Miracles...Grow!

This week I received phone calls from two authors with a common bond...a miracle. The handsome young man at the left is Justin DeCleene. He has written a medical mystery that includes incidents similar to events that Justin experienced in January of 2008. Justin was diagnosed with Glomerulonephritis, a kidney disease caused by a strep virus. In Justin's book, Medical Adventures, two brothers are stricken with the same disease, and the family is faced with the challenges of an uncertain future.

Justin and I had a nice phone conversation. He quickly volunteered that his book is self-published, something that many SP authors are hesitant to say. We talked about his health, and Justin told me that he is "just fine and dandy." We made plans for him to visit our store to tell his story, and hopefully sell some books, in early fall.

Frankie's owner, companion and caretaker, Barbara Techel, contacted me last week to share Frankie's story. It seems Frankie started life just like any other dog, walking on all fours, until a spinal injury left her paralyzed. Frankie was custom fitted for a wheelchair and her life has been rolling along nicely ever since. Frankie the Walk 'n Roll Dog was named National Best Book by USA Book News. In 2009, Frankie was inducted into the Wisconsin Pet Hall of Fame.

The real Frankie and her friend, Barbara, will be visiting LaDeDa. We'll keep you posted.

*****Prepare for the attack of the giant hosta. Check it out. They are already more than halfway to the top of my deck. My plan? Ply them with Miracle Grow
until they reach the top. Hey...everyone needs goals, right?

*****On Friday night, our book group met to discuss The Reader (book and film) and Doubt, the film. The discussion was great - one of the best I can remember. Somehow, we moved from the subject at hand, to the topic of blue zones. Now, I'm going to speak in rather vague terms, here, since I haven't yet read the new book on the subject, but here goes. It seems that someone (scientists? anthropologists? sociologists?) have identified a number of areas throughout the world where people live happy, productive lives well into their 100's. The same group of researchers compiled a list of commonalities in these areas. The one we discussed at length was pacing. People in the blue zone areas aren't driven by time, or arbitrary deadlines. They like to snooze in the afternoon, and enjoy not feeling guilty about not being productive every waking moment. We decided to start a blue zone revolution in Manitowoc! If more plans emerge, I will let you know; but we are in no hurry...too busy sipping guava juice.

Mary brought a delish cake so that we could celebrata Johnny Depp's birthday!

While we're on the subject of conversing with friends, I'll share my Face Book experience. Brendo stopped in a few weeks ago, and before I knew what was happening, she had set up a FB account. It only took a few minutes before I started receiving requests to befriend all sorts of folks. Really, I hadn't even set up my profile, or navigated around the site to figure out what use it would be to me. When I finally dug around a bit, I found the site to be neither fun, nor useful to me. If anything, I could see myself getting sucked into the world of all my new and old friends, looking at their pictures, and tracking all of their friends, as well. I could see urban legends growing out of all the "friend of a friend" connections. I could see nothing but disaster heading my way.

So, I sent out my break-up email, gently stating it was me, not them...and I dismantled my account. Face Book...for about 5 hours! That's all it took for me to realize that I would sooner spend twenty minutes once a year in face-to-face chattering, that a lifetime reading the micro-communications offered in the FB world. I can't figure out why so many friends wanted to add me to their collections. My life certainly cannot be that interesting to anyone. Basically, I have no cell phone, no Ipod, no GPS and now no FaceBook. I own two pair of jeans, three shirts, a dog who dislikes me , and a piano I can't play. Those are the most scintillating facts of my life. How boring!

*****What am I reading? I caved and started Mike Perry's Coop this weekend. My plan was to not start this book until I was sure there would be enough deck time to start and finish in a single weekend. But, the chickens and pigs were calling me, and I couldn't pass up the inviting gap-tooth grin beckoning me from the cover. That, and an email from Mike, got me thinking that it was time. I can hear Mike's voice as I read.

Our book group is reading The Book Thief for next month. Those who have started it say it is challenging, so finishing Coop may have to wait.

I'm not feeling particularly inspired today, and this post is even boring me...must be awful for you. Maybe next week will be better.