Last month I read a book that set loose the dichotomy of emotions in me more than ever before.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green is all at once beautiful and ugly. Funny and Heartbreaking. The story of Hazel and Augustus is one plagued by inevitable heartbreak, yet it is a love so fresh and new that one can’t help but to cheer them on. This book is a one-sitting kind of book; you’ll be loathe to set it down at all.

Go get this book, y’all. Read it. Love it. You won’t regret it.

Just be sure to have a box of tissues handy, because the laugh-to-cry ratio in The Fault in Our Stars is pretty much 50:50

(This is part of YA Highway’s Road Trip Wednesday, a weekly blog carnival where this week they are asking: What’s the best book you read in January?)

Bull plop.

I’m not even going to get into the idea of organic farming when it comes to non-use of pesticides and the such. (Okay, I lie. I will say: buying organic from a small local farm is fantastic, but giant farming operations have to use such large quantities of organic “pesticides” to have the same effect as a small (read: safe) amount of chemical pesticide that it is actually harder on the Earth, and possibly our bodies as well.)

What I am going to talk about it running an organic dairy. Even those who are huge proponents of organic milk will admit freely that there is no difference in the milk coming from an organic dairy when compared to a non-organic one. The difference comes in the treatment of animals.

So you see the fancy-pants organic badge on a carton of milk and you know the cows are being treated better, right?

Wrong.

Dairy cows are treated like kings.* (Or queens, as is more the case.) They are fed high-quality food, given wonderful places to live, helped to give birth (because, my goodness, cows would be extinct without farmers – they can hardly give birth on their own and when they do they do stupid things like stepping on their brand new calf), and generally coddled. Sometimes, they get sick. Sometimes, they get mastitis, which is a really nasty infection in the udders. And when that happens, the farmer gives them antibiotics (injected with a wide-nozzle syringe directly into the udder).

When a cow is on antibiotics, they are milked into a bucket instead of into the main holding tank like the non-medicated cows. The milk from the medicated cow is dumped out. It is not sold or consumed by anyone. (Lest you wonder why farmers still milk a sick cow, ask a nursing mother what it’s like when their kid decides not to eat for an abnormally long amount of time.) After the cow is better and the antibiotic is completely out of her system, she gets milked into the bulk tank just like the rest.

But an organic dairy cannot use antibiotics. So what happens when a cow gets mastitis? It still gets milked into a bucket and has its milk dumped. Why do that when there’s no antibiotic contamination? Because now there is not just milk going into the bucket but the blood that is coming out of the udder because the poor cow has an untreated infection. Not only is that cruel to the animal, but chances are she will also dry up and the farmer will lose that income.

How among you, if you had a painful, easily treatable infection, would turn away the (proven safe and effective) treatment and just hope it rides it course out? I prefer not to take any drugs, even legal medications. But you better believe if I got mastitis, I would be on a round of antibiotics. It’s not fair for those animals to be denied treatments and forced to suffer in pain in order to earn a shiny organic badge. It’s bad business sense at best and animal cruelty at worst.

Think about that next time you insist your milk be organic.

*I’m talking about family dairies here. I know that some scary things can happen at huge corporate ventures.

All I can say is, What the hell are these women thinking?!

Okay, I know that a wedding is primarily the woman’s show, but pre-planning without regard to your (future) man’s personality and style is just stupid. A wedding is not something you can plan to only your specifications and then slide into the program whatever man comes along to marry you.

Ladies, I know your future wedding is a big deal and you probably want things a certain way. Daydream away. But please, don’t actually plan anything until you have a man to plan with. 

Baby Caveman is one today
His party was last Saturday
Such a fun little boy
got all kinds of toys
And so all day long we’ll play

Jamie mentioned on her blog today that she’d read years ago about picking a word at the beginning of each year and making that word yours for the year. Of course, you should probably pick a word with some meaning behind it, because, well, if you don’t then the exercise is pretty pointless.

After reading Jamie’s post this morning, I sat and thought for a while (and chased Baby Caveman a lot, but that’s nothing new). And after tossing a few words around – and, I won’t lie, seriously considering using her word as well – I finally came across what will be my word for 2012:

Achieve

2012 will be the year I achieve. This doesn’t mean I expect to get all the things I want by the end of the year, nor do I expect that I will reach all my goals by then, because many of them are more long-term than that. But in 2012 I will keep my focus on achieving and make sure my daily actions reflect that.

