Still "Dancing with Deaken" in My Dreams

Deaken, my "Serval Son"

May 16, 1979-Sept. 11 1996

(This was Carolyn Kelley's favorite photo of Deaken.
She framed and placed it in their sitting room.)

At least twice a year, even all these years after his death, I dream of Deaken in such amazing detail that I can hear his chirp, feel his breath, and run my fingers through his fur.

I've had so many different pets that I've lost count of them all--and I know they're all waiting for me across Rainbow Bridge and that we'll reconnect one day--but the one that consistently "visits" me in my sleep is Deaken.

He was just five days old when I brought him home...

Deaken at approximately four weeks of age

He was all grey as a kitten (where he wasn't spotted or striped) except for his muzzle and his belly, which were white. I was a goner the moment I laid eyes on him.

I had tamed and trained an adult serval in Southern California during my Wild Animal Affection Training days and had fallen big-time for their unique look and presence, although I often joke, to this day, that servals look like they're put together by a committee: spots AND stripes, tail shorter than seems appropriate to me; satellite-dish ears, long, lean legs... but without a doubt, God knew what he was doing, so who am I to critique one of His most perfect creations?

Servals are the Perry Como/Dean Martin/DeForest Kelley of the cat kingdom: laid back as can be (except on the extremely rare occasions when they're riled). Africans can catch a full-grown serval and tame it easily. (You probably know how nearly impossible it is to tame and gain the trust of a domestic cat born feral, so this is a remarkable thing!) Cheetahs are the only other cat as easy to tame and train to do a human's bidding. Servals and cheetahs have been used for centuries by African natives as "companion hunters"--they can run down prey (dik dik and larger antelopes, etc.), which human hunters then confiscate for their own uses.

With their over-sized ears, servals can detect other creatures moving in tall savannah grass (their usual habitat). Their ears are so finely-tuned that they can hear rodents burrowing three feet underground. Read that sentence again--and marvel.

As impressive as it is to read, nothing prepared me for Deaken's listening abilities! In fact, Deaken essayed the feat in such an amazing way that De Kelley taunted me about it years later by drawing a cartoon of Deaken "hearing things" in the way a demented woman might IMAGINE things!   The story of what Deaken heard--and De's reactions (both artistic and verbal) appear in my first book about De, "DeFOREST KELLEY:  A HARVEST OF MEMORIES, My Life and Times with a Remarkable Gentleman Actor."



BUY IT HERE!  Or buy it at Authorhouse.com at a discount (you can get the hardbound version at AH for Amazon's softbound price!) OR get it immediately as an e-book for just $4.95 at AH.

PERK: If you get it as an ebook, you'll see all the inside pictures in LIVING COLOR, which is not the case with the tree-book versions. And with the e-book you can search by subject matter or occasion, making it easy to find all the spots in the book that are about Deaken and his interaction with the Kelleys and me...and anything else you want to look up again after reading it the first time. You know: birthday and convention shenanigans, pachyderm poop plaque, my first utterly-nerve-wracking sit-down meeting/dinner with the Kelleys; puffed penis hilarity...

Sorry... I didn't start this blog entry intending to advertise my book-- honestly!--but it occurred to me that you're probably going to want to know a lot more about my relationship with my "serval son" than what I can provide here, and I haven't written that book--yet!-- so I'm pointing you to what I do have that you can read now. But be forewarned: the story of Deaken's final days is in there, too, so you'll definitely need a hanky. Guaranteed! Many fans (fellow animal lovers) have told me they were sopping wet after meeting and loving Deaken the way De and Carolyn and I did...

I always love my Deaken visitations.  The one that occurred last night was a delightful surprise. In the dream, I was walking along a road near a slightly-forested environment in my present-day times and I heard Deaken's familiar and distinctive chirp calling out to me from the meadow-area just outside the rim of forest cover. I grinned like a madwoman and called out, "Deaken!"

He chirped again and headed in my direction at a lope. It was like he had been missing me as much as I missed him!  He practically barreled into me, purring and head-rubbing as enthusiastically as he knew how.  My fingers were all through the coat on his back and sides, reacquainting themselves with his contours.  And he has four legs and a svelte build again (where's he's been living all these years across Rainbow Bridge)--his absent back leg is restored to perfect condition and he looks as good as he did at his best (just after his "gangly teenager" stage).

The visitations are so complete, so lucid, that I can smell the environment, hear his breaths, feel his heartbeat. (I never as palpably noticed these things while he was with me in real life! This is a preview of the heaven we'll share, I think!) (For those of you who don't think animals go to heaven, you're wrong. Heaven without animals would be hell! Maybe if you don't like them, or if you fear them, you won't be obliged to be around them.. but for animals lovers, this is good news!)

Deaken has never left me. Like De, my serval son is tucked in my heart forever. For lots of reasons. I cannot wait to see my two favorite De's again someday! 

What a reunion that will be!!!

I Just Wrote an Article for Funds For Writers....

...by invitation of C. Hope Clark. WHEEEE!!!

Hope says it will be published the evening of September 2nd. I'll mention it again closer to its debut!


Kris

HAPPY 94TH BIRTHDAY AC LYLES!!!

I was outside all afternoon with the goats following an entire morning of non-stop writing for a client. My brain needed a break, so I opened the door to the goats and we went behind their fence for some blackberry leaf eating.  Er, they did. I accompanied them but didn't join in... (I presume you're delighted to hear that.  There is no need--yet--to call the Funny Farm on my behalf. Promise!)

The girls have grown so large that they can stand on their hind legs now and eats leaves off the plum trees in our yard. This is not a good thing, because Jackie and I would like to have some plums this summer and fall.  So I have to tell them no and keep them "otherwise occupied" as much as possible.

Laverne loves two or three of Jackie's prize bushes, so that's a constant hassle, too. But I think I've figured something out. At least, it's working so far. 

Whenever Laverne heads in the wrong direction, I call out ominously, "Laverne... that's a no no." If she keeps going, I toss a relatively heavy, short branch so it lands beside or slightly ahead of her. For some reason, this action really scares her.  (Maybe it's instinctive: a falling branch may indicate that a predator is falling out of the sky and downward onto her.)  She bleats, bolts immediately, and comes back to me for "protection." She doesn't know I'm the culprit who threw the branch.  I'm glad this ruse works because although I can't outrun her, I can out-throw her.

What else? I got my Obama-Biden bag in the mail today. Did you know I have an Obama_Biden_2012 Store at Cafepress.com? There's a link to it on the right hand side of this blog (in the margin).


I also have a DeForest Kelley store at Cafepress but forget to keep saying so, so there have been very few sales.  Its Called DeForest Station.  (I know.  groan...)  There are some clever things there.  Check them out. (You'll find the link in the same place.)

I mowed the lawn today, too. It takes over an hour even on a riding lawnmower. We have a lot of yard! Too much yard!  But we do love it.

