Did you watch The Masters? It was the golf tournament on last weekend. Sunday’s round was full of moments with the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat, especially for Rory McIlroy. He was playing to win Golf’s Grand Slam. He almost lost—he bogeyed the last hole, lost his lead, and had to play a sudden-death playoff. Thank goodness he won!

But that’s not why I’m writing about the Masters. It was all because of a commercial that hooked me three ways on Sunday. The first hook, the song, The Halls of Shambala. I remembered it from 1973. I was a freshman in junior high, middle school today.

The second hook, kids! Kids playing golf, putting the ball in the hole, or rolling it by. The third, the reason for the ad from Bank of America, they’re sponsoring a year of golf for kids across the country. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if someone who learns golf thanks to them, becomes the Master’s Champion in another ten to twenty years? This was the perfect commercial!
​

​Sorry, I googled, but I couldn’t find a screenshot that lets you click on the commercial. Bank of America already pulled it down. But I can share this link: bank of america commercial for halls of shambala - Search Results | Facebook

It takes you to the screenshot above, and it plays Halls of Shambala by Three Dog Night. If you scroll down, the comments are more about the song than the tournament. I guess their fans were thrilled to hear it on national TV again. 
​

As for this screenshot, I looked for young golfers who were as cute as the kids in the commercial. I went through like ten pages on Pixabay, and these were the best images I could find. Sorry ☹

                                           Tomorrow – The Halls of Shambala, the song and its singers       

​14. Key Railroad Components:  Manganese turnout castings and weld kits aren’t made in the US anymore. I needed three images to explain them.

The picture below shows a Manganese Turnout. Manganese is a kind of steel strong enough to withstand the pounding of trains and the grinding of rocks and minerals against it.

Do you see a turnout in the photo? That’s where 2 sets of tracks cross. It’s the only place a train can switch from one track to another. 
​

                                                          The photo below is a welding kit. It has 4 key parts.

Top Right – Crucible. It’s used for melting metallic elements before they can be cast. Crucibles have to have a higher melting point than whatever’s inside.

​Top Row Left – Sand Mold. There are 3 pieces for each rail type and 3 different kinds of rails.
​

Bottom Left – Igniter. It has a wind resistant design, and it produces temperatures as high as 1500 Celsius. Water boils at 100. YIKES! You need 1 igniter for each weld. That’s where you melt 2 pieces of metal together.
​
Bottom Right – Welding Portion. That’s the metals—aluminum and iron oxide powders, that are put into the crucible then melted together. ​

​​

#15. Dell Computers: Dell’s last major plant in the US closed in 2010. Now they outsource their production to Asia. Why? To stay competitive, in other words to keep prices down. American workers in the 2000s made too much money. That made Dell computers expensive, so they sent their factories overseas where they could find cheaper workers.




​

​#17. Flatware: Oh, that’s silverware! My link said Sherrill Manufacturing, the last plant in the US, stopped production in 2010 because of economic troubles, and that they hoped to restart their business again.

Surprise! Flatware is still made here in the US, and I found four companies that do it​. The first, Liberty Tabletop, and it’s made by Sherrill, in Sherrill, New York. Yes, they’re back in business again! Farmhouse Pottery is also in New York. Wallace Silversmiths are in Wallingford, Connecticut, and Knock Flatware is in Newton, Kansas. Three cheers for flatware made in the USA!
​
                                  Bonus Source: The 4 Flatware Made in The USA 2024 (Complete List)


​

#18. Incandescent Light Bulbs: Invented in the USA, but the last big factory closed in September 2010. Why? Congress passed a ban on them that began in 2014.

I googled if incandescents are made here, and it turns out it’s still a political thing. In 2023 the Biden administration put in a controversial regulation--They banned General Service Lamps too, AND incandescent light bulbs couldn’t be manufactured or sold here either. If a business refused to obey, they’d forfeit their stock. OUCH!

In January 2025 President Trump signed an executive order about energy efficiencey, AND the government is reevaluating light bulbs. So…the good old incandescents might be back, or not. But if they are, you might still need new lamps to use them.

BTW, this isn’t a complete list of products, but we’re in a period of change, so maybe, some will come home again.
​
                                            Bonus Source: Are Incandescent Light Bulbs Coming Back?

