Catalyst of Change - Not Its Victim

Absolutely no resolutions. I mean it! I will not be making resolutions this New Year. Rather, I will be reassessing my world and its contents, and, where necessary, I will be making changes over the next few days.

I wrote myself a 'get out of jail' card about two months ago. I've flashed it at least two dozen times to avoid doing things I otherwise would be compelled to do. But, tonight, I mentally tore it to shreds. No more excuses. Back to the grind stone, or whatever I must call it, because it is time for me to become productive once again. Time to finish everything that is left on my plate from 2005 -- and that is no small task.

I have a world to create. The world in which my character Cari Pompey resides. I'm in rewrite and I realize that I've tried to put Cari in 'this' world and she doesn't fit. She needs her own world, a world in which she reigns, a world in which everyone else exists because they are perhaps figments of 'her' imagination - not mine. While I might not go to that extreme (note I say might not) at this stage, I do really need to spit and polish it all to a fine sheen before I'm happy.

Within the next three weeks I must deliver another character for sanction or rejection. I really dug her just the way she was. Edit notes after the readers' first read thru suggested that the character was pretty doggone solid, but, there are a few areas that leave gaps that leave questions that are better answered ... you get my drift. I've been trying to get an audience with her, my character that is, especially since we are approaching a deadline, but, well, I'm going to have to force the issue. Maybe I'll approach her with that old "I'm all right, you're all right" line so I can get her off the dime and we can finish putting this project to bed! I've made a commitment to her, though. I've assured her that regardless of where the current project falls (and all indications are it will be very well received) she will see the light of day - one way or 'tother! All I can tell you about her right now though is her name is Rowena. Rowena takes no prisoners and gives no quarters! Truth be told, Rowena has earned my deepest respect!

I won't even go into what else remains. I'll just say June 2006 is far too close. So, no resolutions - just life changes. They just happen to be occurring as the old year ends and the new one begins.

Lorraine and James

If you write you know that there are few things that parallel the rush you get when you receive a notice from a publisher that starts out with "Congratulations!". Adrenaline starts to pump, your hands might sweat (mine do), and you start wondering who to call or email first to share your good news. My first calls are normally to my brother, Leroy, who is a visual artist and therefore shares so many of my same types of creative roller coaster rides, and my sister, Hawice, who is just the very best friend anyone could ever have - ever. In retrospect, they were the first ones to hear me squeal when I received the congratulatory email from Jasai Madden, Editor-In-Chief of the new literary journal Lorraine and James a few months ago.

I was alone, though, when I received my copy of the maiden issue of Lorraine and James recently. No one heard my squeals but me as I danced around my house with delight, not because my work was included in that issue, it wasn't. It won't appear until the Winter 2006 issue. My dance was a celebration of the beauty of this work; its quality and its reach. It is a magnificent journal of global urban literature and if this is its beginning its future could not be brighter. Congratulations Jasai!

Christmas!

I'll be truthful. I was not prepared for the outpouring of love and friendship that has just flooded my way this Christmas. I thought that apathy had been set in cement some time ago and, other than the pimpish commercialism of this sacred day, the heartfelt sentiment of Christmas from my childhood was just a cherished memory. I'm still reeling from the cards, letters, emails and Christmas morning telephone calls that have proved me wrong!

Of special significance is the close knit group of writer's that have become a part of my everyday life the last three years. There are five of us; Linda Dominique Grosvenor (Like Boogie on Tuesday, The Hamptons, Pretty Boys, etc.), Shelia Goss (Roses are Thorns, Violets are True, My Invisible Husband), Carla J. Curtis (Grip the Rope, A Single Woman's Parenting Journey: Tidbits for Survival) and Cherlyn Michaels ( Counting Raindrops Through A Stain Glassed Window) and me. We have bonded like sisters, sharing one another's victories, battles, woes, almosts, hot dogs and breathless moments of surprise. Look for something very intriguing from four of us in 2006 jointly, but look for the flood gate to burst open for each of us individually as we present you with our new efforts. We feel like we owe you the fruits of the gifts God has given us. We hope when they reach you you'll believe it was worth the effort. Click here for more info!

Merry Christmas!

Eureka! Help is Here!

Okay Y'all,

Help! I've Turned Into My Mother is officially released and is now available everywhere books are sold! ReShonda Tate Billingsley has crafted a truly heartwarming work and it is topped off with stories about mothers you'll be unlikely to forget from writers like Janet West Sellers (Quiet As Its Kept), Pat Tucker (When Loved Ones Lie), Vanessa Johnson (When Death Comes Knocking), Angie Pickett Henderson, Toschia (You Wrong For That) and several other notables. As I've already mentioned on this blog my story, A Stretch of Prayer, is also included.

So you can pick it up at your favorite book store, or if you're doing your Christmas shopping at home you can order it here:

Trey Songz - A Stocking Stuffer

I did an article for my BellaOnline Emerging Music column on Trey Songz shortly before his CD was released. There was just something there in his voice that I felt would definitely serve to separate him from the crowd. It appears it has and I'm certain whatever fanfare he's getting now will swell to a bust real soon.

