iPad at the bar (Photo credit: jeffwilcox)
How does this magician do it? He’s working in a very busy German Hofbraeuhaus in Munich. I thought he had a tube up his sleeve or something but I can’t see it. Anyhow, it’s very clever how he does it.
Tag Archives: New York City
Book Review: Unleashed
I received ‘Unleashed‘ by Nancy Holder & Debbie Viguie as a Christmas Present along with the next installment in the series called ‘Hot Blooded‘.
If you like stories about werewolves, small towns, and the anxiety of fitting in to a new place then these books will hold your interest. They are well written and interesting. Katelyn McBride has lost her mother ( a Ballerina) in an earthquake, and her father (a prosecutor) who was murdered. Katelyn has to go to live with her grandfather, who she hardly knows, in Wolf Springs. It was Katelyn‘s dream to be a performer in Cirque du Soleil and she trained for years. but now that is out of the question. Her old life in Los Angeles is over and her new life in Wolf Springs is about to begin. It’s a small town where everyone knows everyone else, and she is the new girl in town. Not long after she arrives she is bitten by a werewolf and things start to take a nasty turn. Now it’s not only her grief she has to deal with. I won’t tell you any more in case you want to read either book.
About the Author
Nancy Holder is the New York Times best-selling coauthor of the Wicked and Crusade series, both with Debbie Viguié. She has received 5 Bram Stoker Awards for her supernatural fiction, a Scribe Award for Saving Grace: Tough Love, and a Pioneer Award from Romantic Times for her young adult fiction. Her work has also appeared on the Los Angeles Times, USA Today, and Wall St. Journal bestseller lists, and on recommended reads lists from the New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age, the American Reading Association, and the American Library Association. She lives in San Diego with her daughter, Belle, and enough pets to fill the Ark. Visit her @nancyholder or https://www.facebook.com/holder.nancy. Debbie Viguié is the New York Times Bestselling Author of the Wicked series and two dozen other novels. Debbie also writes thrillers including The Psalm 23 Mysteries, the Witch Hunt trilogy, and the Kiss trilogy. Visit Debbie online at http://www.debbieviguie.com.
Filed under DAILY THOUGHTS
She’s only 5
A 5-year-old Russian girl sings the Beatles’ song “Oh Darling”.
Unbelievable voice for a 5-year-old. Not just the voice, but the presentation, too. Her stage presence is amazing she is so confident.
Filed under DAILY THOUGHTS
Delta Flight 15
Gander International Airport (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I got this story in an email and I just had to pass it on. It brought tears to my eyes.
Delta Flight 15
Here is an amazing story from a flight attendant on Delta Flight 15, written following 9-11:
“On the morning of Tuesday, September 11, we were about 5 hours out of Frankfurt, flying over the North Atlantic. All of a sudden the curtains parted and I was told to go to the cockpit, immediately, to see the captain. As soon as I got there I noticed that the crew had that “All Business” look on their faces. The captain handed me a printed message. It was from Delta’s main office in Atlanta and simply read, “All airways over the Continental United States are closed to commercial air traffic. Land ASAP at the nearest airport. Advise your destination.”
“No one said a word about what this could mean. We knew it was a serious situation and we needed to find terra firma quickly. The captain determined that the nearest airport was 400 miles behind us in Gander, New Foundland. He requested approval for a route change from the Canadian traffic controller and approval was granted immediately–no questions asked. We found out later, of course, why there was no hesitation in approving our request.
“While the flight crew prepared the airplane for landing, another message arrived from Atlanta telling us about some terrorist activity in the New York area. A few minutes later word came in about the hijackings.
“We decided to LIE to the passengers while we were still in the air. We told them the plane had a simple instrument problem and that we needed to land at the nearest airport in Gander, New Foundland to have it checked out.
“We promised to give more information after landing in Gander. There was much grumbling among the passengers, but that’s nothing new! Forty minutes later, we landed in Gander. Local time at Gander was 12:30 PM! …. that’s 11:00 AM EST.
“There were already about 20 other airplanes on the ground from all over the world that had taken this detour on their way to the U.S. After we parked on the ramp, the captain made the following announcement: “Ladies and gentlemen, you must be wondering if all these airplanes around us have the same instrument problem as we have. The reality is that we are here for another reason.” Then he went on to explain the little bit we knew about the situation in the U.S. There were loud gasps and stares of disbelief. The captain informed passengers that Ground control in Gander told us to stay put. “The Canadian Government was in charge of our situation and no one was allowed to get off the aircraft. No one on the ground was allowed to come near any of the air crafts. Only airport police would come around periodically, look us over and go on to the next airplane. In the next hour or so more planes landed and Gander ended up with 53 airplanes from all over the world, 27 of which were U.S. commercial jets.
