Happenstance, April 16

I enjoyed talking to Ursel Albers. I think there is a story there that I would love to tell. She still retains that lovely cadence to her voice that speaks of another age and another country. Check out the story about her involvement with the Las Vegas Opera Guild. There's also an article by Nancy Philo, a painter and sometimes juror of art shows and an update on The Literacy Council.

My greatest challenge each week is finding the time to do all the things I want to do, which includes telling interesting stories about people. I like learning about the successes, challenges and failures that mold a person.

I hope you enjoy Happenstance this week. I invite commentary, suggestions, essays, humor, anything at all that will add value to the magazine. E-mail your contributions to fsharon@msn.com.

Happenstance, life happens, April 9, 2010

From the editor…

Whew! I didn’t think I was going to get this one done. I had a great time interviewing Jean Warner, Joel Scheinberg and Barbara Ewing for the article about dogs. We’ve had dogs over the years, but after the last one, Chipper, the happiest dog on earth, escaped our enclosed yard and got run over, I said, “Never again!” After talking to these dog enthusiasts I’m close to rethinking my position. There is nothing like the relationship between a pet and its human family. Even snooty cats take a down day and make it better. See Delightful Dogs on pages 4-5.

Talking to the tag team Arts & Culture District duo of Adam Caldwell and Roy Montibon had my head ringing with all the ideas out there. These two bounced comments and ideas back and forth like tennis players with a great volley going. It was like sitting in on a strategy and brainstorming session with Donald Trump and the apprentices, without the BSSS (blind silly selfishness and stupidity). It was a fun interview. See Grassroots on pages 6-7.

You get a break from my recipes this week. Check out the wonderful salad recipes by Kathy Allen, author of Someone’s in the Kitchen, a compilation of recipes she has gathered over the years. These recipes can be used as a side or as a dessert.
I’m introducing a couple of new ideas. I don’t want to run a calendar, the Chamber does a great job of that and so does the Optic, but I want to hit the high points of activities going on in town. I can’t think of a better source for that than the magical e-mail network of Karyl Lyne. See The Lyne Connection on page 10. It’s a calendar, sort of.

The Happenstance Walk About on page 12 is a new feature, a bird’s eye view of what is happening in some of the businesses around town. It is very much of a work in progress. My goal is to showcase the heroes of our town. Their heroism is at street level. They get up every morning, open the door to their stores and do everything within their power to provide a much-needed service, whether it is selling ladies’ apparel, jewelry, antiques, art, or diet Cokes. These happened to be the businesses I walked into this week. What businesses have you walked into? These stores contribute to the economy of our town in ways we don’t always recognize. We need them. For them to thrive, they need us.

Enjoy Happenstance, life happens.

Happenstance, April 2

From the editor…
Deepest apologies. In the CASA Fourth article in last week’s Happenstance, I left the name of Mack Crow off the list of board members. Mr. Crow has been involved in the community in various ways over the years. His valuable service to CASA contributes to its success.

In this issue of Happenstance, Randy Campbell’s wonderful memory of a ‘50s Easter with its finely drawn moments reminds us of how ‘out of the ordinary’ Easter is; page 3.

The Las Vegas Arts Council has been around for many years with a mission of providing resources and services to artists. The bigger picture is that it is an economic engine fueled by the energy of creativity and involvement. See LV Arts Council celebrates the arts and helps them shine; pages 4-5.

There is nothing like live theater. It is a surprise every performance, not because the performance is different, but because as an audience member you are seeing just that performance in that moment, unfettered by any experience but the one you are having as the players unfold the story on the stage. You won’t get that sense of participation at a movie theater, not even a 3-D movie, because once it’s on film, that’s it, finito, end of story. In live theater anything can happen and it’s up to the actors, in character, to make it work. I am delighted we have an active theater group in Las Vegas. The Nat Gold Players has been around in one form or another for years.

I played Abbey in Arsenic and Old Lace, in the ‘80s, my brother, Marc Conkle, was Teddy, Abby and Martha’s slightly daft nephew, who thought he was Teddy Roosevelt. We had a blast, even though it involved six weeks of intense rehearsals for a ‘run’ of four performances. In recent years the players have evolved into a loosely organized group that has a specific goal of fostering performance as a thought-provoking and entertaining art form. Theater is too often a stepchild to other art disciplines, partly because of time requirements needed to mount a production, and partly because of funding. The Nat Gold Players forge ahead. Read more of their story beginning on page 6.

Regular features include the Happenstance Kitchen with Easter Pea Salad and Mom’s Potato Salad recipes, and The Best of the Web featuring Heifer International.
Enjoy Happenstance, life happens.

March 26, 2010 Happenstance

Howdy. What wonderful days we’ve been having. Of course I write this on Tuesday with predictions of yet another snow storm or two in the offing. Oh, well, as everyone says, we do need the moisture. Personally I can scarcely wait to see the burst of beauty that will come out when it really starts to warm up. Barring a late freeze the tulips and lilacs and irises and all the other early blooming flowers should be spectacular. Considering the icy winds we’ve had I’m more than happy to be inside working on Happenstance.

In this week’s issue you will find an article about a program that is important to the community and critical to its clients. CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) is an agency that works entirely in the interest of children who are in crisis; youngsters whose lives have been turned upside down and inside out. Volunteers serve one purpose only and that is to determine what is best for the child and advocate for that outcome. CASA is a nationwide organization with local affiliates. The one in Las Vegas that serves the Fourth Judicial District is under the direction of Barbara Perea Casey. See the story on page 4.