Recently, when I had occasion to view the video for "Just Gotta Make It", and I saw the how youthful both Trey and the beautful young lady in the video with him were, I didn't immediately realize that they were representing the strong bond of marriage and family. But, as I continued to listen to the words and view the unfolding story, my estimation of Trey's character, and the impact he might well have on his fans, soared. As I say in a follow-up article on Trey which I posted to BellaOnline Emerging Music yesterday, "In a social atmosphere in which irresponsibility is glamorized Trey does just the opposite. This song (Just Gotta Make It) "glamorizes" responsibility and it is absolutely profound!"

You might want to put Trey's new CD in your or someone elses' Christmas Stocking!
©Peggy Eldridge-Love - All Rights Reserved

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7 Things...

This one is thanks to my good friend Shelia!

7 things I plan to do before I die:
1. See a specific story I've held deep in my heart published as a Novel
2. See Pompeii
3. See old friends, TCee (Enez), Glenda, and Pete again.
4. Live in Carmel by the Sea
5. Become debt free
6. Meet my three closest friends in person (yes, that's what I said!)
7. Know God's plan for my life.

7 Things I Can Do:
1. Assemble anything mechanical
2. Make jewelry people don't believe I made
3. Love anyone's children
4. See straight through a snake
5. Write poetry, screen and stage plays, short fiction and non-fiction, and novels.
6. Walk you through any need or issue you have with your TV set up and operation
7. Name all 66 books of the Bible.

7 Things I Cannot Do:
1. Fly without being nervous
2. Cut straight
3. Sing
4. Fringe indifference
5. Be comfortable around Pit Bulls, especially Pit Bulls around children
6. Stay angry
7. Deny God

7 Things that attract me to the opposite sex:
1. Kindness
2. Laughter
3. Interest in what I think
4. Self Awareness
5. Ease
6. Indulgence
7. Strength

7 Things I say most often:
1. Really?
2. For real?
3. Absolutely!
4. Praise the Lord!
5. Okay.
6. Of Course
7. Let me check

7 Celebrity Crushes:
1. Billy Dee Williams
2. Boris Kodjoe
3. LL Cool J
4. Maxwell
5. Brad Pitt
6. Anthony Garcia
7. Michael Ealy

7 People I want to do this:
1. Carla C
2. Linda G
3. Tia A
4. Jaime R
5. Bernadette C
6. Shannon D
7. Keshia D
7 1/2. YOU!

Boots

Some say that if it doesn't kill you and you survive it you are that much stronger because of it. Fortunately, I've lived long enough to think of literally dozens of examples of situations and circumstance that proved that, in the long run, to be true. Today was one of those doses of reality that made me stoop over, grab the top of my boots and pull straight up with all my might. At first it was a little hard - I hadn't wanted to have to stoop, but then, as I pull, I realized that my boots weren't fitting properly as they were, that something inside of them, a stone, a pebble, something had been causing discomfort for a little while. You know if I hadn't even wanted to stoop to pull them UP, I sure didn't want to have to stoop, take them off, shake them out and then put them back on and have to pull them up again, but that's what was required and, much as I may not have felt like it, that's just what I did. Surprisingly, after the struggle, they fit quite well again.

Memory Lane

Look what I stumbled across! This was the signing of the recording contract with 20th Century Records for the group Pete Peterson and I managed, Formula Five. This particular photo appeared, I believe, in Billboard, Record World and Cash Box. I am not sure which of those this clipping is from. To say time flies is an understatement. This was my first signing as a Manager. (I'm next to the tall guy on the right!)

You Beckon - Light's On!

Well, the pace is picking up! Interest in YOU BECKON has had a revival and that's such a pleasant surprise. I think it's going to find its way into a lot of Christmas stockings this year. I would have thought that would have happen during its first holiday season, but it didn't. I couldn't give a book away (Smile) -- but now, finally... it's hot!

I really feel good about that because I sincerely believe that if the person on the receiving end is even marginal regarding poetry they'll enjoy YOU BECKON. At least I hope so! Check out the new promo for it:

Learn More!

Wisdom

Interesting that this morning I was drawn to Proverbs 8. I read the chapter with sleepy eyes, but something deep within was stressing that it was not by chance that I had come to those passages, that an intimate relationship with wisdom was going to be a must for me.

Right now I am wearing many hats, hats that require that I switch them on and off all through the day, hats that require a lot of personal interaction on many different levels. I often think because of that I have developed great people savvy -- you know, I think I know people. Well, I won't be quick to jump to that conculsion any longer, because I felt a sense of abject, absolute betrayal this day. It is such an unpleasant feeling. The unbridled me wanted to pounce, to point and scream, to yell "I see you, I see you, I see you" and another little voice whimpered in such deep disappointment "for what you really are."

I am glad I am not a slave to the unbridled me, that I can make choices, that (thank God) I can choose wisdom. Although my soul was bitterly disappointed, my heart hurt as I watched the esteem I once held for my offender fall, splinter and pierce all illusion, I grabbed wisdom and wrapped it around me as tightly as I could, rather than trade it for a cloak of anger or malic.

Wisdom. Proverbs 8.

2006 African-American (Boxed) Almanac

(Here's the box you're looking for!)


Click Here!









Okay! It's available finally! The American Greetings (Dateworks) 2006 African-American Almanac Day-At-A-Time Calendar. It's the boxed, not the wall calendar. So, you say, why is that such a big deal? Because on one day in this lovely calendar is a poem from my book YOU BECKON, that's right, one whole day is mine!

