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A Cupcake Gone Wrong
See this precious face?
He’s so sweet, he earned the name Cupcake. But this little cupcake was a real flop on day one.
My oldest daughter brought her 4H steer home last Sunday. My husband had spent time earlier in the day making sure the steer area was ready. But sometimes there’s just no preparing for a calf who doesn’t want to love his new home.
Cupcake was released from the stock trailer directly into the pen. He took a look around, trotted into the feeding area, and slammed his almost seven hundred pounds into the wood railing at one end. From where we all stood, there was nothing we could do in time to keep him from escaping. Cupcake broke loose.
If you follow me on Facebook, you know that loose steers are not uncommon on the Nelson farm, but this was exceptional. Cupcake didn’t go down our property. He didn’t take off for neighboring fields or the wood that flank the river. Nope. Cupcake headed for town. He plunged through the creek and into a field of horses. These horses were not happy to see him, but we thought we could get Cupcake loaded into the trailer from here and brought back home.
Cupcake tore through the horse’s fence and across the road into another field. Trust me when I say this is not the way to bond with your neighbors. We were fortunate to have my daughter’s friend along for the fun. He’s a big, strong guy who doesn’t mind getting dirty. At least he didn’t complain, and I baked him cookies!
So, after a VERY long time in the rain and the dark, with my last bit of pride tossed to the wind (I find singing to the steers is helpful) and my dog, Harper, well exercised for the day, the time came for drastic action. That steer managed to get my husband and my daughter’s friend on the ground. At one point, he took out a neighbor too. But he was trailered and brought back to his new home where he’s decided to be content.
And all is calm on the Nelson farm…Until we bring in another steer this weekend.
Don’t forget to subscribe to my very infrequent newsletter or my blog for a chance to win the prize below. We’ll be drawing a name on November 19 at noon PST.
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Celebrating My Birthday and Election Day!
I have always loved election day. Those years when the election falls on my birthday have been my favorites. That was, until this year. My voting excitement dimmed as the country tore it’s citizens apart and fights broke out where free speech should have been embraced. In fact, I’ve been dreading my election birthday this year. But today I took my ballot to the drop box in front of the courthouse. I was one of many, a constant flow of Americans with ballots in hand, and a bit of my faith was restored.
I didn’t care who they voted for, only that they had the freedom to cast their ballots.
Who wins the presidential election is less important than how we treat each other.
It matters that we love without that being dependent on our agreement. We can choose if we will allow the election to separate us from others, or if we’ll learn to serve our communities with our neighbors no matter what their political affiliations.
So, let’s celebrate! I’ll be giving away the mug and chocolates, in the picture above, to one of my subscribers. Check out the link at the right side of this page. The winner will be drawn randomly at noon on November 19th.
All subscribers who share this blog will be entered twice into the drawing! Leave a comment or send me a message to make sure I catch your share.
The winner is Heidi G.
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Exciting Publishing Moments: We Have a Title!
The new title is here! I received a very exciting email from Noelle, Marketing and Publicity Manager at Kregel. She and the committee decided to change the name of my novel to…
If We Make it Home
~A Novel of Faith and Survival in the Oregon Wilderness
I’m was completely caught off guard by how exciting this step was! I think I’ve been smiling all day.
What do you think?
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What I’m Working On: Marketing and a New Book
This week, the marketing department from Kregel sent me a few pages of questions regarding my upcoming book. You may not realize that the publisher decides on both the title and the book’s cover. I have no problem admitting that I’m terrible with titles. In all the manuscripts I’ve written, there is only one with a title I’m really attached to and that I named completely by myself.
So, this is where we come to the point that The Lost may no longer be called The Lost. It’s kind of exciting. I feel like I’m about to get a great surprise. Of course, it’s also possible the book title will not change, and that’s good too. As you can see, I’m not real invested in this area.
The book cover is another thing. I’m fascinated by book covers. Some I love, and some I hate. There are few that don’t fall into one of these categories. More than any of my other stories, I’ve had a vision for what this cover would look like. But I’m not so great on the artistic design side. I’m even struggling to express the vision that’s so clear in my head. I’ve scrolled through hundreds of covers, and I’ve found a few to show as examples. I’ve also found quite a few books to add to my TBR (to-be-read) pile.
I have faith that the design Kregel decides on will be the right one. They’re professionals, and this is their area of expertise.
That brings me to the other things I’m doing.
I’ve replotted an older manuscript which I’m pulling together in it’s new, better form. This is a bit tedious, but I’m pleased with the new story.
I’m also planning for November and Nanowrimo. I’m so excited to be participating with thousands of other authors around the world. National Novel Writing Month brings professionals and hobby-writers together with the same goal, writing 50,000 words in the month of November. My goal will be something more like 70,000, but you get the point.
The new story has me exploring topics like driving under the influence, dementia, and life transitions under the worst of circumstances. I look forward to weaving these threads together.
Do you have any book covers you love? Please, post a picture in the comments area.
