NEW ARTICLES

Writing opportunities come in all forms, including those that aren’t necessarily conventional. Below is an article on the Artist in Residence in National Parks program with a link to find more information on these unique opportunities along with a list of the National Parks that participate. These are wonderful possibilities to find creative inspiration in a new setting, and another experience to add to your writing resumé.

There is also a short piece about a t-shirt that alerts you when you are within range of a Wi-Fi site (great for travelers looking for a place to hook-up to the Internet), and a story about my mother-in-law and her first RV trip with us to Canada.

Next week (Feb. 11th), I’ll be going down to the Gypsy Caravan get-together in Casa Grande to take some copies of my books, which will be sold at the author’s co-op booth.

ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAM

The National Park Services offers opportunities for two-dimensional visual artists, photographers, sculptors, performers, writers, composers, and craft artists to live and work in the parks. There are currently 29 parks participating in the Artist-In-Residence program, although a few only want visual artists. In most cases, housing is available. You may need to provide samples of your work and references, but contact the parks you are interested in to determine their needs, duties you’ll be expected to perform, accommodations, dates of residency, etc. Get more information at: www.nps.gov/archive/volunteer/air.htm.

NOTE: Voyageurs National Park posted a comment that funding was cut for 2007, so this residency may not be available there for 2008. Funding to national parks has been deeply cut, so some of the other sites listed below may no longer offer the artist-in-residence program. Check at the contact addresses below to determine if they are offering the program for 2008.

ACADIA NATIONAL PARK, Maine
Contact: Artist-In-Residence Coordinator at Acadia_Information@nps.gov or call 207-288-3338, "O" for operator.
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Acadia National Park, PO Box 177, Eagle Lake Road, Bar Harbor, Maine USA 04609

AMISTAD NATIONAL RECREATION AREA, Texas
Contact: AIR Coordinator at 830-775-7491 ext. 211 MST or eric_finkelstein@nps.gov
For additional information, see out website at www.nps.gov/amis/supportyourpark/air.htm or write: Artist-In-Residence Program, 4121 Veterans Blvd., Del Rio, Texas USA 78840

BADLANDS NATIONAL PARK, South Dakota
Contact: Artist-In-Residence Coordinator, 605-433-5245 MST or badl_information@nps.gov
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Badlands NP, PO Box 6, Interior, South Dakota USA 57750

BUFFALO NATIONAL RIVER, Arkansas
Contact: Artist-In-Residence Coordinator at 870-741-5443 CST or buff_information@nps.gov Complete details and application form are available at www.nps.gov/buff
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Buffalo National River, 402 N. Walnut, Suite 136, Harrison, Arkansas USA 72601

CAPE COD NATIONAL SEASHORE, Massachusetts
This national seashore hosts two individual residency programs.
Contact: Tom Boland, Residency Coordinator, at tomboland@mediaone.net
For additional information, write: Provincetown Community Compact, Inc., PO Box 819, Provincetown, Massachusetts USA 02657 (Include a 52-cent stamped self-addressed envelope)

Contact: Send a 52-cent self-addressed stamped envelope to OCARC, 22 Nelson Avenue, Provincetown, Massachusetts USA 02657

CUYAHOGA VALLEY NATIONAL PARK, Ohio
Contact: Mary Pat Doorley, Cultural Arts Program Manager, at 440-546-5995 CST, or mary_pat_doorley@nps.gov or Joni Starr, Summer Camp & Arts Director, Cuyahoga Valley National Park Association, 330-657-2796 ext. 114 or jstarr@cvnpa.org
For additional information, call 800-642-3297 or write: CVEEC Artist-In-Residence Program, 3675 Oak Hill Road, Peninsula, Ohio USA 44264

DELAWARE WATER GAP NATIONAL RECREATION AREA, New Jersey
Peters Valley Craft Education CenterContact: Peters Valley at 973-948-5200 EST or pv@warwick.net
For additional information, write: Peters Valley Craft Education Center, 19 Kuhn Road, Layton, New Jersey USA 07851

DENALI NATIONAL PARK AND PRESERVE, Alaska
Contact: Denali Headquarters at 907-683-2294 AST or DENA_Info@nps.gov
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Denali National Park and Preserve, P.O. Box 9, Denali Park, Alaska USA 99755

DEVILS TOWER NATIONAL MONUMENT, Wyoming
Contact: Christine Czazasty at 307-467-5283, ext. 224, MST or christine_czazasty@nps.gov
For additional information, write: Writers-In-Residence Program, Devils Tower National Monument, Wyoming, Montana, USA 82714 or Bearlodge Writers, PO Box 10, Devils Tower, Wyoming USA 82714

EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK, Florida
Contact: AIRIE Program Coordinator, 305-242-7750 EST or EVER_Interpretation@nps.gov
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence-In-Everglades, Everglades National Park, 40001 State Road 9336, Homestead, FL 33034. AIRIE applications are available on-line at: http://www.nps.gov/ever/supportyourpark/artistinresidence.htm

GLACIER NATIONAL PARK, Montana
Contact: Artist-In-Residence Coordinator at 406-888-7942 MST or matt_graves@nps.gov
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Glacier National Park, P.O. Box 128, West Glacier, Montana USA 59936

GOLDEN GATE NATIONAL RECREATION AREA, California
Headlands Center for the ArtsResidencies open to: California, North Carolina, New Jersey, and Ohio two-dimensional visual artists, photographers, sculptors, performers, writers, video/filmmakers, composers (Each state has individual eligibility requirements)
Contact: Holly Blake at 415-331-2787, ext. 24, PST or hblake@headlands.org
For additional information, write: Holly Blake, Residency Manager, Headlands Center for the Arts, 944 Fort Barry, Sausalito, California USA 94965

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, North Rim, Arizona
Contact: Artist-In-Residence Coordinator at 928-638-7739
For additional information, write: Coordinator, Artist-In-Residence Program, P.O. Box 129, Community Building, Grand Canyon, AZ USA 86023

HERBERT HOOVER NATIONAL HISTORICAL SITE, Iowa
Contact: Adam Prato at 319-643-7855 CST
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Herbert Hoover National Historical Site, 110 Parkside Drive, PO Box 607, West Branch, Iowa USA 52358

HOT SPRINGS NATIONAL PARK, Arkansas
Contact: Jeff Heitzman at 501-620-6707 or HOSP_Interpretation@nps.gov
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, attn: Volunteer Coordinator, Hot Springs National Park, 101 Reserve Street, Hot Springs, AR USA 71901

ISLE ROYALE NATIONAL PARK, Michigan
Contact: Greg Blust at 906-487-7152 EDT or greg_blust@nps.gov
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Isle Royale National Park, 800 East Lakeshore Drive, Houghton, Michigan USA 49931-1895

JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK, California
Contact: Tim Terrell at 760-367-5539 PST or artmojave@aol.com
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Joshua Tree National Park, 74485 National Park Drive, Twenty-Nine Palms, California USA 92277

NORTH CASCADES NATIONAL PARK, Washington
For additional information: Brochure
For application information: Application

ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK, Colorado
Contact: Artist-In-Residence Coordinator at 970-586-1206 MST
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, 1000 Highway 36, Estes Park, Colorado USA 80517

SLEEPING BEAR DUNES NATIONAL LAKESHORE, Michigan
Contact: Lisa Myers at 231-326-5134 or lisa_myers@nps.gov
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, 9922 Front Street, Empire, Michigan USA 49630

VOYAGEURS NATIONAL PARK, Minnesota
Contact: Teri Tucker at 218-283-9821 CST or teri_tucker@nps.gov
For additional information, write: Artist-In-Residence Program, Voyageurs National Park, 3131 Highway 53, International Falls, Minnesota USA 56649-8904

In my book, “Looking Back,” I wrote about some of the challenges facing our nation, including the rising cost of healthcare and the lack of availability of basic healthcare for the uninsured. I mentioned that it was cheaper to fly to India and other foreign countries for surgery than to have in here. Below is information from a recent article that appeared in “AARP Bulletin.” Who knew that in some instances, traveling to a foreign country was cheaper than even paying the co-pay on insurance?

OVERSEAS FOR OPERATIONS?

Recently AARP Bulletin had an article about traveling to places like Indonesia for major surgery. Costs can be dramatically less than even the out-of-pocket expenses for the same operation in the U.S. For example, a spinal stenosis surgery for one man cost $4,618.03. It would have cost him at least $14,000 out-of-pocket in the U.S. Other countries that cater to U.S. citizens needing surgery are India, Singapore, Hungary, South Africa, Dubai, Cosa Rica and Brazil. Thailand is the most popular choice. There are downsides, of course, such as limited or no legal recourse in the case of negligence. There are now books on medical tourism and agencies that will book your trip! Read the whole story and find resources at http://www.aarp.org/bulletin/yourhealth/traveling_for_treatment.html

Reprinted from "RV Lifestyles" a free ezine featuring tips and resources about the RV lifestyle. Visit http://www.rvhometown.com for subscription information, back issues, and more RV information.

