Surviving Arthritis, How to Live on a Rocky Beach, Kindle article

This is the trailer for my Kindle article on surviving arthritis.
If you're an Amazon Prime Member, you can borrow this article for free!

About the time I was coming down with a chronic illness, teenagers were wearing tee-shirts that said, "Life's a Beach!" I wanted to stop one of them and scribble underneath, "Yeah, but some beaches have rocks!"
Surviving Arthritis, How to Live on a Rocky Beach is a non-medical, motivational article for those who have arthritis and other autoimmune issues. Most people get light to moderate discomfort upon getting arthritis, but some of us get severe cases of it. I wrote this article for them. As I have firsthand experience with this condition (I was first diagnosed in 1984). I can honestly say, "Been there. Done that." Article, Kindle, $2.99 USD

 

www.amazon.com/author/janellehooper



 

www.janellemerazhooper.blogspot.com

 

www.janellemerazhooper.com

 

Facebook, YouTube

Jamaica and Jupiter, book trailer on YouTube

Also from the book There's a Mouse in the House! Written by Janelle Meraz Hooper and Jacob Nicholas Studebaker. Illustrated by Sherri Bails.

www.amazon.com/author/janellehooper 

Ribbons at Christmas, a YouTube video

Also from the book There's a Mouse in the House! Written by Janelle Meraz Hooper and Jacob Nicholas Studebaker. Illustrated by Sherri Bails.

 

www.amazon.com/author/janellehooper

There's a Mouse in the House! Children's poems and stories book trailer ...

This is the video that is listed as one of the best for kids on iPad in the post below. The title poem is written by Janelle Meraz Hooper and Jacob Nicholas Studebaker. Illustrations are by Sherri Bails.

I've posted several other stories from this little book on YouTube: look for Jamaica and Jupiter and Ribbons at Christmas...oh, wait! I think I can post them on this site! Is Google great or what?!

Best iPad Apps For Kids: Funny Kids Poems 2

One of my books has made the list for being one of the best iPad apps for kids!
The title poem, There's a Mouse in the House! was written by me and my grandson, Jacob Nicholas Studebaker. Illustrated by Sherri Bails.

 

www.amazon.com/author/janellehooper 

Not Matryoshka, but mine!

My Russian dolls

 

   These are the little Russian dolls I told you about in a previous post. Unlike the Matryoshka  (nesting ) dolls, they're carved from a solid piece of wood. Check out the piece of watermelon the little guy on the left has. How cute is that?!

   The Matryoshka dolls that nest were first introduced at an exhibition in Paris in 1900, so they're not as old of an idea as one might think. I read somewhere that the original idea came from a Japanese toy. I've seen a wonderful version that depicts Russian leaders but my favorite has to be the set I saw based on Russian fairy tales.

   I rarely buy souvenirs of any kind when I travel. Not only are they expensive, but they're hard to carry around. Luckily, I can now order them over the Internet and they'll be delivered to my door. I do take a lot of photos though. My blogs (this one and my WordPress) have a lot of them.

   What does all this mean? Absolutely nothing! It's just that I'm used to talking to someone when I have my morning coffee but I've lost most of the talkative members of my family. What I've got left is family members who are waaay too busy to sit down and chat. That's okay. I've written a lot of my stories down so they can read them someday when they have time!

 

www.amazon.com/author/janellehooper

 

www.janellemerazhooperauthor.com

 

www.janellemerazhooper.com

 

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The Crossroads of Continents Exhibit and Russian dolls

