It's the first Wednesday in January,
and that means it's time to post for the
Insecure Writer's Support Group.
Happy New Year, Everyone!
Don't forget to visit and thank
our dedicated IWSG co-hosts:
Elizabeth Seckman, Lisa Buie-Collard,
Chrys Fey, Michelle Wallace, and Alex J. Cavanaugh!
In his Monday post, Alex
asked members to introduce themselves
in this first IWSG post for 2015.
So here goes:
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| Fundy Blue, Bay of Fundy, 2014 |
I’m Fundy Blue, born
overlooking my beloved
Bay of Fundy
in Wolfville,
Nova Scotia.
 |
| Wikimedia |
 |
| The Ever-Patient and I Breckenridge Christmas Eve, 2014 |
I live in landlocked
Aurora, Colorado
with my husband
and best friend, Terry.
 |
| Google Search |
I love
my native Canada
and
my adopted United States.
My Flag
Annapolis Royal, N.S.
2011
2011
After a stint
in the Oil Patch ...
Driller Jack Taylor and I
DNB Rig Doghouse
Kansas, 1981
 |
| My Classroom, May 2012 |
... I became
the eighth generation
of teachers in my family.
 |
| My Retirement with Joanne and Terry, 2012 |
I recently retired and
am writing full-time.
 |
| Hard at Work a Few Days Ago |
I’m working on
a memoir about
my family’s time
among the Oji-Cree in northwestern Ontario.
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| Fundy Blue Does Waikiki, March 2014 |
I have a passion
for learning,
traveling, photography,
and natural history.
And now for my IWSG post:
I'm excited about writing in 2015!
Last year I struggled,
because I was reliving painful memories
that I had frozen deep in my muskeg.
I’m past that now,
and I’m figuring out
how to research and write a memoir.
My memoir is personal,
but it’s also historical
because it covers
a pivital time in the history
of the First Nations people
in Northwestern Ontario.
A quote my friend recently posted
on her Linda's Peaceful Place
really resonated:
I know I haven't managed my energy well.
I fly high, until I crash and burn;
and I get involved in things that distract me.
Even worse, I'm a perfectionist.
I've had an adventurous life;
but I know I'd have gone further,
if I'd been more focused.
This year I'm concentrating
on planning my days
to increase my writing productivity.
Wish me luck!
My blog isn't called
Standing Into Danger
for nothing!
I have a talent
for landing in unexpected situations.
And I realized a while ago,
what my brother
really meant
when he said I was
a beautiful butterfly
flitting from flower to flower.
My Brother Roy and I
Peak 8, Breckenridge
2013
He and my sisters call me
the ADHD One
when I'm not around.
What an illuminating shock!
It explained so much about me to me.
Ironically funny, because I taught for many years!
I'll let you know
how the planning goes.
Progress so far?
A little ugly!
I have what Terry is calling
Dizzy Dame Syndrome.
It's really quite funny!
I caught a nasty bug in mid-December
which precipitated a dental crisis
and morphed into viral vertigo.
Those pesky eustachian tubes ~
Who knew they could cause so much fun?
But I didn't have multiple root canals on Christmas Eve
or a heart attack on Monday ~
so I'm giddy with relief and optimism!
I'd love to hear about
your writing plans for 2015!
Some great pictures! Thanks for sharing yourself in photos.
ReplyDeleteI'm a perfectionist and it can really bog me down sometimes.
A memoir mixed with history will be fascinating to read.
Thanks, Alex! I can't see to write a post without pictures! I am highly visual! I'll probably be one of those authors with a photo in my book, unlike mysterious Captain Ninja! Have a good one!
DeleteThis sounds like me!.... "I've had an adventurous life;
ReplyDeletebut I know I'd have gone further,..if I'd been more focused"
So that i'm trying to do also
It's really nice learning more about you Fundy, what a lovely classroom you had, and your memoir sounds fascinating..
TeeHee and thanks, Dawna! ~ Aren't you glad that you weren't too focused? I have one straight arrow sister and brother, a circular sister like me, and a third sister somewhere in between. Good luck on focusing more! Have a happy Thursday!
