Things NOT to TRY at home:

Ok, so I'm trying to grow my hair out for my upcoming nuptials, and I'm the type of person who likes to be proactive.  I know that a little extra effort can go a long way, so I'm all about helping my own causes, doing what I can to reach my own goals, etc etc, blah, blah blah!

Basically I want to look like THIS:

At my most recent hair cut apt, my cousin, Tim, Whom I adore told me, next apt., if you're hair's still dry, we'll do a deep conditioning treatment.  So in an effort to be the good little hair client, I set out to have better conditioned hair by my next apt.  I'd drink more water, I'd NOT brush my hair when it's wet, I'd sleep with Hair Masks and Coconut Oil treatments, I was going to come back shiny haired and improved at my next visit...and really wow him, like "look at me, I did good right?"

then THIS happened:

Picked er' up at my local Walmart, bought a fancy satin hair wrapper thing-a-ma-bob to keep my pillow protected and was so excited for the results of this "Blue Magic"...I mean, it says right in the name...MAGIC!  I like Magic!

The next morning, I got up early, unwrapped my head like a Christmas present on Christmas morning, threw myself in the shower and couldn't wait to blow dry and see how shiny, how luxurious my hair would be!

To my dismay, After i blowed it dry, I looked like THIS:

except red, and more like dreads, less like snakes!

I didn't have time to take another shower, or I'd be late to work, 

so I had to suffer through the day hoping to pull off the WET look, which I did NOT pull off.  Instead I looked like a homeless, shower-less, GRUNGE-loving, Grease monkey who has never heard of DRY shampoo!

I was basically George Clooney in O' Brother Where art thou"

Because as it turns out, BLUE MAGIC COCONUT OIL, is NOT Coconut Oil, in fact it is Petroleum oil that smells like Coconut oil.  

Basically making your hair look like it was a victim of the Exxon Mobile spill

Some say Pomade, I say pure motor oil!

or in my case, I DON'T WANT PETROLEUM JELLY IN MY HAIR G*DDAMIT!!!

Sure, if i would of turned the jar around and read the ingredients, I'd of saw that, but talk about misrepresentation.  In researching the product the next day in an attempt to find a way to get this stuff OUT of my hair, I found many online reviews from poor saps just like myself that had the same experience.  #1 rule of trying new products...GOOGLE THAT SH*T!  Take my word for it....

And if you do try this and find yourself in my shoes, the remedy is this:  You're going to need to douse your whole head with baby oil, take a hot as a shower as you can stand, and then rinse out the baby oil and then wash your hair like six times with Dawn soap, and every bottle of shampoo in your shower.

And on another note:  Biotin!!  Great product, said to help you grow your hair long and luxurious....So I've been taking that stuff religiously.

What they don't tell you is that it also grows your leg hair and your armpit hair super fast!  So here I am yesterday, legs like THIS:

armpit hair growing before my very eyes:

and hair on my head that looks like THIS:

How is it that every time I try to get ahead, 

I get A HEAD full of mishap?!

*sighs*

I think once again, if you look up the word HAPHAZARDLY in the dictionary, 

I swear there's a picture of me as the definition.

I will prevail, long hair will once again be mine....

which is why I bought some hair extensions....

and will have a standing apt. with my cousin Tim,

every five weeks, for the unforeseeable future.

Leaving all hair matters to the professionals!

AMEN!

~HeatherLynn~

Goodbye Robin Williams

This post might be a little all over the place, so please try to follow along if you can...

So the world has lost Robin Williams.  Mrs. Doubtfire, Patch Adams, Sean Maguire, The genie in the bottle, Armond Goldman, Dr. Kosevich, John Keating, Peter pan, Mork, Popeye, and Alan Parrish.