WI-FI DETECTOR T-SHIRT

Now there’s a t-shirt that alerts wearers (and anyone standing nearby) that a Wi-Fi signal is available. No need to crack open your laptop to check for a signal. The bars on the front of the shirt glows and are animated, changing as Wi-Fi signal strength fluctuates.

While a clever idea that would certainly appeal to techies and computer geeks among us, you would have to either own several of the shirts (cost $29.99), or wash and wear daily. Washing involves removing a decal and unplugging the battery pack. Order and see a sample at the Website: http://www.thinkgeek.com/tshirts/generic/991e/.

Arboretum in Edomonton, Alberta, Canada

Two of the theme rooms in the Fantasy Hotel at the Edmonton Mall.

WHO SAYS AN RV TRIP WITH A MOM IN TOW CAN'T BE FUN?

A year after our first RV trip with Sadie the cat, we decided to travel up through Alberta, Canada, and then back down through the Canadian Rockies. So in mid-May we rented a 34-foot motorhome and invited hubby’s mom along with us. The cat stayed home this time with a house sitter.

First, we headed for Edmonton and THE MALL. This was (and may still be) the largest mall in the world and I was looking forward to seeing every store in it. However, to do so I would have to ditch Mom, but I was sure she wouldn’t mind being left to wander and shop at her leisure. Instead, she freaked out when she saw how huge it was, so together we managed to see as much as three full days and her stopping to touch every item in every store would allow.

My shopping style is to walk into a store, give a quick glance around, and I’m out of there if I don’t see what I’m looking for. I had shopping down to a science and I was specifically looking for some dishes for our new (but as yet un-purchased) motorhome.

Mom likes bargains, and there were no bargains in the Edmonton Mall. No bargains meant it was no fun for Mom and she constantly complained about the price of things. See why I was anxious to ditch her?

While my husband distracted his mother with a game of miniature golf (yes, you can do that inside the mall), I scooted off to a shop I had noticed before to buy my dishes, which have now survived 15 years of sliding around in a cabinet doing 60 miles an hour down the road.

You would have to see the Edmonton Mall to believe what all is located inside its walls! There is an underwater submarine and a dolphin park, an entire amusement park with a 13-story death drop, an ice rink, approximately 100 restaurants, more than 800 shops, a water park with a sandy beach and big waves, a casino and a hotel. Buses pull up outside and unload dozens of elderly ladies clutching their purses to their bosoms, all of whom rush inside to do whatever amuses them. Since winter weather is so extreme in Edmonton, this mall is the central gathering place for its citizens. If a huge snowstorm hits while they’re there, they can even spend the night in the hotel. It’s like a destination resort for almost anything a person wants to do.

Since I was on a working vacation gathering information for articles, I was able to get into some places that most tourists don’t, which gave Mom an opportunity to see a few things that truly amazed her. One was a tour of the Fantasy Hotel at one end of the mall. The rooms were each decorated as a theme room, and some were unbelievable. Mom was really stunned when she saw a bed in a buggy in one room, and in another, a bed in the back of a pickup. She couldn’t get over that. “Who would pay to sleep in the back of a truck?” she asked the hotel’s public relations person.

Mom was totally insulted when hubby and I decided we wanted a video made of the three of us as a rock ‘n’ roll band. We insisted, then marched her in and took our places behind the microphones and instruments like we knew what we were doing. Mom was on drums, I was on keyboard, and hubby was the lead singer with a guitar. Of course, none of us knew the words to the song, but it didn’t matter. Hubby and I decided to fake it. Mom was still mad, and the video of us pantomiming to “Old Time Rock ‘n’ Roll” shows her pounding the drum like it was tough piece of shoe leather she was trying to turn into minced meat. We still have that video somewhere to remind us of the time Mom played in a rock ‘n’ roll band. She was not amused that we also had copies made for her daughters!

While we frittered away our days in the mall, nights were spent at Shakers Acres RV Park a few miles away. While there, we met the McLeods—I’ve forgotten their first names. His grandfather settled Alberta and both McLeods knew a lot about the area, so they offered to show us around. One of the places we saw was an amazing natural history museum, and in the entry stood a grand statue of Mr. McLeod’s grandfather.

We had a wonderful afternoon touring the city of Edmonton, where we saw the glass pyramids of the arboretum (I think I recall that’s what they were) and many other fabulous sites that we might have missed had they not so graciously shown us around. Afterwards, we took them to dinner at that good old American standby, Olive Garden. Yep, they have them there, too! Predictable food, but always good.

Next time I’ll write about the Canadian Rockies portion of the trip and Mom’s encounter with a bear.