Now, I know what day that is, but I'm not telling! You've got to get the calendar to find out, and I hope you will, because the company I'm keeping in this calendar is beyond my ability to believe. Harriett Tubman, Billie Holliday, Madame CJ Walker, Sonia Sanchez, Patricia Elam, Ms. Griffin, Ms. Rudolph, Mohammad Ali, Booker T. Washington, information about the underground railroad, the first invention, the first superstar, and for 365 days the lists, information, a smattering of poems, the stories, the history, the measure, the breath and width of our worth throughout the globe goes on and on.




It's may also be available at selected Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target, and Borders. And it's also available on line through Forest Hill Publishing and a few other sources!

The Quintessential Mother ...

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Okay, you've got to get ready for this one! It is going to be phenomenal -- really! Not only because Essence Best Selling Author ReShonda Tate Billingsley is the author, but also because I'm a contributor to it as well (yep, I'm tooting my own horn ... tee hee hee) -- as are a hand full of other passionate authors! It's slated for a November 2005 release from Strebor Books/Simon & Schuster and you can pre-order it now if you wish:


It is the quintessential book on mothers and it will reach out and grab you whether you are a mother, loved a mother, want to be a mother, disliked a mother, understand a mother, miss a mother, need a mother -- well, you get my drift. Simply put, it is a must read!

Looking for a Really Good Read?

Take your pick! You will not be disappointed.

Witnesses

I'm trying to find a place to land. The sheer terror is gone, the white hot anger burning down to a blue-orange flame, the realization that regardless of the why a part of, a piece of this earth, this county, this people I call my own are wounded to the quick and I have had to try to locate a place within to absorb and comprehend it. I am a witness. I bear witness, but right now I'm not sure to what. There is "a" lesson buried beneath all the other lessons I am certain, and my prayer is that I not miss it -- that you not miss it -- whatever it is. I have a feeling it is not obvious, that it is already visible although very subtle, and that it will only be those who recognize it, who have that "ah" moment that will make it to the next level in this earthly progression of understanding.

Also, in honor of those impacted by Hurricane Katrina we lift our hearts in prayer. We have donated books to organizations and efforts seeking to restore some measure of comfort to the lives of citizens evacuated and dissplaced. We will continue to donate books to worthy causes as long as our supplies last. You can send a request to Book Donations! and we will respond as quickly as possible.

If the shoe fits...

PRAYER FOR THE HAUNTED

God help you when the
sound pounds on your
mental attic,
when the cries echo
in your unholy chamber,
when the helpless
float past your
rotting peace.
When you remember
where your weren't.
When you remember
what you didn't do.
God help you.

©2005 Peggy Eldridge-Love


There are things that drive men (or women) who would be great mad -- those acts of hubris or callousness that somehow refuse to be ignored, refuse to slip into the shadows, but rather grow and gain strength until, in the final analysis, it is clear therein lay Waterloo. Only those whose foot fits this shoe will wear it. They know exactly who they are (or are not).

Content copyright © 2001-2005 by Peggy Eldridge-Love. All rights reserved.
This content was written by Peggy Eldridge-Love. If you wish to use this content in any manner, you need written permission.

Accessing the Damage

A word of caution as we start to take stock of the damage in Katrina's wake. We must be very, very careful not to dehumanize those caught in the bull's eye of this disaster by switching words like "citizen" and "Americans" for labels such as "refugees" and "looters". Should we fail to keep in perspective who and what we will fail to sustain our own individual worth. There are absolutely no two ways about it.

Mind, take time. We are they and they are we.

Over There

First bird breaks soundwaves
knit in ones and zeros
that race against the light
transmission of your reply.


©2005 Peggy Eldridge-Love-All Rights Reserved

eMail a soldier!

Mahogany Sisters Book Club - Kansas City

Not long ago, The Mahogany Sisters Book Club of Kansas City selected YOU BECKON as their book of the month for review and critique. They extended an invitation for me to attend their monthly meeting to discuss, read and respond to their questions, thoughts and ideas about my book. As mentioned in an earlier post, it was one of the most exciting and memorable experiences of my life. For that reason alone, I wanted to share this picture with you! (I'm seated in orange and black.)

Anticipating...

a miracle, that's right, I'm expecting* a miracle! I'm naming it, I'm claiming it, and yep, I'm expecting it, so, if you've got a moment please send up a prayer that it will get here express!


I really, really, really need it!
A Million Thanks!

*BTW, have you got your copy of YOU BECKON yet? Click the candle to buy now!

Fair Exchange

It's been a while, huh? Sorry, but my life has taken a new and decidedly interesting turn that is truly keeping me busy right now, and truly making me have to take a good look at what I'm really, really made of!

I've stepped outside my tidy little cocoon into the real world where no one is going to give a hoot how well I write, how clever the greeting cards I create may be, or anything else from my creative world. What will matter is how well I accomplish what I've committed to accomplish for them, and in return I will be rewarded with what currently matters most to me... a paycheck! Sounds like fair exchange to me!

Courtesy of Freefoto.com

Initially I'll admit to having discovered some startling things about myself - my steel trap mind is just a bit rusty! Things that used to instantly adhere like super glue now sort of float out there in my mental cyberspace for a bit and I have to actively go grab them and nail them down before I can honestly say they are mine! Bummer on one hand, but excitingly thrilling on the other. I love to learn, love to expand, love to increase, love to become knowledgeable of yet some other facet of this world I live in.