I have grown up with Robin Williams, I have laughed with him, I've cried with him, I've seen his immense talent to make others feel.  I've read the stories about his struggles with Depression and Alcohol and drugs, and I know all too well, how important mental health is, and how some find mood altering drugs is the only way they find peace in their overly active brains.  Yet here was a man who didn't sit on his talent.  He went out day in and day out and brought the best out of others, even when he struggled so to bring the best out of himself.

The world will seem a bit less boisterous without his voice booming.  Peter Pan has left Neverland.  There's no Jeanie in the bottle, no Mork for our Mindy, and how fitting was his last name in Jumanji, Alan, ....Parrish.

There's a lot of different ideas about suicide as far as religion goes, Christians believe it to be a mortal sin, and a one way ticket to hell, while other religions encourage suicide bombers and believe there to be GLORY in it.  I don't want to believe that God, or whomever you may worship, Allah, Buddah, Mohammed, can't see the difference between someone who dies, and someone who JUST can't bear live anymore.

That's what I think happens when someone decides it's time to go.  I just believe that it's the ultimate surrender of one's self.  For some reason, I can't help but think of this scripture when I think about Robin Williams' death:  "I have done my best in the race, I have run the full distance, and I have kept the faith."

I don't want to condone suicide by any means, but I have to believe that when your life is basically hell on earth, when you can endure no more, perhaps a person feels they have run the full distance, and they just want to go home, to the big house in the sky.  I don't pretend to know everything, but I know suffering when I see it, I've seen it all too well, and too many times over.  I've seen in in people that I love....and it never ceases to break my heart.  Mental illness, in it's many forms and various facets makes us do things we don't want to do, see things in a way we don't want to see them, and feel like there's no other choice, when staring down the barrel of your own mortality, failures, defeats....

I cannot fathom Robin Williams going to hell.  I don't WANT to believe that God would forsake him because of his demons.  I like to think that God made Robin Williams and knew how troubled his heart was, and would take that into consideration when leaving earth.  Surely a god of Love and Mercy could see that.

I know this goes against everything that is said about Suicide in the christian world, but I don't pretend to  believe that it's all as cut and dried as sometimes the good book says.  And I want to believe that A God of Love, and a God of mercy also is a god of Laughter and a God of appreciation.  Robin Williams was human.  With human shortcomings, human weakness, human will, just like the rest of us.  Robin Williams was like a little ray of sunshine on earth.  He gave all of himself for the amusement of others.  He knew no bounds when it came to making others smile, he threw it all out there, no fear, no restrictions, he performed with all the fiber of his being.

A guy my mother knows recently attempted suicide.  He shot himself in the midst of a fight with his wife.  He was in a coma, presumed to be a vegetable for the rest of his life, or until the machines were unplugged.  But he's back at work now.  Why do some people succeed, while others slip away?  I have to believe it's to end a life of suffering.  Through suffering some feel closer to God, while others feel further away.  Those who remain close, go, while others are sent back to try again perhaps?

I read this today while researching the origins of "ONLY THE GOOD DIE YOUNG"....it said:  THE GOOD DIE YOUNG - " (Whom the gods love dies young; Best go first.) The long history of the saying began with the ancient version, 'Whom the gods love dies young,' and a touching story of how the proverb originated. As told by the Greek historian Herodotus in 'History' (c. 445 B.C.), the story concerns two especially favored youths who, replacing two missing oxen, hitched themselves to a cart and carried their mother to a festival for the goddess Hera. At the temple, the grateful mother asked Hera to reward her sons with the greatest gift anyone might receive, whereupon her sons lay down to sleep and never woke again."

Patch Adams Said:  "What's wrong with death sir? What are we so mortally afraid of? Why can't we treat death with a certain amount of humanity and dignity, and decency, and God forbid, maybe even humor. Death is not the enemy gentlemen. If we're going to fight a disease, let's fight one of the most terrible diseases of all, indifference."

