Inspirational Quote of the Week

Commitment means staying loyal to what you said you were going to do,

long after the mood you said it in has left you.

~Orebela Gbenga~

Mom ambitiously told herself that she would submit 10 stories this month.

That seemed like a good idea at the time. She revised and listed and revised and researched and revised and submitted and revised and revised. There are 6 days left in the month, and Mom still has three of her selected stories hiding in her computer. She’s getting tuckered out, but we’re hoping her commitment will take her to the finish line.

I’ve been tuckered out on occasion…

Indoors…

Outdoors…

 

In the car…

When I work…

Even early in the morning…

When you start getting worn down, you must dig deep, keep your eye on the prize, and follow through.

When Mom brought me to PetSmart, last week, I turned to stone from fear in the parking lot. She was SO committed to getting me inside, that even when the traffic started backing up waiting for me to move, and people started calling out of their car windows, she got me inside.

Of course, she had to pick me up and carry me, but desperate times call for desperate measures. She said the word, “Embarrassing” which means she was happy to help. And the word, “Screwball” which means I was very brave. And the word, “Why do I take you anywhere” which she says every single day.

Even when I wear my new PetSmart dress, I get tuckered out.

…probably from playing with my new PetSmart toy.

Mom promised to take me back to PetSmart when hell freezes over. Yay! Wait. What??

 

Inspirational Quote of the Week

Conditions are never just right. People who delay action till all factors are favorable do nothing.
~William Feather~

Writers know that they have to write whether they feel like it or not. Well, maybe not write – but they need to do writer-adjacent activities, no matter what.

Classroom visit

Mom knows this, so when conditions are not favorable, she reads picture books or writing blogs, lists ideas, researches agents or publishers, submits stories or poems, critiques work in her writing group, or fixes up a story she wrote a long time ago.

Ho-hum…

There are plenty of actions she can take. And she does… But somehow, when that part of her day is finished, she turns her sights to me. Sometimes this is a plus. We ride in the car,

hit the park,

walk around the neighborhood, or play with toys.

But sometimes, she says the word, “Want to learn?” *cue scary music here*

The newest trick Mom is trying to teach me is called Shell Game. We use bathroom cups instead of shells and a Cheerio instead of a pea.

Smart!

Smarter!!

Duh…

And the only gambling involved is the fact that I may or may not lose my mind and just eat the cups.

I would like to delay this learning (and ALL learning) till factors are favorable, but Mom says, “All factors will NEVER be favorable – for either one of us.” and “Now is as good a time as any – for both of us.” and “GAH! What are those jackasses in your head telling you???”

Huh??

Inspirational Quote of the Week

Wait. What? I’m pretty sure it IS about how you look. Why else would I dress like this

or this

or this?

Why else would I wear costumes like this

or this

or this?

And why else would I change my expression from this

to this

to this?

Well, maybe I don’t change my expression very much, but still…

Mom is finished with her PiBoIdMo challenge. She listed 30 story ideas in 30 days. Actually in 28 days, but who’s counting? Plus I hate counting. It flat out gives me a headache.

In order to get those ideas, Mom had to look at things AND see things in special and unusual ways. A saying on a doggie t-shirt was suddenly an idea. A type of book was suddenly an idea.

A trip to the library was suddenly an idea.

Christmas decorations, food shopping, and a TV commercial were suddenly ideas. Two ideas even joined together to suddenly become another new idea! Looking at things differently and seeing things differently made ideas appear in the most unexpected places at the most unexpected times.

Now the list in Mom’s phone will be the perfect place to look for inspiration. Or she can get inspired by looking at me like this

or like this

or like this…

 

 

 

Inspirational Quote of the Week

 

Um… No. Not EVERY leaf is a flower. Some are crunchy, brown, dead things that need to be raked up or blown away with noisy machines that I’m pretty sure are trying to kill me.

Some of them, though ARE flowers! They’re blindingly colorful and drift softly down from the trees and glitter and glow right in the middle of all the ugly ones.

Autumn leaves are kind of like ideas. Mom is collecting ideas this month and writing them into her phone.

Some are already crunchy, brown, and dead. Some have mold….

…or holes in them.

Some are all wet.

These will most likely not go any farther than the list.

But every now and then, there are some beautiful, colorful ones floating down and sparkling in the sunshine. Mom needs to jump on those before they get away.

