Saturday, November 29, 2008

The Writer's Life

As I wrap up work on my middle-grade novel for Milton Hershey School on this holiday weekend, I have had a chance to reflect on the life of a writer.

It's quite simple, really.

Not being a writer. Not writing. Not bring words to the page. All of that is hard. Very hard.

It's simple to be a child again. Or, in this case a teen.

My novel takes place in 1977-78. I was a senior in high school during that school year. This novel has been a walk down Memory Lane. Elvis dies. Star Wars is born. Disco takes the dance scene by storm. There's an energy crisis. Gas prices go up. The president is at odds with Congress. Women want equal rights. People march to be noticed. A new roller coaster twists and turns in Hershey, the setting for the novel.

So, maybe this is my story that I'm writing. Maybe the 8th grade boy in my novel is experiencing some of what I experienced and some of what I felt.

The novel is due on Monday. It's part of Milton Hershey School's centennial celebration. I best get back to work to dot the i's and cross the t's and give John Travolta space to dance across the screen. (Saturday Night Fever took the country by storm.)

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Capturing Life in the Adirondacks

Sometimes, I wish I could capture time and never let it go. It feels as though time is slipping by me these days with many deadlines and obligations. Just this morning, I taught a workshop on time management. Can one truly manage one's time or does time manage us? Just how much control do we have over this fourth dimension, and why does it spin faster with each year we add to our lifespan?

I suppose that photography is the closest we can get to capturing the moment and suspending time. This week, as I selected ten photos to enter into Adirondack Life magazine's annual photo contest, I realized the number of blessings I've been afforded this year. Work is rewarding, family is loving and supportive, and natural beauty is plentiful.

These are a few of my entries for this year's competition. Thank you for allowing me to share a few moments of mountain time with you.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Frosted

In chilly 10 degree temps with a biting wind to boost, I headed up to the lakes this morning to take some pictures.

This photo is of West Caroga Lake in the southern Adirondacks. I arrived in time to see the wind whip across the open water to create waves of ice flows heading toward the shore. As the ice reached the water's edge, it froze in solid waves. Some of the spray settled on the rocks in the foreground. In the background is mist as it rose. It's unusual to capture a photo will all the phases of water -- solid, liquid, and gas.

From Caroga I headed to Pine Lake, my summer swimming hole. There, nature played artist along the beach as she created crystals and ice blossoms.

I'll be spending my afternoon in warmer quarters -- in front of a fire working on my novel for Milton Hershey School. Last night I did research on baseball cards, the Panama Canal, the 1970s energy crisis, and more. I wonder where my thoughts will take me and the novel today.

Friday, November 21, 2008

One Red Fox, Two Shooting Stars

As I was driving into my corner of the woods last night around 11 PM, I was blessed with three sightings that made my heart sing.

First, a red fox did a little shuffle dance in my headlights as I came up upon him on a back country road.

Then, as I made my way into a crisp Adirondack night clearing, I was blessed with not one shooting star but two. It seemed as the two stars fell from behind me to before me, showing me the way home.

I wish I had my camera with me this morning as I scooted my daughter into town for an activity. The open fields glistened with frosty ice as the morning's sun awoke the world from its night-time slumber.

Today is a cold winter-like day here in the north woods. I am working on a novel as I sit before a warm fire in my little cabin in the woods. My two writing assistants (Siamese kittens) are stretched before the fire. They have the right idea!

If I get enough done on my book today, my plans for tomorrow include an early morning photo shoot. Stay tuned. There may be a picture or two to share.

Monday, November 17, 2008

Preparing for the New Year

Although it's only November, it's time to think about 2009.

During the year, I collect memories of my travels through photographs. Today, I took a stoll through the year and selected some of my favorites to place into a 2009 calendar that is available for sale through my Cafe Press web site.

If you're looking for a little natural inspiration to get you through the coming year, take a peek at what the Adirondack Mountains and surrounding areas of New York State offer to those who trek its trails and travel its backroads.

I posted a few pages of the calendar here for you as a tease!

But don't give up on 2008! We still have weeks to go to leave our mark on a roller coaster year.

Carol

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Cheers! Cheers!


The cork has popped. The celebration has begun. After many months of research, the first draft of the picture book for Milton Hershey School is on its way via the Chocolatetown Express (Big Brown).

Will there be changes? Absolutely!

Will the cover look like this one? Absolutely not!

I leave the final design in the hands of the graphic arts pros.

But for now, it's time to catch my breath, clean my desk, regroup, and finalize the middle-grade novel for the school.

The next two weeks will be crazy, crazy. Bring on the chocolate. The fingers are ready to fly!

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Feeling a Little Nutty


Today I'm feeling a little nutty. In addition to the white stuff falling from the sky outside my office window, I'm finalizing work on my children's picture book for Milton Hershey School. The book stars an acorn, which, to be exact, is actually a fruit and not a nut.

