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The Tip is 'Where They're Proud' I recently saw an ad in our local newspaper for a big box home improvement store. Their newspaper ad had USA made products and American flags all over it. Several weeks later, I checked the ad again and sure enough they were still advertising their American made products. It was obvious they are proud to carry products Made in America. Their competitors made no mention of things Made in America. I have been to this store and asked what products are made in the USA? A clerk told me they primarily carry imports. Obviously they are not proud. I now realize you can buy many Made in the USA building supplies, including tools Made in USA and appliances Made in USA., in stores that are proud to carry brands Made in the USA. Here is another example of a store proudly carrying products Made in the USA. I was shopping for men's shoes in a local department store when I tried on three different pairs of shoes. I couldn't decide which pair I wanted so I went out on a limb and asked the clerk, "Are these shoes imports?" The salesman said "yes they are" so I asked, "Do you have any Made in America shoes like these?". To my surprise he said, with GREAT PRIDE, "yes sir, we have a whole line of Made In USA shoes". He brought me the same color and style with the Made in USA label. These Made in America shoes were less expensive, came with a better warranty, and were more comfortable. Looking for companies that are PROUD is simple and can have a great impact on our country. I encourage you to try this some time- just ask. You will love it when you realize you are making a difference that all of us will benefit from. With your help America will be ours again and that is a good thing. Buying Tip Continued - Read more on Made in America Products by Leather Leaf Publishing Thank you for visiting my website and for your interest in my latest book. You can purchase in either print or electronic formats. Electronic versions are available for the Kindle, Nook and Apple products. It is also available in paperback and hardback. If you would like a personalized copy, I'll be happy to sign a hardback version and mail it to you. For more information, see below. I was born and raised in Lake City . . . a charming little town nestled in northern Florida. It is known as the gateway to the South, an important piece of trivia everyone should know. I learned this when I was only seventeen years old, and it was not from Google or Wikipedia. Nope. I was a beauty pageant finalist, standing on a brightly lit stage in Jacksonville, Florida, where I wobbled in high heels and wore a fire-red bathing suit. I was a whole foot shorter than the two contestants on either side of me, despite my spiky beehive arduously teased and crowned high atop my head. Now, Miss Prissy Landrum, here is your question, said the squirmy little man with bad breath. Can you tell us why Lake City, Florida, is called the gateway to the South? I could hear the Jeopardy! music playing in my head as I concealed panic. Um----I think, um----is it because we have the Lake City Junior College and Forest Ranger School? I stuttered. He burst out laughing, along with everyone else in the auditorium. I didn't win. I came in third, last, since there were only three contestants left standing. But, I will say, I never forgot where I came from or what Lake City was known for. It is the gateway to the South because two major interstates meet there: I-10 and I-75. Who knew? More important, who cared? I am a free spirit, an artsy person. I have a small studio in my home, divided between two things: painting and writing. The painting came first. My canvases are filled with children, landscapes, Florida, water, barns, and pets. I had never painted or had a lesson until I moved to Indianapolis in the year 2000. The painting came to me by chance, or maybe, by choice. No, actually, it was the parking. I'll explain. Dale, my handsome hubby, worked a sixty-hour week. I was newly married and friendless in a big city. I couldn't get a real job because I flew back and forth between Tallahassee and Indianapolis every two weeks. I decided to make friends taking either art or writing classes: Indiana University had creative writing but horrible parking. The Indiana Art Institute had great parking. No brainer. I enrolled at the Indiana Art Institute for my first art class because of the parking. Crazy. Watercolor, acrylic, and oil-I've done them all. Turns out, I had a tiny bit of talent. I started calling myself an artist, even dressed like one. Writing came after painting. I awoke one morning with this yearning, a feeling surfaced from deep within. I had a story to tell. There is simply no other way to describe it. The date was April 20, my birthday. My writing journey began that very day. I never thought of myself as a writer, most certainly never an author. Like many things in life, writing evolved during the process of living. I knew enough to know I didn't know anything about writing. Dangling modifiers were as scary to me as standing on a stage in my bathing suit at another beauty pageant. My major in college was speech pathology and audiology from Florida State University. I knew it was too science oriented to help when it came to writing. Heck, it didn't even help when my two daughters talked to each other in tongue. I had to pay a speech therapist. So, if I wanted to be a writer, or call myself one, I knew I'd better learn the craft. I registered in the school of self-taught learning. It would take four years before I finished my first book, after reading over forty-eight books on the craft of writing. It has been an extraordinary journey. I may never know where my urge to write came from, or really why. I am simply grateful it did. |
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