All Blog Posts Tagged 'granny' (7)

Every year my family lights a bonfire on New Year's Eve to light in the new year. As part of our tradition, we write down the things we're worried about--health, money, family, work problems, etc--and we toss those troubles into the fire. The first year we did this, we invited family and storyteller friends to email their troubles to us to burn, and many did just that. This is the 9th annual bonfire I believe, and once again I invite my friends and family to send troubles for the fire. If you p… Continue

Still looking for some new stories to add to your Christmas storybag? The Silver Pine Cones is a simple tale, easy to learn, and gives a storyteller or librarian the opportunity to either make silver pine cones as a craft activity with children, or give out silver pine cones as a program favor. You can find the story by clicking here. Enjoy! And while you're visiting my blog, do… Continue

I'm on a natural high, the kind that comes from knowing that what happened was exactly right and perfect and could not have been better. Ah, what a feeling! The audience was a group of developmentally challenged young adults, aged 17-27. The place was a weeklong summer camp that included classes, sports, and entertainment. I was tonight's entertainment. I've told for similar groups a few times, and each time has been pure pleasure. These guys know how to listen to a story. They jump right in w… Continue

All's right in the garden. (Except for a few weeds, that is. More than a few, actually. A lot, to tell the truth. But then I'm a storyteller, so who knows what the truth really is?) Bounteous--what a great word. Liberal, generous, munificent. That describes this time of year precisely. The gardens are laden with produce. We share easily with the pigs, assured that more will replace what we give. Friends and family leave laden with food--potatoes, cucumbers, squash, tomatoes, jars of jam and j… Continue

I left yesterday on a storytelling trip to eastern West Virginia: three gigs in two days, all for 4-H camps. Sounds simple enough, doesn't it? I live on the western side of the state, so I would be driving all the way across West Virginia, almost to the Virginia border. Traveling across such mountainous terrain can be...exciting. Fortunately I built in extra time; I needed it. I had not left my hollow before I met the first obstacle. Recent flooding had clogged ditches and created flooding. Th… Continue

Okay, a daily--even weekly! post to track my activities is too much to keep up with. I keep one other very active blog and I am not quite up to maintaining 2, I find. So I'm re-christening the blogs on this topic with something al ittle more doable. What I've been doing since the last post: *set up two more all-day school performances *fielded three requests for information for possible gigs *mailed out publicity to 10 more libraries *biggest project: a new workshop on Appalachian Ballads. I w… Continue

Again, this is for yesterday. Ah the joy of paying four times as much for internet service only to have it be just as slow as the old dialup! What I did yesterday: complete my blog about my storytelling day on Monday Contacted the committee members of the West Virginia FolkFestival to see what I needed to do as the organizer of the Oral Traditions tent. Lined up another storyteller to perform in the te… Continue