D is for Devou Park and Ducks

 

Devou Park is located in Covington, Kentucky, right across the Ohio river from Cincinnati. The park is nestled up in the hills, so it is well known for its view of the Cincinnati skyline.

 

Clancy and I headed to Devou Park last month and, because the skies turned the dreary gray that is so typical of the Midwest in the 15 minutes it took to get from our house to the park, the views were not much to look at while we were there. But, it's still a pretty park, and I really liked this view from the park's Drees Pavilion, where a class was learning about Northern Kentucky history at the time of our visit.

In spite of the lousy weather, I did enjoy the early signs of spring that dotted the landscape.

I tried to get a picture of Clancy at the Pavilion but, as is his way, he once again refused to look at the camera.

 

Since our trip to Devou didn't pan out too well, I decided to add in some ducks Clancy and I have befriended at our local park for my D post. These guys live in our township park and, since we walk there regularly, I've become very attached to them. 

They make me laugh because they are extremely suspicious of Clancy, even though he has never shown any interest in them and in fact has never had any interest in chasing other animals at all. But whenever Clancy and I approach, one of the ducks sounds a warning call to the others, and they all high-tail it in to the water. I can't help but laugh because they look so cute and funny when they are waddling away. There's no question they are more graceful in the water. 

During the winter the park is home to a large flock of geese, but I think they've moved back to their northern home now. Clancy is just as glad to see them go, as he is terrified of the geese. His fear stems from an incident a few years ago when the whole flock took off in formation just as we walked past them. Clancy jumped a foot, and has never forgotten the incident. He believes in giving the geese plenty of space.

He's fine with the ducks though, and I always look forward to seeing them on our walks. 

Also, it's the first Wednesday of the month which means Alex J Cavanaugh is holding the Insecure Writer's Support Group. Insecurity is never far from reach for me, so at the moment I am insecure about being able to finish the A-Z Challenge! I had such good intentions for writing all of the posts in advance, but I think I will be a "put everything off to the last minute" person until I am in the grave. It's a terrible habit, but somehow it always seems to work out. Here's hoping it will again.

Thanks as always to Alex for hosting the group!

C is for Circle Tail

I've written about Circle Tail before on this blog, but I love the organization so much that I couldn't resist using it for my A-Z of Cincinnati "C" word.

Circle Tail is actually about 30 miles northeast of Cincinnati, in a town called Pleasant Plain, and the organization trains service dogs for the disabled. In addition, they operate a rescue program with adoptable dogs, which is how I got my dog Clancy, who was clearly not service dog material.

I have such respect for the people behind Circle Tail, and I've learned so much about service dogs since becoming involved with them that I'm simply amazed at what these dogs can do. I've had the good fortune to become friends with a woman named Jane who has a hearing dog through Circle Tail, and it's really been astounding to me to see just how much this extraordinary dog has changed her life.

Photo courtesy of Jane Biehl

I actually owe both Circle Tail and my friend immensely, as because of them I was able to get my first paid writing credit last year. I wrote about Jane and her spectacular dog Sita for an e-journal called Thrive in Life, and I can't even describe how excited I was when I got that first payment. If you'd like to read the article and learn more about the amazing Sita, it's available here. 

Photo courtesy of Jeff Routt

Since I started writing about Animal News for the Examiner website, I've been able to write about a few more Circle Tail alums. Last week, I wrote about a dog named Jackson, who wasn't right for the service dog program but now works as a therapy dog at a funeral home run by his adopted dad. I'd never heard of a dog working in a funeral home before, but I think it's a fantastic idea. If you'd like to read about Jackson's work and see him in action, that article is available here.

There's no question that Circle Tail has changed my life since I first came upon the organization back in 2008 while browsing the web. First and foremost, I have Clancy because of Circle Tail, and I wouldn't trade him for the world. But I also owe Circle Tail for introducing me to these amazing dogs that have been such a pleasure for me to write about in my articles.

So I'm glad to have the opportunity to sing Circle Tail's praises once again. I can't imagine a more deserving organization. 

Photo courtesy of Circle Tail

B is for Bengals

The fierce Bengal tiger of days gone by

It's a cruel twist of fate for a football nut like me to be stuck with what is probably the worst football team in the history of the game in my hometown. That's right, here in Cincinnati we have the misfortune of rooting for the Bengals.

