I Believe In My Dreams

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."
– Eleanor Roosevelt

                      About Eleanor Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of president Franklin Delano Roosevelt, was a powerful political figure in her own right, crusading tirelessly for humanist causes. She was born in New York in 1884 and was orphaned young. After Franklin was struck by polio, she acted as his eyes and ears. She was central to the creation of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which she considered her crowning achievement, and wrote numerous essays, including a long-running column called "My Day." She died in 1962.

With Respect & Gratitude,
                Tom
       http://aronbestsellers.com

Got To Listen To A Guy Whose Middle Name Is Wolfgang

"To think is easy. To act is difficult. To act as one thinks is the most difficult."
– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

               About Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, the multitalented and prolific German author and scientist, is best known for the play Faust, which has been adapted into operas, films, and novels. He was born in 1749 in Frankfurt. An unhappy love affair inspired his first play; his similarly themed novel, The Sorrows of Young Werther, created the prototype of the romantic hero. He also invented the color wheel concept of light and made important discoveries in plant and human biology. He died in 1832.

With Respect & Gratitude,
                Tom
       http://aronbestsellers.com

The Mind of Tom - Very, Very Strange

I can't explain it.
I'm just reporting.
Late Saturday. March 7, 2009.
   This afternoon I saw the Clint Eastwood movie Grand Torino. Lots of violence. Great profanity. Politically incorrect. Some foreign language spoken WITHOUT subtitles. In the end, a guy is killed by gunfire - lots of gunfire. He was shot maybe 200 times. It was wonderful.
    I fell asleep upon returning home and dreamed of riding off with Dirty Hairy into the Colorado Rocky Mountains. We were in a streaky-green Hummer. I think we shot a Sasquatch wearing a Rockies cap.
   Woke up at 6 p.m., having missed my 5:30 meeting. No guilt about that. Clint showed enough of that character trait in the film.
   An hour and a half later I found myself sitting in the Ninth Avenue United Church of Christ watching a performance of The Longmont Chorale. They sang some stuff by Franz Joseph Hayden ... celebrated his being dead 200 years.
   The highlight was a performance of "Missa in Angustiis" (the Lord Nelson Mass). For the most part it was sung in Latin. I cried a little. I have not heard a Mass sung in Latin for 55 years ... about the same time as Clint Eastwood's Grand Torino character was fighting in the Korean War.
   I was not in Korea - I was in Miss Craig's Latin class learning the language and getting subliminal instruction in how to become a good Catholic.
   My friend Sally got me a ticket to the Chorale performance and overall, it was great. However, they put her on the riser behind a woman with a tall blond wig. Sally could not see the faces I made at her. Silently I prayed that Clint Eastwood would come along. He'd known some cool stuff to do about the blond.
   About 9:15 my mind started really acting up. I imagined that the Grand Torino foreigners were yelling at Clint in Latin. I became convinced that the old lady sitting beside me had died. (It was just past her bed time.)
   Before I crossed that invisible line beyond which psychotherapists are needed, I heard their singing of Dona nobis pasem! It was the final stanza of the performance (and rightly it means "grant us peace.")
   It was a wonderful event. However, the whole day was very, very strange. As I go to sleep, I pray that God doesn't waste his time explaining the diversity of my entertainment to me. Don't want to hear it ... might have something to do with the word "nuts."

With Respect & Gratitude,
Tom
http://aronbestsellers.com

Money - Money - Money

"It is more satisfactory to live richly to than die rich."
                                            Sir Thomas Browne

   "I want the last check I write in life to bounce."
                                from the movie - Oceans Eleven

With Respect & Gratitude,
                Tom
       http://aronbestsellers.com

Alaska is getting older and so am I

Wow! It surprises me to realize that when I worked in Juneau, the State was less than ten years old. That also was the era of the people and events I wrote into my novel Sour Rain.
I do not feel ancient, but I think that my bear-hunting days are behind me. I'd still go to Alaska to try to catch a fat trout or a huge salmon. Yep, no more bears and I never was excited about the moose, a caribou, or the teenie weenie coastal deer.
Maybe I should consider doing something I long believed was too tame for me to do ... find a date and take her on a cruise to Alaska. A guy should go to Alaska at least once every fifty years!

With Respect & Gratitude,
Tom
http://aronbestsellers.com

1-800-208-0200 Free BrochureContact

Alaska's 50th Anniversary Happy 50th Birthday Alaska! Alaska became the 49th State of the Union on January 3, 1959. The United States congress signed the bill authorizing a vote for statehood by Alaska residents in the summer of 1958. The following year, on January 3rd, 1959 Alaskan's voted to become a state and President Eisenhower ratified the count later that day. The historic photo to your left shows President Dwight Eisenhower with the Secretary of Interior Gerald Ford and Alaska's territorial Governor, Mike Stepovich. Statewide celebrations began as early as last summer and will continue throughout the year. This summer will be a special time to visit Alaska as many communities and tourism businesses continue to recognize the anniversary locally through special events and special savings for travelers. In Anchorage, the Anchorage Museum is celebrating its grand reopening after completing a $106 million expansion. The Museum has special that exhibits will mark the anniversary including the American Museum of Natural History's traveling exhibit "Gold!" that will be sure to amaze summer visitors with more than 300 gold objects. The Anchorage Museum will add an Alaska-specific gold exhibit titled "Pay Dirt!' explaining why there is gold in Alaska, how gold has historically affected the state's economy and what life was like during the Gold Rush. In addition, the Anchorage Museum will offer a special exhibit honoring the 50th Anniversary of Alaska Statehood called "Life in Alaska Leading to Statehood" Also new for the year, The Alaska Railroad is beginning premium Gold Star dome service to Seward. A ride via the Alaska Railroad from Anchorage to Seward is one of the most scenic routes in Alaska and traveling via the Gold Star dome car will make it an even more memorable experience. The Alaska Native Heritage Center is celebrating its 10 year anniversary along with Alaska"s 50th anniversary. The Center's theme this year is "Changing Lives, Living Values" to reflect the changes that have occurred to Native Alaskan culture in the modern era and the effort to maintain their traditional values. This summer is sure to be a unique opportunity to save on Alaska Tour & Travel"s custom vacation packages as there are terrific values to be found on our web specials page including our "Turn 50 with Alaska and travel FREE" offer which provides the opportunity for visitors who are turning 50 in 2009 to travel free both on the Alaska Railroad and on the Park Connection motorcoach.