I'll be doing a regular "Thursday Update" from now on. It's just a quick update on what's going on behind the scenes at Golf Girl Media.
This has been SUCH a crazy week!
As an official member of the Golf Girl Media team, I’ve been doing everything sending off various emails to various people.... for various reasons, and working on ways to make Golf Girl Media, not only a company but... um, an empire? OK, maybe a tad bit of an overreach, but you get the picture.
I've also been managing some social media stuff, for example I launched the GolfGirlMedia Facebook page. Now (I’ve been told) I've got to help transform it into a beautiful, seductive, interactive place to connect... and exchange ideas... on some of golf's most fascinating people, beautiful places and unique products. The GolfGirl got on Facebook in the early days with a personal profile ...when that was the only option. Problem is, that format only allows 5,000 connections and as we ALL know, golf is much bigger than that. The GolfGirl's personal page is getting close to that number and the "Facebook police" are already telling us we can't add any more contacts. So this week we produced our new Page: GolfGirlMedia. So... if you indulge in Facebook please “like” us.
Oh... in addition to FB, I'm twittering (@GolfGirl_Junior), and exploring some of the other social media options flying around on the internet. I'll keep you posted on those explorations.
In other news: Golf Geeks rejoice! We're starting a new column at Golf Girl Media. We're calling it Golf Geek Weekly and we'll be reviewing the latest golf apps for iPhone, ipad, Blackberry and Android... including games, scorecards, guides and more. I'm crazy about apps BTW.
Finally, this week’s GolfGirlJunior poll was inspired by a suggestion from one of our awesome readers, Frank D, who hails from a mythical place called Ft. Liquordale, in sunny Florida: "Can a man enjoy dating a woman who plays golf better than he does?"
Drop your answers below or email them to me and we'll present some of the best on our BlogTalk Radio show next week, and share them on the aforementioned FB page.
Well, that's it for this week have a good weekend.
We are at last getting settled in our new city! Its so gorgeous here, I could spend hours wandering around the different neighborhoods taking it all in. I love that gardens are still in full bloom... there seem to be rose bushes and nasturtiums and bougainvillea everywhere.
This is the view from a nearby hilltop, looking north towards the Marina. The hill we hiked to get there was so steep it had stairs!
The architecture around here is just amazing.
Here are some shots from a recent hike around the Lincoln Park area; China Beach, Lands End, and the Sutro Baths.
This Sunday I'll have my first book signing for Disappearing Desmond, which just came out last month. I'm excited to get to know some west coast book stores and read the book to kids for the first time! If you're in the area please join me. Here are the details:
Sunday, October 3rd 11:30 am Kepler's Books 1010 El Camino Real Menlo Park, CA 94025 (650) 324-4321
They wore plumage of fine silk and frothy taffeta... in midnight black, icy white or one of several jewel tones.
The inelegant acronym that's so often used to describe them was forgotten, at least for this one night.
There were no WAGs at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium for the Ryder Cup's official function opening on Tuesday evening. The wives and girlfriends were allowed, for this single enchanted soiree, to simply be glamorous women... to be individuals and wear distinctive gowns of their won choosing.
Also present at the gala get-together was Prince Charles, heir apparent to the thrones of the Commonwealth realms, and an outspoken advocate for architecture (including... one might presume... golf course architecture) and for the conservation of historic buildings.
The golf action gets underway tomorrow, at which point the elegant European and American birdies will presumably fade into the background, dress in identical understatedly practical outfits and yield center stage to their talented husbands.
However at the festive opening function the women were clearly the stars.
Ryder Cup week has been underway for a couple days now and we're quickly getting to know an international cast of WAGs.
We saw them as they first set foot on Welsh soil... disembarking with their partners from the team's aircraft... and later, sitting primly in rows for a fashion show. A classically posed group shot is already making the rounds.
There have already been numerous stories of impending clashes between the Captain's wives, and entire features on the most alluring WAG's .... features. And that's fine. Many of enjoy such stories, weather we'll admit it or not, we're genuinely interested in what these ladies are wearing, how they're reacting and
And that's where tonight's topic comes in. Have you ever heard of HABs? Do you ever remember reading any fluffy features about the husbands and boyfriends of female golfers? Or female athletes in any sport? Have you ever seen smiling male "partners" in perfectly posed group portraits? Not so much, right?