I'm going to need 16-18 more T-stakes for the goat fence, it turns out. I've already "planted" the 20 I bought this weekend, plus two that were left over from last time, and there's still a substantial gap to fill to fence in the goat pasture completely. Oy vey... It is what it is.  Until we get the funds, I have to be a "goatherd" every day the weather is nice at least a couple of hours a day. Not that I mind... I just have to work later in the evening (and on some weekends) to compensate for the time outside.

I guess that's about it for this time. Hope I didn't put you to sleep with all this world-shaking news!

Laverne's Sporty New Head Gear

(You can see larger images of these on my Facebook page.)

The points of Laverne's horns are growing out at an angle so she's getting pretty "lethal" when she flings her head around to shoo Shirley away.

So today I went to the Dollar Store and bought two sporty rubber balls, sliced a hole into each one with my handy dandy deer knife (which I would never use on a deer or any other critter), and ran some Super Glue inside, then pushed them onto the end of her horns. Voila!!  Instant protection for Shirley and anyone else who's within range of her head.

Now when we trim Laverne's hooves we don't have to worry about her rearing up or thrashing her head about and wounding anyone with her horns.

Yeah, it looks pretty dorky, but IT WORKS!

Shirley's horns are growing in a nice arc right over her neck and back, so the points on hers don't pose a threat... otherwise, she would have received a pair of soccer balls to match her white coat.

My girls MUST remain color-coordinated, you know!  LOL!

At Last! Photos of the Goat Fence!

As I write this, my sister is downloading the photos on her digital camera to her PC. That means I'll have the ones I want in just a few minutes... Hallelujah!!!

I got the signs from Vistaprint today in the mail, so this is perfect timing because I put them on the fence and took photos of them with her camera already. So you'll get to see photos of your name on the fence (that is, you will if you contributed to the fence fund, you will!), the fence, and the girls enjoying their new pasture.

I estimate the fence is a little more than a third complete as it stands now. I'll be getting a couple hundred dollars' worth of fence panels and stakes every month or so, so I can extend it out frequently all spring and summer long until the entire area is fenced. (We're fencing  the perimeter areas on two side of our property so Laverne and Shirley can eat the blackberry leaves and vines that pop up there from the neighbor's property and keep them at bay so we don't have to slash, burn and poison them to keep them off our place.)

Perhaps it goes without saying but I'll say it anyway: there is still plenty of time to donate to the fence fund if you're so inclined! But I'll be writing in the names of donors from now on since the signs have already been printed and I've been given no indication about who else may want to donate to this very worthy effort.

It is so much fun to look outside and see them enjoying their pasture area!  Today Shirley went around the side of the building while Laverne wasn't paying attention. When she discovered her "missing," she just about lost her ever-lovin' mind.  I heard her bawling at the top of her lungs, frantic, so looked out the window to find her running at warp speed all over the pasture and into the pen area (everywhere there was to run EXCEPT around the corner of the pen) bleating her heart out, looking for her sister!

A little panicked myself, I went outside and called, "Shirley!"  Shirley bleated pleasantly and came to the fence where I could see her (but Laverne couldn't). Laverne continued to rocket all over the place yelling at the top of her considerable lungs. (I should have filmed it.)  I had to go into the pen and call Shirley back into view so Laverne wouldn't have a stroke.  As soon as Shirley came into view, Laverne went over to her and chilled out immediately.

It's amazing how bonded those two are--even though Laverne can be a real bully to her at feeding time.

Here's the link to the Sky Drive for more goat pix!

http://cid-6fb921adf044f220.photos.live.com/browse.aspx/Goat%20Pix

OMG! Jim and Kay Sent Me an "Easter Goat"! CUTE!!!

I'm trying to get my Kodak Easy Share dock to kick into gear so I can post a photo of the "Easter Goat" I just got in the mail from Jim and Kay Loveless in Chelsea, Alabama.  IT IS SO CUTE!!!!!  Thank you!!!!

Jim and May also sent $40 for the goat fence... which lies in my back yard at this very moment, with 25 heavy steel posts, awaiting my touch (er, placement and pounding). I just have to wait until the ground beneath the starting point of the fence dries out so I can dig out there without getting trapped ankle deep in heavy clay-like mud. I tried doing something there two days ago and my shoes ended up so heavy, I couldn't lift them.  Grrr... It's just that one spot that has me stopped, but of course it's the starting point, so I can't proceed until it dries out there... 

I am so blessed!!!

The Day After--Basking in the Afterglow of a Milestone Birthday...

My 60th birthday party was yesterday. About 200 Facebook friends sent me well wishes and, here in person, 15 people attended the birthday dinner hosted by Jackie, Wendy and Sue.

The Lineup: Marian Hawkins, Mary Jane Cooper, Penny Howard (childhood friend, daughter of Mary Jane), Betty , Carol Beitz, Sue and George Rebar, Phil, Wendy, Casey and Jamie McNiven, Malia (first grader from across the street and frequent goat-walking buddy and guest when the other kids are here), Andy and Ella Wallace (two of the children I watch in the nursery during church, cousins of Casey and Jamie) and Jackie.

Jackie made Mom's renowned "porcupine meatballs;" Sue made a decadent, world-class chocolate cake with chocolate frosting (did I tell you I like chocolate? If not... now you know!), and we all talked and talked and talked.

Several of the ladies played cards.

Marian and George exchanged some conversation in the Czech language, which was fascinating!  I'm going to try to find a Tacoma-area Czech-speaking local club so Marian can find more locals who speak Czech. She came here as a young girl speaking only Czech, quickly learned English and taught it to her family, but she would love to find someone local who she can practice it with again. 

This is by no means a final tally, but so far I've received $343 for the goat fence. I also got a royalty check from Authorhouse for $136 and a church paycheck for $100, so I'll put that into the pot too. Jackie plans to add another $250, I think... so that's a little over $800. Wowee Zowie!!! If the neighbors still want to borrow the goats, they'll be paying for some posts and panels, too.

In two words: The "Bucks for My Does" campaign has been a phenomenal success. I can't wait to have the panels delivered (next weekend) and get my little darlings out into a "pasture" for perhaps the first time in their young lives. (I believe they were pretty much barnyard-bound with their moms until they came to us last July.) 

THANK YOU SO MUCH TO EVERYONE WHO CONTRIBUTED.

I know there is money on the way to me from Afghanistan (unbelievable!) and other far-flung places.  Everyone who donated will find your name on the fence, if you ever come out this way for a visit. 

There is NO WAY my sister and I would have been able to do this in time for spring without your ENORMOUS help.  I'm pretty sure now that we'll be able to erect at least HALF of the total span we'll eventually be fencing in--and in the meantime, we can just plant the stakes all around the perimeter and move the panels as needed to keep the goats within the areas we want them to be munching all spring, summer and fall.

I will take photos (FOR SURE) and videos (PROBABLY) so you can keep track of the fencing process.  And I'll for sure take pictures of Laverne and Shirley in their new pasture checking it out (and probably cavorting in it) as soon as we have enough of it set up to make a grand showing of it.  I hope to have it mostly set up by mid-April. 