I was born in 1959, and so many things I grew up with, that were made here in the USA are gone. The factories who made them, gone. Moved to another country. Employing other people to make them.  The link below has 18 things that left our shores. 
​

​#10. Levi Jeans: If you’re American, you’ve probably worn Levis. They were an icon here for 150 years, until December of 2023. That’s when they moved their factories to Latin America and Asia.

What’s Latin America? I looked it up. It’s the parts of the Americas that once belonged to the Spanish, Portuguese, or French colonial empires. So, what’s that? Basically everything south of Mexico, including Central and South America. Plus, the islands of the Carribean.

Bonus Source: Latin America can also be defined as all those parts of the Americas that were once part of the Spanish, Portuguese or French colonial empires.


​

​#11. Radio Flyer Wagons: Everyone I know, including my children grew up with a little red wagon. They were all made in the US until 2004. That’s when Radio Flyer closed its plant in Chicago and moved to China. 




​​

​#12. Television: I grew up with TV. I went from black and white to color. From a small screen to the huge ones we have today. In the 60s TVs were made in the USA. Not anymore. The last American manufacturer, Five Rivers Electronic Innovations, closed in 2004. Now, TVs are made somewhere else.

So, who makes TVs? The AI list included South Korea, China, Vietnam, Poland, India, Mexico, Russia, and Indonesia. But I found A FEW made in the USA.

1. Silo Digital is in Chatsworth, California. It specializes in LED TVs, and it’s been the leading ‘manufacturing scene’ (whatever that means) in the USA for the last 10 years.

2. SunBrite TVs are based in Thousand Oaks California, but they have plants in North Carolina and Texas. Their specialty, TVs for outside places, but they have indoor ones too!

3. Element Electronics sounds like a hybrid to me. They have an assembly plant in South Carolina to make their Smart TVs, but their Android and Roku units are made in Asia.

4. Sharp Electronics Corporation, really? They started in Montvale, New Jersey in 1962, but they are a subsidiary of Sharp from Japan. My source said, ‘you really can’t get televisions that are more “Made in America” than Sharp!’ If that’s true, why didn’t my source list the plants in the US?

5. Toshiba is another Japanese subsidiary that has some assembly lines here in the states. They do carry the Made in the USA label, but they don’t name the states they’re in.

​6. Seura is an American brand found in Green Bay, Wisconsin.  

 Bonus Source: TVs Made In the USA: American Brands Complete List [2025]


​

​#13. Cell Phones: My original link said that in 2008, 1.2 billion cell phones were sold world-wide, and NOT ONE was made in the USA. So, where are they made? I googled, and here’s the Top Ten list:

1. China once made 80% of the world’s phones, but it dropped to 50% in 2023 when some companies left the country.

2. India is where business went. Phones are now their 5th largest export.

3. Vietnam was in 2nd place, until India passed them. Now it’s in 3rd place, and they make 10% of the world’s mobile phones.

4-10. These six countries make the remaining 20% of mobile phones. In order…the US, Japan, Germany, Italy, France, and the United Kingdom. How did the US get into 4th place? Maybe other countries make the parts, and Americans assemble them, but that’s a guess.

    Bonus Source: The Top 10 Mobile Manufacturing Countries (Updated 2025) (US) - MobilityArena

                                           Tomorrow: The final five products no longer made in the USA

I was born in 1959, and so many things I grew up with, that were made here in the USA are gone. The factories who made them, gone. Moved to another country. Employing other people to make them.  The link below has 18 things that left our shores. 
​

​The link: Once Made in America, Now Gone: 18 Items That Are No Longer Produced In US

​

​5. Steel Rebar: Have you heard of rebar? I hadn’t, so I googled it. Rebar is a special steel bar or mesh made from small steel wires. Its purpose—to strengthen and stabilize concrete and other materials. You’ll find it in platforms, walls, floors, and ceilings.

If you’re in construction, you use rebar. You can buy some kinds in the US, but you have to import the others. 
​
                                      Bonus Source: What Is Rebar and Why Is It Used? - Handyman's World


​

​
​
​#6. Shirts: The major manufacturers have left the country. The last one, C.F. Hathaway shut down their factory in Maine in 2002 after 165 years of doing business. There are still small shirt makers in the US, but the big guys are all gone.



