When I was younger, I dreamed of life in the country. I knew it would be wonderful, living in a big white farmhouse flanked with white wooden fences stretching off in both directions. Horses would graze on one side, cattle on the other, kittens would play on the hay bales. Morning would start with a big breakfast and the smell of coffee would mingle with the maple smell of syrup.

Yeah . . . no. It really hasn't worked out quite that way. But a girl can dream, right?

I got my feet wet in the country-arena when I was in the 6th grade. 6th grade was a big year for me. I got kissed for the first time (my first "real" boyfriend), I learned that I could escape into writing, and I got my first job. The kiss wasn't nearly as big a deal as the first job.  It was a quick little peck on a dare in the library. Over and done with, whoopee do. Not quite what my pre-teen mind had imagined it would be (and it sure as hell wasn't like the ones I'd seen on TV). The first job on the other hand, was way more than my pre-teen mind had imagined.

It all started when I spent the night with my friend Amy, who lived in the country (I can still feel those jealous pangs!). We walked across the road to see the neighbor's horses - it was a riding stable, just like in the books I read! I plucked grass with my fist, yanked so hard that the edges of the grass made tiny cuts all over the edge of my palm - but I was so thrilled at the thought of being so close to a horse, I didn't even notice at the time. The owner came out, showed me how to feed the horses the grass without losing a digit and mentioned that she needed someone to help at her riding stable.

Gulp.

Could that be me? I stood there in my cheap jeans and garage sale T-shirt and no-name tennis shoes and thought that, perhaps, just perhaps, I could finagle riding lessons out of this deal. There was no WAY my parents would ever spring for riding lessons, but maybe I could barter? I had dreamed of such an opportunity, and often fantasized about approaching horse owners and offering myself up as slave labor for the opportunity to ride. And here was an owner right smack dab in front of me, ripe for the picking. But that meant I had to actually talk to an adult. Negotiate. For someone as shy as me, that was like walking the plank. And then, worst of all, I'd have to talk to my mom. We were miles out of town, no way I could ride my bike that far, especially not on such a hilly curvy road with no shoulders. I'd have to talk her into it, and she wasn't easy to talk into anything.

But, I pulled myself up as straight as I could and asked Beth if she'd be willing to let me work for her in exchange for riding lessons. To my utter surprise and horror, she said yes! I could work from 8 - 12 every Saturday and during that time, I'd get a one hour lesson. WOO-HOOO!!!

Oh, crap. I remembered that a major hurdle still stood in my way. My mother. It's funny now, all these years later. I remember how much courage it took to ask Beth to work for lessons, but there's a total blank about asking Mom. What I do remember is that she agreed. And so, for two summers, I was in heaven. My Saturdays consisted of cleaning saddles, raking the barn (a/k/a scooping shit), painting fence (by the way . . . If I ever get that big farmhouse, the white fence is going to be something I don't have to paint!), and cutting weeds with a hand scythe. It was hard, hot work, but I loved every minute of it. That's when I knew that horses would always be part of my fantasy life. In reality, the farmhouse has been replaced with a modular home, the fence is cattle panels and woven wire, and the horses are miniature . . . but there's still nothing like sitting in a barn with horses snuffling softly around you, their hooves kicking up little puffs of dirt, with the fragrant smell of fresh hay hanging in the air.

I grew up in a small town in central Missouri. Population of about 3500, give or take. Like all small towns, it was hell.

My first mode of transportation was a used bicycle with no covers on the handlebars (man! I wanted one of those cool bikes with pink tassels on the handlebars!).  I still have a scar from that handle digging a hole into my tummy when I was learning to ride and wrecked. That hurt like hell, but it was worth it 'cause then I got a cool bicycle with a banana seat. It was great. I could fly on that thing, and cut corners so short and fast that my pedal would dig into the ground.

Everybody knew everybody. That sucked when I was a teenager. My mom hated "cruising" (kids nowadays are really missing out - man, the days of cruising from Hardees to Hardees or cruising the loop were great!) and if I went cruising with a friend, somebody would tell her before I got home. No chance to sneak out either, 'cause if I went to spend the night with a friend, my mom knew their mom and they'd both know if we weren't where we were supposed to be.

