Dear Readers, if you enjoy reading historical fiction and memoirs, I would like to commend Martha Kennedy’s books to you:
• Martin of Gfenn
• Savior
• The Brothers Path, and
• My Everest – Thirty Years of San Diego Hiking with Dogs.
I have reviewed two of Martha’s books previously (links to my reviews above).
I am re-blogging a thank you issued by Martha Kennedy to readers of her books. Links to the books are on Martha’s website. Why do I re-blog a thank you? Because I enjoyed the two books I’ve read so far. And, because it is hard enough being a writer, let alone writer, editor, publisher and publicist all in one.
Kind Regards
Tracy
WordPress Daily Prompt — Authentic
The Daily Prompt is “authentic“. I should leave this one alone, but I’m afraid I can’t help myself. I’ve got a blog so I might as well use it. Authentic seems to be more than just the le mot du jour; it’s everywhere and has been for a few years now. It has crept into every-day conversation. We all want to be authentic. Read more
WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge — Prolific
I had decided not to enter this week’s photo challenge, but changed my mind today as I had the very good fortune to visit the amazingly beautiful Australian National Botanic Gardens. To my delight, there were many plants in full bloom. My little phone camera struggled with some of the smaller, more delicate flowers, but it absolutely loved the banksias. There is such a huge variety of banksias, and many were flowering prolifically. I hope you like them as much as my camera did. Read more
WordPress Daily Prompt — Song
The WordPress Daily Prompt has taken me back down memory lane to the time I sang in an Aussie secular gospel choir. Our repertoire was mostly African-American spirituals. That probably sounds too weird for words, but somehow it worked. So why does an Aussie white sheila with no religious affiliation join a gospel choir? I’ll answer that with another question. Well, why not? Read more
WordPress Daily Prompt — Deplete
We’ve all done it, haven’t we? Said something we regret later. I am many things – a woman, a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a colleague (at least I was until I retired), and a feminist. And, because of all that I am, I really should have known better. I should have. But I didn’t. And what was my transgression? I made a sexist joke. I made a joke about the inadequacies of men. At work. In my public (civil) service job; the public service being the very birthplace of political correctness. And the joke was made about my boss. In fact, I made the joke to my boss! My male boss! Read more
This is the last in my series of National Folk Festival (the Nash) posts. The title of this post is taken from Canberra poet, Josh Inman’s poem, ‘I Am a Folk Festival‘, that I heard him perform at the Nash last weekend. Josh said that the moment he steps through the gate he gets a shiver, a sense of freedom. This perfectly sums up the way I feel about the Nash. Josh said ordinary people live ordinary lives. But the Nash is extraordinary. It makes everything seem possible. We can be extraordinary. So, he would rather be a folk festival. That really spoke to me. I can be a folk festival too. Is that too corny? I guess you had to be there. Read more
WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge — Smile
The WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge asks us to show a smile (ours or someone else’s), or a photo which makes others smile, or both. We can also share a photo of something that has brought a moment of joy into our lives recently, or that focuses on the outcome of that joy. Here are some photos of festive bollards that make me smile. Read more
You will all be thoroughly sick of me posting about about my National Folk Festival (the Australian one) soon. I post about the Nash like a mother posts about a new baby. All. The. Time. Have I told you it is my favourite place in the entire world? Anyway, this post is about my favourite place within my favourite place — The Stock Camp.
The Australian bush and the characters that inhabit it have become the stuff of legends; they’ve entered into our folklore. The traits of these pioneers – an independent streak, larrikinism, mateship, egalitarianism, belief in the fair-go, toughness, stoicism and courage – immortalised by poets such as Banjo Patterson and Henry Lawson, are meant to embody the Australian spirit. If it all sounds to be good to be true, then it probably is. Nevertheless, this spirit oozes from the Stock Camp at the Nash, and I love it. Read more
Reflections of An Untidy Mind 