And that brings us to our subject: What exactly is the role of a professional athlete's partner and why is is so different for women and men? That's what we'll be talking about tonight on Only Two Things. You can join the conversation on-air by using our call-in number, which is: 917-889-9592. Or weigh in at the chat room or on Twitter... or just have a listen at Blog Talk Radio. Talk to you tonight.
So I was incredibly honored to be one the authors at the Boston Public Library's Literary Lights Event this past Sunday: One of the best things at this event was something that Jerry Spinelli noted in his speech, it was an event where there were more children than adults: Which made it wonderful. Also what made it quite wonderful was that I got to rub elbows with literary greats such as Karen Hesse, Neil Gaiman (!!) and the aforementioned Jerry Spinelli.
See how happy I am? They were extremely nice to me, especially considering how awkward I felt during certain star-struck moments. Thank goodness for the the children and everyone involved who helped smooth things out for me for the rest of the event, making me feel like I wasn't quite akimbo next to the other authors. I think this is the first time where I can honestly say my hand did get tired from signing. Never has a muscle cramp caused such happiness! Ha ha!
And with that, I will leave you with the little speech I said upon receiving my lovely award:
When I asked what they’d like me to talk about in my five minutes, they said any tips or advice that would be helpful to a young writer. Well, I like to think I am still a young writer but I guess according to the actual calendar I am not. I remember one of the first stories I wrote. It came to me like magic, as if the gorgeous rainbow the sky ended at my brain. The words poured out of me like a fountain and I wrote and I wrote and I wrote. When I was done, I knew it was great. It was best story ever. And because it was the best story, I decided it should be published. I sent it to a publishing company and waited for them to make it into a book. Instead, I got a rejection letter. “We’re sorry, we cannot offer publication of your story,” they said. “Well, what did they know?” I thought and I sent it to another publisher and got another rejection. And then another publisher and another rejection, again and again. Finally, I put the story in a drawer and, this is very, very important, I wrote another story. And I wrote another story after that and another after until over ten years later, I am now here at the Boston Public Library with my stories being honored alongside Jerry Spinelli, Karen Hesse and Neil Gaiman. So, recently, I opened that drawer with my first story in it. And I read it. And you know what?
It was absolutely awful.
No wonder it wasn’t published. Reading it was like 1,000 raining clouds inside your bedroom while you are trying to sleep. I was so, so embarrassed that I had thought it was the best story ever. So when I was trying to think of advice for young writers, I came up with this: Be humble. Know that what you have written is not the best. But, also, be confident. What you will write will be better.
by Jordan Farr Whether or not you think the newly-enacted Ryder Cup “no tweet law" belongs in the “Stupid Law Book” ... you should know it’s has been implemented for a reason.
What that reason is, I don’t think anyone quite knows for sure. However, what is clear is that some golfers believe it’s down right silly, unfair and quite... um... ignorable.
The European team’s ever-so-social Ian Poulter is officially the first of the Ryder Cup players to conveniently overlook the no tweeting law. And he did so with the utmost respect for everyone’s privacy.
Oh, I would list all of the player’s twitter handles here, but I don't think their Captains want you distracting them.
BTW - I spent yesterday playing golf with GolfGirl... and I believe I spotted her Tweeting on several occasions.
This past weekend I flew down to Charlotte, NC for the SCBWI Carolinas conference. We all promised not to blog or tweet any details, so instead I'll just post a few pictures and say that it was a truly exceptional conference. I personally learned a lot from the wonderful faculty, including Dial Senior Editor Liz Waniewski (who started as our intern in the Boston office 10 or so years ago!), Art Director at S&S Laurent Linn, and author and marketing guru Shelli Johannes-Wells.
The audience during the First Pages session
Liz speaks about Dial
me and faculty member author/illustrator Elizabeth Dulemba
Elizabeth and my delicious (and partially eaten by this point) red velvet cake
Shelli's decadent chocolate dessert (yes, I had a bite...or two...)
The pool!
Shelli sharing marketing and publicity wisdom
Some of the faculty on the last day. L to R: Authors Steve Watkins, Fran Cannon Slayton, me, Shelli, author Alan Gratz (top), agent Chris Richmond, and Liz
It was really great getting to know everyone at the conference--my only complaint is that I didn't have more time to spend and actually see the city. Oh well, I'll just have to go back again someday.
Interesting, under-reported golf stories... or well-written renderings of the most talked about events. ~ Innovative and unusual products, provocative people, inviting places. ~ That’s Monday Eclectic.