​​

​#7. Mattel: It’s the largest toy company in the world, the stuff of my childhood. Mattel shuttered its last US factory in 2002. Now China makes about 65% of Mattel’s toys. That includes Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price, Polly Pocket, American Girl, and so many more.

Mattel’s headquarters are in California, and it has factories all over the world including China, Mexico, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Like everything else, production is cheaper overseas.

                                             Bonus Source: Where Are Mattel Toys Made? - AllAmerican.org


​

​ ​ #8. Minivan Chassis: I know what a minivan is but had no idea about the chassis. It’s the bottom of a car, where the rubber meets the road. Think wheels and axles. I used Legos to teach my second graders about them, but I never used the word chassis. Car companies stopped making them here in 2003. 

​

​​

#9. Vending Machine Parts: The key parts of my favorite machine aren’t made in the USA anymore. Two of them – the bill and coin dispensers.

            Tomorrow: Four more products no longer made in the USA

I was born in 1959, and so many things I grew up with, that were made here in the USA are gone. The factories who made them, gone. Moved to another country. Employing other people to make them.  The link below has 18 things that left our shores. 
​

​ 
#1. Rawlings Baseballs: They’re THE supplier for Major League Baseball. Born in 1887 in St. Louis, Missouri. Their founders, George and Alfred Rawlings.
​
In 1969 Rawlings moved their factory from Missouri to Puerto Rico, then Haiti. Now they’re in Costa Rica. I guess baseballs are no longer as American as apple pie. 


​

#2. Gerber Baby Food: Oh, my! I grew up eating Gerber. My kids did too.
​
Gerber was born in 1927 in Michigan, that state up north. They merged with a Swiss pharmaceutical company, Novartis, in 1994. Nestle bought them out in 2007, but my link said Gerber is no longer made in the USA.

CORRECTION: Yes, it is. Bonus source #1 said Gerber’s still made in Ohio and Florida. In Canada and Europe too, but source #2 said you’ll find Gerber around the world. In Mexico too. 
​

​#3. Etch A Sketch:. I had one growing up, and so did my husband. Etch A Sketch was born in Bryan, Ohio. The company, Ohio Art, moved its factory to Shelnzhen, China in 2000. It’s a pity . . . something created by Buckeyes is now made in China.



​

Now Chucks are made in Indonesia, but I wondered about Converse, so I googled. If you buy anything with a Converse label, they’re made in China, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Bangladesh, and Malaysia. Not in the USA.

Converse became part of Nike in 2003. They’re both American companies, in name only. Their headquarters are in the US, but their shoes are made somewhere else.

Bonus Sources: Where Are Converse Made? In The US? - The Men Hero
​Is Nike an American Company? - Shoe Effect


​

 5. Steel Rebar: Have you heard of rebar? I hadn’t, so I googled it. Rebar is a special steel bar or mesh made from small steel wires. Its purpose—to strengthen and stabilize concrete and other materials. You’ll find it in platforms, walls, floors, and ceilings.

If you’re in construction, you use rebar. You can buy some kinds in the US, but you have to import the others. 

                                      Bonus Source: What Is Rebar and Why Is It Used? - Handyman's World
​

​​

​

​#6. Shirts: The major manufacturers have left the country. The last one, C.F. Hathaway shut down their factory in Maine in 2002 after 165 years of doing business. There are still small shirt makers in the US, but the big guys are all gone.



​

#7. Mattel: It’s the largest toy company in the world, the stuff of my childhood. Mattel shuttered its last US factory in 2002. Now China makes about 65% of Mattel’s toys. That includes Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price, Polly Pocket, American Girl, and so many more.

Mattel’s headquarters are in California, and it has factories all over the world including China, Mexico, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Like everything else, production is cheaper overseas.

                                             Bonus Source: Where Are Mattel Toys Made? - AllAmerican.org


​

​​ #8. Minivan Chassis: I know what a minivan is but had no idea about the chassis. It’s the bottom of a car, where the rubber meets the road. Think wheels and axles. I used Legos to teach my second graders about them, but I never used the word chassis. Car companies stopped making them here in 2003. 

​

#9. Vending Machine Parts: The key parts of my favorite machine aren’t made in the USA anymore. Two of them – the bill and coin dispensers.