Still, town was all I knew. Neighbors right next door, sharing a fence. If you needed a cup of sugar, you ran to a neighbor's house. Evenings were spent chatting over the back fence. I walked to school, rode my bike if I wanted to go see a friend. When the tornado sirens went off, we drove a few blocks to the church and took cover in the basement with everybody else. Chores consisted of feeding Duke, our old bird dog, and raking grass after Dad mowed the yard. I dreamed of what my life would hold, spent days cloistered in my room, drawing plans for my dream horse ranch, writing stories of what it would be like to live there. I just knew that someday I would live on a farm, with dogs and cats and horses and goats. I just knew that it would be a dream come true. I knew that someday I would be a ranch owner.

And the dream has come true.

Kinda.

We have horses and dogs and cats (haven't talked my hubby into the goats yet). But it isn't quite the way this townie pictured it.

What did you dream of when you were a kid? And have you made it your reality?

One of my writer friends, Angela Drake, told me about the writers' conference held in Springfield Missouri last month. One of my critique partners suggested we go, so we did, and it was wonderful! I came back inspired and ready to kick my writing into high gear. The speakers were fantastic. Shannon Butcher I had met previously, but it was her husband I heard speak at that time. It was nice to hear Shannon speak - she's easily as talented as Jim is, and I thoroughly enjoyed hearing her take on writing. Leigh Michaels was one of my favorite speakers. I had the pleasure of sitting at her table during lunch. She reminded me of one of the attorneys I work with, and of an actress . . . whose name escapes me at the moment. Another good speaker was Eliza Lloyd. I've got to get some of her books. They sound positively sinful! Her talk about heroes was memorable - I don't think I'll ever look at Disney movies, particularly Tangled, in the same way after hearing her talk! Shannon Vannatter spoke about editing. I took a lot away from her talk, and have been using her diagramming method to help me go through my work again. I have heard her speak before, and I thought this talk was much better. This entire conference was better than any I've been to for a while, in terms of giving me down and dirty tips that I can actually use to improve my writing immediately.

The editor who attended was Lia Brown with Avalon Books and the agent was Louise Fury, with the L. Perkins Agency. They spoke during a couple of sessions, and took pitches.

The fact that it was all crammed into one day was greatly appreciated. A decent price, good speakers and smart topics - add them all up and you get a really good conference!

What conferences have you been to lately? What made them good or bad?

This was a particularly bad winter. Seems like it lasted forever. The blizzard of February 2011 was horrendous, and made me even more jealous of my friend Lynn who now resides in the desert. Initially, I was just jealous that she was in Vegas (I can't say that word without mentally saying "VEGAS, BAY-BEE!!"), but getting 20" of snow - in just that one snowstorm, I might add, made me particularly jealous of the fact that she was in the arid southwest.

I'm really thinking a move may be in our future. Particularly if the whole global warming thing doesn't kick in like I'm hoping it does (sorry, my green friends). It is now the middle of June and I'm sitting on our beautiful new back deck, looking at our beautiful new above ground pool - and I'm wearing jeans. And I'm not IN the pool. Something is wrong with this picture.

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday (those are especially bothersome after 40) and the doc said she wanted to see me back in 6 months. The front desk gal made my appointment - in DECEMBER! I stood there aghast. Crap. Only 6 months 'til I have to worry about that blasted drive to work again. GRRRR.

Oh - a side note that I think I'll probably talk about more later - I have had a really good travel spring. I went to my very first Creating Keepsakes Convention in St. Louis in April. It was fun, I learned a lot, and I made new friends. Special thanks go out to my new friend Dottie who I went with, and to my new friend, Kelly, who roomed with us when her plans went awry. And a shout out to the owner of Boxer Scrapbooks who put on a hell of a class - it was my favorite class, I'm still using stuff I learned in it, and their products are all made in the US. That alone guaranteed that they will continue to get my business.

April was a busy month for me. The annual Missouri Paralegal Conference was held in Kansas City, and I was asked to be a speaker (Prepare to Present: Using Adobe Acrobat Professional in Discovery). That went well, I took advantage of being in KC and visited my cousin Tonya. We went to see the Princess Diana Exhibit at Union Station. Not only was the exhibit itself amazing (seeing The Dress was nearly a religious experience for me), but I was impressed with Union Station. We had lunch at Harvey's, where Patrick was our waiter - quite the entertaining server, and good to boot!