Thanks for a wonderful idea, Jamie!

Welcome to the farm!

Geek Father-in-law was, in fact, not a geek at all. He was a farmer. His grandfather raised sheep here in Star Valley; his father raised sheep for a time, but eventually switched to dairy farming instead. Geek Father-in-law eventually bought the farm, and ran it until this past April. This summer and fall friends, neighbors, and family all pitched in to make sure cows were milked and the ground taken care of. Things did not slow down on the farm, even if Geek Father-in-law’s body slowed him down.

Now Geek Husband and I are in the valley, and we find ourselves as farmers. We are learning the ropes, figuring out how everything is supposed to work. Luckily Geek Husband grew up on the farm, so he knows the basics, and we have a great support system of people to help us get through the first few years until we know exactly what we’re doing. Even more lucky is the fact that we will be running the land, but will not be milking cows. I value my sanity too much to milk cows. We are also very fortunate that Geek Husband’s two brothers (one older and one younger), though they live far away, are able to come down and help out when it is needed.

Amid all this change and turmoil, Geek Husband and I are trying to buy a home. Right now we are living in his Grandmother’s home (she is with an aunt in Idaho for the winter), and we are incredibly fortunate to have a place of our own in the interim. Still, it’s not really a place of our own; we are living on a suitcase of clothes between the two of us, with a small additional one for Baby Caveman. We have no internet access. Geek Husband is still working as a computer programmer half-time; he works out of his parents’ den because he can’t connect at our place (luckily the two homes are close to each other). Our web design studio has been put on hold, because so much of what I need to do to launch it is internet-based. (Don’t worry to anyone who is waiting for a design – those are being done still, we’re just not taking on new projects at the moment.) Really I just want to be in our own house so we can be completely set up and back to a semi-normal life. And so I can baby-proof a home because Baby Caveman is in everything. For the love of commas, Fannie Mae (ugh, why does the house I love have to be owned by Fannie Mae?!) needs to get their ducks in a row already.

So, that is life for me now. I live in a beautiful place and I have a wonderful family. Is this where I thought I would be? Never in a million years. Many people romanticize farming (let me assure you that the reality is a lot of dirt and hard work, and while it’s a good honest living, it is not romantic), but I never did. Never, never, never (one more time: never) did I imagine I would be a farmer. But two nights ago, as I simultaneously nursed a baby and drove a tractor on the way to feed calves, I realized that’s exactly what I am now.

I am a farmer.

John Delbert Bateman (3.December.1949 – 27.December.2011)

More than anything else, he was my dad.

So much goes into that simple statement. My dad, John Delbert Bateman, was my hero; he was the example I looked up to; he was my friend, and sometimes my enemy; he was my mentor and my protector.

Many of you who knew Dad knew him as a strong man, a humble man, a caring man. He was the kind of man who touched lives on a daily basis. He befriended those whom others ignored, and was the first to greet any new person he saw. Never was he unwilling to help out when a friend or neighbor needed him to lend a hand.

When one of his kids needed help, he was always there for us, usually without reserve or want of anything in return.  Except one time when I wanted to take the car to a dance but it needed an oil change. Dad was in the middle of milking, and since I didn’t know how to change the oil, I had to take over the milking chore so he could take care of the car for me. The cows got milked, the oil got changed, and Dad sent me off to the dance in his car. I spent the entire night at the dance smelling cow poop. Unfortunately it was me I was smelling.

Dad was born in Afton on December 3^rd, 1949.  Verda and Reynold Bateman, his parents and my grandparents, were thrilled to finally have a son. Grandpa always said farmers should have sons first so they can have someone to teach to farm. Grandma remembers that, since Dad was nearly ten pounds when he was born, it didn’t take long for him to grow up and be taught.

Dad spent his early years doing the typical things kids did: camping with his family, playing with his cousins and school friends, and the like, but from an early age he was required to help his father with milking the cows and other chores. Once, when he was about seven or eight years old, he was having too much fun with a friend. Mom says she thinks it was a girl. He came home late, and, knowing he would be in trouble, crawled in through his bedroom window and climbed into bed. Later, some cousins came in to visit and his mother told him that since he couldn’t come home in time to help his dad, he could just stay in bed and not play with his cousins.