Marlene (Allen) McConlogue is a mother of twin boys and an entrepreneur with a great idea. She created her business, Bare Bunz Cakes, to serve a target market of parents of newborns to two-year-olds. Her product? ‘Cakes’ made out of diapers and other essential and fun baby items. Read about this unique idea beginning on page 6.
Regular features include a review of best selling author John Hart’s novel, The Last Child, a restaurant review of Santa Fe Capitol Grill, Happenstance Kitchen featuring my favorite enchilada casserole recipe and The Best of the Web focusing on xeriscaping.

Enjoy Happenstance, life happens.

Happenstance, March 19, 2010

Getting Happenstance together is fun. I meet new people and share the excitement of what is going on in their lives. This week I talked to artists who are starting a new enterprise. The future of Las Vegas and the area is based on a combination of job creation, job retention, and job expansion. The jobs created by a co-op art gallery are not the distinguishable jobs of hiring others to work in your place of business; these jobs come from the artists taking on the shared role of employee. That sets up a chain reaction, which results in more opportunities for sales for the artists which is a shot in the arm for the economy on a very basic level. I met with two of the participating artists and learned a lot about co-ops I didn’t know. I share that with you in, Artists open co-op gallery on the Plaza, on pages 6-7.

My second article was a joy to do because I am a book nut. I love to read almost as much as I love to write and I really enjoy the work of other writers. I am especially charmed by Jan Brett, a respected children's book author who literally paints a picture with everything she writes. In The Easter Egg bus is on its way, you will find out more about this talented illustrator/author who has more than thirty-four million books in print. She’s coming to town and her visit is NOT just for kids. Read the story on pages 4-5. I’ve also included reviews of a couple of her books on page 10.

Also check out The Best of the Web on page 9. This week’s review is of the site delish.com. It’s a food site, but I also found it pretty entertaining. On the

Happenstance Kitchen page I included one of my favorite recipes for a crowd.

Folks are asking how often I’m going to publish Happenstance. My hope is to do it every week, but that may require more content than I can produce. I welcome submissions from other writers. It can be poetry, short fiction, essays, articles about interesting activities, people and events, history and oddities. I want to hear from you and look forward to getting your submissions.

Distribution of this is somewhat dependent on readers. If you like Happenstance and would like to pass it on to others, please do. I also welcome your ideas. Is there something you would like to know more about? Let me know and I’ll do my best to get it in.

Enjoy this issue of Happenstance; life happens.

E-zine Happenstance First Issue

Happenstance, life happens has a little of this and little of that. It is a digital only publication. I am looking for content ideas and for submissions. Eventually there will be advertising in the magazine, but that's down the road. I'm building my subscriber list so your input is vital. When you get the link to access the magazine, I will very much appreciate you forwarding it on to anyone who you think might be interested. I welcome constructive criticism.

What will you find in Happenstance, life happens? Artist profiles, human interest stories, food and entertaining, travel tips, book reviews, articles about what makes Las Vegas unique and much, much more. Advertising rates will be reasonable so if you are interested in advertsing, please contact fsharon@msn.com for a rate sheet.

For those of you who have not seen my Featured Author interview at yellow30.com, check it out. Thanks to Steven Fivecats and the team at the website who have been generous in the attention they have given my work. It is greatly appreciated. Steven, by the way, has a great book of poetry. You will find my review of his book at vandermeerbooks.com

Happenstance, Life Happens

Look for it. March 5 is the launch date for Happenstance, a digital publication published and largely written by me.

The first issue will feature an article entitled Preservation and Prosperity, how communities can find value by evaluating existing architectural, cultural and historical assets. This is by no means a new topic but success stories across the country suggest in these difficult economic times it is imperative to build on the bones of what already exists. The featured agency is the Las Vegas Citizens' Committee for Historic Preservation.

Look for How is Lisa Doing? A Love Story, about a family coping with cancer.

Have you ever wanted to start a journal but keep putting it off? Journal Writing in Five Easy Steps will inspire you to go from thought to page.

Happenstance Reviews look at a cleverly written book of poetry by Steven Fivecats, and a favorite magazine of the publisher, Guideposts.

There is more, but you have to wait and find out what that is. Look for Happenstance. It will be sent to subscribers to the www.vandermeerbooks.com newsletter and posted on the website. If you would like to become a subscriber, go to the www.vandermeerbooks.com homepage and click on the Join This Mailing List link.

New day

I am an early riser, 5:30 a.m. is about my usual. I don't have to get up early, but I do. I always have. When I was a child my mother and father were up and at 'em before sunrise. My dad worked in the oil fields and I can tell you it was no 9 to 5 job. You would think it would have set the pattern for all of us, but while I tended to get up and get with it, my siblings were happy to sink deeper into the covers. Me, I never wanted to miss anything. What if something happened and I was asleep and missed it? Even after my dad got other less stressful and dangerous jobs, I still got up when he and mom did and stayed up, busy-bodying my way through the day. It's a trait I've spent the bulk of my life trying to get under control until I realized, as a writer, it's one of my strong points. Early morning is when I am most productive.

Every one's productivity time clock is slightly different but if I were handing out advice to beginning writers on how to get the most work done, I'd say figure out what hours of the day you are most alert and get to work! The other critical element to success is being consistent. Don't let a work day go by when you don't write. What are work days? For writers every day is a work day, but even the most dedicated take time off to regroup and refuel. Whatever your schedule, four days a week, five, two, it doesn't matter, commit to a time and write.