First I need to confess something. I won Mary DeMuth’s novel, Daisy Chain in a contest Jaime held several weeks ago. I was so excited. I couldn’t wait to begin reading it. Here’s where the confession comes in—I didn’t even get to the bottom of the second page before I stealthily whipped out my pen, looked left, looked right and then wrote MY NAME on the inside cover of the book. I wanted to claim it as mine right then and there. It might help to understand I had all intentions of passing THIS book along, of holding my own contest and sharing the Daisy Chain love…but I couldn’t. I wanted it. Mine, ALL MINE. Can’t you just hear Gollum? Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed the creative descriptions, the unique characters and the storyline. BUT, a commitment is a commitment and I am going to buy a new Daisy Chain to send to the winner of the contest below:And now for ~ THE DAISY CHAIN CONTEST ~
Within the first few pages of the book, Daisy Chance tries to convince her best friend, Jed Pepper that the name of her street indicates their destiny. Her street name is Love Street and she is certain she is to marry Jed.
Now it’s your turn ~ What was the name of your street where you grew up? Convince my husband that the street name has had some great significance in your life and means something symbolic or profound and is somehow tied into “your destiny” and you will be the winner of a brand new Daisy Chain!
Just for fun: I lived on Mountain Road growing up and I feel as though most of my life I’ve been climbing a mountain and as it is with hiking, some days are exhilarating and rejuvenating where I can look out from amazing peaks and other days are grueling, filled with sweaty effort to stay the course.
*As a side, in the novel there is a church called Crooked Creek Church. My parents, along with two or three other families had the opportunity to rename our street from Mountain Road to Cricket Creek for mapping purposes only…just one other thing about the book that made me smile.
***photos by flickr
I've lived on several streets, including the names Vincent, Horace, George and Herbert. And now I am married, so my destiny came true?
ReplyDelete*grin*
ReplyDeleteI totally understand the book need. :D
Hi Wendy,
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I loved your comment over at my blog that you spend more money on books than on clothes. LOL...me too!
I grew up on a streeted called "Plainview". About six years ago God had to get my attention through a dream. He had called me to write, and although I wrote as a child that gift got buried beneath a traumatic childhood. After the dream, I realized that it was in PLAIN VIEW all the time...I just needed God to show it to me. :)
We lived on Pullman Drive when I was in 7th and 8th grades. Alberte & Bernard Pullman were a married team of French theoretical quantum chemists who were deeply in love and did pioneering cancer research together for decades until Bernard died in 1996. Their work created the field of Quantum Biochemistry.
ReplyDeleteI speak French fluently and loved my chemistry classes in college. I'm deeply in love with my husband; we've been married for two decades.
I know; it's a stretch. But for most of the rest of my life, I've lived on numbered streets (County Road 17, West 102nd Street, Route 9D, et cetera).
I have only ever lived on really boring street names. So what does that tell you about me?! :) And I already have Mary's book! I haven't read it yet, but am looking forward to delving in at some point!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun post! I lived on Arbor Ave. my entire teenage life. Some definitions keep it simple and just say that an arbor is a tree. I can definitely relate this to writing. I kind of floundered a bit when I first started because I didn't have my roots. Once I became a Christian, my roots were established. I had God. And now, with His guidance, with help from other writers and my eagerness to learn, I've been able to branch out, get stronger. Weather a few tough storms and grow more--kind of like the fruit of all the hard work.
ReplyDeleteP.S. I guess those roots in God not only changed my writing life, but all the rest as well, branching out to family, friends, new acquaintances, new opportunities and perspective on all the old ones.
I grew up on Alma street. Boring huh? In latin Alma means nourishing. Alma Matter is derived to mean nourishing mother. I believe everything I experienced there nourished me in who I am. The Lord molded me at that home on that street and truly it is in a sense my Alma Matter. BTW If I win the book I'll pas it on! =)
ReplyDeleteThere are some great answers so far! Can't wait to see which one my husband likes!
ReplyDelete~ Wendy
Great post! I grew up in the boonies on Bone rd. Hmmm. No significance yet to my life, but there's still a lot of it to go, lol. :D
ReplyDeleteI grew up on Peet Road, moved to Clydesdale, and then thirteen other streets! I think my favorite street name was Wind Dancer. We lived there for two years and I think I AM a Wind Dancer. I love to be outside and I love to dance :)
ReplyDeleteGreat music, by the way!
I have the hardest time commenting on your blog. It always erases stuff and take forever to load. :(
ReplyDeleteAnyway, awesome for winning that book!
I grew up on Willow Way. I have no idea how that would tie into my destiny... But it's a pretty street name. Maybe I was destined to grow up willowy and beautiful? I wish!
If only! I lived on Castle Street in my younger days...maybe I'm destined to be royalty? (and let's not mention the move a few years later to Mars Street...)
