#atozchallenge #roadtrip - Stormy keeps the rubber on the road.

 

Looking out at the road rushing under my wheels
Looking back at the years gone by like so many summer fields

Running on - running on empty
Running on - running blind

(Running on Empty - Jackson Browne)

Welcome to leg six of the Post A-to-Z Road Trip!

Stormy the Weather Gnome and I are going to try to hit at least 20 new blogs a week from the Challenge list and tell you about a few of them in each of my posts.

When you go visit these awesome blogs, please make sure you tell them that you're visiting on the Post A to Z Road Trip!



Jeremy Hawkins - [Being Retro]

One of my favorite blogs any month of the year but this past April was especially wonderful!

26 letters devoted to my favorite Marvel movies, shows, characters and actors! I LOVE IT! Thank you, Jeremy! It's a magical place!


In sixty-nine I was twenty-one and I called the road my own
I don't know when that road turned onto the road I'm on


Nicki Elson - Nicki Elson's Not So Deep Thoughts

Nicki's theme was a constant stream of awesomeness. 90s Pop Culture Favorites! Books, movies and music to name just a few! And, of course, X for The X-Files!


Mina Burrows

Mina didn't pull any punches with her A-Z: Classic Monsters theme! Dragons, Kong, Orcs and The Thing are all highlighted in her April posts!


Looking out at the road rushing under my wheels
I don't know how to tell you all just how crazy this life feels

Running on - running into the sun
But I'm running behind


Lexa Cain

Lexa scared the crap out of me with her April theme. Hauntings: haunted places around the world! No place is safe!

Really, I don't believe in ghosts.
Well, I didn't.


Spacer Guy - Star Trek - Sci Fi Blog

This one may seem self explanatory, but its not. These 26 Star Trek posts are funny and interesting behind the scenes bits and other pieces of insightful information about all the Star Trek shows.

Thanks for visiting with us today!
Are you finding any great blogs on your trip?

The Season of Blogging

Do you know what it's like to sometimes feel like there’s not enough time in the day to post new content? Those of us who have had blogs for longer than a year have likely become broken down at one time or another, for one reason or another, in the struggle to keep our blogs going. Once it starts, the wave of procrastination, doubt and lack of interest in blogging can make us believe that our world doesn’t have room for our blogs at the moment.

It’s like a blogging breakdown happens, especially when writer’s block has reared its ugly head….again. Yet, it’s rarely noticeable as dirty dishes are piled mountain high in the kitchen sink because all the time spent working for the man required overtime this week. Plus, laundry needs to be done, dinner must be served and little Jimmy has baseball tryouts this weekend. Then there’s that sudden feeling technology overload once the cell phone starts ringing, alarms go buzzing and social media notifications pop up on the little screen. Oh wait…“The Real Housewives of Orange County” is coming on tonight and, well, the mere thought of blogging just elicits one big sigh, or maybe even a sense of sheer panic. 

Updating ones blog used to be a fun activity but now it just seems sooo last season. If this sounds like you and if you ever find yourself neglecting your blog or letting it fall by the wayside because, hey, life happens after all, remember this…

There is no right season or special sauce that determines when the time is right to get back into the swing of blogging.

As bloggers, we have to constantly work at putting out fresh content, out of respect for our readers, the platforms that we’ve built and for ourselves. We must find a way to make blogging fun again. This can be done by approaching our blog in a way that is hassle free, given our schedule and interests.

Maybe time and life duties won’t allow you to write that epic blog post today but what’s stopping you from posting a photo and a simple caption? Or perhaps, a roundup style blog post containing links to other bloggers that may be of interest to your readers? Or, maybe list style posts describing all of the things/people/places keeping you from blogging like a rockstar?

Blogging is never out of season, so we must do what we can to make sure that our corner of the web is always trending.

What are YOUR blogging struggles that YOU would like to overcome?