At Lisa Horn's awesome Fox Sports Tweet Tweet a sartorially sensitive exchange between @stewartcink, @IanJamesPoulter and @PaulAzinger was revealed. It seems to indicate that a certain lavender sweater may be showing up on eBay before the action starts at Celtic Manor.
Speaking of upcoming events at Celtic Manor, BBC News reports that in anticipation a Ryder-related rise in demand for ...um, erotic services... Newport’s forces-of-order are being... “pragmatic”... about certain activities related to the sale of sex... in spite of the pesky “Victorian moral code”.
The “vice girls” are doing some creative marketing as well according to Wales Online... and they don’t have any issues with using a certain fallen golfer in their advertising.
French fashion house Lacoste... an iconic golf sponsor, and one of my all time favorite brands... recently created a futuristic concept car with Citroën for the Paris Motor Show... and guess what? It’s quite reminiscent of... a golf cart. It’s adorable!
I got an email from Jordan @GolfGirl_Junior on Saturday that had this as the subject \(*.*)/ Yay Ryo \(*.*)/ It was her way of informing me of Ryo Ishikawa’s awesome ace at the Panasonic Open.
Oh, and since it’s just days away, one final Ryder-related story from MIRROR.CO.UK : It seems one man’s “Dear Jack” letter... led him to a career in golf course design. He’s now part of Spain’s bid for the 2018 Ryder Cup.
At first this surprised me, you see, I’m still getting to know golf and its stars... the personalities and past histories. I thought this was a stretch, I mean golf has such a conservative reputation, I was thinking jeez, what is this... a “golfer gone rogue” or something?
Well, as it turns out... not so much. I quickly found out, there was a precedent... Mr. Villegas isn’t the only golfer who’s posed nude, three LPGA players posed for the issue last year, including Christina Kim, another Golf Girl favorite. So far, the reception Spiderman’s gotten has been mild compared to the one that greeted Ms. Kim and her LPGA colleagues when they hoped onto a golf cart in the altogether last year.
Now, Mr. Villegas has been a fitness model for a while, and that’s probably part of why he wanted to be in the issue... after all, he offered to do it. And though he's a stellar golfer he admits it's always a battle. “Golf is a messed-up game." he stated, adding that "When you feel you’ve figured it out is when you’re going to struggle.”
But Camilo is fun loving and even makes jokes on the green. In the NYT article yesterday, he told a story of when two of his friends showed up late for one his tournaments, once they finally arrived he got not one, but TWO birdies! At which point he told them, “Why didn’t you get here earlier?”
So, What do you all of you think of these new-style golfers -- younger and more open? Is this good or bad for the game? Personally, I think it is great... But then I may a bit biased.
Photos: Scott Halleran/Getty Images North America Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
Abstract Fiber has a back to school special! Our Jasmine makes the very clever and pretty Flatbox Knitting bags to help pay for her college expenses. It’s time to buy books, so she’s offering a limited time special 10% discount on her bags when you buy them from AbstractFiber.com Check out AbstractFiber.com for a store near you or shop online and receive free shipping on orders over $100.
Everything's coming up Cassidy at Purlescence Yarns! Join us for our fabulous fall Cassidy Knit-Along, featuring Chic Knit's wonderful cabled cardigan pattern. We're loving this piece knit in Manos Rittenhouse Merino 5-Ply, Cascade Venezia & Eco Wool, Lorna's Laces Green Line Worsted & Shepherd Worsted, to name but a few. Mention the Knitmore Girls when you place your order for 10% off your yarn purchase for the KAL through the end of September. And don't forget, Amy Singer is coming November 2 to teach her Non-Wool Socks Class. Seats in this class are limited, so sign up early!
Take your knitting skills to new levels with instruction from the country’s top knit designers at STITCHES ETC on November 1 and 2. Work one-on-one with Isager, Mondragon, Bortner, Duvekot, Slicer-Smith, Brown-Reinsel, and Bush. Learn to build on classic designs, master one-yarn intarsia, and enter the world of entrelac…plus much, much more! This 2-day experience begins immediately following STITCHES EAST Knitting Expo at the Marriott Hartford Downtown and Connecticut Convention Center. STITCHES EAST Knitting Expo is October 28 through 31. Easy registration for STITCHES ETC and STITCHES EAST Knitting Expo classes are available online at knittinguniverse.com.
