2017 Something New: Viking Fest

Posted on April 9, 2017 by peggylchambers

    I skipped the Heavener Runestone Viking and Celtic Festival this spring.  And I’m going through some withdrawal symptoms. Mostly I miss the people – they’ve become family.

The first time I traveled to the Heavener Runestone Park, we were taking a weekend and driving the Tahlimina Drive.  I’d seen a program on Discover Oklahoma that talked about the Viking lore of the region and I had to see it.  An idea was born – and so was the Oklahoma fairytale, Glome’s Valley.

Having made a point of attending and signing books at this event for the last few years, I made a business decision last fall.  I could only attend once a year.  Besides I had nothing new for sale.  My Enid Writers Club is hosting a Day of Writing workshop at the Enid Public Library on April 22 and the Oklahoma Writers Federation, Inc. annual conference is May 5 & 6.  I will be attending and working at both events along with some of the best writers in four states.

But I’ll be back in October with at least one new book and maybe two! I have several writing workshops this spring and fall is not so busy.  And the forest is so beautiful in the fall, it is hard to resist. So, look for me in October.

I wish the festival at the Runestone Park the best this weekend and promise to see all of you again in the fall.

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2017 Something New: CASA

Posted on April 2, 2017 by peggylchambers

    The Garfield County Child Advocacy Center has a great way to help abused and neglected children.  Adopt a child!  Well, not really but you can adopt one of several for only $25.00 each and dress them.  They are then displayed on the Garfield County Courthouse lawn during the month of April. 

I spent some time with them before the children were adopted and helped bring the wooden children up from the basement of the Care Campus and prepared them for adoption.  A little physical labor is good for me and I might have burned a few calories.  The children themselves were made by volunteers who cut out the wooden children and then painted them in preparation for the April event. Each one is different – just like real kids.   

This year there were 241 children representing the same number of abused and neglected children in Garfield County alone.  That number is down from 332 last year – progress?  I hope so.  But still a long way to go. 

The Child Advocacy Center https://www.volunteermatch.org  runs on volunteers and people who love what they do. They train volunteers to represent children who might otherwise fall through the cracks.  They are always looking for more volunteers.  Training is provided for ten weeks, sworn in before a judge, and then the volunteer is paired with the family.    They represent them in Court and meet with them once a month to see how their lives are progressing.

Check out the Garfield County Courthouse lawn and see the children in all their spring finery.  They are a sight to behold and guaranteed to tug at your heartstrings to see the number of children they represent.  Check out CASA and see how you can help.  Maybe you’d like to be a CASA volunteer.

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2017 Something New: Glome’s Valley

Posted on March 26, 2017 by peggylchambers

    Spring in Oklahoma has sprung.  And nowhere is it more beautiful than in the southeast portion of the state.  The forests are magical and made the perfect setting for a Peter Pan-type Oklahoma fairytale.

When Ethan came to Heavener, Oklahoma he didn’t believe in ghosts, fairies, or smelly trolls.  He never had a sword fight and never helped rescue a princess.  But there was a first time for everything.

He was sure he would be bored on this trip and missed his friends back home, but he quickly made new ones.

While his father tried to solve the mysteries surrounding the Heavener Runestone, Ethan was solving his own mysteries and exploring the valleys surrounding the area where his dad was working.

The Festival of the Full Moon was right around the corner and Ethan and his new friends had to rescue Hilda from her flowery prison before the trolls came for her.

But Loki was working his magic and Ethan’s father might have to summon Thor’s help with the app on his phone that converted ancient Futhark into English.

Check out Glome’s Valley on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, in paperback or e-published.  It is also available at the Heavener Runestone gift shop.  Check it out at the upcoming Heavener Runestone Viking and Celtic Festival April 8 & 9, 2017.  In Heavener, the forests are magical – be sure to watch out for trolls!

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2017 Something New: Renewal

Posted on March 19, 2017 by peggylchambers

    I took this picture in my friend’s yard. To me, it was a symbol of renewal. I don’t know what bird built it or if it will ever be used again, but it was beautiful in its starkness.  There is beauty in simplicity. 

Spring begins, by the calendar, this week.  The weather has been unseasonably warm this winter.  And with the good always comes the bad – wild fires.  They have devastated western Oklahoma lately.  But what is devastating to the farmer is a time of renewal for nature.

