Amber Polo's Blog, page 11

St. Nicholas Excerpt from "The Shapeshifters Library"

  The Shapeshifters' Library Book 1ReleasedThe St. Nicholas Eve Excerpt
Gregory and Liberty paraded back into the rotunda and on to the entrance to the Children’s Room. Children in pinafores and breeches clustered around Bliss in her shimmering princess dress. The children turned, saw Gregory, and little voices called, “St. Nicholas. St. Nicholas.” Gregory placed his hand on Liberty’s waist and escorted her to the middle of the room. “Children, this is Lady Liberty.” Children cheered and tiny hands clapped. “Lady. Lady.” Gregory whispered to Liberty, “Say something.” “Welcome children. To the library. On St. Nicholas Eve.” The quartet’s violin player fiddled a merry tune, as a huge Newfoundland in a silver-studded harness pulled a cart to the doorway. Gregory smiled. “And now, it’s time for presents.” The children cheered. The dog lumbered in and small hands reached out to pat the gentle giant who, compared to the toddlers, appeared as large as a draft horse. Gregory stepped to the cart. “Stand back.” The children obeyed. “Now, one at a time.” He reached into the cart and took out a small toy horse and beckoned to a little girl in a crisp petticoat. She skipped forward to receive her painted wooden horse and a large orange. Liberty selected a book from the cart for the girl, who skipped off to show her friends. Bouncing in stiff, shiny shoes, children waited their turns. Next a boy was given a miniature dog and cart. He held it high for all to see, then accepted his book. One by one, each child received a small toy, an orange, and a book. Every child seemed more thrilled with simple wood animals than if they’d received the latest electronic wonders. The entire scene was reminiscent of another more charming century. When all the children had received gifts, the fiddler announced, “Time for St. Nicholas to leave,” and the children let out a collective, “Ah.” Gregory reached one more time into the cart and presented a wrapped gift to Bliss. “Dear lady, for your kind ministrations to the children.” Bliss curtsied. As children raced past to show toys to parents and grandparents, Gregory took Liberty’s arm. No longer the center of attention, the couple walked to the rotunda. Sparkling lights reflected like stars on the glass dome above. “I cannot stay,” Gregory said softly. “I’m tired.” Liberty nodded. “Thank you for making this night so beautiful.” “Shipsfeather always celebrated St. Nicholas Eve like this. I am grateful your library made it possible once again. Now you see why this town and people are so special.” “Where did the children’s gifts come from?” She looked around. “And where is the dog cart … and the music? This was the most magical night of the year.” He laughed. “Ah, now you want magic explained. Tonight is only the beginning of the Season. The true magic will happen on the night of the Winter Solstice.” “What could be more beautiful and amazing than tonight?” “Nothing could be as amazing and beautiful as you. You are a most good and wonderful woman, Liberty Cutter, my Mistress of the Fete.” He leaned down and kissed her lips. A tender kiss tasting of cinnamon and warmed cider. Straightening, his eyes held her gaze. “Tonight,” she whispered, “I feel like a princess.” “You are a princess. My princess, dear one.” He lifted her hand to his lips. “Sweet Liberty.” He slid his hand into his jacket pocket. Holding her left hand, he slipped a ring onto her finger. “Forever, my princess, my love.” She gasped as warm gold encircled her finger. She looked down at the intricately carved band. When she looked up, he was gone. Over the music and laughter, she heard the sound of boots descending the stairs.
Read more excerpts and the complete Chapter One of  "Released" Book One of "The Shapeshifters' Library"
Buy Released 
Read "Researching St.Nicholas Eve" for my personal remembrance of the celebration. 

The Wassail Excerpt from "The Shpaeshifters Library"

