT70Rtk4z4P1N7N07vxZ-lY-BLatBioHGhoKpgmsIHPG199O0cIU/s1600/IMG_2271.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwRMwpjvIvJsogCfooQZR5eyhFboWyg1OgRyDCLFBG78rlgyNLwlMQpdAsPbdngzc9rNclGSct7b5gVXKZpdHrhsBcT70Rtk4z4P1N7N07vxZ-lY-BLatBioHGhoKpgmsIHPG199O0cIU/s320/IMG_2271.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seth loved using the tools and learned a lot!</td></tr>
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So, because we needed to maximize space because our building site was limited, we built our walls where the corner was more like 50 degrees rather than a true 45. This made all of our cuts difficult. But, once we figured them out, we were able to get the decking in place in just a few hours. Some tell me I should have run the boards across rather. I’m
not sure it matters. I consulted several contractors, and got several opinions.
This is the path we chose.</div>
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I opted to buy pressure treated lumber, which would help
weather our weather. It’s wet here. We get lots of rain. And we get snow in the
winter, so longevity is an issue with outdoor decks. The problem with pressure
treated lumber is the exposure to chemicals that are used to preserve the wood.
One way around this problem is to buy redwood decking materials, which is
expensive. Redwood lasts longer than regular pine or fir, and is fairly bug
resistant. If you can afford to use redwood, then please do so. Another great
option is to use a product such as Trex, which is composite decking. This
product is awesome and should last about 25 years. Again, the problem is the
price. It is more expensive than buying wood decking. So, I chose to use
pressure treated fir.<o:p></o:p></div>
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This was a labor-intensive project. Shaping the logs and transporting them to our building site was tough. Standing them in place required two adults or one adult and two strong kids. Building the deck was not terribly difficult, and was certainly the funnest part of the project. But, look at those smiles!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLxdx7qbFZC_GGS7a_c9BOWk-uu5gHJX9iAwV70kTWHHth5Xfrzx6Kst2mOqGDaf_3nrVlJ9wDrk9va53AbbTF27CoBiEwdnBr37sYNgahrmJ040UoGIw8BHshyphenhyphenOKt2n9xv_iOVhDb2kM/s1600/Done%2521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLxdx7qbFZC_GGS7a_c9BOWk-uu5gHJX9iAwV70kTWHHth5Xfrzx6Kst2mOqGDaf_3nrVlJ9wDrk9va53AbbTF27CoBiEwdnBr37sYNgahrmJ040UoGIw8BHshyphenhyphenOKt2n9xv_iOVhDb2kM/s400/Done%2521.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-46600835124159484642015-06-21T09:49:00.000-07:002015-06-21T09:49:28.192-07:00A Father's Day Tribute--The Walking Hunters<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnXj4q_dc4urLh5a3Sl9Ftd6bROPyflzZPoZULJJKW0QDLLLu9YPA7UKp80U7YRXuaSi4j88grcjROpPegRFfem4hMTxwUMhlTOUlIamBQ7KxKnBUAl7cJgCpSnA0lKIYEDjsl7TehwWw/s1600/Wendy+1985.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnXj4q_dc4urLh5a3Sl9Ftd6bROPyflzZPoZULJJKW0QDLLLu9YPA7UKp80U7YRXuaSi4j88grcjROpPegRFfem4hMTxwUMhlTOUlIamBQ7KxKnBUAl7cJgCpSnA0lKIYEDjsl7TehwWw/s1600/Wendy+1985.jpg" width="221" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wendy Inman ca 1985</td></tr>
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I grew up in the country in West Texas on a cattle ranch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every fall, we were besieged by would-be
hunters who wanted a free place to enjoy their sport.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My father was constantly heading off
trespassers who claimed to have permission from the owner to hunt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, my father was the only one who could
grant permission, and seldom did he allow anyone access to the land.<br />
<br />
One particular day, he was hounded
by phone calls of people wanting to pay us a visit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To each person the answer was the
same—no.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, around 2 o'clock that
afternoon, we came across a vehicle parked in the middle of a ranch road, about
2 miles from our house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My father fought
his temper and decided that he should try a more diplomatic response in order
to impress on the hunters the importance of integrity and honesty.<br />
<br />
He pried off their hubcaps and
removed all the lug-nuts, save one, on each of the tires.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With the lug-nuts gone, the vehicle couldn’t
be driven anywhere, as the wheels would come off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He then wrote a note to the owner that said,
“If you want your lug-nuts back, you can find them at the house.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He then drew a map where “X” marked the spot.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyz1GITZtSRUn19PLiouDFOFObEzrIx4wQFvOiNDMfadNgDrcxtglg_Y8PBmKB4VlIxX5nP85K-ETQYFSY6la6TL-xyKBpv1PVFqeXpT5cK0Sf3NMYfv7knrtiY03klHQQ2qdbWNnT0uc/s1600/Lug+nuts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyz1GITZtSRUn19PLiouDFOFObEzrIx4wQFvOiNDMfadNgDrcxtglg_Y8PBmKB4VlIxX5nP85K-ETQYFSY6la6TL-xyKBpv1PVFqeXpT5cK0Sf3NMYfv7knrtiY03klHQQ2qdbWNnT0uc/s1600/Lug+nuts.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Not actual vehicle...)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Three hours later, an angry and