   I found the above photo in my files recently. I took it at a Russian Expo that I think was in Seattle. It was so long ago, I'm not sure! Isn't she gorgeous? Sadly, the doll is the closest I ever got to the land of Dr. Zhivago. I had high hopes of going on an archaeological dig in eastern Russia once in the nineties while I was a docent at the Anchorage Museum of Art and History, but I didn't pass the physical and I think they thought I might be more trouble than I'd be worth, ha.
   Anyway, while I was at the Anchorage Museum of Art and History, I got to serve as a docent during the Crossroad of Continents Exhibit that was over ten years in the making. Moscow sent a wonderful curator from the Hermitage Museum (I think--I've lost my notes) to train the docents.  The Russian contribution to the collection was enormous. Stunning. Amazing.
   One of my fondest memories is leading a parade of women from my apartment building down the hill to the museum so I could practice on them before the exhibit opened. I could go on for hours about that exhibit. The catalog for it is huge; I spent my last few dollars on it and wouldn't let it go for anything. Maybe, I should insure it, like Betty Grable did her legs!
   I could never afford a doll like the one in the photo, but before I left Alaska, I purchased three little wooden Russian dolls in a local hotel gift shop for $7.95 each. I was so embarrassed because I was in a fancy hotel and I had to dig clear to the bottom of my purse to get enough money to pay for them. Afterwards, I didn't even have enough change left for a cup of plain coffee, but I was so thrilled! I'll take a photo and show them to you soon. They sit above my fireplace year around except at Christmas, when I hang them on my tree. One of them always makes me laugh: he's eating a slice of watermelon. Watermelon in Russia? Who knew? I grew up in Oklahoma, which is watermelon country in the United States. That doll is very dear to me.

www.JanelleMerazHooper.com

www.amazon.com/author/janellehooper



A Seattle Romance With a Jamaican Twist!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1dRoABQnhs

 

A Seattle Romance With a Jamaican Twist!

 

This is the link to the book trailer for my new romance novel. I make all of my own trailers. What fun! This trailer is short...give it a look!

 

My Amazon Author Page:

www.amazon.com/author/janellehooper









Geronimo, Life on the Reservation

 This is one of my latest projects. It's a one-man show. Rudy Ramos read the first scene at the Memphis Film Festival in June of 2013. The whole show will be presented at the High Chaparral Reunion, 2014, in Arizona. 

 

Geronimo, Life on the Reservation

Written by Janelle Meraz Hooper  

A historical fantasy of Geronimo’s life on the reservation after his surrender that focuses on the resiliency and humor of the great Apache Indian leader.

Geronimo chats with his visitors using a stolen laptop to introduce humor and lighten the emotional load on his audience. Recalling a history of strife, betrayal, and battle, he says, “…I had to steal the laptop because the white men will never tell the whole story about the Apaches. They control everything that's said about us in newspapers and books. Even the maps are slanted toward the whites. Look and you'll see they're dotted with each place we fought the white soldiers. Look closely. You'll see that if the soldiers won, it was a battle. If we won, it was a massacre…”

In this presentation, Geronimo cleverly evolves from a surrendered Indian leader into a successful entrepreneur. He participates in wild west shows, the Chicago World Fair, and others. Keenly aware of how to work the political system, he joins the same church that Teddy Roosevelt belongs to and rides in his Inaugural Parade. Although he isn’t successful in getting everything he wants, he certainly succeeds in making the best of his situation.

Beaten? Geronimo was never beaten. He simply adapted to his present circumstances and learned to take advantage of the white man on a new battleground.

www.JanelleMerazHooper.com

 

Amazon Author Page:

www.Amazon.com/author/janellehooper

 



 

New Kindle children's book

There's a Mouse in the House!

 

 

Hello! I've had some technical problems with Google but am going to try it again because I'm no quitter! (:



There's a link above the painting that will take you to a book trailer for my children's book of short stories and poems, available on Amazon Kindle and others, $2.99 USD.

 

I've been very busy this year and will fill you in a little at a time, I've missed you all!





Visit my Amazon page!
http://www.Amazon.com/author/janellehooper

We did it! We kept big business from buying the election!

I had hopes but never in my wildest dreams did I think we'd have this much success (a late Demo winner isn't on this chart--I've misplaced the name, sorry!) This is a big win for clean government and democracy!

