Stephen Burckhardt's Blog: My Blog Ramblings, page 25

Friday Funnies: Lost in a Daze!

Hello My Happy People,

I hope you are having a great week. Mine has been insane is good and sadly, bad ways too. I am always very cautious when I get too happy about how things are going in my life. I am one of those people who just keeps waiting for Murphy's Law to kick in at any moment.

I was having such a great ride after winning the SheInspires SHEro award last week (Wow. has it already been a week since that happened?) in Bolton, UK. Then I got to come home and interview Sonali Dev for my podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt. Then I finally got a chance to sit down and interview a friend who is a self-published author about her first book. We had been trying to manage that for months.

Things were going so good, I thought I should even buy a lottery ticket while my luck was holding out, but I waited too long to do that. I heard from a friend's daughter today, that my best friend is in ICU in Kansas in critical condition. She is in an induced coma to give them a chance to figure out what is going on with her. If you are the praying sort, prayers would be appreciated. If you are not the praying sort, good vibes, chants, peaceful meditations, anything you care to do is also appreciated.

I am trying to focus on work at the moment until I hear more about her condition. She is forever a part of me and always will be. In keeping with our insane friendship, I knew I had to still do the Friday Funnies. We did some crazy things together growing up. We even once got kicked out of a pool hall for fighting ... each other.

The stupid part is we weren't even really fighting. She said something snarky that pissed me off and I hit a wall, not hard and nowhere near her. None of that mattered to the people running the pool hall and we still got kicked out, which also made me mad at her. The really funny part was, I was her ride!

She suggested that she should find another way home since I was mad at her and I told her absolutely not and to get her skinny behind in my car. Her parents let her leave with me and I was going to see that she got home. A third friend was with us that night and she sat between us in the front seat of the car. That was back when cars still had bench seats in the front ... yes, we're that old. Needless to say, it was an awkward drive home.

We did a lot of crazy things that I know most people would never believe she would do. I was not always a good influence on her. What would really surprise people is how many of our crazy stunts were actually HER idea. Two words: circus train. If you know .... you know.

So for my friend who always laughed with me and I expect to have many more laughs with and for all of you, here are the jokes.

Enjoy!

DianneQ: Do you think we will always be friends?A: Of course, you know way too much for me to let you out of my sight!Q: Why did the mushroom have lots of friends?A: Because he was a fungi!Q: How do you know someone considers you like family?A: If you walk into their home and your WiFi automatically connects!Q: Did you hear about the circus clown's funeral?A: Everyone came in one car!Q: Do you think we will live to be old friends?A: Of course, until we become old and senile ... then we'll be new friends!Q: What is the difference between a good friend and a best friend?A: A good friend will buy you lunch, a best friend will eat it! Q: What is your definition of a best friend?A: Someone who always remembers your birthday but not your age!Q: What is your definition of a best friend?A: Someone who doesn't care if your house is clean, only if you have wine!Q: What is your definition of a best friend?A: Someone who will help you up if you fall down ... you know, after they finish laughing at your klutzy ass! And last but not least ... Q: Do you think I drink too much, cuss too much, and have questionable morals?A: Yes, that's why we are friends!The Best Of: Jim Gaffiganhttps://youtu.be/PK3uSzgpqio ,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

Sonali Dev, author of The Vibrant Years. Sonali Dev's website Buy ,The Vibrant Years, on Amazon.com (USA) Buy ,The Vibrant Years, on Amazon.de (Germany)

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.

Book Banter EP 42: Sonali Dev

Hello Happy People,

Today, Dianne shares what happened at the She Inspires Awards in Bolton, UK. But first, she chats with USA Today bestselling romance author, Sonali Dev. Sonali talks about her career as a lifelong writer and her new book, The Vibrant Years, which releases on December 1st.The Vibrant Years is the first book being published by Mindy Kaling's new book imprint, Mindy's Book Studio. Sonali reads the first chapter for us and Dianne had a hard time not asking for more.If you love books like we do, you do not want to miss this interview ... listen now! Enjoy,

Dianne ,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

Sonali Dev, author of The Vibrant Years. Sonali Dev's website Buy ,The Vibrant Years, on Amazon.com (USA) Buy ,The Vibrant Years, on Amazon.de (Germany)

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.