Robin Williams, if you can hear me, or just feel the words being written, I think it's very clear that the world has not been indifferent to you.  The world grieves your loss, and I can't speak for anyone else, but I can say this, I pray for your soul, for it to soar into the heavens, where you can make God smile, and entertain all the children up there who have went before their parents, all the wives and husbands who went first....and perhaps be the Angel, who comes to others in their deepest darkest moment of despair and says to them:  "Hey, We can head on down to the maternity ward. You know those chicks put out."

Because laughter in the face of darkness...is a lesson you LIVED, and breathed, I suspect, every. single. day.

Rest in Peace Robin-Patch Adams-Peter Pan-Mork-Popeye-Alan Parrish-Mrs. Doubtfire-Williams.  

From this day forward, when I hear the thunder booming from the heavens, I'm going to imagine that's you making God Belly Laugh at something you said to him.

"You say yes, I say no

You say stop and I say go go go, oh no

You say goodbye and I say hello

Hello hello

I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello

Hello hello

I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello"

Post by Fox & Friends.

It's that time of year again.....Who's with me?

The big WARK send off!

Since this blog is essentially for my "readers", I have to assume not everyone knows this about me, but I was a "band geek" in high school.  I was a proud member of the Delphos Jefferson Marching Band, I was in the "Color Guard"...for those of you who don't know what "Color Guard" is....it's the people who twirl the flags.  My sister before me was in Color Guard, and my sister after me was as well.  "Color Guard" was a family tradition with us Osting girls.  A proud tradition.

I can't speak for my sisters, but in MY time in the band, I experienced so many wonderful things, Disney World, Epcot Center, competing on the turf of Indianapolis, traveling to contests, taking the field each and every Friday night of football season, stammering all over the field at Adrian College....attempting to learn that years drill!  I have "High Mark Time'd", I've tripped over my own flag, and successfully twirled a flag behind my back.  Yes, I bonked myself in the head several times in learning that neat little trick, but I'm happy to report, there was no permanent head damage....well, atleast not that I know of.

I think I can speak for my classmates and fellow Delphos Jefferson Marching Band Alumni when I say that "BAND MEMORIES" were some of THE BEST memories we cling to as our days of High School get fuzzier as we age.  But one thing we DO NOT seem to ever be able to forget, is our fearless leaders, Mr. and Mrs. Wark, our most beloved Band Director and Color Guard Instructor.

There are some teachers you can barely remember in school, and there are some that have an impact on your life and you never forget.  Mr. Wark and Robin were two people, that once you met them, once they took you under their wing, you wouldn't ever be the same kid.  It was like being adopted into the best family around.  Maybe it was because Lee was my classmate, and they were his parents that I felt like they were second parents to me, maybe it was because they were such a wonderful pair that I envied anyone who actually HAD them as parents, I'm not sure, but either way, in my eyes, they were like family to me.  After high school, I took guitar lessons from Mr. Wark with my cousin Rachel, and every week, we'd sit in their kitchen and we'd strum those guitars clumsily, and Mr. Wark would patiently listen to our horrendous butchering of whatever song he was attempting to teach us that week, yet his faith and patience in us never faded.  We'd have so much fun, we'd laugh, we'd talk, we'd ATTEMPT to make music....and it was a great escape for me once more to spend time with Mr. Wark, as that time in my life I was about to go through a divorce.  Just like in high school, his teaching, his dedication to my education and him being my personal passport into music was a great comfort and outlet for the turmoil that one goes through in life.

