Several of my writing friends have stories in this collection, among them Linda O'Connell and Donna Volkenannt. The book was edited by Dahlynn and Ken McKowen, and Dianna Graveman. (The anthology includes a story by Dianna as well.) These books will hit the shelves on April 8--a little over a month away.
My story "More Wine" is about our son. In his teenaged years, d'boy was
Now, he's in his mid-twenties and is awaiting word on acceptance into medical school. He turned all my hair gray and once that mission was accomplished, he straightened up and became a young man I'm extremely proud of.
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| This is my son on his graduation day from Drury University a couple of years ago. |
If you have kids, what drove you the furthest over the crazy cliff?
What a handsome boy! Love his smile. Oh, yes, we had one that drove us nuts. He was a round peg in a square peg world. It was hard almost every day...now he has two boys, 3 and 5, with some of the same genes. Oh, NOW, he understands!
ReplyDeleteClaudia--I can SO relate to the square peg-round hole dilemma. My son is a musician, and when he got extra squirrely, we'd say that was his "artistic" side coming out...
Delete(And you're right. Having their own kids is revenge... ;)
Congrats! On your boy AND your story.
ReplyDeleteI'm in this one, too. As far as the crazy cliff...I'm a regular Thelma or Louise. Seems like I have careened into the abyss more times than I care to remember.
One of the most embarrassing incidents was the time my then-kindergarten boy had drawn a picture of me. I proudly pinned it on the bulletin board in my own classroom. The FACS teacher walked by, and complimented him on his artistry. She taught a child development class. I'm sure she was seeking an anecdote. "Oh, what a nice picture. Why does your mom have such big hands?"
"And they're red. That's blood! From slapping me."
Let's just say he had a vivid imagination. Maybe I should write a story about him...
Val--You, edgy? You, a little off the road and headed towards the ditch/cliff? Sorry, I can't see it.
DeleteThat is a hilarious story. Put it in your notebook for future contemplation. Or at least as a story you can tell when he gets married/has his own kids.
(And yahoo! You could come to BigCityLand and do a book signing with us.)
Big congrats, Sioux (and Val, too!)--I suspect that NYMB will have some doozies in it. :-)
ReplyDeleteAs for my boys--and honestly, my daughter is personally responsible for all the crowns on my ground-down teeth--I'm not sure I have any stories I can share on a family blog.
Wait! When my oldest was in kindergarten, he brought home a note that said, "Joey urinated on the playground." WHAT in the world? Turns out he (and three other guys) were just having a contest to see who could pee the farthest. No biggie, Mom. :-)
(Also, in catching up in Sioux's World, I'd just like to say that a. I refuse to put gels and such in my hair. In fact, I still wash and pretty much go. And I was just thinking the other day, here I am, a woman of a certain age, still walking around with wet hair. And knowing that when I'm 80, I'll probably do the same. And b. I want big picture notes from a critique. I don't want little picky things, I want someone to say, "HEY! You could drive a truck through this plot hole.")
Cathy--Yeah, gray hair, ground-down teeth, wrinkles...Those kids are responsible for all of it.
Delete(And boys are so funny when it comes to peeing. My son when he was four or so just stopped playing in the backyard and relieved himself as he "watered" our maple tree.)
P.S. I too want the big post-its that scream out the things that are missing. I also suspect I'll get them from my beta reader, because she's really good (and really honest).
Your boy is a handsome young man. He has mischief in his eyes, and I'm not saying he looks like any one in particular. Med school? Wow!
ReplyDeleteYes, they do straighten out eventually. Four decades later some of it with my kids is still the old nature vs. nurture debate. I say they are like their dad.
Linda--Thanks. He gets his good looks from me. He gets his SD ways from his father. (Of course, it's actually the other way around.)
DeleteHe is indeed a handsome boy, and it's nice to finally put a face to some of the stories I've heard! Cathy Hall reminded me that my son did the same thing on a neighbor's driveway. Congratulations! This could make for a wicked book signing. I'm just saying.
ReplyDeleteTammy--Thanks. I think ALL boys (and some men) do that at some point or another. And it WOULD be a wicked, rowdy book signing, for sure.
DeleteMy son once threw a ball through the neighbor's upstairs window, but he cleverly wrote a neighbor boy's name on the ball first. So when the man from next door came over, mad as a hornet, blaming my son, I dug in and defended him like a mama lion. I said, "Look! it belongs to this other boy!" It was only a couple of years ago that my son told me that indeed, he had thrown the ball. I had to laugh. That particular window belonged to their adult son, who fancied himself a bass player. he must have played the intros to "Sunshine Of Your Love" and "Smoke On The Water" fifty million times, until I was ready to strangle him myself. So, my son got my revenge for me.
ReplyDeleteShay--Your story reminded me of a friend's family. Their mother told her five kids, "Don't tell me the story until 7 years have elapsed." She figured if it hadn't killed them or resulted in them being imprisoned, the stories could wait. And like you laughed, they laughed over their antics seven years later. Sometimes they noted when the wait-time would be over--to the day--because the story was so good.
DeleteI'm sure your son got his cleverness from you. And listening to the same thing by a kid who "fancied" himself a musician? Why didn't you do the world a favor and put one of those strings to good use?
Wow! Sounds like you did a darn good job of being Mom. Keeping fingers crossed that your son gets good news on his medical school application.
ReplyDeleteI'm in this NYMB book, too. What fun if we could all do a signing together!
Pat
Critter Alley
Pat--Thanks for your good thoughts. I think he will hear by the end of the month. If no school is interested, he has a plan B...
DeleteI agree. I left a comment on your blog about that. However, with some of the writers involved, the police might get called--because we might get too rowdy and loud.
Hoping for good news for your son!
ReplyDeleteI'm in the NYMB also, and I agree with Pat on having a signing.
Mary--Thanks. And congratulations. Now I'm even more excited about the book...
Delete