Book Banter: EP 42: Sonali Dev

Hello Happy People,

Today, Dianne shares what happened at the She Inspires Awards in Bolton, UK. But first, she chats with USA Today bestselling romance author, Sonali Dev. Sonali talks about her career as a lifelong writer and her new book, The Vibrant Years, which releases on December 1st.The Vibrant Years is the first book being published by Mindy Kaling's new book imprint, Mindy's Book Studio. Sonali reads the first chapter for us and Dianne had a hard time not asking for more.If you love books like we do, you do not want to miss this interview ... listen now! Enjoy,Dianne

,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

Sonali Dev, author of The Vibrant Years. Sonali Dev's website Buy ,The Vibrant Years, on Amazon.com (USA) Buy ,The Vibrant Years, on Amazon.de (Germany)

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.

Manic Monday: And the Winners are ...

(Dianne is center back row, talking to the woman next to her ... of course!)

Hello My Happy People,

I am so pooped! This past week has been an incredible whirlwind of excitement and fun.

We had an amazing trip to Bolton, UK. We met so many fascinating people from all over the globe. P.R. and I already have plans to go back again and even hope to be more involved with She Inspires in the future. We got to tour the Bolton University (I want to enroll in their FX program!) and met the Mayor of Bolton, Councillor Akhtar Zaman. We spent the afternoon with She Inspires' founder, Gulnaz Brennan. She is an incredible woman and it was so nice meeting her. We got to meet Sunita Bhuyan who is an accomplished violinist and a wonderful woman. She performed at the event and was an award winner as well. We met so many accomplished, kind women at this event. I have never had a trip like this before.

This organization, She Inspires, is amazing and does so much to help women in their lives, careers, and more. I met authors, musicians, politicians, activists, and women in so many diverse fields from digital technology to medical and other STEM areas and so much more. I was amazed how many of us have podcasts. A group of us already have plans to do crossover interviews.

If you follow me on Facebook, you may have already seen some of this next bit.

Traveling can be a real adventure at times.

On the way to Bolton, we had flight delays and had to rush through the Frankfurt airport to catch our second flight. One thing that helped was the people in the customs line actually let Pedro and I go ahead of them when they found out we were about to miss our flight. It was an incredible display of international traveler solidarity. I think it helped that I was obviously limping and in a lot of pain.

I had hurt my knee a few weeks ago and was wearing a brace on it, but all the rushing through the airport really irritated my knee. Thankfully it wasn’t too bad for the event and the tour of Bolton yesterday, but Pedro insisted we take a cab to the train station that was only about a 10 minute walk from the hotel … and thank goodness he did. Unbeknownst to us, the train operators are on strike the day we were going back to the airport to go home. No trains were going anywhere. So instead of our expected $16 train tickets to the airport, we had about a $60 taxi fare.

Our driver was incredibly nice and talked to us the entire drive so it went very quickly. To be honest, we only met one person on the trip who was not openly friendly and she just seemed to be having a hard time staying focused and was not exactly unfriendly.

To be honest I'm still a bit dazed about it all. I still cannot believe I one. When they were introducing the winners, they started bout by reading a short synopsis of the reason they won. When the announcer started telling my story, I was so in shock. It took me a moment to believe it and honestly, I am still in shock. But a good kind of shock. Once I get my thoughts in order a bit more I might do a vlog to get it all out.

One more note: Just before we got on the plane to go to the UK I got confirmation that my interview with Sonali Dev is set for tomorrow. I plan to get it all edited and broadcast this Wednesday, November 29th so you can meet her before her next book is published December 1st. You will not want to miss this interview .... seriously, she is amazing!

Keep watching our social media for more great news coming!

Have a wonderful week, people.