Before Sunday services at Founders Hall on the MHS campus, I took a stroll with my camera. The campus is rich in botanical gifts, including many oak trees. There are red oaks, like the growing tree in my book, and there are white oaks. (The easiest way to tell the difference is in the leaves. Red oaks have pointed lobes. White oaks have rounded lobes.) With many oaks comes a buffet of acorns, which the squirrels go a bit nutty over. I captured this trio as they scampered and played beneath the boughs of some mighty oaks.

On Monday I was a silent observer. The MHS senior class (2009) planted its memorial tree near the alumni section of campus. Soon, they will be graduates of the school, and off setting roots in other parts of the state and country. Of course, that tree was an oak. It's a powerful symbol.

Milton Hershey once said that to plant a tree is to offer something for those who come after you. I suppose that writing a book is very much like planting a tree. We leave our legacies behind us in our words, our actions, and our deeds.

I'm off to plant my tree. I hope your day is full of opportunities to grow into a mighty oak.

Monday, November 10, 2008

With a Sweeter Heart


I returned this evening from Chocolatetown. My heart is a bit bigger because of the experience.

This weekend was part of Milton Hershey School's Founders' Day celebration. I attended two events on campus, both at Founders Hall (picture). The school celebrated its 99th birthday. They are ramping up for the big centennial celebration, of which my two children's books will be a part, in 2009.

If your travels take you to Hershey -- to the park, to a concert or event, or even to the chocolate spa for a little calorie-free pampering, give yourself a gift. Take one hour out of your visit to walk inside Founders Hall. Be inspired by the greatness of the spirit behind the school for children in need. Look up inside the dome-shaped rotunda. View the movie for visitors. Read the success stories of the school's alumni. Meet some of the young students who call Milton Hershey School their home. Your heart will thank you.

Now, go eat a chocolate bar, preferably one made in Hershey. Every calorie helps a child.

Friday, November 7, 2008

Scrooged

On the road again ...

I'm headed back home to Hershey this weekend -- part business and part pleasure. My 15-year-old daughter will be traveling with me. It will be nice to have some car company.

First, the business. This weekend is the annual Founders Day celebration at Milton Hershey School. I will be on campus on Sunday for their special worship service and then again on Monday for the all-school assembly. I'm also being interviewed by an Elizabethtown College student (and editor of the school's publication) as part of her senior multi-media project. Her topic is Milton Hershey School's Centennial Celebration. I'll share more about that interview and project at a later date.

Sandwiched between these two school events is a little family fun. My extended family (the many layers of lasagna) meet regularly for dinner theater programs. This get-together is to see the musical version of A Christmas Carol at Dutch Apple Dinner Theater in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. I'll be enjoying some Pennsylvania Dutch fare with ghosts of Christmas past.

So, a little chocolate, a little shoo fly pie, and many more miles on the Subaru Forester (148,000 and counting).

When I return, it's butt-in-chair time. So much work, so little time!

Have a nice weekend, everyone. I'll share my latest adventure with you on the other side.

Carol

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

There's Nothing Better than the Beach




I just returned from a two-day whirlwind of 750 miles of driving, one pooping seagull, one fish head (rolly polly fish heads), an outstanding meeting to launch another book project (Thank you, Michele.), crazy drivers on the Garden State Expressway, one missed turn (and an adventure through the Catkskills), and fantastic fun with a fellow memory capturer (Thank you, Judy.).

My travels took me to Ocean City, New Jersey, and back.

Although the weather wasn't prime for snapping photos, these three captured the moment the best.

I'll be returning to Ocean City in July for many more pictures.

Stay tuned for more information about the book project by the beach ...

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Looking for Lynx

The neighborhood is abuzz with the possibility of a rarely sighted lynx. The lynx is a wild cat with tufted ears, long whiskers, a short tail, and wide, padded paws that serve as snow shoes in the winter. Lynx can grow to a length of four feet and weigh almost 50 pounds. It is illegal to hunt these animals, as they are currently listed as threatened. As I trek the trails around my cabin, I will now be on alert for this beautiful animal. I hope I have my camera with me to capture its presence here in the mountains.

On the topic of pictures and cameras, I was delighted to learn today that one of my entries in FMCC's Works on Paper was selected for the upcoming art exhibit. Mistical Morning Meditation will be on display starting December 5 at Fulton-Montgomery Community College in Johnstown, New York. This is quite an honor for someone who plays with her camera. Maybe it will be the nudge I need to get serious about this art form and my study of it.

For now, I need to get serious about my writing. I will be hand-carrying the picture book for Milton Hershey School's centennial celebration to Hershey with me one week from today. Tick, tick ... the clock moves on.