Robin would comfort us with cookies, and they'd take interest in our lives, Rachel's children, and even helped us get marginally good enough to attempt a performance a couple years in a row at Rachel's Dad's church at Christmastime.  "Little Drummer boy" and "We three kings" were our two big hits! *winks*  If you'd of ask me if I'd ever be on a stage playing a guitar for a crowd prior to that, I'd of never believed you, but Mr. Wark wouldn't let us make a fool of ourselves, he molded us into what we needed to be, IN school, and out.  Just like he taught us how to be on the inside and out.  I don't know how much you know about band, but it really touches on a lot of things aside from music, I learned about PRIDE IN APPEARANCE, I learned about PRIDE IN OURSELVES, I learned about BEING A PART OF A TEAM, I learned that every single link in the chain is important, and I learned that practice and dedication pay off.  Anyone who's ever looked at their drill for that year and said, "I have to get from the 50 yard line to WHERE in eight counts?!??!  That's impossible!!!"...knows that Mr. Wark has been making the IMPOSSIBLE, POSSIBLE his entire career!  He was a drill Sargent and he was a teddy bear, his was a friend, he was a father, he could make you laugh, and make you cry, but he never felt sorry for you, and he never made you feel sorry for yourself.  He wouldn't allow it, not when he KNEW you could do what he was asking, even before you knew, he did.

So when I heard they were leaving town, I couldn't help but feel a wave of immense sadness wash over me.  I've dialed their phone number since I was a kid, and now at age 36, their number 419-692-2522 is no longer in service.  Their house on Westbrook Avenue, where we marched in the street, where music wafted in the air from all sides of their house during sectionals, and guitars twanged out the windows by a bunch of novices...has now fallen silent.  Now, only boxes being packed and Kirby, their beloved dog's barks can be heard.  To think that no more pitter-patter of band feet will be on their street upon their departure was just too much to bear for me, so it all started with a little "feeler" on my personal facebook page that went like little something like this:

and it turned into THIS:

Hometownstations.com-WLIO- Lima, OH News Weather Sports

{CLICK ON THE ABOVE LINK TO SEE THE NEWS FOOTAGE AND COMPLETE STORY}

There are events that people take part in because it's "the right thing to do", there are events that raise money for charity, events to feed the needy, events to elect someone to a political position, but there is NO EVENT, quite like the "We LOVE YOU" type.

Nearly 200 of Mr. Wark's former band gathered at the Jefferson High School and with their matching T-shirts, borrowed percussion instruments, a banner, some cheerleaders and a crowd of spectators and friends of the band, and they marched to see their beloved Director.

"Mr. Wark"

&

Robin.

It's never easy to say goodbye,

especially not to someone who has meant so very much, to so many.

The Wark's had NO IDEA we were coming, and actually thought that the noise they were hearing was a recording that myself and Rachel were blaring out our car window to "mess with them"...now I know the Warks are not big fans of crowds, or being the center of attention, but I figured, they wouldn't mind seeing all of us.  Robin heard the noise, peaked out the window and said "Mike, you're going to have to see this!"

{just typing that and envisioning it in my head gave me goosebumps!}

Mr. Wark and Robin taught and gave us so many important things, but none more important than LOVE, RESPECT and PRIDE. They were examples of greatness...in the form of someone willing to not just BE great, but to TEACH others how to be great. Such a selfless thing in a selfish world. I truly believe that what we put out into the world can change the world, can change lives, so if you can't change the EVEYONE's, just start by doing something good for some ONE. It all goes for the greater good, and I think that's what we accomplished here. We, us, you and I, we PUT something good back out into the world. All that love, and pride, and respect that they instilled in us, was pouring right out of us and right back to them. A tradition of excellence is what they represented, and I think we carried on that tradition yesterday. WE embodied their life's work, and they saw it, in it's purest, simplest, sincerest form. They saw what they accomplished here in their time in Delphos...and they saw it in US. And we didn't just show them, all those young eyes, and neighbors, and passing cars, all SAW with their very own eyes what gratitude looks like first hand. What pride actually looks like....and SOUNDS like in the form of "ewengowa Got that wildcat power"....sure we sounded like dying cats a little, but damnit, we're not spring chicks anymore! You guys keep telling me how PROUD you all of me, and HOW proud I should be of myself, but honestly, I don't feel proud of ME, but I DO feel PROUD to be a part of all of you, proud to have been a part of the Warks, of "the band" and to have been part of something that gives back, something good, that warms the hearts of others.

Here is my video from that day, 
I apologize for the shakiness of it, but recording with a ipod over your head while marching is no easy feat.

