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About This Author
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Each Day Already is a Challenge
A Texas Sunrise
 
A friend, William Taylor, took this picture. He visits Surfside Beach with his dogs almost every morning, watching the sun rise while the dogs prance about at the water's edge.
This is only about ten miles from where I lived in Lake Jackson, Texas. Sadly, I only visited this beach about four times in the six years I lived nearby.
Each day is a challenge. A challenge to get by without thinking about the fibromyalgia pains. A challenge to stay awake when chronic fatigure wants to take over. And a challenge to navigate through fibro fog.
I haven't been writing as much as in the past. For years, I wrote at least 500 words a day. Now, I'm lucky if I write 500 words in month. Sigh.
For more information about what my day (or life) is all about with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, chronic pains, IBS, depression and everything else thrown in, check this out:
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Amy Lowell Poetry Travelling Scholarship instructions:
http://www.amylowell.org/instructions.htm The award for the 2008-2009 Scholarship year should be in the area of $49,000. The recipient must agree to spend the year abroad, as the will requires. Deadline: October 15. Applications may not be submitted by email. The winner of the Scholarship will be notified by the end of February, 2008.
The Bechtel Prize for Educating the Imagination - http://www.twc.org/bechtel_prize.htm
The Bechtel Prize is awarded annually in recognition of an exemplary article or essay related to: Creative writing education, literary studies, and/or the profession of writing. The winning essay appears in Teachers & Writers magazine, and the author receives a $3,500 honorarium. Entries selected as finalists for the Bechtel Prize may also be published in Teachers & Writers. The authors of finalist essays selected for publication in the magazine receive a small honorarium. Possible topics for Bechtel Prize submissions include contemporary issues in classroom teaching, innovative approaches to teaching literary forms and genres, and the intersection between literature and imaginative writing. The submission deadline for the 2007 Bechtel Prize is 5:00 PM (Eastern), Friday, June 29, 2007.
Emily Dickinson First Book Award http://www.poetryfoundation.org/foundation/Emily_Dickinson.html - The Emily Dickinson First Book Award recognizes an American poet who is 50 years of age or over and has yet to publish a first collection of poetry. The Poetry Foundation seeks one book-length poetry manuscript to be published in the Emily Dickinson Poetry Series. The competition is open to any American citizen 50 years of age or over who has not previously published a book-length volume of poetry. In addition to publication and promotion of the manuscript, the winner will receive a prize of $10,000. Submissions accepted: May 15, 2007–June 15, 2007
Here's an interesting one. Are you a Christian with an opinion?  Submit your opinions to a secular newspaper or magazine and it they are printed (with a Scripture reference included), then enter the Amy Foundation contest. Articles must be published between January 1 and December 1, then submitted to the Amy Foundation before January 31 of the following year. For articles published in 2007, the deadline is January 31, 2008. You could win up to $10,000. Here are the complete guidelines: http://www.amyfound.org/amy_writing_awards/amy_writing_awards.html
And here is a list of previuos winners, with the publications where their articles appeared: http://www.amyfound.org/amy_writing_awards/amy_writing_awards.html
Note: It's often easiest to have articles published in non-paying or low paying markets, but here's a way to be rewarded for those non-paying submissions.
For some reason, I envision Budroe   and PlannerDan entering the contest on this page. They want an essay about ethics in business, specifically about bribes. http://www.traceinternational.org/.  Did I say/share this before?
Entries must not exceed 2,500 words and must be original, unpublished work, submitted by May 1, 2007. First and second prizes of $10,000 and $5,000 respectively will be awarded and a collection of the best essays will be published in 2007. Topic for 2007: “Why Bribe?” In your essay, please respond to the following: “Can bribes be avoided? Extortion resisted? Do businessmen try? Do companies care?” Language should be simple and direct. Anecdotes are welcome.
I think it was the part about anecdotes that made me think of Bud and Planner Dan.
Now don't y'all forget about tomorrow. You know.....my birthday! |
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Hubby leaves for work each morning around 6:30 a.m. If I'm picking up Derek at work, we leave the house about the same time. If I'm not, hubby usually lets me sleep and goes off to work without waking me.
Before we had Opera, Piewacket would wake us about 3 a.m. each night, cat howling, and we would (or hubby would) meow/howl back at her and invite her to join us in bed. She would, and she'd get up with hubby. About 15 minutes after he was gone, she would realize she was "alone" and wake me up again, and I'd be up for the day.
Since we got Opera, Pie doesn't get so lonely, so she's not waking us up this way. BUT NOW, about 15 minutes after hubby leaves, Opera comes and starts licking me with that kitty sandpaper tongue. On my face.  Usually, it's because there is no food or water in their dishes. I fill them before I go to bed, but they must indulge in midnight snacks, and in the morning their dishes are not full. There might actually be some dry food in the bowl, but I guess it will be stale or something, compared to what comes out of the bag. You know cats. Picky, picky, picky. And their water bowl isn't usually bone dry either. Just not fresh and full, I guess.
Today, I woke about 4 a.m. 'cause I heard my son up and about. He didn't work last night, but he tries to keep the same schedule when he's off. He doesn't always succeed in doing that, but he tries, so his body isn't totally confused.
I never heard hubby up and about getting ready for work. And, strangely enough, neither one of the cats woke me. When I did wake up on my own, it was 8:30. I figured the cats were somewhere else in the house and was quite surprised to find them in the bedroom with me. Pie was at the bottom of the bed, and Opera was sitting in hubby's desk chair. Very strange. I guess they figured I needed my sleep. Either that or someone else must have remembered to fill their food and water bowls in the wee hours of the morning, so their tummies were full.
I don't really have much to write about yet today. Tiffany will be arriving this evening. (This is her real Spring break week, not the one I reported a few weeks ago. Her mom was wrong about the dates.) So, she'll be here for my birthday! Friday, April 13. Remember???
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Yesterday at the church office was fun. I didn't do anything really creative - for the bulletin - or anything. In fact, most of what I did was to make copies and separate them into packets. Our pastor is doing a training session for small group leaders - existing and new ones - and he's believing for 20 to show up. I think right now we have 10 existing groups, so that means he's believing that 10 more will want to start groups. He has put together some awesome materials for the leaders.
If I hadn't been there, he would have had to copy and put together that stuff all my his lonesome. He would have. But he really needs to be doing more pastoral things.
I'm excited about helping out however I can in the church office. It's only once a week, and in between I can rest up. I'll have to. Just being there for an hour an a half one day for "orientation" and four plus hours to help out yesterday was quite exhausting for me.
That' s probably because I'm still getting over that trip to Texas. Grrr.
Well, that's all for now folks.
Don't forget tomorrow. My birthday. Think I've said that enough???
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