Dianne Photos from She Inspires Awards 2022, Bolton, UK[image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error][image error] ,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Find out more about the She Inspires Awards

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

More TBA

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.

Friday Funnies: She Inspires Awards!

Hello My Happy People!

Well, the awards ceremony was last night. I am writing this blog on the 17th, so at this time, I have no idea if I won my category or not. I hope that I will be able to access my site from the UK and give you an update, but it may have to wait until the Manic Monday blog on the 28th.

At the time of writing this blog, I still have a few things to do to get ready for the trip next week. I am getting excited but at the same time, I'm being cautious. Murphy's Law always seems to have a way of mucking up my plans, so I am trying to just wait and see how things go.

In the meantime, I am trying to work ahead on some of these blogs so I can just spend my time relaxing and writing on the books as I wait to find out what happens with the She Inspires Awards. I am not going to lie, I really want to win this award.

Ever since I went through the brain surgeries, I have had to struggle to maintain even an appearance of a normal, functional life. It can be difficult. I do my best not to complain too much or ask people for help because it can get tiring for everyone, even me. But trying to be "tough" and endure it all can really wear you down.

So often, people will start avoiding someone who has serious health issues. It's stressful to watch someone you care about go through hard times when you feel like there is nothing you can really do to help. When that happens, it makes you feel isolated and invisible.

So when you have an organization like She Inspires send you a notice that someone nominated you for an award for living with challenges and working everyday to overcome them, it really rejuvenates you. Having this kind of recognition makes you feel seen, not just because of your health issues, but for the person who is fighting everyday to keep going in spite of every challenge that keeps popping up. That is an award in itself!

(Side Note: as I was writing this blog, I got a call that my hairstylist is still sick and cannot do my hair tomorrow. We had already rescheduled once because he was sick, I hope he is okay. He is a nice guy. They can put me with another guy at the saloon who was actually helping my stylist last time I was there, but he does not speak much English and my German is not great. I really hate Murphy!)

So now it's time to do a few things around the house, re-glue my handbag and pray it holds together through the awards banquet, get Shaggy ready to go visit his new Auntie who watches him when we can't take him with us, and make sure everything is scheduled to post while we are gone.

So much left to do, I feel like the white rabbit in Alice in Wonderland ...

"No time to say hello, goodbye!"

Have a great weekend!

Dianne

Q: What would you do if someone glued your deck of cards together?

A: I don't know, I don't think I could deal with it.

Q: What do you call a zombie who cooks stir fry?

A: A dead man wok-ing.

Q: Do you have a fear of speed bumps?

A: Yes, I'm slowly getting over it.

Q: Do you have a fear of elevators?

A. Yes, but I've started taking steps to avoid it.

Q: Are you addicted to soap?

A: I was, but I'm clean now.

Q: Are you addicted to the hokey pokey?

A: I was, but then I turned myself around.

Q: Do you ever dream about floating in an ocean of orange soda?

A: No, but it is a fanta-sea of mine.

Q: Why did you tell our son you wouldn't put his shoes on?

A: Well duh, honey. They would never fit me.

Q: Do you know a good joke about construction?

A: Yes, but I'm still working on it.

Wife: I was on our bank's website and my husband asked me to check his balance so I pushed him. He fell right over so it's not that good.

Q: Why did the scarecrow win an award?

A: Because he was out standing in his field!

Jim Gaffigan Top 5 MOST VIRAL Jokes from "Quality Time"https://youtu.be/MXUK2KVWtiE ,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Find out more about the She Inspires Awards

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

More TBA

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.

Book Banter EP 41: Replay Who Am I?

Hello My Happy People,

Today, we are in Bolton, UK for the She Inspires Awards. I explain why there was no time to work in a regular podcast before leaving for the U.K. Darn that Murphy and his Law! At least it is amusing.

Seeing as how there are many people who have recently found this podcast and may not have gone back to the beginning to listen to the episodes from the first one, I decided to replay the show's opening episode to introduce myself (or possibly reintroduce myself) to my listeners.