             Tomorrow: Four more products no longer made in the USA



​

#10. Levi Jeans: If you’re American, you’ve probably worn Levis. They were an icon here for 150 years, until December of 2023. That’s when they moved their factories to Latin America and Asia.

What’s Latin America? I looked it up. It’s the parts of the Americas that once belonged to the Spanish, Portuguese, or French colonial empires. So, what’s that? Basically everything south of Mexico, including Central and South America. Plus, the islands of the Carribean.

Bonus Source: Latin America can also be defined as all those parts of the Americas that were once part of the Spanish, Portuguese or French colonial empires.
​

​

​#11. Radio Flyer Wagons: Everyone I know, including my children grew up with a little red wagon. They were all made in the US until 2004. That’s when Radio Flyer closed its plant in Chicago and moved to China. 




​

#12. Television: I grew up with TV. I went from black and white to color. From a small screen to the huge ones we have today. In the 60s TVs were made in the USA. Not anymore. The last American manufacturer, Five Rivers Electronic Innovations, closed in 2004. Now, TVs are made somewhere else.

So, who makes TVs? The AI list included South Korea, China, Vietnam, Poland, India, Mexico, Russia, and Indonesia. But I found A FEW made in the USA.

1. Silo Digital is in Chatsworth, California. It specializes in LED TVs, and it’s been the leading ‘manufacturing scene’ (whatever that means) in the USA for the last 10 years.

2. SunBrite TVs are based in Thousand Oaks California, but they have plants in North Carolina and Texas. Their specialty, TVs for outside places, but they have indoor ones too!

3. Element Electronics sounds like a hybrid to me. They have an assembly plant in South Carolina to make their Smart TVs, but their Android and Roku units are made in Asia.

4. Sharp Electronics Corporation, really? They started in Montvale, New Jersey in 1962, but they are a subsidiary of Sharp from Japan. My source said, ‘you really can’t get televisions that are more “Made in America” than Sharp!’ If that’s true, why didn’t my source list the plants in the US?

5. Toshiba is another Japanese subsidiary that has some assembly lines here in the states. They do carry the Made in the USA label, but they don’t name the states they’re in.

​6. Seura is an American brand found in Green Bay, Wisconsin.  

 Bonus Source: TVs Made In the USA: American Brands Complete List [2025]


​

#13. Cell Phones: My original link said that in 2008, 1.2 billion cell phones were sold world-wide, and NOT ONE was made in the USA. So, where are they made? I googled, and here’s the Top Ten list:

1. China once made 80% of the world’s phones, but it dropped to 50% in 2023 when some companies left the country.

2. India is where business went. Phones are now their 5th largest export.

3. Vietnam was in 2nd place, until India passed them. Now it’s in 3rd place, and they make 10% of the world’s mobile phones.

4-10. These six countries make the remaining 20% of mobile phones. In order…the US, Japan, Germany, Italy, France, and the United Kingdom. How did the US get into 4th place? Maybe other countries make the parts, and Americans assemble them, but that’s a guess.

    Bonus Source: The Top 10 Mobile Manufacturing Countries (Updated 2025) (US) - MobilityArena

                                       

                                                          The photo below is a welding kit. It has 4 key parts.

Top Right – Crucible. It’s used for melting metallic elements before they can be cast. Crucibles have to have a higher melting point than whatever’s inside.

​Top Row Left – Sand Mold. There are 3 pieces for each rail type and 3 different kinds of rails.

Bottom Left – Igniter. It has a wind resistant design, and it produces temperatures as high as 1500 Celsius. Water boils at 100. YIKES! You need 1 igniter for each weld. That’s where you melt 2 pieces of metal together.
​
Bottom Right – Welding Portion. That’s the metals—aluminum and iron oxide powders, that are put into the crucible then melted together. 



​

Put it altogether, and this is what rail thermite welding looks like. I hope welders use protective equipment to stay safe and keep their cool.

Bonus Sources:
Cast Manganese Steel Crossings: Applications and Benefits - MFG Shop
​
Rail thermite welding | Railroad Thermite Welding | Welding Kit And Crucibles Available
​

​

​
​
#15. Dell Computers: Dell’s last major plant in the US closed in 2010. Now they outsource their production to Asia. Why? To stay competitive, in other words to keep prices down. American workers in the 2000s made too much money. That made Dell computers expensive, so they sent their factories overseas where they could find cheaper workers.