"People who enjoy this album may think I'm cloth-eared and unperceptive, and I accept it's the result of my personal shortcomings, but what I hear in Arcade Fire is an agglomeration of mannerisms, cliches and devices. I find it solidly unattractive, texturally nasty, a bit harmonically and melodically dull, bombastic and melodramatic, and the rhythms are pedestrian. It's monotonous in its textures and in the old-fashioned, nasty, clunky 80s rhythms and eighth-note basslines. It isn't, as people are suggesting, richly rewarding and inventive. The melodies stick too closely to the chord changes. Win Butler's voice uses certain stylistic devices - it goes wobbly and shouty, then whispery - and I guess people like wobbly and shouty going to whispery, they think it signifies real feeling. It's some people's idea of unmediated emotion. I can imagine Jeremy Clarkson liking it; it's for people in cars. It's rather flat and unlovely. The album and the response to it represent a bunch of beliefs about expression and truth that I don't share. The battle against unreconstructed rock music continues."
Last night a four-year old I babysit for exclaimed, angrily and dramatically: "For the love of mice!"' Then he said he wanted to whisper something in my ear: "For the love of Christ!" (His mother swears sometimes, and his father really disapproves.) He added, "But we're not supposed to say that." He looked up, worried: "Is it all right to say 'for the love of mice'?"
This reminded me of how senseless many adult things are to kids - and also of how logical children are, in their own way. Their logic is pretty unhampered by knowing the reasoning behind things, so it's sometimes hard to see. I always feel like I've solved a mystery when I spot it.
This is a better example. Another child I babysit for always wants to walk on the double yellow lines in the middle of the street, and gets really mad when I won't let him. The other day, the penny dropped: I had just watched him cross a street at the crosswalk, stepping only on the white-striped lines (not the black spaces between them). The next street had no sidewalk, and once again, he wanted to walk on the double yellow lines in the middle of the road. "But why not on THOSE lines?" he said and that's when I got it. (And explained what they were for. He hasn't asked to walk on them since.)
I love child logic -- when I can spot it -- and it doesn't often appear in books. Lewis Carroll uses it-- not one of my favorites NOW, but as a child I did like Alice. I liked the way she reasoned things out and thought she was really smart. The idea that her reasoning was funny never entered my mind. I actually don't find it funny now, either, but I know it's supposed to be.
Maybe that's why children's logic isn't written about more: children would approve of a character who displayed child logic, but not find her funny. Adults might -- but they might also find it boring or silly. What *I'd* like to do is write a mystery that used child logic -- their logic could solve the case. Adult readers might find the kids' thinking funny at first but then (as in all the best mysteries) everything would tie together and make sense at the end -- including the kids' thinking.
The brand was actually launched in 1923, when Mario Columbo decided to build the first factory. Nowadays the golf line is being worn not only by Eduardo but also by Molinari role model Constantino Rocco.
A friend sent me the video in anticipation of the upcoming Ryder Club, where as you surely know, Edoardo will be playing... along with his brother... and Signor Rocca will be cheering them on.
I read with interest Alvina's post Speak Loudly the other day. I was really touched by the poem Listen that Laurie Halse Anderson wrote based on reader response to her book Speak. I'm posting Laurie's poem at Blue Rose Girls for you today--along with a poem that author Ellen Hopkins wrote last year for Banned Books Week and two poems that I wrote some time ago.
From the guardian.co.uk (September 24, 2009) Banned Books Week adopts author's anti-censorship poem as manifesto US author Ellen Hopkins, whose young adult fiction tackles controversial topics, writes a poem addressing censorship to coincide with Banned Books Week (2009)
Excerpt: An author of young adult fiction whose books have provoked bans and complaints in the US for tackling controversial topics such as teenage prostitution and drug addiction has written a poem that is being used to champion the cause of banned books across America.
The author, Ellen Hopkins, this week saw a school visit in Oklahoma cancelled after a parent complained about her New York Times bestselling novels Crank and Glass – loosely based on her own daughter's story of addiction to crystal meth. "I have had my books challenged before, but never had an event cancelled because of a challenge. I was then and remain incensed that a single person could go to the school and make that happen," said Hopkins. "No one person should have that kind of power. No person should be able to choose what anyone else's child can or can't read, let alone who they can see speak to. Some of the kids were devastated."