On the writing side there are some really exciting things on the table that hopefully will solidify soon and one that recently came to fruition. I was notified that one of my poems will be included in the literary journal Lorraine and James in their winter 2006 issue! Also, several poems from YOU BECKON are slated to be included in the 2006 calendar put out by a major greeting card company - I signed a release for its inclusion last year, but I haven't heard anything futher about it - so, I'm just waiting on the calendar! A couple of anthology projects are on the table also - one is looking very promising, and another has a strong thrust as well. The Knoll Frames is still on target for December 31, 2005 - and I can't wait to say "that's a wrap" - a print wrap that is.

Just wanted to update. Be blessed all!

Dance and Swing

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We had all the little ones around last weekend for a family reunion and I was showing the girls (10, 12 and 14) a little more about jewelry making. After they left I went on a binge of earring making. I'm stating to stockpile for some reason. Anyway, these are a few more of the chandeliers (a couple I did a while ago)I'm making, but I'm really into creative dangles that I'm calling in my head "dancers". That's what I love to see exciting and unique long earrings do, and those are the ones that always catch my attention -- those that dance and swing.

Oddly, I haven't done very well with photographing jewlery, especially not with my digital. We finally took most of these with a 35mm and if ever I decided to try to sell them online I'll get rid of all the shadows and unprofessional positioning, cut off words and the like. The one on the bottom I just laid on my scanner - couldn't get it straight for anything, but it certainly picked up the detail much better.

So, enough, I've got to get back to writing. My deadlines are looming and as usual I'm tripping. LOL

Arm Chair Philosophy

Courtesty of Aarin Free Photo

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I think it's all in how you look at it. Life that is. And sometimes you think you're looking at it only to discover a week, a year, a decade later that your bead was definitely not on what it should have been -- or at least that's what you think you think. I don't mean to try to go off on a philosophical slide here, nope, not at all interested in plunging down any old slippery slopes, but I've come full circle in just this short span of time tonight to say I'm convinced: It is all in how you look at it.

Luther Vandross - An Ascended Star

(I thought I'd share my Tribute to Luther from my Emerging Music column with you.)

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My first thought when I heard of Luther Vandross' passing was that he was in the loving arms of both his fathers. A deep sense of comfort engulfed me as I imagined him dancing with his father - his earthly father - again. I don't know about anyone else, but as one who so longs to do the same with the father I too miss so deeply, it's a beautiful thought.





Luther was the quintessential emerging artist and thus I must give him tribute here. Although most of us knew him as the artist who consistently provided us with platinum albums and CDs, not everyone knows that he got there only after a discouraging struggle. Even though he sang background for some of the greatest, including Roberta Flack and Dionne Warwick, and they urged him to go for it for himself, the industry ignored his worth.


No doubt, had Luther Vandross, the emerging artist, listened to the critics when he first sought to market himself he would have quietly slid back into the background (a background that I must say he represented with extraordinary style, sound and class) and been content. But, althought he was turned down by every major label initially, rather than be stopped Luther took his own money and produced his own album. An album that ultimately went platinum.


His last CD, Dance With My Father is a most fitting and lovely exclamation point to his phenomenal career. If you haven't, you might want to dig out your Luther collection and give them all a listen.


Rest in peace and thank you, Luther!

Writing My Column

I've got to prepare my article for my Emerging Music column. I have a particular artist in mind, but I have yet to receive the publicity kit promised. I noted a couple of other new artist that I believe deserve some exposure, but for some reason I am dragging my feet in getting their features together.

Oh well, maybe I'll have a burst of energy later today!

Goings On

Posting daily has not been an option of late. My venture into temping was short-lived; three days. It was good to have done it, and good to know I do still have some very marketable skills, but other local opportunities called and I was more than thrilled to respond to those and leave that horrid, horrid man behind. Three days was more than enough to realize that his misery is contagious and to understand in retrospect some of the anxiety I saw in the eyes of those compelled to share his space every day.

Then, I got a twenty-five word email a few days ago that still has me in shock. It was the greatest possible vote of confidence any writer could ever dream of receiving. I was not expecting it and the door it offered to open was one I'd envisioned only in my dreams. The outcome is certainly not a certainty, but what it really, really said can never be minimized or discounted!

But, to make sure life stays in balance, a few very important friends and I got an odd message regarding something we're working on that has left us all scratching our heads. It seemed to be in such contrast to prior information and, for the time being at least, is somewhat unsettling.

More later!

Light on the Subject

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I'm taking stock, not because I want to, but because I have to. It sounds like a cliche but nothing better describes where it all is right now than simply to say that my life has spun completely out of control.

I'm incline, when it gets this crazy, to do something drastic. My life is pock marked from the evidence of those drastic leaps, most of which definitely were not for the better, and my pyche bewails the price paid and time required to undo those past rash decisions.

So, this time I will take stock and reach for every ounce of wisdom and experience I possess, I will pray and wait for guidance and direction rather than running headlong into a 50-car emotional pileup. I hear something within urging me to go in and assess where I've let my vision sink to by simply not paying attention to it. Heck, I know that's true because I'll be darn if I can even articulate precisely what it is even as I write this. Sounds like a good place to start then, doesn't it? With my vision.

