Face To Face For The First Time

I'm typing this blog on the last leg of a trip my husband and I made to Vancouver B.C. via a cruise ship being repositioned from San Francisco to Vancouver.

After working over a year with Kate Jeong, the illustrator for Purple Carrot Books, I was determined to find a way to meet her in person. We had never met face to face. An email from Princess Cruises presented the perfect opportunity—take a cruise for two nights, spend a day with Kate and her family and fly back home.

The Jeong family (Kate, husband Don and their three boisterous boys, Steven, Danny and Harry) met us after we disembarked from the ship at the docks in Vancouver. It was like a reunion with a long-time friend. Up to that point Kate and I had only communicated via email and Skype video conferencing.

They took us to Granville Island where we browsed through the Public Market then had coffee and visited while the boys chased pigeons along the waterfront. Later we found a kids park where the boys played until they collapsed with hunger.

After lunch we checked into our hotel and rested until Don and Harry picked us up to deliver us to their home where Kate and Don put the finishing touches on a traditional Korean dinner with lots of vegetables served on a bed of rice. Delicious!

Today Kate and I spent two and a half hours working on our latest app, Goldilocks and The Three Bears. We worked through the storyboard and added all the animation, interaction and sound notes. Now Kate can begin producing the finished color scenes. Kids are going to love this app.

Have you had a relationship where you didn't meet the person face to face until some time later?

Have you seen The Prisoner of Carrot Castle iPad app with Kate's beautiful illustrations?
 

Catch A Falling Star

Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket.
Never let it fade away.
Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket.
Save it for a rainy day.

Dateline Sunday, April 22, at approximately 8AM, a meteor exploded over Lotus, California waking some with a boom and pelting rocks on rooftops. By Tuesday morning renowned meteorite hunter Robert Ward arrived and promptly found the first meteor pieces in the parking lot of Lotus Park. Over the next few days several others were found in the vicinity. Soon scads of locals and amateur meteorite hunters combed the area wielding magnets on sticks and metal detectors. Several finders were rewarded with cash offers to buy the black space rocks on the spot.

Among the locals were yours truly and my obsessed... I mean... fascinated husband, Bob. Returning from an appointment on Thursday, he approached me with a familiar slight smile, raised cheeks and starry eyes.

"We gotta go looking for meteor rocks."

I looked up from my laptop, "No, really?"

The thrill of finding a meteorite 15 minutes from our home was too much to ignore. The next morning we ended up in Lotus Park talking with Robert Ward.

Robert Ward, Meteorite Hunter, Showing Meteorites to Excited Young Boys.

We formed an alliance, a la Survivor, to help Ward get onto various properties in the area that fell in the meteor drop zone.

On Tuesday (nine days after the meteor fell), while walking on a 1500-acre property west of the original discovery site, Ward found a very small fragment. He and Bob walked four feet abreast down a dirt road when he called out the finding.

Ward exhibits a childlike passion for the thrill of the hunt and unbridled exuberance when he finds a meteor. Fuel to further the hunt, which requires tenacity and drive. It's a lot of looking between finding anything.

Meteor Fragment (center) Compared to GPS Device

I decided to return to the hunt this morning with Bob. Having heard rumors of someone spotting a fragment in Rescue, we stopped first at the post office there. That's where I found the handful of fragments (photo above and below). We quickly called Ward and he and one of his team met us in the parking lot. I showed him my find to which he quickly said, "No. That's just yard rock." What most know as lava rock.

Okay, more lessons in becoming a trained observer (or should I say hunter) of space rocks.

In case you think anyone would be happy to cooperate in the advancement of science and allow hunters to search their property. Think again. There were a few landowners that weren't too keen on the recent spotlight to their rural, sleepy community. The South Fork of the American River that wends its way through the area has posted quiet zones along residential areas of the river's shores. Just a reminder to the daily armada of rafters that paddle their way through the churning white waters.

The meteor that exploded over Lotus, according to NASA scientists, was the size of a mini-van, weighing over 77 tons. Most meteors seen in the night sky are tiny rocks leaving a visible trial for only seconds. The Lotus meteor exploded with the force of one-third the energy of the bomb dropped over Hiroshima in World War II making it visible in the morning daylight for hundreds of miles.