 The Shapeshifters' Library Book 1"Released"The Wassail Gingerkuchen Excerpt


   “May I escort you, Mistress?” He led her into the Reading Room alight with glowing candles and whispered, “Don’t they look real? The only bad news is the man you hired to play St. Nicholas came down with the flu.” “What will I do?” Alarmed, Liberty fumbled in the brocade pouch at her waist for her cell phone. “We can’t do this without St. Nicholas.”  “You will have your St. Nicholas, madam.” Gregory stepped close to her side and smiled down at her. “I have experience.” He gently placed her arm on his. His St. Nicholas outfit was no rented Santa costume. The smooth velvet of his red jacket caressed her bare arm. The ruffled shirt, tight black pants, and high black boots complemented his masculine form perfectly. Before Liberty could speak, Lily announced, “Wassail time.” Aldwyn, in a dinner jacket, entered carrying a steaming silver punch bowl, followed by Emma and Rebecca holding platters piled high with spicy, fragrant gingerkuchen. Liberty whispered to Gregory, “Is it safe for you here?” “Perfectly safe. This is a magic night.” Outside the window, a flash of lights illuminated the huge outdoor tree and they heard the loud “Ah” as the people of Shipsfeather gasped in pleasure. The strains of “Greensleeves” floated from the Local History Room. Liberty didn’t remember hiring a quartet. 
Within moments the library doors were thrown open and guests paraded in. Gregory served wassail and Liberty passed out warm gingerkuchen, greeting smiling Shipsfeather residents and their visitors. Many of Liberty’s regular library patrons passed by. Gregory embraced members of old Shipsfeather families. An elderly gentleman called him Chronus and a woman with a British accent curtsied and addressed him as Sir Gregory. Replying to foreign visitors in their own languages, Gregory was the perfect host. He looked handsome, courtly, and comfortable in ruffled shirt and velvet jacket and each guest lit up at his attention. 

Read more excerpts and the complete Chapter One of  "Released" Book One of "The Shapeshifters' Library"
Buy Released 
Read "Researching St.Nicholas Eve" for my personal remembrance of the celebration.

Researching St. Nicholas Eve

When I was small Christmas, Santa Claus, Father Christmas, and St. Nick were all mixed up – but it didn’t matter.
Wikipedia says: In Northern Germany, Sankt Nikolaus is usually celebrated on a small scale. Many children put a boot called Nikolaus-Stiefel outside the front door on the night of 5 December. St. Nicholas fills the boot with gifts and sweets overnight, and at the same time checks up on the children to see if they were good, polite and helpful the last year. If they were not, they will have a tree branch in their boots instead. Sometimes a Nikolaus impersonator also visits the children at school or in their homes and asks them if they have been good (sometimes ostensibly checking his golden book for their record), handing out presents on the basis of their behavior.
Here’s what I remember. When I was a young child, St. Nicholas Eve was the start of the Christmas season.
Everyone in the family hung stockings. The socks my brother and I wore were much too small, so my grandmother donated her long baggy cotton stockings. I don’t remember really big gifts. Everything had to fit in the stocking. But there was always an orange in the toe (which made the stocking really long and funny looking) and some candy. Maybe there were small toys. I think the excitement was more important than the gifts. Gifts and surprises weren’t ordinary. And little things meant more. (And Christmas meant big presents.)To awake to find a bulging stocking was pure magic. 
It fits the Northern German tradition. Stockings instead of boots. And St Nicholas as the beginning of the annual “be good or Santa will bring you coal” time of year. Behavior was very important. I also remember threats that bad children could get a switch (ah the old tree branch). 
I’m not sure when we stopped hanging St. Nicholas stockings, but we never hung stockings on Christmas Eve and I always wondered why anyone would do that. Sadly, I think in my family the St. Nicholas traditions disappeared because they didn’t fit the melting pot American Santa Claus images. 

* The perverted story “Six to Eight Black Men” by David Sedaris in Holidays on Ice  provides politically incorrect outrageous holiday laughs at the expense of Saint Nicholas in the Netherlands.Read the story online - originally published in Esquire  Or listen to Sedaris read it at Carnegie Hall on YouTube



For a more delightful version of St. Nicholas Eve as celebrated by the dog-shifter librarians of Shipsfeather, Ohio read the Wassail Excerpt and the St. Nicholas excerpt  posts. December 4 and 5.
 

Dog Bites Girl

Dog Bites Girl            I sat on the wooden porch steps looking out at blue slivers of Wisconsin's Little Muskego Lake peeking between oak tree trunks, while my mother scrubbed my grandfather’s log cottage getting it ready for summer.             I’d been told not to move off the porch and I was being very good—until a blur of black and white flew across the lawn, bounded up the steps, jumped at all two and a half feet of me. The black pug nose and bulgy eyes of the Boston Terrier next door bumped my face. I stood up. One of his teeth stuck into my cheek. I screamed.             Grandpa came running, saw blood, wrapped me in a scratchy army blanket, and carried me to his black Ford. He drove to a country doctor—later he called him a horse doctor. My grandfather insisted the doctor apply a bandage so big it covered half my face to be sure the dog’s owners couldn’t miss it. Back home, he walked next door, carrying his shotgun, and suggested the “Boston bulldog” be destroyed.                   As a petless kid, I had always loved dogs—at a distance. After that day, I shrieked at the sight of any dog, any size.             Every day for the rest of that summer, Grandpa, sweat re-staining the brim of his brown Fedora, wheeled my walker along the rutted country road. I whimpered every time we approached the yard with a barking dog. He always stopped and so stood close I inhaled the comforting smell of the old wool suit pants he wore for fishing. “It’s OK,” he told me. “The doggie’s behind the fence.”            Grandpa must have been right about that doctor. My scar stayed visible for the next thirty years. The fear mixed with fascination stayed until I got my first dog, a golden Cocker Spaniel who only looked dangerous when someone pretended to hurt me.
When I found the picture of me on the steps, I guessed it was about the time of the dogbite. After I scanned it, for fun I zoomed in, and in and in. And I found my cheek was swollen, proving it must have been right after the bite. My mother must have removed the bandage for the photo. :)
The second picture must be my dog talking to me or me reading to her.