Clearly I'm not going to find it stuck here in this corner, glaring into this computerized box, clicking through my "favorites" and "bookmarks" as if some website is going to miracelously give me the key to life. My life! Be real.

Enough!

El Culo de Bettie

I exaggerate the sound of you,
catch wind, fold arms,
thrust out both lips and hips.
They think you, not me,
callous, loose,
too weak to keep
faithfulness between us.
"Poor Bettie" whispers
pass through open windows,
fire escapes and rooftops,
"such a good girl scorned."
I laugh, exaggerate the sound
of my pain, fold hands
around my lips to hide
the smile that slips,
amused at who
is the true el culo.
©2005 Peggy Eldridge-Love

Emerging Music Host

Okay, so yes, I'm back. I'm hosting the Emerging Music site on BellaOnline.com again and I'm really glad to be there. I took a six month breather, but I missed it desperately. Music is that other part of my being that makes my tick tock. Music, the business end of it, was my career early on, as many of you know. Being a manager for one artist's production company, and then being personal manager for several other artist and groups was everything in any given day from sheer exhilaration to the brink of madness -- but boy did it make life memorable!

I think that's what I dig so much about hosting the emerging music site -- it's an opportunity to help give some new, deserving, gifted, talented, profound artist or artists some worldwide exposure. Sometimes that's all any of us needs to be able to take straight off.

So, check out Emerging Music! My first two offerings upon returning are of Trey Songz (I also posted it here on the blog) and The Swear, an alternative rock group. Our scope is broad, our reach is long, and we love making dreams come true!

Trey Songz - Baby This One is Hottttttttttttt!

If you aren't familiar may I suggest you will probably want to run, not walk, to your nearest source for acquiring the debut CD "I Gotta Make It" by Trey Songz when it is released on July 26, 2005. Believe me, this young artist is going to be Huge!

Trey Songz

I listened to the cut "Gotta Go" and found it eerily reminiscent of hits from the past from some of the legendary voices like Teddy, Marvin, Jimmy Ruffin, and Luther. This is not a voice that will get lost in the crowd. There is a taste of 'old school' and 'grown folks music', but it is uniquely orginal and absolutely Trey Songz'. So, do yourself a favor and check this emerging artist out! He is headed straight through the roof!

Oh, yes, if you'd like to take a listen check Trey Songz out for yourself!

Peggy Eldridge-Love


©Peggy Eldridge-Love - All Rights Reserved

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By the way... have you ordered your 2006 African American Almanac Desk Top Calendar yet??? Better hurry! When they are gone they are gone!

Click Here!






Subscribe to Peggy's new Yahoo Group!

You Beckon Updates

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What do you think? A hardcover edition of You Beckon is in the near future which will include a few extra poems and other tidbits. Above is the proposed cover for the new hardback edition. A black and white of this photo has always been inside the book and coincides with one of the poems.

I think there was some confusion with the original cover (which I love)

and it caused some people to assume it was a children's book. Thinking so, there were probably a lot of potential readers who didn't even bother to pick it up to see what was inside. Covers are critical! I think the new proposed cover will dispell that assumption -- I hope.

I'm anxious to have the hardback edition available before September because that is when major publishers who offer calendars, like the major greeting card companies, release their new speciality calendars. Although I'm not at liberty to say who just yet, several poems from You Beckon are slated to be included in one for 2006. My byline will be included, along with the title of the book. I want to be sure it's available in both choices (paperback and hardcover) should anyone enjoy my poetry enough on the calendar to go looking for the book!

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Mahogany Sisters Book Club - Kansas City

I have to say that I had one of the most wonderful times of my life on Saturday, May 21, 2005. I was the selected author for the month for the Mahogany Sisters Book Club in Kansas City, and was invited to join them at their monthly meeting where that months' book would be critiqued. I knew the caliber of reader who made up the club, so I went a little nervously, hard hat in tow, so that I could weather the critiques should they be hard hitting.

From the moment the first club member shook my hand, until the last moment we each hugged goodbye, it was the most validating experience I've had in my entire writing life. They eternally etched a place on my heart. I will never forget them. You ladies are all beyond awesome!

Tag! You're it!

Ten Things I Love!

1. God is the first thing that popped in my head, heart and mind - so God!
2. To Write
3. Being Fair
4. Laughter
5. Hubby, Sister and Brother
6. Learning
7. Old Houses
8. Carmel by the Sea
9. Cash Flow
10. My Friends!

I was tagged by Princess Dominique and I now have to pass this on to four people: So. . .
Carla Curtis
Monica Jackson
Cherlyn Michaels
Dee Stewart

You're it!

The Nudgies® Calendar

Have your ordered your 2005 Nudgies® Calendar yet? If not, now is the time to get this year's collector's first edition. 2006 is also available, so you might want to pick up both!

Click here for 2005
Nudgies® Calendar!





Click here for 2006

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Just in case you're not familiar with Nudgies® here's it's story!



Nudgies® Greeting Cards

Creator Peggy Eldridge Love


THE IDEA



In the mid-70’s a friend who was an artist brought a canvas and a small tin of oil paints to my apartment and elicited a promise from me that I would not leave that day until I had painted a picture. This was to be quite a feat because I prided myself on being a writer, but did not fancy having any particular visual art talents.


