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– Stephen King
This is so true, but publishing it is a different story.
Full spring calendar link
Spring editorial/marketing calendar ready through June
By Emma Palova
EW Emma’s Writings
The full editorial/marketing calendar is on the company site Emma Blogs, LLC on http://emmablogsllc.wordpress.com
The last event in March is the local Lowell Expo on March 28th at the Lowell High School from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The calendar gives you a preview of stories and themes coming from the end of March through June. It is not set in stone, I always make it as flexible and versatile as possible.
It also gives an idea for marketing around the themes relevant to each month. It doesn’t exclude anything.
That’s the beauty of the Internet compared to print media; the speed and the versatility, as well as the turnover of stories. You can make it weekly, monthly, quarterly or annually depending on your blog and business.
I prefer quarterly because it gives enough leeway yet it helps stay on track and up with tasks. The calendar also depends on the frequency of your postings and the format of them.
Overall, it is worth spending time working on it rather than haphazardly writing about anything at hand. The calendar also organizes your overall strategy and thoughts into more manageable segments.
Copyright (c) 2015 Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.
Happy Saint Pat’s
Saint Pat’s Day
This is one of my favorite writing themes. And that is Czech names in the calendar. Each day is dedicated to a different name. Of course some are more popular than others. Probably the most widely celebrated name day is March 19th which is Joseph’s/Josephine’s day.
Since Joseph is a very popular name in Czech, everybody celebrates much like Saint Pat’s here in the USA. It doesn’t mean that the day is an official holiday, but it is very similar to huge Saint Pat’s celebrations in Chicago and Canada.
And even though they don’t color their rivers green or march in parades, March 19th is still a big deal. Usually women bake for the day, and plum brandy known as slivovice flows freely, even at work.
The men sit in pubs and other public hospitality establishments. Other names like Emma have been incorporated into the Czech calendar from other countries. The name Emma originates in France.
A lot of names come from Russia like Sasha or Sergej or from other surrounding countries like Poland and Germany.
In many cases, there are more than one name dedicated to each day because of the influence from the Western countries. There are cards for each name day. That’s a lot of cards.
Among the most popular modern names for men are Jakub and Luke, even though it keeps changing constantly. For women I have yet to find out. But it also could be Katerina and Marta.
Also each church has a patron saint. The most popular ones are Saint Mary’s. They have their own feast celebrations such as Saint Mary’s in Stipa that celebrates the feast on September 12th which is Mary’s day.
The communities celebrate the patron saints with wakes, carnivals and fairs. Different carnival companies come to towns, and the feast is preceded by a dance.
Locally, in Parnell there is Saint Pat’s Church that celebrates the feast last weekend in June. It is a major fundraiser for Saint Pat’s School.
It usually features a polka band on Sundays and chicken dinners. The dinners are very popular, and people come from all over. The parish women bake desserts, and there is a display of old cars, 50:50 raffle and cards on Friday and Saturday nights.
Of course there is a beer tent and an auction. The patron feasts are important to all the parishes as a way to celebrate the saint.
For more info go to stpatrickparnell.org
Copyright (c) Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.
News from artist Kathleen Mooney
Note: Kathleen Mooney is a Lowell-based abstract artist and a member of the International Society of Experimental artists. Her work is striking and inspiring both in subject and format. She has had many solo exhibits in West Michigan and beyond. Mooney also teaches art classes. Check out her personal story in the archives and on page About local entrepreneurs and artists.
Her recent work has been inspired by Gee’s Bend quilting tradition. I featured her abstract painting in most of the IW Inspiring Women series for its high quality and technique.
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IW- Mary Dailey Brown
Inspiring Women at home and around the world
Note: This is the seventh installment in a feature series about Inspiring Women. It is dedicated to all women who are trying to make a difference and better other people’s lives, as well as their own.
In putting together this feature series, I was inspired by several moments in life that in particular stand out.
No.1 A dedication of a Relax, mind, body & soul book by Barbara Heller from my son Jake: “I dedicate this to my inspiring and motivational mother.” Kuba
No. 2 While on a story before Mother’s Day, I dropped in at Ace Bernard Hardware to talk about the prizes with owner Charlie Bernard. We talked also about the Lowell Area Chamber and its director Liz Baker. “You know what I like about Liz, she keeps re-inventing herself,” Bernard said.
No. 3 Again on a story for the International Women’s Day I talked to Sow Hope president Mary Dailey Brown. “If you want to make a difference in this world, seriously consider helping impoverished women. Helping women is the key to unlocking poverty.”
No. 4 At a parents teacher conference at Cherry Creek Elementary in Lowell in mid 1990s: “Mrs. Pala, we do not give up,” teacher Karen Latva said.