The idea to write a poem addressing banned books and censorship came to her after all her books were banned from an Idaho town, she said, because her novel Burned features a Mormon girl who is questioning her faith because she can't get help for her family, whose patriarch is abusive. "Pocatello has a large Mormon population, but half the town isn't Mormon. And the book isn't a slam against the religion, anyway ... it's one girl's story," she said. "How can half the town censor the other's ability to read something? Anyway, that's where the idea came for me to write a poem."
Here are two excerpts from Manifesto—the anti-censorship poem written by Ellen Hopkins:
To you zealots and bigots and false patriots who live in fear of discourse. You screamers and banners and burners who would force books off shelves in your brand name of greater good.
You say you’re afraid for children, innocents ripe for corruption by perversion or sorcery on the page. But sticks and stones do break bones, and ignorance is no armor. You do not speak for me, and will not deny my kids magic in favor of miracles.
You say you’re afraid for America,
*****
A word to the unwise. Torch every book. Char every page. Burn every word to ash. Ideas are incombustible. And therein lies your real fear.
***** Here is a revised version of a poem that I wrote in 2007 when there was a big kerfuffle going on over The Higher Power of Lucky, the children's novel that had won the Newbery Medal. Some folks were upset because Susan Patron, the author, used the word "scrotum" in her book. I'm posting the revised poem for Banned Books Week 2010. BTW, I’ve left off the final couplet that was included in the original poem: Who’s got a solution antidotal/For the current row o’er something scrotal?.
Book Talk by Elaine Magliaro
Dressed in uniforms of blue, The word police arrived at two. With laser eyes, they scanned our pages And locked our naughty words in cages. Then up we cried: “You’ve taken text! Will you remove our pictures next?”
“Your pictures?” one policeman said. “We only take the stuff that’s read. Your naughty words must be excised. Let all your authors be advised To watch their words when they compose Their poetry…and all their prose.”
Warning given…the men in blue Then turned to leave. They bid adieu. We books now left with words deleted Feel somehow, sadly, incompleted.
***** Last fall, I wrote a poem about the Conservative Bible Project for my blog Political Verses. I originally posted it on October 20, 2009.
Here’s a little background information about the Conservative Bible Project from the New York Daily News (10/06/09):
Forget attacking liberal bias in Hollywood or in the media. One group says it's the Bible that's gotten too progressive.
The Conservative Bible Project is leading the charge to deliberalize the Bible by using a Wikipedia-like Web site to correct what it calls "errors in conveying biblical meaning."
Those errors are a "lack of precision in the original language, such as terms underdeveloped to convey new concepts introduced by Christ," "lack of precision in modern language" and "translation bias in converting the original language to the modern one."
On its Web site - which is emblazoned with an Old Glory logo above the words "The Trustworthy Encyclopedia" - the group is seeking to create a fully conservative translation of the Bible that follows 10 commandments, er, guidelines.
A Poem about the Conservative Bible Project by Elaine Magliaro
The Bible’s way too liberal— And nothing could be worse. Let’s go rewrite the holy book— Each chapter, line and verse.
We’ll tell the stories “our way”— Toss out the liberal bias— The way the good Lord wants us to. The devil can’t deny us.
We’ll include free market parables, Excise the stuff we hate, Avoid gender inclusive language That can emasculate
The Great Book that we live by. We’ll write the stories “right”— Translate them “fundamentally” To conservatives’ delight.
The Ten Most Challenged Titles according to the American Library Association (out of 460 challenges reported to the Office of Intellectual Freedom in 2009).
Banned Books Week from Amnesty International During Banned Books Week, Amnesty International directs attention to the plight of individuals who are persecuted because of the writings that they produce, circulate or read. Traditionally, Banned Books Week activities take place at the end of each September -- but the featured cases are not confined to a week. They continue to need your action.
The Kids’ Right to Read Project A collaboration of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC), the Kids’ Right to Read Project offers support, education, and advocacy to people facing book challenges or bans and engages local activists in promoting the freedom to read.
As you may have noticed, there's lots going on in Golf Girl World these days. So much so that it's become tough to keep up! Which is quite frustrating.
To that end, I want to introduce you to Jordan... or Golf Girl Junior, as she's been calling herself... who from this point forward will be assisting me here at Golf Girl Media. As such she'll be making regular appearances on this blog and will also be a regular on "Only Two Things".
She officially started at the beginning of the week, and barring a couple of major mess ups minor mishaps, I've been pleasantly surprised at how imaginative and productive she's been. To the extent that I suggested she write her own Thursday column which she'll begin this week. So, without futher ado, here she is:
Hi! My name is Jordan, I’m going to be working with Patricia at Golf Girl Media as her assistant/intern/idea bouncer... Yeh, you get the idea!
