by Karen Creamer | Dec 4, 2017 | author, Being BRAVE, books, Brave books, Catching women being brave, Interviews, The BRAVE Interviews
This month’s interview is with Amy B. Wells, RN!
I am an author and nurse anesthetist.
I’ve had many phases in my life. I was an accountant for a long time (hated it with a passion). I stayed at home with my children for about five years, then went to nursing school when I was in my late thirties. After that, I worked in the ICU for three years before going to anesthesia school. I’ve been a nurse anesthetist for a little over six years. I am married with two teenagers and a grumpy old tom cat and currently live in the suburbs of Houston.
My latest endeavor is writing. I’ve self-published four novels and I have started blogging on my website https://amywellspublishing.com/ Keep reading
by Karen Creamer | Nov 2, 2017 | Being BRAVE, Catching women being brave, Interviews, The BRAVE Interviews
This month’s interview is with Debra Lockwood Spencer.
My name is Debra Lockwood Spencer (pictured above, left).
My brave thing happened when I was 17 years old, while spending nine weeks in South America as an exchange student.
It was the summer before my senior year in high school, and I was fortunate to be living with a wonderful family in a prosperous suburb of Lima, Peru. During that time, I got to know a number of American exchange students, along with members of their host families. We went on cultural and social outings together and met at dinners and parties. Other than Marisol and Ceci Raffo, my “host sisters”, my two best friends were Maya Puyo and Paula Hawkins. Maya had attended my high school as an exchange student during the previous year, and Paula was the American student the Puyo family was hosting. Keep reading
by Karen Creamer | Oct 8, 2017 | author, Being BRAVE, books, Catching women being brave, Clarity, Interviews, no fear, online courses, relationships, The BRAVE Interviews
This month, we are meeting Allyson Bright!
- WHO are you? I’m 36. An artist, a woman in love, a widow, a crafter, a teacher, and a seeker of joy. I live in Wisconsin with my boyfriend, TJ, and my Beagle, Gracie.
- WHAT is your One Brave Thing? It’s hard to pick just one – honestly, it’s been a journey. I was 32 when my husband died by suicide. After that, I found that I had to face new fears and learn how to create a new life for myself.About nine months after he passed, I went away for a week by myself. I was having trouble trusting my own decisions and I knew I needed to leave my comfort zone in order to move forward. The trip was transformational and ultimately led to my decision to leave my home in Iowa and move to Wisconsin for a fresh start. Art journaling and crafting were such a vital part of my healing process, and I really wanted to share that with others. My ultimate brave thing was to leave my day job in order to start a business teaching art classes and offering coaching services.
- WHEN did you do it? I started my company, Determined to Shine, about 18 months ago. It’s been a bit of a crazy journey, to be sure. But without a doubt, it’s the best decision I’ve ever made.
- WHERE did it occur? Right here in Madison, Wisconsin.
- HOW did you make it happen? One step at a time! Determined to Shine has grown into so much – weekend retreats, several online workshops, and even one-on-one coaching services. Sometimes it can seem like all of that happened at once, but it’s been a gradual process. For those looking to make a career change – don’t let the size of the task overwhelm you! Pick apart each task into small chunks, and just get started.
- WHY did you do it? The idea for Determined to Shine had been in my mind for several years. Ultimately, I realized I was just going to have to take a leap and be willing to fail. I didn’t want to wake up in three more years and still be talking about it. Taking that leap was terrifying, and I had to build my plan along the way. But everything that’s worth anything is scary. Determined to Shine has brought so much joy into my life and the lives of others – I can’t imagine what life would be like if I hadn’t done that one brave thing.
Thank you, Allyson, for sharing your brave story with us!
Allyson is the author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Scrapbook Projects Illustrated.