I've loved football since I was a young girl and my sister and I used to watch the Bengals' games with my dad. My dad even made up his own fight song, although the only lyrics were "Cincinnati Bengals, we're all for you!" It was an easy one to learn, and we all sang it as we looked forward to Sunday afternoons. That was a very long time ago.

I keep this old Boomer Esiason jersey as a reminder of the time when the Bengals were fun to watch. Those days also mark the last time the Bengals won a playoff game. To give you an idea of how much water has gone under the bridge since those glory days, George Bush Sr. was the U.S. president at the time of that victory.

Since then, the Bengals have been an embarrassment of ineptitude and a laughing stock of the NFL. On the rare times they manage to put together a winning season and give the fans something to enjoy, they always quickly revert to their typical incompetence. It's their comfort zone.

Last year, on the heels of a particularly dismal season, I swore I was done with the team once and for all. But then some enthusiastic and talented rookies came on board, and I couldn't resist jumping in again. I am like Michael Corleone when it comes to the Bengals. "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in."

And so it goes every year. When the Bengals had a brief resurgence in 2005 and won their division, I bought all kinds of goodies at the Bengals Pro Shop and proudly wore my orange and black. When everything fell apart so completely soon after, I vowed to never return to the Pro Shop until the Bengals won the Super Bowl. I have stuck to that promise, and I have total confidence that I will never again set foot in the Pro Shop.

And yet come fall, like Charlie Brown running to kick the football, I will be rooting for the Bengals again and hoping that, this time, things really will be different. I have to believe that one of these days I can sing "Cincinnati Bengals, we're all for you!" again and actually mean it.

Hope springs eternal in the sports fan's breast.

A is for Aglamesis Ice Cream

I'm really excited for the start of another A-Z in April Challenge! For this year's challenge, I am expanding on my Travels With Clancy project and writing an A-Z of my hometown of Cincinnati. I'm starting off with some of the best ice cream I've ever tasted. 

Aglamesis Brothers ice cream and candy store has been in business since 1908, and can still be found in the same building it was in when the store opened. The store prides itself on an old-fashioned atmosphere, and its decor recalls the early 1900s. In fact, the Aglamesis family has worked hard to keep the store looking the same now as it did back then.

The Aglamesis slogan is "Ice cream and candy made the sincere way since 1908" and, after hearing about the place for most of my life, I decided to finally check it out for myself. My mom went to Aglamesis with relatives when she was a kid in the 1930s, but had not returned since. So the two of us set out on a Sunday afternoon in early March to visit Aglamesis and treat ourselves to some ice cream.

My mom was amazed that the inside of the shop really did look just as it had when she was there as a child. While it may seem cliche, walking in to Aglamesis actually does feel like a trip back in time. The place looks exactly how I imagine an old-fashioned ice cream parlor must have looked. 

The tables are marble with pink and black chairs, and the staff members work behind a marble-topped soda fountain counter. Mirrors line one wall, while rows of homemade candy line the other.

More important than the atmosphere though is the taste of the ice cream and other products. According to the Aglamesis website, their "sincere way" refers to the fact that they make their products in small batches with nothing but natural ingredients. The ice cream is considered French because of its high egg yolk content, which adds to the richness of its flavor. 

I decided to order a chocolate soda, as I loved getting sodas at an ice cream parlor in downtown Cincinnati when I used to go there with my mom as a child. Since our visit was all about nostalgia, I thought the soda was an appropriate choice.

I wasn't disappointed, as my soda could not have been better. I don't know anything about French ice cream or egg yolk content, but I do know that this ice cream was some of the creamiest and best I've ever had. And the atmosphere of the small parlor made it taste even better.

The mirrored wall across from our table included a painting of the Aglamesis store, with a dog sitting on the sidewalk outside looking in the window at all the treats inside. 

When my mom and I left the store, we were greeted by a friendly golden retriever on the sidewalk outside who looked remarkably like the dog in the picture! Somehow, it made our visit even more charming.

According to Bon Appetit magazine, Aglamesis is one of the last authentic ice cream parlors left in the United States. It's fun (and tasty!) to have something so filled with nostalgia and history in my own hometown.

My mom and I enjoyed our time tripping back to the past and, even more than that, we enjoyed our fantastic ice cream. Now that I've finally visited Aglamesis, I can't wait to make a return trip sometime soon.


Happy April to everyone, and I'll see you all tomorrow for the letter B!

Back from Break and Excited for the A-Z Challenge!