Message to Ohio and Florida voters in line

A message to the Americans standing in line to vote in Ohio and Florida: Don't give up! Don't let the Republicans win! Here on the west coast, our hearts and minds are with you. I know you're in a bad spot, but our president needs you.

Al Sharpton, courtesy of MSNBC, on the GOP's war against women, closing statement: "And that's why the election is not about Obama. It's about your momma!"

 

 

It's no accident that the message from Glinda is right below the message from Rachel. WE HAVE THE POWER. USE IT. WHAT ARE YOU SAVING IT FOR? VOTE!

 

The Republicans are at it again. Know why? Because it always works for them! If we'd stepped on their $#!@?! the first time they did it, maybe we wouldn't be where we are tonight. I am sickened over their dirty tricks and lack of patriotism.

 

Ms. Silent Nomore, where are you when we need you?

The Idaho Baker and The Real Deal- Barack Obama for President

The last time Obama ran for president I wrote a post that was picked up by a newspaper on the other side of the country. In it I stated that other candidates were Tater Tots and what this country needed was an Idaho baking potato. It was true then and it is even more true now. President Obama has earned another term and we’ll be foolish if we don’t give it to him. Romney is a light-weight. A Tater Tot in the truest sense of the word. From the time President Obama took office he has waded through the mess left by the earlier president. At the top of the list are two wars we couldn’t pay for but that’s not even the true issue: they were wars that should have never been fought. The list of other issues that need addressing is too long to go into: our economic, health care, energy, and infrastructure problems, etc. etc. etc. We need a true statesman like President Obama to keep us going forward. Romney is just another Tater Tot politician who won’t be able to produce the results we need. Vote, ya’ll. God Bless America and God bless our president, Barack Obama. Janelle Meraz Hooper

Ms. Silent Nomore pays us another visit:

Tonight I have watched biographies of President Obama, both on CNN and MSNBC--2 places that I go to for mostly the facts. Both told essentially the same basic story...nothing new--I was there. I lived it. But in the space of first 90 minutes and then 60 minutes, I was reminded just WHO this man is. What he has accomplished for us. How he made the decisions that literally brought our country back from an economic collapse (his economic advisors had told him that the country had just a few days before our economy collapsed.)

  How, in the face of incredible political opposition (the Republican leaders of our country, on Inaugeration Eve, plotted to oppose him at every turn), he managed to do the things he did.

    How he managed to change the image of our country from a horribly negative one to the very positive one we have today. He managed to create hope, both here and in the world.

   And he still managed to be an incredible husband and father.

   We have just seen, in the face of Hurricane Sandy, what he has done to coordinate the supplies of this nation for those victims.

  For 4 years, he has had our fronts and backs. He is the REAL DEAL.

  May God keep him safe and bless this country with 4 more years as President of our country.

 

Cordially as always,

Ms. Silent Nomore

Simpson animator works his magic on Obama speech



 

If you're on the fence about the election this is worth your time.

http://front.moveon.org/brilliant-a-simpsons-animator-works-his-magic-on-a-rousing-obama-speech/?rc=email.10282012

Have you registered to vote?

 

In many parts of our country people have already voted. I read about a fellow writer who was going to put his I Voted! sticker on his door so that maybe the doorbellers would leave im alone. I put mine on my phone but it didn't work. I hope you'll be sure to get your vote in as early as possible in case of bad weather. Or a flat tire. Or a talkative relative stops by. You never know what can happen at the last minute.

 

If it seems like I'm nagging it's just because this vote is so important. Not only is it important to re-elect Obama, it's important for another reason: We must not let big business get away with buying this election! If we do, it'll set a dangerous precedent for the future. Ronald Reagan said once that, if we're not cautious, we could lose this country in a decade. We must not be smug and careless about what we have here.

 

I'm going to add the latest message from Ms. Silent Nomore before I post:

For those of you who haven't decided who you are voting for...a summary.