Nicole Ayers is an A-to-Z Challenge Co-Host who operates The Madlab Post and chats on Twitter. Her short narrative drama film “ABYSS: THE GREATEST PROPOSAL EVER,” is available on DVD (Limited Sneak PreviewEdition) as she works further relief efforts for disaster survivors including U.S. Military Veterans. 

What Does Your blog mean to You? #blogging

A to Z Challenge is about promoting the blogging community-- we're all bloggers here-- a friendly, supportive bunch, who would like to help each other grow.

That's the purpose of this A to Z blog-- to give voice to other bloggers, to promote their work, to give advice and support, to feature guest bloggers, and foster a sense of community.

This clarity of vision is very important when blogging-- bloggers need to clearly understand what the goals of their blogs are. Their mission statements, if you like.

It could be random, it could have a niche, but every blog needs to mean something to its owner, in order to thrive. Both my blogs, six-years old each, are my playground-- Amlokiblogs is all about writing and reading, whereas Daily (w)rite has become about questions and answers-- I often have weird or useful questions, and I look to my audience to educate me, give me answers.

So what does your blog mean to you? What is is about? Fire away in the comments!

5 Super Results of Visiting A-to-Z Challenge Blogs in the Summer #atozchallenge #roadtrip

Whether slow and steady, or fast and furious, we road trippers are racking up lots of blog-visiting miles on the A-to-Z Challenge signup list. It is a wonder how many of us have noticed some unexpected payoffs along the way.

Of all the blogs you've visited so far since May, it’s easy to find yourself in the following scenario:

1. Reading and commenting on more blogs than you normally would during the A-to-Z Challenge off-season.
2. Learning about topics of interest you didn't even know you had.
3. Meeting or exceeding the amount of blogs you visited back in April, during the actual challenge.
4. Being motivated to update your own blog with new material, more often, to keep it fresh for potential visitors.
5. Interacting with more bloggers on social media.

Which of the scenarios described here apply to YOU? What are some additional results or perks that you've noticed while visiting blogs during the A-to-Z Challenge Road Trip?

A-to-Z Challenge Co-Host Nicole Ayers writes about making movies at The Madlab Post. She is currently supporting U.S. Military Veterans with her short narrative drama film ABYSS: THE GREATEST PROPOSAL EVER, Available on DVD (Limited Sneak Preview Edition). 

Storyteller's Perspective: 500 New Fairy Tales Found - The Scoop

Anyone remembers the article from The Guardian that has been going around on social media sites since 2012? (Yes, it really has been 2 years, and I still receive the link from well-meaning friends and acquaintances at least once a week). The headline read "Five Hundred New Fairy Tales Discovered in Germany," and was enticing enough to permanently stick in the Internet pipelines.
Here is some related news you might not have heard yet: 150 of those legendary 500 are now available in English translation, as part of a bilingual publication called Original Bavarian Folktales: A Schönwerth selection (translated by Charlotte M. Wolf, PhD). Brand spanking new, this book came out in March 2014, and received a lot less of the well-deserved attention than the Guardian article. Go figure.

So, what's all the hoopla really about?

Let me burst the bubble first: The "Five Hundred" are not, in fact, all "new" fairy tales. They were collected by a wonderful gentleman called Franz von Schönwerth in the 19th century, and they have been preserved in his estate along with hundreds of pages of linguistic notes and other interesting information. And when you read them you can find many that have very close variants in other collections of folktales - and I am not even only talking about Grimm. So, strictly speaking, the 500 are not as mint-shiny as you might have thought they are.

With that said: They are awesome.

We learn from the introduction to the English translation that Schönwerth was, in fact, a very thorough collector. He gathered all his stories from one specific region (the Upper Palatinate of Bavaria), and mostly listened to what the everyday people of the villages had to say. The result is an amazing kaleidoscope of stories that paint a world full of magic: Spirits of Earth (dwarves and giants), Water (nixies and mermaids), Fire (will-o-whisps), and the Forest (Forest Maidens and Gnomes); legends of the Sun and the Moon, of the Mountains, lore of Witches and Wizards, and even remnants of German mythology. You will have to read the whole thing for yourself, but I'll give you some of the highlights that stuck with me:

1. A folktale where the pretty girl is the mean one, and the homely girl is the kind one, and it doesn't change in the end.