weary mob of four was making their way down the long dirt road to our
home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My father was waiting for them on
the porch—and in the shade—I might add.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>By the time the rag tag hunters walked all day hunting and then walked
another two miles in the heat… well, they were nearly exhausted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had worked themselves into a lather with
anger and threats of what they would do to that “so in so, what stole our lugs...”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were so worn down by the time they
reached us that most of the starch had been taken out of their shirts.<br />
<br />
Oh, they were mad all right, but
one look from my father told them all they needed to know—now’s not the time to
start something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE1BROwWUZkYK2QuXdDfeV2hdBEfE5qKI1I1kYZIUWfHrdo_q5ruJT4-s9P8ns8_o6sDb7UOs_zruboKLHwP_AslE3gSYqcYzDwL3QDsN_T_HTZ96wHe6D91rTsKeXyYIbOALuRI5REyU/s1600/checkmated.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE1BROwWUZkYK2QuXdDfeV2hdBEfE5qKI1I1kYZIUWfHrdo_q5ruJT4-s9P8ns8_o6sDb7UOs_zruboKLHwP_AslE3gSYqcYzDwL3QDsN_T_HTZ96wHe6D91rTsKeXyYIbOALuRI5REyU/s1600/checkmated.jpg" width="153" /></a>He’d backed them into a corner and
won the battle long before it ever began.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If we had waited there by that vehicle in the pasture, then we were in
for a show down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He taught me that patience
and creative discipline could outsmart brawn and anger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those men had to apologize to my father
before he would return their lug-nuts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If they didn’t cooperate with him, then they faced a much longer 17 mile
walk to the nearest town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The story got
out about the walking hunters and we started getting fewer inquiries about
hunting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
It seems the master plan was
indeed borne from a master.Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1173699690175945868.post-87804050180030671992015-06-06T08:41:00.000-07:002020-06-06T06:01:30.515-07:00D-Day, A View From The Section 8<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKBgrB-fFDRFfjpAgd4jPACoyngXYSabUofjiDS9j7j2EMJFDnmJfNx51N8WiACqbpLaYK6EcnTJnVNPUbC_l6fsuDleDvh4q4EF9fKt14gSzrEJ75X9if6twK2EAbMpUH0LA-nk2fS8/s1600-h/B-17D.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" height="208" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208902851550268962" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKBgrB-fFDRFfjpAgd4jPACoyngXYSabUofjiDS9j7j2EMJFDnmJfNx51N8WiACqbpLaYK6EcnTJnVNPUbC_l6fsuDleDvh4q4EF9fKt14gSzrEJ75X9if6twK2EAbMpUH0LA-nk2fS8/s400/B-17D.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 187px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 298px;" width="330" /></a><br />
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D-Day, June 6, 1944, Normandy<br />
“We flew so low over the beach that I was able to fire on the Germans below. I could see the Army moving along the beaches, but I couldn’t tell exactly what they were doing.” PFC George Pruitt, Ball Turret Gunner<br />
_____________________________________________________<br />
<br />
On June 1, 2008, as the summer heat pressed into the windows in Snyder, Texas, I sat interviewing George Pruitt, a former Ball Turret Gunner aboard a B-17D Bomber, who was stationed in England during his tour of duty in World War II. The Ball Turret is the small bubble located on the belly of the B-17D Bomber, AKA "Flying Fortress."<br />
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A native of Ardmore, Oklahoma, George had been working with the Civilian Conservation Corps, otherwise known as the CCC, when he heard the news about the Japanese bombing Pearl Harbor. “I had been working in Wyoming and was headed back home when our bus stopped at a hole-in-the-wall diner in Denver, Colorado for lunch. We heard the news broadcast announce the attack. The next day, I joined the Army Air Corps.”<br />
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George didn’t wait to be drafted. “No, I knew what I had to do immediately. My brother joined on the same day, but neither of us knew it.” I asked him if he was worried about joining the war, but he smiled and replied, “No, we knew we were going to win before we ever left.”<br />
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But leaving took a while. First, he had to endure basic training at Randolph Field in San Antonio, Texas. From there, he attended a series of schools from South Dakota to Pyote, Texas training him how to be a gunner and how to function as a bombardier. He recalled flying over Carlsbad, New Mexico, where they dropped dummy bombs on targets carved out of the dessert for just such a purpose. (These targets can still be seen in Carlsbad, and dummy bombs made from concrete are occasionally unearthed on these sites.)<br />