Although I gave both that day and my promise my very best, as the sun was going down what was before me on canvas was clumsy and amateurish. In frustration I painted over it until there was nothing but a dull gray oily hue. I took the brush, dipped it in black and painted a stick figure, its arms thrust out in the frustration I thought I felt. I had done this with the intent of showing my friend that the day had been a miserable waste. Instead, suddenly before me was “someone” that I felt an instant affinity towards; a slender stick figure who seemed to embody the exact emotions I was feeling, emotions of exhilaration, not frustration! That’s the day I met the first of the characters I would later name Nudgies®.


THE GREETING CARD LINE

Within a few months of my first meeting Nudgies® I had an opportunity to leave my hometown of Kansas City and relocate to Los Angeles. The stick figure painting was among the things I packed carefully to take with me. I frequently found myself glancing at it in my new home, feeling its energy and strength, and a sense of comfort emanating from it when I was homesick and lonely. I began to sketch the image on notes around my office and including it in letters and cards. Something came up at the office where I was employed and a unique greeting was needed for a loyal and trusted employee. One of our bosses asked if I’d mind sketching my stick figures along with one of my poems for that occasion. I gladly agreed to do it. Over the next year I was sketching and writing constantly for co-workers and soon their friends and their families. As the 70’s faded into the brand new 80’s I decided it was time to formalize my little endeavor and I began to copyright my characters and greetings, I created a logo and went to press with my first line of ten Nudgies® Greeting Cards.


To my delight, my first run of cards, somewhere in the neighborhood of 500 each, sold very quickly. I actually made the first sale to a unique bookshop in Kansas City while in town visiting my family. Back in Los Angeles friends and associates were waiting on the cards, and when I took them around to my favorite little retail spots a number of the owners were receptive as well. Many of those initial sales were to corner convenience stores or neighborhood eateries, but the cards were moving and they were asking for more! It would take another five years before Nudgies® had an opportunity to really test the waters. For a brief period in the mid-80's Nudgies® Greeting Cards received the full attention of both my husband and me and we were able to market it throughout our region of Kansas and Missouri and a beginning penetration into a few other states with the success of 100,000's of cards sold, but other business demands made it necessary to step away from that quest at that time.

And so, today, after years of sitting on the back burner Nudgies® Greeting Cards is ready again to show its stuff and share its gentle nudges of love and understanding with the world. I hope you'll take advantage of this very first opportunity to participate in the launching of Nudgies® E-cards! I assure you with Nudgies® you're sure to get your message across!

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LICENSING INFORMATION:

For licensing information please send email to Licensing Manager at Nudgies.

Nudgies® Greeting Cards is a registered trademark. All Nudgies® Greeting Cards are copyrighted. All Rights Reserved.

Busted!

PixelPusher

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I had to share this with you! I wrote it for our free flowing poetry day in one of my most favorite groups. Hope you enjoy it!

BUSTED

I thought he was gone
but he came through
the back,
caught me red-handed
fixing myself
a snack.
How could you,
he screeched
and flew into a rage.
For a moment I bleached
then I rattled that cage
I'd been forced into
on premise I'd been a
size three
when he met, fell in love with
and married me.
Who really knows
the last time
I had a square meal
with him looking
over my shoulder
making each bite
a big deal?
I've been hungry,
and lonely,
trying hard to be
his little doll
who could still wear
a size three,
but I lifted my
sandwich and saluted
him well
and told him
far as this size twelve
is concerned
you can go
straight to hell.

©2005 Peggy Eldridge-Love - All Rights Reserved

Psst:If you enjoy my poetry you can read other of my works in my book You Beckon.

Homesick

Photo Ditital Holloywood

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This is my favorite hide-away. For a while, at least twice a year, I was able to steal away here and spend a week or two, but life has been so unforgivingly hectic and stressful it has been a couple of years and I am, today, just agonizing with desire to be there once again.

The last time we were there we had this phenomenal suite oceanside with a full patio on the fouth floor. The view was so exquisite and the hotel's pampering so extraordinary that we did not leave the suite other than to stroll on the beach and an occasional walk up a few blocks to one of the great restaurants on Ocean Boulevard near the Pier. Well, I did make a couple of shopping trips for some Donald J. Pliner shoes and Jane Yoo purses. But, I think I offended a friends or two who live in the City because I wouldn't come off of the beach that time. One knows me well enough to just come on out and hang with me there, another has long since forgiven me, but the third -- I guess I should have been more flexible.

But all in all I am California dreaming. I'm kinda dangerous when I get homesick like this. I've lived in California and left it more than once, but in my heart of hearts, soul of soul I am definitely a California girl. I'm a duck out of water anywhere else -- especially landlocked here dead in the center of the United States. Heck,I need my pond!

Guest Book Saga

Free Photo from E-Cobo.com

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I finally pulled the plug on my "open" guest book on my official website. Like many authors, I had a guest book so that readers and other visitors could leave their comments. About a year ago I started to get the strangest comments and the commentors were from numerous places world wide. Almost always they included a link back to a site that was questionable at best, sometimes porno, sometimes selling pills and widgets, but never mentioning anything whatsoever about having read any of my works.

