A Minute of Fame in Walgreens

Well, wasn't I surprised to see a familiar book on the shelf at Walgreens in St. George. Which one, you ask? The second one down on the right.

Yup, that's the compilation I remember being asked to contribute to several years ago, along with some of my author friends, by Monte Bona of Mt. Pleasant, Utah. I was glad to see that it's still alive.

And there's my author page where I'm doing the look-up-at-the-camera picture trick to avoid the tiniest suggestion of a saggy chin.

It's fun to see my old writing resurface, proving that stories are magic, they never wear out.

What do you like to read?

Carolyn Gets Back To Where She Started From!

Carolyn was thrilled to return to New Jersey, where she was born. The look on her face when she caught sight of the Atlantic Ocean by Sea Isle City, New Jersey, was priceless!

She could hardly wait to get in the water.

She said she wanted to buy a house and live there.

She simply loved the ocean, which was pleasantly warm.

We were so in tune with the ocean scene that we even matched the beach umbrellas!

Carolyn found some beautiful pebbles and shells to keep, and was in awe when she spied a seagull.

We three sisters (Rebecca McGarry, Shirley Bahlmann, and Carolyn Anderson) all loved getting our feet wet, but there was nothing to eat there...well, nothing that we wanted to eat.

So we went to Mike's Fish Market.

Hey, we were there on free mussel Monday...how could we say no to THAT?

Carolyn looks like she wasn't thrilled about the free mussels...she only ate one. (Maybe that's why.)

Carolyn enjoyed her chicken. (Yes, it counts as sea food. You must have heard of "chicken of the sea!")

We had the BEST table in the whole place, with water on two sides of our table. We were practically floating!

Even the bathrooms were amusing...if you didn't pay attention to the hurricane warning.

Carolyn also enjoyed a big, soft pretzel.

She was also certain that because she was born in New Jersey, everyone there knew who she was, no introduction necessary!

(She made lots of new friends.)

Have you been to New Jersey?

Have you been to the ocean?

(Do you WANT to go to either place?)

Wookie Hugs

I saw Chewbacca in the store, and I couldn't hold myself back. I mean, he's just so fuzzy and huggable! (Kind of like Bob if he forgets to shave for awhile.)

The debut Star Wars movie came out the year before I was married, so being so close to Chewie just made me feel young again!

Carolyn! Look out! He might step on you by accident!

*Whew!* She's got fancy footwork!

What about you? Are you a Star Wars fan?

Santa and Shirley circa 2017

 You've just gotta cover the bases.

'Nuff said.

When Jelly Beans Go Rotten...

 To celebrate Brian's birthday, here is a chronicle of his brave event.
It went down like this: he bought a bunch of "dare you to eat it" jelly beans, with "good" and "bad" counter part flavors that looked the SAME!

After tentative bites off the ends of various colors, Brian (left), his brother Jeff, and I deemed the rotten milk, masquerading as delectable coconut cream, as the worst flavor.

The challenge? Three white jelly beans were laid on a napkin. The three of us each picked one up with the directive to eat the whole thing, no matter what. No spitting out. No matter what.

One, two, three, GO!

The two brothers got rotten milk jelly beans! They appeared to permeate their whole heart and soul, lingering long afterward. It was painful to watch. That's why I hid behind my camera, taking photo after photo through my tears. (It sounded like I was laughing, but honestly, crying sounds like laughter sometimes, doesn't it?) 

Guess who got the coconut cream?

C'est moi.

(T'was me.)

See? My boys are nice to me naturally. They don't even have to try.

But I already paid my dues. My trial by rotten milk occurred the summer after I turned 13. Running into the house, I grabbed a milk carton on the counter next to where my father stood, and poured a glass. So thirsty was I, that I chugged three huge gulps before tasting the sourness of the milk.

Pulling the glass away from my mouth, I made disgusted sounds while my father cried along in sympathy, his concern sounding oddly like laughter.

"Did you know the milk was rotten?" I demanded.

"Yes."

Feeling poisoned, I asked, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"It won't hurt you," he explained. "In fact, it was already partly digested so now your stomach doesn't have to work as hard."

That knowledge didn't make the milk taste any better.

Has reading this reminded you of a flavor you hate?

(I'm tossing in my bid for liver-hating.)

Is there anything you've learned to like to eat over the years? (I decided I liked onions when I turned 40, and avocados finally won me over when I was 50.)

So what are your worst/favorites?

Lots of Shirley's!

Today is my birthday! Happy to me!

Here I am through the ages, starting with first grade in the upper left hand corner. (Awwww!)

Then view the model quality images left to right until you reach my 5th grade picture on the far left of the middle row. I distinctly remember being proud of my beautiful hair that day because I styled it myself. When I tied that bow around my head, I just knew I was worthy of inclusion in a Disney princess lineup.

On to the 8th grade picture on the far right, middle row.

After that, MY 9th GRADE PICTURE WITH THE BLUE EYESHADOW IS MISSING! (Did I sluff that year? Probably.)

The next item to note is that the short hair picture in the red shirt (Junior year), and the long hair picture in the white vest and blue collar (

Sophomore year), are reversed. 

I really don't know how to pull hair out of my head to make it grow that fast in one year. 

You might also note that with short hair cut so closely to my round face, I resemble a bowling ball with a neck.

Then we have the GRAND FINALE Senior picture in blue feathers. BLUE FEATHERS, PEOPLE!

I had arrived at adulthood and they put me in blue feathers.

Yeah, employers are going to take THAT seriously on a resume.

