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3/2/2021 9 Comments Precious Words ~ 50 of Them I never thought I'd write a story with only 50 words. That's absurd I thought. Most of my children's picture book manuscripts hover between 400 to 500 words. My memoir, Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver's Tale, topped out at around 76,000 words. So when children's book author, Vivian Kirkfield, set the challenge for writers to write stories with no more than 50 words, even though I thought it was preposterous, I took the challenge for #50 PRECIOUSWORDS 2021. Like my heroine, Hannah, in the story, HOORAY FOR HANNAH!, I wrote and wrote and wrote––50 words. Here's my wee, little story. Please tell me what you think. HOORAY FOR HANNAH! by Donna O'Donnell Figurski “SHOW-OFF Day!” squealed Nia. “I’m talentless,” moaned Hannah. But Hannah tried anyway. Forward roll. KERPLOP! Soccer ball into principal. OOPS! Feet twisted in jump rope. SPLAT! Hannah bolted. Then spied her pencil. “Aha!” Hannah wrote and wrote and wrote. Finally, she waved her poem and squealed, “I DO have talent!” THE END
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3/1/2021 0 Comments Lily ~~ A Blooming Flower
2/13/2021 0 Comments Facebook Quizzes - The Builder Do you ever take these Facebook Quizzes? Sometimes, I do. This time I got The Builder. Really? I can't hammer a nail without hammering the nail on my finger too. OUCH! A screwdriver? Isn't that a drink made with vodka and orange juice? And a wrench is what happens to me often when my schedule gets all screwed up. A 2 x 4 would easily describe my college apartment. So you can see why I was surprised to get labeled as The Builder. Let's look at what The Builder means to this Facebook Quiz. Personal fulfillment, for you, comes from being creative. If you're doing work that doesn't flex that creative muscle, you're bored to death and practically useless. And satisfaction doesn't come easily as you hold yourself to an incredibly high standard. When you're supposed to be basking in the glow of a completed project, you're constantly wondering how you could've made it better. It's both a gift and a curse; it's how you're able to constantly raise the bar and improve over time. But it can also be paralyzing and cause you to miss deadlines. Sometimes, you just need to set the bird free. Now Let's Analyze! Personal fulfillment, for you, comes from being creative. So true! If you're doing work that doesn't flex that creative muscle, you're bored to death and practically useless. So true! And satisfaction doesn't come easily as you hold yourself to an incredibly high standard. So true! When you're supposed to be basking in the glow of a completed project, you're constantly wondering how you could've made it better. So true! It's both a gift and a curse; it's how you're able to constantly raise the bar and improve over time. So true! But it can also be paralyzing and cause you to miss deadlines. I rarely miss deadlines. But I do miss a LOT of sleep in order to meet the deadlines. Sometimes, you just need to set the bird free. Someone tell me how to do that. YEP, I guess I am The Builder. See you soon. Donna - author of Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver’s Tale eBook Audiobook Clip art compliments of Bing.com  If you had taken take a peek into Room 121 in December 2010, you would've seen a bunch of Whos running around. Well, they weren't actually running around … they were really working on their English, Math, Science, Social Studies, Writing Workshop, Handwriting or Spelling lessons. They were very smart Whos, even though they may have looked a bit funny. I hope you weren't fooled by their silly stripe-y or colorful pajamas or their wild hairdos. They were very friendly Whos. If you took a peek into Whoville 121 that week so long ago, you would've seen the Whos busy preparing for their Readers Theater, How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss. They were going to perform their play for their 3rd grade friends in the other third class. Then they celebrated the holiday season with a party of pizza and juice. They passed out holiday cards and played Snowflakes Falling All Around. Oh what fun it was in Whoville 121! If you looked closely, you might have even seen their teacher, Mrs. Figurski, dressed up in her very best Whoville pajamas. Who Would-a Thunk It? See you soon. Donna - author of Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver’s Tale eBook Audiobook  Now One Foot, Now the Other by Tomie dePaola is one of my favorite books. I love all of Tomie's books, but this one touches the heart. My husband, David, had a traumatic brain injury in 2005 and, like Bob, had to relearn to walk. I guess I was my husband's "Bobby" as I helped David to learn to walk again. This book is so important in helping a child understand what happened to grandpa (grandma, anyone) when they suffer a debilitating brain injury. It is even an eye-opener for adults. I highly recommend this book to any audience. See you soon. Donna - author of Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver’s Tale eBook Audiobook 1/15/2021 0 Comments Party Time - Sweet 16 Again! David Figurski - Happy 16th birthday for the second-time around It was party time this week. Every year on January 13th, David and I celebrate his new-life