Author: Janna Hill

Weekly Photo Challenge (Combining Hues & Horizons)

/ Janna Hill / 23 Comments

These photos are recycled from older posts but they will work for the challenge(s): The Hue of You and Horizons.

This is me. These colors are the sum of my parts and they bring me peace. That along with the unfaltering hope that what lies beyond the next horizon will be all I ever dreamed of.

 

Lake Fork at Sunset
Mardi Gras Sky
Spying on young lover’s Lake Tawakoni
Evenings to be Savored
Another day ending Lake Tawakoni
Touching the sky at Keller Bay
Breaking Dawn South Texas
Navarro Mills Lake at Day Break

We are what we eat, what we breathe and what we believe.  Eat to nourish the body, breathe to soothe the soul and believe the sky is the the limit.

_jrh

Weekly Photo Challenge: Infinite

/ Janna Hill / 8 Comments

Infinite

As in clouds and sunsets…

Massive horns…

And endless entertainment

Rain clouds forming
Sunset at ramp
Texas Longhorn peek-a-boo
Laughing gull fishing
Spoonbill sanctuary

Carpe diem y’all because nothing lasts forever

Good Morning

/ Janna Hill / 10 Comments

Q: What does your morning look like?

A: My mornings consist of coffee (lots of coffee), a walk and being greeted by the most awesome guard dogs in the world. See how they saved me from that turkey in the background?

Thank you for keeping that vicious turkey at bay
Good morning Morning Glory
Inspired by a change in weather

I wake the flowers up ‘good morning Morning Glory’ and forecast the weather by holding my wet thumb in the air. Sometimes I lick it, sometimes I let one of the dogs do it for me.

Today’s forecast: FABULOUS. It is cloudy and seventy degrees.  The wind is up, the temperature is down and there is a real honest to goodness cold front blowing in. 🙂

Gloomy skies are the perfect inspiration for dark stories so I had better get busy before the weather changes.  You know the old saying “If you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes and it will change.” “why lick your thumb if someone else will do it for you.”

This Aint No Shangri – La

/ Janna Hill / 6 Comments

With the recent rain in this area of Texas the ground is finally saturated blessing us with new blooms, mushrooms and a fresh ration of mosquitoes.

As I frolic in a sun drenched oak savannah dotted with Crepe Myrtle blossoms I imagine paradise. That is until the growing hum of hungry vampires converge upon me and I find myself running for shelter while Don Henley lyrics (Shangri – La) play over and over in my head. This ain’t no Shangri – La (hmm-hmm). Nobody Knows no Shangri -La (hmm-hmm).

Thanks to the weekly photo challenge for prompting this exploit.

When a Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

/ Janna Hill / 11 Comments

The Ants and the Grasshopper

THE ANTS were spending a fine winter’s day drying grain collected in the summertime. A Grasshopper, perishing with famine, passed by and earnestly begged for a little food. The Ants inquired of him, “Why did you not treasure up food during the summer?” He replied, “I had not leisure enough. I passed the days in singing.” They then said in derision: “If you were foolish enough to sing all the summer, you must dance supperless to bed in the winter.”

That cautionary tale from Aesop’s Fables [as we all know] is intended to discourage slothfulness. It does not however go on to tell children what happens to lazy, good for nothing, don’t want to work and can’t even sing worth a damn beggars. That’s when a picture is worth a thousand words.

Ant #1: Whew, I'm really looking forward to vacation. Ant #2: Yes indeed.

Ant #1: I’m really looking forward to vacation.
Ant #2: Yes indeed. Ah, the rewards of labor.

Yo, I been so busy singin' I ain't had time to tend to business can you little dudes help a hopper out?

Yo, I been so busy singin’ I ain’t had time to tend to business can you little dudes help a hopper out?

Sure we'll help you. Dance you lazy bum!

Sure we’ll help you out- out of your wings and your legs. Now dance you lazy bum!

More and more I am entertaining the idea of writing for children.  With that in mind I added a few captions. Children like that sort of thing. 😉

Credits: The Ants and the Grasshopper: Aesop (2012-05-17). Aesop’s Fables Translated by George Fyler Townsend. Kindle Edition.

These Books Have Been Banned, Really???

/ Janna Hill / 12 Comments

Yes there really is a Banned Books Week but I am to lazy to compose any worthwhile information. So here are a couple of good links and a great post by Maggie O’Connor

Home


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banned_Books_Week

Switched at Birth & Writing for Children

/ Janna Hill / 14 Comments

Have you considered writing for children?

 

That is a question I have heard more than once and the answer is always yes. Yes indeed I have considered it but considering is a far cry from accomplishing.

I wrote a poem last year for my grandson when our fancy goldfish died because (as I explained to him) this sort of thing gets the creative juices flowing and writing can be very therapeutic.

