Posted on September 30, 2013 under Monday Morning Musings with no comments yet

I hardly know where to start.

Unless your computer crashed on the weekend or you were at a retreat, you have probably heard something about this now famous skunk. It ended up in my brother in laws grave the day of his funeral. The burial had to be postponed for a day. With permission from the family I have documented the entire episode from start to finish. And for once, every word is true. No embellishments this time around. So, coming tomorrow evening, ” Lou’s Last Laugh.”

We now know why we didn’t get a sellout the other evening for our fundraiser. We had competition just down the hall, in the same building. Wait for this… we were going toe to toe with Sex Toy Bingo. I had to Google it . I simply could not let this one pass without a story. So, coming later this week I have a story about what may have happened if two couples, one old and one young, had each unwittingly gone to the wrong event. It’s called “Mistaken Identities.”

And I haven’t forgotten about the Goodman department store story. The skunk kind of threw everything off schedule including my stories.

I am down to the wire getting things ready for the book. It will be printed in the next three weeks.

I have my 40th. homecoming later this week and I am also attending the Georegtown Conference in P.E.I. It’s going to be another busy week but you guys are all busy too.

Have a good one!

Posted on September 23, 2013 under Monday Morning Musings with one comment

I spent a pleasant morning at the Farmer’s Market on Saturday shamelessly promoting our big fundraiser coming up this  Thursday, Sept.26th. at 7:00 p.m. at the Schwartz Auditorium. I certainly don’t want to create pandemonium by suggesting that we are going to have a sell out , causing you to make a mad dash for tickets. However, in terms of planning for coffee and tea at the intermission, it would be great if we had a good handle on numbers so please try and buy your tickets in advance. In addition to strong advance ticket sales, we have already received one anonymous donation of $1000 from someone who can’t make it to the show but who wanted to support the cause. Phil and I are both getting very excited about the event. Terrified would be another word to describe our feelings.

I was delivering ticket proceeds to the treasurer of St. Vincent de Paul last week. He lives on Chestnut Street. Well, one thing led to another and he told me this story about when he first arrived on the street. At that time, despite the name, there were no chestnut trees on Chestnut Street. So he and his wife took matters into their own hands. If you go there today you will see several chestnut trees adorning their property and those around them. I decided to write a story about this which is titled : A Family Tree. Coming soon.

In addition to my editorial team ( makes me sound important…don’t be fooled ) and the web designing wizardry of Crispin Cornect  ( new website coming soon ), I have added a consultant from Ontario to my growing list of advisors. We are collectively trying to nail down the final pieces to get my book ready for printing in late October. There’s a lot more to this than meets the eye. As it turns out, writing the stories is the easy part. We are going to try and market the book beyond the borders of Antigonish and to do this we need to use every weapon in the arsenal. We will do all of the traditional stuff by having a launch and selling hard copies but we want to be able to sell the book anywhere. To do this we need to use social media and all that that entails. If you are curious about the title, go to my website and check out the tab “My First Book.”

Have a great week and hope to see you at the big event on Thursday.

Posted on September 16, 2013 under Monday Morning Musings with no comments yet

Honestly. I have made every attempt to be politically correct over the past year. I have tried to avoid demeaning remarks and cheap shots. After all, my intent is to entertain and not provoke or inflame. I saw a comment on Facebook on the weekend that caught my eye. A friend from Halifax was expressing disgust and outrage at the level of discourse from our provincial politicians who are in the throes of an election. The negative advertising which is so pervasive in the United States  has crept into Canadian politics and it’s not going down so well. When I saw the comment I felt I had to weigh in so I immediately penned a new story called “Playing in the Mud.” Coming soon.

I was at a family dinner yesterday and heard a story that I thought was hilarious. It was about a couple who were going through an acrimonious divorce. That’s no laughing matter but when it came to dividing assets, they reached an impasse over the piano. “Playing the Same Tune” takes a look at what happened to the piano. Not an easy thing to divide.

I have submitted the last of my stories to the editor of my book and we’re still hoping to publish in late October. In addition to the paperback version, I am hoping to make it available as an e-book.

I am also working with a web designer and you should see a new look in the not too distant future.

Phil and I did a dry run of our upcoming show at a local senior’s apartment building this past Thursday. We had a great turnout and were well received. I have a few surprises up my sleeve for the big event.

Have a great week.