2. A "prequel" to a Czech folktale I included in my book, explaining the origin of all the superpowers of the Extraordinary Helpers of the hero (traditional folk superhero origin story? Damn right!)

3. A folktale about a human family that befriends the mountain dwarves; the women end up being midwives to each other's children, the human lady even breastfeeds a baby dwarf, and when one of the dwarves asks for a human girl's hand in marriage, he is politely refused, and the friendship does not suffer from it at all. I was reading it, waiting for a conflict that never came.

4. A funny folktale about what would happen if flour fell from the sky instead of snow.

5. Two haunting variations of the Melusine legends where a mermaid marries a human man.

There are many, many more that I could mention. Most of these tales are less "elegant and sophisticated" than the Grimm tales - in exchange, they have a local flavor and a world teeming with magic that makes you love them. They show a lot more compassion and harmony between people and nature, vivid imagination, and a deep love for storytelling.

Next time you see the Guardian article pop up, link the book to others that might like it!

As usual, you can find Csenge (@TarkabarkaHolgy) at:
The Multicolored Diary - Adventures in Storytelling
MopDog - The crazy thing about Hungarians...
Her book, Tales of Superhuman Powers, a collection of folktales that feature superpowers, is available on Amazon.com.

Themes That Rocked! Insightful Writing Tips from Chrys Fey

Please welcome Chrys Fey, author of Hurricane Crimes and the upcoming 30 Seconds!


You posted writing tips – what made you choose that theme?

I post writing tips all the time on my blog, so I decided to stick with that theme for my first A to Z Challenge, but I used topics I wasn’t planning on blogging about anytime soon.

Which letter was the most difficult?

Surprisingly enough, it was letter “S”. At first I planned on blogging about song writing, but came to realize that topic is vast and that not many writers may want to know about song writing. I chose the supernatural genre as the topic for “S” a few days before it was to go live.

Which tip was the hardest for you to learn as a writer?

The hardest tip for me to learn actually had nothing to do with grammar or how to make my writing better. It was about having patience. I was so ready to publish my first book—at a young age—that I was rushing toward that goal before I was really ready. Then when I was in the querying process, desperately trying to get anything published, my impatience doubled. I soon learned that it’ll happen when it is meant to happen.

Which one do you think most writers miss or ignore?

I always say a writer should do A LOT of research about their story, and about publishing. Many aspiring writers ask me what they should do to get published, but that’s a hard question to answer because the process differs from person to person. There are some things that all writers should know to do, such as the importance of building credentials, how to write query letters, and where to look for agents. Except countless aspiring writers don’t know they need to do those things, because they didn’t do any research before diving into their dream.

That really is a great question though, Alex. I would be interested to hear what everyone else thinks.

Which letter got the best reactions?

In regard to the number of shares, that’s a tie between my posts Quotes about Writing and “Z” Words to Add to Your Writing, which also received the highest number of comments. All of my posts got wonderful comments, though.

Which one was your favorite?

I love all of them, but the one that is most special to me is the one I wrote about my mom, Inheriting the Writing Gene. I truly believe she is the reason why I am a writer today.

Are there a lot of vegetarian writers out there?

There are certainly more than I thought there were! I was amazed at how many bloggers commented on my “V” post to tell me they are also vegetarian or vegan.

If you participate in the Challenge next year, do you have a theme in mind?

I am definitely planning on participating next year, and I do have a theme in mind. I don’t want to spoil it just yet, but I will say I’m borrowing the theme from my (future) Disaster Crime series. ;)

Disasters would be cool! Hopefully not disasters in writing. Thanks again, Chrys!


Co-host Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh is the author of Amazon Best-sellers CassaStar, CassaFire, and CassaStorm, and his blog can be found HERE

#atozchallenge #roadtrip - Stormy sails the Road Trip seas!

