The Liar's Diary

I've ordered my copy. Have you?


More than 300 bloggers will be writing about Patry Francis and her novel, The Liar's Diary, today. So almost certainly you won't be able to avoid hearing about how Patry is being treated for cancer and, therefore, unable to tour to promote the paperback release.


I've written before about how much I appreciate my blogosphere friends. One small, easy-peasy way to pay it forward is to dedicate today's post to Patry and buy her book (like I needed an excuse!). If you have anything to pay forward (and who doesn't?), please do the same.

Good advice

From Jesse Jackson for Dems to keep our eyes on the real prize, which is November:

My point is I know that in November, whoever wins, Clinton and Barack are going to need each other. I saw in 1980 there was such a dog fight between Carter and Kennedy that they could not reconcile at the convention, and that opened the door for Reagan to get through to win. So, however tough this thing gets right up in here, keep one eye on the primary and an even bigger eye on the Super Bowl, which is in November.

If you want to read his whole interview with activist and blogger Gina McCauly, founder of the What About Our Daughters? site, it's at Essence.com.

January?

Yesterday it was in the 60s, as it was on January 29th 9 years ago--the day hubby and I tied the knot. Sustenance Scout asked me some time ago what I like best about Denver. I'd have to say getting t-shirt weather in January is right up there! As is the fact that this is the city that brought me my husband. Denver has been very, very good to me.

I took this in City Park (she's got a more colorful summer pic on her site). You can't tell from this snapshot, but the park was full of folks biking and walking, playing with kids and dogs. Everybody happy for the hint of spring in the air. I even stopped at City Floral to see if they had any pansies out. Not yet, but soon come.

"Fairy tales" can come true

Change is gonna come.

Linkages

As South Carolina Dems go to the polls today, NPR's John Ridley offers another take on the aspect of race in the Democratic primary. In a nutshell, Ridley says we all know race is a consideration in America, so we're better off knowing up front how the candidates think/feel about it. I enjoyed this essay and agreed with most of it, except for his slam of Obama's answer to the question about whether or not Bill Clinton was "the first black president." Actually, I think the ONLY way to answer that question was with humor, and I'm glad he pulled it off. Lots of stuff to think about here.

News from the gardening world. The NY Times says drought-tolerant plants and plants that can withstand harsh conditions with a minimum of care are the hot things in the marketplace this year. Well, duh. From the article:

Sedums and fragrant creeping thymes are being marketed as “Steppables,” “Jeepers Creepers” and “Treadwells,” because these old-fashioned plants have been rediscovered for their ability to take beating sun and very little water. They will ramble over that bare slope where the grass can’t grow, or creep between pavers on the patio, or stones in the garden path.

Yeah, we've got sedums and thymes for just this reason. But let me tell you, in Colorado, they still take a beating when we get up into the 90s!

The writer ends the story with this note: I left the show with an optimistic feeling: maybe the gloom and doom of global warming and high fuel costs have given us gardeners a road map to smaller, hardier gardens that give back to, rather than take from, the earth.

What a concept.

Download ebooks and audio ebooks legally and for free. As a consumer, this makes me happy. As an author...I dunno how I feel. Check it out. What do you think?

Abandon hope?

While we're on the subject of peace...In my own search for peace, I've been reading When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times by Pema Chodron, an American-born Tibetan Buddhist nun, and it's blowing my little mind. One of the things she seems to be saying is give up hope. Hope takes you out of the present, which cuts you off from the real experience of life. Hope also sets up a false idea that one day everything will be groovy, and this false idea causes suffering. The reality is that some days will be groovy and some days won't. In a word, the Tibetan Buddhists seem to be saying (with loving kindness): deal.

But let go of hope? I would have slit my wrists years ago without hope that things would change and get better. (And they did.) So I'm struggling with the notion even though I can also see the wisdom in it. In her words:

"Turning your mind toward the dharma does not bring security or confirmation. Turning your mind toward the dharma does not bring any ground to stand on. In fact, when your mind turns toward the dharma, you fearlessly acknowledge impermanence and change and begin to get the knack of hopelessness.

"In Tibetan there's an interesting word: ye tang che. The ye part means 'totally, completely,' and the rest of it means 'exhausted.' Altogether, ye tang che means totally tired out. We might say 'totally fed up.' It describes an experience of complete hopelessness, of completely giving up hope. This is an important point. This is the beginning of the beginning. Without giving up hope-that there's somewhere better to be, that there's someone better to be-we will never relax with where we are or who we are...."