Some very important things to consider:

1...On the night of the Inaugeration, there was a very important meeting with many primary "players" of the Republican Party. At this meeting, the single most important goal for the next 4 years was decided on---to stop Obama from having a second term. The way to do this would be...to NEVER agree on anything that was proposed by either the Senate or the House that would give Obama any credit for a second term.

This resulted in over 40--60 filibusters in the Senate (this level of obstruction was the most in our history); a similar effort in the House by the Republican minority was stopped with the majority control of the House for the first 2 years. But, for anything to pass and become a law, BOTH parts of Congress had to compromise--that DID NOT HAPPEN. WHEN WE WERE IN THE DEEPEST PART OF OUR RECESSION, THESE TACTICS WERE STILL EMPLOYED!! In my opinion, when a political party decides to put a political agenda ahead of the welfare of this country---this is called...treason. Think about it.

2...The candidate for President of the Republican Party, during the primaries, did all he could think of, to earn the ire (and some stronger words) of all the other candidates because of the tactics he used to win primaries.

3...Now, that same candidate, for these many months has employed ...lying and distortion at almost every stump speech; changing his policies so often that his true policies are yet to be determined; at the debates...becoming so ambiguous with regard to his policies, that NO ONE COULD FIGURE OUT WHERE/WHAT HE STOOD FOR.

4...Yet, he does have a party platform...the Republican Party Platform...the traditional one that has not changed from the Bush years...these ideas were the same ones that caused this mess. And he intends to repeat them. Only they are more radical now.

5...The choice is very clear...Romney or President Obama--the President whose integrity and moral courage has kept us going as a country and changed the world's opinion of us for the better.

Most cordially,

Ms. Silent Nomore

 

Hear, hear! Thanks, Ms. Nomore! (I've had some questions about this contributor. Some think it is just me. It is not.)



 



Another visit from Ms. Silent Nomore!

 

We're burning daylight here--have you voted yet? Please do!

 

October 24, 2012

THAT was Donald Trump's October Surprise? That's all he's got? For one, I don't want to see the Harvard transcripts of President Obama's grades. Good grief, the man was president of the Harvard Law Review. I'm sure he's smart enough! What is really going on here is that Trump is willing to pay over 5 million dollars for media attention. The man is embarrassing!

October 23, 2012

Oh, boy. Donald Trump is promising a big October Surprise about Obama tomorrow. He's a big birther. Wonder where he'll say Obama is from this time? No matter. We all know that Trump is from Genosha (I threw that in for all you Marvel Comic fans.).

 

Another visit from Ms. Silent Nomore. I'm not sure but she appears to be from Washington State:

 

For all voters that have initiatives on the ballot to approve a 2/3 vote by state legislatures to raise taxes...THIS IS REAL SCARY! A closer look at these iniatives reveals that the 2/3 majority will be used only to stop loopholes and capital gains taxes from being closed and taxed. IT DOES NOT PREVENT FEES FROM BRING CHARGED! What does this mean?! Only people who benefit from capital gains income and loopholes....the top 1% will benefit from this 2/3 majority to limit taxes. The rest of us can have fees leveled on us. In other words...these last years of recession, when we needed our legislature to spend more money by helping the most needy of us, they could not close loopholes and tap tax loopholes that would have helped. They could only raise fees on the rest of us!!  

   THESE INIATIVES ONLY BENEFIT THE TOP 1% OF US! AND HURT THE REST OF US! BEWARE! 

 Very cordially,

Ms. Silent NoMore

 

I'm not versed in this initiative so will have to take her word for it. I think she must have found me on the Internet...good to have her aboard! Janelle

 

 

 

$1.99 Kindle short story!

http://www.amazon.com/Joes-Cadillac-Short-Story-ebook/dp/B009W92EDG/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1351185316&sr=1-1&keywords=Old+Joe%27s+Pink+Cadillac

 

Old Joe’s Pink Cadillac
Janelle Meraz Hooper

                                        ww.JanelleMerazHooper.com

 

Synopsis...