I am delighted to be involved with Golf Girl Media and I’m really looking forward to working with Patricia on a wide variety of projects. I’m also looking forward to getting to know you... the Golf Girl readers/watchers/listeners.
I've graduated from mini golf, honed my swing at the driving range, and taken my game onto the golf course now I'll be working my shots and my scores while venturing into the golf media sphere. Part of that will be a weekly post, every Thursday, where I'll talk about the lates golf news topics, conduct a fun weekly poll, and dispense some insider information on what’s taking place behind the scenes here at GGM... and what we’ve got in the proverbial pipeline as regards future ideas and prospective projects.
Now that I’m a part of the Golf Girl Media Inc. community, I assume you want a bit more info on who I am:
I am currently working toward my Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education. I love working with kids and hope to work for a golf camp or junior program in the future. From reading Golf Girl’s Diary (and other golf blogs) I’ve begun to discover the unique nature of this game... and see how it can instill some great qualities in "little ones". So yeh, I’d love to help get a young generation into the sport of Golf... once I improve my game!
Additionally, I love exploring new things and researching on the Internet. When I am not doing that you can find me rollerblading, swimming, or dancing.
OK... this is the part I need help with readers! I’d love to hear some of your ideas on any topics that you’d like me to write about in the weeks to come. Leave me a note in the comments section... or shoot me an email at jordan@golfgirlmedia.com.
Before I depart, I’ve got my first poll question for you... I actually presented it on last night’s show but ... um ... unfortunately I had my mic way down low so it was barely audible (I think I almost got fired for that one) anyways, here it is:
"The latest season of the popular show DANCING WITH THE STARS began this week. There have been quite a few athletes on in the past, NFL and NBA stars... swimmers, snowboarders, etc, but never a golfer. So... WHICH GOLFER WOULD GET YOU HOOKED ON DANCING WITH THE STARS?" ... It can be a male or a female but... I suggest you think beyond Tiger Woods ;-)
I’ll announce the results next week on “Only Two Things”. Catch the show live on Blog Talk Radio every Wednesday evening at 9:30 PM ET.
I've been busy working at the bookstore for the past few days so I haven't been able to get to the blog but now I have and I've read Alvina's post and now "Scroggins."
I got stock on this: "For example, my review of the eighth-grade sex education curriculum revealed that children at the middle school are being introduced to concepts such as homosexuality, oral sex, anal sex and specific instructions on how to use a condom and have sex"
I don't want to get all political here, but ehem, dear I mention a girl with the last name of Palin? She might have been served well with a little lesson or two. That's all I'll say about that.
Please tell me there are intelligent Republicans out there and this isn't becoming a thing where if you say "Republican" it goes in tandem with the above and below beliefs/quotes. I HOPE people can think for themselves and not just become a bunch of sheep! Anyhow, I read on and then I got to where this guy got to talking about the book and movie Speak. I LOVED the book Speak. I also recently watched the movie. I didn't love the movie. I thought it fell way short. It was missing that something that the book had. But what this guy says about both the book and movie is just CRAZY. Is he on another planet?
"One such book is called "Speak." They also watch the movie. This is a book about a very dysfunctional family. Schoolteachers are losers, adults are losers and the cheerleading squad scores more than the football team. They have sex on Saturday night and then are goddesses at church on Sunday morning. The cheer squad also gets their group-rate abortions at prom time. As the main character in the book is alone with a boy who is touching her female parts, she makes the statement that this is what high school is supposed to feel like. The boy then rapes her on the next page. Actually, the book and movie both contain two rape scenes."
Rape happens. It's sad, but true. Does this guy want to pretend that it doesn't? Speak is an amazing book for kids who need to deal with such a thing AND I think need to deal with anything that's happened in their lives and need to talk to someone but can't. I really identified with the book because when I was a teen I was teased a lot and I never told my parents about it. I felt just like the main character. I could feel her pain and knew just what it was like not to speak, only for different reasons. So even though I was never raped, I could still identify with the characters need not to speak. I think a lot of kids will identify for different reasons just as I did.
