Patricia Sands

Author

lifelong friendship

A busy week in the Blogosphere

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If it’s Friday, it must be France …

Here we are again! I swear these weeks keep getting shorter … or perhaps it was just all the time it took me this week to figure out TRIBERR.COM. Thank you Jenny Hansen for the instructions on your blog this week  including that unbelievably helpful video (which I watched about 358 times). Big hugs of gratitude to Wana711 blogging buddies Natalie Hartford and Jillian Dodd whose never-ending patience kept me sticking to it. Now that I’m in the site I don’t know what took me so long … oh, maybe it’s because I’m seriously tech challenged …

Anyway, to get fired up and back to writing I played a little of one of my favourite French singers, Zaz. You may have seen this during the summer when I first discovered her … if so, enjoy encore une fois! She’s energizing!

Here are a couple of the other reasons it was a busy week (which prevented me from spending all my spare ~ha!~ time daydreaming about France).  But wait, first I’ll just sneak in one photo to give you Francophiles something to think about until next week. This is one of my most favourite views, looking over Eze Sur Mer and St. Jean Cap Ferrat from the hilltop village of Eze. I took this shot from the castle ruin above the village. You climb up through the most amazing Jardin Exotique that was created by hand after WW2 – one stone at a time, there’s no other way! The view is worth the climb, n’est-ce pas?

Okay, where was I? Oh right, this busy week …although I have been trying to stay focused and diligent with my WIP schedule, there’s always something just way too tempting to refuse.

I was delighted to be invited to help the fabulous Marcia Richards celebrate her One Year Blogbirthday with chocolate cake, balloons and the hilarious Jess Wilkins. Hop on over to her Sexy, Smart, From The Heart website and take a look at what she forced  asked us to send her … it’s so much easier to write about others than it is ourselves. But what a party we had!

Next I channeled myself across the ocean to the U.K.. to spend some time with medium and clairvoyant Richard Holmes on his uplifting Bloggin’ With Rich site.  It was a pleasure to recount a cool memory of a rather spiritual encounter that my real Bridge Club experienced as a result of an unplanned stop one morning on a beach on Vancouver Island. You’ll find yourself in another world when you stop in at Rich’s blog. Astral traveling anyone?

Oh, and Myndi Shafer? Your Leave A Caption post on Saturday had me laughing out loud all day. The captions are priceless!

This world of writing and blogging offers incredible opportunities to come in contact with the most diverse, fascinating, amazingly ordinary people who connect and share their thoughts and experiences in unpredictable and surprising ways. Creative, humorous, thoughtful, helpful, challenging, hilarious, touching, authentic people. A community. Don’t you just feel like breaking out into a chorus of We Are Family? What a ride!

And now back to work or novel #2 will never get completed.

How do you feel about the community in which you live or work or just spend most of your time? Don’t forget to take a few moments every day to let people you value know just that!

Life – the bitter and the sweet …

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Sad news last week. Our beloved neighbourhood bookstore, The Book Mark, is being forced to close. The oldest remaining independent bookstore in Toronto will cease to do business at the end of January after 47 years in the west end Kingsway area.

In spite of the competition from the large-scale chains and online retailers, The Book Mark was managing to hold on and continue offering the personal, informed service readers truly appreciate. Loyal customers showed their appreciation through four decades, often one generation following another.

With a quiet but inviting and warm atmosphere, this is a store staffed with intelligent, avid readers who know the books they sell. There was always someone who could answer your questions and provide reliable advice. You don’t find that too often any more.  Sue Houghting, her assistant manager Sarah Pietrosky,  and their incredibly personable staff will be missed .

I am personally enormously grateful to The Book Mark. When my debut novel, The Bridge Club, was first published in the fall of 2010. I took a deep breath and asked if they would consider putting it on their shelf. Unfailingly polite, they offered to have some of their staff read it and get back to me. I was so pleased unbelievably thrilled and excited … no kidding … when they called to ask me to bring in a supply. For the past 14 months they have restocked The Bridge Club on a regular basis and sold more copies than any of us had imagined. I can’t thank The Book Mark enough for their vote of confidence in my writing and the enthusiastic support they have consistently offered.