The thrill of the hunt dies quickly after drudging over acres of land all day and coming up empty handed. I wasn't interested in spending 120 hours per meteorite that one hunter divulged it took him to find some of his collection. I'll be staying home back at my laptop, leaving the meteorite hunting to the experts.

In case you're interested in learning how to hunt for meteorites here are five steps to finding a meteorite.

Have you ever been involved in a hunt for something rare? Shopping doesn't count. :-)

Seeing Cinderella Book Review and Launch

Book Launch
February was a big month for Jenny Lundquist whose debut Middle Grade novel, Seeing Cinderella was released. I attended her book launch this past weekend at Barnes & Noble and happily waited in line with quite a few other fans anxious to get a book signed. Jenny is a fellow member of Inspire Christian Writers and there were some of us at the event to cheer her on.

While chatting with Keli Gwyn (whose debut romance novel comes out July 1st), a curious patron asked what the crowd of people was all about. "I'm here to get a gift for an eleven-year-old," she said. "Seeing Cinderella sounds like the perfect present." We steered her to the book signing line.

Being in the same critique group as Jenny, I had the privilege of reading most of Seeing Cinderella. Once I returned home, I settled into my comfy leather chair and read. I couldn't wait to find out how the story turned out.

Book Review
Seeing Cinderella is an entertaining book every middle school student would enjoy reading. It tackles the serious issues that mark the middle school years—namely self-doubt, low self esteem and flawed thinking about what others think. Through a delightful kind of magic in the form of special glasses, Callie (real name Calliope Meadow Anderson) learns to see that things aren't always as they appear and you can't believe everything you hear.

Callie's nickname by some is Polka Dot aptly describing her freckled face, offset by her frizzy hair. So when she adds a hideous pair of thick, dark-rimmed glasses to her look, she continues to assume kids are making fun of her.

Ellen, Callie's best friend going into middle school, signs her up to take drama instead of art—the first of many manipulating scenarios by Ellen. Callie learns as she maneuvers through the fall semester that her magic (aka super freaky) glasses unlock a whole new way of thinking and communicating.

The story culminates with the drama class's production of Cinderella. The frenzied scene has twists and turns that bring meaningful and satisfying changes to each character. At one point in the story, Callie's eye doctor (Dr. Ingram who supplied the super freaky glasses) remarks, "I suppose there are those who see, and those who do not want to see." A fitting lesson for a middle school student to add to their toolbox for life.

Aiden Goes to School and Travels the World

Great Way to Launch a Book
Reading the newly released Prisoner of Carrot Castle to five classrooms of 1st and 2nd graders at the Arlene Hein Elementary School in Elk Grove, California was a great way to launch a book app. Local authors were invited to read during the school's annual Read-a-thon. The Prisoner of Carrot Castle wowed the kids being the only digital interactive book at the event.

The students and teachers loved it! Most had never seen an iPad storybook app before. Having a passion for storytelling and a heart for children, I enjoyed reading with enthusiasm—getting into each character of the story.

A red cape and an over-sized wooden fork served as a costume for one child to "become" Aiden as I read the story. What a perfect way to enjoy the story of a boy who loved to costume play. Everyone wanted to be Aiden.

At the end of each reading, I allowed the children to play the games included in the app. They really enjoyed the hands-on experience. I explained the “Read to Me” feature and showed the students how to use it.

After school, the authors convened in the multi-purpose room and signed and sold books. I signed and sent home colorful postcards of The Prisoner of Carrot Castle with details on the app and how to order it.

The children had many questions. (These are bright kids with a great future!) They wanted to know: How long does it take to build an app? How did you come up with the story? Is it a regular book, too? Are you making other story apps? Can I dress the knight next?


Aiden Travels to More Countries

Aiden's been busy showing up in more countries around the world. Add Ireland, France, Norway and Indonesia to the countries enjoying The Prisoner of Carrot Castle.

Would you like The Prisoner of Carrot Castle read at your school?