The Best Day of Your Life? — The Day Your Life Begins!

March 22, 2016March 21, 2016 / jrmilson / Leave a comment

This positive motivational message brought to you today by “The Adventures of Little Red Bear” Short Story Collections, the “Margaret Monarch Plant Wildflowers for Wildlife Association”, and by the “Irresponsible Actions and Happiness Institute” — proud sponsors of independent thought and happy living everywhere.

Partial funding provided by “The Bobo and Lily Bears Foundation for Higher Nature Awareness and Appreciation”, by the “Expose Kids to Dirt and Nature Movement” located in Good Hope, and by the “‘One Day Just Ain’t Enough Recognition’ Grumpy Groundhog Group.”

Funding to support this site provided by “Old Glory Bears & Raggedy Dolls,” maker of collector teddy bears, dolls and fine quality accessories worldwide.

And by dedicated home readers like you. Thanks as always for visiting and reading along! — Jim (and Red!)

Quote- Bob Moawad

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear” Short Stories on Amazon.

Old-fashioned, Family-friendly Stories about an Uncommonly Special Bear and his Friends. Fun for All Ages and Fitness Levels!

Take A Walk For Exercise, Come Home With A Story Idea– a ‘Two-fer’!

March 16, 2016March 15, 2016 / jrmilson / 2 Comments

A beautiful day here yesterday with the temperature reaching 70F. A grey, overcast morning gave way to brilliant sunshine in the afternoon, with daffodils everywhere stretching to bask in the warmth. You could almost hear the tree buds popping open to welcome spring. So I took an afternoon walk for fresh air and exercise. Always a good thing. And, as so frequently happens on walks, a fun new story idea presented itself along the way.

Walking along, I caught sight of a man getting out of his pickup truck and walking around to the back door of his home. A while later, I observed a young lady pull into a driveway, exit the car, proceed up the walk and knock on the front door. That’s all. Simple as that. BAMM! The inspiration for a fun conversation in the next set of Little Red Bear stories came to mind. I completed the walk, came in and wrote out a new scene and character conversation, right out of the blue. A small sequence in a large collection of stories, but isn’t that what creativity is — little bits all stitched together to form a whole? Kind of like an old-fashioned quilt in that way.

I read a selection recently about taking the time and making the effort to be more mindful to fully appreciate the everyday, mundane tasks that we go thru by rote each and every day, half awake in a hypnotic and robotic state without even being aware of what we are doing. How does the shower water feel? What does the shampoo smell like? How does the toothpaste taste and smell? The true aromas of breakfast. Flower scents in the air when heading outside. The feel on our face of a morning mist or breeze. Being aware and alive to consciously witness and take pleasure in everyday experiences and occurrences going on all around us all thru the day. Living and Being in the moment.

And when we are in ‘aware mode’, fully cognizant of and appreciating our life and all around us, then creative and story ideas are everywhere. It’s as simple as watching someone get out of their car. Next time you find yourself stuck for a creative idea or inspiration, the answer may be waiting right outside the door. Why not go outside and see?

Thanks for stopping by to visit. It’s even more beautiful this morning. I feel another walk coming on. — Jim (and Red!)

Writing- Walking for Ideas 2

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear: The First Holler!” on Amazon

Short Stories About An Uncommonly Special Bear and His Friends

New Writing Boots for Little Red Bear!

January 16, 2016January 15, 2016 / jrmilson / Leave a comment

When it is time for Little Red Bear and I to sit down and get busy on his story adventures, I put on my writing boots to get to work. So the title may be a tad misleading. Little Red Bear does not wear boots, actually. Overalls and a straw hat a good bit of the time, but no boots. Surprisingly, they just don’t make them for bears. The width is the biggest problem for them it seems. The boots are for me. I was referring to Red’s stories — “The Adventures of Little Red Bear” and their writing, of course. It may be these new writing boots, not quite broken in yet that may have caused a little confusion with the title there, and apologize for that.

Little Red Bear and I have begun serious writing work on the next collection of Little Red Bear adventures, so I figured a new pair of Writing Boots was in order, having pretty much worn out three good pairs traipsing over the mountains and thru the hollers writing the first set of stories. What do you think? They are a pair of Justin’s Sorrel Apache boots. Let’s take them for a little Test Write, shall we?