Rockford woman sows hope for women of Third World countries
Name: Mary Dailey Brown
Occupation: President of SowHope.org
GVSU non-profit management
Residence: Rockford
Husband: Douglas, two sons Alex & John
Hobbies & interests: golf, photography, video editing, getting together with friends
By Emma Palova
EW Emma’s Writings
Rockford, MI- “If you want to make a difference in this world, seriously consider helping impoverished women. Helping women is the key to unlocking poverty,” said SowHope president Mary Dailey Brown.
There are hundreds of organizations helping children in the world, but minimum of those that help women get out of poverty.
Brown is working on several projects in Uganda and Democratic Republic of Congo. These include a birthing clinic in Uganda, a micro-project in Congo, projects in India and Pakistan including vocational training and literacy programs in Nigeria and Kenya.
In order to start the SowHope organization, Brown sold the family inheritance farm in 2006. As she traveled around the Third World countries, she noticed the plight of women in Ethiopia.
“I noticed the imbalance of responsibilities,” she said. “Women do all the work, while men get out to the squares, chat and play games. Half of the world lives on less than $2 a day. One seventh of the world lives on less than a $1 a day.”
Brown said that women are suffering disproportionately to men.
“They’re up before sunrise,” she said. “Carrying wood, water, babies, growing food for the families. They use their own strength. Eighty percent of farmers are women, and 80 percent of food is produced by these farmers.”
So, what do men do?
“They run the government,” she said. “They drive all the vehicles, they handle and run the markets. They sit around the village squares, drink tea, smoke hookahs and play board games.”
Brown uses a translator and she visits with people who are already helping others.
“We provide funds for them,” she said.
SowHope spends about $1.5 million on program costs and the organization has so far impacted directly 46,000 women.
Among the programs are: micro loans to start busineses,, birthing clinics and literacy classes by local teachers.
Many women have been raped and abused.
“We provide emotional care,” Brown said, “and training centers for the villages. We find local leaders and we have 100 teams in 30 countries.”
The success behind these projects is that SowHope already use capabilities in place.
“When we go there as Westerners, we’re imposing our ideas on the people,” Brown said.
She used an example of a female gynecologist in Cairo who goes out and educates women about sex.
“Sex is taboo in these countries,” Brown said. “You don’t talk about sex.”
The doctor gynecologist gives talks at churches.
“It’s very freeing and liberating for them,” Brown said. “A five minute lecture can change centuries of practice.”
The mission of SowHope is to empower the women and to identify their leaders, to give them resources like buying a knitting machine.
The women also face risk from terrorists. Brown spend the week in Nigeria, before the girls were kidnapped.
“Every night we were terrified,” she said. “It was the most terrifying week in my life. The only way to survive is to run.”
SowHope does have a system of criteria in place.
“It depends a lot on relationships and recommendations who we trust,” she said.
There are people like Josephine who helps AIDS widows.
“It’s the most efficient system,” Brown said. “They do the development work.”
What motivates Brown?
“It is the original sense of injustice,” she said.
Did she ever wanted to quit?
“Yes, but my husband told me go into the basement and tell these women why this is so hard for you to do,” he said.
Brown realized that the women were full of dignity and grateful for what SowHope does.
“We want to do holistic care,” she said. “Focus on the basic needs of the women. We want to make it so simple that people can copy us. Women in general are no recipients of sympathy.”
It took three years to get the organization going and to make it sustainable.
And who is Brown’s role model?
“My husband, he is the visionary,” she said. “He helps me stay focused and positive, and not to be discouraged.”
Brown says that the biggest lesson she has learned, is that helping women is the key to unlocking poverty.
Mary Dailey Brown-the woman behind the superwoman
1-What do you do for yourself?
Mary: I want to be a good leader and an inspirational speaker. I also have fund Fridays with Doug and friends.
2- What kind of tips do you have for other women?
Mary: It’s incredibly rewarding what I do. I have feelings of embarrassment that I have struggled. There’s nothing else I’d want to do.
3-What are your plans?
Mary: We would like to expand into other countries, and raise more revenues. We would like to open up affiliate offices around the world.
If you want to donate online contact Mary at SowHope.org
Featured photo by Kathleen Mooney has been inspired by Gee’s Bend quilting tradition. See her story in the archives.
Copyright © 2015 Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.
IW-Betty Dickinson
Inspiring Women at home and around the world
Note: This is the fifth installment in a feature series about Inspiring Women. It is dedicated to all women who are trying to make a difference and better other people’s lives, as well as their own. In putting together this feature series, I was inspired by several moments in life that in particular stand out.
No.1 A dedication of a Relax, mind, body & soul book by Barbara Heller from my son Jake: “I dedicate this to my inspiring and motivational mother.” Kuba
No. 2 While on a story before Mother’s Day, I dropped in at Ace Bernard Hardware to talk about the prizes with owner Charlie Bernard. We talked also about the Lowell Area Chamber and its director Liz Baker.
