Emilie Richards's Blog, page 35

Favorite Moments of My Summer and Fall

It’s that time of year. We’re packing to move back to Florida.

I’ll confess it’s time to leave. Chautauqua Institution, which hosts thousands during the summer but now, empty and silent, reminds me of that sad moment when you realize the party is over, the guests have departed, and you’ve been left alone to set the house to rights again.

We had three reasons for staying late this year.

As much as I love Florida the leaves never change. I wanted to see a beautiful autumn, and I have.
I wanted more time with my children and grandchildren, especially with Halloween right around the corner. That’s on the menu for tomorrow.
Finally, I wanted to sign books at the Buckeye Book Fair, in Wooster Ohio on November 2nd. I remember a time earlier in my career when an invitation to sign at Buckeye was a giant pat on the publishing back. So with that opportunity dangled in front of me this year, how could I drive right by?

An aside about Buckeye:

If you can get to Buckeye, do. It’s close to a hundred Ohio authors signing all kinds of wonderful books, many perfect for Christmas gifts. The book fair is held at Fisher Auditorium from 9:30-4 on November 2nd, but go early so you don’t miss your favorite authors. Books sell out and authors get exhausted. Some of my best writing buddies will be with me, including Casey Daniels/Kylie Logan.

As we pack for our Florida home, we’re taking care of a million details. Changing addresses, notifying the plumber who will drain our pipes, notifying the awning company to drape our porches so the snow doesn’t collect and destroy them. We’re cooking and eating everything left in the freezer and fridge, and by the time you get this we’ll be on our way.

Looking back is always fun. We’ve had a spectacular year.

Here are a few favorite moments:

We traveled a lot more than usual, but today when I asked Proman what his single favorite memory of one day might be, he came up with the same one I did. A morning when we walked between Fisherman’s Wharf and Cannery Row in Monterey, California and happened upon seals right beside the Coast Guard station dock. Seals, sunshine, scuba divers.

A perfect morning among many adventures.

A few new summer/fall favorites before I finish packing?

While clearing the freezer I found salmon last night, so I tried this recipe for Honey Sriracha Salmon which is beyond spectacular. We served it with another fabulous recipe for coconut lime quinoa . So glad I had to clear the fridge and that I had all the ingredients.
This summer in addition to regular symphony concerts, we heard a stand up comedian who was new to us. Maria Bamford was sensational and we were lucky to have that honor.  We also heard Judy Collins who still hits the high notes without flinching, Diana Ross who is still gorgeous, and the Beach Boys who always bring down the Chautauqua amp.
I developed a brand new appreciation for Buffalo, NY, which is really a wonderful city. A weekend getaway there was my birthday gift, and I loved every minute. (Especially wings at the Anchor Bar where they were first created.)
We added another Hawaiian island to our list, enjoying a week in Maui at the beautiful Wailea Beach Resort where they couldn’t do enough for us.
My brainstorming friends came to visit, along with friends from Sarasota, and our youngest son and family. We hosted our seven year old grandson by himself for a week. When asked recently if he wants to come back next year, he looked at me with a serious expression and said: “What’s not to like about Chautauqua?’

What was not to like about our summer and fall? I can’t think of a thing.

I hope yours was equally wonderful and you had a lot of favorite moments to cherish.

I’ll be traveling next week, but I’ll blog again just as soon as I’m home and my computer is up and running. I have news about reissues in January, February, and March and maybe some peeks at the book in progress now.

I’ll see you then!

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Laugh Like Your Life Depends On It

Do I look upset to you? Very, very upset?

Or did you say to yourself (correctly) that, no, Emilie is channeling Lewis Black for a good laugh. Because that’s what I’m doing, and a pretty good job of it, too.

On Saturday Proman and I did what we’ve promised ourselves we would do for a year. We dropped everything–including my book in progress–and went to the National Comedy Center in Jamestown, NY, just down the road from Chautauqua.

We’d been well programmed to go. This summer the Comedy Center sent vans to the Chautauqua grounds offering free rides, plus they collaborated on a glorious week of comedy on the grounds with comedians like Lewis Black himself and Maria Bamberg, plus afternoon lectures on the theme: What’s So Funny About Religion. (A lot, as it turns out.)

Carol Burnett’s famous char woman costume.

I knew we were in for a good time when I was asked to create my comedy profile by clicking on a screen filled with comedians, TV shows and movies. I was smiling by the time I finished. So many good laughs in my life.