Dad loved to ski. He got his first pair of downhill skis for Christmas when he was fourteen years old. When Jordan was a lad, he found Dad’s old skis in the basement and decided it might be fun to try them out. So he went out and found the biggest snow hill he could, climbed to the top, strapped on the skis in their oversized boots, and went flying to the bottom.

The skis were very old and the tip of one broke as he hit the bottom. Being upset, he went and found Dad and, with tears in his eyes, told that he broke one of the skis. Dad, being the patient man he was, said it was okay and that he hadn’t used them in years.

Years later Jordan still felt bad, so he went to the basement and pulled the skis from their resting place. With some epoxy and wood chips, he repaired the skis the best he could. When the epoxy had set he went and showed Dad the ski and told  him he should go try them out. So Dad loaded up his snowmobile with skis and Jordan loaded his with his snowboard, and together they rode up to the mountain. They spent the day together, skiing, snowboarding, hiking, and chatting.

That was how Dad always was – never quick to anger, always able to take time out for his kids, despite how busy his life was. Corbin remembers a specific instance where Dad took extra time for him. In Corbin’s words:

It was a temperate fall day, a Saturday to be exact. It was an afternoon much like any fall afternoon. I was hanging out with Dad, milking cows – a task which I often abhorred, but most days it did give us a chance to talk. On this particular day, I regaled Dad with my adventures of the day.

In the company of my cousin, Richard, I had hiked the densely wooded trail to the top of Call Canyon, a Winchester .270 rifle slung over my shoulder, in search of an ever-elusive herd of elk. Our hopes of finding them were extinguished that morning as we only found signs that they had moved to a different location. After a non-productive morning, we searched for a different way to descend the mountain. We settled on a ridge that divides Call Canyon from neighboring Wolfley Canyon and began our trek downward. Within what seemed to be a short amount of time, we discovered the remnants of a marble mine. Legends of this marble mine had reached everyone who lived in the area, but no one I knew had ever found its location.

After sharing this tale with Dad, we decided to engage in a quest to locate the mine. Dad was excited and we ventured out that evening without sharing the details of our plans with anyone – in retrospect, a bad idea.

At first it was easy, hiking up the ridge in the evening light, the amber leaves of the Aspen trees mingling with the constant green of the pines. The ultimate goal – the marble mine – had not been located by the time the sun settled across the valley and left us bathed in a river of darkness. At this point, the decision to turn back was made, much later than it should have been. Our excitement – mine at leading Dad to a treasure I had found, and Dad’s at finding the treasure – had overpowered any sensible judgement.

With only a sliver of moonlight to guide our descent, we headed back down the mountain ridge, our goal unfulfilled, but our adventure just beginning. Descending a mountain in the dark is not the easy task one might think, and soon we found ourselves mired in a sea of shrubbery. At this juncture, the best idea seemed to be lowering ourselves to the canyon floor by way of a draw that seemed passable in the dark. Upon entry into the draw – which was too steep to re-ascend – we found a pile of large rocks impeding our travel to the bottom. The rocks, being only slightly more passable than the impossible climb back out of the draw, were eventually traversed with some teamwork and effort. Home free! The canyon floor lay just below us. We continued downward momentum until a fallen tree, with no shortage of dead, sharp branches, blocked us again. Dad, warning me to be careful, led me through the maze of branches and over the long dead tree. We acquired small abrasions and probably a contusion or two, but Dad, ever protective and always agile, led me through the treachery and we reached the canyon floor mostly unscathed.

Ultimately, we did not reach our goal but the night was more of a success than either of us realized at the time. It happened more than twenty years ago, but the memory of that night’s adventure lives on. Dad and I both remember that night fondly and have reminisced about that evening many times since. The last time I saw him, Dad talked about that quest with a smile and laughed at the lack of common sense we shared that evening. He was happy we had that story to share and remember always.

***

Dad went to elementary school in Etna with about twenty other kids, only four of which were girls. He went to junior high and high school in Afton. He played the tenor sax in high school, and passed the sax down to Corbin, who also played in high school. Dad graduated in 1968.

After graduation, Dad went to work for the Forest Service, spraying bugs and clearing trails. He liked to tell the story of how he bathed while he was working out on the trails. There was a small, freezing cold lake out where they were. He needed to clean himself, but it was too cold to stay in the water. So he would strip down on one side of the lake, then swim across holding the soap. On the other side, he would lather up quickly, then swim back across to rinse off.

