Patricia Sands

Author

lifelong friendship

Guest blogging? Gotta love it!

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Who has more fun than bloggers? Okay … um, you can probably give me a list … but never mind.  I can tell you one of the many ways we enjoy life here in the blogosphere and that’s by visiting back and forth – oceans and borders don’t deter us in any way – and hanging out on each other’s blog.

Today I’m particularly lucky to be in two places at once … just another talent we share!

I was thrilled to help out the awesome Myndi Shafer who is taking a little time to enjoy the newest member of her family. #4 ! I’m exhausted just thinking about it but our Myndi is the best at taking it all in stride!

All of her blogging buddies and readers have been celebrating the blessed event and loving the sweet family photos Myndi has since posted.  Take a minute to hop on over and pay a visit. Don’t forget to  knit her some baby booties leave her your congratulations!

Sailing across the Atlantic to the UK, I’m excited to be Centre Stage on the fabulous blog of Nicky Wells, author of the Rock Star Romance Trilogy. Check out the first release, Sophie’s Turn.Things are always in party mode at Nicky’s and she makes every visiting author feel like a rock star. Come on over and see for yourself ... the bar will be open, munchies passed around and your favorite tunes on full blast! Nicky was just signed by Sapphire Star Publishing so celebrate with her as we’ve been doing since we heard the great news. Nicky is one of my fellow authors involved with the awesome author/reviewer website loveahappyending.com. If you live in the UK or will be visiting near Tetbury, Gloucestershire on June 12th this summer, be sure to check out the impressive literary event planned .

Have you been guest blogging or taking trips recently? Did you stay home for the holiday weekend or travel somewhere? You know I love to hear what you’ve been doing so scroll down and leave a comment if you have the time. Thanks!

Spend a few minutes in Aix-En-Provence…

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If it’s Friday, it must be France …

Today I’m fantasizing about the beautiful, historical centre of Aix-En-Provence, since the main character in my new novel is hanging out there at the moment. I’m curious to see what’s going to play out there for her so can’t stay on the blog too long …

That’s one of the surprises of writing … you just never know for sure exactly what’s coming next!

I’ve been to Aix a few times and just want to say this. Even though it may not look terribly appealing from your first approach in the post-war urban areas, the heart of this town is a treasure trove of things architectural, cultural and … ah, oui … gastronomique! Plan your day and you won’t be disappointed.

Known for its water source since Roman times (Aquae Sextiae), Aix is also an important cultural, educational and political town. The capital of Provence, it also is home to the Faculties of Law and Letters of the University of Aix-Marseille.

Water is at the heart of the town and its history, channelled and distributed since antiquity and supplied by a wealth of underground springs. Fountains abound along beautiful, tree-lined Cours Mirabeau, where shops, restaurants and frequent visits by sidewalk artists make it easy to while away an afternoon. One of our favourite paintings was purchased from such an artist and I’m easily distracted by it right now as I sit across from it.

Cours Mirabeau

Paul Cezanne is the most famous son of Aix. Born there in 1839, he spent much of his life in Aix and the surrounding countryside, for a time working in a studio just off the Cours Mirabeau. A contemporary of Pissaro, Monet, and Renoir, few today are not familiar with his prolific work heralding his beloved Provence, which often featured Mont Sainte Victoire.

Mont Sainte Victoire – one of those “on the go” shots from the car!

Today there are footsteps imprinted in the sidewalks of the town which you can follow to Cezanne’s favourite haunts. When we were there in 2006 a wonderful retrospective exhibition, “Cezanne En Provence”  honouring the 100th anniversary of his passing, was being held. This is one of the posters displayed which I loved! It was hanging in the window of a wine shop.

I hope you’ve enjoyed a brief look at Aix. If you are planning to visit the area, it’s well worth a stop. Here’s the link to the wonderful Festival D’Aix-En-Provence in July. Order your tickets early for the renowned music festival as they tend to sell out quickly.

Two weeks ago I shared a poster in French and most of you e-mailed me with perfect translations. Bravo!

Forget your past, whether simple or complicated, and participate in  your present so your future will be better than perfect.

(As well as being an inspirational saying, it’s actually a poster used in teaching some of the tenses in French grammar.)

 

Gotta get back to work! I had so much more to share, my friends, particularly about a wonderful blogger I have gotten to know who lives in Aix. You’re going to want to know her too! I’ll save that for next week and see you here then. Bon weekend!

Spring has sprung! And other good things …

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Really? It’s Tuesday again? Already? I was hoping Daylight Saving Time would fool me into thinking I had more time for everything. Just. Not. Happening.

Never mind! It’s the first day of spring and that’s always good news.

Before I introduce today’s guest, website founder Kathy Scott, (already known by many of you, I’m sure) here are two important quick bits of info.

First, Calgary author Steena Holmes’ gripping novel Finding Emma has just been released on Amazon. Hurry on over to order your copy! Proceeds are being donated to the Missing Children’s Society of Canada.

Second, the guest speaker at our monthly Writers & Editors Network meeting on Saturday was Ian Hamilton, author of the hot new Ava Lee thriller series. This looks like the next big thing in the mystery/detective genre and Hamilton’s personal story is a good one so click on the link and check out his website.

OMG! I just noticed my good friend Bridgette Booth has invited me to her blog for a fab brunch today. I thought it was tomorrow! See what I mean? WAY too much going on here … but it’s all good, good, good! So when you finish up here, please pop on over to Bridgette’s blog and join us. If the party is with Bridgette, you are guaranteed it’s going to be fun, delicious, and full of surprises – whatever it is! See you there!