I hope you enjoy this episode and I will be back next week with an all new Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt. Have a great week,Dianne

,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Find out more about the She Inspires Awards

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

More TBA

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.

Manic Monday: Trying a Vlog

Hello My Happy People

Today I thought I would do something different and share a TikTok vlog of me from when I was getting ready to leave for the She Inspires Awards ceremony. Things were not going according to plan! But if you know me ... when does my life ever go according to plan?

Enjoy,

Dianne https://video.wixstatic.com/video/2c304a_603d356cd995467a81deb228116714e8/480p/mp4/file.mp4 ,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Find out more about the She Inspires Awards

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

More TBA

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.

Friday Funnies: Winter is Coming!

Hello My Happy People,

I hope you have had a great week and have even better things planned for the weekend. P.R. and I are trying to stay in for the most part. We leave for the UK on Wednesday and will be doing a lot of things out and about while there, so the next few days we plan to just be fairly quite and spend time relaxing at home.

I know in the states many places are already seeing some snow and I have to say I am a bit jealous. We often get cold, wet weather here in Düsseldorf, but it rarely get cold enough for snow. When it does snow, it usually only lasts a day or two. I miss a good snow that lasts a while ... a week would be nice.

We are almost ready to go on our trip and when we get home we will be in high gear getting ready for the holidays. I am not usually big on Christmas. For me the holiday usually just means stress, but this year I am really looking forward to it. My bonus daughter Mary agreed to come spend Christmas and New Years with us. I am beyond thrilled!

My other bonus daughter, Connie, has come and spent the holidays with us before, but Mary never has. We have all kinds of things planned for her visit: going to the Christmas markets, getting Glühwein (mulled wine), making Christmas ornaments, baking cookies for the neighbors (and us of course), and just spending the time together. We have a few surprises for her and I can't wait until we get to reveal it all to her. It is going to be an amazing two weeks.

I hope your holiday preparations are going well no matter what holidays you celebrate (or don't celebrate for that matter) and this time of year brings you nothing but peace and joy.

Have a great weekend, people!

Dianne

Q: Why was the ornament addicted to Christmas?

A: He had been hooked on trees his whole life.

Q: Why are Santa’s helpers often depressed?

A: Because they have low elf-esteem.

Q: What do you call Santa Claus when he has no money?

A: St. Nickel-less.

Q: What do you call a child who doesn’t think Santa is real?

A: A rebel without a Claus.

Q: Why does Scrooge love reindeer?

A: Because every single buck is dear to him!

Q: Why do mummies love Christmas?

A: Everything gets wrapped!

Q: What do you call a blind reindeer?

A: I have no eye deer.

Q: What do you call a reindeer with no manners?

A: Rude-olph.

Q: How is Christmas like your job?

A: You do all the work and some fat guy in a suit gets all the praise.

Q: What do you get when you cross Jack Frost and a vampire?

A: Frostbite.

Q: What do you call Santa’s helpers?

A: Subordinate clauses.

and last but not least ...

Q:. What did Adam say to his wife on Christmas?

A: It’s Christmas, Eve!

Best Holiday Jokes 2020 - Jim Gaffiganhttps://youtu.be/owGQ99_x-yg ,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Find out more about the She Inspires Awards

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

More TBA

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.

Book Banter EP 40! Family Ties Update and Sneak Peek

Hello My Happy People,

Today, I share news about the She Inspires Awards in Bolton, UK. We will be in the U.K. next week for this event and I have an update about next week's podcast episode.I talk about my books in progress and give a brief sneak peek from Into the West: Family Ties, the seventh and final book in the Into the West Saga Serial Collection.Spoiler Alert: If you have not read the sixth book in the Into the West Saga Serial, Into the West: Last Showdown, you will want to skip the sneak peek. It talks about the death of major characters and will be a major spoiler. But for those who are all caught upon the saga, why not go listen now?Enjoy,Dianne

,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Find out more about the She Inspires Awards

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

More TBA

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.

Manic Monday: Time Flies!