"To think that we can finally get it all together is unrealistic. To seek for some lasting security is futile....One has to give up hope that this way of thinking will bring us satisfaction. Suffering begins to dissolve when we can question the belief or the hope that there's somewhere to hide."

Now doesn't that make sense? However, even though I'm not a religious person, I am a believer. When I look at the world and see Darfur, Iraq, Gaza and good old Haliburton, deep underneath my inability to see God, deep underneath even my certainty that there just can't be a God, is still a belief in God. I don't think I could shake it no matter how hard I tried.

I am Grandmama's granddaughter. She and her sister, my Aunt Susie used to take me to church when I was a little girl. I loved everything about church when I was little: The Methodist ladies in their hats. The butterscotches and peppermints my grandmother and great aunt kept in their "pocketbooks" to calm coughs and soothe children. I'm going up yonder to be with my lord sung in loud, sweet voices. The paper fans with Jesus's or Martin Luther King Jr.'s picture on one side and ads for Thomas Funeral Home on the other. (Grandmama & Aunt Susie's brother-in-law was Lonnie Thomas.)

But when I was about 10 and my parents' marriage was beginning to unravel and I was old enough to hear the snippy gossip and notice when folks weren't exactly walking their talk, I stopped going to church. When I went to college and took religion and philosophy classes, I grew even more distant from religion.

Yet it goes bone deep. The first thing I do when I need help is say "Please God." The first thing I do when I'm happy is say "Thank you God." Belief is all through my writing. Every single book.

Belief in God and hope (for me) go hand in hand. Letting go of one would seem like letting go of the other. And even though that makes sense on so many levels, the Grandmama and Aunt Susie in me will never let go.

However, I'm still getting a lot from this book (which I have to read very slowly because it does blow my little mind). And I have some CDs by Chodron called "How to Meditate." Clearly, there is much to learn. If any Tibetan Buddhists (or anyone else) wants to weigh in, I'd love to hear what you have to say about hope.

10 ideas for peace

For the MLK holiday, my friend Susan Skog, author of Peace in Our Lifetime: Insights from the World's Peacemakers, has an article on Beliefnet called 10 Ways to Bring Peace to the World. Please check it out.

Peace to you.

If you knew Nina

Shauna Roberts asks, "I've been wondering, Carleen, since I'm not familiar with Nina Simone's music, whether you think I would enjoy your book more if I got a Nina Simone album before I read it?"

First of all, sounds like you're going to read Orange Mint and Honey, and for that I thank you!! To answer your question, I don't think the reader really needs to know Nina Simone in order to get her role in my book. However, to not know Nina Simone would really be a loss (and knowing her music probably would increase your enjoyment of the story). So, yes, pick up a CD or two or check out several of her videos on my website where I have sort of a Nina Simone primer.

I had a glass of wine the other night with Bella Stander and Karen Mack who was in town (with her writing partner Jennifer Kaufman) to promote A Version of the Truth (They also wrote Literacy and Longing in LA). When I told Karen that Nina Simone is in my novel, she said something like, "Is Nina Simone having a recurrence? It seems like people are talking about her more." I thought it was just me--being sensitive to Nina sightings (like the reference in Before Sunset) because I was writing about her. As we were discussing it, a young waitress stopped and asked "Are you guys talking about Nina Simone? Did I hear you say her daughter sings?" So sometimes it does seem like Nina Simone and her fans are everywhere.

Just curious: How many of you know Nina Simone's music?

Thanks Shauna for the question!

An Invitation from Stephanie Rose Bird

I've started a new Yahoo group called International Clan of the Eclectics (I-COTE) we are a Earth Spirituality study and practice group using my books as a point of departure but exploring the work of many others as well. Every two weeks we have a new topic. We've worked powerfully on dream incubation, elders in the community during Elder Moon, lucky New Years rituals and visions for 2008. Right now we are on the topic of addiction, abuse and recovery--with guided readings from my work but also we've been looking for inspiration from Iyanla Vanzant's "Faith in the Valley: Lessons for Women on the Journey to Peace." We are small, about 30 women; just started in late Nov. You and fellow pajama gardeners interested in deepening spirituality through earth veneration are welcome to join us.

