#WriteWed I was a reader before I was a writer

Prince ValiantLong before I was a writer, I was a reader. Some of my fondest memories are of reading the Sunday paper with the comics, going to the library, or anxiously standing on the corner waiting for the bookmobile to arrive.

Prince Valiant was my all time fav comic. I lost myself in those amazing images by Hal Foster of Valiant fighting to save his people while falling in love with the fair Aleta. The illustrations in the strip are amazing and I loved reading the stories and making up my own action-adventure romance as I fell asleep at night. I should have known then that I was meant to put my stories on paper in the future.

This strip was first published in 1937 and is still syndicated today to 300 American newspapers. The creator, Hal Forest, is a Hall of Fame cartoonist and illustrator. Thank you, Mr. Forest, for such wonderful memories.

As I mentioned earlier, another memory is of the blue Levittown bookmobile rolling up to the corner. I’d dash in to return the books I had borrowed and to find new books! I always had a book in my hands and when I wasn’t reading a book, I was reading the cereal box. LOL!

Here’s a picture of an early version of the library bookmobile.
Bookmobile

I hope you enjoyed this Write Wednesday look at my days as a reader before I became a writer.

Prince Valiant Photo Credit: http://www.alvarezperea.com/alberto/images/prince_valiant.jpg http://www.schrijvergezocht.com/viewtopic.php?p=13868&sid=949d10039a50efca4d09d9d0e842e2ee This is fair use under US Copyright law because (1) It is only a small portion of the Prince Valiant body of work; (2) It should not affect the commercial value of Prince Valiant; and (3) It is used for non-commercial purposes.

Levittown Bookmobile Photo Credit: Levittown Public Library, 1 Bluegrass Lane, Levittown, N.Y. 11756

Sharing Christmas in NYC with you!

Every year my family and I do our annual trip to New York City to take in all the Christmas sights and decorations. It’s always a great time and we’ve got our little routine we follow. We start off in Penn Station and then walk to Macy’s and then Lord and Taylor to see the Christmas windows. Then it’s to the Research Library on 5th and 42nd to check out the exhibits and lovely reading room as well as Bryant Park, the Pond and shops behind the library.

Sadly, we got to the library too early this year and it was closed, but that made for some extra time for something old – St. Patrick’s Cathedral – and something new – a walk through Tiffany’s and Cartier to check out some bling.

While we were near St. Pat’s, we hit Rockefeller Center to see the tree, promenade and skating rink as well as the NBC store. My daughter is totally in love with PSYCH and they have collectibles from that and a number of other shows.

Then it was walk up Fifth Avenue, including Tiffany’s and Cartier (sigh, such pretty things) and over to Grand Army Plaza and Central Park. We hurried up to Columbus Circle and then pushed on until we were in Lincoln Center where we had tickets to see THE NUTCRACKER. It was lovely as allows and after a quick dinner, it was back to Penn Station and the trip home on the train.

So much to see, but it was a lot of fun. Just a bit chilly with weather in the twenties, but at least it was sunny and pretty nice outside.

I hope you enjoy these photos! If you can’t see the slideshow, you can click here to see the album.


Created with flickr slideshow.