 

My love is in league with the freeway
Its passion will ride, as the cities fly by
And the tail-lights dissolve, in the coming of night
And the questions in thousands take flight

(Big Log - Robert Plant)

Welcome to leg five of the Post A-to-Z Road Trip!

Stormy the Weather Gnome and I are going to try to hit at least 20 new blogs a week from the Challenge list and tell you about a few of them in each of my posts.

When you go visit these awesome blogs, please make sure you tell them that you're visiting on the Post A to Z Road Trip!


Damyanti Biswas - Amlokiblogs

Co-host extraordinaire Damyanti's April theme? Quotes from Authors and Bookish People about Writing.

So many inspirational quotes and brilliant advice from great people that we all admire. Complete win!

And it's you once again
Leading me on - leading me down the road
Driving beyond - driving me down the road 

Smurfin' The Web Movie Reviews & Other Stuff 

Smurfin' The Web chose some of their favourite movies of all time and gave a movie review for every letter of the alphabet, like...Hot Fuzz, Platoon, and The Usual Suspects!

Julie Flanders

How much fun is this? Julie shows us around Martha's Vineyard with her 26 letters for April with some great pictures and cool facts!

Sensing too well when the journey is done
There is no turning back - no
There is no turning back - on the run 

Carrie-Anne - Onomastics Outside the Box

Her theme was invented names which were so popular in the early decades of the Soviet Union. Some of these names are really epic and her blog is full of all kinds of great names, not just Russian. Great for the writer's out there!

Katie - The Cyborg Mom

How to Keep Busy While Recovering was one of my favorite themes. Katie has some shitty bones (Bad ankle, bad!) and she has spent her fair share of time immobile. She lists 26 great ways to keep from going INSANE while healing and she's got a great sense of humor while she does it. 

Thanks for visiting with us today!
Are you finding any great blogs on your trip?

A to Z Challenge Theme: Quotes from Authors and Bookish People about Writing - See more at: http://amloki.blogspot.com/2014/04/atozchallenge-for-action-fiction.html#sthash.uH99A2mA.dpuf

A to Z Challenge Theme: Quotes from Authors and Bookish People about Writing - See more at: http://amloki.blogspot.com/2014/04/atozchallenge-for-action-fiction.html#sthash.uH99A2mA.dpuf

Time to go travelling

Yes, we're well into July now, and it's time to go travelling - and not just on the #atozroadtrip.

One of the things I enjoy most on the #atozchallenge are the travel blogs.  I don't know why I don't take more notice of them through the year, but it seems to me that picking a travel theme gives you a great opportunity to show off your holiday snaps AND engage with people who have been to the same places, or would like to go to the same places, even from their armchair.

Last April I had a chance to do a little of that because my theme was the NATO phonetic alphabet, which offered me Hotel, India, Lima, Quebec, Sierra and Zulu.  I had a tale or two to tell about some of those, and I hope people enjoyed them.  I am tempted to do a travel theme next year, but I really haven't got enough photos of places beginning with.. well, the usual difficult letters.  But my next holiday (vacation) is to somewhere special, to do something special, so I decided to fit my theme around that and I'm already considering what to put against the other letters!

Are you holidaying (vacationing) somewhere nice this summer (or winter, in the Antipodes)?  I'm thinking hot summer days with a pleasant breeze to stop me melting; shady beaches with waves lapping, palm trees waving, good food and pleasant company.  Nice countryside to walk in would be essential, and a few interesting buildings to fulfil some cultural yearnings would be nice too.  Sounds like I ought to be back in Goa, or somewhere else in India - or maybe substitute the palms for pines and do the Mediterranean - Knossos would be nice, I've always wanted to go there.  Or is Disneyworld more your thing?  How about the Harry Potter world?

My next holiday?  I'm going to the arctic circle to see a total eclipse of the sun - next March.  So that's E for Eclipse sorted out!