Thank you Judy Merrill Larsen!

My friend Leslie continues to be amazed at how writers help one another. And when I think about it, it is truly a lovely thing. People I've never met have been so kind to me. I am taking the time now to especially thank Judy Larsen who has talked me down off the ledge a few times. One of the Ballantine Babes, Judy's book All the Numbers was a Target "breakout book" and stayed on their shelves for a year! I'm going to go out on a limb and say this was due not only to the fact that it's a great book but because Judy worked hard herself to get the word out. She's still working hard, finishing her 2nd novel and promoting her 1st one...yet she's willing to take the time to help other writers sort through the maze of the publishing world. A gem.

I will try to pay it forward.

Maya Angelou weighs in

My friend Helene sent me a link to a Canadian interview with Maya Angelou. You can watch the whole 10-minute video here or the short version below (if you have time I recommend the full interview). When Dr. Angelou read On the Pulse of Morning at Bill Clinton's inaguration in 1993, it was the first time I felt included by my government. It was the first time I felt invited to the party. Barbara Jordan once said, "But through the process of amendment, interpretation, and court decision, I have finally been included in 'We, the people.'" That's how I felt to hear and see Dr. Angelou read that day.

But for some reason, as much as I admire Hillary Clinton (and if she gets the nomination, I will definitely, happily support her), I can't help but feel that we will have taken another step forward from that January morning in 1993 if in January 2009 Barack Obama is the one taking the oath of office.

Either way, it's a beautiful thing that we live in a time in which Clinton and Obama are the top candidates for the Democratic nomination. On top of that Dr. Angelou is backing Clinton and Oprah Winfrey is backing Obama and people are LISTENING to them. Can it be that what black women say matters? Truly, these are exciting times!

Walk Tall

Today is Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday (not the holiday, the day he was born). In honor, I'm posting the January 15 reading from the new edition of Walk Tall: Affirmations for People of Color, which is now available from iUniverse:

There’s an old adage that goes, "If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything." We have to stand for something in this life. If we think we can avoid responsibility by choosing not to take a stand, we are wrong. If we’re not part of the solution, we’re part of the problem. There are many things we can commit to—our personal growth and recovery; the well-being of our children; the welfare of our communities; equal treatment for all people. Whatever it is we believe in, we need to be committed to it and be willing to face the hardships we might encounter along the way.

I honor Dr. King’s memory by taking a stand for something I believe in.

Walk Tall

is a dream I had a long time ago. Fourteen years ago actually. My mother had recently died, and I was doing freelance PR. I was leaving a meeting to set up free prostate cancer screenings at a church on behalf of the American Cancer Society. I was driving down Colorado Boulevard and this voice in my head said, "You should write a book of affirmations for people of color." I was near 1st Avenue and swerved into the far right lane so I could turn west and go to Tattered Cover (it used to be located in Cherry Creek). That day I bought a book called How to Write a Book Proposal and went home and told everyone I was going to write a book. Just like that. (There's a funny/sad story about that book that I talk about in the new intro to Walk Tall.)

Where did that voice come from? God? My mother? My deepest self? I don't know, but I listened to it and I'm so glad I did. Walk Tall lived in print, first with RPI Publishing then with Beacon Press, for 10 years and had 100,000 copies in print. When it went out of print, I thought the story was finished...but not yet.

I'll be posting about new chapters in the life of Walk Tall over the coming weeks. (I also hope to get a decent jpeg of the cover)

Black or female?

Yesterday's NY Times had an article that reminded me of the book All the Women are White, All the Blacks are Men, But Some of Us Are Brave edited by Akasha "Gloria" Hull (who has a short fiction piece in Age Ain't Nothing but a Number), Patricia Bell Scott and Barbara Smith.

The article asked the question about the Democratic candidates: Who will make history first, a black man or a white woman? The article explored the linked movements of women's rights and civil rights, and the historical friction about which group would get the right to vote first: black men or white women.

When I was a little girl, I remember my parents and their friends (all black) having a friendly argument on the topic of the presidency. The women believed a black man would be president before a woman of any color. The men believed that a white woman would be president before any black man.

As Olufunke and I were discussing the article via email yesterday, I couldn't help but notice the missing element of the Times article and of my parents' conversation: What about black women? Where do we fall?