Got ’em!

 

 

Inspirational Quote of the Week

Continuous effort – not strength or intelligence – is the key to unlocking our potential.

Winston Churchill

Mom shows continuous effort in her writing. I guess writing for a little while each day is continuous effort…

Just when she thinks she’s getting better, somebody tells her the word, “Too easy.” and “Not enough conflict.” and “The solution came too fast.” She’s using her continuous effort to listen and change the way her stories end. And to unlock her potential. Life needs to be tougher for Mom’s characters.

Not so with me. Life is tough enough for this doggie! Exhibit A – My PupJoy subscription box came the other day. Right on my birthday!

It was filled with toys, treats, and surprises. I looked closely…

and I sniffed and sniffed,

but the box remained closed up tight.

When Mom saw my helpless-hopeless-hapless-face, she got the box open and gave me the goodies. That guy, Winston has the right idea. I didn’t need any strength or intelligence at all to get that done.

Martian toy!

I’m still learning to be well-behaved – with continuous effort. Mom says I am not as “responsive” in my new harness as I am with my Martingale collar.

I think responsive is overrated. Look how cute I look!

Adorable? Yup.

No strength or intelligence needed here.

Watch me walk nicely, like a good girl, right next to Mom. Continuous effort…. Potential unlocked!

Inspirational Quote of the Week

Writers see possibilities a lot. They imagine them and ask about them inside their heads when they’re making up a story. They especially need to consider them when they’re revising.  Mom had an old story that she liked a lot. She showed it to her writing group friends and they said SO many amazing things about it. Like, “There’s too much this.” or “Not enough that.” and “Maybe you can try some of this.” or “You may want to add some of that.” Mom considered the possibilities and tried some of the suggestions and guess what. The story is VERY different, and Mom loves it even more in its new form! Who knew?

Possibilities. I love those guys. I, for one, am happy to hear that they never run out.

Riding in the car opens a ton of possibilities.

Mouth open, sunroof open, ready for the open road…

The car can lead to this…

or this…

or this…

or this…

New places, new sights, new peemail from new friends, and sometimes a tree-root nap…

Now and then the car leads to this…

Take it easy, lady. Leave me a nail or two to scratch my ears with!

Walking into the bathroom opens fewer possibilities. Maybe I’ll be able to sniff the shower gel and wait while Mom takes a shower. Unless she says the word, “That’s soap, not food.” or “That’s not a water bowl.” or “OUT. Can I have 5 minutes of privacy?”

Sometimes it flat out leads to this…

which leads to this…

which leads to this…

Pardon my bits and pieces, but I’m trying to air condition my wet belly.

 

Inspirational Quote of the Week

There is no dishonor in losing the race. There is only dishonor in not racing because you are afraid to lose.

~Garth Stein~

Writers cannot be afraid to lose. Rejection is part of the game plan. Rejections happen so that a writer’s work can improve. Rejections are also the path to finding the right home for a piece of writing. Rejection = wrong home. Acceptance = right home. (That goes for shelter dogs too! Just sayin’.)

My first day at my forever home.

Mom is not afraid. I mean, yes – she’s afraid of bugs. And spiders. And the dark. And germs. And Chinese restaurants (long story). And earthworms (don’t ask). But when it comes to being an author, NOTHING scares her.

Last week, she did a different kind of author visit. She was a guest at Disability Awareness Day. She talked to over 200 kids – a group at a time – at her table.

They also touched the pages of Mom’s book in Braille, typed their names into the iPad to see how they look in Braille, solved puzzles, tested their sense of touch with the objects in Mom’s Touch Box , and walked with their eyes closed using the cane to feel their way around.

Type your name at BrailleBug.

Mom signed books for a bunch of kids, teachers, and parents.

It was a LOT of fun. Plus a LOT of talking, so Mom needed some tea with honey and a few gingersnaps when she got home. And yes – she shared a gingersnap with me!

Last month, Mom tried to take me hiking. Talk about a losing proposition. The trail we tried was icy, muddy, overgrown, and STEEP. But did that scare us away? ….Yes!

…But not for long. Today we tried again – on a different trail.

It was sunny, well-marked, flat, clear, and wide. We didn’t win any races, but we are in the game. And not afraid to lose.

GAH! Hitchhiker butterfly – also in the game….