I can’t begin to describe how wonderful this place is. We saw hologram stand-up routines, used our newly created wristbands to help the multiple exhibits choose what to show us, learned about comics from the past and new ones we’d never seen. We made memes for funny pictures, used rubber props to find out how comedians have used them through out history.  We could film ourselves doing stand up (too shy, but fun to watch others) and visit the Blue Room in the basement–I’ll let you figure out what’s there.

 

As someone who actually did her master’s thesis on the American family as portrayed in comic strips, I loved every single comic strip moment, too.

No surprise that one of my favorite exhibits showed film clips of famous comedians talking about how they write comedy. Duh. Want me to give you some hints? One comedian (Jeff Foxworthy maybe?) always comes up with his best material in the shower so he keeps paper and pen in the bathroom. Another writes jokes on 3″x5″ cards. Another works and reworks jokes until they’re perfect, while a colleague says he invents most of his material when he’s already on stage.

Everything I heard was familiar. Novelists work in all the same ways. I’m probably in the 3″x5″ class while a friend of mine, who wouldn’t be caught dead with an outline, makes her books up as she goes along.

I’ve told you this before, but I grew up with a mother whose sense of humor (which tended toward puns) got her through a difficult life. Whenever she made a pun, if I didn’t laugh immediately, she would say “You have no sense of humor.” And honestly, I’m sorry to say I grew up believing that was true.

Aside here: Please be aware that whatever you tell your children/grandchildren/neighborhood hoodlums will be planted permanently in their little brains. Think about it.

Ricky Ricardo and I having a bit of breakfast together.

When my first editor talked about my sense of humor, I almost stopped her and asked her to repeat that, because, well, you know, this was a revelation. She had no idea how life-changing that was.

I came out of the National Comedy Center with a brand new understanding and appreciation of the role comedy plays in our lives.

Among other things when you laugh, according to the Mayo Clinic, in the short term you stimulate many organs (let’s not get too specific here), activate your stress response and soothe tension. In the long term you can improve your immune system, relieve pain, increase personal satisfaction and improve your mood.

So laugh like your life depends on it. I know I came out of the Comedy Center determined to laugh more and worry less. The first thing we did that night was Google Netflix standup comedy, and now we’re working our way through hours of laughter. If you can’t get to the Comedy Center right away, turn on your TV. Or hey, laugh at the comic strips or… read a good book.

You won’t be sorry. You’ll be laughing too hard.

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Sunday Inspiration: Are Grudges Keeping You Awake?

“We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.

How are you sleeping lately? Are you replaying old grudges?

Did you know that people who have learned how to forgive usually sleep better than those who hold grudges?

I ran across this article recently from Greater Good Magazine and it offers an explanation Here’s a quote:

Forgiveness of self and others “may help individuals leave the past day’s regrets and offenses in the past and offer an important buffer between the events of the waking day and the onset and maintenance of sound sleep,” wrote the researchers, led by Luther College professor Loren Toussaint. Otherwise, as many troubled sleepers have experienced, we might have too much on our minds to get any rest.

Makes sense, doesn’t it? When I hold grudges those nasty feelings of resentment and anger seem to come out to play the minute I close my eyes.

Does that happen to you, too? Perhaps sleeplessness is a spiritual signal we need to pay more attention to forgiving those who hurt us. Perhaps those hours of tossing and turning are really telling us that peace will only come when we put grudges behind us.

Greater Good also offers a bit more about forgiveness. Forgiveness is a conscious, deliberate decision to release feelings of resentment or worse, vengeance. It’s not forgetting or denying an offense committed against us. And it’s not an obligation for reconciliation with the offender. We release our most negative feelings. We realize the damage we’re doing to ourselves and maybe even to those around us and resolve not to let them find root again.

Something to sleep on.

Sweet dreams friends!

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The Best Laid Plans

Sometimes best laid plans should be discarded.

We spent yesterday with our oldest grandson. Liam, seven, had another day off from school, so my husband and I bopped down to Ohio to spend it with him.

Last month we had the pleasure of spending a day with Liam, too, and as part of it we spent hours at the Museum of Natural History on University Circle, where we bought a family membership so we could enjoy it every time we’re in town. Of course that meant another trip this week because, well, we’d missed the dinosaurs! And if you have a seven year old in your family, you know you never want to miss the dinosaurs.

Of course, we made plans. Why wouldn’t we?

Once on University Circle as planned the day progressed from dinosaurs and space rocks to the museum’s next door neighbor, the Cleveland Museum of Art. I can only say that this is a most spectacular art museum. Liam thought so, too. There are fascinating interactive exhibits as you enter, and Liam plunked down in front of one, a potters’ wheel, where he was able to sculpt, glaze and emboss his own creation–on screen–transfixed for thirty minutes. The other exhibits were equally riveting, including finding secret passages (Liam’s own invention) between the Egyptian and African exhibits. We spent happy hours just viewing a tiny portion of what was available.