My right hand and lower back are beginning to cause me some problems, so I don't know how many fence stakes I'm going to be able to pound in on a daily basis. That's the hardest part of the setup and will take the longest.  I may be able to get some help from Casey and her dad. If so, that'll be a godsend...

OH!  I also got other lovely things for my birthday. The wee ones all made me handmade cards; if they were too young to write notes in them, their moms wrote the notes for them... I treasure them!

Margot sent me $25 for the goat fence.

Edward gave $40 for the goat fence.

Laurel sent $25 for the goat fence and a small keepsake book she made by hand which is FABULOUS!

Casey got me two critter figurines (a lion cub and a dog)

Betty and Carol got me a Subway gift card (YES!) and a box of Turtles (you know, those wonderful chocolate-covered nut candies)Marian's caregiver got me a $25 gift card for another store (non-food)




Mary Jane got me a book I'm very much looking forward to getting into, "The Book of Awakening," by Mark Nepo

And George and Sue got me a frozen Smoothie kit

Phil and Wendy gave me $50 toward the goat fence (paraphrasing) "if you must but we hope you'll spend it on yourself."   News flash: spending it on the goat fence IS spending it on myself!  Nothing will make me happier than getting my girls out into an open area so they can feel deleriously free ! I can already see it in my head; very soon it will be a reality and I will be able to bask in its accomplishment!

<<<<<<<<<<< >>>>>>>>>>>>>>

In Other News:

I have a busy work week ahead on Elance. It may actually consume a full forty hours for the first time ever. Now, THAT would be a welcome happening!

Jackie wants to have the desk I've been using in my office as a work desk for her quilting room, so I swapped it out a few days ago for a smaller one that Dad made me 25+ years ago. It's EXACTLY the right height ergonomically and I sit up straighter at it, so it's going to help my back a lot. I'm typo-ing less often too.  I finally have THE RIGHT DESK FOR THE JOB!  (Thank you, Daddy!)

And I got a loveseat from the church for just $20. It matches the rug in my living room much better. (My old couch, a hand-me-down from Jackie, was killing my back.) I also got a storage cabinet and bookcase for my office for $15 from church, so my home and office look SO much better now. (Thank you, George, for delivering them to me!)

I am ORGANIZED!!! When Malia came by yesterday and saw my new office and living room setups, she said, "Wow!  It doesn't look junky in here anymore!!!" (Out of the mouths of babes!) She is absolutely right.  And the good news is, with a smaller desk I'll have to keep things neater: there's no extra room for strewing  or stacking papers, so whatever I have out (visible) will have to be "a work in progress;" ll else will have to be filed away somewhere. WOO HOO! This way my office with stay un-junky!

How cool is that!?

Fed 625 Starving Children for a Year in Two Hours Today

Wendy, Jackie, Casey, Sue, Jennie, Beth and I just got back from the Puyallup Fairgrounds where we worked for two hours bagging  meals for Feed My Starving Children, a non-profit Christian organization.  Wendy, Casey and Sue did it last year and told us about it this year, so we pitched in.

What an amazing, warp-speed two hours. We gathered around tables in groups. Each had a specific job: measuring out veggies, soy and rice, weighing each combined bag carefully, sealing it, loading it into boxes.  Each box held 36 bags; each bag held six meals.

There were probably ten tables in the place and around 100 volunteers all told.  In just two hours we filled 244 boxes.

36x6=3,888 meals per box
3888x244=948,672 meals packed in two hours.

They say that's enough to feed 625 children for a solid year.

And we were just the final two-hour shift in the two-day event. The emcee said 1000 people had turned out to volunteer, so multiplying what our 100-person shift did by ten, that's 6,250 kids fed for an entire year.

These events are held once a year in multiple areas around the country. If you'd like to find out if one will be held near you so you can volunteer, or more about the organization--or if you'd like to donate money to buy the food that the volunteers bag up for children--visit the link below.  You'll be glad you did!

http://www.fmsc.org/

Junior, High School Chum and I Reconnected Today

Today Valerie (Chase) Barrett drove down from Seattle with her three boys to meet and walk the goats and have an outdoor weenie roast -- although I was advised not to call what we cooked "weenies" in front of the boys. (It's not easy changing one's vernacular when one is used to having all girl children around, but I managed.) 

It was frigid outside. I don't think the temperature lifted above 43 degrees and it was quite windy, so that brought the temperature down to "freezin' our buns off" COLD!  Only we "old folks" noticed or cared. Her kids were so busy running around with my "kids" (BAAAA!) that they peeled their jackets off after a while as Val and I just shook our heads and shuddered at the idea...

I kept looking at Val and thinking, "No way can she be almost 60." I wonder if she thought the same thing about me. Hope so!!! 

It blew me away to contemplate that. Being almost 60 doesn't faze me in the least, but thinking about classmates being 60 floors me!  They sure don't look 60. At least, Val doesn't.

It was terrific to reconnect again. We'll do it more often, now that she knows how well her boys respond to a visit here.  WOO HOO!  That does my heart good. Jackie will love seeing her again when she gets her chance. (Jackie was working today; missed seeing everyone.)

The little girl from across the street came over to spend the day, too. Her name is Malia. Her dad lives in Hawaii. She fit right in.

Malia often walks the goats with Casey, Jamie and me, so when I told her I would be hosting a goat walk and weenie roast for friends from Seattle, I invited her to come along. She jumped at the chance.

She's an only child and there are few other kids on this block her age. She may even go to church with me whenever I kid sit there so she can hang around with Jamie some more. She's going to ask her mom for permission. (They worship at another church.) Malia is on a week-long school break; Casey and Jamie aren't.

After the Barrett family headed back to Seattle, Malia came into my office where I was working. I told her she could hang out with the "puppies" in my living room while I worked until her mom or grandma came over to claim her (both had gone into town) but every so often she wandered in to see me and talk or ask questions while I worked.

She was flabbergasted to see photos of me with "famous people" lying around in various nooks and crannies (she's a curious kid) -- V.P. Joe Biden, Senator Patty Murray, DeForest Kelley. She just couldn't get over it. She was over the moon about it!

Then she decided, "You must be famous, too!" 

I laughed and said, "Only in very small circles."

She said, "What does that mean?" 

I said, "It means I can go to any store and someone will know who I am only about once every ten years. The last time I was recognized in a store I heard, 'There's the goat lady!'" She thought that was very cool. (So do I, truth be told.)

I don't need my next door neighbor's child thinking I'm anyone other than "the goat lady." That's fame enough for me in this neck of the woods! 

I was amazed Malia knew who De Kelley was. She must have a Trekkie or two somewhere in her family...

I told Malia she would probably meet plenty of famous people herself during her lifetime. (She's only eight years old.) That seemed to perk her up--even though she's already pretty perky! 

I said, "Famous people like these ones enjoy meeting people. Not all famous people do, but our country's leaders and some actors do. It's how they find out what we're thinking about them, because how we're thinking about them is important to keeping their jobs. We can vote them in or vote them out." 