DeleteHoo boy, Fundy Blue, does that Gatekeeper quotation ever resonate with me! I have spent my life trying to be my own gatekeeper and the world fights you like a sonovabitch when you attempt it. Everybody thinks they're entitled to be my gatekeeper. No friggin way -- bugger off! Unless you're my employer and pay me good money for my time and energy, lol.
ReplyDeleteSometimes it seems like the world fights us no matter what, Debra! I wish I could be a laid back, go-with-the-flow person like my husband! Interestingly, my driven siblings and I all married great gatekeepers and flow-ers. Next time around I'm going to demand good money, lol! Have a good one!
DeleteI loved seeing your photos and learning a little more about you. I totally missed the intro bit from my post today but I will probably add one with next months. Good luck with your memoir. Happy New Year.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Suzanne! I'm looking forward to learning more about fellow IWSG members as I make my rounds! Happy New Year!
DeleteI'm impressed with the stand up paddle board? I think that's what you call it. It looks cool.
ReplyDeleteHi Susie! Yes, it's called a stand up paddle board or SUP. I had my first lesson on a rough-waved Waikiki when I was 63! Last year I returned for more, and now I'm counting the days till I get back to Honolulu to do it again! It is so much fun!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!!!! It was great getting to know you more, and I enjoyed the pictures you shared.
ReplyDeleteWriting a memoir is tough. I started to and then stalled out. I wish you the best of luck with it!
Thanks, Chrys! I'm glad that you enjoyed the photos! I've been struggling with my memoir, but I'm finally finding my way. Good luck with your writing this new year!
DeleteLoved your "bio" with pictures! So good to get to know you. Best wishes with the goals for 2015.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Diane! I hope your writing goals for 2015 go well too!
DeleteThe cat tries not to get all bogged down with everything, but much on the go so can be hard. Great bio indeed too, and yeah not having a root canal is always a good thing.
ReplyDeleteI've said it before, and I'll say it again: I don't know how you do all that you do. You are an inspiration, Pat!
DeleteThank you for the map. :) Good luck with your memoir - sounds really interesting. Are First Nations people the natives that lived there before the European crowd came to visit?
ReplyDeleteHi Tonja! Yes First Nations People are the native people in Canada. We used to call them Indians and Eskimos. They are also referred to as aboriginals. I meant to add in my bio that I love maps! But I was at the 100 word limit anyway! Thanks for visiting!
DeleteGreat post! I really enjoyed the images and learning more about you. "Dizzy Dame Syndrome"...hahaha...I love that one :)
ReplyDeleteTerry can be so funny, Martha. He doesn't look like it, but he has a zany sense of humor that has kept me laughing over the years! And he's been taking such good care of me recently. Have a good one!
DeleteI have NOT had an adventurous life, but I have recreated myself professionally a few times. Love your idea for memoir. I hope you do it.
ReplyDeleteHi TPC! Thanks for the encouragement. I AM doing it! I've morphed through a few professions myself! Have a great day!
DeleteWhat a great idea to write the memoir. Interesting post too! Thanks for the comment on my Lathkill Dale post - the name Lathkill comes from the Norse 'Hlatha Gyll' which means barn in the narrow valley.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Louise! My mind when I read "Lathkill Dale" went to "Somebody killed a board in the valley!" LOL! I did enjoy your beautiful photos!
DeleteHow nice to learn more about you! Good luck with the memoir!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sherry! I'm still laughing over your son's tooth dinosaur!
DeleteLouise we have never met in person, but as an admirer of butterflies and flowers your flight is one I do love following on your blog! I am sure your memoirs will be well worth reading. But reading between the lines here, I too find that wading in the back pages of family history while rich can also be deep waters where a floatation device is advised before going in! Very best wishes to you. Mark
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind and encouraging comment, Mark! I discovered burying it all in the muskeg didn't work too well! Have a good one, Mark!
DeleteHi Fundy!