In January 1969, Dad received his mission call to England – the Southwest British Mission. He left January 23^rd, 1969, and returned January 6^th, 1971. Mom was the first person to see him when he got back – before even his parents – even though she was engaged to another man at the time.

Dad met Mom – the love of his life – in July of 1967. He was 17, and she was only 16. Mom says the first thing she thought when she first saw him was, “I’m too young to meet him,” meaning she knew he was the one she would one day marry. At the time she was dating his cousin, DeLynn, who made the mistake of bringing Dad on a dinner date. I guess DeLynn didn’t fully grasp that for a double date he needed another girl too. Dad wasn’t very focused on girls at the time, and it always took him a few weeks to answer Mom’s letters.

The following May Dad was graduating from high school  and needed a date for the commencement dance. He remembered “that girl” who had been writing to him and invited her up to be his date. Then he didn’t even recognize her! They spent many hours talking and getting to know each other. It would be three more years until they could get married, with his mission in between. Mom tried her hardest to marry someone else while he was gone – even getting engaged twice in the process – but it was always Johnny for her.

After Dad’s mission, he and Mom started dating again. On March 23^rd, 1971, Dad took Mom out on a drive. It was a dark and stormy night. As they rounded a corner, they saw another car coming, so they dimmed their lights. Immediately they hit a pile of tree branches that had been dropped in the road. When the cops came, they kept looking at Mom funny. Later Mom asked Dad about it, and he said, “I told them I was getting engaged tonight.” The ring came a week later; he slipped it on her finger as “We’ve Only Just Begun” by The Carpenters played. When it came time to pick a wedding date, Dad picked a date between haying weeks, and Mom knew then that she was not only marrying Dad, but also his farm. Dad milked cows from the time he was six years old and helping Grandpa until this April, when his illness forced him to stop milking.

In their early marriage, Mom and Dad lived in Idaho Falls, where Dad was studying at Eastern Idaho Technical College in the Diesel Mechanics program. Corbin was born in Idaho Falls; Tifany came shortly after Mom and Dad moved back to the valley. After six more years of trying, I was born, followed by Kelvin and Jordan.

Dad loved his children almost as much as he loved Mom. He told Kelvin a few times that he regretted not taking his kids on more trips, for being so tied down to the farm that he couldn’t take us on more vacations. Kelvin always enjoyed riding in the tractor with him, or tagging along as he fed the cows or worked on the equipment. I don’t think anything made Dad happier during a long day on the tractor than having one of his kids come and join him.

Dad loved his time with each of us. He would read to us every night, but my favorite stories were the ones he told from memory. He had a way of making the stories come alive like we were right there watching it happen. I used to love snuggling up to him at church; he would always let me lean into him for a while before making me sit up on my own, since I was “old enough” to sit alone. He said later he wished he would have just let me sit on his lap when I wanted to so he could have more time close to me.

Always showing his love for his kids, Dad was quick to help any of us out of a pinch, as long as he figured we learned our lesson. He hated to see his kids hurting, but he wasn’t about to bail us out of a learning experience. I think we’re all grateful for that now, and I think each of us kids remember times when Dad has helped us out of a jam.

He was never a vindictive man, but he sure enjoyed it when someone got their “come upins” as he put it. Tifany remembers complaining once about something TJ had done. Dad got that sparkle in his eye – he always showed his emotions through his eyes – and started chuckling. He must have figured Tifany was starting to get her “come upins” for putting him through so much grief. She tried not to complain about her kids after that.

Dad was a wonderful man, a hard worker, and an artist – though maybe he would deny that. He built Mom’s house; they moved in in 1994, and ever since he’s been adding woodwork and detail, making it more of the palace he thought Mom deserves. Last Christmas, he made us all checkerboard wooden cutting boards. Kelvin got to town and, thinking Dad was only making cutting boards for us girls, helped him out. They spent hours together sanding and oiling cutting boards for Tifany, Grandma, and Me. Imagine Kelvin’s surprise Christmas morning when he opened his very own cutting board – the first one Dad made. Dad always liked to say that he didn’t have many fancy things, but we all knew that he could make beautiful things.

I know my Dad was an icon to many of you here today. He was well known in this valley – the family name is as entrenched in this valley as the valley is entrenched in the family. Along with my family, I want to thank all of you for your generous support  and service throughout his illness. It was by the love and support of friends and family that Dad was bolstered up this last year. Your kindness and generosity will not be forgotten.