I chose to video instead of photograph because I wanted to not just see, but hear and feel the emotion that I KNEW would be present.  The cheers and roars of everyone give me goosebumps and make me teary eyed EVERY time I watch.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

and in closing, this email just in from the Warks,

I wanted you to know just how touched they were with what we did.

-----------------------------------------------

Did you get my text?  Yes we still love you. You are the best. What an awesome surprise.  We will remember Sat. for as long as we live.  The love we felt was unbelievable. When Michael retired, his party was wonderful but this was so much better  To think that after all these year people still remember and love you. Thanks Heather. From the bottom of our hearts, THANKS.   We love you always. Michael and Robin

--------------------------------------------------------

“The reality is that doing good unto others actually does more good for you.” --Richelle Goodrich

First let me start by saying that I was raised in the Church....and not just one, our family was Lutheran for awhile, non-denominational...back to Lutheran....I've been to the Methodist church...the Catholic church...I've seen people "Speak in tongues" and a few even faint in the midst of Religion.

I on the other hand, well, I won't say I'm skeptical, but I just choose to be more "internal" about my beliefs and faith.  Not that I wouldn't tell anyone if asked that I am spiritual...I just don't try to convert every person I meet, and I only really pipe up about such things when I feel like they are open to hear it.  I find the best time is when I see God's work at hand.

Like for example, this morning, my better half's car broke down on his way to work.  Stranded on the side of the road, he calls me and I'm in the shower.  By the time I call him back, he's no longer in need of MY help, for a complete stranger had taken him under his wing.

A man picked Jerimy up, went back to his house to get tools, and even drove Jerimy to go get a part to fix the broken leaf spring that had locked his tire up.

Before he got to him to the dealership, the man said he wanted to stop and check on his wife, as she wasn't feeling well.  She apparently had a kidney stone.  So Jerimy, being along for the ride, went with the man to check on his wife.  When the man came back outside, he said "I think I had better take her to the emergency room".  Jerimy wondered, um, what did this mean for him?  Here he was with a complete stranger, at this stranger's house, and now the man was going to abandon the mission of getting him to the dealership and headed to the hospital with his ailing wife!

Before Jerimy could say, "Hey, um, but what about me?"  The guy said "Here, just take my vehicle, go to town, get your part, and you can just leave my vehicle out there by where yours broke down.  Jerimy was hesitant, because, well lets face it, some stranger gives you the keys to his car, entrusts you with something without knowing you from adam, well it's just kind of shocking.  Jerimy, not having much of a choice at this point, said "ok" and took the man's truck to Van Wert to get his part.

This is where it gets even better.  He goes to the dealership in Van Wert, (I would love to name the place...but better not)...and the guy says, "hey, I have half a kit here...just take it"...Jerimy was like, "what do you mean take it?  Take it like free, take it?"  and the guy's like...yeah, you can have it, just come back to us in the future if you need anything.  Jerimy was once more IN SHOCK...dealerships, known for charging HIGHER prices for parts than Auto part stores, GAVE him the parts he needed to fix his broken down car FOR FREE!?!  That NEVER happens!

So there he was, driving the car of a stranger, free parts from another stranger, and completely wowed by the generosity of others, who in his time of need, 

had rescued him.

We live in a day and age when picking up hitchhikers most likely will get you killed.  We live in a world where stopping to ask someone if they need help could be a hoax, and you might be then found "Dead in a Ditch" for your attempt at generosity....and misguided trust in humanity.  Yet, today, on a typical Friday in NW Ohio, TWO strangers showed great signs of generosity of spirit for their fellow man.  When Jerimy told the man who had come to his aid that he didn't have any cash on him to pay him for his help, but offered to at least pay of gas with his debit card, the man "Oh, no!  Just pay it forward, maybe help someone else out"..