Did you miss these travelling posts on the @AprilA2Z?
Natasha's eXpress - http://natasha-pointstoponder.blogspot.in/2014/04/x-for-saraighat-express.html
Reflections En Route did Lithuania http://www.reflectionsenroute.com/l-lithuania-az-challenge/
A Taste of Travel did a restaurant tour: http://atasteoftravelblog.com/2014/licata-home-of-sicilys-best-restaurant/
Bob Sanchez is one of many who did G for Grand Canyon! http://bobsanchez1.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/g-is-for-grand-canyon.html
and Jennifer Garcia did Florence, among other places http://jenniferfgarcia.com/2014/04/07/a-z-challenge-4/

My 2p in the Blogger or Wordpress for following blogs is solved by pinning them to a Pinterest page for A to Zs  :)

See my blog at http://jemimapett.com and follow the news of my Princelings of the East series at http://princelings.co.uk.  The sixth book, Bravo Victor is FREE 9th and 10th July on Amazon worldwide (last chance!)

Here's An Idea!: My Vacation Scrapbook (#atozchallenge)

Northern terminus of California State Route 23 outside Moorpark (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

            So how's your summer going so far?   I'm on the road right now.  Actually I've settled in for a few weeks at my mother's house in East Tennessee.  I'm enjoying time with family and hopefully will have a chance to see some old friends.   But the main purpose of the trip is to spend time helping my mother and just hang out with her.   I don't get to see her very much since I moved to California 23 years ago.

           I'll also be visiting my daughters in New Jersey and Houston and have some special times with my grandkids.  Don't get to see any of them nearly enough either.  The family is scattered and that means a major vacation trip in order to see everyone.

           So what's all this have to do with the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge?  Well, since I'm doing a series about coming up with theme ideas for the 2015 Challenge (visit Part 1 here), I thought why not use this summer's activities as a basis for your blogging theme in April.  It's kind of like the "What I Did During Summer Vacation" essays you probably had to do back when you were in school.  Same thing for your month long A to Z theme except you can get super detailed and add pictures.

          Travelling affords so many inspirations and opportunities for good blog post ideas that you can not only use them now, but you can still organize them later for your April A to Z theme.

Here's a Few Ideas:

• I Spy Travel Game--This is always a good way to entertain the kids if you're in the car for a long ways.  Have them look for something that starts with the letter A and so on through the alphabet.  And while they're playing the game find some inspiration of your own for your April theme.
• Places A to Z--When you're traveling you come upon all sorts of place names that will range through the alphabet.  Towns, streets, rivers, mountains. and all sorts of other place names will give you ideas for every letter.  Make a list as you go for reference later on.
• Business names--This is one I've been tempted to do.  Use the restaurants you eat at, the places you stay, stores you shop in, or just businesses you pass by.  Take pictures of them if you can.  If you have time you can even interview the owners or customers to add some dimension to your blog post.  There are plenty of businesses from Aamco to Zaxby's and you can fill up your theme fast.  And you don't even have to leave your home town to do this one.

      This is just to get you started.  Get your creative mind to working and I'll bet you can come up with a lot more ideas that will keep you busy while on your vacation.  Have fun with it!

          Be sure to visit Wednesday's post with more on this idea and some links that might inspire you.

          What travel games did you play as a kid or do your kids play now?     If you're traveling during the summer, where will you be going?   What are some other A to Z themes you can think of that relate to travel?

Related articles

• Top Tips for an Affordable Family-Friendly Vacation
• Shifting Gears to Locate the Hottest (Blog) Spots on A-Z North #atozchallenge #roadtrip
• #AtoZChallenge: "B" is for BALBOA PARK
• #AtoZChallenge: Letter A for Arkansas

Happy 4th of July to our American Readers!

We are so glad that the A-Z Community is a global one, with bloggers from all over the world.

However, most of the co-hosts are from the US, and today we are celebrating the independence of our nation.

We will be back with "real" posts on Monday. Meanwhile, enjoy whatever today brings you.

~Tina, for the A-Z Team

Storyteller's Perspective: Something old, something new...

