California – Day 2 (July 20) July 22, 2011 by Kaia Calhoun So it must be confusing to be reading these blogs for yesterday a day later, and I am feeling a lack of direction for this particular piece, but here it goes. And just so we understand each other, it’s hard to post on the day without staying up super late to write on the day that just happen. So, here we are. Today (meaning yesterday) mom and I woke up nice and early to start our adventures in Northern California. I decided to run. Up a hill. Because they are unavoidable. By the time I reached my halfway point […]
Read more...California – Day 1 (July 19)
My daughter Kaia and I are taking a vacation in California to celebrate her graduation from college. For the next week or so we will be taking turns blogging about our adventures. She is a professional photographer, so the shots you are going to see will be incredible! The first post was written by her… enjoy! July 21, 2011 by Kaia Calhoun Yesterday I woke up to the wet blanket of humidity. It made a habit of looming on top of Minnesota for a few days already, but nothing like yesterday. By the end of the day I heard that the temperature peaked at 95 degrees, but with the humidity […]
Read more...The Beauty of Brownies
There is no doubt in my mind that God was having a pretty good day when He invented chocolate. Technically speaking, human beings can live on manna, but in His infinite wisdom, the Creator must have mused, “Man (and woman) cannot live by bread alone, so how about a little chocolate to mix things up?” Okay, perhaps those weren’t His exact words, but I’m sure that was the basic idea. It’s hard to conceive that something as delectable as chocolate could originate from the bitter cacao seed. It’s even more difficult to comprehend that one day somebody looked at that seed and thought it would be a good idea to […]
Read more...An Interview with World Champion Water Skier Kristi Overton-Johnson
Kristi Overton-Johnson is living proof that God doesn’t make any junk. Despite our weaknesses, He can do something magical with our lives… if we let Him.No matter who you are, you will face adversity in your life. You may feel overwhelmed, but there is always light at the end of the tunnel. Good things often come from the refining we experience in the fire. Kristi Overton-Johnson is a water skiing legend. Her career has spanned over three decades, from learning to ski at the age of four, to her more recent success as Champion at the US Masters Women’s Slalom at the age of thirty-two. Kristi is an eight-time US […]
Read more...When Magazine Interview
I had a great interview (if I do say so myself) last night on When Magazine‘s Blog Talk Radio show. For an hour we talked about life, faith, and my crazy writing career. It’s easy to listen in – just click on the link below and turn up your speakers! http://www.blogtalkradio.com/whenmagazine/2011/05/19/god-unplugged-interview-with-author-amy-hagberg?sms_ss=facebook&at_xt=4dd342c7df3711a2%2C0
Read more...Ask the Author
One of my greatest joys as a writer, editor, and ghostwriter is helping aspiring writers tell their stories. I get so many questions from people, in fact, that I’m starting a new feature on my social networking and web sites called “Ask the Author.” This is the perfect opportunity for you to ask questions about agents, publishers, editors, proposals, writing for magazines, or the writing life in general. Shoot, I’ll even tackle grammar if I absolutely have to! So what do you want to know about writing? I promise, if I don’t know the answer, I will find out! ~ Amy ************************************************************************ QUESTION: Know I am not talented enough to […]
Read more...This Was The Day He Faced the Dragon
David Parnell’s candid memoir “Facing the Dragon: How a Desperate Act Pulled One Addict Out of Methamphetamine Hell” was recently released by HCI books. Copies are available wherever books are sold or www.amazon.com
Read more...Day 3: 2011 Have More Fun Challenge
No matter how you look at it, some days just aren’t fun. And nothing you do can possibly change that kind of bad energy. After all, if every day was a mountaintop experience, it would get pretty old after awhile, right? I was so overwrought with rather debilitating family responsibilities that I forgot all about my own challenge. What most people would consider “fun” … activities that make you laugh, giggle, scream, and feel good … were completely AWOL on Day 3, but I did manage to have a little fun in the shower (oh, that came out wrong) and enjoyed myself in bed (oh, that came out wrong too). […]
Read more...Day 2 – 2011 Have More Fun Challenge
Okay, so I’ll admit it. This challenge hasn’t started out the way I planned. I had to work pretty hard to have fun on Day 1, and Day 2 was even tougher. You see, I’m stuck in the middle of a sandwich… an ooey, gooey, responsibility sandwich, and it has seriously impacted my fun quotient. After taking a hard fall last week, my elderly father was hospitalized for a couple of days with some broken ribs. Being 79 and unsteady on your feet is a tough gig by itself, so the social worker and the doctors thought it would be best for Dad to come home with me for a […]
Read more...Day 1 – 2011 Have More Fun Challenge
Being a grown-up is tough duty. Millions of Baby Boomers are caught in the middle – trying to find ways to juggle work, marriage, and taking care of both children and elderly parents. Forget about taking care of yourself and fostering a good marriage. Even if you are still a greenhorn and have yet to experience these middle age stress castles, I have no doubt you take your life too seriously at times, as well. I am bound and determined to have a whole lot more fun in 2011 than I did in 2010. Interestingly, there are scads of other social networkers feeling the same way. So… I am officially […]
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