Kritique Kritics

I started learning how to ride a horse at fifty-three years OLD.  My riding instructor, Cassie Rowland, was twenty-four years old, at the time.  I don’t think it was humanly possibly to get a better teacher and she’s the one that sent me the following rules.

Here are some RIDING RULES for Old Horse Women:

1. We DO NOT need to show up with our hair combed, make up on and wearing a clean shirt.

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I made a big mistake three weeks ago and my site was off line because of it.  I was trying to upgrade four websites behind the scene, using FileZilla.  I was out of my league and I managed to mess up two of the sites.

I called my “guru”, Christine Taylor.  She wasn’t annoyed; she even complimented me saying, “most people couldn’t get that far into the system to make a mistake.”

Christine couldn’t fix the problem, however she backed up my site so I wouldn’t loose anything.  Christine had to call her “genius”, her brother Warren Taylor.

I am extremely grateful for his help and Christine’s.

Warren is a writer and has two websites of his own to take care of:

http://noir.war2d2.com/

http://watchthis.war2d2.com/

As a writer, I especially enjoyed the first website.

Tags: Websites, Writing // Be the First to Comment! »

My friend, Sandra Jenkins, sent me this story; she knows how much I love cats.

Kitten Capers

From Chicken Soup for the Soul: ;”> Kitten Capers From Chicken Soup for the Soul : What I Learned from the Cat

BY: By Aimée Cartier

An ordinary kitten will ask more questions than any five-year-old.
~Carl Van Vechten

I got a kitty recently. A cuddly bundle of joy and delight who is always endeavoring to figure out the world around her. She is constantly reminding me of the awkward but endearing quality of learning, and of the play and bizarreness of the world.

Yesterday she put her head in a small backpack sitting on a chair. Sticking her face in the outside pocket, she sniffed around to discover leftover cucumber slices from my picnic lunch. At first with interest, and then with vigor, she was stuffing her head and then her whole upper body into the pocket to make sure she hadn’t missed anything.

But before long, having that curiosity satisfied, she sat up ready to move on to another adventure. In one zesty move she jumped off the chair — hooking one of her little back legs on the backpack strap on the way down. Suddenly, what she thought was a harmless inanimate object with some boring human food was a fierce and attacking animal, right on her tail! Onto the floor and around and around the LIVE and wild backpack was chasing her.

http://www.beliefnet.com/Inspiration/Chicken-Soup-For-The-Soul/2009/11/Kitten-Capers.aspx

The rest of the story is at the above link.

Tags: Animals // Be the First to Comment! »

KELLY CORRIGAN on “The Middle Place”

Video:  bordersmedia

Tags: Women, Writing // Be the First to Comment! »

A friend, Anne Schroder, sent me this:

Reprinted from: Mail Foreign Service

Lions and tigers and bears, oh my! The Jungle Book predators who have forged a lifelong friendship

‘We could have separated them, but since they came as a kind of family, the zoo decided to keep them together,’ said Diane Smith, assistant director of Noah’s Ark.

‘To our knowledge, this is the only place where you’ll find this combination of animals together.’

Living with the zoo’s founders for the past eight years, Shere Khan, Baloo and Leo have now moved to a purpose-built habitat were the US public can now witness first hand their touching relationships
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1234087/Lions-tigers-bears-oh-The-Jungle-Book-predators-forged-lifelong-friendship.html#ixzz0dpvKXgnv

Best friends: The three beasts have been kept together since they were rescued from drug barons when they were just two months old.

‘We didn’t have the money to move them at first,’ said Diane.

‘Now their habitat is sorted and they have been moved away from the children’s zoo areas where the public couldn’t really get a good look.

‘It is possible to see Baloo, who is a 1000lb bear, Shere Khan, a 350lb tiger and Leo, who is also 350lbs, messing around like brothers.

‘They are totally oblivious to the fact that in any other circumstance they would not be friends.’

Handled by Charles and Jama Hedgecoth, the zoo’s owners and founders, the three friendly giants appear to have have no comprehension of their animal differences.