Some of the quotes from Frederick Douglass and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were shameful. For those who don't have access to the Times, here are a couple paragraphs from the article:

"One bitter case from the 19th century involved a split between the abolitionist Frederick Douglass and the women’s rights’ pioneer Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Stanton was herself a fervent abolitionist, and a close ally of Douglass, who later confined herself to the cause of women’s equality. These ideals would eventually clash, resulting in increasingly divisive rhetoric that reached a harsh climax after Stanton condemned the 15th amendment — which gave black men the right to vote but left out women of all races — as something that would establish 'an aristocracy of sex on this continent.' She also alluded to the 'lower orders' like Irish, blacks, Germans, Chinese.

During a heated meeting in New York City’s Steinway Hall in 1869, Stanton wondered, 'Shall American statesmen ... so amend their constitutions as to make their wives and mothers the political inferiors of unlettered and unwashed ditch-diggers, bootblacks, butchers and barbers, fresh from the slave plantations of the South?' At which point, Douglass rose, paid tribute to Stanton’s years of work on civil rights for all, and replied, 'When women, because they are women, are hunted down through the cities of New York and New Orleans; when they are dragged from their houses and hung from lampposts; when their children are torn from their arms and their brains dashed out upon the pavement; when they are objects of insult and rage at every turn; when they are in danger of having their homes burnt down... then they will have an urgency to obtain the ballot equal to our own.'"

Need I point out the double dis for black women? On one hand we're part of the "lower orders," on the other hand, it's completed ignored that black women's children were torn out of their arms and their brains dashed upon the pavement and all the rest.

I hope in this election we can move past the either/or paradigm. In 2008, must we still remind people of what Soujourner Truth made clear in 1851?

Happy Dance

"Just Fine" is church, the club and aerobic class for me. Seems I'm not alone. Mary J's video for this song makes me happy, but this video of NBC's chief White House correspondent shaking his groove thang while Mary J sings cracks me up, in a good way. (his moves get the thumb's up on YouTube). It's 41 seconds of joy! Thanks to Lolita Files for turning me on to it.

Black Expressions calls OMAH "delicious"!

The Black Expressions Book Club has Orange Mint and Honey on their web site as one of the "Coming Soon!" selections. Here's the club review:

When Shay Dixon was growing up, her mother Nona was an alcoholic mess. She was either drunk or hung-over, and her string of low-life boyfriends weren’t any better. But after burning through graduate school and depleting her meager savings, Shay decides it’s time to reconnect with the mother she’s all but written off. Before she knows it, Shay’s on the next flight out. But nothing could prepare her for the homecoming she receives. Her mother hasn’t just given up booze, she’s become a new person with a positive outlook, a love for gardening, and an amazing new toddler named Sunny. A heartwarming story that shows why life tastes better when the bitter is followed by the sweet, Orange Mint and Honey is a delicious treat.

Now that's what I'm talking about!!

Let the countdown begin!

One month to the big day! I want to say I can't wait, but I can. I've waited almost 6.5 years (from the time I started Orange Mint and Honey). What's one more month?

I sold the book to Ballantine in September of 2006. One of the things I clicked with my editor about is that this book would be a spring title. (I've always imagined it as a spring title. And now, look at the cover (down and over to the right)--doesn't that look like a spring title?) And September was too late to get in the spring 2007 catalog, so spring 2008 it is.

Try explaining that to family and friends though. I've spent the last year and a half saying, No *sigh* it's still not out. But now in just one more little month I'll be able to say, Yes! *squeal of joy* It's out!

Children of the Waters

That's the working title for my novel in progress. I'll tell you the sales story of my story. My agent called me at work because Ballantine wanted to make an offer (there was already one on the table) for Orange Mint and Honey, but first they wanted to know if I had another book in me. They wanted a one-liner. I didn't have a great one-liner, but I had worked on a short pitch. Unfortunately, it was the ONE day in months I didn't have all my book stuff with me at work. Figures, right? So I winged it and this is what we sent and sold for a decent advance:

What happens when two half-sisters, one white and one black, separated by adoption, find each other? Billie and Trish have the same mother, but different fathers. Billie's was black. Trish's was white. Their mother was a wild child who brought Trish home for her mother to raise. When she brought Billie home, her mother refused to raise her black child. So Billie was put up for adoption and was adopted and raised by a black family. Trish was raised by her white grandmother. Told from both sisters' POV, Children of the Waters is a story about race, identity and what really makes a family.