I like old stories. I think most of us do. During the month of April A to Z, I especially love finding blogs that choose themes like mythology (Greek, Norse, or anything else), folklore, or even ghosts. It always makes me happy to see that people still read, share, and cherish these tales.

Of course, I am a storyteller, so I might be biased.

Today I would like to share with you a game that I have been playing. It is useful for me, both as an author and as a storyteller, to know what the stories that are the most popular these days (anything between Captain America and The Fault in Our Stars) are doing right. And I especially love to find old, old stories in new costumes, sometimes so masterfully re-done that it is a challenge worthy of Indiana Jones to recognize them.

(How many of you realized the Hunger Games is a version of the myth of Theseus?)

Here is how the game goes:

1. Pick a film, a TV show, or a game that is popular (and you have needed an excuse to watch or play)

2. Give it a chance. It might end up being boring or generally not your thing, but hey, gotta try it before you criticize it, right?

3. Make a list of things - characters, places, visual elements, plot points - that you especially liked. This can be anything from Merida's archery skills to Loki's mischief (There Shall Be No Storytelling Post Without Trickster References!)

4. Go scour the Internet for other people's opinions - what did the good people of the Web find especially awesome or memorable? (you can make a safe guess based on fan art, if everything else fails)

5. Now that you have a handy list, go on a quest: Try to find old stories that have the same things. Search in Google Books, or story collections, or even the very handy Thompson motif index for folktales. See what you can dig up. If you want to see a few examples, you can check on the StorySpotting blog.

The more you play, the easier it gets (and, also, you find more and more intriguing bits). It is not only fun to play with the idea of "nothing is ever new," but it can also provide tremendous help and inspiration: It teaches you about what values, characters and motifs remain popular over the ages and across cultures, and have the constant power to amaze and inspire modern readers and audiences.

Have fun!

As usual, you can find Csenge (@TarkabarkaHolgy) at

The Multicolored Diary - Adventures in Storytelling

MopDog - The crazy thing about Hungarians...

Summer Doldrums Hit Your Blog? Here's an Idea...

How is your blog doing this summer?  Hit a snag?  A rough patch?  Having trouble keeping on keeping on?  You may have hit the doldrums.  You've probably heard the expression, but do you know where it comes from?  Since I'm there myself, stuck in the doldrums, I thought I'd look it up and share.

The Merrium Webster dictionary defines it as:

Full Definition of DOLDRUMS

1

:  a spell of listlessness or despondency

2

often capitalized :  a part of the ocean near the equator abounding in calms, squalls, and light shifting winds

3

:  a state or period of inactivity, stagnation, or slump

Wikipedia offers us (abbreviated by me)

Colloquially, the "doldrums" are a state of inactivity, mild depression, listlessness or stagnation

The doldrums is a colloquial expression derived from historical maritime usage, in which it refers to those parts of the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean affected by the Intertropical Convergence Zone, a low-pressure area around the equator where the prevailing winds are calm.

The doldrums are also noted for calm periods when the winds disappear altogether, trapping sail-powered boats for periods of days or weeks.


I had thought that sailing was involved somewhere in there, and I was right.  Just reading about sailing cheered me up a bit.

What does this have to do with your blog?  Well I hit upon an idea that I thought I'd share.  My blog schedule is three times a week, so I decided that once a week I'd write an episode in a series.  I chose my college days as the topic.  Yes, I'm writing true, sometimes embarrassing stories of some of my college adventures.

Having the topic decided for at least once a week has helped me a LOT.  I have no end of material, considering, well, how coordinated I am, how naturally, socially savvy I was back then (was not...) and the stupid things that my roommates used to do.

I'm not saying that you have to have the kind of a blog that writes the naked truth about your life for this this to work, but is there a topic that could be a recurring theme once a week?

Of course you could choose a real-life series if that fits your style, and here are some ideas:

- my first year as a parent

- my first year as a (name of job)

- the horrors of working in a fast food establishment (haven't we all had to endure that?)