But if she ever asks me to take her to meet her Senator or Congressman or woman, or a V.P. or President, you'd better believe I will think at least a dozen times about it, after what happened to Congresswoman Giffords' and her littlest "fan" in Tucson in January.

And that is very, every sad.

Hoof Trimming Time! Kris and Casey Take Care of Laverne and Shirley

https://cid-af85110a95b9f3aa.photos.live.com/browse.aspx/Goat%20Pics

Photos by Phil McNiven!

BTW: The final photo in the slide show, showing a before-and-after look at a goat's hoof, was taken from the Internet. I have never let my goats' hooves grow long enough to look like the half on the left (overgrown and yucky). I trim their hooves at least once every four weeks, usually more often.

Thanks to Melinda Kettler for This WONDERFUL De Kelley Link....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCSPimDxXDw

*sigh*

I miss him so...

Casey's First Speech Will Be About Caring for Goats

Casey (age ten, almost 5'7" tall already... and still growing!) is my best sidekick when it comes to caring for Laverne and Shirley. She loves to help. 

She was recently given a speech assignment about "how to do something," so she chose how to care for goats.  The speech has to be between five and ten minutes long. Hers is already nearly five minutes long (without showing the accompanying photos and tools) and she has it down pat... no hiccups or hesitations...

About the tools. Because Casey can't take sharp objects to school, she spent part of last week tracing the hoof trimmers, hoof pick and hoof file onto cardboard and then painting them to look like the real things.  She did a darned good job.

This weekend or next we're going to give the goats a bath in my bathtub.  (I "kid" you not.) I think.  Unless the weather is scheduled to get nasty again.  Giving baths should give Casey a little more to talk about. Goats don't like the rain, so I have no idea how well they'll take to a warm bath. 

We'll start with Shirley. She's white and would benefit most from a bath. She's also the mellower of the two. She's 99.9% clean looking right now except for where longer hair has grown on her fanny (3-4" from her not-so-private parts). That longer hair catches some urine from time to time, so it's a little yellow-looking.  My plan is to trim that hair with a dog clippers or scissors so it won't be a catch all for spills. If I can do that, she should look more or less like a Disney goat from head to foot -- "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" -- practically perfect in every way. That's what we'll be aiming for.

If Shirley behaves well, I may have Jackie videotape some of the bath so Casey (and I) can show it. We'll see how it goes.

Update on the "Buck for My Does" Fence Campaign.  So far $127 has come in for the goat fence.  That's almost three 16' x 5' fence panels.  I believe more $$$ is on the way but I'm not sure. 


My 60th birthday is coming up on March 5th. That's a milestone.  I want $$$$$ for my goat fence for my birthday. That's all.  Oh, and a free e-card from every one of you, since it is a milestone birthday!


Everyone who donates to the fence campaign will have their names emblazoned on part of the fence. Most who have donated have sent more than one dollar. I usually get $3 or more each time.

Contributors to Date.. THANK YOU!!!

(Updated 3/17/2011)

Sue and Bill from Cle Elum: $30

Billie Rae from Palmyra, NY: $55

Antje from Germany: $5

Carl from the UK: $3

Lynda Lien from Lake Stevens: $10

Debbie Hirneisen, NY: $50

Byron Bailey $30

Edward Smith $40.00

Margot Worthington $25

Laurel Smith $25

Jackie Smith $50

Phil and Wendy $50

Jim and Kay Chelsea AL $40

You can also contribute via my Paypal account. Just be sure to mention GOATS so I don't get the $$ mixed up with my business funds. Email me at kristine m smith AT msn DOT com to find out how to do that.

BREAKING NEWS:

I landed a job on Sunday mornings for the foreseeable future working in the nursery at Lutheran Church of Christ the King. That's where Casey, Jamie, Phil andWendy and all of Wendy's nearby family worships.  I know all of the kids in the nursery; all but two (there are six) are relatives or shirttail relatives of mine. So when the job opened up, I thought, "Hey, why not?" 

I have dozens of age-appropriate Bible stories and videotapes (Bible stories) for kids; I love the kids; and my volunteers will usually be the kids' parents or grandparents (again, relatives or shirttail relatives of mine).  In fact, I got the job because Wendy's dad told me about it and told Pastor Peter about me. Pastor Peter has known me for years; I was Activity Director / Receptionist/Shuttle Driver/Tour Guide/Server/Newsletter Editor at Kings Manor (an outreach ministry of LCCK, an assisted living community) in 2004, so it seems to be a match made in heaven.  The kids are 2 to 6 years of age. I'm not much older myself! Kids think I'm pretty hysterical... and I just love it when people think I'm funny (usually!).

One time Casey and I were sitting in the goat shed. This was late fall, and it was cold.  Laverne jumped on the shed door and knocked it open to go outside. I called out after her, faking angst, "Hey, shut the door!  Were you born in a barn?"  Casey thought that was just about the funniest thing she had ever heard. I've rarely heard her laugh that hard. (She's such a lady!) 

And to this day both girls ask me to tell my Freddy the Frog story over and over and over again.  (It's in my book LET NO DAY DAWN THAT THE ANIMALS CANNOT SHARE.) They heard about Freddy the first time when Casey was about four, I guess.  They're captivated by the story. It's totally true. That's probably why they love it so much... other than the fact it's funny in places. (Hiding Freddy in my underwear drawer until Mom found him; giving him a bubble bath because Mom said he was too dirty to live in the house... POOR FREDDY!  The things animals go through when kids "love" them!  Eegads!)

What else?  Guess that's all the "dirt" that's fit to print. (Urine-stained goat feathers; dirty frogs.) I'll stop while I'm ahead!

Oh, I've got some work again at Elance. ENOUGH work for the moment.  Long may it continue!  It feels great!

Here It Is--The Scribnia Interview

http://scribnia.com/blog/2011/02/09/behind-the-blogs-meet-almost-famous-kristine-m-smith/

My Interview at Scribnia Will Appear Tomorrow.

I just received word that my interview (about being a blogger) will appear tomorrow at Scribnia.com. When I get a link I'll post it here.

Scribnia Interviewed Me This Week--Stay Tuned for More!

Scribnia.com interviewed me (via written Q&A this week). I didn't know I had made it onto their radar. SOMEONE who reads these blogs introduced this blog to them; that's how they found out about me. THANK YOU, WHOEVER YOU ARE!  (I'm guessing Mary Doman, Lisa Hamner, or Billie Rae Walker, but I really have no idea. Please fess up so I can thank you properly.)

I think I answered about 8-10 questions. Total word count was around 1400 words (including the questions, none of which were very wordy). The interview was about having a blog, not about De--although the lady who sent the questions thought my history with De could be fodder for a future interview, too. I guess we'll see what kind of feedback we get on the first one before deciding to do another one.

I'll let you know when the interview is up at Scribnia. In the meantime, if you like, you can go there and vote my blog spot up the flagpole.  Last time I looked, it was at #16...  That's pretty fabulous, considering all the gazillions of blogs out there!