Which is something Jerimy and I frequently make sure we do.  Whenever he and I are out together, and we see someone broke down on the road, or in need of assistance, we always stop to ask them if they need help.  Jerimy even picked up some hitchhikers once in the very same stretch that he broke down in who had run out of gas, he picked them up and drove them to Speedway in Delphos so they could get gas and then drove them back to their car, safe and sound.  Risky move...yep.  But it was the kind of generosity of spirit that this world needs most, and not just every once in a blue moon, but every day.

Two nights ago, I watched the movie "Fireproof"...someone I know told me that EVERY MARRIED COUPLE, and anyone who is about to get married should watch it....I was even told that it had saved the marriage of someone I knew...so I was curious, and it was free on Netflix, and I had the house to myself, so I watched it.  So much to relate to in that movie, seeings how I'd been down that road before with my Ex Husband.  But while it was a "religious movie" and there were a few parts that seemed kinda hokey, it had a fantastic message.  I watched it and then got Jerimy to watch some of it last night.

Being religious isn't popular, or mainstream these days.  Jerimy and I recently made the effort to start attending church more regularly...and then we had a few weeks where we didn't make it....and then today happened.  I think just reminding us that he appreciated our effort to come to him, so he came to us/Jerimy.  A sign of good faith perhaps if you will.  Not that God has nothing better to do than help a stranded motorist, but by sending people to his rescue, he just instilled in Jerimy that all the times he stopped to help others, well, it didn't go unnoticed.  If you're not "religious"...call it karma then.  Whatever your beliefs are about the world, the universe, the afterlife, etc.  If you put good into the world, not only are you making the world a better place to live, but.....I believe good comes back to you.

So I sincerely hope that you find this post in the spirit it was offered, as it was not intended to make anyone feel guilty about NOT helping others, or to say Jerimy and I are awesome people who always do the right thing...because GOD knows that's not true, we're far from saints...but to share with you something good, in a world that has a lot of bad in it.  A world filled with scam artists, and thieves, and liars.  A world where it's not common to be "neighborly" anymore,

 a world where your mom, your aunts and your friends all get robbed by the same guy...

a world where a grandma lies about her deformed granddaughter being kicked out of a KFC in order to play on people's sympathies to scam money from people.

It's disheartening to see bad things happen to good people...

but I promise you, good things happen to good people too.

So a big thank YOUUUUUUUUU

going out to the strangers who helped my beloved Jerimy today.

Your generosity did NOT go unnoticed or unappreciated!

Ever so Sincerely,

~HeatherLynn~

Thought for the day - June 25, 2014

So, I'm pretty sure, 

that if I don't shave my legs soon, 

I'm going to have to donate 

my razor clippings to 

"Locks of Love"

Yep.

Luv,

~HeatherLynn~

You have to pay to play, and you have to play to win!

Writers are neurotic a lot of times by their very nature.  At least in my experience with them they are...and that's ok, because being weird really helps with writing something unique from other weirdos.  Not all weirdos are created equal...I mean, there's only ONE Steven King...and god bless him and his absolutely epic mind full of strange and sometimes horrifying tales!

{I mean, just look at him, he just LOOKS like he's about to tell you a tale, doesn't he?!  Can you imagine being told a tale, sitting by a campfire with Steven King?!!?  Ah, the nightmares you'd have!}

Now, I'm no Steven King, or Dean R. Koontz, I'm just a Heather Osting, and that's ok.  I'm perfectly comfortable being me, so long as I'm always working on the best possible version of me...and constantly striving to be THE BEST writer that I can be.  The only way I know to do that it to continuously try to improve, learn from past mistakes, take constructive criticism in stride, and be willing to take a chance on myself every once in a while.