Pexels.com Photos: Original Background Photo by Ena Marinkovic; Clock Photo by Krivec Ales

Hello My Happy People,

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. P.R. and I went out and had some quality husband/wife time on Saturday. We ran out to the mall, got tattooed together, then went to dinner. Yes, you read that correctly. We now each have three tattoos and all are deeply personal to us.

I know many people still assign a stigma to people with tattoos, and that is totally their prerogative, they can feel how they want to feel about it. My husband and I, however, do not agree. In fact, not only are we not the only people in our families to have tattoos, but I have a few tattoo artists in my family. My very first tattoo was given to me by my cousin when she was first learning to do tattoos.

I am sure many people wonder why I share things like this about myself that might put off some of my followers and hurt my potential sales. Honestly, because this is me. I am and have always been a very authentic person. I will go to my grave being who I am and if that costs me sales, followers, friends, or even family, I will accept that, because living life worrying about what everyone is thinking about me is just too exhausting and I have other things to do with my time.

Speaking of time (see how I worked that segway in there), it is just crazy how time can sneak up on you. I had put off working on Into the West: Family Ties because it just wasn't working for me. Plus, I had wanted to release it at Christmas, because there is a Christmas scene in it. But when we got too far past Christmas, I just lost all enthusiasm for it. Now here we are, just a few weeks before Christmas again and I am wondering if it would be possible to get it finished in time for the holiday.

I have the She Inspires awards ceremony to go to in the United Kingdom next week, then we have to get ready for one of our daughters to come visit for the holidays. I think it is doable, but will I drive myself and P.R. crazy trying to finish it all in time? That is the question! I'm willing to give it the old college try, but we will just have to see what I can get done.

This past year has taught me that I need to take breaks more often and quit finding more projects to do that are not actual writing. I enjoy doing these blogs, and keep up the website, doing the podcast, making TikTok videos, and my advocacy projects . . . but . . . it all takes time away from actually writing my books. It's hard to be a successful author when you aren't publishing anything.

I know I need to reassess my priorities and reduce my commitments on things so I can focus more on writing. The one thing I will not give up is time with my family, they will always be first. It would be so much easier to decide what to cut out if I hated doing all these other side projects. The problem is, I'm such a nerd I could spend all day just creating things on my computer and be perfectly happy. Maybe it's time to just write them all on scraps of paper and toss them in a hat. Whatever I draw out, gets scrapped. It's a thought.

But for now I am going to go write. Yes, you read that correctly, I#m going to actually write on my books! It's a wild concept ... I know!

Be sure to check out this weeks Book Banter podcast when I will share what I got written this week, or at least some of it.

Have a great week people!

Dianne

,Podcast Links

Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.

​

Listen to Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt on These Featured Podcast Providers:

BurckhardtBooks.com/podcast ,Buzzsprout ,Apple Podcasts ,Spotify ,Amazon Music

Burckhardt Books Pages:

,Subscribe to Our Newsletter ,Members Only Page (Join FREE and get access to exclusive content, lots of freebies, and listen to our Book Banter Interview Archive) ,Writing Prompt Challenge (Rules, prompts, and submission links on Writing Prompt Challenge page)

About Dianne:

,Dianne Burckhardt, Award-Winning Indie Author What is a ,Chiari Malformation, a ,Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and ,Hydrocephalus? Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out ,Episode 1: Who Am I?

Follow us on TikTok :@ burckhardt_books (click underlined text to go)

Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):

More TBA

Past Guest Interviews:

,Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022) ,Buy The Box M Gang on Amazon ,DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022) ,Two Truths and a Lyle free book promotion ,Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022) ,Bite Sized Book History - YouTube Channel ,Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022) ,Social Media Professor on Facebook Kara Vogt from ,Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022) ,Wise Oak Soapery website ,Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022) ,Walpurgisnacht ,,- short story ,Backyard Whiskers - Rockabilly Band Webpage ,Children of the Corn - Band Video Carrie and the Dirty Pillows - Band Video

Support Us:

It's even easier now to support Burckhardt Books and our Book Banter Podcast, many options are no cost to you. ,Click here for more information.