Gotta go play some cards with my grand nieces and their little friend Jillian now. Casey helped me wrangle the goats for hoof-trimming today; it's the least I can to to thank her for being so awesome. She is getting to be quite the accomplished helper!

Star Trek Remembering DeForest Kelley

Star Trek Remembering DeForest Kelley

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If any of these blog posts give you a grin or anything else of value please tweet them! Thank you!

Life is Hard.. But Not as Hard as It Is For Many Others.

I'm having "another one of those months"...

Famine. I've made (drum roll, please) all of $319 so far in January.  It's scary. It's frustrating, too, because I've spent long hours looking through the projects at Elance, finding ones I felt I could ace, bidding on them.... and getting passed over... landing just the $50 ones. 

$200 of what I've made this month didn't even come from Elance -- it came from other places: a book I'm working on with a friend, two letters I rewrote for LinkedIn associates. Oh, and I sold a copy of ENDURING LEGACY for $4.95. (Paypal got about fifty cents of that.)

I don't like months like these. They wouldn't be so bad if I had something laid up in savings but I haven't been able to get that far ahead yet.  Grrr...

Unless something changes FAST -- and of course, it can at any moment; I have enough bids out there to retire on if they all came my way!) (ok, that's an exaggeration!) but right now, based on what I've made so far this month, I'm eligible for food stamps almost four times over! I have to pay my mortgage, Internet and phone connection fees (they're my shelter and my lifeline to work!), and I should have enough for those "mandates" by the end of January, but I may have to drop health coverage (or pay it late if enough comes my way before the grace period ends); I can go to an emergency room and get help despite my inability to pay should it come to that (thank God, my citizenship, and a lifetime of paying taxes for this small "perk"!)

Being self-employed is a crapshoot the first few years. It's been so sporadic all year long that it has been a real struggle at times... and this is one of those times. It puts my tummy in a knot to dwell on it... so I don't, much. I just look harder for work... day and night... I'm often up at 3 a.m. looking for another project because I can't sleep, with the end of the month looming over my shoulder like a big black cloud...

But I am so glad I have complete faith in God; I'd be an absolute nervous wreck without Him. I know He didn't give me a lifelong passion to write for no reason... or a spirit of fear (fear is the devil's bailiwick)... and I'm doing a lot of Christian ministry as a result of the projects I'm offered and accept. I know it will all work out.

I just hate giving my sister additional things to fret about.  We bought this property together to help each other and I must hold up my end of the deal. I'm paying the chunk of the mortgage that is ABOVE the required monthly payment, the chunk that is supposed to pay off this place within ten years so she can retire without a mortgage hanging over our heads.  (I'll never be able to afford to retire. It's a good thing I love what I do, eh wot?). My chunk goes 100% to principal each and every month. I want to be paying even MORE into it, but so far $500/month is all I've been able to contribute reliably.

When I sit and stew like this, I get miserable and restless, and I feel borderline useless to the person I love most in this world: my sis Jackie.  I start crucifying myself silently for being a Creative instead of a solid, professional 9-to-5 office worker with health benefits and a reliable weekly paycheck (no matter how unlike me that role actually was during all the years I served in it). I wasn't as happy at work then as I am now, but I was...well, like the song... workin' 9 to 5 and actually getting paid for all of the hours... Now I'm workin' 9 to 9 and getting... either nowhere very fast... or somewhere too damned slow! (Now would be a good time to ROTFL. Go ahead. I'll wait.)

De always told me I had to pursue a creative career by faith because a steady, reliable income was never going to be assured. HE finally made it, with STAR TREK... but it took him decades. He didn't starve, and I won't either.

And when I consider what Christina Taylor Green's family is going through right now, what Gabby Giffords is going through tonight and tomorrow and for months to come, what my friends with cancer are going through, what so much of the rest of the world is going through (Haiti, Africa, Mexico, you name it) I feel like a louse for spending even two minutes obsessing over my piddly concerns. 

My sister and I are healthy; she's fully employed and I'm at least semi-employed... and every bit as employed as I can be at this juncture. I've tried landing outside work but nothing has come through, I guess because of my "advanced" age: I'll be 60 in March; (good God!!! How did that happen?!) Or maybe it's because I'm too obviously over-qualified for lesser-paying jobs. I've applied to be a tutor and a teacher assistant, even a bus driver. No go.  Everybody and their cousin is looking for work; this is one lousy time to be under- or unemployed!

But boy howdy... the rich folks got their income tax deductions extended, uber-rich corporations received their "personhood" so they can contribute untold amounts of money to their indentured politicians, and Wall Street all got their  perks and bonuses as reliably as tomorrow's sunrise. I sure hope these "government-blessed" folks cut loose with some of the money the worker bees of the country earned them and that they'll create some more jobs so the rest of us can get a handhold or two on ledges of sufficient livelihoods again...

But it doesn't seem there are many "bleeding hearts" in high places these days or we wouldn't be in the shape we're in right now. The Ayn Rands seem to be winning. And Christ died for them, too.

What was He thinking?!    :)

Ok, OK.  I didn't mean to start venting. It just popped out. I see injustice and I just want to yell..or cry... and ask, "Why?"

Some men see things as they are and say, "Why?"  I dream things that never were and say, "Why not?"

President Obama Never Fails to Amaze Me...

President Obama's words were just right. I bawled most of the way through the memorial service. How anyone can believe he is a scoundrel is beyond me... always has been... always will be.

I am so glad he's our President.  I hope he runs again.  He'll win if he does.

His heart is in the right place and his smarts are exemplary.

What a statesman.

Prayers going up for AZ Representative Gabrielle Giffords

I had a horrible feeling that it was just a matter of time before something like this would happen. This is a wake up call of the highest magnitude to Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and the other shrill, mean-spirited purveyors of putrid punditry. 

Sarah Palin, your "DEMS in the crosshairs" depictions have always been problematic; Beck and Limbaugh, your insane rhetoric which encourages people to think that DEMS are Fascists, Socialists, Communists, terrorists in disguise encourages mentally unbalanced citizens to take up arms and "save" America from them. STOP IT NOW!  FIND WAYS TO DISAGREE WITHOUT INCITING UNHINGED FOLLOWERS TO ACTS OF VIOLENCE AGAINST DULY-ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES.

It's time to dial back the rhetoric, take a good hard look at what your words are creating or endorsing (paranoid monsters and pathetic actions), and stop your hyperbolic and hysterical proclamations.  Your words create the world. If your words are not creating life, they are creating death.

Shame on you. Shame on us all for not insisting on a halt to the caustic vitriol long before now.

Clean up the airwaves. Now.

Sanitize HUCKLEBERRY FINN? NO NO NO!!!

There's a controversy raging. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain has been banned in many schools during much of its existence for a lot of different reasons. Southerners hated it when it was first published because one of its heroes is black -- the slave Jim, whom Huckleberry Finn does his best to transport to freedom on a raft even though he's convinced he'll go to hell for his efforts. They also hated it because it showed, up close and personal, the way of Southern whites of that era.

