Saturday, May 17, 2014

Memorial Day, The Fourth Of July, and .....? Three Life Changing Events


 MEMORIAL DAY, THE FOURTH OF JULY, AND .....? Three life changing events.





Three weeks ago I drafted the first act and  the first plot point, as we writers say, in the new, but continuing saga of mine and Sportster’s adventures as owners of The Canine Beauty
Salon, as top ranking Amazon authors, and as wandering RV travelers. On my birthday – I gave myself the best birthday present ever - I sold my grooming business.

The papers are signed, the transition has begun, and opportunities abound. The transition to retirement for a workaholic like me is difficult. I’ve come to the end of a long time career that began when I was eleven years old in the basement of my parents’ home. I can’t help but think of the good times, the benefits, and the security of a steady income. It will be difficult to say good bye to a job I have loved and customers I have come to know so well.

But I began as a workaholic years even before that venture. With the encouragement of our mother, my sister and I sought out various endeavors for earning money. Mom would drop off her little entrepreneurs in a neighborhood in which we would solicit door to door, asking for old clothes and rags. No, we were not poor. In those days the local newspaper used the rags to clean the ink from their printing press. Imagine that! Already I was linked to the publishing business! The Illinois Journal paid fifteen cents a pound, very good money for two nine year old girls.

We also collected soda bottles long before recycling became a household word and, during the summer, Sis and I picked cherries from our back yard cherry tree, loaded them in our bicycle baskets and sold them door to door. When the cherries ran out, we made Tandy Leather Products - belts, moccasins, and pixie bags- and sold them as well. Our mother, bless her soul, created two little business women.

The years have sped by  and now it is time to move on to new ventures. Although it is human nature to cling to what is familiar, to avoid the unknown, doing so is also boring and leaves the soul stagnant. On Memorial Day I I turn the keys over to the new owners of the Canine Beauty Salon, Celestina and Eric Gallant, and  try not to look back. Life changing event #1 underway.
 


Life changing event #2. The second act, the second plot point in the new and continuing saga of mine and Sportster’s adventures bursts into action. I am excited to announce that on The Fourth Of July, I will be releasing my third book, MASADA’S MARINE – The Story of A Service Dog And Her Wounded Marine Warrior. The book has been reviewed as my best book ever! One reviewer stated, “I’m surprised you are not a Marine.” - And another, “It helped me deal with my husband.”
  


 

 
 
 
 
Mark your calendars for The Fourth Of July. Reviewers have predicted the book’s release to be a life changing event for veterans and their families. Just like Luis Montalvan’s book, Until
Tuesday,
the story is expected to create a huge impact on the public’s opinion and awareness concerning the importance of service dogs in our veteran’s lives.

This year, The Fourth Of July  will not only signify the celebration of our country’s freedom but reviewers are expecting MASADA’S MARINE will bring publicity and awareness to the tragic epidemic  that takes the life of a veteran every hour from suicide.
Celebrate the path to our veterans freedom this year.  Please carry the message of this book. Life changing event #2 – The Fourth Of July and MASADA’S MARINE.

Life changing event #3 --- yet to come. How? By way of a service dog, a veteran, and the future’s promises.  Help change veterans lives. Follow these organizations from coast to coast. They change lives.  Canine Companions For Independence in Oceanside, Ca. and K9s For Warriors in Ponte Vedra, Florida -- both create miracles every day. Please support our veterans.