Monday, August 31, 2015

A novel I am writing--The Diary of Rosalee Gibbs

 I have been working on writing this novel for the better part of this last year. I'll be finished within the next few months. I am posting the first four pages for you to enjoy.

THIS IS A WORK OF FICTION...

                          
                               The Diary of Rosalee Gibbs by Martha Rose Woodward

                                                 Chapter One
                                             
   I am in jail. Not prison. I have not been tried and convicted of a crime by a jury of my peers. I was arrested and thrown in a cell in the Knox County Detention Center which is a modernized name for a jail dreamed up by some consultant.
  I am currently wearing a size extra large, orange jump suit, white socks and size 8 green flip flops. I have been given a thin pillow and a rather small blanket. If I want to use the toilet there is one in my cell. If I want something to eat or drink, good luck because there is nothing available until meal time rolls back around.
  The actual Knox County Jail is a few miles away from where I am being held. It is located within the main building in Knoxville referred to as the City-County Building. That jail is not large enough to handle all the prisoners who come and go because as time has moved along in the history of our town, the population has increased. With more people moving in crime increased making a need for more beds for the criminals who were arrested. Therefore, the county built the facility where I find myself tonight.
   My name is Rosalee Gibbs. I am writing this diary because I have many things on my mind. I have to make some sense of how I wound up accused of murder.
   I am mad as hell that these idiots have trumped up some nutty charges against me. They say I killed my mother and step-father 35 years ago. Who comes up with this bullshit? True my mother and step-father died under suspicious circumstances, but their deaths were ruled as accidents. It appeared at the time that the gas line in the heating system in their new home in Chattanoogna, Tennessee had sprung a small leak. It was determined that leaking gas killed them in their sleep.
  Do these yahoos, who have accused me of murder, actually believe that a freshman college student plotted to kill her parents by punching a small hole in a gas line with an ice pick? I mean, people die from all kinds of reasons, like being poisoned, for instance. 
  I was given the honor of being arrested by the sheriff of Knox County, CC Clemons. I guess I should feel honored because most folks are arrested by one of his lowly deputies. Yes sir, CC himself came to my front porch. When I saw him drive up into my driveway I thought he was stopping by for a quick visit like he has done for many years.
    CC and I became friends when he was a cadet in the Junior Police Division of Cadet School. Over the years CC and I have been involved in numerous highly publicized crimes with CC as a representative of law enforcement and me as a reporter for the largest paper in town The Knoxville Times Newspaper.
    I am currently 66 years old. CC is 50, but I tell you the god’s honest truth, if I was not married and CC was a few years older, I’d be chasing him all around town.
   CC is one sexy dude. He is tall, muscular and has the clearest brown eyes you’ve ever seen. He is prematurely white headed and kind of chubby. His entire face sparkles when he smiles and he is dripping with charisma. CC is the kind of guy every woman wants to sleep with. Every man wants to be him. Did I say he's black? Yes, that is correct, CC was the first black man to be elected as sheriff of Knox County, Tennessee. And folks up North think we in the South are behind the times. We vote for the man here in this county, not for the color of his skin. 
  My career as a reporter began when I was given an assignment to serve as an intern for the Knoxville Times Newspaper. It came about during my junior year at the University of Tennessee as I was majoring in Journalism and Communications. That was over 30 years ago.
   Along the way I rose up through the ranks and am now the main writer for the paper. Have you ever heard that saying that an opera is not over until the “fat lady sings”? I am the fat lady in that comparison. Readers of our newspaper tell us they feel like they really have not heard the news until they have read my feature articles. The photo of me that typically accompanies my articles was left out of the paper one day due to a snafu and all hell broke loose.
  Not only am I well-loved and well-cared for in this county, I get my pick of the most interesting news stories.  If there is a noteworthy, criminal trial going on over at the courthouse folks expect that I’ll be on hand writing the play-by-play. One of the judges said I reminded him of a television program that used to be on air staring Angela Lansbury. He nicknamed me “Rosalee, Murder She Wrote” and made everyone in the courtroom laugh.
                                               **********
   Since I am in jail and have a lot of time on my hands, I feel the need to sort things out in my mind. I would prefer to write my thoughts in my diary, only thing is I have to write it in my mind because, for once in my life, I do not have a pad and pen in my hands.

 Maybe this is a good thing. A girl could go to prison for life for confessing to crimes by writing in her diary. I am not saying that would or could happen to me, but in my line of work I have seen it happen. 

Z for Zachariah---great movie

This is a great movie.
I understand it is way different from the book, so if you have read the book you might be disappointed. Great acting; great story; just all around good entertainment.




Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Big Orange, Black Storm Clouds and More by

Ron Leadbetter's book is going great.

For sale at www.amazon.com


Frankie Valli's music is timeless

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQUeY4-G9mY

Having a great time listening to Frankie Valli's music. He continues to tour at age 81.

Tuesday, August 11, 2015

New Visitors Center for Knoxville Botanical Gardens Aug. 14, 2015

IF you have never visited the Knoxville Botanical Gardens located at 2743 Wimpole Street in Knoxville, you need to go. The gardens are fabulous. 
Former Mayor Victor Ashe and his family have been working on a new visitors' center at the gardens and it will be dedicated Friday, August 14. See invitation: (Everyone is invited)

From Victor Ashe:
   Joan and I want to invite you to the Dedication of the new $1.4 million Visitors Center this Friday morning, August 14 at 10 at 2783 Wimpole Avenue in East Knoxville. It will be a significant event making a major milestone in the development of the Gardens.
Gov and Mrs Bill Haslam will participate along with Mayors Burchett and Rogero who have all been strong supporters of the Gardens.
We hope to see you there

Victor and Joan Ashe

Friday, August 7, 2015

Interesting book; not like the movie

The Running Man as a movie is one of my favorite movies, however, I did not realize it was written by Stephen King. I read the book yesterday and it is very, VERY different from the movie.
Like the movie better; do not know how they got the movie from this book. Ending is vastly different.


Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Do not waste your money on Harper Lee's new book

   This book has no beginning,middle and end. It is like the writer wrote various segments and decided to pull them together into one book.
   IF she had published this before To Kill a Mockingbird, no one would have ever thought she was a good writer.
   Sad that we cannot get our money back after we buy this kind of crap.
 
   I feel called to tell others to beware before you spend your money.