Are You Holding Back?

Am I holding back? This is a question I ask myself every day of my life. The next question, because the answer is usually the same one, is, why? When I was younger I held back because I didn't want to look stupid. I don't mean unintelligent, I mean foolish. "If I  _____  they'll think I'm stupid..." That's how kids think. There was an event in my early life, however, that set me on a path to healing this erroneous thinking...

Sharing the Day

We all share our birthday with several others who happen to be famous. On this day I'd like to tell you who I share mine with, other people who were born on September 24th...

Devils Without Conscience, Angels Unawares

When thinking about where I wanted to stay while in Solvang, there were really only two choices: The Mirabelle Inn or The Wine Valley Inn & Cottages. I've stayed at both in the past, but I opted for the latter because the former was booked solid.  This was not a lesser choice, I must add. It's a quaint, cheerful hotel and the staff are wonderful...

Ventura Highway in the Sunshine

For the first three days of my trip, I didn't really get the feel of California. I was staying at Ernie's house in Santa Barbara and, outside of a quick outing for dinner one night and another spent in a night club on the Ventura Marina, dancing the night away to Ernie's band, I pretty much stayed indoors. I was getting used to being on my own, and the freedom the trip offered still felt illusive to me...

Anke if You Love Royal Tunbridge Wells

Only a couple of days before I returned from California, I won this groovy tee from the Anke Blog. I say won, but actually, it was Mr. Anke's remarkable generosity that got it for me. He had a contest going for which the 500th person to Like his page in Facebook would win a tee of their choice from his blog store. The only condition was that the winner send him a photo of themselves wearing said tee.

After the 500th person had won, Mr. Anke felt a bit more generous than usual and he posted that the first person to reply to his status would also win a tee. Well, I came in second, but I pulled a pretty good pout I guess, because he told me to pick out one as well. I was over the moon! My argument was that, because my Beyond The Bridge trilogy is set in Tunbridge Wells, I really needed one and I promised to wear it at my first official book signing.)

Pouring it On

For the past two days I've really been pouring it on where writing is concerned. On Monday I put in a solid 15 hours and yesterday I worked only slightly fewer. Today promises to follow suit; I haven't even had a cup of coffee and I'm itching to get at it...

Jayne's Room With a View

Looking back at my trip, it was all so perfect and fun that it's hard to choose experiences or events that stand out more than the rest, but one that I can truthfully say was a highlight was the evening I met author Jayne Martin...

Gordon, is That You?

Hey, looks like Gordon Hammond attended BandTree, too!

Actually, I don't know who this young man is, but when he walked in the door I had to blink and do a double-take. It wasn't easy getting this surreptitious photo of him, but I'm glad I did.

Wines and Bungees

Farewell to the beautiful 101.

I made it back in one piece, no worse for wear and definitely lighter of spirit, but it would be easy to let my "real life" bring me down, so I'm throwing myself into work. I have a lot of projects on the table which need to be prioritized and dealt with if I want to make my dream come true...

It Might Be Fun to Find Out

I've spent a a lot of time on this chaise.

As I sit in the window of my hotel suite looking out at the ocean, I'm having to work very hard at not depressing myself. Tonight is my last night in California. I'll be flying home tomorrow.

Home. I can't really say that now when talking about Oklahoma. Now that I've been back to my own state I realize that this has always been home. I don't want to leave. I wish I was a millionaire. I'd stay here, begin house-hunting, then I'd just fly my family out when I got a place. That's in a perfect world, of course. In my world moving back to California will take a minor miracle, but I have a fresher outlook on life now and my natural positive attitude is back. I really am not looking forward to returning to all of the seriousness and negativity in Oklahoma. The flatness of it. Not geographically, I mean its personality is flat...