A Star for Everyone - a reflection on the A to Z challenge

 In one comment someone wrote that maybe there was more to California than Hollywood. That reminded me that I did not mention Hollywood. Quite frankly, it is overrated and not the same as it used to be in the 1960's when it was a really fun. But I digress...

I am giving everyone a star on the Walk of Fame on Hollywood Boulevard. Just substitute your name for Godzilla. I took this picture last year for my Squidoo page on "How to escape from Godzilla". For those who finished the challenge, congrats. For those who attempted but did not finish, congrats too. It's much more demanding than I expected and I was prepared.

So here is my take on the challenge. I am a grandmother raising a grandson. When this picture was taken, he had been playing baseball for about a year but he was young and sometimes his focus wasn't where it was supposed to be. He was 7 years old when this was taken. This is me at the start of the challenge. I have blogs but they just sat because I don't quite know what to do with them.

This is All Stars last July when he was 11 years old. We were at Big Bear. Notice that he has a batting stance that works for him. He knows which way to turn his body so the ball goes where he wants. (However, he needs to get his bat up. I will remind him again today at  practice.) Does he always hit the ball? No, he doesn't. Still, he knows the rules, makes a concentrated attempt and is a darn good player. Is he the best? No, he needs more practice. This is me at the end of the challenge. I know the rules, I made a concentrated effort and finished. Am I the best? Certainly not but I just need more practice too.

It was a learning experience. It was fun. I met wonderful people who were encouraging. I learned from everyone and found so many others with interesting lives and experiences. 

My hats off to those who set this up and managed it. What an incredible job! The encouraging posts were helpful, especially in the middle of the month when it sometimes seemed overwhelming.

Thanks to all of you who followed me and to those who left comments. It helped. I am going to take my time and catch up on the posts I missed and finish the list of blogs that I didn't get too.

I have no complaints or suggestions. Now that it is over, I can say that I am ready for next year.   

W is for What I learned on the A to Z Blogging Challenge

This is a departure from California destinations and attractions but it is important to note that I had no idea what I was doing when I started this challenge. I am not really a blogger. I came in not knowing the rules or the etiquette so it has been a learning experience.

C – Continue to blog even when you think that it’s too much.

A – Always know your material and write from the heart.

L – Leave meaningful comments.  

I – Invite other bloggers to follow you.

F – Follow those blogs that capture your attention. They can teach you a lot.

O – Organize your posts ahead of time so there is no need to stress.

R – Realize you can’t read all the blogs and then try to do it anyway.

N – Never forget who your audience is.

I – Invest time by participating fully in the challenge.

A – Always thank those who have taken the time to leave comments.

Thank you everyone for the comments and encouragement. Now back to our regular scheduled programming and don't miss "Z". It's my favorite.   

It's Sunday

It's stressed out Sunday. I still don't like my "M" topic and that means I need to get my act together and find another California word for Tuesday. I actually have great topics for X and Z.

I got a Liebster Award. I need to find 11 blogs. That's not all that hard, I have found some great bloggers.

 To accept the award:

• Post the award on our blogs
• Thank the lovely blogger(s) who gave us the award and link back to their site(s)
• Post 11 random facts about ourselves
• Answer 11 questions that the presenter of the award has asked us
• Nominate 11 new bloggers with fewer than 200 followers that we want to pass the award on to
• Ask our nominees 11 questions

I must admit that I don't totally understand this but it is fun so I will do it.

I need to go to a friend's house and feed her four dogs. Fortunately, they are friendly and loving and I don't mind taking care of them.

I have to wake up the boy. He's always grumpy in the morning. He wants to go to Knott's Berry Farm. We have season passes but it's yucky outside so not the best weather. I think I will talk him into going to the movies instead.

There is no food in the house. We need to go shopping. My husband wants new dishes and is reading cookbooks. He doesn't cook, so he finds all these wonderful recipes for me to make.  

My computer has been ugly. I keep losing connection. Now I am behind on my reading and commenting. All I want to do is play on the computer and catch up. How can I do that when others are demanding my time?

Fortunately, Spring Break (the former Easter Vacation) is over today and the boy goes back to school tomorrow. My "M" post on the California Missions is done for tomorrow. Tomorrow, I will do the Liebster Award, find another "N" topic for Tuesday and spend the quiet time with the boy is school, catching up on the posts. Let the school deal with the grumpy boy.

Off to wake up the boy, feed the dogs, and go see the new movie "42". After all, we are a baseball family.

The upcoming challenge

OK, I signed up for this challenge. No big deal, I just did 28 days on the Family History Writing Challenge and I know I can do it. I also learned Blogger allows posts to be scheduled ahead of time. That was news to me but welcomed. Now, I had lots of time to get ahead of the game.

Really? Procrastination has hit big time and now it is five days before the challenge and I am feeling a little pushed. We spent the weekend in Arizona at a birthday party for a friend. That wouldn't be so bad but baseball season has started and being a board member of the league is taking away precious writing time, not to mention practice three times a week and at least one game a week.

Still, I was feeling comfortable until I realized that Spring Break (editorial comment here - formally Easter Vacation) is after Easter and is two weeks long. That means I have an opportunity to take more pictures because while the rest of the country is still having winter, we will probably go to Knott's Soak City and the beach. There are some nice things about living in Southern California. It just seems to take away more writing time.

So today, I did one post for the challenge but now am off to take pictures for Find A Grave. Find A Grave is a free service for people looking for genealogy proof and family history. Anyone can request a photo if it is not already out there on the site. I have requested photos in Wisconsin, Texas, Tennessee, and New Mexico. In return, I signed up to take photos of gravesides in my area for people who are far away. I am off to Hemet, California where the graveyard is located. Hemet has lots of places to visit. Maybe I can use my time wisely and take pictures of some of the things I can use during the challenge. Nah...

Blogging from A - Z April Challenge

It is the middle of February and the middle of the Family History Writing Challenge. I like the challenge because it is a good way to get into the habit of writing something every day. I will continue with the family history even when the challenge is done. However, a friend shared the Blogging from A-Z April Challenge. This works better for the Completely California blog and gives me more opportunities to write about California destinations. I signed up for the challenge and now I'm trying to compile an alphabetical list of new places that I haven't already written about. It looks like fun and shouldn't be all that hard. After all, I have been writing about California for a very long time.