- the life lessons I learned from being a (fill in the blank)

If your blog isn't that style, maybe you could do once a week:

- how to...and pick something that fits your category of blog

- organizational ideas for your (name of room)

- my new favorite song, and include a YouTube clip

- I found this great, but unknown movie...

- My favorite beach combing finds

- The best thing I ever ate (thanks Food Network)

If you're stuck in the doldrums, having the topic decided for at least once a week might help.  Just a suggestion.  Come on over to Life is Good if you'd like to know how I experienced college...series usually runs on Mondays, but it might be Tuesday this week. After all, it's my blog, and like a good friend told me, "Will the world end if you for one week don't have a Monday post?"  (The answer is: it won't.  It just feels like that if you're a Schedule Woman like me...)

~Tina, who may or may not finish tomorrow's College Life series episode...and maybe the world WILL end, but I haven't seen any zombies today...so I'm thinking not...

©2014 All Rights Reserved

Dictionary reference

Wikipedia reference

#atozchallenge #roadtrip - Stormy jumps for joy!

We're on a road to nowhere
Come on inside
Takin' that ride to nowhere
We'll take that ride
I'm feelin' okay this mornin'
And you know,
We're on the road to paradise
Here we go, here we go

(Road to nowhere by Talking Heads)

Welcome to leg four of the Post A-to-Z Road Trip!

Stormy the Weather Gnome and I are going to try to hit at least 20 new blogs a week from the Challenge list and tell you about a few of them in each of my posts.

When you go visit these awesome blogs, please make sure you tell them that you're visiting on the Post A to Z Road Trip!


Tina Downey
During April, Tina took us on a journey to 'Explore the differences, big and small, between American and Swedish culture'. We learned about new foods, places, booze, vacation spots, language and of course, 'having coffee'. I might just move to Sweden for the care and consideration they give to coffee alone! And, the goodies they serve with it! Thank you, Tina, for showing us the way!


Maybe you wonder where you are
I don't care
Here is where time is on our side
Take you there...take you there
We're on a road to nowhere



A Life Less Ordinary
Holli Moncrieff

Want to achieve A Life Less Ordinary? Follow Holli's 26 letters to learn more about about putting yourself out there and living life to the fullest!


Rachna's Scriptorium
Rachna Chhabria

Rachna's theme was Emotions and Feeling Writers Experience. You may have heard of a few. Anxiety. Depression. Passion. Unease. Wonder. Yearning. It's a hard, smart look into the world writer's live in.


There's a city in my mind
Come along and take that ride
and it's all right, baby, it's all right 


Sukanya Ramanujan, A Glimpse into My World
Sukanya Ramanujan

Some stunning photography, from all over the world, for every letter of the alphabet.


Finley Jayne's Going to the Library...
Finley Jayne

Finely's theme...Books I Hate! (I hope my book is not on her list.) Here is the letter Z post which contains a link to every letter post for the whole month!

Thanks for visiting with us today!
Are you finding any great blogs on your trip?

Hilary Melton-Butcher: Meet Some Unusual Dragons!

Today's guest, Hilary Melton-Butcher barely needs an introduction.  She's the prolific and terrific lady whom we admire for her uniquely told stories of history and mystery.  A visit to Positive letters...inspirational stories  is always a treat.  Today she's doubling up with two linked posts, one here, one at Life is Good.  Don't miss either one!

Weedy Seadragon …

Art, Science, ‘Down Under’ and bloggers … Tina of Life is Good asked if I’d do a guest post for the A-Z blog and as a guest blogger on her blog … theoretically these might have been on Vikings (these will follow) – but as is the way with my eclectic brain I’ve settled on the Weedy Seadragon and the Great Australian Coast Road.

I expect many of you will have seen or heard of the BBC tv programmes ‘Coast’, where Neil Oliver, archaeologist, historian, author and broadcaster, tells us about Britain and Europe …

… he has now moved to Australia (well perhaps he’s travelled there for the programmes!) – this is where these two ideas stemmed from.