I'm back from my blogging break, and can't wait to get started on the A-Z in April Challenge this Sunday. I can't believe it's April 1st already!

My break turned out to be exactly what I needed, and I managed to finish a second draft of my WIP. I did a lot of revising and fleshing out of the characters and situations, and ended up adding more than 11,000 words to my original word count. I feel 100 times better about the story than I did when I wrote my Insecure Writer's Support Group post back at the beginning of the month, and it feels great to be able to say that. Now I am putting the new draft aside for a while and letting it sit before I attack it again for more revisions and editing later.

I also was thrilled to get some paid freelance assignments this month that I really enjoyed doing, so March was a very productive month for me. But, I definitely missed interacting with everyone here in the blogosphere, so I'm looking forward to getting back to blogging and jumping right in with the A-Z Challenge.

Last year I didn't have a theme for my A-Z posts so I decided to change it up this time and write my posts around a specific theme. I'm going to expand on the idea behind my Travels With Clancy project, which is to find the beauty in my own backyard, and write an A-Z of Cincinnati for this year's challenge. I'm writing about landmarks, historical sites, parks and nature preserves, and just general things of interest to me in this area.

If you're new to the challenge and haven't signed up yet, it's not too late to participate! Just visit the sign-up page here and add your blog to the list. 

I'm looking forward to catching up with everyone, and reading all the A-Z posts as we go through April. I hope everyone has a great weekend ahead, and I'll see you on Sunday for the letter A! :)

Cherie Reich's Birthday Bash

I'm still taking my blogging break that I mentioned yesterday, but I just wanted to write a short post to wish my buddy Cherie Reich a very Happy Birthday, and to help spread the word about her birthday give-away.

Cherie is celebrating her 30th birthday by offering her new book Defying Gravity free on Kindle for today only. I read Cherie's Once Upon a December Nightmare last year and it was a great read, and I've no doubt her new book will be just as good.

Defying Gravity is the first book in a trilogy so this is a wonderful chance to get started on what is sure to be a great series. For free!

Help Cherie celebrate her big day, and the start of a new decade, by joining the party here.

Now I really am going to take a blogging break. ;) See you all for the A-Z in April!

Insecurity in Dreams?

It's time for the March meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group and, as always, I want to send a huge thank you to Alex J. Cavanaugh for hosting the group. If you haven't already checked out Alex's new book, CassaFire, I highly recommend it.

The timing of this month's group couldn't be better for me, as I've been really struggling with my own personal insecurity hag while working on editing and revising the first draft of my WIP. It's not enough that the hag has disrupted my waking hours, she has now even invaded my dreams.

Recently I had a dream where I was at my sister's house, and she had just read my first draft. She sat down on her couch with a very serious expression and told me that she was sorry, but my story was the worst thing she'd ever read and it was all she could do to stay awake reading it. I was taken aback and told her she didn't have to be quite so harsh, and she said she felt she had to be brutally honest so I accepted my failures and didn't humiliate myself any further. She kept going on that I needed to just stop right now and be done with it. Basically, she was Simon Cowell, and I was a pitiful tone-deaf singer struggling through an audition.

My sister was offended by the dream, as she wondered why I would turn her into such a nasty hag in my subconscious. It was actually a bit funny, as my sister has always been very supportive and one of my biggest cheerleaders, and even if she didn't like my work I know she would never cut me down like she did in this dream.

But the dream was obviously a representation of the anxiety I have been struggling with since starting on my revisions. Have you ever had your insecurity take over your dreams? I can't deny I hope this is one dream I won't have again.

At any rate, I'm trying to shut out the insecurities both when I'm awake and when I'm asleep and just continue on with the writing.

To that end, I don't think I'll be blogging for the rest of the month, as I really want to focus on my revisions and see if I can come up with a second draft that works for me. I also need to start writing my posts for the A-Z Challenge. I've had my topics in mind since January and planned to get everything started back then but, as is my habit, I've managed to put everything off until the last minute again. So I think I am going to step back from blogging for the rest of March and come back strong for the Challenge.





Speaking of, if you haven't signed up for the A-Z in April Challenge yet, I can't recommend it enough! I can say without hesitation that signing up for last year's Challenge was the best blogging decision I've made. Check out the A-Z site for all the details and sign-up info.

Thanks again to Alex for hosting today's group, and I hope everyone is coming out on the winning end of your battles with insecurity.