Authors & Their Dogs - Pat Frayne & Charlie

Amber: Welcome Pat Frayne, an author of cat stories who loves her rescue dog Charlie.
  Pat: This is Charlie, our nine year old black lab, border collie mix. He was thirteen months old when we adopted him from a family who had two other dogs. They'd rescued him from the streets of Phoenix when he was just a puppy.
We call Charlie our wild child, because he gets along better with coyotes than he does with other dogs. Actually, he prefers people to other animals. He especially loves children.

For a nine year old dog, Charlie’s in good shape. He walks 3-4 miles a day with Ron. When we first got him he had a stainless steel chain on his neck. His legs looked longer because he was lean and almost totally black. He looked like a prince. People used to turn around and stare at him. He really was a beautiful dog.


Pat Frayne, grandmother, author and retired registered nurse lives with her husband, Ron and their black lab mix, Charlie, in a small town in northern Arizona. 

Pat writes fast-paced adventurous mysteries about a mystical cat with unique powers. They're a bit scary, lots of fun with an emphasis on the value of friendship and loyalty. The creation of the character, Daisy, a young fawn with hazel eyes, was inspired by Pat's granddaughter, Cait. Daisy makes her first appearance in Topaz and the Plum-Gista Stone. The second book in the series  Tales ofTopaz the Conjure Cat. The books can be read in any order.
Stories for parents and grandparents as well as children who wish to retreat into a world inhabited by mystical characters…


Topaz and the Plum-Gista Stone  An evil sickness has befallen Topaz's old friend, the great owl, Otis. Topaz, Dooley the racoon, and Daisy the fawn take him to the Healing Gnomes at North Fortress to be cured. As for Topaz and Dooley, their journey doesn’t end here. Grim circumstances compel them to leave the fortress tin search of the Plum-Gista, a rare precious stone, in a mysterious and forbidden land. Topaz and his friends face life-threatening dangers as dark magical forces close in.
Find out more about Pat &Topaz
Pat's Website 
Barnes & Noble Amazon link 



This is the first in a series of  "Authors & Their Dogs" If you interested in  sharing a little about your dog in 2103 Send me an email

Barista Vincenzo Imhoff (St. Bernard) Character Interview

Vincenzo Imhoff (St. Bernard)Shipsfeather Academy Barista
I’m the manager of Starbooks and Starbarks cafés in the Shipsfeather Academy. I don’t do it all myself. We run 24/7 and for many years provided the only entertainment and gathering places for 200 dog-shifter  staff and librarians.
My top manager is Fábio Rodrigo, a solid black Fila Brasileiro. The guy is huge like a Mastiff, as big as Cynerik Trent-Croft. None of his staff brace him or argue about their schedule. He’s super self-confident but isn’t good behind the counter, because he has a problem with strangers. His family owns mucho coffee plantations in Brazil and supplies us with a wide variety of beans for custom roasting.
I love developing new recipes. I’ve worked out a version of Pacifico’s grandmother’s Mexican hot chocolate recipe with hot peppers and coffee that is one of our best sellers. Godiva Anglesey loves it, but then Diva loves anything chocolate. 
During the curse, when Liberty and Chronus discovered that caffeine and sugar consumed in human bodies did serious damage to dog bodies if shifting happened before these substances were fully digested. I worked with Fábio to develop a completely caffeine free coffee drinks based on a new strain of varietal bean from a secret location. We’re proceedings with patenting it under the name NoNoCaf. Griswald agreed to act as our patent attorney for free food and drink in all locations. 

My good friend Pacifico Lopez and his programmers are my best customers. Pacifico is helping me create a franchise opportunity for the Starbooks/Starbarks concept. I think the Starbarks café franchises will be popular in other shifter academies worldwide. Starbooks in libraries in this country could also catch on, especially considering all the dog-shifter librarians employed in U.S. academic and public libraries. And Starbarks dogpark kiosks is in the planning stages.