 "Weedy Seadragon - taken from the sketchbook of William Buelow Gould - 1832"

Weedy Seadragon – who could ignore such a wonderful name for ‘Phyllopteryx Taeniolatus’? This amazing little seadragon and its sister, the ‘Leafy Seadragon’ are found around the shores of southern Australia.

"Leafy Seadragon"

These endangered, endemic to the south Australian coast, little ‘prehistoric monsters’ are just a delight to see and to have found.

Perhaps, now I’ve looked, even more interestingly … they were drawn and painted by William Buelow Gould, a convict – who had been caught stealing a coat and then was sentenced in 1826 to “seven years beyond the seas”, a phrase indicating transportation to the then penal colony of Australia.

He had a wife and two children … but once shipped out, few convicts returned. He also didn’t change his ways … and got sentenced to the Macquarie Harbour Penal Station, one of the harshest, for forging a banknote.

The only way to the prison was by ship … but it got weather bound … and the convicts aboard mutinied with half of them taking the ship. Gould and the other convicts stuck with the officers … before setting off overland to get help.

For this Gould’s term was commuted; he was assigned as a house servant to the colonial surgeon Dr James Scott, who was also an amateur naturalist.

Scott put Gould’s artistic talents to use, having him paint watercolours of native flora – which today are regarded as being of a high technical standard.

Even now he couldn’t remain out of trouble and so was again sentenced to Macquarie Harbour, but based on his reputation he worked for another amateur natural historian, Dr William de Little on Sarah Island at the penal station.

This time he produced landscape sketches about life at the penal stations, as well as still life watercolours of botanical specimens, birds, fishes and other sea life.

Despite being granted his Certificate of Freedom in June 1835 he descended into a cycle of drunkenness, poverty and prison sentences for theft … he had remarried in 1836, but eventually died in 1853, aged 52 or thereabouts.

His sketchbooks and works are now highly acclaimed; his “Sketchbook of Fishes” being inscribed on the UNESCO Australian Memory of World Register … this is the equivalent of a World Heritage listing for historic documentary material.

It is noted that Gould sketched a number of species for the first time; and his works are recognised as being of enormous value to scientists today … and he’s even had a novel written by Richard Flanagan, published in 2001, from his Sketchbook of Fishes.

I’d better return to my little prehistoric monsters … the Weedy Seadragon and Leafy Seadragon … are marine fish related to the seahorse.

The weedy appendages provide camouflage … but don’t have the prehensile tail like the seahorse … they drift or move very slowly … not far at all.

They blend in so well to their natural surroundings … that they aren’t detected as a food source … the real threat is from us humans as when there is so much pollution in the water it makes it very difficult for them to survive … but when their natural habitat is taken away then it is a real threat for them to blend in and remain hidden.

Like seahorses the males nurture the young … the female lays them into her mate’s pouch on his abdomen … about nine weeks later they are born and have immediately to care for themselves.

The southern coast of Australia was full of prehistoric, now extinct, monsters five million years ago … the seas were 2 – 3 degrees warmer and contained life that we don’t see today …

• A huge shark – as big as a bus
• A penguin as tall as a man
• A killer mammoth sperm whale

We know this from the wealth of fossils that can be found around this area of coast today …

Then these pretty little prehistoric monsters have a wonderful tale to tell – let alone the fact that we have had a record of them for about 180 years

… they probably evolved from those aquatic vertebrates now buried by this ever changing earth of ours.

I say here’s to the Weedy Seadragon and to the Leafy Seadragon … you have made me smile while I think about you both … and increased my desire to go down under!

Hilary Melton-Butcher

Positive Letters Inspirational Stories

©2014 All Rights Reserved

Photo credit: Weedy Seadragon

Photo credit: Leafy Seadragon

Thanks, Hilary.  It's always so fun to learn about the people behind the books, and that back story, which wow, I would not have predicted!  Readers, time to go see about the Australian Coast!  See you at my place.

~Tina