And then, life happened. Luckily we paid attention.

Past lunch time, we went outside to head back to the garage and home. Best laid plans, remember? Liam had a different idea. The day was beautiful and the trees across the street in the park were turning colors. So off we went to explore. We bought hot dogs from a cart, eating them on a bench and watching passersby, until Liam went to investigate. His sharp seven year old eyes immediately noticed a tag on one of the trees. It was tiny, tree-colored, and way over his head, but he found it. Of course while we mulled over the reason for its existence, we had a treasure hunt for more and found them. Maybe someone at the Cleveland Botanical Garden had tagged the trees many years before? Since it was right across the park, off we went to see.

Thoughts of tree tags disappeared as inside we explored the glass house–like none anywhere and absolutely amazing–watched a volunteer feed a fly to a chameleon perched in a tree and a tortoise chow down on salad. Then through the Costa Rican exhibit where we were mobbed by gorgeous butterflies, and finally outside in the gardens, where Liam immediately spotted signs to a children’s area.

An hour later, exhausted and satisfied, we found our car and drove home. Five hours of fascination for child and adults alike, and most of it because we ignored our plan for the day and just did what “the spirit say do.”

Does this have anything to do with writing?

Did you think this was a blog about the joys of visiting Cleveland? It could be, but I thought about our day with Liam this morning as I sat down to work on my new book. This story has seen more incarnations than the Dalai Lama. Characters have died, been resurrected, and then killed off again. Every bio I wrote at the beginning has to be tossed because now, everyone has a different past. Names have changed. Plot elements have disappeared and new ones inserted.

And still, despite my proposal being accepted by my publisher, this is still not exactly the story I want to tell. I’ve made one big change in the past week, but there’s another in the book’s future.

A book proposal is a “best laid plan,” and mine is no exception. But sometimes novelists need to be led astray, to explore whatever looks like fun, to change directions. Sometimes we even need to find that solving one mystery (tree tags) isn’t as important as exploring the new places our quest might take us.

So you know what I’ll be doing this week. I’m so close to finding what I need, but still too far away. I’ll be looking hard, changing directions once again and simply wandering.

Is there something in your life that calls out for a day or two of just seeing what’s ahead?

How about deviating from your best laid plans? Or following your nose to better possibilities? If you don’t know where to start, try your own local museums. A walk through an unfamiliar neighborhood. Dinner at a restaurant with a cuisine you’ve never tried. A treasure hunt. Most of all, just see what’s out there waiting for you.

I’d love to hear your story.

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Sunday Inspiration: Autumn

“It’s the first day of autumn!

A time of hot chocolatey mornings, and toasty marshmallow evenings,

and, best of all, leaping into leaves!”

-Winnie the Pooh

As the leaves begin to burst into color here at Chautauqua, I feel like following Pooh’s suggestion to leap into the leaves — or perhaps better yet to treat myself to hot chocolate and toasty marshmallows.

Best of all though is simply to watch the beautiful display of colors while whispering “Thank you.”

Are you savoring your own autumn foliage, be it palm trees swaying in the breeze or hardwoods turning gold and red?

 

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Science Knows No Country

Science knows no country,  because knowledge belongs to humanity, and is the torch that illuminates the world. . . Louis Pasteur

We had the good fortune to spend a morning at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History on University Circle last week with our oldest grandson. Here he is, immersed in “science.”

I hope Liam continues to be right in the middle of all the wonderful things we’re learning about our  universe and about ourselves. I hope that your children and grandchildren, friends and friends of friends, will have the same experience. Let’s not take it for granted, though. Knowledge and exploration are gifts that can be taken away. Let’s protect them.

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A Long and Winding Road

What a summer it was.

First I hope your summer was filled with new experiences, even if you stayed home. There’s always something to learn and enjoy even if it’s only from your front porch.

I’ve neglected Southern Exposure for the past few weeks, so let me catch you up. Mostly in photos. If this feels too much like one of those interminable slide shows of a neighbor’s summer vacation that you were once subjected to, just buzz through. I will understand

Our long and winding road through summer began in June with our annual trip north, just in time to open the house for my brainstorming buddies.

Unfortunately we’d had to do renovations over the winter, and while our contractor did everything required, he did not clean up after himself. So a lot of scurrying ensued but we got the job done.

Some of our family arrived before the Chautauqua season began, and it rained and rained and rained.