Hobbies: Cookbook collecting, Mountain climbing, cross-country skiing, yodeling and accordion playing.

Menu Items I developed -
Proprietary Blends: Retriever Roast (subtle blend with hint of chocolate), Komondor Kona, Rottie Robusta, Wirehaired Espresso
Specialty Drinks: Malamute Mocha, Whippet Frappe, Irish Red Rover, Lhasa Lattes, Chihuahua Chai, Cocker Cappuccino, Maltese Macchiato, West Highland White Chocolate
Starbarks Food: Liver and Liver, Lamb and Cheese, Chow Chow Chow, Schnauzer Schnitzel, Borzoi Borscht, Poodle Noodles, Bichon Quiche, Shar-Pei Chow Mein
Desserts: Eskimo Pie, Spinone Italiano, Cannoli Corso, Clumber Cobbler, Swiss Mountain Mousse

Favorite Books – Julie and Julia, Mastering the Art of Shifter Cooking, Producing Your YouTube Cooking Show.


Complete List of Characters 
in The Shapeshifters' Library Series  Read  Released (The Shapeshifters' Library Book 1) to learn more about Griswald's library, the dog-shifters, and the werewolf book-burners.

Have You Voted? Dogs or Cats?

Is America A Cat Nation or a Dog Nation?
Get Pawlitical! 


America’s Pet Debate will be settled on November 9, 2012, when the votes are tallied and the winner cat or dog – is announced.
For every vote in America’s Pet DebatePurina will donate $1 to Pet Partners’ veteran programsup to $100,000!
Meet the Candidates 

Team Cat Why are cats better than dogs?

America owns approximately 86,400,000 cats
(more are female than male)33% of Americans are cat owners, and 52%
own more than one catTeam Dog Why are dogs better than cats?
America owns 78,200,000 dogs, which are
equally male and female39% of Americans own dogs, and while
60% own just one dog, 28% own two dogs and 12% own a pack of three or more
 VOTE! VOTE!
And leave a comment and tell why you voted for Team Cat or Team Dog! 

Personal Opinion:
In The Shapeshifters' Library series I come out strongly for dogs (and dog-shifters) because dogs are noble with solid values. In pointing out the good qualities of dogs, as opposed to wolves and cats, occasionally I may write things that seem to demean the cat-loving public. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing bad about cats -But dogs are just better.


I can't figure out why cats are winning! Come on dog-lovers, get out the vote!
 

How To Tell If Your Dog Is a Shifter

How To Tell If Your Dog Is a Shifter
1. Have you met your dog’s parents?a. Nob. Yes
2. What is your dog’s favorite food?a. Kibble and dog biscuits b. Pizza, hamburger, and filet mignon
3. How does your dog get along with other dogs?a. Loves to play or fight with other dogs b. Ignores them like they’re another species
4. Where does your dog prefer to sleep?a. Dog bed or crateb. King sized bed with duvet
5. Does your dog prefer spending time with you a. Watching TV b. Reading a book
6. Does your dog have unexplained absences?a. No b. Yes
7. Does your dog have friends you’ve never met?a. Nob. Yes
8. Do bookmarks move after your dog has been home alone?a. No b. Yes
9. Did you ever find your favorite book in your dog’s bed?a. No b. Yes
10. Does your dog enjoy walks to bookstores with outdoor cafes?a. Nob. Yes
11. If you ask your dog what is his/her favorite book, does he/shea. Growl or ignore youb. Try to tell you that you have low-brow taste
12. Does your dog come home smelling likea. Dead animals and skunk b. Old books and internet cafes
13. Does your dog alphabetize his/her toys?a. No b. Yes (definite dog-shifter librarian tendencies)
14. Is your dog was smarter than your brother? Prettier than your sister?   a. No. b. Yes
15. Do you find unidentifiable stains on unworn clothes in your closet?a. Nob. Yes

     16. Does your dog look bleary-eyed after a long night reading?
a. No
b. Yes
17. Has your dog suggested you sign up for an obedience class?a. Nob. Yes
A = 0 pointB = 1 points
Scoring0-5 Regular dog (Lucky you)6- 9 Not sure (Be careful)10-17 Definitely a dog-shifter (You may have a problem)
No one characteristic will distinguish the dog-shifter (or part dog-shifter) from a regular domestic canine. In general, watch a dog who is usually smart or good looking. Size does not matter. Any size from English Mastiff to Chihuahua could be a shifter. Also note that a werewolf can masquerade as a common dog or wolfdog. 
If you have a dog-shifter, provide high quality reading material and don’t complain if your computer is on when you wake up in the morning.

