Lemonade Stand:

Five Years of Making Lemonade

 

Sometime near the end of 2016, I got a call from the editor of the Oswego Valley News asking me if I wanted to write a column for them. The hair on the back of my neck immediately stood up. I had always dreamed of writing for a newspaper, so the offer tempted me.

 

When I asked him what he wanted me to write about, the editor told me, "It's all up to you.  You can write about anything you want."

 

Now, that's not something that you should tell me.  It's dangerous to unleash my inner subversive like that. Naturally, I agreed to the offer and a column was born.

 

I decided that I would call my twice-monthly column Making Lemonade, like that old saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." I opted to go easy on my Central New York readers, for the sake of their own mental well-being and to make sure that I didn't get fired right out of the gate.

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Making Lemonade uses humor (my favorite thing to write) to discuss (lecture) people about life's tribulations, usually mundane and meaningless. Nevertheless, it always tries to uplift the reader in positive and inspirational ways. If that fails, it will hopefully cause them to think.

 

After five years of writing the column without getting fired or arrested (a big accomplishment in my book), I decided to compile the best articles over that time span and assemble them into an anthology. Thus Lemonade Stand was created.

 

Also included in Lemonade Stand are witty musings and idiotic tidbits of inspiration that really helped a lot in filling the blank spaces. It's an easy, fun read, and if you don't like it, the book is sturdy enough to prop up the uneven leg of your desk.

 

I hope you enjoy it!