No Sweat

I was up at my project-house for the last several days, skipping my rowing machine exercise and eating out (as cheaply as possible) every night for lack of a stove. Fortunately, there are three local restaurants (two are fast food places) where Wi-Fi is available so that I could collect my email and stay connected a little on Facebook. Great news: My new porch is mostly finished and my bay window is no longer falling off the front of the house (it is gone). Hurray!

I was almost out the door to drive home yesterday morning when my good friend . . . you are not going to believe who it is but we met in college and it really is she . . . Holly Hartz (yes, the Christian vocalist) called my cell. [How cool is it that Holly Hartz called my cell?] She wanted to know if I would be able to come to her bar-be-que. Well, who in their right mind would refuse such an invitation unless it was physically impossible? (Get real!) Of course I was able to attend!

We wound up talking briefly. (After all, she called me. Remember?) Holly is such a good egg. A few weeks ago, I asked her to let me take her picture for my Tell-a-Friend promotion & prize drawing. Holly wasn't really dressed for a photo or anything, but she let me take it anyway. She even gave me two CD's for prize giveaways. (Yay, Holly!) Little did she know what she was getting herself into.
I proceeded to post Holly's picture on my website (www.bethdurkee.me/drawing.html) as endorsing the drawing, then posted my url to Facebook for people to pass along and get the promotion started, then printed up some 8" x 10" posters, gave some to my Milwaukee, Wisconsin fan club, and sent some off to my Irish fan club.

[ Seriously, Holly thinks she is no big deal. But she is rather a local celebrity for a reason and if you have never heard her sing, you have to hear her. I remember way back in college when I heard her practicing for an exam/recital and even just her practice (without accompaniment) blew me away. I actually remember wondering as she held one of her notes, how long she could go without taking a breath! She is amazing and I feel so humbled that she is endorsing my book promotion. Take a free sample listen to her here: -- http://www.myspace.com/edenscrown/music ]

So, as I was talking to my good-natured Christian friend, Holly Hartz, on the phone (from the relatively safe distance of a few hundred miles), she told me that she had not bargained for having her face posted all over Facebook.

I could not hold back my chuckle as I added, "...and Ireland."

"And IRELAND??" she burst out laughing. Holly's laughter is just contagious. I could not stop myself from joining her.

"Well, I guess I can forgive you," she light-heartedly conceded, ". . . as long as you keep coming to my bar-be-ques."

"So let me get this straight," I summed. "I take your photo when you are not ready for it, post it all over the world, drag two autographed CD's out of you, and you will forgive me as long as I keep letting you feed me?"

We chuckled about that for a little bit, but that is the deal. (She loves to listen to me tell stories just that much!) So guess what? I ate burgers with the phenomenal Holly Hartz last night, munched on her chocolate chip cookies, received encouragement and warm fuzzies, and got to talk and tell stories with her friends and family until I had to leave to pick up my daughter from a pep rally -- and Holly and I are on good terms as long as I keep letting her entertain me.

I think I can handle that arrangement. No sweat.
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Please remember to check out my Tell-a-Friend Promotion & Prize Drawing at www.bethdurkee.me/drawing.html and follow the directions for your chance to win an autographed Holly Hartz CD or other great prizes. Some prizes are for only locals but some prizes, like Holly's CD, can ship world-wide -- which makes the drawing open to all. So please participate and remember to follow the directions so that we know to add your name to the drawing. There are fewer entries than prizes at this point and I am getting a little worried about giving them all away.

Thanks,

Reader's Favorite Finalist Author Beth Durkee