Toni Nelson's Blog: Press On..., page 5

Aargh Matey! Trick or Treat?

Halloween is on October 31st, the last day of the Celtic calendar.  It was originally a pagan holiday, honoring the dead.  Halloween was referred to as All Hallows Eve and dates back to over 2000 years ago.

All Hallows Eve is the evening before All Saints Day, which was created by Christians to convert pagans, and is celebrated on November 1st.  As the Christian debate marches on, celebrating Halloween is a preference that is not always viewed as participating in an evil holiday.  Halloween is often celebrated with no reference to the occult.

While there are many versions of the origins of Halloween, some have remained consistent throughout the years.  Different cultures view Halloween somewhat differently but traditional Halloween practices remain the same.

Halloween culture can be traced back to the Druids, a Celtic culture in Ireland, Britain and Northern Europe.  Strong roots lay in the feast of Samhain, which was annually on October 31st to honor the dead.
Samhain signifies "summers end" or November.  Samhain was a harvest festival with huge sacred bonfires, marking the end of the Celtic year and the beginning of a new one.

The celts believed the souls of the dead roamed the streets at night.  Since not all spirits were thought to be friendly, treats and even gifts were left out to pacify the evil spirits and ensure next years crops would be plentiful.  This custom evolved into trick-or-treating.


What are your thoughts on trick-or-treating?

ITS ME, THE KID

Excerpt from A Beggars Purse, chapter 1...

I would scoot my chair up to the red Formica kitchen table, as close to my grandpa as I could possibly be, and watch him devour the feast.  My breakfast consisted of a warm cup of coffee with two heaping teaspoonfuls of sugar and half a cup of milk.  Mind you, I was only eight years old.
     The red Formica table sat on its stylish chrome legs under a huge window about the size of a sheet of plywood that faced out onto what we called the playing field.  Our refrigerator stood like a knight in shining armor against the back wall of the kitchen.  To the right of the fridge was our back door.  The back door had a window in it so my grandma could see who was standing on the back porch when someone knocked on the door.  The window had what I called a secret screen...

As a child, what was your fondest memory of the house you grew up in?

My Grandfather Mac and me (the apple of his eye) 1951

Blog Update

Flying from Vegas, to Frisco, to Canada to L.A. to Vegas.
Glad Jesus is with me because He isn't nervous.
See you next week.

How about you? When you were a child was church fun?

Excerpt from chapter 4 in A Beggars Purse...
My grandpa never spanked me, but sometimes my grandma would spank me with the little plastic belt she wore with all her dresses.  One time I even got a spanking on Easter Sunday after church.  I was wearing brand new, shiny, white patent leather shoes.  Well, the shoes rubbed a big water blister on the heel of my right foot, so I took off both of my shoes during the church service.
     When the church service was over, my grandma didn't even wait fo...

IT's ok TO FEEL LIKE THIS

This morning as I headed out on my two-mile trek, I couldn't shake off the question rolling around in my mind from an alumni friend on Facebook.
"So, besides your book, what else is going on with you?"
Since I have been quoted as being "one of the happiest people on the face of the Pahrump Planet,"  I surely didn't want to reveal to him that I was feeling down in the dumps... or did I?  Maybe this was my moment to reveal some gut wrenching feelings.  My response in a private note of course wen...

I'm late, I'm late for A very important date.

I'm late, I'm late forA very important date.No time to say hello, good-bye,


I'm late, I'm late, I'm late...
Since the official release date of A Beggars Purse on July 6, I have felt like  Alice In Wonderland spiraling out of control down the rabbit hole.  Don't get me wrong it has been an absolutely flamboyant adventure with many a twist and turn... however, I must apologize to all of you for sending out my invitation 9 days late!
YOU ARE INVITED to a Spread the Word Blog Tour Contest for
A...

A Poem written by Rick Nelson, page 102, A Beggars Purse...

Torn up, ragged, worn and beat,
Who is the man from off the street?
He's lost and hurt, broke up inside,
He steals, he cheats, he's full of lies.
Who is this person that we see?
No way, I say, that can't be me.
My life was never quite that bad
Deny the truth again, so sad.
What motive lies within this man?
I almost turned away and ran.
Don't even know just why I'm here
All I know is pain and fear.
A chance to change is here for me
I've been so blind I still don't see.
That person you say that's deep within...

When Do You Make The Big Bucks?

Since the official release date of my book on July 6, the number one question I have been asked is,"When do you make the big bucks?"
In answer to that question, I was always taught that it wasn't polite to ask a person how much money they make.  Other questions I am continually asked to answer after a book-signing event are:Did you make a lot of money?How many books did you sell?Do you get paid to be a guest speaker?You have to pay for your own books?Since I've been your friend/family for "x...

What ever happened to Christmas in July?

It is believed that it actually started in Europe as a way to celebrate Christmas in the summer.  The untimely Christmas festival is also linked to a group of Irish tourists who vacationed in Sydney's Blue Mountains in the summer months of July 1980.  Being away from the summer heat in their own country they were overjoyed at the sight of snow.  It is said that the tourists convinced the proprietor of a local hotel in New South Wales to hold a party called
 "Yule fest".
On the other hand it is ...

Why The Brown Paper Bag?

Do you know that when you order a signed copy of my book, A Beggars Purse, you will receive an additional gift?  For those of you who have already received your copy, you are well aware of the gift.
That's right, it's a brown paper bag!  Here are some ideas for the use of the bag...


* Place your book in the bag and carry it with you wherever you go.  It's a great icebreaker.
* Pack a lunch in it and hand it to a homeless person.
* If you can't afford to pack a lunch, place a bottle of water and...