birthday. It started in 2006, one year after his traumatic brain injury, which he survived with a 1/600 chance of living. Those odds are definitely worth celebrating. I baked a cake––his favorite, white cake with white fluffy frosting. I plopped the whole cake in front of him for a photo op. He must have thought it was his lucky day. He loves cake. He loves all desserts. “Is that all for me?” he asked, with his eyes nearly popping out of his head. “NO!” I said. “You wish! That’s just for the picture.” I snapped the photo, grabbed the cake, and delivered it to the safety of the counter. I cut an extra large slice for David, a smaller one for me. We enjoyed that cake. AND…we will enjoy it for about four or five more days. Happy sweet 16 re-birthday, David! See you soon. Donna - author of Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver’s Tale eBook Audiobook 1/10/2021 2 Comments Oil of Old Age – Slather it On Only a best girlfriend can give you a lotion jar with the words Oil of Old Age etched on the jar and you still love her. My best friend, Trish (aka Patty Williams Streips), gave me that gift about twenty years ago and it sits next to my kitchen sink where it reminds me of her every day. And it still makes me giggle. Trish knew I was a fanatic user of Oil of Olay, a moisturizing cream that my mother introduced to me when I was about twenty years old. My mother insisted that I use it every day. “Just slather it on your face,” she said. Now, I didn’t often listen to my mother, but for some magical reason unbeknownst to me, this time I listened. I use Oil of Olay religiously every single day. My mother said it would keep the wrinkles away, and it worked for her. Guess what? It’s working for me too. Not a wrinkle to be found. As I am getting older, perhaps I should double up on my usage. I wish my mother were here to tell me what to do. This post is in In honor of both my best girlfriend, Trish, and my mother who are no longer here to use Oil of Olay. See you soon. Donna - author of Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver’s Tale eBook Audiobook 12/24/2020 2 Comments Phew! Santa is Immune! According to my husband, Columbia University Professor Emeritus, Dr. David Figurski, Santa is immune from Covid-19. He heard that great news from Dr. Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
I am so relieved to know that Christmas is not canceled. I will be peering through the night sky to catch a glimpse of Santa and his eight reindeer tonight. For all you kids and kids-at-heart like me, you can follow his progress around the world on NORAD Santa Tracker. He’s already begun his journey and in now in Africa. He’s heading towards Angola. I’ve shared David’s post from survivingtraumaticbraininjury.com below. COVID-19: Dr. Fauci: Don't Worry – Santa Claus is Immune to COVID-19 (Disclaimer: The World Health Organization <WHO> has officially named the new coronavirus as SARS-CoV-2 and the disease it causes as COVID-19. Because the majority of people, including much of the press, commonly refer to the virus as “COVID-19,” to avoid confusion, I use COVID-19 as the name of the virus in this post.) Children and parents don’t have to worry that the pandemic will ruin Christmas. Dr. Anthony Fauci, a member of the President’s Coronavirus Task Force and Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has stated (video) that Santa has excellent innate immunity. (Innate immunity is the body’s first line of defense against viruses. Specific neutralizing antibodies develop a couple of days later.) Santa’s immunity is so good that he can’t get infected by COVID-19 and, consequently, he can’t spread the virus. In fact, he doesn’t need a vaccine. All the elves and Mrs. Claus are staying safe by wearing masks and practicing social distancing. It also turns out that the cells of Santa’s reindeer don’t make the receptor for the virus, so the reindeer can’t be infected. For those who are concerned about receiving gifts on Christmas morning, the good news is that Santa and his reindeer will make their usual Christmas eve worldwide trip. Have a happy and safe holiday. See you soon. Donna - author of Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver’s Tale
12/19/2020 0 Comments Christmas in My Desert It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas–well as much as it can look like Christmas in the desert with not even a flake of snow. I’m not complaining. The east just got clobbered with up to 43 inches of snow making it look and feel like a magical wonderland, and I do miss the beauty of a blizzard–but I do not miss the freezing temps or having to don an extra five pounds of clothing just to keep warm. I do not miss the ice or the back-breaking work of shoveling the snow. But, I do love the magic of the lights, the colorful ones, the brilliant whites, and the mystical blue, and I especially love the laser lights projecting snowflakes, reindeer, or colorful swirls against the houses, trees, and cacti. But, not to worry. We have that magical feeling, here, too, in my desert. Look! See you soon. donna – author of Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver's Tale |
AuthorI am the author of Prisoners without Bars: A Caregiver's Tale. It's the true story of how my husband almost left me--three times. Archives
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