“You know what I like about Liz, she keeps re-inventing herself,” Bernard said.
No. 3 Again on a story for the International Women’s Day I talked to Sow Hope president Mary Dailey Brown.
“If you want to make a difference in this world, seriously consider helping impoverished women. Helping women is the key to unlocking poverty.”
No. 4 At a parents teacher conference at Cherry Creek Elementary in Lowell in mid 1990s: “Mrs. Pala, we do not give up,” teacher Karen Latva said.
IW Betty Dickinson ahead of her time with natural healing book
Name: Betty Dickinson
Occupation: columnist for the Ionia Sentinel-Standard, Emma Blogs ,LLC
Residence: Ionia County Township
Family: husband Ferris, four adult children, Bert, Sally, Judy and Carol
Hobbies & interests: farm chores, gardening, being outdoors, bicycling, family involvement
By EMMA PALOVA
IONIA, MI- Long before health stores became modern, Betty Dickinson started writing columns for a newsletter at the Methodist Church. She continued her column “Creating a Healthy Corner” for the Ionia Sentinel-Standard in 2000, and Dickinson has been writing since. She started out hand-writing the columns.
She worked as a treasurer for the Methodist Church in Palo.
Dickinson is also a farming woman who takes care of 18 to 20 acres, milks two goats, makes feta cheese, cottage cheese and yogurt.
When asked how she would describe herself, she swiftly snapped.
“I am overly ambitious,” she said. I push myself until I am exhausted.”
Her weaknesses include being a doer.
“People have a tendency to take advantage of you,” she said. “And I don’t go to the doctor. I have a sweet tooth.”
Her largest project was compiling the columns into a book after seven years of writing. She finally got a computer from the kids.
Great grandchildren call her Grandma Goat.
Judy Kalmanek assisted Dickinson in putting together the book, as well as Carol Blundy. Artist Jim Richards created the many herb pictures, while granddaughter Jenny Flanders did the artwork on the book’s cover of Dickinson’s herb cabinet.
“I wanted to have the book available for myself as well as share the information with others,” she said.
Dickinson started working on the book in 2006 and got it done in a year in 2007.
“It was a lot of work,” she said. “I’d like to do another one on the next seven years of columns. It seemed unreal when I held that book for the first time.”
The first printing was 500 books. Dickinson did extensive research and experimented on herself and husband Ferris.
The book is fully loaded with healthy advice, organic lifestyle, recipes, remedies and women’s issues, and even gardening advice.
“I use it for cooking,” she said. “The cover wore off. I feel like I got something accomplished in life.”
And the book makes an excellent gift for any occasion.
“Everyone bent over backwards to help make this happen,” she said.
Dickinson donated all the profits from the book sales to Parnell and Methodist churches, as well as to Kalmanek’s home church.
“I wanted to help other people and get the info out,” she said.
As a source, Dickinson used “Library of Health” which is fully illustrated and it has 20 books in one. It was published in 1916 in Philadelphia. It’s a complete guide to preventive health and to the cure of diseases.
“I was motivated by wanting a book of what I have written,” she said.
Her weekly column gives advice accumulated over years, when Dickinson got sick at the age of 40 and was on enormous amount of aspirin.
Her inspiration was the paper Ionia Sentinel-Standard and staff.
“I wanted to study the info for myself and why not share with others,” Dickinson said. “The more I got into it the more I wanted to do it.”
Her role model was her father Lloyd Brown.
And the biggest challenge in life for Dickinson was to get her body in better shape.
“I enjoy life,” she said. “It’s still a challenge, but not so much because I have this info.
“Physically, you don’t do it overnight, as I felt better I wanted to get even better.”
Dickinson grows her own organic fruits and veggies, eggs and milk.
And she gets great comments from different people who read the articles.
Here is an excerpt from the book “Creating a Healthy Corner.”
“The biggest message I want to get across is that you have complete control of sustaining good health, increasing your energy, strength and mental stability by taking care of your body through proper nutrition, exercise and relaxation.”
But, Dickinson said her major accomplishment was bringing up four children and having a supporting family.
“I enjoy living this way,” she said. “I have ambition plus.”
Her goals include living and eating healthy, keeping active lifestyle.
“I enjoy what I do,” she said about her columns. “There’s no use in complaining.”
Dickinson enjoys helping other people.
“It’s hard sometimes to prioritize, husband comes first, and then farm chores,” she said. You do what has to be done.”
To get things done Dickinson schedules tasks, but keeps it flexible. She makes her own laundry soap.
Dickinson was ahead of her time with organic lifestyle.
About the featured photo. It is Kathleen Mooney’s abstract inspired by Gee’s Bend quilting tradition.
The book “Creating a healthy corner” is available by calling Dickinson at 1-616-0352 for $19.99 or by ordering from Emma Palova facebook page or from EW Emma’s Writings on http://emmapalova.com
Copyright (c) 2015 Emma Blogs, LLC. All rights reserved.