   Before Old Joe’s best friend left for Vietnam he dropped his pink 1959 Cadillac Coupe de Ville off at Joe’s for safekeeping. The old car was in bad shape and when his friend didn’t come back Joe made it his mission to restore her.
   Most nights, after work, Old Joe could be found with his head stuck under the hood of the collectible car, murmuring loving, encouraging sounds to the eye-catching lady who once ruled the highway.  When he finished, she was a beaut. Old Joe didn’t have much, never did. But at least he had Elizabeth…for a while.

 

a few lines...Everyone liked Joe. Ben, a bachelor who lived across the alley, had a special fondness for his neighbor. Years ago, Joe had chosen to move to the white side of the laurel hedge the city had planted to separate the whites from the blacks. Ben suspected Joe’s move had something to do with wanting to get away from his ex-wife. It was a gutsy decision, and Ben admired him for it.

 

Through the years, the once all-white, intimidating neighborhood filled in with Asians and Hispanics. At dinnertime, the air was filled with wonderful smells of different cultures mixing together in the hot air, and the smells from Joe’s kitchen fit right into the mix.

Ben’s effort to see that Joe was well and had everything he needed was always appreciated by the old guy.  Especially on hot nights, Ben would walk across the alley to say hello and make sure the old man had ice for his icebox. Temperatures in the Oklahoma town could be as high as a hundred and eight degrees or more in the daytime during the summer, and the town’s senior citizens were sometimes known to suffer from dehydration.

On those nights, Joe would pull two bottles of beer out of his icebox, and he and Ben would go outside and sit on Elizabeth’s hood to cool off. There, in the dark, they’d listen to the crickets chirp, and the cats hiss at each other on the Victorian’s porch. Sometimes, houses away, they’d hear a couple squabbling until they both decided it was too hot to fight.
Too hot to love.
Too hot to sleep.

Eventually, cats and people would quiet down for the night, and Ben and Joe would be left under a star-filled sky with only the crickets and lightning bugs for company. 

Visit my Amazon author page for my books, news and book trailers!
www.Amazon.co,/author/janellehooper

www.JanelleMerazHooper.com

 

 

 

 

Election alert from Ms. Silent Nomore!

I've heard talk that Romney knew he couldn't win the debate--thier strategy was just to stay alive! What I'd like to see is a debate between Romney and Donald Trump. I think they're equally clueless!
Meanwhile, I've had another email from Silent Nomore:

ELECTION ALERT!! While everyone is concentrating on the one-liners and the fact that Romney almost became Obama last night by pretty much agreeing with most of his foreign policy ideas...there is one thing that few people are talking about.

   Romney showed last night, and in fact, all through this election cycle, that he really isn't interested in foreign policy!! Reality check!! The area of foreign policy is the one area that our president has control!!!! We know from recent history when our president really doesn't care, or doesn't really know as much as he should about the world---aka.George Bush---this means that a vacumn exists where  people who have their own agendas can rush in and INFLUENCE HIS DECISIONS. THIS IS HOW WE GOT THE MOST DISASTEROUS FOREIGN POLICY MESS IN A GENERATION---2 WARS AND THE HATRED OF MOST OF THE WORLD.

   And now, of the 24 members of Romney's foreign policy advisor team, 17 ARE REPEATS OF BUSH'S OLD TEAM!

This is a disaster just waiting to happen. IF YOU HAVEN'T VOTED YET...THINK ABOUT THIS.  Unless you liked what we have just suffered through.

 Very Corially,

Ms. Silent Nomore

$.99 children's book- There's a Mouse in the House!