And now … heeeeeeeeeere’s Kathy!

Kathy Scott is the award-winning creator of Me and My 1000 Girlfriends, That’s Who! and the Women’s Party of America. She has published more than 100 articles in various business magazines and newspapers. Her focus on women’s issues has earned her accolades from many organizations and she is currently working with Moms Clean Air Force, advocating limits on poisonous chemicals released by coal and power plants.

Kathy has spent the past two decades working in public relations and marketing and, as well as maintaining her very active website, presently serves as head of public relations and social media strategist for a B2B media company. She is a member of the Atlanta Press Club and has served on the boards of several local charities.

Kathy, welcome! Would you tell our readers how the idea developed for this website? I think it’s a great story and demonstrates how you found an innovative solution to a problem which in turn became a site that is helpful for everyone.

I was on the board of a local botanical garden, which at the time had 5 members, and was asked to head up their fundraising and membership efforts. As I began building membership levels and crafting fundraising programs, the man that oversaw the gardens would get irate and send me emails like, “Adhere to the chain of command.” He was a bully and he had the ear and support of the local city councilman that oversaw the property (which was owned by the city).

I started an email campaign and noticed that my sorority sisters and girlfriends were always willing to send emails and post info. I thought about the concept and created a Facebook page where women could post issues of concern, stories, petitions, etc.

The year we started, teachers in Florida were under fire and a movement by government wanted to tie their salaries to children’s grades, which would have hurt the kids. We got involved and provided information. The governor later vetoed the bill. One GIRLFRIEND posted, ‘we need to tie the politician’s salaries to performance of their district.’ I loved that.

I recall you telling me that the “bully” at one point challenged you asking “You and who else?” when you said you would continue to defend your position and that’s how the name of your website came to be. I love that story!

The number of followers of the website is growing rapidly. What has been the most difficult aspect of building such a powerful voice for women?

Not all women want a voice. Even with the recent issue of Rush Limbaugh’s comments, some women were posting praise for him. Other times, women really go after vocal women like Sarah Palin and Michele Bachman. I don’t agree with either of their politics, but when Bachman won the Iowa straw poll, that was a big deal for women. In fact, one of my favorite quotes by Maureen Reagan is, “I will feel equality has arrived when we can elect to office women who are as incompetent as some of the men who are already there.”

Also, women who are powerful politically follow the party line. For the Women’s Party of America, our motto is: Women First. Party Second.

What are your goals for the future of this site?

I would like to add more interaction to the website and get more involved with other organizations.

I am also working on starting a non-profit called ‘1-3 Just for Me.’ The idea is to try to get girls to spend the first 13 years working on themselves. So many have boyfriends in elementary school! I have a daughter and I see how so many judge themselves by the boys who like them.I have encouraged her girl friendships.

My mother was from County Cork, Ireland and my grandmother was French Canadian and German. I come from a long line of strong women who speak their mind. You can’t control your children, but you can let them know where you stand, and I think that’s important for them. I know it was for me.

Thanks for dropping by Kathy, and continued good luck! I always look forward to seeing what issues your website is highlighting. Keep up the great work.

Who has your back? Have you ever mobilized a group of people to fight for a specific issue? How did it go? Take a minute to tell us about it in the comment section below.

OneChild – what one young person can do

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Whew! I’m still on a whirl from all the incredible activity around International Women’s Day last week! Wasn’t it a fabulous time, bringing focus to so many issues that affect all of us?

We celebrate women every day but that one official recognition day offered some great opportunities to get connected in ways we might not otherwise. And that’s a good thing!

Last Tuesday I attended a breakfast meeting at Verity in Toronto, where the speaker was a young woman with an incredible story to share. She tells it very well. Cheryl Perera is someone you need to know about and then tell as many other people as possible. Seriously.

In her mid-twenties, Cheryl is already an established children’s rights activist and the leader of her youth-based charity ONECHILD, a registered, non-profit organization since July 2005. In her teens she was recognized as one of Canada’s “Top Twenty Under Twenty” and a fine example of a growing throng of social-minded young charity crusaders who heed the call for change. Rather than turning to established foundations, they’re starting their own.

Cheryl has mobilized youth all around the world and particularly in Canada to join this campaign and set up chapters in their schools. Results of their efforts can be seen on the website. Powerful.

As the ONECHILD website states: Knowledge is power. By increasing the knowledge of young people about the reality of child sexual slavery, by dispelling preconceived ideas, and by challenging them to think critically, OneChild motivates those same young people to spread the word in their schools, their communities, and the world.

Cheryl first became aware of the shocking child sexual slavery trade that exists around the world when she was working on a high school project at the age of 16. She traveled to her family’s homeland of Sri Lanka to learn more. Bringing attention to children’s rights has been her focus ever since and her accomplishments are jaw-dropping. Please take a minute to visit the ONECHILD website by clicking here.

As we know, there are other international organizations also focused on this issue and working together, mobilizing people of all ages, progress is being made. However the uphill battle is steep. Let’s all do what we can.

I’ll be writing more about Cheryl and her organization in the future but I wanted to introduce her mission to you now. Please share this information and perhaps, in our own blogging voices, we can contribute to spreading this vital message. Every child deserves to be safe.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
–Margaret Mead, Cultural Anthropologist

Are there young people in your community who are dedicating themselves to social change? Let’s hear about them! Let’s support them! They are the future.