#16. Canned Sardines: The little fish that are great on crackers, they aren’t canned in the US anymore. They’d been an American product from 1875 until April 2010. That’s when the last cannery, Stinson Seafood from Maine, shut down.

Where do canned sardines come from now? More than half are from Morocco, a country in Northern Africa. They produce more than 850,000 tons each year. That’s a lot of tuna!

                                  Bonus Source: Most of the world's canned sardines come from this country


​

#17. Flatware: Oh, that’s silverware! My link said Sherrill Manufacturing, the last plant in the US, stopped production in 2010 because of economic troubles, and that they hoped to restart their business again.

Surprise! Flatware is still made here in the US, and I found four companies that do it. The first, Liberty Tabletop, and it’s made by Sherrill, in Sherrill, New York. Yes, they’re back in business again! Farmhouse Pottery is also in New York. Wallace Silversmiths are in Wallingford, Connecticut, and Knock Flatware is in Newton, Kansas. Three cheers for flatware made in the USA!
​
                                  Bonus Source: The 4 Flatware Made in The USA 2024 (Complete List)


​

#18. Incandescent Light Bulbs: Invented in the USA, but the last big factory closed in September 2010. Why? Congress passed a ban on them that began in 2014.

I googled if incandescents are made here, and it turns out it’s still a political thing. In 2023 the Biden administration put in a controversial regulation—They banned General Service Lamps too, AND incandescent light bulbs couldn’t be manufactured or sold here either. If a business refused to obey, they’d forfeit their stock. OUCH!

In January 2025 President Trump signed an executive order about energy efficiencey, AND the government is reevaluating light bulbs. So…the good old incandescents might be back, or not. But if they are, you might still need new lamps to use them.

BTW, this isn’t a complete list of products, but we’re in a period of change, so maybe, some will come home again.
​
                                            Bonus Source: Are Incandescent Light Bulbs Coming Back?

​Did you ever reread a story and discover there’s more to it? I read this for Saturday Reads in March of 2023. But when I read it out loud for fourth graders at Cridersville Elementary, I knew I had to write about it. For you, for them, and for me too…I was curious.

The Water Princess in the story spends her morning walking to the well. She returns home in the afternoon. That’s about 4 miles a day, or a hike through 70 football fields lined up back-to-back. That’s a long way.

​
​​

Part 1 – Meet the Real Water Princess:  Her name, Georgie Badiel. The book said it was based on her childhood. The real Georgie didn’t walk to the well every day, only during summer vacations with her grandmother.

Georgie grew up, became a model, an author, and an activist. Today she lives in New York City, but she has never forgotten those childhood walks to collect water. Now she has a platform to help people back home. It’s dedicated to building and restoring wells in Burkina Faso.

This screenshot is from her board of directors. The link:  Team — Georgiebadielfoundation
 

​             

Part 2 – A Foundation for a Princess:  This Georgie Badiel’s Foundation’s home page.
The link: Georgiebadielfoundation

Georgie said, “I used to walk 3 hours to fetch water for my family.
My goal is to break that cycle.”​
​​

​
​Georgie's Mission = CLEAN WATER in Burkina.
Ensure the SUSTAINABILITY of the water system
through WOMEN ENGINEERING program.

When you can provide clean water to someone, it impacts every aspect of life.

If you’d like to watch this video, click on: Mission — Georgiebadielfoundation
​

​
Part 3 – Where the Princess is Working:  Georgie Badiel’s Foundation works in Burkina Faso. The link: Where We Work — Georgiebadielfoundation

Burkina Faso is shown in red and green, with a star in the center. It looks small on the map, but it’s about the size of Montana.

Burkina Faso has way more people. Montana only has 1million, and Burkina Faso, 20.9. That’s like 21 times more!

Burkina Faso was once a French colony. Its official language is still French, but half the people speak Mossi. Its citizens are called Burkinabe, and its capital is Ougadougou.
​
Its neighbors—Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin and Togo to the southeast, Ghana to the south, and the Ivory Coast to the southwest. BTW, Georgie was born in the Ivory Coast.

​
​​

Remember those 2 women? The foundation teaches them basic engineering, how to restore, and maintain those wells. Why women? They’re the ones who collect the water, so they need to keep it working.

