Reviewer Books Arrived

Had to show my shipment of reviewer books! (Okay, not a quality photo, but I was in a hurry.) Anyway, they came UPS yesterday while I was outside playing with the kids. I almost couldn’t believe they were real! Thank you to all the folks who helped make this goal of mine a reality!

Tomorrow heading to Va Beach, near Cape Henry. Happy Fourth, everyone!

Tags: books
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FBI Academy

I talk a lot about networking and research and joining writers’ groups. Well, here’s an example, last Thursday, I toured the FBI Academy. (Of course, I then had to bust it home to get my daughter to a swim meet where I had to work as a parent volunteer.) But the info I took in was worth the rushing around and I would have never gotten this invitation had I not been a part of a local writers’ group where I met a retired FBI Special Agent.

Anyway, the FBI Academy tour (not to be confused with the actual Headquarters which no longer gives tours) was phenominal! Highly recommend it.

Here are some quick highlights.

The Academy  located on the Quantico Marine Base in Northern VA. The base spreads over 60,ooo acres of gorgeous woodlands and rolling hills. The FBI gets to use about 600 of those acres for their Academy, the National Academy, the Hostage Recovery Unit and their famous crime lab. The tour, given by Special Agent Kurt, lasted about three hours and was easily one of the best, most informative tours I’ve ever completed.

The Academy is where all new agents train. Special agents account for over 13,000 of the FBIs employees, special agent being just one of the 600 various job titles in the FBI. New agents attend the Academy for 20 weeks learning everything from count-terrorism to fire arms to driving skills. It is physically and mentally demanding. I was able to see new agents in a Defensive Tactics course. They use rubber guns to train with and actually practice saying “Stop! FBI!”

Here are pictures of the famous Hogan’s Alley where they role play investigations. I was surprised at the size of it. There’s even a pretend used car lot.

Behind Hogan’s Alley is the crime lab which is enormous!

The FBI Academy is the top police academy in the world. But also there is the National Academy. Two hundred fifty local and foreign police officers come to this program each year. This is a shorter program (10 weeks), run by the FBI, which trains officers (lt grade and higher), sheriffs, military police and other law enforcement agencies. And you can’t apply. You must be nominated to this program to attend. At the end, they run a Marine built fitness course called the “Yellow Brick Road.” Looked pretty brutal.

Tags: FBI, networking, writers groups
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Rainy Monday

School is out. Kids are home. And wouldn’t you know, it’s raining.

So, some FB friends have asked to see the new pup and couldn’t get to my wall. So here he is:

And he’s making my dreams come true. At this very minute, he is chewing away my deck, putting that stone patio I’ve been asking for right within my reach. Go Bear!

And, okay, so I like Miley Cyrus. Here’s a clip my beautiful neice shared with me. This is a great song and very fitting to the way I grew up. Thanks Mom. You’re the best. I love you!

Tags: dogs, Miley Cyrus
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Reunions and Regrets

I had the pleasure of attending my twenty year college reunion this past weekend. Walking down the gorgeous University of Virginia Lawn, having lunch at Little John’s and shopping on the Corner, brought back all sorts of nostalgia from my college days. But one moment in particular had me reflecting on a bit more than just my good times at a great college. That was my visit to Madison House.

Madison House is a student-run, staff-supported program at the University which places and trains students into 19 different volunteer programs in the local community. If that doesn’t sound impressive, then consider that this involves service from over 3,000 students on a weekly basis. It is and has been for years a unique model in college-volunteer programs and one of the best and most respected of its kind.

Thanks to my best college buddy I became involved in a program called Adopt-a-Grandparent. Each week, I drove to this elderly woman’s home and visited with her for an hour.

Mrs. J  was a shut-in who lived just a few miles off campus in what used to be a high-rise retirement apartment building near the Downtown Mall. I can still remember the stuffy, almost claustrophobic feel of the tiny rooms she was confined to. The den where we sat was cluttered with old, worn furniture which smelled of mildew and pot stew. Mrs. J wore Coke-bottle cat-eyed glasses that hadn’t been in style since the 1960s and a threadbare mauve colored robe. Still, I remember her as an attractive woman. Even at 83, too thin and rounded by osteop0rosis, the prominent cheekbones and large blue eyes made it clear that in her youth Mrs. J  had been a knockout.

When I visited with Mrs. J, she would tell me amazing stories –stories of her life in Europe during and after the war, of her scandalous cruise ship romance where she’d met her husband, and of the loss of both him and son. She always offered me cookies and soda. She made me needle-point Christmas and Easter decorations. And she asked me about my life. I don’t remember what I told her. At the time, I felt I had nothing to give. No exciting tales of trans-Atlantic love. No great losses to compare to the heartache she’d endured.

But I was wrong. I did have something to give. My time. And I regret I did not give of it as freely as I should have. I sometimes cut my hour a little short with her because of other school functions and commitments, and, I’m embarrassed to say, I occasionally checked the clock on the wall to see how much longer I had to sit in that hot, stuffy room. I did not fully understand what I was doing for her and I’m sure I had no clue what she was doing for me.

I think of Mrs. J often–every time I visit an elderly family member, every time I go to Charlottesville and pass the Downtown Mall, every time I pull out my Christmas and Easter decorations, I think of her and I regret. I regret that I had not been wise enough to foresee the mutual impact of our visits and I regret, therefore, having been incapable of telling her so…

Here’s a picture of Kristin Ogburn, my college bud, and me in front of Madison House.

Tags: college, Madison House, UVA
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Chicken and Artichoke Opulence

Wow. It has been forever since I’ve posted a recipe. So, here is a great and easy dish that I made just the other night. It takes no time at all. Looks and tastes like you spent forever.

4 Chicken breasts (I use 8 breast strips)
2 tsp paprika
1/4 stck butter
one cane of artichoke hearts
1/2 tsp tarragon
3 TBS flour
1/3 cup Marsala wine
1 1/2 cups of chicken broth
1/2 pound mushrooms

Season chicken with salt, pepper, paprika and cook in butter until golden. Set aside in casserole. Rinse artichokes and scatter around chicken. Saute mushrooms in butter and add the rest of the ingredients. Once mixed and mushrooms cooked pour over chicken and bake at 375 for about 30-40 minutes. Serve over rice.

Tags: Recipes
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