ReplyDeleteI popped over here from #IWSG and thoroughly enjoyed your brief description of your life so far and had to laugh at your ironic reference to ADHD. I'm not sure if that is something that doesn't happen to us later in life, because we have so many stray memories, bits and pieces of this and that floating around in our brains, that we've collected along the way. But your pictures and your adventurous streak so resonate with me. I love the freedom in them and the idea that, well, you may not be too sure what is going to happen next! Congratulations on your retirement from teaching; as you know, it just opens a door to another career. Good luck with your memoirs, they sound so fascinating, both from a personal and an historical viewpoint! Thanks for visiting my blog and your kind words, Fundy. It's a pleasure to meet you! ~VF
Thank you for the lovely and thoughtful comment, VF! I think there is a lot to what you said about all the flotsam floating around in our brains. But I really do have some classic ADHD characteristics ~ Doesn't bother me though, I view it as a strength. I'm so glad that I discovered you yesterday during my IWSG rambles! Have a good one!
DeleteI loved this post. Thanks for sharing yourself.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sandra! It's good to see you.
DeleteThank you for visiting my site yesterday for IWSG! Aloha to you from O'ahu! Glad to see you enjoyed your visit to Waikiki (I live two miles from there.) Your memoir about ancestors in Canada sounds fascinating. I am in the early stages of writing "twelve-short stories" for a genealogical novel. One line of my ancestors is from Quebec. Happy New Year to you and your family. Best of Success with writing in 2015.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, Gail! I've been to O'ahu several times and love it there. Right now, I'm listening to our weather for tomorrow: rapidly dropping temperatures, with ice and snow on its way overnight. Brrr! Wish I were in O'ahu tonight! And I love the sound of your genealogical novel written in twelve short stories ~ what a cool idea! Good luck with your writing too!
DeleteI love your bubbly,sparkly bio! And the pictures are great!
ReplyDeleteNice to learn more about you.
Good luck with the memoir writing.
Thanks for visiting my blog on IWSG day!
Writer In Transit
Thanks, Michelle! It's so much fun to bop around on IWSG day, meet new members, and revisit ones I've met before! TGIF ~ I hope you have a good one!
DeleteNot many plans for writing right now, aside from my blog. I need to get the house organized for 2015. We've been to the Bay of Fundy and LOVED it!
ReplyDeleteHi Kay! Thanks for stopping by! My husband Terry stumbled into your blog and told me that you had been to Balancing Rock near Tiverton on Long Island. I have no clue how he found that! But I graduated from the high school in Freeport on the other end of the island. Made that ferry crossing many times. Good luck getting the house organized! Have a happy weekend!
DeleteHi, I hopped to you from Jim at Ocean Breezes.I see you know Linda, at Peaceful Places, and Peak 8, Breckenridge, that is where Barb ( live & Learn) often goes .I am always amazed at how many of us "know" another blogger, by name, their words, or interests, or links. I did so enjoy your story above, imagine trunks left on the shore, no furniture, and it would have been so cold, Brave people in those days. Not an adventure, more a survival. I will add you to my list. and wait to read more tales from your pen or laptop. Cheers from Jean.
ReplyDeleteHi Nancy! I've seen your icon lots, especially at Ron's and Jim's. I've even stopped by a few times ~ Do you have llama neighbors? Your icon pops in my mind when I drive by llamas on a bend in a nearby road. I'm off to visit you now!
DeleteGreeting Fundy Blue, we're neighbors. I live in Lakewood. Since you are new to writing I'll let you in on a cool Colorado experience. Denver has a great writers group. Maybe you already know that but just in case it's called, Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers.You can go to their web site at rmfw.org. Lots of programs, critique groups and a yearly conference in September. There is also Pikes Peak Writers. I've heard great things about them.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, my health doesn't allow me to participate at this time, but I was a critique group moderator for over twenty years. Good luck.
Nancy
Hi Neighbor! Thank you for the kind comment and the tip about the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers., Nancy. I've haven't participated in any of their events, but I do get emails from them. Mostly it's been schedule conflicts that stopped me from joining in. I'm sorry that your health has been an issue recently, and I do hope you'll feel better soon.
DeleteHealth issues do have a way of putting life into perspective don't they? Sorry you were sick over the holidays, and hope you're feeling better now. Good luck with your writing goals. I too am trying to put some order to my scatter-brain-ness, yes I know it isn't a real word but it sounds fun! Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lisa! I'm on the mend and feeling much better! Love your word ~ I m ale up new words all the time! I'm inspired by all those nieces and nephews of mine. Good luck with your writing too!
Delete