Would you believe Burkina Faso has 9,775 broken wells? Georgie’s foundation wants to insure their new wells are maintained and cared for, so they manage them until the women are ready to take over.

The Links:
How We Work — Georgiebadielfoundation
Women Engineering — Georgiebadielfoundation
​


​

                                                                    The Link: Georgie Badiel-Liberty - Home


​
Part 4 – Another Water Hero: I thought I was done with the Water Princess, but I saw something on Fox News that made me keep going. One of the reporters did a charity event for Africa 6000 International. I listened, and I was hooked. It was a story I had to tell!

Africa 6000 was born in 2007. That didn’t catch my attention, but this did—6000 children died EVERY DAY in 2007 because of waterborne diseases. What a heartbreaking statistic.

The good news, that number has been cut in half…down to under 3000 kids. But that’s still too many, and it’s still heartbreaking.                  Their link: Our Mission - Africa 6000 International   
​

​Africa 6000, their mission is the same as Georgie Badiel’s. To deliver clean water to the thirstiest people in Africa. Their charity builds long-term, solar-powered water wells that can be accessed and maintained successfully by the people who live beside them. Africa 6000 hires and trains teams to drill wells and drive support vehicles. 

Meet Jesse Waters. He’s the Fox reporter who introduced me to Africa 6000. He only had 30-60 seconds to tell his story, but it was compelling. He said the number of children dying was closer to 2000 now. Imagine building a program that saves the lives of 3-4000 children every single day. THAT’S an accomplishment!
​
Imagine that clean water makes medical clinics and schools possible. Picture water flowing to your garden or farm. And dream that you and the people in your village are trained and empowered to keep those wells working. THAT’S powerful! Plus, women and children can go to school, can learn to read and write. And me, I’m proud to introduce you to this incredible program!

These 2 maps show the success Africa 6000 has had. Do you see those blue circles with white dots? Each one represents a well built by Africa 6000. They’ve done a lot of work in18 years!
Here’s an interesting fact I learned from Africa 6000—Did you know…A whole family in Africa exists on 5 gallons of water a day? Each American, every single one of us, uses 175 gallons EVERY DAY! Wow, Americans are blessed! ​

​In August of 2024, I decided to break my novel of 57 chapters into a series. The first book will go from chapters 1-10, from the Declaration of Independence to the end of the Revolution.

I went from writing a chapter a week to endless editing and revision. Would you believe chapters 1 and 2 have gone through over 20 revisions since June? I’m working to polish the first 3 chapters to send out on submission. Each chapter is about 13 pages, with 5-10 comments a page to work through. That’s a lot of revision!


​                                               I used to paste them in, then revise. Here’s my new shortcut . . . 
​​
​
​

Part 1 - A Simple Revision: This is my download from Google Docs. It’s in Microsoft Word. That’s where I do my work.
​
The screenshot below came from Chapter 1. Ben Franklin and John Hancock are on their way to sign the Declaration of Independence. Heather’s comment is to the right. She asked about the tea thrown overboard. BTW, the real tea party happened on December 16, 1773. 
​

Here’s what I did . . . I left the paragraph and the  comment where it was. Then I copied another set below the original one. (See? They both start with ‘Ben chortled.’)

Then I copied and pasted Heather’s comment between the two paragraphs. I bolded it for you. She suggested I replace good English tea with fresh English tea.

It seems like an easy switch, until you do the research. The East India Tea Company got their tea from China. Fresh tea leaves wouldn’t have made it to England, or the colonies. They were dried for the journey. 
​
​

I could have replaced good with dried English tea, but I didn’t. This is a story about the founders, the men who signed the Declaration. Not tea, so I left it the way it was, for now. The current version is in the screenshot below, but it could still change. If Heather suggests something better, I’ll take a look.
​
​

Part 2 - A Complicated Revision: This screenshot came from Chapter 2. It’s a conversation I imagined between Charley and John Dickinson. Both men served in the Continental Congress.

John was the chairman of the Committee for the Articles of Confederation. He represents most delegates. They wanted our first constitution to give more power to the states than the national government. Charley took the opposite side now, and in the distant future when the Articles fail, as he predicted. 