You can see this did not stop our youngest grandson.

Picturing nine weeks of Chautauqua’s annual summer program is impossible.

My husband counted the events we attended and it topped 300 easily. That included lectures, worship services, concerts, and other evening programs. You can see, though, that I love my walks around the grounds as much as anything else I do.

My publisher scheduled two out of state book signings for me while I was in New York.

Here’s the one in Pennsylvania where one of my wonderful readers arrived with a quilt she’d made from a block of the month tutorial created by fabulous quilt designer Pat Sloan to honor my Happiness Key series.

The Beach Boys frequently help end the season here.

This year’s concert was so much fun. One more great Chautauqua season behind us.

For my birthday this year, after season my husband (Proman) gave me a weekend in Buffalo.

We had a blast. We stayed in a former mental institution, now one of the finest hotels I’ve ever visited, toured a Frank Lloyd Wright house, and yes, ate lunch at…the Anchor Bar, where chicken wings were first created. Yum.

The month of September was nothing short of a whirlwind.

We visited our son and daughter-in-law in California and puppy sat while they were away. Since they live in the middle of some of the prettiest scenery and most interesting sites to visit, we were the lucky ones. We did a different adventure every day, from Salinas, to Monterey and the charming Carmel By The Sea. Here I am at the Steinbeck Center in Salinas. Is that really Steinbeck’s typewriter? I can’t remember. Close enough!

Choosing the perfect photo for Monterey is impossible.

You don’t need to be a photographer here. You just lift your cell phone and shoot. Whatever you capture will be gorgeous. But I thought you might like this one the most. I’m standing on Fisherman’s Wharf where the HBO series Big Little Lies (from the book by Liane Moriarty) was shot. Remember that cute little cafe? It’s actually an Italian restaurant.

We ended our summer with a week in Maui to celebrate the BIG anniversary that we’d already celebrated with family in January.

But this celebration was just for us. We stayed at the Marriott Wailea Beach Resort and it was truly remarkable. From start to finish we were treated like royalty. 

So yes, summer is over at last.

Our long and winding road through all those happy months has ended, too, and this is the perfect photo to end with. Because here we are at one of the stops on Maui’s Road to Hana, which is truly one of the most terrifying roads we’ve ever adventured on. I would love to tell you we made it to Hana and back, but I won’t lie to you. We went Halfway to Hana and decided that sometimes it’s just better to see where you’ve been and what you’ve left behind than to forge ahead. 

Now it’s time to enjoy the fall here in Western New York, for more visits to Ohio to see family and do a little babysitting, and to visit friends in Canada this week. Our life is not usually so packed full of good things, so it’s been a pleasure to sort through them here and remember.

I hope your summer was wonderful too! Share your favorite memory. We’d love to hear it.

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Sunday Inspiration: Literary Lots

How inspiring is this: a woman who takes abandoned lots in Cleveland and turns them into playgrounds based on children’s books, or literary lots as she calls them. Check out the article here for all the details.

What books would you choose to build a literary lot?

 

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Sunday Inspiration: Aloha

“Aloha…

I believe in Aloha and Kindness,

’Ohana first, meaningful Friendships,

counting my Blessings, and Giving to others.

I choose to see the good in life even during times of struggle.

I am Grateful for the life I have and for all the wonderful people that make this journey worthwhile.”

— author unknown

I’ve been in Maui for a week and will be going home soon. I’ve been so inspired by the beauty of this Hawaiian island but also by the spirit of friendliness and gratitude of the people. Aloha is the word used by Hawaiians as a greeting, but it means so much more: a state of mind and mindfulness, a sense of peace and harmony, a way of living a loving life.

I will be sad to leave this paradise, but I will try to keep the spirit of Aloha in my heart. Aloha to you, my friends.

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Sunday Inspiration: “We’re all stories…”

“We’re all stories in the end, just make it a good one.”

Did you know that Dove candy wrappers have quotations on them, and some good ones, including the one above?

Don’t ask me how I know.

Well, I am on vacation, (that’s Asilomar on the coast in the photos) so I figure I deserve a little treat or two, especially when it gives me an inspirational quotation.

I do enjoy reading good stories as well as struggling to write them. I think of good stories as food for the soul.

But the best story of all is the one each of us lives. The Dove candy quote was a timely reminder that I am the star of my own story, just as you are of yours, and we need to work even harder to make the story of our lives meaningful and memorable. And nobody can judge whether we’ve accomplished that except we, the authors.

The past two weeks of vacationing in California will make memorable chapters for me. How is your story coming?

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