Kindle, Nook, & iPad- $2.99 USD

 www.JanelleMerazHooper.com
 

Chapter 1. A pretty good life- an excerpt

This is a story about birds. Three birds to be exact: a little green parrot named Jamaica, a yellow cockatiel named KoKoMo, and a big black crow named Jupiter. Little Jamaica and KoKoMo lived in a nice warm home, with lights, a color TV, and lots of music. Their gourmet birdseed came from a nearby pet shop, and they regularly received treats from the kitchen. Jamaica and KoKoMo loved the treats! They especially liked the bites of Brussels sprouts, baked potato and bread. Sometimes, they even got a bite of pizza! In short, life was good. Even the house cat, Okra, was nice to them. Actually, Okra was nice to them partly because he was terrified of the sound that the bird’s wings made when they flew. Flap! Flap! Flap! He couldn’t figure out why it was necessary for them to do that. They didn’t see him flying all over the place, did they? No. He kept all four of his paws on the ground. Like a cat should. And a bird should. At least inside birds. Okra was surprised to learn that the new bird could talk. Many a good nap had been spoiled by Jamaica calling, “Okra, Okra, I love you, Okra!” The first time he heard Jamaica say that, he almost wet Sally’s carpet. Never before had the cockatiel said anything to Okra, although he had heard her whistle that “shave and a haircut, two bits” tune she’d learned from Sally’s husband…

Amazon:
ttp://www.amazon.com/Theres-Mouse-House-ebook/dp/B0093O0UYK/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1347462649&sr=1-2&keywords=there%27s+a+mouse+in+the+house%21

Nook:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/theres-a-mouse-in-the-house-janelle-hooper/1112722250?ean=2940015067156

Pull a toddler onto your lap—or tuck it into bed—and share a tale about a house that has a mouse problem (There’s a Mouse in the House!), a gooseberry-gobbling pheasant (George, the Great Green Gooseberry Gobbler), and a cat named Ribbons who gets into trouble with a Christmas tree (Ribbons at Christmas). I’ve broken up the story about Jamaica and Jupiter (Jamaica and Jupiter) into shorter chapter stories so that the friendship between the “outside” bird and the “inside bird” can develop over time. This story was inspired by a little green parrot we used to have that was fascinated by the crows in the yard. There are two short poems about a hermit crab and a frog at the end. There’s more explanation about my choosing them at the end of the book.

Happy reading! I hope you agree with me that "Once you learn to read you will be forever free!" Frederick Douglas

 

 



 

The first debate between Obama and Romney

 

The keyboard is the new doorbell!

I'm aware that I have many Europeon readers. I'm sure that a lot of you are too busy to try to figure out our politics. Here's a short course from someone who is very non-political:
We have two main political parties in the United States: the Democrats and the Republicans.
The Republicans:
 I believe in the two-party system but in the last few years our Republican Party has been hijacked by factions who do not have the best interests of the people or the nation (or even the world) at heart. Conservatives rule too much of the party and force their views on religion, economics, and health care on what's left of the original GOP party. I miss the old Republican party. I used to be a member.

The Democrats:
One of the factions of the Democrats is the Liberals. Republicans say we want a free ride. We want to sit around--they say--on our duffs all day while they pay for it. It's interesting that a lot of people assume I'm a Democrat/Liberal because I'm disabled and thus much want as much free stuff from the government as I can get. Actually, I am not poor. I make a very good income. I'm just willing to share the riches of this great country with those less fortunate. I apologize for this unedited ramble. time is short and I have a publishing queue to meet. Maybe one of my emails from a reader will explain what happened last night (I'll try to do better next time.):

On the subject of the debate...my thoughts. What I saw, in salesmanship terms: a classic "closer" and a sincere salesman. Romney, as usual said what he thought the audience wanted him to say--lies and exagerations included--to close the "deal". Obama, realizing that, after a few tries, pointing out to Romney,clearly that he was lying, with Romney denying that he was, decided to just talk to us. To coin a repeated phrase, in talking to Romney, it is like trying to nail jello to a wall.  So which person would I prefer to lead us?!  The fast-talking, deal-closing, tell-me-anything-to close-the deal guy, or the one who is working for me to get what is best for the country. There really is no option--Obama every time.

With kind regards, Ms. Silence Nomore