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Once his training was complete, he was assigned to the 452nd Bomb Group/729th Bomb Squadron, and he and his combat crew flew to England and made a home at Deopham Green, just outside of Attleborough in Norfolk. Once they were settled, the flight engineer, Richard J. Walsh, suggested they name their plane, “Section 8”, which was heartily agreed upon. Walsh even managed to get an eight ball painted on the plane. Of course, most Americans will recognize the military term, section 8, which references a discharge based on an assessment of being psychologically unfit or possessing character traits which made one unfit for duty. They figured they were crazy to get in a plane and fly over Germany. Lt. Paul E. Suckow was the pilot for plane #42-31784. Section 8 was now in service.<br />
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Throughout the course of a year, the crew of the Section 8 flew 30 missions, which was required of each crew before they could be returned stateside. They had their share of harrowing experiences during their tour of duty. George recalled one instance when a German fighter, was making a sweeping run at them from their right. He began firing at the plane and hit it when it was only 400 yards away. “He’d have gotten us if I hadn’t shot him first,” he recalled, with a distant glance into the past, a tribute to his memory.<br />
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And he hadn’t forgotten when the Section 8 was shot down near the end of their tour. “We knew we were going down immediately. They hit the engine and it was all over. We had to ditch the plane into the English Channel. I watched as that plane hit the water and I will never forget how the water flooded over it so quickly.” The crew managed to parachute to temporary safety and they didn’t loose any crew members in that incident. “We were floating in the Channel for about an hour and a half when the shore patrol picked us up. I’ve never been so glad to see a boat in all my life.” George recalled with a smile, “We were given a ditching citation and we immediately became members of the Gold Fish Club.” Their final mission occurred on D-Day. “We left early that morning. I think it was around 2 AM or so. But we were over Normandy just after the sun came up. We bombed several structures and some barracks, and we swept the Germans with our machine guns.”<br />
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Of course, their excitement wasn’t limited to their missions in the air. “One night, the RAF (Royal Air Force) shot up our barracks and made us mad. They said it was an accident, but man, what an accident.” Fortunately, no one was hurt. “No, it was mostly just a nuisance.”<br />
Perhaps the most interesting occurrence for George was when he was on leave and was hitchhiking back to the airfield. “We hitched a ride everywhere we went. One day, I was hitching a ride and was surprised to open the door and see Queen Elizabeth. Of course, she was still a princess then, but she was very nice and we chatted for several minutes until they dropped me off.”<br />
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The Queen wasn’t the only high profile figures he encountered overseas. “Once, I met both Doris Day and Betty Grabble when they came through doing a tour. I think meeting Doris Day was the best part of my being there.”<br />
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After his part was played, George and the crew returned stateside and cheered on the boys who continued the fight. “Those were different days. Everyone knew what their part was, and everyone did what was expected of them. None of us complained; we just did what we had to do.” Once back in the States, George met Martha in Fort Worth, Texas, who was working at piecing together planes for the war cause. “She was my ‘Rosie Riveter’, and I knew I better marry her if I knew what was good for me.” Then, after a scowl from Martha, he winked at me and clarified. "She wasn't Rosie Riveter; she was much prettier." (Martha wanted clarification that she was never, ever a riveter. I think George had a way of teasing his wife, right up to the very end.)<br />
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The Pruitts were happily married for more than 60 years, and resided in Hamlin, Texas for most of those years. George died shortly after this interview, and Martha now lives in Snyder, Texas, where she is continually surrounded by family. I count it an honor to have an opportunity to sit in the presence of such great men as George Pruitt. Without the contribution those men and women made, we’d be drinking French wine with German labels, and the maps would be drawn differently than they are currently.<br />
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Thank you, George, for the sacrifice you were willing to make in order to guarantee our freedoms. May God richly bless you and your family.<br />
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<a href="http://traviswinman.blogspot.com/2008/07/another-view-from-section-8.html" target="_blank">Part II of George's story taken from his personal journal </a>.Travishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14493805128069922325noreply@blogger.com8