ReplyDeleteI lived in 10 different houses growing up. 10. Today, I am a complete schitzophrenic so I guess your premise is true - lol ;D
ReplyDeleteI grew up on Lincoln Rd, which is quite prophetic, really. Everybody knows Abe Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in order to free slaves. You see, as a writer, I sign a similar proclamation each morning (in my mind, of course) in order to free my words. To unshackle the chains in my mind and let the words flow and mingle and live freely on the page. The connection is just so totally obvious, is it not? I mean, honestly, as a kid even, I knew I was destined to set something free simply because I lived on Lincoln Rd.
ReplyDeleteMay I please have Daisy Chain?
How about this:
ReplyDeleteI grew up on Lexington Avenue. A long name for a long street that twisted and turned and led from a busy, urban intersection, through a forest and back out again. Though my Lexington Avenue is not the Manhattan Lexington Avenue, I believe it was named for it because of the streets ability to link different worlds together. (The manhattan Lexington goes from Harlem through the upper east side and then back to east 14th.) THAT "Lex" was named after a battle in the Revolutionary war.
So what about me? The twists, the turns. The beginning at one point and traveling through many different types of lives, yet staying on the same road and never getting lost (or almost never...) And one must not forget the war. Life is a battle, and this publishing quest is a battle. Finding time to write and writing well is a battle. But the street of my childhood has fine posture and a solid history. It will lead me to great things.
Hub-man is getting ready to look these over.
ReplyDeleteI've loved reading your creative answers and will comment myself on them early am.
Seriously, you all make me crack up and tear up daily!
The big announcement tomorrow!
~ Wendy
It's too late for your contest, but I'll still play along.
ReplyDeleteI grew up on Athens Street in Marathon, Iowa -- population 300. All of our streets were named for Greek places and people.
Here I was, this small-town girl, living on a street named after a major cosmopolitan city.
But the destiny? Oh the destiny ...
Athens was the birthplace of many prominent philosophers and writers. I'm no Socrates or Pericles, but I'm a small-town girl who loves to think and write and ponder and wonder ...
I'm a small-town Marathon girl, with an Athens heart.
Joanne, your answer cracked me up and I don't even know if you meant for it to be funny.
ReplyDeleteDanyelle, thanks for understanding. :D
Julie, I can see why my husband chose yours. So many times in life God is pointing, leading, guiding and sometimes it's hard to see what is in "plain view".
Luisa, my husband did mention he liked how much thought you put into your answer and I'd agree with that.
Jody, you are anything but...
Cindy, I must say I was drawn to this answer b/c I absolutely love trees and I liked how you tied it all together.
T.Anne, I'm glad you would have passed it on and I thought it was cool the meaning behind alma...etc.
B.J., Bone Rd. Interesting...wouldn't be significant in my life as of yet either.
Jill, Wind Dancer has a nice ring to it. What song was playing?
Lady, you're not the first person to say you have trouble commenting...that irks me, especially b/c I love your thoughts/reading your blog! Urgh. Anyway...willowy - yah, that's me too. :D
Ronnica, I'm royalty too! :D With a little Mars!
Tess, not sure I believe in Daisy's desiny theory, but it made a fun question...if you are schizo then I am...hmmm...schizo too. :D
Katie, Loving it...laughing as I'm reading yours. My fav..."may I please have..."
Suzanne, creative how you connected that all together the way you did.
Jennifer, we are so alike that way...the thinking, writing, pondering. Loved the "small-town girl, with an Athens heart."
Excellent! I love my thinking blogging friends!!!
Well I live on Rt, Box...but the official name of the street is Plato. Where can I go with that?
ReplyDeleteYour contest seemed fun...I love creative contests. Going to add that book to my paperbackswap queue.
You were above me on SITS today.
Wendy I have to say first off I am so very lucky that not only do I get to read your post and everything but I get to call you a neighbor and friend. I know that I am to late for the contest but I decided that I would try a hand at it anyway and who knows you might let me borrow your book or we could swap till we both finished. Either way I decided I would have a go.
ReplyDeleteI was a Navy Brat growing up literally all over the United States so I have a hard time figuring out which town let alone which street to pick. So I decided to go with Williams St West as I first thought it would be the hardest for me then I realized as I was writing this the first time it actually is easy (evil computer problems) or at least easier than I orignially thought.
Williams Street West: I decided to break Williams down to Will - I - Am. As you know I lost my sister in law, who was a driving force in my life as well as many others. Losing her helped me realize that I have to live my life with purpose (will) and that is something I am really trying to do that now. Where before I feel I was really kind of drifting where ever life would take me. So comes I Am... I am trying very hard to make the right choices in life and to live my life with purpose and meaning.
West well I took that to mean two different things one being expanding my horizions (go west young man haven't you been told... or so the song goes) and the other that I need to remember where I came from as all of my family is out West.