Several other authors have complained about the same thing and one by one have mentioned the removal of their guest books or finally, reluctantly, making them private only. I was a hold out? Don't know why, but until today I would just go in once or twice a week and clean out the garbage, make an administrative note of those who were repeat offenders so that they couldn't post again, and go on with life. But today, today one showed up who was armed with at least a hundred urls and he kept posting and posting and posting. I went in, cleaned up, noted his urls and ... yep, ten minutes later I get a barrage of emails about new entries and yep they were from him and he was armed with about two hundred more!

That's when I knew it was time for the sun to set on my old "open" guest book. With a swift click of the delete button I sent the entire guest book into oblivion. It is no more. So, if you were one of those kind enough over the years to post a note and want to post again there's still the private guest book. But for those who are members of "guest book desecrations international" ... adios!
Guest Book Notice

Fruitfulness

Comteche.com

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I'm ripe for it!

Red Song

Comteche.com

---

I turn at the sound, startled.
Was I meant to hear that?
Your lift in A-Flat, your thrust
in E, the down flap of each wing
teasing the wind,
a dance in minor chords
trailing the sky with
brilliant red song.

If that was for me,
I am flattered
you chose to grant me
a momentary listen
to the concerto
of your wings.

©2005 Peggy Eldridge-Love-All Rights Reserved

Centrifugal Force

Courtesy of OGPhoto.com

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I am a butterfly
who does not
yet understand
centrifugal force.
©Peggy Eldridge-Love-All Rights Reserved



This poem is a very early one. It spoke then of my thirst for personal flight, my ability to fly, but my total lack of understanding of the process itself. Time hasn't altered that. My dearest friend, Joycelyn, reminded me not long ago of my passion once upon a time for butterflies. I collected them in every shape, form, or image I could. Someone enamor of me when I was in my twenties, an artist, sought to declare his love by showering me with dozens of butterfly paintings, sculptures and even jewelry he designed just for me. When and where I stopped feeling that all consuming affinity to the butterfly I don't know, but somewhere along the way I set them aside. In later years I began collecting turtles -- quite a contrast, huh?

But, being reminded, I took a little internal inventory and realized that when the butterfly in me was free flowing so too was my joy. I'm going back now to reclaim them, to embrace their beauty, their legacy, their strength. And in so doing I once more realized that, yes, I AM A BUTTERFLY who does not yet understand centrifugal force, but I don't have to in order to be able to let my soul fly free!

Fifth Gear

Fifth Gear


I have never been
able to wallow for long.
It just is not in me
to stay down and not
get up
and get on
with the life that is
at hand.

Something inside me
will not be denied its own.
When I get weary
it takes over
gets up
and gets on
to where this life of mine
must go.

I never learned
how to drive a stick,
I have been an automatic girl,
but the other me
knows how and when

to shift
into fifth.

©2005 Peggy Eldridge-Love - All Rights Reserved

Who Really Loves You Baby?

Sachet L'Air du Temps

The scent of her lingers in folds,
creases and closed boxes,
often sweet surprises stumbled upon
on the worst of days

when angry men and crude
women rip, snatch,
and seek to pry loose

my smallest joy.

The aroma, easing forth at first,
a mere suggestion, strengthens
as if steeped in

freshly warmed care. A sweet sachet
impervious to boundaries seen,
relentless in its mission,
and, when it is gone I find

I am completely whole again.

©2000 Peggy Eldridge-Love
From You Beckon

So Soy!

Cheflive.com

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Okay, okay, I'll admit it! It's not fair. You're dieting or at the office, lunch or dinner are still hours off and I keep putting food in your face? I'm sorry!

Crystal Clear!

Took a break from writing for a while yesterday and today and tried my hand at making a style of earrings I haven't tackled before. These are a little crude, but I think I'm going to enjoy making and selling these. The bottom pair were interesting because I broke down a vintage pair of old Vogue earrings that had a handfull of very interesting rhinestones -- I used it along with some Austrian crystals and ribbed cut glass that I love to work with. I like mixing the old with the new, especially when I find some profound vintage piece of jewelry that, say there's only one earring of, or some of the stones are missing and it is no longer wearable or valuable by itself. Anyway, I got the hang of it, so here I come!I haven't done an art show for a while, maybe I'll do a few this summer.

What the heck, here are a few other pieces I've made:

Silver Spoon

www.e-cobo.com


Silver Spoon


When I close my eyes, run my tongue
across my lips, I can still taste
the sweetness tugging on the lining
of the inner edges of my vacuity,
encased in distant memories of dual
celebrations ringing in nothing more
than our mutual elation,

and all we ever needed
was a single spoon.

©Peggy Eldridge-Love

A Table of His Own

e-Cobo.com

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A Table of His Own


In a moment he'll round the corner,
smiling, needing, knowing
this is for him --


this love, this care,
this belonging
forever and always.


They are his aromas,
his place, his table
set with trust


prepared with only
his well-being
in mind.

©2005 Peggy Eldridge-Love

Homey Does Play That!

Putting Things in Order

I started to outline my next book this afternoon. I do a detailed outline so that when I start to write I have a "moving picture" in my head of the chapter I'm working on. But my writing process is far more like real life than a movie, because anything is subject to come up and if it comes up and looks, feels or sounds legitimate and moves the plot forward it becomes a part of the landscape.

I'm just coming off the completion of my novella, mine is the fourth one in line, and I was really worried that I wasn't going to get it completed in time, that I wasn't going to meet that deadline, but I did! Now I'm in the mind frame to flow with the same kind of energy pumped into that project, to hang with that genre, so the book I'm outlining is perfect for where I am. I want to take advantage of that mental space, it feels real good.