​

Here’s how I edited the first paragraph. I only copied the comment from ‘pursed his lips’ below. It’s bolded and 7 paragraphs long. Heather had 3 more comments in the rest of that original paragraph, plus 4 more in the next 2.

This was THE most complicated comment in all of chapter 2. That’s why I picked it. This page, plus the one before and after it, took a lot of work. I started midday on the first day and finished sometime on the second. YIKES!
​
​

​After 2 days of revision, this is what I sent to my critique group. Heather gets it next. The original lines started with pursed his lips, and ended 2 paragraphs later with then stopped. It only took up 8 lines on the page. My new revision is 6 lines longer.

Basically I stretched the conversation between Charley and John Dickinson. I showed their emotions through actions. Then I labeled/told them in words. I also added the details Heather thought a reader would want to know. She reminded me that the reason I write/revise is for you, my reader.
​
​

The bottom one from December, that’s my working copy. I edit and revise on it. I used it to screenshot all the examples you found in this post.

Above it, my original copy from Google Docs. It has the original words from my last revision. It also has all of Heather’s comments. This is the first time I’ve ever put it on my desktop.

When all the revisions are done, I pull up my working copy, listen to it on narrator, and look for places that don’t work. Sometimes I need to change a word or two; sometimes more.

When I get stuck and can’t decide what to do, I pull up that original copy. I look at what was, Heather’s comment, and what’s on the new page. And, PRESTO!
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OK, it’s usually not that fast, but I get an idea to try. Whatever I decide, I edit, listen, and repeat until the paragraph sounds just right…until Heather looks at it again. 
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The document on top, I’ve had it on my desktop for a year or two. Would you believe I used it today? I’m now working on Heather’s comments from the beginning of chapter 3. She’s asking me to describe the outside of Old St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Philadelphia. I don’t know if Charley ever attended, but he was Catholic…so it’s very likely.

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Would you like to save a buck or two? Maybe more! Take a look at some ideas I found at Better Report. They had the cheapest days to find great deals in eight different categories. Saving money, it’s a great thing!
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                                          Their Link: The Cheapest Day to Go Out to Eat - Better Report      
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​Better Reports says that’s when seventeen states historically had their lowest average. If you can’t make it on Monday, try Tuesday. It came in second.

Why? Early in the week demand is lower, so that’s when gas stations drop their prices. They raise it later. The worst day to buy gas – Thursday.
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Me, I buy gas when my tank is low, but I’ll keep this in mind for the future! I hope you will too.


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    ​​ #2. The Best Day to Eat Out:   Monday again! 

Better Reports says it’s the slowest day all week. Restaurants offer discounts to bring in customers. Look for complimentary appetizers and discounts on drinks and entrees.

Plus, they might have unsold inventory.  Leftovers from the weekend might be discounted early in the week. If you don’t see any specials, ask. You might score a great deal, especially on appetizers and desserts.

If you can’t do Monday, try Tuesday or Wednesday, but avoid Friday and Saturday. They’re usually the busiest, and most expensive days of the week.

        My husband and I tend to do Sunday after church. Or whenever we just get tired of cooking.
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​                                                      #3. The Best Day to Buy a Car:   Monday, or Tuesday!

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​Think customers! Better Reports says Mondays and Tuesdays are the lightest days for foot traffic. Most people are working, and dealerships still have inventory to move. You’ll have less competition for salesmen and test drives, more time for negotiation. That should get you a better price. And the best time on either day – morning!

The worst day – Saturday, of course! Everyone is off so salesmen are super-busy. You could wind up with a higher price than your Monday special.

              I ’m lucky! My husband worked at Honda, so we go through their employee auction site.
                                                                                 The deals, fantastic!



                                                                      #4. The Best Day to See a Movie:   Tuesday!

This is a great deal if you’re free on Tuesdays. Better Reports says that Cinemark and AMC movie chains offer discounts as high as 50%. AND they also have deals on popcorn and drinks. Woohoo!


Better Reports also suggested downloading a free rewards program app. It could get you bigger discounts and more rewards. Woohoo! Woohoo!


                     I don’t go to the movies often, but the next time I’m tempted, I’ll think Tuesday!