But May . . . ahhhhh, May was incredibly special and oh, so fun! I took a trip to Vegas to see my friend Lynn. It was exciting just GOING somewhere. I suspect that a lot of people don't travel alone. Oh, people do for business all the time, but I mean to take a trip just by themselves. I highly recommend that women do that. There is something empowering about traveling alone. Not only do you have your thoughts to keep you company (seriously, gals, we don't chat with ourselves enough), but you are not distracted by a fellow traveler and you can really focus on the experience itself. I rode MOX to St. Louis (by the way - kudos to MoX for having such a friendly website), where I caught a plane to Phoenix, where we dropped off passengers (the older couple next to me were excited to get home) and picked up passengers (I hope that poor woman had a good time at the Hilton with her hubby and had a smoother flight home) and then it was on to Vegas (VEGAS, BAY-BEE!!). Lynn met me at the airport and we were off! Here are the highlights:

Thunder Down Under. Yummy. Absolutely yummy. By the way - I touched the guy on the left in their pic on the Excalibur website. So did Lynn. He ran right in front of us on the bar. I went in feeling like a frumpy middle aged wife and mother, but after sitting on a hot guy's lap and having him slap my butt . . . I came out feeling like a million bucks. <SIGH> And I'll never be able to listen to Thunderstruck by AC/DC again without a big goofy smile spreading across my face.

Phantom of the Opera. Beautiful opera house. I was way more blown away by the set than the music. I'm not sure if that says the set was fantastic or the music wasn't as good as it could have been. Or perhaps I'm just not as cultured as I think I am, because I must say . . . I'll go back to see the guys from Thunder Down Under, but I'm happy with the memories of Phantom. :o)

The Mob Experience. A fun, immersive experience. My apologies to Lynn, though. I really hope the $100 I stuck in my pocket didn't get us whacked!

Ah, yes, I'll write more on that experience later. Vegas was just what the doctor ordered - I came home feeling refreshed and happy and ready to face the world again.

Have you ever taken a vacation alone or traveled to meet someone?

Frannie stared out the window at the Irish landscape. The rolling green hills were a delight after the dreariness of the small town of Stradbally. Granted, it was a dull and dreary day, so perhaps she shouldn't judge the town or its people on her first impression. The clouds thickened, blotting out the sun, and the fog rolled across the road - what was that poem? Something about like on cat's paws?

Ah, but this fog was nothing like that. This fog was creeping in like a stalking panther, silent, swift and seductive.

Thomas suddenly spun the wheel to the left and they bounced into the public entrance. They had talked about coming to the Electric Picnic for years, but this was nothing like she had imagined. In her mind, she thought they would be dodging party-goers, happy and drunk. Instead, they were dodging deep ruts. Straggly tree branches reached out for them and clawed at the Mini Cooper, trying to slow its progress. In spite of the Irish land's best efforts, Thomas maneuvered the little car around holes, over rocks and onward towards the Hall.

After what seemed like an eternity, the forest released them and there, in the middle of an emerald green clearing, was Stradbally. It rose up from the grass like a hulking castle, cold and distant, yet elegant and refined. Strength seemed to be the most fitting description of the place. It seemed to imply great strength.

Thomas waved a hand towards the great sweep of green grass and said doubtfully, "Perhaps we entered in the wrong place. There's clearly no rock concerts going on here."

Frannie shrugged, then cranked her window down. "I don't hear anything either."

"Should we just go knock on the front door?"

Her shoulders rose again. "I guess so. I didn't fly all the way to Ireland for nothing. It's a huge event, so I'm sure there's someone here who can give us directions."

The sound of hoofbeats caught their attention before Thomas could put the car in gear. A horse and rider appeared from a break in the woods and galloped towards the front door of the castle. The rider tugged the reins and pulled the horse to a sliding stop, just on the other side of the fountain. Thomas leaned to the right and Frannie leaned to her left, both trying to catch a glimpse of the mysterious horseman. He landed on the ground lightly, his knees bending to take the impact, then he dropped the reins, shouted at someone, and took the steps two at a time. The great wooden door swung open just as he reached the top. He disappeared into the darkness of the Hall and the door swung shut.