“Meanwhile, bits of news started to come in over the aircraft radio and for the first time we learned that airplanes were flown into the World Trade Center in New York and into the Pentagon in DC. People were trying to use their cell phones, but were unable to connect due to a different cell system in Canada. Some did get through, but were only able to get to the Canadian operator who would tell them that the lines to the U.S. were either blocked or jammed.
“Sometime in the evening the news filtered to us that the World Trade Center buildings had collapsed and that a fourth hijacking had resulted in a crash. By now the passengers were emotionally and physically exhausted, not to mention frightened, but everyone stayed amazingly calm. We had only to look out the window at the 52 other stranded aircraft to realize that we were not the only ones in this predicament.
“We had been told earlier that they would be allowing people off the planes one plane at a time. At 6 PM, Gander airport told us that our turn to deplane would be 11 am the next morning. Passengers were not happy, but they simply resigned themselves to this news without much noise and started to prepare themselves to spend the night on the airplane.
“Gander had promised us medical attention, if needed, water, and lavatory servicing. And they were true to their word. Fortunately we had no medical situations to worry about. We did have a young lady who was 33 weeks into her pregnancy. We took REALLY good care of her. The night passed without incident despite the uncomfortable sleeping arrangements.
“About 10:30 on the morning of the 12th a convoy of school buses showed up. We got off the plane and were taken to the terminal where we went through Immigration and Customs and then had to register with the Red Cross.
“After that we (the crew) were separated from the passengers and were taken in vans to a small hotel. We had no idea where our passengers were going. We learned from the Red Cross that the town of Gander has a population of 10,400 people and they had about 10,500 passengers to take care of from all the airplanes that were forced into Gander! We were told to just relax at the hotel and we would be contacted when the U.S. airports opened again, but not to expect that call for a while.
“We found out the total scope of the terror back home only after getting to our hotel and turning on the TV, 24 hours after it all started.
“Meanwhile, we had lots of time on our hands and found that the people of Gander were extremely friendly. They started calling us the “plane people.” We enjoyed their hospitality, explored the town of Gander and ended up having a pretty good time.
“Two days later, we got that call and were taken back to the Gander airport. Back on the plane, we were reunited with the passengers and found out what they had been doing for the past two days. What we found out was incredible.
“Gander and all the surrounding communities (within about a 75 Kilometer radius) had closed all high schools, meeting halls, lodges, and any other large gathering places. They converted all these facilities to mass lodging areas for all the stranded travelers. Some had cots set up, some had mats with sleeping bags and pillows set up.
“ALL the high school students were required to volunteer their time to take care of the “guests.” Our 218 passengers ended up in a town called Lewisporte, about 45 kilometers from Gander where they were put up in a high school. If any women wanted to be in a women-only facility, that was arranged. Families were kept together. All the elderly passengers were taken to private homes.
“Remember that young pregnant lady? She was put up in a private home right across the street from a 24-hour Urgent Care facility. There was a dentist on call and both male and female nurses remained with the crowd for the duration.
“Phone calls and e-mails to the U.S. and around the world were available to everyone once a day. During the day, passengers were offered ”Excursion” trips. Some people went on boat cruises of the lakes and harbors. Some went for hikes in the local forests. Local bakeries stayed open to make fresh bread for the guests. Food was prepared by all the residents and brought to the schools. People were driven to restaurants of their choice and offered wonderful meals. Everyone was given tokens for local laundry mats to wash their clothes, since luggage was still on the aircraft. In other words, every single need was met for those stranded travelers.
“Passengers were crying while telling us these stories. Finally, when they were told that U.S. airports had reopened, they were delivered to the airport right on time and without a single passenger missing or late. The local Red Cross had all the information about the whereabouts of each and every passenger and knew which plane they needed to be on and when all the planes were leaving. They coordinated everything beautifully. It was absolutely incredible.
“When passengers came on board, it was like they had been on a cruise.. Everyone knew each other by name. They were swapping stories of their stay, impressing each other with who had the better time. Our flight back to Atlanta looked li ke a chartered party flight. The crew just stayed out of their way. It was mind-boggling. Passengers had totally bonded and were calling each other by their first names, exchanging phone numbers, addresses, and email addresses.
“And then a very unusual thing happened. One of our passengers approached me and asked if he could make an announcement over the PA system. We never, ever allow that. But this time was different. I said “of course” and handed him the mike. He picked up the PA and reminded everyone about what they had just gone through in the last few days. He reminded them of the hospitality they had received at the hands of total strangers. He continued by saying that he would like to do something in return for the good folks of Lewisporte.
“He said he was going to set up a Trust Fund under the name of DELTA 15 (our flight number). The purpose of the trust fund is to provide college scholarships for the high school students of Lewisporte. He asked for donations of any amount from his fellow travelers. When the paper with donations got back to us with the amounts, names, phone numbers and addresses, the total was for more than $14,000!