My hero has passed on now, and leaves my mom, my siblings, and I to carry on his legacy. We are proud of him, of all he was, and all he would have been if times had been different

I am most proud to say this one thing: Of all that he was, he is my Dad.

(Written by Rachel Bateman. Delivered by John’s daughter, Alissa Papi.)

But some of you are super observant and saw that the winners have already been posted in the Rafflecopter widget. So….

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

Cari Albarelli gets a full critique!

And first 50-pages critiques go to Peggy Eddleman, Jessica, Stephanie, and Kimberly Lynn Workman!

Horray.

Now I’m tired. No more writing for the night.

I’ll email the winners early next week. Or feel free to email me if you want.

Good night.

I couldn’t let today pass without a post, though, because Larkstorm released today (on Amazon…but don’t worry, Barnes & Noble isn’t far behind – hopefully tomorrow) and I am SO excited!

Remember the pretty?

In the years following the destructive Long Winter, when half the world’s population perished, the State remains locked in battle against the Sensitives: humans born with extra abilities.

As one of the last descendants of the State’s Founders, seventeen-year-old Lark Greene knows her place: study hard and be a model citizen so she can follow in her family’s footsteps. Her life’s been set since birth, and she’s looking forward to graduating and settling down with Beck, the boy she’s loved longer than she can remember.

However, after Beck is accused of being Sensitive and organizing an attack against Lark, he disappears. Heartbroken and convinced the State made a mistake, Lark sets out to find him and clear his name.

But what she discovers is more dangerous and frightening than Sensitives: She must kill the boy she loves, unless he kills her first.

 

Head on over to Dawn’s blog to congratulate her and find out where you can get your own copy of Larkstorm!

Sarah is especially awesome for organizing the12 Days of Christmas Giveaway & Blog Hop. Here’s how it works:

12 blogs.

12 days of Christmas.

12 times to WIN.

Listed on Sarah’s blog are the 12 bloggers participating in this blog hop. Between now and December 1st, each of the 12 will put up a contest post, letting you know what you can win at their blog. All contests are open through December 12th. Then, starting on December 13th, winners will be picked! One (or maybe more!) a day for each of the Twelve Days of Christmas. Then, on Christmas Day, Sarah has a super-duper Secret Santa Giveaway that goes above and beyond the 12 already being held.

Does it get any better? I submit that it does not.

I was given the fifth day of Christmas, Five golden rings! (hence the post title). But, um, my prizes really have nothing to do with golden rings. Maybe I will wear some while I am performing the prize….

So what can you win on my blog? What else:

I am giving away (another) full manuscript proofread and critique. I will read your manuscript (no length limit, but be realistic here – if your book is clocking in at 250,000 probably you should self-edit a bit). My strengths are in YA and MG, so critiques will be more in depth for those genres. Line-by-line proofreading is the same no matter what you’re writing, so that’s that.

Hey, isn’t it  FIVE golden rings?

Huh. Turns out it is. Which means we will have FIVE winners! But I’m not totally insane, y’all. Only one winner gets to send the full manuscript. For the four runners-up, I will proof and critique their first 50 pages!

But, wait! There’s more!

As a couple of you know, Geek Husband and I are starting a web design and development business. We are in pre-launch mode right now, getting everything geared up and ready to go…and building our portfolio. So, in the spirit of giving, we have decided to give:

ONE FREE WEBSITE DESIGN!!!

That’s right. All design, programming, you name it, it’s free. All our websites are designed to be used with an easy content management system (we mainly use wordpress, but if you prefer another, we will code to whatever you want) so you can update whenever you want without waiting for your web guy to do it for you. Full blog integration is included.

(Fine print: design and coding is free. CMS and blog integration is free. You must pay for your own domain name and web hosting. We reserve the right to refuse to design sites based on content. But don’t worry, you’ll be fine. If you are an author writing erotica, no biggie; if you’re wanting us to make you a porn website, we’ll say no.)

Since the web design is so large a prize, and to help promote the other authors on the blog hop, I will not be drawing the winner until the end of the year (I don’t want to take away from Sarah’s prize day and do it on Christmas…so we can wait a little longer). Entries for this will be accepted through Christmas day. Also, entries for the web design come from entering all the 12 Days of Christmas giveaways, not just mine. So go visit everyone else and enter their contests!

Enter to win the web design by following this link!

This week’s tip is a short one: put away the computer, take a break, and go outside. Some time away to enjoy the rest of your life will be great. Plus, you will be more productive when you get back to writing, I promise.