‘Baloo and Shere Khan are very close,’ says Diane.

‘That is because they rise early, and as Leo is a lion, he likes to spend most of the day sleeping.

‘It is wonderful and magical to see a giant American Black Bear put his arm around a Bengal and then to see the tiger nuzzle up to the bear like a domestic cat.

‘When Leo wakes up the three of them mess around for most of the day before they settle down to some food.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1234087/Lions-tigers-bears-oh-The-Jungle-Book-predators-forged-lifelong-friendship.html#ixzz0dpvcQKNY

Larking about: Noah’s Ark owner Charles Hedgecoth enjoys a visit with Baloo and Shere Khan

Surprisingly for three apex predators with the power to kill with a single bite or swipe of their paw, they are very relaxed around each other.

‘They eat, sleep and play together,’ said Jama.

‘As they treat each other as siblings they will lie on top of each other for heat and simply for affection.

‘At the moment they are getting used to their new habitat.

‘Shere Khan is being quite reticent about the move, but Baloo, the bear is very good at leading him on and making him feel comfortable and safe.’

Explaining that the three ‘brothers’ have always seemed to share a unique bond, Charles said: ‘Noah’s Ark is their home and they could not possibly be separated from each other.

‘You just have to remember who you’re dealing with when you are with them though.

‘It’s when you forget that these fellows are wild animals that you get yourself in trouble.’

The trio’s new habitat cost an estimated £15,000 and had to be constructed carefully, in order to accommodate its occupants.

Jama said: ‘The clubhouse had to be very sturdy for the guys, because they all sleep in it together,’

She added: ‘We had to include a creek, because the tiger and the bear both like to be in water.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1234087/Lions-tigers-bears-oh-The-Jungle-Book-predators-forged-lifelong-friendship.html#ixzz0dpvqiXZ0

Close: The animals treat each other as siblings and even lie on top of each other to share warmth and affection
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1234087/Lions-tigers-bears-oh-The-Jungle-Book-predators-forged-lifelong-friendship.html#ixzz0dpvxh2YZ

Tags: Animals // Be the First to Comment! »

Buff Boy was cream colored with pale orange strips.  He looked just like his mother, Buff Momma, except he was fourteen pounds and she was only nine pounds.

I found him in June 2006 when he was three months old.  I had him neutered and given all the usual shots.  He was also treated for worms and I gave him flea and tick medication monthly.  I did everything I could medically for him.

I loved him–taming him slowly–with food.  Later, playing with him with one of the fifty cat toys on our deck.  My husband, Roland, built a cat shelter and placed it next to our bedroom door.  I would go out several times a night to check on Buff Boy and the others.  During the day, I would use a peacock feather to play with him on the grass.

BUT, it wasn’t enough!

You were taken from me a year ago tonight.

Buff Boy had the most beautiful yellow/copper colored eyes.

Buff Boy’s father (Big Boy) and mother (Buff Momma).

A POEM FOR BUFF BOY

Why can’t I let go?
Would I not move through the grief,
If I stopped the denial?

You are dead!
You are dead!
You are dead!

I am heartbroken.
Hope would not let me cry, before.

Tears finally found me-
True grief begins as denial ends

Debra Davis Hinkle
February – March 2009
Last four stanzas only; full poem in “The Broken Chain”, due out in 2011.

Tags: Animals, Feeling, Grief // 1 Comment »

The sound of rain wasn’t pleasant, as a child.  At school, it meant we had to square dance with the boys—I was far too shy to enjoy this activity.  At home, it was even worse.  It meant that I would be cold and sometimes wet.  I would usually get an earache and cry in pain.  My mom would warm a hot water bottle, but what I needed was an antibiotic.

We had a house that ran East/West so one half of the house was South facing.  That part of the roof leaked.  When it started to rain in the middle of the night, cold and wet drops of water would wake me.  Then I would gather the pots and pans from the kitchen and place them under the dripping spots.  I had to be very quiet in my sisters’ room so I didn’t wake them.  The other two rooms on the South side were the living room, and mine so I didn’t have to be quiet in those rooms.  It only took a few storms to memorize the sizes of the leaks.  I soon knew where to place the small versus the large pots and which leak needed a bucket.  I could fall back asleep and not worry for a little while if I placed the containers correctly.  Besides just emptying the containers, the next time I woke up I would have a mess to mop up if I didn’t estimate the leaks correctly.