“The gentleman, a MD from Virginia, promised to match the donations and to start the administrative work on the scholarship. He also said that he would forward this proposal to Delta Corporate and ask them to donate as well. As I write this account, the trust fund is at more than $1.5 million and has assisted 134 students in college education.
“I just wanted to share this story because we need good stories right now. It gives me a little bit of hope to know that some people in a far away place were kind to some strangers who literally dropped in on them. It reminds me how much good there is in the world.”
“In spite of all the rotten things we see going on in today’s world this story confirms that there are still a lot of good and Godly people in the world and when things get bad, they will come forward.
“God Bless America…and the Canadians.”
Filed under DAILY THOUGHTS
8 Writing Tips
Taken from Writer’s Digest by Elizabeth Sims 23/10/12
1. Know thyself.
Spend an hour writing your thoughts on these questions:
What makes you quail? Disease, poverty, a spider over your bed, meeting new people, space-based nukes, a plugged drain, heights, defying your parents? Make a full list. Delve into the feelings those things inspire. What exactly does the fear feel like?
Turn to a fresh page. What does your wild side look like? (If you’re not sure you have much of one, think of it this way: When you were a kid, what did you like to do for fun?) Is it happy, or is it listless and neglected? Listen to it. What is it asking for?
Read over your fears, then read about your wild side. Which makes you feel better? Remember: Fears are only thoughts, but the world is thrillingly real.
2. Say yes to opportunity.
The main thing is to be ready.
The best way to be ready is to get stronger, physically as well as mentally. If you’re out of shape, get active and eat healthier food (you know you’ve been meaning to anyway!). If you’re in decent shape, challenge yourself to get to the level where you really want to be. Having a strong body boosts your confidence and automatically makes you feel more adventurous.
Recognize opportunity. It might come in the form of a hint from a friend (or hey, even an enemy), or you might feel a vague impulse to do something new. Pay attention to these subtle suggestions; get quiet and listen. The instant you start thinking No, counteract that with, What if I did? No might still be the right answer, but it shouldn’t be a knee-jerk one.
When I was facing a milestone birthday (not telling), I started thinking I should do something—anything—to counteract that horrible number. Listening to me whine, a friend challenged me to join him on a rigorous backpacking trip in Washington’s Olympic Mountains. I hadn’t slept outdoors in 20 years, but realized this was what I had to do. Five weeks later, with a body in (somewhat) better condition and a willing spirit, I forged through muck holes and inched along sheer drop-offs. The knowledge I gained of the Olympic backcountry—the harsh terrain, the sound of gushing streams, the emotions stirred by isolation and exposure—brought authenticity to my novel On Location. Reviewers noted its realism, and readers tell me they find certain passages appropriately harrowing.
3. Go backstage.
If all the world’s a stage, there’s got to be a lot of stuff hidden behind the scenes. Walk backstage after a show. Walk backstage anywhere. Talk to the people you find there. Trespass mildly. Open doors that interest you, even if they say “STAFF ONLY: WRITERS KEEP OUT.” Simply open them and walk through. At worst, someone will notice and ask you to leave (apologize and/or play dumb as needed, remembering these magic words that always work for me: “Sorry, I was just looking for the bathroom”). You’ll still catch a glimpse of something you haven’t seen before.
Cops essentially live backstage, know what I mean? Talk to them. The first time I nervously walked up to a police officer with an off-the-wall question, I was curious about why there were so many people begging for money on the main drag in Berkeley, Calif. I got a respectful, long answer that sparked a deeper interest in street people. That interest led me to write realistic passages about street life in my novels Lucky Stiff, Easy Street and The Extra. Now I talk to cops all the time.
4. Get a press pass.
My first job out of university was as a reporter-photographer for a small newspaper. The work extended my education tremendously; I learned how newspapers and city governments really work, plus I got to do unusual, cool things like ride in a police boat and watch dynamite blow up a rock face.
I was reminded of this when I did some freelance work for my local daily recently. Within just six weeks, I’d met and written about performance artists, homeless mothers, sand sculptors, kids with autism, botanists, volunteers, police personnel, an Army sergeant (and an Army wife) and social workers. Pitch an article or offer your services as a freelancer or part-time stringer and see where it takes you. It takes nerve to ask questions (especially if you don’t have any journalistic background), but it’s proportionately rewarding. Invariably you’ll learn off-the-record, juicy stuff that suggests nonfiction book and article ideas as well as fictional plotlines.
5. Learn something new.
Take a class in anything. Build or make something unusual—say, a potato cannon or a paper model of the Forbidden City. Follow an interest to its deeper conclusion. Do it yourself.