To learn more about dog-shifters read Released (The Shapeshifters' Library Book 1)

Leave a comment telling why you think your dog could be a shifter?

Character Interview - Julianna Eisenberg von Noir

I’m Julianna Eisenberg von Noir, the Young Adult Librarian at the Shipsfeather Public Library. 
I love selecting books and planning programs for teens. Everyone thinks I’m successful bringing teens into the library because of my looks. I think that silly. The come for the programs and their love of books.
Everyone does want to know about my looks. I look a lot more like my father Ivan van Noir than my Swedish mother Hildegarde Eisenberg. Mom was an Eastern European bibliographer in Paris and Dad was doing genealogical research into his Transylvanian family tree. Their marriage didn’t last long and Mom brought me to the US and got a job with the Pittsburgh Historical Society.  Until I started college I spent summers in Europe with Dad. He was a good father, but a little old-fashioned. When I was young a nanny took me places during the day and Dad showed me the sights of the Old World at night. When I was older I explored the great cities of the Continent by myself.I think I want to help teenagers have fun in groups because I spent so much time with adults or alone.
My kids love the popcorn machine, pizza and movie nights, gaming days, and all the bookclubs. Yes, the Vampires & Werewolves Bookclub is popular. I’m not team Edward or Jacob. I don’t really care for either. After the curse is broken, a few of the werewolf kids sneak in the library. I promise not to tell their book-burning parents. What happens in the library stays in the library.
I’m certainly not immortal and love the sunshine, though I don’t tan.  I faint at the sight of blood. The Goth girls say I’m cool because I wear a lot of black, but it’s just a color than flatters my complexion.



  Besides the great staff here at SPL and the good kids in town, the best thing about this job is the dental insurance. After the dentist replaced my canines with normal implants. I felt like a new woman. I even was able to smile at red-haired Taxi McCasson. The head of circulation is sooo cute and so smart. He’s a classical languages scholar. In Book One I’m too self-conscious to talk to him, but in Book Two we begin a friendship. Beyond that, you’ll have to ask Amber. She seems to like us both, so we’re hoping we’ll have more time together in Book 3.
Oh, and I’m an ebook fanatic. Always reading on one of my devices. I want to start a blog and review books for teens.


  Favorite books: I love most kinds of fantasy (except vampire and werewolf genres). Fantasy is so important for everyone. Teens (and adults) are able to safely explore feelings that might be too intense for the real world. I especially like time travel and fantasy with historical settings. The Outlander series is one of my favs. (Maybe that’s why I love the library celebrations when Taxi wears his kilt. As I said, he is so cute.)


Complete List of Characters 
in The Shapeshifters' Library Series  Read Released (The Shapeshifters' Library Book 1) to learn more about Julianna's library, the dog-shifters, and the werewolf book-burners.

Therapy Dogs Smile

Though most dogs are therapeutic for their owners, some special dogs do a lot more.
Teams of dogs and handlers, usually owners, visit schools, assisted living facilities, hospice centers,   hospitals, children's hospitals, libraries, nursing homes, shelters, and DSR (disaster stress relief) programs.
I met Linda Vogel in the Cottonwood, AZ Public Library with Daisy, her calm gentle 7 year-old retriever/lab. As you can tell from her picture, Daisy is one of those dogs who smiles.
Linda and Daisy are certified through the Delta Society Pet Partners program, one of several national organizations that can help you register your dog as a therapy dog.
Our local Verde Valley Medical center hosts a licensed team evaluator and instructor from Delta Pet Partners.
Handlers must take a day-long training course and then return with their dog for a 30 minute test which evaluates the animal/handler team in a simulated hospital setting. The evaluator looks at how well the team relates to patients.
Dogs must have at least six months of age and been owned or with the handler for at least six months. The dog must have a good disposition and respond to basic commands, sit, stay, and leave, and love people with absolutely no growling.
After a team is certified they have many opportunities to brighten the day of hospital patients or work with students.

We know reading and dogs go together, Therapy dogs often go into schools and libraries or reading programs where a child reads to the dog. In programs, such as the Paws to Read, or Tail Wggin' Tutors allow students to practice reading to a non-judgmental companion. Te child pats the dog, relaxes and focuses on reading. 
At the Yale Law School Library, students can check out Monty, a Jack Russell-border terrier mix, a certified therapy dog, to pet him, give him a biscuit, and de-stress from the grind.  
As we left the library, a woman entering stopped and smiled back at Daisy and commented that the dog was smiling at her.