I do have a couple of other pressing projects on tap at the moment -- one I don't even want to think about, but I must. I've pushed its deadline up so many times I'm beginning to want to hide when someone asks me about it. I just don't feel its time has come and until it does, I cannot let it go. Plus, something else is going on with it in another media, so that has a lot to do with my hesitancy to take it in its original direction. But, let me not even start tripping on that today!

Church was wonderful this morning and I'll never quite look at "Peace Be Still" in the same way, and that is a good thing.

Peggy

Publishing Poetry

I wrote an article some time back entitled Publishing Your Own Book of Poetry. In January 2005, I was a guest columnist at Publishing Basics Online and the article appeared there. I was extremely flattered to be included in that savvy publication, as their Publishing Basics handbook, which is a guide for the small press and independent self-publishers, is a must have!

This morning there was an email in my box from All Info About Poetry indicating that they were including the article as their feature story. I was surprised and very pleased to be included in this publication also, since it too is very savvy, and particulary since its focus is the European market. It is based out of Britain.

A part of my new writing plan is to produce more how-to, inspirational and spiritually focused articles, as the ones I have written already all seem to be well received. I think it's time.


National Poetry Month Reminder:
SPECIAL DONATION
During the month of April, when a copy of "YOU BECKON" is purchased the purchaser can email the name and address of one of their favorite Women and Children Assistance Centers and a copy of "YOU BECKON" will be sent to the center in the purchaser's name. (As long as current available supplies last. It is void where prohibited by law!)
Available from:
Barnes & Noble
Amazon.com
Autographed Copies!

Please note that notice of purchase is the purchaser's responsibility.
Send notice of your book purchase by clicking Book Donation Here!

Ride this Bull till it Faints!

It's Monday morning and I've decided to be the catalyst of change in my life because if not I will in fact become its victim. I'm doing things differently. I'm dispensing with the routines I've established, examining the way I'm approaching even the smallest of tasks, and especially giving ear to my own self talk. I'm jumping on this change, throwing my hand up in the air, and I'm going to ride this bull till it faints!

Divine Intervention

Hey,

If you pray I ask you to say a prayer for me today. I've been trying to starve off some things, hoping that they will resolve themselves, but time to start being real real. I need help and I need prayer.

So much has changed in this world, at least the world I've experienced. There was a time when, if you put forth bona fide effort, made genuine sacrifices, paid all the necessary dues you ultimately received something in return. Might not have been all you hoped for or maybe wanted, but you did at least receive some reward for your effort. Enough to sustain yourself to try again. It was what allowed you to survive, to continue, to have dignity and to maintain your integrity. Somehow that principal has been severly compromised in the here and now - you can work your rear end off until the cows come home, and you still might come up completely empty handed.

I'm not alluding to the creative efforts that those of us who create know may or may not reap benefits during our lifetime. What I'm alluding to is the battle of sheer day to day existence. So, if you can and if you will today I ask that you lift this here woman up in prayer.

Thank you.

Next!

I finished it! Now I'm in the clean up process, but boy does it feel good to have another writing project completed.

Real or Imagined?

Excerpt from The Knoll Frames!

Now this is a little creepy. For the last week someone has been googling the names of the characters in The Knoll Frames. The first name I saw when I checked my weblog at my site (to see who'd been searching it) didn't immediately strike a bell because he was a very minor character, but then, a day later I saw another name, then next day another, and today another.

Hey! This is a work of fiction pure and simple! These people do not really exist. They never have!

Well now, it might just be someone who was at the staged reading of the play when it was done at a local theatre a while back, or maybe it's someone who is currently reading the script? Still, it is a little unsettling and most definitely intriguing!

The book isn't due out for another few months!

Respecting Time

I must use my time wisely today. I've got a deadline looming and I want to make sure I'm giving my very best to this project. It's a fun one and it's extremely exciting. So, back to the grind stone. Enjoy your day!

Okay, This is Square Business!

Nudgies® Greeting Cards©

Marriages have resulted from these cards. Square business! There are 48 cards in the line and they say stuff nobody has ever put on a card -- stuff that makes things happen! You think I'm lying? I'm not. They are called Nudgies® because they nudge the emotion, the feeling, the action across.


Nudgies®, remember you heard it here first! Check them out at Nudgies® Greeting Cards!

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Plus, check this out! Look What's Making Waves! and Here Too! Looks like You Beckon is on somebody's "A" List!

New Day Coming

Compliments of FreeFoto.com



It is time for change in my life. What doesn't change dies. I choose to be the catalyst of change rather than its victim. No more dilly dallying for me. I'm snatching from life what I need from here. The sun is rising, not setting on my dreams!

Post A Wish!

Ever wanted a spot to just "spit it out?" A wish that is ... to just jot down your wish, sort of put it into the atmosphere, in hopes some mighty wind of change or blessing might make it come true. Well have at it! Post A Wish!

Get Your Poetry On!

SPECIAL DONATION
During the month of April, when a copy of "YOU BECKON" is purchased the purchaser can email the name and address of one of their favorite Women and Children Assistance Centers and a copy of "YOU BECKON" will be sent to the center in the purchaser's name. (As long as current available supplies last. It is void where prohibited by law!)