New Writing Boots- Justin Sorrel Apache Boots

“Little Red Bear worked his way slowly up the hillside, crouching low behind bushes trying to remain unnoticed by the bees, busily at work on their hive at the crest of the hill. He stopped to pause momentarily behind a large, flowering Honeysuckle Bush. For you and I, the scents of honey wafting on the summer breeze in the direction of Little Red Bear would be undetectable. But being a bear, he knew exactly where the hive was located, along with the size of the hive and amount of sweet, gooey honey stored inside. Within an ounce or so anyway, he figured.

“Little Red Bear carefully wrapped his paws around his famed honey whacking stick, getting everything into position before rushing at the beehive. “Three big steps, whack the hive, grab the honey and dash back home,” he thought to himself.

“All worked out in his mind, Little Red Bear bolted from behind the honeysuckle bush and raced towards the beehive. Whack! Just as planned and catching the bees totally by surprise, the beehive crashed to the ground. But instead of splitting open as they normally do, it began to roll and tumbled over and over down the hillside. Instantly, Geronimo and Cochise chased after the bouncing beehive.”

Geronimo, Chiricahua Apache leader. (Photograph by Frank A. Rinehart, 1898.)

Cochise, Chokonen Apaches –“Rising Sun People” often called Chiricahuas.

Geronimo! Cochise! Wait! Who? What? Where did Geronimo and Cochise come from?!? Must be the new Sorrel Apache writing boots! Apparently, they’re not quite broken in yet. I’ll keep working on it. But I wonder if they might stick around to appear in a story? We’ll have a talk with them and see. Just never know who might pop in here. We had a weathered old mountain man wander in thru the door this morning! Stay tuned. Regardless, it looks like there’s still more work to do getting these new writing boots broken in and ready for the next story collection, though. I’ll get back to work on it.

In the meantime, thanks as always for stopping by for a visit! Hope you like the new boots. — Jim (and Red!)

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear” Available on Amazon in Kindle and Print.

About An Uncommonly Special Bear and His Friends!

Entertaining Stories for the Young and the Young-at-Heart

Order Your Copy Today!

Reason for Visit — “Popcorn Injury”

January 6, 2016January 6, 2016 / jrmilson / Leave a comment

Little Red Bear and I were simply making some popcorn for a snack while taking a break from writing. As I was dumping the popped corn into a large wooden bowl, one of the last remaining unpopped kernels, apparently very upset and angry having been awoken from its slumber, decided to seek revenge on its tormentors and “POPPED!”

Hit me right in the eyeglasses! If I had not been wearing glasses, it would have hit me smack in the left eye. With no reaction time at all, I had no idea that an annoyed and highly agitated kernel of corn could fly so fast. Fortunately, bouncing off of my glasses as it did, no harm done.

But can you even imagine going to the doctor with something like that? First of all, there would be all the Urgent Care Forms to fill out–

“Reason for Visit – Popcorn Injury.”

The doctor would come into the room trying to conceal a smirk, saying something along the lines of — “Attacked by a kernel of popcorn, were you? I don’t know if I’ve ever treated one of these before. We didn’t cover Popcorn Injuries in my Emergency Room training. I don’t suppose this falls under the heading of ‘Blunt Force Trauma’, does it? Because I’m real good with that. We may have to refer you to a specialist. I wonder if Dr. Redenbacher is available for a consult today?”

And then it would go on, of course. “Hit you right in the eye, did it? Boy, don’t you know you’re supposed to keep a lid closed on those poppers and not be looking down into them while you’re cooking? Have you ever used one of these complex cooking devices without supervision before? Maybe next time you should consider saving a little longer to purchase the Deluxe Model Popper. You know, the one with the lid? Another inch up and over and that thing woulda nailed you right between the eyes and laid you out cold on the floor. You’re lucky to still be with us here today, son. Do you think your relatives would have sent flowers to your funeral or popcorn balls?”

