Tag: books

#AtoZChallenge | Book folding to add some Christmas tree love to Bedford Falls

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My favorite movie is It’s A Wonderful Life. I have a wall dedicated to memorabilia from the movie. Vintage pictures from magazines and behind the scenes photographs of Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed hung together are a visual love letter to this Frank Capra classic.

While those pictures are on display all the time, I also have some decorations related to the movie that I only put out at Christmas. Each December, I relocate the pictures that line the top of the bookcase along the landing of my stair case and turn it into a miniature Bedford Falls. I put down a white fuzzy blanket and line up my Cape Craftsman village pieces along with a snow globe depicting the final scene from the movie. Porcelain ornaments hang from a garland that drapes down in front of the shelves full of more memories from my favorite movie. Continue reading →

K is for Kendrick | scrappy little nobody: 10% defiant should be everyone’s goal.

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OK, full disclosure, I am not sure if Anna Kendrick was “Made in Maine” but she did grow up here so I’m using that convenient bit of trivia and the fact that I just finished her book scrappy little nobody to include her in my A to Z challenge this year.

I knew scrappy little nobody would be funny. Anna pops up regularly on those “People you should be following on Twitter” lists because her posts are hysterical. I recommend you take a minute to follow her on Twitter if you are not one of the six million who already do: @AnnaKendrick47.

What I didn’t expect was how relatable it would be because other than both being “Made in Maine” there’s not too many places where our life experiences intersect. She started in theater young and was performing on Broadway by age twelve bouncing between New York and Maine ultimately graduating high school early and then moving to Los Angeles on her own at age seventeen. It was a good decision. Other than a little ramp up time she has been steadily working.

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I is for Islandport Press | Stories connected to New England.

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When my oldest learned to read she became obsessed to the point where I would dread parent-teacher conferences because we knew we would be chastised with stories of her inappropriate reading. I am not sure reading can ever be truly inappropriate, but it impacted her attention in the classroom. If she had two minutes of free time, she read for thirty. It was a problem. Still, how lucky that she could so easily be transported into the world of books and so engrossed that everything around her disappeared.

Stories are important in my house. My youngest didn’t read as much as my oldest, but no one did. Instead, she was enthralled by the other side of stories. She became my writer. She is looking into creative writing programs at college now. It is an exciting time.

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The Travis Mills Foundation & Tough As They Come by SSG Travis Mills

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Tough as They ComeI had heard of SSG Travis Mills but knew little of his life experiences or details of his catastrophic injuries received while serving with the 82nd Airborne in Afghanistan. I was drawn to his story because I had read about the Maine based non-profit that he launched called The Travis Mills Foundation which is in the process of creating a retreat for combat injured veterans and their families.

I have not been directly touched by war. I have family members who have served including four generations of Navy sailors starting with my grandfather down to my nephew who is currently serving. I’ve heard the stories. How my grandfather was away for years during the war and how my mother didn’t recognize him when he came home. How his brother woke up one morning during his deployment to discover the men on either side of him dead, and he carried the memories of the war deep inside. How he hated M.A.S.H. because he couldn’t understand why anyone would laugh about war.

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#atozchallenge | R is for a Review of “Got Here As Soon As I Could” by Sarah Smiley

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As my A to Z Challenge theme is focused on Maine, I thought it would be fun to do a book review on a book that has a connection to Maine. Fortunately for me, Sarah Smiley released her latest book, “Got Here As Soon As I Could; Discovering The Way Life Should Be” on April 1st. It’s almost like she knew I would need something for the letter R in my A to Z Challenge. Isn’t it just like a fellow Mainer to do something so nice!

I have not read any of her previous books, but one of my good friends absolutely loved her earlier book “Dinner with the Smileys” so I figured I was in good hands. This latest book is a compilation of articles from her Syndicated Column.  Sarah moved to Maine from Florida about six years ago and she immediately bonded with the state. That’s something I can appreciate. While I didn’t relocate here, I have a great passion for my home state and enjoy how she tells stories that really highlight some of the wonderful things about Maine.

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