What’s Happening at Casita de Luz?
This section of my newsletter tends to be the most popular so I’m putting it first. People seem to love knowing about the “goings-on in the garden.” Couldn’t be better! The corn is waist high. I picked the first yellow squash and cucumbers. The plum and pear trees are loaded with green fruit. Yesterday I made a salad with spinach, red mustard greens, chives and cilantro, and I topped it with freshly picked and steamed green beans. Today I sautéed nopalito (prickly pear cactus pads) with onion, green pepper, jalapeno and tomato for a nacho topping. Every day is a new adventure because I have no idea what I’ll find “out there!”
We have a new addition to our yard: A wind spiral made by Ralph Moresco of Buchanan Dam (www.westshorewindspirals.com). The twisted, cut-copper sculpture is called “Full Circle” and we love the way it moves in the slightest breeze. Even the birds are enchanted with it. Other additions are a Mexican feather grass plant, a gold star Esperanza (also called “yellow bells”), and a tree that I won as a door prize at the annual Lawn and Garden Show in April. The tree is called Eve’s Necklace and when mature will stand 15-20 feet tall with whitish-pink blossoms in the spring. Right now the jasmine and lilies are in bloom so the outdoors is scented like perfume. The coreopsis is so prolific that our drive way is covered in yellow petals. The first pale pink Rose of Sharon blooms have appeared just as the last of the sunflowers faded. W.C. and I are in the middle of removing grass from one side of the front yard so we can put in an additional flower or herb bed. Our friend and fantastic workman Lonney Hendershot built us a lean-to off the back of the writing studio to serve as a storage area for lawn and garden equipment; he remodeled the half bath/laundry room in the music studio; and finally he is going to enclose the front porch so we will have a “bug free” place to sit and read outdoors.
New Website for Laurie Jameson & Women’s Fiction
Yes, I needed a makeover and I felt ready to let go of my old names in everyday life. Plus this study of my name helped me make the shift: “Using numerology we discovered that if you used Jameson instead you would be more visible as a writer. (laurie wagner buyer = 7) (laurie jameson = 8). 7 is invisible. 8 is more powerful and is a strong money number. (wagner buyer =4) which is a square and is foundational but hard work and much effort. (jameson = 5) which is change and movement. And laurie = 3. By itself as a first name it is very joyful and enjoys small gatherings and close friendships.” The Laurie Jameson site will be dedicated to news about my novels and the fiction writing process.
And what about Laurie Wagner Buyer? She’s still there! You can find her on Facebook and at her own website: www.lauriewagnerbuyer.com
Where will WC and Laurie Be?
W.C. will be the keynote speaker and musical entertainment for the Llano County Historical Society annual meeting on Friday, May 4th, at 6 p.m. The event is being held at the Raesner ranch in Lone Grove. For more information or directions, please call LCHS president Roger Pinckney at 325 247 3026.
I will be offering a Stage Presentation and Performance Workshop at Fuel Coffee House Saturday, May 5th, from 10 a.m. until noon. Soundman and fine musician Justin Simpson will be joining me to offer tips and give critiques. The event is open to the public with a $10 donation per person going to benefit Fuel. I will have my books and CDs available for sale (cash or check).
http://fuelcoffeehouse.wordpress.com/
The W.C. Jameson Trio featuring W.C. along with Buddy Case (lead guitar) and Keenan Fletcher (fiddle) will be appearing for a special Saturday night show at The Badu House Wine Pub on May 12th, 7-9 p.m.
Texas Music Thursdays at the Badu House Wine Pub at 621 Bessemer Avenue/Highway 16 in Llano (north of the river) has become the place to be for great music! W.C. and Mike Blakely continue to co-host the show featuring a special guest songwriter. Here’s the lineup: May 3rd—Richard Dobson. May 10th—Owen Temple. May 17th—Nathan Hamilton. May 24th—Michael Fracasso. In addition to a fabulous new summer menu and an amazing selection of beers and wine, the Badu House’s B&B is now open. W.C. and I are scheduled to stay overnight this coming Thursday to help them celebrate! We had to choose between a haunted room or a ghost-free room. Guess which one we chose?
W.C. will be hosting the Texas Songwriters Showcase at Poodie’s Hilltop Roadhouse in Spicewood on the second and fourth Monday this month, 6:30-9:30 p.m. May 14th—Bridgette London. May 28rd —Jon Napier.
What else is W.C. doing?
Hot off the press from Garlic Press Publishing! The long awaited Billy the Kid: The Lost Interviews. W.C. Jameson, a leading authority on Billy the Kid, provides two introductory chapters detailing the circumstances which led to the identification of William Henry Roberts as Billy the Kid as well as the events leading up to the discovery of the lost interview tapes. http://amzn.to/wyGCaU
Also new from Garlic Press Publishing: Florida’s Lost and Buried Treasures
For generations, the state of Florida has attracted men and women in search of lost and buried treasures. The abundant legend and lore associated with the Sunshine State tells of pirates and buried booty, of Spanish explorers and sunken gold and silver laden ships just off the coast, of Indian and outlaw treasure, and of lost Civil War payrolls. The tales included in this book are compelling and each carries with it a level of documentation that transports the story beyond the status of legend. These treasures are real and attainable. http://amzn.to/HVKrUe
New from August House Publishing: Finding Treasure: A Field Guide
W.C. shows you where to look and how to find valuable artifacts, precious metals, lost jewels, and hidden caches in your neighborhood park, your attic, or the open country. Practical tips will get you started and help you keep your claim on lost treasure wherever you are. www.augusthouse.com or http://amzn.to/KloCOx
What’s up with Laurie’s writing?
No word yet from the University of Oklahoma Press on The Heart of Nowhere, so I remain hopeful.
The novel Beautiful Snare has been through two readers, corrections have been made, and Bekah’s story is now in the hands of Seven Oaks Publishing design expert Sonya Unrein. The novel is scheduled for a mid-June release. New York Times best-selling author Paulette Jiles (Enemy Women, The Color of Lightning) says: “A haunting story about a beautiful and driven woman. I loved it!”
Doctorate Update
The texts for my Ancient Tools of Divine Guidance II turned out to be Palm Reading for Beginners and The Spellbinding Power of Palmistry. At first I thought, “Oh, no! … gypsies, tramps and thieves…fortunetellers at the carnival predicting the future,” but the course has turned out to be fascinating. There is more science to this art than there is folklore (think about the legal ramifications of fingerprinting). Men’s Journal ran a short article in their “Mind and Body” section stating, “Is your ring finger noticeably longer than your index? If so, you might have a greater likelihood of having a longer penis, a higher IQ, a lower risk of heart attack, a higher risk of prostate cancer, more athletic talent and more success as a financial trader.” I doubt I will ever become a palm reader but I find myself spending a great deal of time studying people’s hand size, shape, the length and flexibility of fingers and thumb, etc… The palm, we are told, is a map for the mind.
http://www.aiht.edu/catalog/holistictheology.asp
July 2012 is two months away!
W.C. and I have a full calendar for our month-long tour in Colorado in July 2012. We are really looking forward to seeing all of you there in the Rocky Mountains. I will send a separate e-news itinerary to our Colorado friends. If you are not in Colorado but want to know what we will be up to when we go there, drop me an email and I’ll send you the list of events.
Until next month let me say thank you for everything you do to create a better, wiser, more kind and loving World. I appreciate you more than words can say!