In keeping with the title of my blogs this year, Something New, I watch nature with a keen eye.  My jonquils are dying as my tulips are blooming.  I’ve done some spring cleaning in the gardens, but my aging body doesn’t work all day like it used to.  I must do it in shifts.  Unlike the burned prairies, I doubt my body will renew itself. 

A friend and I walked the block-long Art and Food Truck Festival on the still-bricked Maple street in front of Creative Arts of Enid and Leonardo’s. We soaked up the art, sunshine, music, and food as we browsed our way along.  I met many friends along the way.   

I came home to geranium plants on the front porch – a gift from a neighbor who said “they were on sale.”  Thank you, I know they will be lovely all summer.

My husband and I sat on the patio late in the afternoon – dragging out last year’s lawn chairs we sat out back in the sunshine until time to cook a late supper.  He’d been traveling for most of the last week and it was a time for renewal for our relationship.  The brilliant red of a cardinal on the fence stopped the conversation. 

Renewal.  Spring is a time when winter has ended and the hot winds of summer have not hit.  It is to be enjoyed to the fullest. Time a for a renewal of the spirit.

What did you do this first weekend that was almost spring?

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2017 Something New: The Apocalypse Sucks

Posted on March 12, 2017 by peggylchambers

    I’ve been in a pulp fiction kind of mood lately.  I’ve been re-reading Legends of New Pulp Fiction published by Airship 27 and looking at all the great writing styles.  I can’t wait for the New King Kong movie, Kong: Skull Island to come out this week.  I think I’ve seen all the Kong movies.

If you’re not a fan of pulp fiction you are really missing out.  I love fantasy (it’s the opposite of reality and who doesn’t need that now and then?), and Hollywood has really been scooping up super heroes for movies lately.  King Kong is only a small example.  Not that there is anything small about the movie originally released in 1933.  My grandfather saw that movie during the depression and was in awe all his life.  Not a man who frequented movie houses, he could not imagine how that monster was filmed.

Since I’ve been in the mood, I’ve been working on a new pulp fiction novel I hope will be finished this summer I’m calling “Flatiron Death Grip.” Again, it’s snarky.  I just can’t seem to leave the genre alone.

In my book The Apocalypse Sucks, I make fun of end-of-the world situations while studying human behavior. I based it around two women who were co-workers when the virus hit and killed most everyone around them.  They were not friends, but became family because they depended upon each other.  But the one thing they were to the end was girls.  They behaved like girls – if they weren’t fighting for survival – and still liked the things girls liked; boys, bras and lip gloss.  They were fierce warriors but with a soft side.

The book hosted a cast of characters trying to get by. They couldn’t run through the closest drive through for instant gratification.  They had a problem just finding enough to eat and then the bat creatures appeared.  Who were they and where did they come from? They soon found out that the virus did not kill all its victims.  Some mutated into something else – but they were still human – and not very happy about it. For them, the Apocalypse did suck.

Pick up a copy of The Apocalypse Sucks, with original art work by Andy Fish and Zachary Brunner,  and see if you agree. It is available on audio, paperback or e-published from Amazon.com. If you can’t make fun of the end of the world, what can you make fun of?

Let me know what you think.

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2017 Something New: Author Fest a Success!

Posted on March 5, 2017 by peggylchambers

author-fest-4    Yesterday was the inaugural Enid Author Fest held at the Enid Public Library. It was a great event!  Excitement was in the air as we met other authors and the public.  Books were read and sold and friendships renewed – or new ones begun.

I saw seven people from my high school graduating class and some of them traveled in from out of state. author-fest-1  We made new friends and read from our books. The public enjoyed the casual feel of the event as authors read and books were perused. 

Enid Buzz came by and videoed part of the event.

The library was even kind enough to feed almost 40 of Oklahoma’s best authors lunch. 

I can’t wait for next year.  I know it will be bigger and better. Thank you, Public Library of Enid and Garfield County.  You are a class act and I can’t wait to work with you again.   author-fest-2

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2017 Something New: Author Fest!

Posted on March 3, 2017 by peggylchambers

peggylchambers's avatarPeggy Chambers "Views from the Hammock" site

march-flyer    It’s coming! The very first Author Fest presented by the Public Library of Enid and Garfield County and the Enid Writers Club will be held on Saturday, March 4, 2017.  Forty Oklahoma authors have signed up and will take over the downstairs library that Saturday morning.  Many will read from their work and will have their books with them for selling and signing. The fest will be held from 10 am to 3 pm.