This was actually my first novel. I hit 100 pages and got stumped and put it away. I started Orange Mint and Honey and got stumped when I hit 100 pages and realized that's just what happens when I hit the 100-page mark. So while Orange Mint was on submission, I pulled those original 100 pages out and read them. They weren't half bad. I still liked the premise and the characters. However, the story of what brings the two sisters together and what they do as they get to know each other has changed dramatically. (This is where my research comes in.) I'm at work on the second draft. The manuscript is due to my editor March 1 and will be published in spring 2009.

Attention short story writers

Thanks to Ja for notice of the Colorado Review Nelligan Prize:

Submissions are being accepted for the Colorado Review Nelligan Prize. A prize of $1,000 and publication in Colorado Review will be given annually for a short story. All submissions must be received between the dates of January 15 and March 15, 2008. Visit the Web site for complete submission guidelines.

Simone on Simone

I know I said I'd post about N2, but first a little more about N1.

Nina Simone's daughter, who performs under the name Simone, releases her debut album in March (according to O Magazine). It's called "Simone on Simone." From what I've heard, she's got a dynamite voice (you can hear tracks here, and be sure to check out the hair). Now there's a mother-daughter story! I wonder what Simone (aka Lisa Celeste Stroud) would think of her mother's role as a fairy godmother to Shay in Orange Mint and Honey?

Don't cry for me, Blogosphere-a

Ok. So I know I said I was stressed out and trying not to be and stuff. But really? Writing novels ain't digging ditches and it ain't soldiering in Iraq. It ain't even sitting in a cubicle working for the man. I know this, even though sometimes I forget. Like Jamie Ford said in the comments yesterday, writing a novel is something I "get to do" and I am trying to enjoy every moment of it.

On top of the simple joy of writing a good line or a good scene, sometimes because I'm a novelist I get to do interesting, fun or silly things and call it "research." For example, there was my trip to Idaho Springs. And the other day to understand how to write a specific scene I had to go drinking and sex-toy shopping. I had to! For my book! Could I have made up the 70-year-old couple walking confidently through the store? Sure, but it probably wouldn't have dawned on me. Now they're in N2 and they're wearing leather. Let's face it: there was a LOT of stuff in there that never would have dawned on me. (Strap-ons for women to wear with men? Flavored anal lube?) Actually, the store was a clean, well-lighted place mostly filled with colorful, plastic gadgets and gizmos from China, much like a Toys R Us.

For obvious reasons I didn't take pictures, so you'll have to take my word that a fun time was had. For a bit. Then I got kind of sick to my tummy. Middle-aged ladies should not chug margaritas. Not even one. However, anything for veracity in my writing, right? Because now I can vouch for the fact that one marg slurped very quickly could very well make one sick enough to barf all over a pair of fur-lined handcuffs.

And on top of the fun of writing and research, by blogging about it, I probably have at least one or two of you interested in my next book. So really my drinking and sex-toy shopping outting was research and marketing.

Next up, the big reveal: What is this mysterious N2?

No deadline drama

I'm on deadline--my 2nd novel is due March 1. My first novel drops on February 12. These are glorious, busy, crazy, stressful times. So I'm going to do something wise: I'm going to take care of myself. I'm going to be very gentle, very kind. Rather than get into "finals/term-paper mode" (you know, no sleep, no grooming, lots of caffeine), I'm going to take it easy. I'm going to write every day, but only with the intention of about 500 words a day. If I get more than that, great. If not, that's okay too. I'm in great shape to meet my deadline and I'm going to move forward under the assumption that I will. I'm going to move forward under the assumption that everything, as Mary J. puts it, is just fine. Because it is. No matter what happens.

I'm also going to:

exercise (gently) every day
pray a lot
get a massage (or 2 or 3)
keep my Rescue Remedy handy
write in my journal
take naps
breathe
watch at least one comedy a week
trust the process

If y'all have any other suggestions for self-care, I'd love to hear them. What do you do to take good care of yourself?