Yep. I can just imagine the whole medical staff having had a go at my “Popcorn Injury”. Thank goodness for eyeglasses and an embarrassment averted! Never knew popcorn could be so temperamental and will be approaching it with a new level of respect and danger in the future. Kind of like a rattlesnake. Just to be safe. Maybe I’ll just let Little Red Bear do it. But, being a bear, he doesn’t wear eyeglasses, so I suppose not. Will just have to be more careful myself. That is an Urgent Care visit I do not want to make.

Have a wonderful day, and surprise someone with an unexpected act of kindness along the way! Thanks as always for visiting! — Jim (and Red!)

Popcorn- Angry Image 1

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear” Short Stories on Amazon.

About an Uncommonly Special Bear and His Friends

A Special “Thank You!” for Readers and What’s Ahead in the New Year!

January 2, 2016 / jrmilson / 4 Comments

A special New Year’s “Thank You!” to everyone who has followed along the past year on the Blog, my Author Facebook Page, on Twitter and with “The Adventures of Little Red Bear” short stories book collection released in June!

A few quick hits for New Year’s. I am not a big numbers guy, not seeking to build great legions of followers for the sole sake of impressive numbers and ego stroking. But when you write or put creative work out there for the enjoyment of others, numbers are a way of gauging whether there is any interest or if your work is fostering the intended enjoyment for others.

So it was encouraging to see that my Blog site continues to grow, having achieved a 60% increase in both visits and followers in 2015, was visited over 4,400 times and reached a new high averaging 20 visits per day in December and now being read in 86 countries! “The Adventures of Little Red Bear” continues to gain new readers internationally, and has been very positively received. Twitter followers are nearing the 10,000 mark worldwide. We keep growing together, one positive message at a time.

To me, this is an indication and further encouragement that there still remains a receptive audience and place for enjoyable clean, uplifting and positive themed information and entertainment of high standards. So for you, readers and followers – Thank You!

Quote- Love and Purpose

Looking ahead, the course will remain the same but hopefully with even more activity shared in the coming year. As always, the focus will be Entertaining, Informational and Educational. In the works for the new year are –

A continued focus on the natural world and conservation issues including the revival of nature interviews and features on the Blog by our assistant, “Rusty the Fairydiddle”, a Red Squirrel Reporter, as only a Red Squirrel can do them. Check out “Rusty Behind the Scenes — The Gray Fox Interview” for a sample.

Rusty the Fairdiddle, Red Squirrel Reporter on the Job!

A serialized Free Story or two on the Blog, similar to the “Ozarks Ostrich Crisis” which started it all a couple years ago.

More Free Reads, Poetry and other Short Works as inspiration and the muses allow.

Little Red Bear finds humans fascinating for one reason or another, so in addition a new series of interviews is planned on the Blog to include not only fellow writers and authors, but other creative and interesting folk as well. The list of those already agreeing to be interviewed include photographers of various disciplines, artists, authors and more.

“The greatest danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.” ~ Michelangelo

Plans also include sharing more new teddy bears, raggedy dolls and other creations and information on the Blog, just for fun.

Milson, the Steampunk Bear– German Mohair, Glass Eyes, by James Milson, 2014

Roary- Cinnamon Curly Mohair Bear with Wobble Joints, Glass Eyes, Wearing a Rusty Jingle Bell.

Tuffie- Synthetic Faux Fur Bear with Wobble Joints and Picture Jasper Stone Pendant

Grumpy Gus- Synthetic Faux Mohair with an Iron Pyrite, Wire-wrapped Fool’s Gold Pendant

Fisher- Mohair Bear with Wobble Joints, Glass Eyes, and Carved Bone Fish Pendant

Sugar- Mohair Bear with Wire-wrapped Sea Glass Pendant

And — after months of “thinking” and note-making, writing on the next collection of “The Adventures of Little Red Bear” short stories began in earnest the past week. As you may recall, the full title of the first collection of stories was “The Adventures of Little Red Bear: The First Holler!” The next collection will be appropriately titled “The Adventures of Little Red Bear: The Second Holler Over!” Returning the main characters, it will also feature the introduction of some very new and colorful characters as fun and hijinks in the backwoods continues. And with those pesky weasels still around, we’re never really quite sure what may happen. Red and I are working towards a summer or early fall release, so please stay in touch for updates.