It was heartbreaking to drop by the shop to say thank you and farewell. A constant flow of customers has been expressing sadness and frustration with the situation and gratitude for all the years this was a special shop to visit.

Oh, and the reason they are closing? The city taxes are bad enough but their landlord is asking for a 26% rent increase! Ask me who is one very unpopular person in the Toronto area right now?  I have just made a note of the name I will use for the next villain I create in my writing.

Now let’s temper this bitter local news with some sweetness from Walk Off The Earth, local (well, Burlington, Ontario is just outside Toronto) musicians whose AWE-mazing video has been viewed by over four million – OMG, now it’s almost nine million! – just this week and rocketed them into the kind of visibility they deserve.

Check out their Facebook page where they have posted this message which might well  apply to indie writers too. WE CAN RELATE!

“To all the independent musicians out there. I hope this shows that you can make a name for your band with no help from record labels and management and next to no money. Stay true to your dreams and your passions, whether they be music related or not. Don’t wait for people to help you because they never will. The only time the music industry will want to help you is when you have done all the work yourself!”

Way to go Walk Off The Earth! Here’s to continued success!

Are you still fortunate to have an indie bookstore near you? As much as e-books are a big part of authors’ lives these days, bookstores still provide a special service and I am sad to see them close. How do you feel about this? Many say it is inevitable and part of the changing times in which we live.

And then … how about Walk Off The Earth’s video? Cool or what?

Listen to Kristen … then just do it!

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Happy New year everyone!

As 2012 gets under way, I’ve been immersed in reading other blogs about whether or not to make resolutions.It’s kind of a natural topic du jour at the beginning of January.

I stopped thinking about New Year’s resolutions years decades ago. Don’t wait for the beginning of a new year to reflect. Do it every night before you fall asleep. Personally, each morning is when I remind myself of what I want to accomplish for that day (call it setting goals, if you like) and as the mornings roll by I can usually see progress as life ebbs and flows.

I’m not saying it isn’t good to set goals, because it is absolutely necessary to do that. Set them at other times than New Year’s though – as you see the need begin to logically appear not because it’s January 1st. Set them every day. I’m just saying …

Setting small goals will lead to great success. Believe in yourself and let the little engine that could be your inspiration. You CAN do it!

Then I read Kristen Lamb’s blog post from yesterday, 2012 AND PLANNING FOR SUCCESS IN THE NEW YEAR.  I was totally blown away!  Hurry, go there now – click right here – and take it all in. She has laid it out as clearly as I have ever seen it before.  You can apply the six steps she outlines to whatever you do in life.

For those of us who write: read it and believe.

Then just do it!

Thank you, Kristen, for all you give to the writers following you.

If you are a writer and haven’t read Kristen’s best-selling books, order them now –  We Are Not Alone–The Writer’s Guide to Social Media and Are You There, Blog? It’s Me, Writer . Both books are recommended by the hottest agents and biggest authors in the biz. Trust me, they will change the way you approach your writing and give you a bigger boost than you ever imagined possible! You only have to read the comments left on her blog to see how true this is.

After you have read Kristen’s post, I hope you will come back and leave a comment. Will you take those six points and use them as your guidelines?

 

 

CHRISTMAS IN PARIS

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If it’s Friday, it must be France …

Joyeux Noël! Have you taken some time to enjoy beautiful light displays in your neighbourhood? Some of the set-ups around our place have been spectacular. Perhaps it’s to make up for the shortage of snow? It was definitely a green Christmas in the Toronto area this year although I’m happy to say it is snowing tonight. Finally!

Here’s a little history about Christmas lights. In 1882, the first Christmas tree was lit by the use of electricity. Edward Johnson was one of Thomas Edison’s muckers, an inventor who worked under his direction. He lit up a Christmas tree in New York City with eighty small electric light bulbs and created the first string of electric Christmas lights that were then mass produced around 1890. By 1900, department stores started using the new Christmas lights for their Christmas displays.  Johnson became vice-president of Edison’s electric company.