Others have banned it from schools because of the frequent use of the N word within its pages.  The pejorative is used more than 210 times in Huckleberry Finn. Polite, politically correct society doesn't like the word.  I too loathe the word; I heard it snarled far too many time when I worked in Mississippi, Louisiana and Georgia less than 40 years ago, where it was still quite fashionable and common among whites.

Now Huck Finn has been released with the N word taken out and replaced with the word "slave." As is the case with so many other Twain lovers, I am almost apoplectic over the change.Twain must be hopping mad in heaven.

Mark Twain knew exactly what he was doing when he used that word where he used it: we was exposing the underbelly of the monster, not denigrating the poor soul who had to endure the label and continue to abide in a land where his skin color relegated him to the level of beasts of burden, as property.

When I read the book as a teenager I didn't think the N word made Jim any less noble, any less a man, any less a hero than he was.  When I read the N word, the people I focused on were the speakers of the word. For the most part, they were trained from an early age to honor and respect white people and to use and/or abuse black people in the same way they used and/or abused the animals that they raised, fed, worked, and killed. Those were the times in which Huckleberry Finn lived; Twain just wrote it all down after coming to the conclusion in later years that the way he had been raised in the south was wrong and that slavery and the treatment of the black man and his family was a scar on the Southerners' soul and a blight on Southern soil.

To take the N word out of the narrative subjugates the truth; it sanitizes what happened to black people 24/7/365 for hundreds of years, including into much of the 20th century.  It should hurt to read the word; it should  make the reader recoil as we discover the truth about the African American experience in America.

Now, if it's a choice between making the sanitized version available to schools or having the original version banned from schools, I suppose I would have to vote for... oh, but I can't. 

I simply cannot vote for exchanging "slave" for the N word.  The two words are not kindred; they are not equals; they are not what Twain intended to convey. Twain intended to convey exactly what he conveyed. Had he felt "slave" was the correct word, he would have used it. He used the common everyday vernacular of the people. He was justified in using it. His pen was the well-tuned "microphone" of the period.

Those who read the book gain a greater understanding of why the term is as painful and insulting as it is. The way Twain uses it in each instance tells the tale. No other word is right; no other word can substitute because no other word is as God-awful as that one is.

Today's children weren't here when Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stood up, when fire hoses and police dogs were turned loose on blacks in the South in the 50's and 60's. I was. I remember those sights and sounds emanating from the television set in our front room and recoiling. But I had no real, palpable access to the periods of history when blacks had no legal say in their futures until I read Huckleberry Finn. That's when black history truly began to come alive for me. To hear Jim sorrowing over his still-enslaved wife and children and planning to get a job up north and then find some way to buy them.. or to steal them if their owners wouldn't agree to sell them to him... it just broke my heart.


Twain's book takes us back to a time we all wish had never been a part of our history. And yes, you bet it's painful. But readers see how Jim handles it, how he continues to hope, dream and work for a better tomorrow... one that sadly will never come in his lifetime.

No American should miss Jim's and Huck's experience. Or the Native American experience. Or the Chinese American or Japanese American experience.  All were part of the fabric of America. It ain't all pretty.  (Those who want to pretend it was are both delusonal and dangerous.)

But it's getting prettier by the day.  If you don't believe me, just look back. Read Huckleberry Finn... the way Twain wrote it!

FOREWORD TO "LET NO DAY DAWN..." by DeFOREST KELLEY

FOREWORD

by DeFOREST KELLEY

(“Dammit, Kris, I’m an actor, not a writer!”)

(written in 1995)

My first meeting with Kris Smith was on a beautiful, clear, crisp spring day in May, 1968. I was serving as Grand Marshall of the Wenatchee Apple Blossom Festival. My wife, Carolyn, and I were riding in an open convertible. The streets were lined with people.


Suddenly I noticed the shining face of a teenager running alongside our slow-moving car waving a sign which proclaimed, “We Love DeForest Kelley.” We managed to make some hurried dialogue with her as our driver kept pace with the other parade vehicles.


Sometime later I received a letter from Kris, along with an essay describing her experience meeting us on that festive occasion. I was so impressed with her writing ability that I sent the essay to a national motion picture magazine—and they wanted to publish it. I wrote to inform her of this, and to express our hope that it might lead to something interesting for her future.


At a later date we learned that Kris has always had a great love for animals (a devotion we share) and we were delighted to find that she has put her talent to use to benefit animal welfare in various national publications. Today, while pursuing her goal to become a screenwriter in Hollywood, she continues her dedication to animals at Shambala, Tippi Hedren’s wildlife preserve near Acton, California, the facility which provided her gorgeous “serval son,” Deaken, a much-needed place to stay during the lengthy transition from Washington State to California.


Carolyn and I have been privileged to meet Deaken, both at
Shambala and at home in North Hollywood. Deaken must have known that “Mom-Cat”Kris approves of us, for he immediately greeted us with enthusiastic head rubs and licks, which Kris says she had never seen him do before to anyone but herself.


I refer to Kris as “the best Mom-Cat I know” for she has a touch of magic with animals,wild and domestic. She is deeply concerned about their welfare in the wild and in captivity, and about our own environment and welfare on this planet.


As you will see within these pages, Kris possesses a real talent for expressing her feelings regarding matters that tug at so many concerned hearts.


But make no mistake about it: Kris has a “wild” sense of humor, as well. She is known among some of us as “Krazy Kris.” She’s crazy, all right—crazy like a fox.

Hodgepodge PIx... Wild (and Not-so-Wild) Animals I Have Known...

 Deaken @ 3-4 Weeks of Age... awwwwwwww!!!

(before his ears stood up and his color changed!)

 Darwin (aka Doc),  a dear friend of mine...

 Deaken and a Best Buddy, Rowdy Catboy

 Deaken Close-Up
(Oh, how I long to kiss that sweet, sweet face again!)
(Someday I shall... when I cross Rainbow Bridge!)

 Popcorn (Poppy), photo by Mrs. DeForest Kelley

 Archie, age 13

Ashley, age 13

Oh, My Aching...EVERYTHING!!!

(FYI: What looks like dried mud on Laverne's coat is her "winter underwear." I didn't groom her before taking these photos. It's a lighter-color undercoat.)

I had five (count 'em...FIVE) yards of crushed rock delivered to my back yard yesterday. It's for the goat pen.

I spent an hour and a half yesterday pushing it into the pen via wheebarrow (a distance of about 35-40 feet one way); then I spent two hours this morning doing the same. The chore also included "mucking out" the parts of the pen where I had strewn straw to keep their hooves clean and dry until I could get the additional six inches of crushed rock in... so there were about 10-12 wheelbarrows filled with that sodden mess in addition to 40 or 50 barrows of crushed rock during my two solo adventures as a Goat Protector and Defender. 