You can find Allyson’s FREE online class here: 30 days of Art Journaling. I have taken this class myself and I enjoyed it very much. I highly recommend all of Allyson’s classes. Find them all here: http://www.determinedtoshine.net/
Check out Allyson’s online book club: Get Artsy Book Club Keep reading
by Karen Creamer | Sep 8, 2017 | Adult children, Being BRAVE, Catching women being brave, family, Interviews, relationships, The BRAVE Interviews, Travel, Turning 50
Here is this month’s BRAVE Interview with Sylvia Wesley! Enjoy!
WHO are you? I’m a 61-year-old white woman—wife, mother, nurse, and pseudo-bon vivant!
WHAT is your One Brave Thing? Sometimes I feel like just living every day is a Brave Thing and it is difficult to choose a single event! As a nurse, it seems like so many of my ‘brave things’ encompass caring for people—my dad and my brother, who both died of cancer; my mom with multiple surgeries; friends with HIV/AIDS. As a mom I gave birth to twins who were 10 weeks premature and their first 6 months of life was pretty hectic, to put it mildly. As a wife, still being married after 38 years could be considered brave—but probably the bravest aspect there is that I married a black man in 1979, only 12 years after the Supreme Court ruled interracial marriage was not illegal, and our early years involved some struggles in a very white New England. So, after all that, I decided to choose a joyous adventure as my One Brave Thing—I went to Burning Man!
WHEN did you do it? 8/28-9/1, 2006
WHERE did it occur? Black Rock Desert, NV
HOW did you make it happen? Mostly my daughter made the initial experience happen. She had been going to Burning Man for a few years and always marveled at how awesome it was and she was sure I would love it. So for my 50th birthday, I was given a ticket to TTITD (aka ‘that thing in the desert’). Which meant I would be sharing camping space with 38,000+ other adventuring
nomads for a week in rather hostile environmental conditions, and only knowing one other person. A little scary having to be self-reliant in an unknown situation, camping with my daughter’s friends who only had her assurances that I was ‘fun, non-judgmental, fully capable of taking care of myself, and would not act like everybody’s mother.’ So I packed my bags and flew to LA. We readied all our camping equipment, some party outfits, food and water for a week, and did a 12 hour ride/drive-share to the event with a heretofore unknown person. After 12+ hours, in a very small mini-van, we were all fast friends. Getting to and from is just as much of an adventure as being there!
WHY did you do it? For the adventure! It was one of the best experiences of my life—the bigger-than-life art, the music, the people, the sense of oneness—all magnificent. I came away with a whole new sense of self. And as my daughter predicted, I would want to go every year after that, and did so for the next 7 years. ‘Life’ has since interrupted my annual trek, and I have not been for the past 3 years, but look forward to resuming visits to my personal Mecca in the near future.
Keep reading by Karen Creamer | Feb 4, 2017 | author, Being BRAVE, books, Catching women being brave, family, Interviews, The BRAVE Interviews
Here is this month’s BRAVE Interview with author, Jennifer W. Smith. ENJOY!
Who is Jennifer W. Smith?
I put my family first, so I’d start with I’m a wife and mother. My next top three answers: I’m a novelist, a world traveler, and a foodie. I live in a cozy New Hampshire town in a busy household including a blue-eyed kitty and a collie who looks just like Lassie. I’ve had other careers before I became a fulltime writer in 2015. I’ve used my experiences from when I was a flight attendant and interior designer to inspire my story ideas. Keep reading
by Karen Creamer | Oct 12, 2016 | (it's all about the) food, Being BRAVE, Catching women being brave, friends, health, Interviews, The BRAVE Interviews
Here is #3 in The BRAVE Interview series! It’s the Who, What, When, Where, How, (and sometimes Why) of YOUR ‘one brave thing’! November’s interview is with Sheila Brownlow!
WHO AM I? Sheila Brownlow
MY ONE BRAVE THING—when, where, with whom: I have stopped discussing eating, how upset I am at my eating, how much I weigh, whether I am peeved at myself for overeating, how awful I am for not weighing 110 lbs., whined about how I can’t eat like a normal person anymore at age 55, or otherwise wasting time – precious time – talking with my friends, so many good friends….about eating and weight. Not in person, not online. For one month. Keep reading
Karen Creamer
