June 29, 2007 by Karl.

We have two more book signings scheduled, both of them are at the Starbucks on Business 35 in Rockport.  We’ll be there two days, Saturday & Sunday, 7-8 July 07, 8am to 9pm.  Stop by and purchase a signed first edition, and enjoy a good cup of coffee or a latte. 

 We got hits on my website from Japan, Great Brittan, Germany, and now Brazil!  The word is getting out.  Keep telling your friends, no matter where they live.  If you’ve read my book, give me a review, PLEASE!

 Via con Dias, my friends,

 Karl

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June 28, 2007 by Karl.

Good morning, my friends,

I need your help. Would you like to become a snowflake? Let me explain:

A friend of mine named Harold walked up to me before church last Sunday and told me he ordered ten of my books.

“That’s great,” I replied.

“I’m going to send them to ten of my best friends and challenge them to do the same,” Harold said. “I’ll start an avalanche of sales of your book. It deserves to be a number one best seller.”

I thanked Harold and then his words gave me an idea.

An avalanche begins when one tiny snowflake lands on top of many others and the weight is too much for the mountain to hold any longer. Then that one snowflake joins two others, who join four, and on into infinity, and the avalanche begins. Before you know it, the snow has raced to the valley and covered it with a new layer of white.

So, let’s all be snowflakes and let it be Christmas in July.

Pick out as many of your friends as you can afford; buy them each a copy of my book and send it to them with the challenge to do the same. Before we know it, my book will be covering the United States and perhaps the world.

(I’ve had hits on my website from Great Britain, Germany and Japan. We can dream, can’t we?)

Yeah, snowflakes have big imaginations and desires.

So, be a snowflake. Go to my little red button on my website that says “to order Karl’s book, click here”. Then let the avalanche begin!

On other news: Our book signing at Bank of America in Aransas Pass was very good – we sold sixteen more books!

I sent out 600 emails to our friends in the 924^th Air Force Reserve Unit, and they responded with 35 hits to my website during the first few hours.

We are still waiting to hear about the signing at Wal Mart and What-a-Burger.

Our friend, Carla, in Bahia Bay, sent out another 65 boxes to our servicemen and women last week and the number of boxes she has sent is now over 2,000. Is that dedication or what? Keep up the good work, Carla. We love you; and the troops do too.

By the way, if you’d like to donate to Carla’s efforts in the way of money or goods she can ship to our troops, give her a call at:

(361) 729-5490. She’ll come by to pick up anything you have.

So, another day begins. How many snowflakes will we see in July? Enough to start an avalanche, I’m guessing.

Via con Dias, my friends,

Karl (Do you feel a chill in the air?)

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June 19, 2007 by Karl.

Good evening, my friends.

Yes, I know it’s been some time since I last wrote, but we’ve been busy. Carol and I just returned from two very special, but decidedly different reasons to celebrate.

First of all, our 50^th Wedding Anniversary and Family Reunion in Albuquerque, which were two wonderful events rolled into one. Our daughter, Carla and her husband, Dave, and our granddaughter, Samantha, put on quite a feed for about thirty people. We ate and drank and enjoyed seeing members of the family we hadn’t seen in some time. Our son, Kris, and his family, his wife, Denise, and our grandchildren, Meagan, Lauren and Austin all made the trek from Lufkin, TX to join us. Our niece, Laura, and nephew, Billy, wife Jackie and son, little Billy, (who isn’t little anymore), and who all live in New Mexico also attended.

We also did a book signing at Kirkland AFB on our last day in Albuquerque, which was good. We met a lot of people and sold some books, so it was a fun day.

On the way home, we experienced our second reason for celebrating. I had another angiogram (not a pleasant experience, but not painful either), and the doctor found there was no problem with the stint he inserted to block the large aneurysm in my brain last year. “There’s no reason to come back,” he said.

And that is a very good reason to celebrate – don’t you think? We had a glass of wine tonight to second that notion, (I couldn’t have anything to drink last night).

And so, after 1,864.2 miles, we are back in Rockport and ready to get to work on making “Signs of Our Times” a number one selling book!

I have another book signing scheduled for Monday, June 25th, at Bank of America in Aransas Pass from 9-5. I hope to see many of you there. I ordered another 200 copies of my book so I’ll have plenty to sell and sign.