How are things going for y’all? Are you going to reach your goals this month?

A while ago, I redid my blog design, as you might remember. (Side note: I am redoing it AGAIN. Not because I don’t like it, because I do, but because Geek Husband is a programmer, but doesn’t have any WordPress or Drupal experience, so I am designing my site again and giving him the practice of coding it from the ground up on both platforms – meaning things I usually use plugins for will be specifically coded for me now.)

Anyway, during the redesign, I decided to get rid of my landing page and just have the blog be front and center. But I didn’t think things through. You see, all my lovely RSS and GFC followers were following rachelbateman.com/blah-g not rachelbateman.com. So pretty much my blog dropped from their feeds.

I repeat: oops.

So, rather than ask everyone to update their feeds, I’m bringing the landing page back and shifting the blog back to a blah-g page. Which mean I do have to ask those of you who have added me to your readers in the last couple weeks to please update my feed to http://rachelbateman.com/blah-g.

Sigh.

Thank you, lovlies.

Now, what you’re actually here for…A WINNER!

Random.org decided the winner for a full manuscript proofread/critique is :

Woo-hoo! I’ll be sending a message your way.

Now…there’s more:

Maybe because I’m having a sugar-high* but I’ve decided to spread the love to everyone that entered! Now, I’m not totally crazy and I can’t offer you all FREE full critiques. That’d be totally crazy. Totally.

But what I can do is this:

For everyone who gave me a recommendation and tried to win, I will proofread the first three chapters of your manuscript for free. Just shoot me an email and we’ll figure things out!

*Who else loves the song “Sugar High” that plays at the end of EMPIRE RECORDS?

2. I’ve given up on my baby netbook and its crazy, malfunctioning screen. My shiny new laptop is on its way and should be on my doorstep by Monday. Hurray! We found a great refurbished computer (more on why this is a GOOD idea some other day), so I totally got a $450+ computer for $253, including shipping! Shiny.

3. I am loving the suggestions I am getting for Halloween media. Keep them coming, y’all.

4. I made Baby Caveman’s Halloween costume. It took quite some time, but it’s done. And Geek Husband’s is done. And mine? It’s a pile of red fabric on the floor. I need to get on that, like, right now.

5. My mom and sister are coming to visit tomorrow. We are very, very excited…but maybe I should pick up this mess before they get here. It’s amazing how fast stuff piles up when you don’t keep up with the small day-to-day because, say, your baby is sick.

I am giving away one FULL manuscript proofread. You can win it for yourself, win it to give to someone else who will love you, whatever you want. There is no word-count limit, but if your manuscript is 250,000 words, probably you need more self-editing before you send it along. Just saying.

I will line edit any genre, but if you want to take advantage of more critiquing (and you should, since I usually charge more for more work and this is still…FREE), I specialize in YA & MG, though I am comfortable in many genres. If you win, let me know what you are thinking and we will work something out.

How do I enter?

Easy peasy! Leave a comment on this post and let me know what spooky movie, book, TV show, whatever I shouldn’t miss! Entries will be accepted through Sunday night, October 30th and a winner will be posted on Halloween day!

(You don’t need to blog, Tweet, etc about this, but if you do, I will give you one extra entry for any way you spread the word. I don’t need links or anything; I’ll trust you if you tell me you did it.)

What MG books should I absolutely not miss?

1. New!

If you’re reading this via email or an RSS feed, you can’t see it, but say hello to my shiny new website design! Actually, this is just a temporary design until I can get the real new design up but I like the nice autumn colors and clean look. Plus, the real new design depends on a friend doing me a favor, and since this friend is a busy, busy, buuusy man, I don’ t know when that is going to be. But I felt like I needed a change NOW, so I did a little tinkering. Also, for the first time ever, my Twitter page matches my website.

If you look around, you’ll notice I also put my writing page back up (with a NEW BOOK), added a review policy, changed my bio, and am now offering editing services. (Actually, I always was offering editing services-seeking out freelance clients the old-fashioned way…I just now decided to link it to my personal website is all.)

2. New-ish!

Meet my friend Kelli:

Kelli’s pretty darn amazing. Also, she’s a cosmetologist. So a few weeks ago when we were in Twin Falls for a few days, we decided I needed a haircut. Bad.

Let me back up.

