Ladies and Gentlemen! For your entertainment ...

It is so gorgeous outside, I couldn't resisit a little excursion to a lesser-known nature area on the north end of Mitchell Lake. 

Celia Kelley's Pines is a small trail system through a pine wooded area, rich with history. Celia Kelley helped found it in 1932 in order to better preserve the area around Mitchell Lake, which is a reservoir built in 1928. If you live in or around Mitchell, definitely check this place out. It's so peaceful. 

This sign explains the history of this secluded trail system.
(Photo by Anna Jauhola)

The trail system leads quickly to a small clearing with a couple picnic tables and rocks. It's wonderfully secluded and brings you today's post. 

Purely for your entertainment, I took some self portraits.Okay, so that's not entirely true. I wanted a new headshot and there's no improving this face, so I figured the great outdoors can only distract you with its rugged beauty. 

Below is the final shot I liked the best (with a little bit of editing).

Here's a great senior photo, at age 33, with help from
my notebook and cell phone that propped up the camera.
(Self Portrait by Anna Jauhola)

On a hilarious note, it took a bit of tweaking and moving around and adjusting the camera and settings and so on to get this amazing photograph. First of all, I had to remember how the hell to work the timer. It's not that hard, by the way, I just had to turn one dial. Doi. 

Then, I had to remember tips I learned from my photographer friend, which took a little more digging in my scrambled brain, but I remembered. 

Below, please enjoy some of my laughable outtakes. And, be careful, the pale glory of my skin may cause the following: Sunburn, eye irritation, uncontrollable giggles, bursts of laughter.

At left, I was just setting up, so I look like a complete idiot. At right, I totally did NOT focus the camera, nor did I even remotely have figured out where it was pointed.
Below: Yeah, I fogot to scale back the zoom. HAHAHA!

Here are two failed attempts at some decent self portraits. The one on the left can give you a great tan, or burn, depending on your skin type.
(In case you're wondering, I did NOT burn in my half hour or so at this park.)

Below, however, is a complete Senior Picture pose that doesn't look entirely horrible. It's a keeper -- for a few good laughs on my off days.

Forgive, but learn

Intent is all well and good, as long as you follow through.

"I intended to do my homework, but I didn't." 

Throughtout life, I've intended to be more understanding, more helpful, more forgiving. It's hard to be any of those things when I often lose sight of anything but the juggling act of doing things for other people and making my family happy.

Two weeks ago, I wrote about ordering a token from MyIntent.org. 

I received the token late last week, imprinted with my chosen word: 

FORGIVE. 

This token now resides on my keychain. I see it every day, and it keeps me mindful
of letting go of my toxic attitude and remembering I am worth something. (Photo by Anna Jauhola)

Why did I choose this word? 

My life has seemingly been filled with failure after failure, with various people reminding me of these failures in different ways. 

I am my biggest obstacle.

When life doesn't go according to plan, I completely blame myself, which can have negative impacts on those around me. 

In recent years, forgiveness has played a large role in releasing guilt I should never have felt. 

But forgiveness is a lot more difficult than most can imagine, particularly for oneself. I anguish daily for the mistakes I've made in life, rather than focusing on the triumphs and joys I've found in being a mother, a wife and a writer. 

So, my word FORGIVE is to remind myself that I am good enough, I am strong and that everyone makes mistakes. Forgiving those mistakes gives me worth and creates my strength. 

My intent is to make sure the word "forgive" stays in my mind and that I use it often for myself, and for others - for to give ourselves a break from anger and resentment will help create a better world. 

What's Your Intent?

On January 18, I blogged about befriending neighbors and briefly mentioned the MyIntent project.
Originally, I was going to write about the project, but couldn't get permission at the time to use a picture of the bracelets the project creates.
Today, I bring you MyIntent.org and the simple jewelry that is bringing people together.

This is a classic bracelet from MyIntent.org. (photo courtesy of MyIntent.org)

According to the MyIntent website, the bracelets are meant as a way to introduce "meaningful conversations and positive energy." Each bracelet is hand-stamped with a word or two, chosen by those who purchase them. Many celebrities have brought this project to the forefront by purchasing bracelets and sharing them on social media, but it is meant for everyone. 

These can be a great catalyst for positive conversation. 

Although it looks like a jewelry company, MyIntent is actually a service project, raising money for various nonprofit organizations. 

Chris Pan founded MyIntent in 2014. It is based out of Los Angeles. 

When I first found out about the project, I watched a video on Facebook. I immediately sent a request to the contact email to use a picture and didn't hear anything back. So, I kind of forgot about it for the next several weeks, until today when I received a reply! 

The person who replied to my email apologized for not responding earlier and said they would be happy to have me blog about MyIntent. 

They also offered me a gift card along with their apology. 

I was shocked! 

Nevertheless, I plan to use this gift card. 

It would be great to have a constant reminder for what I strive every day, and what has gotten me this far in life. 

I'm not sure just yet what word or words I may choose. But stay tuned for an update shortly. I'll be sure to share with you my bracelet when I receive it! 