Shubunkin

(From Interior Verse PLUS Pose Prose & Poems)

Little shubunkin all silver and pumpkin

with calico dotted on scales

You streak through the water

no teeter or totter fanning your cute tiny tale

You race and you turn but the water don’t churn

never so much as a swish

I’ll miss you shubunkin, your dashin’ and dunkin’

but oh what a sweet taco dish

I thought he would find it entertaining instead he cried and said “that’s not funny Nana and I don’t feel better.” Oops, my bad.

This same grandson loves the Skippyjon books by Judith Schachner so when he had finished mourning the goldfish he asked, “Can you write something like Skippyjon Jones and make him be a pirate?” I of course wanted to rectify the damage I had done so I quickly penned him another little poem.

Skippy Red

(From Short Stories& Such)

In the house where he lived void of laughter and kisses

In the room where he smoked and the little dog pisses

Where the ghost of a bloke stirs a foul reminiscence

Lies the frame of a maimed Skippy Red

…

Go down, go down poor Skippy Red

Alas, alas no water to tread

No ropes, no planks, no breaking of bread

In your world of endless abysses

…

Go on, go on let sleeping dogs lie

A new crib for you, twas a good day to die

Hoist a fresh cup, here’s spit in your eye

Abaddon is better off dead

…

Farewell, farewell Skippy Red

Well… Dang it!! I struck out again! Being scolded by a seven year old for saying piss is a shameful experience but at least he didn’t cry.

I wanted to impress him with my literary accomplishments be a good grandmother so I scribbled a few more verses. Judging from the look on his face each one was worse than the one before so after a few hours I untied him. He rubbed his little wrists, shook his head and walked away. At that point I had to be honest with myself and admit …

My grandson may have been switched at birth.

A Look Inside: Bookfest

/ Janna Hill / 4 Comments

This weeks photo challenge correlated fabulously with a post I had planned for My Indie Adventures.

As a few of you may know I attended the East Texas Bookfest this past Saturday. What you may not know is that it was my first.  Of course I marched up in there like an old crow pro because I refuse to be intimidated.

The event started Friday evening with a reception for the authors at the Potpourri House in Tyler. I had a glass of Chardonnay with a little fruit, cheese and artichoke dip.  The chicken and meat balls looked very appealing but I’m pretty sure I would have choked on them so I had another glass of wine when my handler wasn’t looking.  The receptionThe dip was delicious by the way.

Saturday morning we arrived on time (yay!!) and within minutes our table was set up.

Inside the Bookfest (1)

With all of that out of the way (thank you Kim) I’m like what am I supposed to do now?

What do I do now?

What do I do now?

Thank goodness I just happen to have a camera hanging around my neck so I roamed around taking pictures.

Bill Keith poses with The Commisssioner
An interesting display
Look, Don takes Mastercard and Visa
Oh she has T- shirts
Pst, the cake is made of paper. It tastes like cardboard.
Signing is a serious business
Sorry [lady on the left] erotica is prohibited
Hmm, is that a real interview…

Maybe taking pictures was not exactly what I was supposed to be doing and I probably shouldn’t have let people think I was with the press…  Oh well it was another funtastic indie adventure and a chance to see the inside working of a book festival.

Weekly Photo Challenge: An Unusual POV

/ Janna Hill / 18 Comments

I didn’t post for last week’s challenge “Sea” so consider this sea of pictures my atonement. See what I did there? Hardy har har. I crack me up. :D.

I didn’t go out and take photos today because I have a note from my supervisor (which I just typed) instructing me to use shots taken last month at Lake Fork. No really! Honestly I have been busy getting ready for the East Texas Bookfest I’ll be attending next Saturday. Yep. If you’re out and about in Tyler Texas September 14th from 10am -4pm stop in at The Tyler Rose Garden Center and say hi.

It may not be unusual but my POV came from the passenger seat of a souped up high-speed golf cart. Yes I said cart because it’s not really a car and this thing was sooo fast…. Okay maybe it was just a worn out E-Z-Go that topped out at 7 mph on a downhill slope but after a six pack of LIME-A-RITA it felt fast- especially after going ridiculously slow up the hills. The poor menfolk had to take a couple of breaks. They must seriously be out of shape because I could hear them moaning and groaning – I think one of them fell and hit his chin on the rear bumper but he wasn’t bleeding. Me being the empowering coach that I am reminded them it’s only a half-ton electric toy and I weigh 130 pounds – suck it up and mush! They are good sports and kept us cruising with ice cold beverages and I got a few neat photos.

Evenings to be Savored
Lake Fork at Sunset

Anywho… Thanks to The Daily Post for presenting this photo challenge. It offers a break from the monotony and I was able to relive a few lol moments. And thank you lake-dwellers for your hospitality. It was an enjoyable experience, at least for those of us who didn’t have to push 😉