A few YEARS ago, Kelli was thinking about maybe going to cosmetology school. Then we spent the week in Billings, MT for a series of concerts. Our first night there, she took this:

and turned it into this:

and then decided she really, really wanted to go to cosmetology school. So she did. And the next time we were in a hotel together (three weeks ago) she took this:

and turned it into this, much-much-improved version:

Did I mention Kelli rocks?

3. Needs-to-be-new

Sigh. I adore my teeny-tiny netbook. It is super portable and the small keyboard is just perfect for my tiny hands. Unfortunately, there was a major design flaw when they built these bad boys, and when you open the screen, it tweaks the cords that run through the hinges. Which means that after opening it enough times the screen starts to flicker. It gets worse and worse and worse until it is darn near unusable. Geek Husband has taken the machine apart twice to fix this problem for me, but the wires are just too far gone now for him to fix it a third time. Sigh.

4. big NEWs

After months of looking for a job that would allow Geek Husband, Baby Caveman, and me to move closer to the Geek inlaws, we have made a big decision: Geek Husband and I are starting our own business. GH will be doing freelance programming, and I will be taking care of the business and financial aspects (and some design if needed). We will start out by finding some projects that GH can moonlight with his current job, then stepping down the hours at his job, and finally branching out completely on our own.

Geek Husband is great with back-end web developing, as well as non-web software development. If you happen to know of anyone who needs a project done, send them our way!

5. Still sort-of-new Baby Caveman! 

See, I told you I have a baby:

L-R: Christa, Nate, Quinn, Me & Baby Caveman, Nic, Kelli, Jordon, Morgan

Childhood obesity is a serious problem and it is on the rise.

The issue here isn’t laziness, but education. Many parents were not given the proper education and tools to make good decisions when it comes to their kids’ food.  We need to educate our children early to help them make good choices when it comes to food.

As teachers out there can attest, it isn’t easy to teach children something they find boring. A subject needs to be exciting enough for them to want to know more.  That’s where The Standards come in.

Meet The Standards: 

From left to right: Nic, (me), Jordon, (Kelli), Nathan, (Christa), Quinn, Morgan

The Standards are a critically-acclaimed vocal group made up of five brothers who know firsthand how proper nutrition affects us. This is Nicholas:

just ignore Jordon's creepy floating head

When he was ten years old, Nic was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor. On top of the medical attention he was getting, his parents turned their attention to what the family was eating. They really focused on changing their lifestyle and making sure they were making healthy choices. The doctors did great, but Nic is alive and well today largely due to the nutrition choices he and his parents have made.

The Standards have inspired thousands of children back east with their Music with a Message program, and now they want to take that message to the west! Schools want them to come teach and entertain their students, but budgets are tight. Schools are having budget cuts left and right, and they just can’t afford to bring the program to their students.

That’s where we come in.

The Standards have partnered with Kickstarter.com to bring their Inside Out Nutrition Tour to schools in the west at no charge to them. But they need our help! So please, listen to their message below, and then head to their project page and make a pledge. Our children thank you!

And now for the part where you can WIN!

Want the signed CD and DVD but can’t swing the full $75 pledge? How about I give them away instead? Here’s how this will work:

1. Make a pledge.
2. Come back here and tell me about your pledge.
3. For every $10 you pledge, I will enter you in a drawing to win a signed, personalized copy of their new CD and DVD.
4. If we reach our goal in time, I will pick a winner!
5. When I see the boys again in two weeks, I will have the CD and DVD signed for our luck winner. Horray!

As a former athlete*, it’s really tough to be this out of shape. I am used to fitness and physique coming easily to me, and it’s daunting to think of the work that needs to go into getting myself back on track. Part of me is still struggling with the fact that I’m 27 years old, not 16, so my metabolism might work a little differently these days.

Anyway, Geek Husband and I have been trying to run regularly. We were actually doing quite well when the Bateman Plague hit our household and knocked me flat on my back for two weeks (somehow both Geek Husband and Baby Caveman bounced back way faster than me…might have something to do with that whole terribly-out-of-shape thing I’ve been talking about). But today I feel better, and darnit, we are doing this for REAL. We are starting an official Couch to 5K program just as soon as Jeopardy is over.

It is intimidating, but I can do it. And if ever I think I can’t, I need to just think about this quote I happened across today:

All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them. ~Walt Disney

*Anyone who says drill team (the high-kick and baton variety) is not athletic is welcome to come to my house, where I will promptly high-kick them in the face.