Hot Flashes-Call for Submissions

Linda Watanabe McFerrin and Laurie McAndish King are looking for short (1200 words or less) erotic fiction, nonfiction and poetry for the third anthology in the Hot Flashes series, to be published in 2009. The submission deadline is March 1, 2008.

Laurie says, "We are not interested in gratuitous sex. We want the erotic framed in a way that is fascinating, entertaining, enlightening, surprising. We want fine writing. Think: appetite, humor, action, romance, food, travel, nature, personality, nostalgia, culture and counter-culture, mind, body and so on ... and add your erotic spin." More info here:

Please mail hard copy of your submission, along with a short bio, to:

Hot Flashes 3
Left Coast Writers
484 Lake Park Avenue, #29
Oakland, CA 94610

If your work is selected for publication, they will request a Word RTF (rich text format) document via e-mail or on disk.

Rock Chalk Jayhawk!!!

Congrats Orange Bowl Champs! And they said you couldn't do it!

Seattle

We spent Christmas in Seattle with hubby's brother and sister-in-law. The damp climate was unbelievable. Moss was growing everywhere. Though the temperature was in the 30s, I was freezing the whole time. Something about the wetness sinking into your bones. Brrrrr!

And yet, roses, geraniums and yarrow and other plants were still in bloom!

It was so exciting to see flowers in December!

It rained for much of our stay, but the sun did shine. Or at least the pale, soft light that passes for sun in the Northwest. (Notice the lamps are on during the middle of the afternoon.) My brother-in-law is a landscape architect. These trees are part of a pear-tree hedge around their front yard. My in-laws also grow plums, cherries, blueberries and lots of other fruits and veggies.

The view on another "sunny" day.

On this trip, we didn't make it to the Pike Place Market (we drove by). But we did go to Chinook's for lunch. It's on a real fishermen's wharf.

More fishing boats.

The sun beginning to set around 4 pm.

This was along Magnolia Drive at sunset. I can't recall which body of water this is, Lake Union, maybe? The picture is a little fuzzy because I took it from the car as we were driving, but I love the colors.

I also saw The Panama Hotel, inspiration for Jamie Ford's upcoming novel, Hotel at the Corner of Bitter and Sweet.

Awards Season

Lisa, leader of Eudaemonia Land, gave me the Shameless Lions Writing Circle's "A Roar for Powerful Words" award.

The award was initiated in November by Seamus Kearney, a writer living in Lyon, France. Here are Seamus’s instructions: Those people I've given this award to are encouraged to post it on their own blogs; list three things they believe are necessary for good, powerful writing; and then pass the award on to the five blogs they want to honour, who in turn pass it on to five others, etc etc. Let's send a roar through the blogosphere!

The three things I believe are necessary for good, powerful (fiction) writing are:

1. Passion. Call it heart, call it feeling. To me, the quality of caring about what you write about is crucial to being a good writer. Caring about the story, caring about your characters, caring what readers are going to think and feel as they read. Why write about something you care nothing or little about? And why should I care if the writer doesn't even care? Tell me a story that is important to you and chances are much greater the story will be important to me too.

2. Strong dialogue. I can forgive any flaw but boring, repetitive, empty, flat, unbelievable dialogue. To me, dialogue is the strongest means of developing a character. What they say (and don't say) and how they say it (or not) makes a breaks a character. It's probably what I spend the most time on when I write.

3. Storytelling. This is plot, but more than plot. It's also the appreciation of set-ups and pay-offs, tension, suspense, pacing, rhythym. One thing logically, organically leading to another without being so predictable that even the writer is ready to go to sleep. I include it because it's what comes hardest for me.

I'd like to give the Roar for Powerful Words Award to:
Angela Threatt
Jamie Ford
Judy Merrill Larsen
Rebecca Burgess
Tayari Jones

I'm curious to see what they have to say about what makes for strong writing.

In other awards news, Sherry over at Sage and Thyme kindly awarded me with the "Citizen of the World Award." I would like to consider myself a citizen of the world, but I'm afraid I have a lot to learn before that can actually be true. First, I've got to get down being a citizen of my own community; trying to tend to my own little plot here in Denver.

I admire people like my friend Val who can do both--be volunteers and activists at home and passionately contribute to better people's plights in other parts of the world. So, I'd like to give Val the "Citizen of the World Award."

Thanks Lisa and Sherry! I am very humbled and honored by both these awards.