Not long after I took off my "goat clothes" for the day, the four grandnieces (ages, 12, 10, 8 and 6) came over, so I asked (tongue in cheek) if they would like to help me shovel crushed rock into the wheelbarrow "for the goats" (whom they love and whom we had just walked). Much to my surprise, not one, not two, not three, but all four said "YES!"  Oh, my...

I was bushed, BUT I figured they'd last (if I was lucky) 20 minutes and I knew I'd be glad for whatever help they could give, so I gave them all buckets or shovels and had them fill the wheelbarrow (twenty shovels per barrel). I figured I could handle another 20 minutes of work without croaking...

Wellllll... to make a long story very short...  they loved the task. Adored the task. Did not want to quit. They didn't get tired. So, once again, I pushed crushed gravel for yet another hour and 15 minutes...  maybe more...until my pusher was bushed and I had to call a halt.

Tonight I feel like I've been hit by a Mack Truck and then run over by a military tank.  I need a chair to help me get up from the couch...

But the good news is that Laverne and Shirley are high and dry tonight. HALLELUJAH!!!

The girls and I didn't get it ALL done to a depth of 6" but, between yesterday and today, we got 80% of it put down to that depth.  (The girls and I did about 20% of it today.) Tomorrow (IF I'm ambulatory; I recover pretty quickly for an old broad), I'll probably  put in the balance.

The entire floor of the outdoor portion of the pen has some new gravel in it; the last 15-20% only has a sprinkling of rock, though... perhaps a half inch...just enough to salve my conscience and make me feel like Wonder Woman Mom-goat.  I wanted us to get that far before I called it quits so the goats wouldn't have ANY wet or sodden areas beneath their hooves since I had taken out all of the straw prior to putting down the rock.

It's supposed to get real cold tonight. It may snow. Knowing the goats have crushed gravel down and an indoor area to bed down on clean, dry, warm straw makes me feel a lot better...well, except for my body, that is.  IT wants to know what the hell I was thinking, to go from a deskbound writer to an earth mover with so little advance notice... What can I say?  From the moment the rock got delivered, it began calling my name and giving me the guilts: "Hey, Mom-Goat... what are you doing leaving us lying here in your driveway when your precious goats are languishing...languishing...in less-than-perfect conditions? If they had a phone, they would call the Humane Society on you..."   (And the Humane Society would laugh their arses off when they responded and found two very happy goats HARDLY in any immediate danger of ANYTHING other than being spoiled half to death.) (Guilt doesn't have to make SENSE, you know.  All it has to do is suggest a minor, puny anomaly, and all hell breaks loose trying to convince me I am a lousy Mom-goat!!!)

I expect to lose ten pounds this week. If I don't, it won't be for lack of enough exercise... that's for sure!

WOO HOO! One of the BEST Reviews Yet of LET NO DAY DAWN....

"Literary Value



"I see other reviews here [at Amazon] that talk about the poet's obvious love for and experience with animals, and these come through profoundly in her writing. But I want to comment on the book's literary value. If you have high standards for poetry, you'll be delighted with what you find here. This isn't just cheap verse - it's quality stuff, with original imagery and compelling insights that make you look at animals in a fresh new way. I'm a former English teacher and expected this book to be a disappointment - another amateur's attempt at poetry writing. But I was more than pleasantly surprised. This book has taken up permanent residence on my 'favorite'" bookshelf."


Jessi Hoffman

Thank you, Jessi!

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYBODY!

On this joyous sacred morning, before the grandnieces and their parents and grandparents call me over for the opening of presents and the partaking of a very special breakfast, I want to take this opportunity to wish each and every one of you a very merry Christmas and a happy, healthy, prosperous New Year...

May God richly bless you today and in all the days to come...

Here are a Few of the Best Ones -- Let Me Know if You Want More!

FLASHBACK-- HOW LITTLE LAVERNE WAS BACK IN JULY!!!

Click on the images to see larger...

Pictures to ... FA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA... LOW

It's official: I have lost my mind. You'll have rock-solid proof in a day or two, but trust me on this, okay?

Here's how I know I'm losing my grip on sanity...

I went to the Dollar Store yesterday to get some jingle bells for Laverne's and Shirley's collars so that when we walk for the next week or so, they'll sound Christmas-y. I thought it would be a nice touch. You see, the neighbors love the goats and like to know when they're nearby so they can come out and see or pet them, so I thought jingle bells this time of year would do the trick. (Some have "Christmas presents" for the goats -- apples, grapes, yummies like that...)

But...

When I got inside the Dollar Store, I noticed a special sale: two faux felt antlers (for humans) for $1 with tiny, tiny bells on them. Thought I to myself (redundant, I know), "I wonder if the girls would consider putting up with an extra set of 'horns' for a few days... so I can pass them off as 'reindeer'?"

Hmmmm...

So I bought them, thinking, "No way... but it can't hurt to try.... and they're just a buck."

I brought the goats' "holiday costumes" home and carried them out to their shed. They don't mind the bells at all, so I'm home free on that idea.

Shirley doesn't mind the fake antlers -- she doesn't even seem to notice she has a "headset" on. (With the horn-filled cranium goats have, this makes sense.)

But Laverne  hasn't let me put the antlers on her yet.  She's happy with the bells on her collar but fake antlers... not so much.  She just won't stand still long enough for me to put them on her.

Shirley is a much more sedate goat. She probably considers me semi-sane and lets me get away with craziness like this.

Not so with the redhead; she has my number. She recognizes craziness when she sees it, because she's crazy, too.  We're kindred spirits, Laverne and I. I feel the same way about wearing fake antlers; it's fine if others want to wear them, but they're just not my style. Laverne and I prefer fools' caps...

I'm going to try again tomorrow and Christmas Day with Laverne. If I have success with both of them, I'll have Jackie take a photo of the the three of us together; I'll be the antler-less one... you know, the Mom-goat. If I only have success with Shirley, antler-wise, I'll document that, too.

So stay tuned.  At some point either this entry will get updated with a photo or two, or a subsequent blog entry will...

Because face it... you gotta see this!  It's... cute... or crazy... or whatever you choose to call it.

DADT PASSES! LET'S PRAY FOR DREAM ACT TOO!!!

Awright!

Been a Busy Girl!

I hope your holiday season is shaping up to be warm and wonderful and in the presence of those you love most in all the world. That's my Christmas wish for each and every one of you.

I've been busy working on Elance projects but have a break at the moment, so thought I'd drop by to share a few thoughts... if I can find any to share!

This past weekend my sister Jackie hosted Childrens' Winterfest here in Tacoma, WA on the PLU campus. Every year for the past 20 years PLU (Pacific Lutheran University) has hosted up to 400 families who otherwise would have no Christmas because of extreme poverty. I volunteered for the event last year and this year.  I helped set up for it, tear it down afterward, and I was one of the story readers for it (there were three others).