So Much Work, So Many Adventures, So Little Time!

Actually, staying in touch is pretty easy. Following the blog is as simple as signing up, with notifications of all new posts delivered directly to your email inbox. It is always Free, never any spam, and features a growing list of Free Reads, Information and Fun Stuff available anytime. Some easy links to follow the Blog and on Twitter are located in the column to the right. Just click here to “LIKE” and follow my Author Facebook Page and on Pinterest. Please join me on my Personal Facebook Page for a steady stream of positive and uplifting messages, recipes, music selections, shared artworks and photography from friends, and other fun.

As we move further into the new year, I expect the general loudness and rancor may increase as we approach the Presidential election in November. My intention is for all of my sites to serve as a mental oasis and refuge of quiet, peace, kindness and love for everyone. You are welcome to visit anytime.

Quote- Kindness Instructions

So, heading off into the new year and next set of Little Red Bear adventures, then. Thank You again for a wonderful and encouraging year! And please remember, the “Welcome” mat is always out, there’s a pitcher of tea waiting and cookies in the jar at all times; and comments, feedback, referrals and sharing are strongly encouraged and very much appreciated. As Little Red Bear is fond of saying — “A shared joy is a doubled joy.”

Hoping to see you stop by and visit often! — Jim (and Red!)

Quote- Kindness- Doing Good

“The Adventures of Little Red Bear: The First Holler!” Short Stories on Amazon. About an uncommonly special bear and his friends!

Little Red Bear Answers Reader Questions – “Hummingbird Spit! What Could Be Better?”

August 20, 2015August 8, 2016 / jrmilson / 2 Comments

Little Red Bear and I have received another reader question we thought it may be good to respond to for everyone. Well, a question and a comment really, and good information to pass along.

Reader Question from S. F. on holiday at an undisclosed beach resort in the U. K. –– “Dear Little Red Bear — Holiday reading, sunshine, and fresh sea air – what could be better?Thanks for translating Red, got plenty of buzzards’ breath but all out of catfish whiskers and the hummingbirds are being most uncooperative.”

Answer— For the benefit of those who have not read “The Adventures of Little Red Bear” yet, or may have unwisely skipped over the “Introduction”, what S. F. is referring to is that to save readers the difficulty and hassles of needing to translate all the different spoken animal languages and dialects back and forth as they read, Little Red Bear and I worked tirelessly to translate everything for you. Bears speaking to birds and rabbits, turtles speaking to bears, humans speaking to bears and foxes, weasels yammering on, etc. The pig is a different matter, and you will need to read for yourself to see what that is all about.

Information on the translation process was explained in the Introduction, along with many other things, and S. K. is referring to a few of the translation ingredients in her comment. And it points to why we decided to go ahead and take care of the translations issue for readers ahead of time. We didn’t charge extra for it. Little Red Bear just felt it a nice to thing to do for folks.

In response to S. K. then — “Holiday reading, sunshine, and fresh sea air – what could be better?” We can’t think right off of any better thing than being on holiday at the beach reading Little Red Bear stories, so you have us stumped with that one. And yes, we have found the hummingbirds to be problematic and difficult to work with at times, as it seems the later it gets into summer the more of a sugar high they are on, causing some predictably spiky attitudes. We are impressed with your having gathered sufficient quantities of the buzzard’s breath though, as that is where the translation process breaks down for many folks, unwilling to approach a turkey buzzard that closely. Little Red Bear sends a big paw pat on the back for that one!

As for the other, we could mail some dried catfish whiskers over for you, but find that fresh whiskers work much better and produce a clearer translation in the end. And since we have it all translated for you ahead of time anyway, we won’t bother to send any dried whiskers over to save you the mailing expense.

So, sorry we were stumped by that question, but want to thank you for writing in to let us know all that translation time and effort is helping readers out after all.

Horizontal Rule 1

So, a big thanks to S. F. for the comments! Remember folks, please keep those questions and letters coming. We’ll get to them as best we can here for you. Happy reading, and thanks as always for stopping by! And remember folks, the best sermons are lived, not preached. God bless, y’all. – Jim (and Red!)