I’ve worked closely with Margo Holmes and the library to put this festival together.  The library is truly excited to host the local talent and I would not be surprised to find this will become an annual event.  Oklahoma is loaded with talent, and it is a great opportunity to showcase some of it.  Come meet some of them!

The library is located in downtown Enid, 120 West Broadway, and parking will not be…

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2017 Something New: Author Fest!

Posted on February 27, 2017 by peggylchambers

march-flyer    It’s coming! The very first Author Fest presented by the Public Library of Enid and Garfield County and the Enid Writers Club will be held on Saturday, March 4, 2017.  Forty Oklahoma authors have signed up and will take over the downstairs library that Saturday morning.  Many will read from their work and will have their books with them for selling and signing. The fest will be held from 10 am to 3 pm.

I’ve worked closely with Margo Holmes and the library to put this festival together.  The library is truly excited to host the local talent and I would not be surprised to find this will become an annual event.  Oklahoma is loaded with talent, and it is a great opportunity to showcase some of it.  Come meet some of them!

The library is located in downtown Enid, 120 West Broadway, and parking will not be a problem.  Come by and see me, and all the other Oklahoma authors. We will all be given five minutes to read from our favorite work and would be thrilled to see you.

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2017 Something New: Choices

Posted on February 19, 2017 by peggylchambers

something-new    My sister once told me she watched me reinvent myself again and again.  I reinvent myself, I thought?  I had no idea I did that.  I guess I get bored easily and want to try new things, but I never thought of it as reinvention.

But many times in my life I’ve come to a crossroad and had to choose.  What did I want to do, what did I have to do, and what was the best thing for me to do. 

I often regretted my choices, but I made the best of them after they were done.  Life is like a box of chocolates, per Forrest Gump, and he was right.   

I recently talked to a friend about choices and the things in life you want to do.  She was at a crossroad in her life and seemed to need advice.  I had none to give.  I’ve made lots of choices in my life but the one thing I tried to always do was be true to myself. Because at the end of the day, you sleep with yourself.  And there is a voice inside your that head says, you always wanted to do that and now it is too late.

I resolve that here at the end of my life (no, I’m not dying, but I’m not young anymore) I will smell the roses, no matter the thorns.  I will make the journey no matter the cost, I will write the book even if no one ever reads it, and I will love unconditionally, even if it hurts.  Because that is what a human being is put on the earth to do; love, make choices, and live the life they are given. I won’t regret my choices, I will live them and enjoy them.

That is my advice to you; live your life and enjoy every moment. You never know when it will be over.

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2017 Something New: Road Trip

Posted on February 12, 2017 by peggylchambers

salt-plains-dam    I needed to get out.  Friday was my birthday and I said I wanted a tour of northwest Oklahoma.  I needed to see the rolling hills of the prairie, the rocky canyons of Roman Nose, and the lakes of Oklahoma. We made a day trip, took the dog, and traveled from Enid, to Roman Nose, Canton Lake, and then back up to Salt Plains.  We made a stop in Fairview for lunch at El Maya (highly recommended) and then back home. The sun shone and the wind blew (it was Oklahoma after all) but for February, the weather was perfect.

I love the ruggedness of Roman Nose State Park.  We walked around and nearly had the park to ourselves.  Up one hill and down the next, we got a small workout. The dog was in heaven smelling every leaf.   roman-nose

I spent my weekends growing up at Canton Lake.  My parents had a lake home there and I lived for the water.  I found Canton changed since the last time I was there, but the water was still blue and the beach still sandy.  It’s February even though it didn’t feel like it this week, and I only saw one lonely boat floating in the small white caps.  My father used to fish below the spillway and it is now closed to the public.  Most of the trees on the Canadian side are gone and replaced with concrete pads for camping.  I can’t imagine how hot it will be camping there in the summer now.  canton-lake

Salt Plains salt flats are closed during the winter.  We climbed the lookout and talked to some other people out to enjoy the weather then drove to the lake.  The dam was running and gulls floated on the water – more blue water. I breathed deeply.

Northwest Oklahoma is my home. My family moved here when I was seven for a job my dad thought would last a max of three years.  We’re still here. I’ve grown to love the diverse geography of Oklahoma.  From plains, to rocks, to hills, and lots of water. And getting out Friday was just what the doctor ordered.

What part of Oklahoma do you love?

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