We four story readers took turns reading because we were in a noisy auditorium where a lot of other things were going on -- kids meeting Santa, eating cookies, getting their faces painted, picking out books to take home, finding gifts to give to their parents, choosing stuffed animals, making cards for their loved ones, picking up socks and scarves and knitted hats, etc.-- and it didn't take long for our voices to wear out in surroundings like that.  We needed story readers because after the kids made the rounds in the auditorium, some of their parents (in other areas of the building) hadn't yet finished choosing presents for the kids we were entertaining, so we needed to find ways to keep the wee ones occupied while parents completed their shopping. 

Everything at the event was free.  It was a heartwarming day and the parents and kids were super appreciative that they would be able to have some semblance of a Christmas this year.

I've been walking goats whenever the weather permits. Casey, Jamie and I wrangled them this weekend so I could trim their hooves again.  I would lay the goats on their sides, Casey would hold them down, and Jamie would feed them grain so that holding them down would be possible.  I need to invest in a goat "cradle."  They're getting too big to manhandle this way, and since they both have horns, it's only a matter of time before someone will get hurt(by accident) if we continue to try to trim their hoofs this way.  A goat cradle (or whatever you call it) allows a handler to place them into it; as soon as they're in it, they relax. Their feet are sticking out at an angle where I can get at them.

HOLDING AMERICA HOSTAGE IS B.S.

What I want to see is the DEMS/Obama go back to the bargaining table and say, "I want everything you've mentioned in this deal AND I want you to end the Bush tax cuts to the wealthiest... you know it's the right thing to do... and if you're a Christian as you profess to be, you know that 'whatever you do to the least of these' (the most unfortunate and beleaguered people in society) you are doing to Jesus."


It's a travesty that these right-wing GOP standard bearers can claim undefiled Christianity and then behave this way. It's a bad deal. It's a good deal IF the GOP will drop the insistence on tax breaks for the wealthy. They already have the freakin' Citizens United ruling that turned corporations into people with NO contribution limits (while people like me are held to $2400). Now they want moRe tax breaks so they can throw more money at defeating Obama/Biden in 2012. It's B.S.


I know what the Prez has tried to do... I honor that... but it's still a miscarriage of justice. I'm with Jim Wallis of Sojourners on this one.

Link to a Free E-Book You'll Enjoy About Achieving Success

http://www.readingforyoursuccess.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/The-Best-of-Reading-For-Your-Success_eBook.pdf

OMG! I Forgot All About This Until Just Tonight!

I was chatting to a Hollywood friend this evening and he reminded me of something I had completely forgotten: I was encouraged by several studio professionals to get a demo voiceover tape produced while I was down there! 

(Smack myself in the forehead with the palm of my hand and call me an amnesiac chickenshit!)

Here's the story...

While I was living in Hollywood, I did one voiceover "on the fly" for a casting director at a major studio because an actress called in sick and everyone else was "on the set" and ready to roll.  It was just one line...

I was an administrative assistant on the hit comedy TV show she was casting at the time. When she crooked her "come hither" finger at me and told me what she wanted me to do, I asked her, "Why me?"

She said, "Because every time I walk by this office, there is a different voice coming out of it, and it's always YOU! I know you can do what we need." 

Fair enough. (I do tend to "act out" whatever I'm talking about, so the comment made sense, although I hadn't really thought much about it before she brought it to my attention. It's just the way I talk; I'm animated!)


So I went to the soundstage... and... much to my surprise... aced the gig.  

One of the studio technicians, looking mighty pleased and surprised, told me, "You should do this for a living. You're a dream to direct. You nailed it."

His compatriots nodded. The casting director smiled and said, "See? What'd I tell you? You can do this... and you should. You're a natural."

Well, that felt really good, so I took several voiceover classes... tentatively... because it seemed far too good to be true...

My voiceover coach, Nigel Neale, quickly discovered that I had a perfect "teenaged boy's voice" and that teen boy voices were hot items in Hollywood animation. ding ding ding ding ding. I knew that Rocky the Flying Squirrel and Woody Woodpecker were both voiced by adult women with great teenaged boys voices, June Havoc and Mrs. Walter Lantz respectively.  

Nigel said I should get a demo made and then move to Seattle to get discovered, because it would take me five years to be discovered in Hollywood (because voice demo tapes are stacked to the ceiling in every casting director's office in Hollywood.) It never even occurred to me that I already had an "in" with someone inside the  industry: the casting director who had hijacked me just weeks earlier! (What a dumbbell I can be at times... I just NOW thought of this, YEARS after the horse left the barn!)

I told Nigel, "I just moved down here from Seattle. I'm not moving back there to get discovered!"

Anyway, he said he would produce my demo for me at a steep discount because he, too, thought I had what it took to be a voice actor.

I never had it done.

When I got back to Seattle in 2003 I discovered that Nigel Neale had moved to Seattle too and was now teaching voiceover at the University of WA... so I went to another of his classes... and again he offered to make my demo tape for me.

I still didn't get it done. 

I was so focused on finding a "real" job that I put the voiceover thing on the back burner -- so far back that I forgot all about it!

Well, as you know, after doing some "real jobs" for a number of years up here (secretary, administrative assistant, activity director, copywriter-for-hire, etc.) I decided to throw caution and low pay to the wind and hang my shingle at Elance as a freelance copywriter... be my own boss...

It has worked out moderately well.  By this, I mean that I haven't starved to death yet.

Cleve reminded me again tonight about the voiceover option. If he hadn't, I probably would never have thought of it again.  Incidentally, Cleve is also the guy who told me about Elance. He has  been my biggest fan and most stalwart supporter/encourager since the day I met him. He works in the entertainment industry and knows his stuff... knows what will work and what won't creatively.. and he's telling me to GO FOR IT; don't let the door hit me in the butt on the way out!

There are a bunch of high profile video game producers in Seattle. They need teenage boy's voices and other voices... and Nigel says I'm BRILLIANT as Ariel the Mermaid and other cartoon characters, too... and I can do straight announcing, too...

So now I'm slapping myself upside the head. I'm self-employed! I can go to auditions and gigs in Seattle at the drop of a hat. I need to get that demo tape done.

Cleve even said he'll pick up the tab so I REALLY have no excuse!! 

Voiceover artists get $400 an hour!  I get $45/hour as a copywriter.

What am I waiting for?  I don't have to have a "feast or famine" life. I can have an "add on" career that is part-time and very, very lucrative...

So guess what?  I'm going to make a few calls on Monday (a long weekend is coming up) and see if I can find Nigel again and get this going.
It's time!

What a kick it would be to make a living writing copy and books and voicing video games and radio and television commercials!   Wish me luck and please keep me in your prayers... 

I'm going for it... FINALLY!

WHOA!!! I just found out, by googling my name (which I do occasionally to see what else has popped up about me that I may want to know about) that the letter President Reagan wrote to me has been republished in the book REAGAN: A LIFE IN LETTERS. It's on page 69 of the hardcover edition. I still cherish his letter -- and the one I wrote that elicited a 100% personalized response, answering each topic point by point! I was FLOORED to get a response...