Planning Summer Adventures

As adults, summers tend to blend into all other seasons.
We lose our sense of wonder because, well, we don't have three months off to goof around like we did as kids. At least, that's the way my summers have become.
I've decided this summer will be filled with little day trips exploring regional towns and recreational areas.
When we moved to South Dakota, I was hired as the region reporter for The Daily Republic in Mitchell. Tasked with covering a variety of events, meetings and features in a 17-county area was a bit daunting. However, it came as a fun challenge and a way of discovering the beauty of South Dakota.
Since leaving the paper a couple years ago, I've been sorely lacking in my travels as I've had no real reason to go beyond the Mitchell area.
This summer, that will change.
I've compiled a list of area towns I'd like to revisit as a private citizen with my family. I hope to gain a new perspective on these rural communities as we travel to some of them throughout the three-month warm season.
Many of the towns have festivals throughout the summer. Some have attractions I've been wanting to visit. Others have amazing outdoor recreation areas I've dying to try. Others have architecture and historical buildings I've wanted to tour since I first started traveling around the Daily's coverage area.
A partial list of towns includes:

• Platte
• Carthage
• Winner
• Gregory
• Armour
• Stickney
• Menno
• Wessington Springs
• Woonsocket
• Freeman
• Chamberlain/Oacoma

While covering stories in these and other towns, I usually didn't have time to roam around perusing the area. It was go, cover the story, write the story, edit the story, file the story, get the heck home. Sometimes, roundtrip, our gallavanting into the wilderness was a 4-hour drive. That's not to mention the time to cover an event or meeting, and writing the story afterward. 

I'm thinking Platte is the first on my list. It has a plethora of places I want to try -- Prairie Parfumerie being my top pick. Plus, Platte is near the mighty Missouri River and has a majestic bridge that will be fun to show Jacob. 

These little day trips will actually begin with a big family trip to Mount Rushmore. 

FINALLY! We're taking a weekend vacation to the Black Hills and have several stops planned. All to be shared here, via diary entries and photos! 

If you have any favorite places in southeast South Dakota you think we'd like to visit as a family, feel free to share. I'd love to hear. Can't wait for our vacation days .... only three months to go! 

Research: Secretarial Schools & Printing Shops

Well, January went right down the toilet with illness, but I've started off February right with some research and writing. I'm excited about my story I've begun to develop, and I'm confident my year-long journey to write a book will be successful.
This week, I'll share with you a bit about my initial research.
As so many authors do, I've dreamt up a completely doable story idea -- and set it a decade earlier than I'd even been born.
Why? I've always been in love with the history of the 1960s and 1970s. Work was hands-on for most people and many did not sit in front of a computer. Many office jobs required people to sit at desks and typewriters. However, their research often required standing to find physical files, books and search through card catalogs. Personally, it was one of my favorite things to do as a kid - search through card catalogs and then physically find a book or file on a shelf. But, I'm a huge nerd, and that's another story.
At any rate, I've long been fascinated by the whole secretarial pool concept. You know, the period in time when women were really entering the work force and one major way to climb the ladder was to enter secretarial work. Often, they did this by taking secretarial courses.

A glimpse of a secretarial class during the 1963-64 year at
Ryerson University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
(With permission from Ryerson University Library Archives)

So, my most recent research for a portion of my story is to find out the backgrounds of secretarial schools, which were later called business schools and basically offered courses teaching employable skills like typing, taking notes in shorthand and longhand, transcribing, and so on.
I'm pretty early on in my research and have a feeling it's going to take me a bit to find a decent amount of information about it. I also have a feeling I may need to make a few calls to historical societies.
My research has also led me to a nearly complete unknown - small business print shops. My character owns a print shop in the 1970s, printing items like flyers, business cards, pamphlets, newsletters and the like.
This idea brought me to the fact that I know nothing about the equipment she may have used, especially since she purchased the business from an older gentleman who'd owned it for 40 years.
Thankfully, I have a few ides of where I could find viable information on what machinery her shop may contain. And then, the tricky part will be making her role convincing as she usually works on her own equipment.
Excitement floods me when I think about this research, even though it's a minor portion of the project on which I'm working and most will only be peppered in throughout the story. Nonetheless, it is significant to know the background so I don't have incorrect references.
The rest of my month of research will be spent on my phone, calling historical societies and possibly colleges/universities. In between those calls, my fingers will be flying away creating more character background and hashing out plot details.

My Apologies

I have to apologize.
Last week, my body took yet another blow. I developed an ear infection and on Tuesday, I was in so much pain I just sat and cried at work until my doctor's appointment.
Now, a week later, I'm still recovering. My ear is still plugged, but the antibiotics are doing their job.
However, three weeks of being sick or taking care of people who are sick has left me quite out of ideas for my blog.
Well, I have ideas, but I don't want to rant about Betsy DeVos.

I will say, this week will be a week of planning and writing.
I'm finally getting back on track for writing and using my Novel Planner. I have some concrete character and plot development going and I'm really excited about that.
My week will also consist of planning out future blog posts so I can avoid this mess from happening a second time.

Again, my apologies. I hope next week will be more riveting.
Stay well!

I'm out if commission this week with the flu. Just a note to let you all know I'll be back next week. Have a great weekend.