And not everyone goes to church on sunday. Get over it. Really. It isn't a sin. And for god sake, "a boy who is touching her female parts..." He describes this as if this never happens in teenage life. Rrrright. As if this is unholy or something. "Female parts." What? Weird. It's called dating and "making out," etc. Kids do it. Get a grip. And the movie did not make it seem like it was fun to get an abortion or like it was a fad or like everyone was doing it. This guy is just making stuff up! It's like he doesn't like the subject matter so he's just going to exaggerate or outright lie so that others avoid what he's asking them to avoid. It makes me sick. These people are trying to spread fear and paranoia and lies. And that's how they get followers. I hope this guy doesn't get far with his message because he's WRONG. Watch the film and read the book and make up your own mind! Please!
Tonight is officially night of the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival and though I plan on celebrating it again this weekend with friends, I already had a lovely time celebrating it with my book this past weekend at the Museum of Chinese in America. Not only did I get to meet awesome author Lenore Look for the first time: It was a great turn out and Thanking the Moon was very warmly received by the audience (people even tried the mooncake with the egg inside it!): And, appropriately, I am very thankful! Not to just all who came, but to all who read my books--especially those who have stuck with me all these years, those wonderful readers who have grown up with my books! One such reader came to my event this past weekend and while Mom hasn't changed at all, look how much this reader has grown: On the night of the Moon Festival, you are supposed to send a wish up to the moon that you want granted. But when I see photos like above, I kind of have a hard time thinking about what more I could wish for.
On a warm summer day, when you've got a couple of hours of golf ahead of you, there's no sight more welcome than the beverage cart.
As it pulls up to the tee... with an attractive young lady at the wheel... golfers tend to smile. The prospect of an icy brew and a bit of lighthearted banter is always inspiring.
But what's life really like for these peppy purveyors of on-course refreshment... and who exactly are they? One hears so many things. Are they the sweet, always-accommodating, golf goddesses, with a passion for the game and a deep respect for those who play it... or the modern, money-motivated pretenders, clueless about golf and disdainful of their sometimes effusive customers?
For the inside story, tune in tonight to "Only Two Things". ~ A special guest will be joining me for the show... and I do believe she'll be able to enlighten us on the cart girl lifestyle.
Liza Churchill describes herself as a "proud former beverage cart girl"... and with her long blonde hair and quick smile, one can easily imagine her gliding along the fairways in search of thirsty golfers.
Nowadays Liza is a respected golf media producer. She's got an amazing golf radio show that airs weekly on 95.5 WATD, one of the one of the most respected and honored stations in the state of Massachusetts... and her blog Goldie Bounce Golf, features video interviews with top golf personalities, reviews of new and unique golf products and personal anecdotes about the life of a golf reporter. It's one of most entertaining golf-reads on the Internet.
Liza will with me tonight at 9:30PM ET on "Only Two Things" to talk about her adventures as a beverage cart girl and her experiences in golf media.
You can join the conversation on-air by using our call-in number, which is: 917-889-9592. Or weigh in at the chat room or on Twitter... or just have a listen at Blog Talk Radio. Talk to you tonight.
Like Arnold Palmer, Seve Ballesteros and Chi Chi Rodriguez, Laura Davies has a style that some have described as swashbuckling.
Flamboyant, adventurous, swaggering ...at risk of sounding sexist, it's not a style one normally associates with ladies.
But this lady is is a golf icon and without a doubt, the most accomplished English female golfer of modern times. That she's got a passion for football... and Ferarris... sets her apart even more.
I wrote about her a couple of weeks ago when she won the UNIQUA Open in Austria. There she became the oldest female player to win a professional tournament. On any tour, ever.
Well that record was quickly broken, because in Spain this past weekend at the Open de España, Davies again emerged victorious, earning her 76th career victory... and breaking her own two week old record.
For many the question is: why isn't Laura Davies eligible for World Golf Hall of Fame yet? She's two LPGA wins... or one LPGA major win... away from getting in, and has been for almost a decade. And therein lies the issue. Though she's been a consistent winner in Europe and Asia, her last LPGA victory came in 2001.
So considering the increasingly global nature of golf... and Laura Davies' accumulation of wins in prestigious tournaments with top fields... it seems like some changes might be in order in the way points are counted.
In the meantime here's the swashbuckling Ms.D a couple of days ago in Spain.
I'll be doing a regular "Thursday Update" from now on. It's just a quick update on what's going on behind the scenes at Golf Girl Media. 
Oh... in addition to FB, I'm twittering (@GolfGirl_Junior), and exploring some of the other social media options flying around on the internet. I'll keep you posted on those explorations.
