Vocal Expressions

Today, I had a blast hanging with my good author friend, Sandra Bowman at the Linganore Winecellars Festival in Mt. Airy, MD. The music, the food, the wine selection, the dancing and the vendors were awesome. To top it off, the weather was simply fantastic! Good times!

What a fabulous time I had at The Black Authors and Readers Rock Weekend in Bowie, Maryland. The guest speakers: ReShonda Tate Billingsley and Victoria Christopher Murray were awesome. I got to meet and have books signed by both authors and had photos taken with them. It was also great to meet, mix and mingle with some of my old author friends and it was fun meeting some new ones too. The Reading Divas did a great job in putting on this event and I hope to celebrate again with them next year!

When I opened the catalog of the Columbia Arts Association, my curiosity kicked in when I saw they were offering a Zentangle class. I quickly signed up and took my first Zentangle class this past Saturday. You may be asking yourself, what the heck is Zentangle? Well, Zentangle is an easy-to-learn, relaxing, and fun way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns. The instructor was very pleasant as she gave the class some history on how Zentangle came to be and that almost anyone can use it to create beautiful images. She told us that it can be very soothing, of course, it helped that she had Native American music playing in the background. As we watched her and tried to create our own Zentangle, I found that it increased my focus and creativity. The end result was very satisfying for me (see my Zentangles below). So has your interest been piqued? If yes, what are you waiting for...you should check it out. I know that I can't wait to Zentangle again! 

This event will honor excellence in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction by Black writers.      Friday, October 25, 2013 Award Ceremony at 7 pm Followed by Dessert Reception   Carnegie Library  801 K Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 Special Guests Include:  Natasha Trethewey, U.S. Poet Laureate  Wil Haygood, Author of the Article that Inspired the Film "The Butler" Isabel Wilkerson, Pulitzer-Prize Winning Author of The Warmth of Other Suns Sonia Sanchez, Renowned Poet, Activist, Scholar and Teacher  Edward P. Jones, Pulitzer-Prize Wining Author of The Known World      $125 Individual Ticket Cost  You may make check out to Hurston Wright Foundation and mail to: Hurston Wright 12138 Central AV, STE 953 Bowie, MD 20721 The Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Foundation Discovers, Educates, Mentors, and Develops African American Writers - since 1990 www.hurstonwright.org     

This week I checked out the movie, Prisoners, with Hugh Jackman. It was very suspenseful and heart wrenching all at the same time. Hugh Jackman really brought it home with his acting as a distraught father whose daughter has been kidnapped and wouldn't break until she was found. Two thumbs way up for this movie!