For the first few years after I married my husband, Roland, I would walk around the house looking for leaks during rainstorms.  It was ridiculous, but I couldn’t stop myself.

One day Roland said, “Honey, you don’t have to look for leaks.  We have a new roof and if it leaked, we have the money to get it fixed.”  That realization took a while to set in, but once it did, I felt Roland was powerful.  He could take care of me.  I married the right man.  I would never be cold or have earache pain again from the rain.

What I didn’t realize, at the time, was that Roland was encouraging me to take back my power.  I had the money to fix the roof.  I’m powerful.  I was powerful, even as a child.  I was trying to rectify a bad situation.

I might love my husband, but I don’t need him to take care of me.  It took a long time before I understood and felt that I could take care of myself, rain or shine.  I had the power.

Thanks to Roland for setting me on the path to self-actualization.  Much of whom I am, I owe to him and that conversation.

This week when San Luis Obispo and much of California was hit hard by rain storms, I enjoyed the rain–including the hail storm that you can see on our back deck.  The only worry I had was for the burn areas in California.

Thanks to the Friday Night Writers  Group for their critique of this blog.  Special thanks to my Kritique Kritics partners, Carter Pittman, Christine Taylor and Laurie Woodward who support and inspire my writing.

Tags: Feeling, Powerful // 1 Comment »

I can’t remember who sent me this video, so I won’t be giving them credit.  It is one of the funniest ones I’ve ever seen.

When Cats Pray

Video:  sign543

Tags: Animals, video // 1 Comment »

This is what I wrote last year on January 7th:

I feel overwhelmed all the time!  But, especially this time of the year (Jan-Apr).  Right now on my plate I have the following:

Prune twelve fruit trees (50 – 70 hrs)

Pick up all leaves in yard so leaves won’t transfer peach leave curl to new growth

Move two remaining fruit trees

Spray weed killer on hillside

Replant front bed (40 – 60 hrs)

Plant Vegetable garden

Weed & edge backyard

Fertilize backyard & front yard

Treat for ants and snails in backyard & front yard

Reseed front & backyard

In spare time, pull all income tax records together

What really makes me mad about this list is that I made it and I prioritize it!  I AM MY OWN WORST ENEMY!

No wonder I felt overwhelmed.  This is too much for a female in her fifties and too much for anyone.  Well this year I got SMART.  I hired someone to do all the garden work and he completed it in less than three days. And, I won’t need several chiropractic visits for my aching back.

Tags: Feeling, Overwhelmed // 2 Comments »

Anne Schroeder is the multi-award winning author of Ordinary Aphrodite and Branches on the Conejo: Leaving the Soil after Five Generations. She also has published many short stories and essays.  You can learn more about her at:

http://www.readanneschroeder.com/AUTHOR.html

For the January SLO NightWriters meeting Anne Schoeder spoke on “Point of View.”   I was extremely impressed by her presentation and her presentation skills.  She was very well prepared and a great speaker.  Her thorough understanding of the subject made for a educational delight. Even her title was great:

HELP!  I’M A PRISONER OF P.O.V.:  Understanding P.O.V.

She included a three-page hand-out with her presentation, which I’m going to put into a computer file along with some notes I took; both will be great for future reference.

As a listener, I feel like Anne was able to plant a small P.O.V. seed.  With time, her handout and my notes I think that seed will germinate and my writing will improve as I begin to grasp P.O.V.  Who knows maybe that seed will grow and grow and point of view will become a oak tree instead of the seed pod of a dandelion plant.

THANK YOU ANNE!

Photo by: Dennis Eamon Young

www.DennisEamonYoungPhoto.com;

Tags: SLO NightWriters, Writing // 1 Comment »