Lovin single
Happy Valentine’s Day
By Sarah Harmon
EW writer
Lowell, MI -Hearts and cupids are everywhere this time of year, but what if you haven’t been bitten by the love bug? Or if your sweetheart is hundreds or thousands of miles away? Singles often feel out at a time when it seems the whole world is focused on couples making romantic plans and buying Valentine’s gifts for each other.
If this sounds familiar, don’t despair. You already have the perfect date for the holiday. This person will never take you to a restaurant you hate, they will never buy you jewelry you find incredibly tacky, or bring you roses when your favorite flowers are daisies. So who is this mysterious Mr./Ms. Right? Yourself!
People often lose track of the importance of loving and accepting not only others, but themselves. When you love who you are, others can’t help but notice the confidence that radiates from within. They will inevitably be drawn in, wanting to get to know you better. Take a moment to consider a person you know who obviously dislikes themselves. Chances are, he or she has a very negative attitude about live in general. While Grumpy Cat may be adorable, being around a human version of her for very long can be extremely emotionally draining. If you just realized that the Grumpy Cat in your life is you, here are a couple of things you can do to start changing that.
First of all, stop being afraid to do things alone. If you don’t want to spend time with you, why would someone else? At least once a month, make a point to do something you enjoy for no reason other than that it will make you happy. Take yourself out for coffee with a good book or go for a walk in a park. It can even be something as simple as making or buying a meal you love and watching your favorite movie for the hundredth time. Who cares if everyone else you know is so sick of that movie they could scream? This is a date night when you don’t have to care what the other person thinks because there is no other person.
Perhaps even more important than embracing alone time is dealing with negative self-talk. We all have times when we wonder how we could have possibly done or said something so stupid or look in the mirror and think we look like the Goodyear Blimp even though people around us may think we could be a supermodel. Next time you catch yourself in one of those moments, stop. Take a deep breath. Now, for each piece of negative self-talk, try to think of three positive things about yourself. Negative thoughts can’t be avoided completely, but they can be neutralized by reminding yourself that even though you made a mistake, it doesn’t define who you are. You are a beautiful, amazing person who has the potential to make the world a better place, but only if you give yourself a chance.
This Valentine’s Day, try not to focus on everyone else having dates with their significant others when you don’t. Take yourself out or cook a dinner you love, maybe invite some single friends over, and devote the evening to some fun and relaxation that’s all about you. Give yourself one of those green facial masks, have a glass of wine or sparkling grape juice, watch a fabulous romantic movie, and fall in love with yourself.
Local Valentine’s Day events that can be attended with or without a partner
Thursday, February 12
7-8:30pm Valentine’s Dance Workshop at Armentality Dance and Yoga Education
Friday, February 13
8am-5pm “Born to Beguile” Art Expo and Reception at Flashlight Alley
Saturday, February 14
2-4pm Fashion and Tea at Grand Rapids Public Museum
1-5pm Love, Wine, and Chocolate at Robinette’s Apple Haus and Winery
Copyright (c) 2015 Emma Blogs LLC. All rights reserved.
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At a loss
Blogging 201, assignment Day 7, create an event
By Emma Palova
EW Emma’s Writings
Lowell, MI -I must say I am at a loss with today’s blogging assignment #7 to create an event, whether virtual or real.
I’ve been thinking about WordPress Camps for some time. But, I live in the Midwest, and other than Chicago, I can’t seem to find a hub for bloggers.
Come on fellow bloggers step up. Where are you?
I know I can create an event with a long stretch of imagination. I am inclining towards a virtual blogging event, maybe a weekly or biweekly discussion on a theme that will attract attention and not disputes and complaints.
I have some friends around here who are on Goodreads. That’s it. Of course I haven’t searched high and low either.
I tried the Coffee Cake Internet Discussions page on my EW Emma’s Writings and I did not get a lot of response. But, I wasn’t advertising or marketing it either, and as a new blogger I didn’t have that much time.
All of the above seem like excuses for not creating an event. This is my goal. After the virtual event weekly or biweekly depending on interest, I would like to create a “reality blogging” event in a manageable dimension. That is with or without an avocado dip, on the couch or at Ella’s Coffee & Cuisine with or without the Kardashians.
Any ideas on either the format of the event or the subject?
Copyright (c) 2015 Emma Blogs LLC. All rights reserved.
Social media sparks
Hello to all,
Check out my take on Social Media and sharing on WordPress. I am still working on the twitter timeline. And feedback is telling me that social cool widget displays weird, as well as LinkedIn social icon.
So, social media work is just like woman’s work. It’s never completely done, and that is good.
Check out the post on EW Emma’s Writings on http://emmapalova.com
authoremmapalova 