A while ago I said yes to a friend, a retired military commander, who invited me to go target shooting in an abandoned quarry. He brought a number of guns. One was a beautifully made hunting rifle with a high-resolution scope. That gun was a smooth joy to fire, accurate and powerful, designed to make a clean kill of big game from a distance. Another was an AK-47. As I handled it, feeling the clunky action, the haphazard finish on the metal and stocks, the clumsy open sights, the loose tolerances, I felt a chill as I realized the gun was meant to do only one thing: kill people at fairly close range, and not cleanly. So simple even a drunk terrorist could drop it in the mud and still destroy with it! Without handling both guns, one after the other, I wouldn’t have known that, wouldn’t have gotten that visceral cold feeling that I’ll never forget—and that I fully intend to evoke in my future crime novels.
6. Do something that makes your palms sweat.
Scared of public speaking? Go to a busy street corner and start orating about something. Express a strong opinion. You will be terrified at first, but if you put your heart into it you will experience a breakthrough. Your fear will transmute to a why-not sort of joy.
Like my fictional series character Lillian Byrd, I play the mandolin. Along the lines of my interest in street people, I’ve had a strong interest in buskers (street performers).
Purely as a test of guts, I’ve busked for money in several cities. It’s surprisingly terrifying to stand on a street corner, open your case, tune up and begin playing. I’ve been photographed by alternative city papers and questioned by passing musicians who think maybe they should try busking too. “It’s like getting paid to practice!” one exclaimed. One time I was challenged by a belligerent panhandler who felt I was hurting her business. That was an interesting conversation.
If you’re considering doing something dangerous, like walking alone in a tough part of town, think it through first. What are you really after? An accurate representation of dread? Maybe it’d be just as scary, and way safer, to walk alone through a cemetery at night. Or maybe you don’t have to be alone to get the experience you’re after.
7. Eavesdrop.
Eavesdropping is illicit, it’s impolite, and it’s great fun.
When I lecture on writing terrific dialogue, I advise my students to eavesdrop to gain a sense of how people really talk. But you must do more than listen; you must be systematic—you must bring your notebook. How often have you heard somebody say something imperishable, but when it came time to recount it, you could only weakly paraphrase? When you take a minute to write it down, it becomes yours.
Coffee shops are the cliché place to eavesdrop, and there’s good reason for it. Often people who haven’t seen each other in a long time meet over coffee to talk their heads off, or people meeting for a not-exactly-a-date first date, or to discuss something important, will do it in a coffee shop.
I used to do a lot of writing at a particular Starbucks in my town. Once in a while I’d see a certain type of couple: a young man sitting drinking coffee with a much older woman. Their conversations were quiet and remarkably intense. And I saw this over and over, with a different young-guy-older-woman combo every time.
I started to wonder. And I started to purposefully, stealthily eavesdrop. I started to look at the bigger picture, and realized that the coffee shop happened to be across the way from an armed forces recruitment center—and these young men and … their mothers had just been there. They’d come out and seen the Starbucks and decided to come in and talk it over.
The faces I saw and the conversations I overheard there were too intimate to recount here, but they informed me as a writer.
Eavesdrop. Write it down. Repeat.
8. Do something repugnant to you.
Challenging your assumptions will result in a broader worldview. Never been to a strip club? Go. Feel uncomfortable about stadium-sized churches? Attend a service. Despise the [fill in the blank] political party? Show up at a rally and watch without judging. Skeptical about mediums? Attend a séance. Do nursing homes creep you out? Walk into one, find a lonely person (which will take eight seconds) and hang out awhile. Do these things and feel them. Avoid labeling or categorizing the resulting experiences, because doing so will keep them on the surface. Instead, let them sink in deep.
Busting out of your comfort zone to seek out unique experiences will not only make you a more complete person and bring authenticity to your writing, it will suggest new ideas and new work. If you extend yourself, you’ll have an advantage over the couch potatoes and Web addicts.
I invite you to share my current motto: Impulse control is overrated.
I read these tips with interest, but not sure they are my cup of tea. I agree with the headings if not the content.
I can see where she is going with them, however they are a bit way out for me. I am more the cautious type. My impulse control is pretty well in control. 
Filed under DAILY THOUGHTS
Boogie Woogie
German Boogie-Woogie pianist (Stadtfest) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This is a pianist from Switzerland who plays some of the best Boogie Woogie anywhere. He is so BIG over there, they hold a week-long Boogie Woogie contest every year and all the best players in the world are invited. In this video he is joined by 2 amazing dancers…. The male dancer even has a haircut from the forties.
If you can take your eyes off her, the male dancer is super . . . never moves his shoulders relative to what his feet and knees are doing. And the top of his head stays at the same height no matter what.
Turn up the volume, watch, and give it a listen! If you experience any trouble tapping your foot to the beat, you had better hurry and schedule an appointment with your physician. ..Enjoy !! FOR THOSE WHO DON’T REMEMBER, THIS IS HOW THE BOOGIE WOOGIE WAS DONE
Filed under DAILY THOUGHTS