On April 6th, I did just that.  I sent a letter to a publisher with a small sample of "Dead in a Ditch", and on Friday the 13th, under the full "honey moon", I arrived home early, something I never do, I got the mail, something Jerimy always does.  I was preparing for our big Kayaking trip to Mad River, so I threw the mail on the kitchen table and began running around like a chicken with my head cut off, packing, and preparing for a night sleeping on the ground in a tent.  When you get to be my age, sleeping on the ground in a tent requires much more preparation and planning than it did when I was a younger girl!  FYI, two sleeping bags as a mattress...NOT ENOUGH PADDING.  ALSO....when it's 48 degrees out, one little light down blanket IS NOT SUFFICIENT for optimal warmth!

Anyway...so as I was packing and whatnot, I took a moment int he midst to flip through the mail and I found the SASE that I had enclosed with the publisher submission that I had sent out.  There it was, my name and address, typed by me, and I said to myself "Oh, well here's a big ole REJECTION letter!!"

I contemplated NOT opening it...Rejection is NOT my strong suit.  I was afraid it would ruin my whole trip,a and I just didn't feel like being a sad sap on such a momentous occasion!  I mean, now often do you get to spend your Friday the 13th - Full moon on a dark, fast flowing river, with a bunch of weirdos that you call friends?  Not too damn often, I'll tell you that!

But, I decided like a bandaid, I'd rip it off, take the sting of rejection and then I'd go on my trip and it would make me FORGET about how it feels to know you're writing is utter and complete crap!

So I tore open the letter, and to my complete shock and amazement, I did not receive a letter that looked like this:

{STANDARD REJECTION LETTER}

Instead, the Publisher I most wanted to work with, actually requested that I send them a bigger sample of my writing!

Did you hear what I said, they DID NOT SAY:

I couldn't believe my eyes...

What was happening?

Was I dreaming?

had someone just played a prank on me?

I looked around for a candid camera...

I waited for Ashton Kutcher to jump out at me with a camera telling me I'd been "Punked"....

but nothing happened.  Nobody erupted from behind a clothes rack, or from a closet.

The house was completely quiet, except for the sound of my very excited beating heart.

I dialed Jerimy immediately....he didn't answer.

I dialed again.

Still no luck.

I called my sister Ang...

I said "Guess what?!?!"

She said "Whats wrong?"

I said, "NOTHING!!  I just got a letter from a publisher that wasn't a NO!

I may or may not of blubbered and cried a little, but that's just between you and me here!

For writers, an NON-NO, is the equivalent to winning the lottery.

It means that you at the very least did SOMETHING right to get them to even consider reading more of your work.

I actually said to my sister, "Nobody really gets everything they want in life do they?  I mean, I just got engaged, and now this?!?  I'm afraid that I'm about to get hit by a bus or something to balance everything out."

Angie said "I do the same thing, I always question my blessings first, and then have to tell myself to just accept them."

Why must believing in yourself, in the good, always create such a massive fear of disappointment that keeps us from full on rejoicing and celebration?

Now, before you try to tell me "But Heather, they might still totally reject you after they receive more of your manuscript...Yes, I realize this.  And I have accepted that notion.  But they could of rejected me after reading 25 pages.  Why not rejoice in the fact that they now want 100 pages?

To a writer, the opportunity to submit something that was REQUESTED is the equivalent of a:

And let me tell you, It's a wonderful feeling just for the opportunity to take a ride on the merry go round.  Even if I get thrown off after two spins, Oh, what a ride it will have been.

Someone asked me recently, "So why did you send your manuscript TO a publisher?  You're doing fine selling them yourself on Amazon."

I replied with, "Yes, I know, but a publisher can get my books into the hands of people that I cannot simply reach.  They are in the business of books, and like it or not, I'm just one little person, to get my book into the hands of the general public, well that's an amazing feat that even I am not so optimistic to believe I could do single handed.

Sending a manuscript to a publisher is a writer's way of buying a lottery ticket.

You can't win the jackpot if you never buy a ticket.

You can't lose or be rejected either, but if there's one thing artists know a thing or two about and that's rejection!

 I know this all too well.

I had an older sister who was WAY more popular with the boys than me!

Yours Truly,

~HeatherLynn~