​                                                           #5. The Best Day to Buy Groceries:    Wednesday!
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I thought it would be Monday, like restaurants, but Wednesdays are their slowest day. Better Reports says grocers start weekly specials on Wednesdays. New items, they’re in stock and on sale. If you wait, you might miss out. Want a deal on perishables? Grocers mark them down Wednesday night.


And the worst day – Saturdays of course! It’s busy, and some things are already gone from the shelves.
       Me, I shop Friday afternoons because it’s the end of my work week. Too bad it isn’t Wednesday!


 

#6. The Best Day to Shop the Mall:   Thursdays!
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If you still shop there, head over Thursday night. Most stores get ready for the weekend on Thursdays. That’s when they restock and mark down inventory. Thursday gets you the best deals, and you don’t even have to fight the weekend crowds.


Me, I haven’t been to a mall since I retired. I tend to shop online so I just googled . . . two sites said it’s Tuesday morning before noon. Here’s to Tuesdays!



                                                        #7. The Best Day to Book a Hotel: Fridays!

The airlines used to release their weekly deals on Tuesday, but today there’s no set day, and no price matching. Better Report says Sunday is usually the cheapest day. That’s when you can get 6% off domestic flights and 13% off international ones.

My husband and I don’t tend to fly, but the next time, I’ll check prices on Sunday. Here’s to cheap deals for you and me!

I love Mrs. Frizzle! Her outfits are so much fun! They focus attention on whatever she’s teaching, from her earrings down to her shoes.
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I can never match her style, but it’s fun to try! Take a look at how I dress for my weekend videos. Can you match them together? Good luck!
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Part 1; Matching People: Here are three screenshots from three videos. Two are about famous people. Match my outfit in screenshot 1, 2, and 3 to the people I was talking about.
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One is about how we can all follow our dreams, like Dr. King did. A second is about Vice President, J.D. Vance. And the third is about Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. himself. Can you match the people I talked about to my outfit? Look closely for clues! 
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Following dreams, that’s Photo #2. White clouds on a navy shirt made me think dreams, and clouds are in the video too.

​The Title: Following Your Dreams.                               
The Link: (1) Facebook    

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​Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is Photo #3. My black turtleneck, sweater vest, and cross necklace helped me read his most famous speech. 

Book Title– I Have a Dream.
​The Link: (1) Facebook​
 
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​Part 2; Matching Holidays: Here are two screenshots from two holiday read-aloud videos. One is the scary holiday children love to celebrate. The second is all about hearts and love. It’s another childhood favorite. Can you match the holiday to my outfit? Look closely, and you’ll find a few clues! 
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The first holiday photo, Halloween. That’s when children dress up in costumes. Some, are scary! Usually I wear orange and black, but this sweater features a few webs and spiders too. SCARY!
                        The Book Title- Dino-Halloween.                                    The Link: Facebook 

And the second, Valentine’s Day. Did you notice my heart necklace and the rose-colored sweater?
                        The Book Title- Valensteins.                                               The Link: Facebook   

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​These two screenshots are from the same holiday. Christmas, of course! But the read-alouds are different. One’s about Santa. The other’s about Baby Jesus. Which outfit matches their read-aloud?

The first screenshot, Baby Jesus. Did you see the star and the wise man? This is my Christmas Day read-aloud.                 The Book Title- The Christmas Story.                                                           The Link: Facebook 

And the second, Santa! Did you see him in his sleigh with the reindeer? It’s my Christmas Eve read-aloud.                             The Book Title- A World of Cookies for Santa.                                        The Link: Facebook  


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Part 3: Matching Places: Here are three screenshots from three places I wrote about . . . the royals of ancient Egypt, estuaries in New Zealand, and tales from Wapakoneta. Can you match my outfit to the place I wrote about? Check the color and jewelry in each screenshot for clues!
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Estuaries in New Zealand, that’s Photo #1. I picked the tan color in my sweater with hints of brown and black because it reminded me of the estuary photos.
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The Title: Take a Trip to New Zealand.
The Link: Facebook

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And Wapakoneta, that’s Photo #3. Wapak was home to the first man on the moon, Neil Armstrong. I picked a blue/black paislley print. It reminds me of space. The necklace, it’s made of medallions with Neil’s footprint, the one he left on the moon in 1969. Over fifty years later, it’s still there, just the way Neil left it.

The Title: Tales from Wapakoneta.
The Link: Facebook