The use of lights for Christmas decorations is popular around the world. Our guest blogger today is going to take us on a stroll through Paris to look at the holiday displays there.

I’m really pleased to introduce you to the fabulous Nicole Basaraba,an adventurous  young Canadian blogger/writer, living in Brussels, Belgium at the moment. Nicole shares many of her travel experiences on her entertaining and informative blog Nicole Basaraba’s Uni-Verse-City. Make a point to stop by some time!

Growing up in Western Canada, Nicole Basaraba was always skipping to her own beat. Not being a hockey fan, having no skills in skiing or snowboarding, always being cold, and having never tasted maple syrup, she is what you might call a “bad” Canadian. Having studied some history in university and always dreaming of seeing Europe, Nicole moved to Brussels, Belgium to live, work and travel of course. She soon discovered that there is more to Belgium than just its delicious chocolate so she decided to stay in Europe for an undetermined period. Working in print publishing and website content management by day, she writes travel articles, book reviews and other lifestyle/culture articles about her fun and crazy experiences in Europe by night.

Here’s what Nicole has to tell us about Christmas in Paris:

If you haven’t been to Paris for Christmas, you’ll enjoy seeing some of the traditions there. Every town and village in France has a Christmas market and Paris is no exception.

When you think of Paris at night, the first thing that may come to mind is the Eiffel Tower glittering in the dark. At Christmas time, there are so many more lights to enchant you in this beautiful city.

The first place to start is the Champs Elysées. The entire boulevard is lined with trees decorated in dancing lights, blue, purple, green, red and orange. The trees sparkle with the light reflecting off the diamond-like strings of circles hanging from the branches.

While admiring the lights show, you can wander past all the booths lined up bearing Christmas goodies, food and gifts. Fresh meats, cheese, Gluhwein or vin chaud (warm mulled wine), delicious pastries, wooden games, stuffed animals, winter wear; there is sure to be something for everyone on your Christmas list.

The Champs Elysées, being one of the most popular areas for tourists, has the more commercial Christmas market. When it gets darker the area becomes even more enchanting with the purple lights.

If you want to see a Christmas market that is more reminiscent of the original German style, take the metro to La Défense and enjoy the over 350 chalets. In a small village on its own standing between the modern mirrored skyscrapers, it’s a clash of tradition and modernism that works so well together. The Christmas market in La Défense has more chalets, including many from around the world such as Canada and Germany.

Don’t forget to stop at Notre Dame to see the beautiful Christmas tree in the courtyard. It’s a great place to stand and enjoy the Christmas spirit as you snap photos.  I’m sure it would look stunning from a boat cruising along the Seine.

You can’t visit Paris without seeing the Eiffel Tower. Whether you go to the top or not, you can admire it looking like the most glamorous tree you’ve ever seen.

 Thanks for that stroll past some of the Christmas lights in Paris, Nicole!  I’m looking forward to reading about more of your adventures and travels in Europe in 2012! Happy New Year to you!
Christmas markets in Paris and elsewhere in France have their origins in the northern Alsace region, which has belonged to Germany at various junctures in history and therefore draws on German Christmas market traditions stretching to as early as the 14th century. The most famous– and largest– marché de noël in France is in Strasbourg, the capital of Alsace.
Are there Christmas markets or something similar where you live? How about spectacular light displays?
Check this one out. The music is heard on a radio station and there is a box for donations to the local hospital.  Happy holidays!
My sincere thanks and a big holiday hug to each and every one of you for taking the time to visit my blog. Some of you I know and many I don’t, but your interest is so appreciated and very motivating. You can’t imagine how satisfying it is for bloggers to see the “clicks” on our site statistics continue to grow. Thank you, thank you! May 2012 bring the best of health and happiness to you and yours! MUWAH!