We are looking forward to receiving news of the Wal Mart book signing sometime in July. There is also hope for the What A Burger promotion to become a fact very soon. We hope to see you all there too.

Two of my other books, “The Lost Priest” and “The Almost Perfect Plan”, are being edited as I write. Very soon I’ll have them ready to send out to my publisher, so there will be more reason for all of us to celebrate.

I’ve also applied, (late, but hopeful), to be in the July Art Show here in Rockport. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Tell your friends about “Signs of Our Times” and ask them to stop by and view my BLOG, read all of my short stories, and just say “Howdy”.

If you’ve read my book, PLEASE, take the time to drop me a line and let me know what you thought. I’d love to hear from you. Just click on “WRITE TO ME” and have at it.

It’s late, it’s been a long day, and I’m ready to sleep in our own bed for a change. See you next time.

Thanks for dropping by. Don’t be a stranger.

Via Con Dias, my friends,

Karl

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June 4, 2007 by Karl.

Good morning again, my friends. It’s nice to see you. We just returned from Las Vegas, but more about the trip later

The other day, I met a wonderful lady from Rockport. She and her group of volunteers send out at least one hundred (100) care packages every month to our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Talk about dedication to the support of our troops – it is alive and well in Rockport.

I gave her ten copies of my book to send to our guys and gals so they’ll have something to read in the few quiet hours they have every day.

We also spoke with many of our troops who we met in airports while on our trip to Las Vegas to celebrate our 50^th Wedding Anniversary. To a man, (or woman), they were courteous and cheerful, even though they knew they would soon face another tour of duty in the Middle East. They are all so bright and young, even the old timers and NCOs, with a smile on their faces and pride in their hearts. It is amazing and encouraging to see their enthusiasm in doing the difficult and arduous job they do every day. Maybe our politicians don’t know what’s going on over there, but our young men and women do! 

God bless them and keep them safe until they return home to their loved ones.

We handed out several books to the troops we met. I wish now I took more along. I hope they troops I gave them to will write and let me, (and you), know how much they enjoyed the story. I know they’ll love the hero. He’s their kind of man!

On another subject, Las Vegas has changed so much I doubt if we’ll ever go back again. It is now almost too expensive for the average citizen. Can you say $7.95 for a hot dog or $61.00 for a steak? We had a bottle of Corona for $7.00 per. (You get five bottles for $10 in Cabo San Lucas – and, you get chips and salsa!)

Guess where we’re heading for our next anniversary! Wake up Las Vegas, before it’s too late.

The new style slot machines are so sorry. No more coins to make the joyful noise as they clang or clump into the hopper. Now all you get are credits in red and white and a slip of paper to take to the cashier, (if you should be lucky enough to win.) It was disappointing. The casinos were so quiet it was like a tomb.

There were so many unused machines some parts of the casinos resembled the old ghost towns of the west. Perhaps it’s a sign of the future.

But enough of gambling. We’re glad we went, just to see how Glitter Gulch has changed.

Talk about romantic places to dine on your golden wedding anniversary: We ate at “Hooters”. Carol loved it!

Back to the books: I have a book signing in the Base Exchange at Kirkland AFB in Albuquerque, New Mexico from 9-5 on June 15th. I hope I’ll meet a lot of our troops there and sell a ton of books.

The Wal Mart and What A Burger book signings in Rockport are now scheduled for early July. No firm dates yet, but hopefully I’ll be able to let you know soon.

I was amazed to see a “hit” on my web site from Japan and several from the UK. Great! The word is getting out.

Thanks to all of you for helping me make this book a success. The more we sell, the more publicity we’ll get, which will make it easier for me to get the next four books published that I have waiting in the wings.

I met one customer who after he read “Signs of Our Times” made the statement, “You’re my new author for life!” I like the sound of it. I hope more of you feel the same.

Let your friends and family members know about the book. (It makes a great Christmas present, birthday present, anniversary present, or just a gift for a friend who loves to read.)

I sent a copy to Texas Monthly for their review. Let’s hope they like it well enough to feature it in the next issue.

Things are getting exciting. Saddle up and ride along with me on this journey and let’s see where it takes us.

Thanks for dropping by, my friends. See you again soon; come back and visit anytime. If you’d like something special in the way of s short story, let me know.

PLEASE: Keep sending in the reviews. It’s the only way our new friends will know what you think of my book. Thanks again,

Via Con Dias,

Karl

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