"I know how to smile in a blue feather shawl without sneezing."

"YOU'RE HIRED!"

Do you remember your Senior pictures?

Was it a good day?

Parade of Homes... and Bugs!

The Parade of Homes had some beautiful fixtures in their houses... wait, what's that? Did someone miss cleaning the sink?

Ahhh! It's a SPIDER! 

But it's not scrambling up the slippery sink sides in a vain attempt to escape the deadly faucet waterfall sure to swirl it down the drain at any moment! 

Oh. It's rubber. Fancy that. New, improved rubber arachnids for home decor that won't really spin webs in your pantry or bite you in your sleep.

How innovative!

My sister, Carolyn (Purple Girl) and I both liked the Be Happy sign, because we were happy to be together doing fun things on a rainy day in "sunny" St. George, Utah!

Do you like to look at new homes? Or are you perfectly satisfied just looking at the walls of your own home? (Or cave...)

Tall Bahlmenn and Big Fish!

I know my boys are tall, but sheesh, Andy, you're gonna take your head off if you run through any doorways in that get-up for playing the giant in BIG FISH at the Snow College theater! 

(I know, who's "playing," right?)

I was warned to take tissues, so I did. Afterward, I asked Bob if I should have handed him a tissue. He just looked at me with a half grin. Michael said he would have cried if he was a social cryer. Andy did his crying on stage.

We really liked the play. It was worth our time.

Do you like plays that make you cry? Or do you prefer to laugh? (This one offered both!) Do you like slapstick? Musicals? (This was also one of those.) Or drama? (Yeah, that too.)

What kind of play would you like to see? 

Tall Hot Blondes

When Rebecca and I met up with our equally tall, hot, blonde cousin, Jolene Rallison Garcia, at a store that had a sign that read, "Everyone wants a tall, hot blonde for Christmas," well, we had to take advantage of a photo op!

The only two problems are:

1. None of us stood up to show how tall we are.

2. I don't know how to crop this photo!

Argh!

(I want an electronically savvy brain for Christmas...)

What is your favorite beverage to warm up your insides in the winter?

Writers, Cousins, and Friends

  I don't know if I ever blogged about last fall and the time I spent in Kanab... if I already did, it's worth another mention, because I got to hang out with my cousin, Guy Rallison, and his ever-talented writer wife and my friend, Janette (center).

 I also got to stay in author Liz Adair's (center, below) comfortable, cozy bunkhouse.

 It's so fun to do authory things.

What kind of things do you like to do?

New book! "Who's Haunting You?"

It finally happened! I have a new book out titled, "Who's Haunting You?" It began when high school students told me ghost stories that happened to them. Then a 94 year old lady told me three hauntings that had occurred in her house. I was off and running...

or, writing, rather!

Here's the link:

Available in Kindle soon!)

A Dragon on my Head from LTUE!

LTUE stands for "Life, the Universe, and Everything,"

a funderful writing/art/textile conference, with fun and interesting things and people to see and do!

Here is Terra Luft, who in spite of the sparkly crown, doesn't write princess stories. Oh, no, she writes suspense with perhaps a trace of horror. The reason she wears the tiara while working is because it makes her feel so good that she writes better. (I must say, she looks pretty good in it, too!)

And here are half of my sons with J. Scott Savage's steampunk dragon introducing his brand new, exciting "Cove" series. L-R: Bron, Michael, Andy, the dragon, Shirley Bahlmann, and the one-and-only J. Scott Savage.

Why didn't I write down this guy's name? I thought I would remember it since both of his names started with the same letter. Hm. I don't recall it at the moment, but whoever he is, he said that he helped start the LTUE conference when he was a FRESHMAN at BYU! (I'm so glad he did.)

Here is my oldest son, Andy, participating on a panel. Not only did he have 4 panels and 1 solo presentation, but he made an impression on attendees with the news that he has a PhD in Super Heroes. (Really! He does! His dissertation was on Super Hero mythology.)

Here I am on my chocolate panel. Yep, the History of Chocolate. (It was delicious.)

I even had help putting out chocolate for the class members to share. (They wouldn't have come to a chocolate class if they didn't like it, would they?)

 I had this picture taken before all my boys assembled for the dragon shoot, where I'm dwarfed by my 6'3" 15-year-old, and the ever-manly Jeff Scott Savage.

And then there's the obligatory dragon head photo. A nice way to end the day.

Do you love writing conferences? (I'd love to live in a hotel with someone else cleaning up after me no matter what kind of conference was going on!) What kind of conference or presentation would you love to go to?

Bob Bahlmann Family Adventure at the Salt Lake City Outdoor Expo

Bob and Shirley Bahlmann

Brian and Michael Bahlmann

set up for the Salt Lake City Outdoor Expo last weekend.

EXPLORE THE OUTDOORS

From March 13-16 we shared information on the joy of going outdoors. We also let attendees touch the predator hides we brought from the Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR). Attendees also saw how tall various predators could be by reading their names (badger, raccoon, wolf, cougar, etc.) written on duct tape and applied at appropriate heights to a pole beside our booth. (Good idea, Brian!) The grizzly skull in front of Bob in the photo above came from a bear that could have stood 10 feet tall.

Shirley incognito... can you find her in the lineup of mannequins on the right? (Those mannequins gave us a start more than once, since they seemed to stare at us from across the aisle throughout the expo, even though they had no heads!)

LOOK FOR US THERE NEXT YEAR, and check out our website at outdoored.us!

Thank you