Frannie thought she heard the creak of the door. Then again, perhaps she just expected it to creak.

Thomas turned to look at Frannie and said, "Did you see that? That man was wearing a suit of armor."

Frannie pointed at the horse standing at the fountain. "And so is his horse."

Anne Marie turned to look at the crowd behind the glass, a breathless group with mouths agape and eyes wide. She smiled and turned back to the console in front of her. Although she had just glanced at the group, she had recognized a few faces immediately. Her mother, who always supported her. Her father, always distant. But the most important was Jonathan Albertson. Her geology professor at the University of Central Missouri her freshman year.

One corner of her mouth twitched up at the memory of Dr. Albertson lecturing at the front of the class. Speaking to her in his office in that condescending tone. Obviously sure that a mere female knew nothing of the intricacies of science.

Yet, here she was. In the room where it all happens. In control. Her eyes flicked up at the trio of gigantic LCD screens at the front of the room. The map of the moon spread across the screens, but her focus was on the center screen, where the image of three astronauts walking through a clear tube towards the mine filled the view. It was their first day on the job. Within the next twenty-four hours, the first shipment of T3 would be making its way back to earth on a drone.
 
The moment deserved to be savored. All the 80 hour weeks, eating at her desk, missing family dinners. It was all worth it.

And they said it couldn't be done.

She stood, leaned forward and spoke in an authoritative tone. "Com, do you have audio?"

 

This challenge from Karen at The (Paper) Trail Challenge Blog came at the perfect time - we've seen more of the white stuff than I want around here lately! But our first really good snow was on Christmas Eve. We drove through the country to visit my parents that day and the snow was so beautiful, we stopped so I could snap a few pictures. The January kit from the Paper Trail had everything I needed - the Echo Park Wintertime papers formed the perfect base, and the Prima stud frame really sets the title off well. The snowflakes from the Echo Park stickers cascade down from the title, drawing the eye to the snow picture and the adorable snowman. These stickers are perfect for layering to add depth and texture. I used blue stickles on the paper to add a little bling, and the snowflake (center of the large snowflake) and the "buttons" on the snowman provided a little more bling, then the puffy ribbon layered over a border sticker form the base for the entire layout. Oh - and a tip to add a little visual interest to your photo - if you usually mat your photos, change it up every now and then by doing an asymmetrical frame, like I did here. I love the formal look of matting, but sometimes a more casual look is better!

On a personal note - I have totally enjoyed serving on the Paper Trail design team. Karen, your product and challenges have been fantastic. Ladies, your designs have inspired and encouraged me, and I am proud to have designed with you all. It has been a pleasure! I look forward to keeping up with you all via the challenge blog. Thank you all!!

The paper kit from Karen at The Paper Trail Challenge Blog was absolutely perfect for this photo that I snapped of my daughter and her friends marching in the holiday parade in December. I think my favorite part is the combination of blue and red, and I absolutely ADORE the little snowflake embellies that are part of the kit! Love that bling!!

What actions have I taken in 2010? Probably the one that I am the most proud of is that I maintained my commitments to my critique group and continued writing even when NaNoWriMo 2009 was history. Another I'm proud of is that I did not give into the fear that usually plagues me when I had two editors ask to see my work. I submitted it to them, even knowing that the odds are against me. I want to continue that in 2011.

What action do I want to take in 2011? I want to sit for the advanced paralegal exam. The first step is to join the Missouri Paralegal Association. I will do that before the end of the month. And I WILL sit for that exam in 2011.

I don't know about you, but I don't have the patience to sit and listen to a prerecorded message. My time is too valuable for that. And nothing makes me hang up the phone faster (well . . . maybe not completely true. For instance, a screaming banshee might make me hang up faster . . . ) than hearing the mechanical sound of a recorded voice saying, "This is not a solicitation or sales call . . ."

And that makes me wonder . . . who uses that line to begin a call? Am I perhaps hanging up on someone who is going to offer me an incredible deal that I simply can't refuse? Am I losing out on that 7-day 6-night cruise to fabulous Alingalapalap for a mere $99? Am I never going to learn the secret of buying real estate with absolutely no money down?

Ahh . . . I hung up and now I'll never know.