Bobbie Blodgett

I am a total cookbook junkie, I love cookbooks and I actually use them. I try out recipe's, then make them my own, by adding or taking away ingredients.  I was rummaging through a box of cookbooks, that I had inherited from my late aunts and one of them caught my eye. The book was published in 1962 by  Random House  and is called ' The Seducer's Cookbook '. What a catchy title, right! The cover says, helpful and hilarious hints for 20 situations, into which men may lure women and vice versa. I took it out and browsed the pages, amused that someone actually published this. Both of my aunts were single when they passed, they never married. I guess it made me realize, that they did try. As I thumbed through the pages, at the top of a page, there were the words...."How to get him to marry you". This is a guide, of what to cook to lure him in and what to cook for 'him' after bed. I found great humor, in the pages I have read so far. It makes me think...

As I conclude sharing with you, what I have learned about the women and girls of Kenya, I am going to share more detail, about the Malkia Foundation. I already introduced you to Phionah Musumba, the Founder and Executive Director. Though the Malkia Foundation has excepted many donations of different kinds, Phionah is looking for a partner or a financial investor, to help the foundation succeed. The ideal candidate, is someone that wants their presence to be felt in Africa, someone with heart and financial resources, to make a difference. The core value of the Malkia Foundation, is to help empower the young girls and women of Kenya, through education and job skills, for economic and enterprise development. Here are just five ways, that a difference is already being made. The Malkia Foundation is working with the YWCA and the Girls Scouts of America, in Austin Texas. The YWCA has donated Computers and supplies for the Vocational College and the Girl Scouts, are starting a center ...

This week, I want to introduce you to the health care, or lack of health care, in Kenya. The health care is a broken system, that is desperate for Funding, Facilities and Medical Provider's. World Health Organizations  reports, that Kenya has just one doctor and only 12 nurses/midwives, for every 10,000 people,  For the young children in Kenya, immunizations against disease, is a luxury that they do not have. Malnutrition prevents these kids from being healthy and effects their growth, learning abilities and education. Children's multi vitamins, that we take for granted, are not available to keep them healthy. The young girls and women, do not have the luxury of regular Pap Smear exams and Mammogram testing. There is no Planned Parenthood  to offer Medical Screenings and Birth Control assistance. There is no Women's World Health Foundation, to step in and offer medical care and a cure for HIV.    There are no modern medical facilities for pregnant wo...

As a woman, I believe that every woman should be able to embrace, being a woman. We should be able to be comfortable in our own skin and we should not have to compromise our femininity. We should be able to 'own' being a woman. For many woman and young girls of Kenya, embracing being a woman, isn't always the option. In some villages, woman have to feel that having a menstrual cycle each month, is a shame. Many young girls in Kenya, are missing out on going to school, because of having a period each month. We live in a society that is built off of modern technology and never have to think of feminine products and sanitary napkins as a luxury in life. We are fortunate enough, that our government had no desire, to control how woman survive their period each month. Life for the young girls and women in Kenya, is not as simplified. Sanitary napkins are available, at a high price and not all have the money to buy them. In the village's where poverty has no ending, you...

Everyone, I would like you to meet the Founder and Executive Director, of Malika Foundation & Center for Disadvantaged Girls, Kenya,  Phionah Musumba. I was so touched by her story, I decided to let her tell you in her own words, by sharing her email to me, with you. It is an example of, when you think that you had a hard life, there is someone else, that has had it worse. Here it is: Dear Bobbie, Thank you for showing an interest in our work. I will try to answer all your questions as exhaustively as possible. 1.  Since we have never had a single donor, except for one kind lady in England whose clothing store sponsors 2 of our students through high school, we don't have a bank account as we wouldn't be able to maintain it. I'm planning to open a bank account here, so that any monies donated to our Cause can be deposited there.  The organizations I run, survive on the money that my husband and I make from his carpentry business and my freelancing odd j...

As I was networking on Stage 32   , for my Screenwriting. I connected with an amazing woman, Vinanti Sarkar, the founder and owner, of Voices of Woman World Wide. VOWW, is a web site for "Voices" for the "Voiceless" woman, young girls and men on gender equality. I received an invite to join the website and I did. Vinanti Sarkar is a Documentary Director and films woman and girls, telling their own stories. After chatting with Vinanti, I asked her, "What is the most inspiring story, that you have come across?" Vinanti told me about a woman from Kenya, Phionah Musumba, the founder and Executive Director of Malkia Foundation and Center for Disadvantaged Girls Kenya. Vinanti told me about the woman and girls in Kenya and how they have to fight to survive and live. The tears were rolling from my eyes, as I learned what the woman and girls in Kenya have to go through. It sickened me to think about the woman and young girls, having to struggle just to have...

Over the past few weeks, I have thought about all of the plans, that I have made for myself. Yes, I was one of the crazy girls, in my youth, that thought I could plan my life. As a teenager, I thought if I had a timeline and a plan of when, I would get married, have kids, etc. That my life would turnout just the way I planned. Life happened and my life has not gone, the way I planned it to. As an adult, I have finally came to accept, that life will never turn out as planned. Planning life, is kind of like setting your self up for failure or disappointment.  Sure we should all set goals and work to achieve them, but we should be realistic that life and fate may have a different plan for us. No one can predict the hard balls that life, will throw at us. There is no crystal ball to look into, that will show us how to plan life.  My most recent plan, was to sell one of my Screenplay's and to make it the top ten, in the Industry Insider Screenwriting contest. I had subm...

Fall is one of my favorite seasons, with all of the colors of the earth changing, Fall harvest bringing beautiful foods, to Farmer's Markets and the cooler temperatures, making it perfect for the start of my baking season. One of my favorite Saturday past times in the Fall, is making jam. This year to kick of the season and make use of a Rhubarb plant I have in my yard, I made Strawberry Rhubarb Jam. It is so fast and easy to make and it's perfect to use as an ice cream topper or on pancakes. Here is my recipe: 1 Bag of frozen Strawberries thawed ( or 2 pints of fresh, halved. 3 Cups of Rhubarb chopped ( for faster cooking I puree, until I have 2 cups) 8 Cups of Granulated white Sugar 1 Whole lemon (juiced) or 2 Tsp bottled Lemon Juice 1 Package of real fruit pectin 14 canning jars with lids and rings. 1 tsp of butter optional to prevent foaming.( I don't do this, I know people that swear by it) In a 2 qt pan, fill water to 3/4 from the top and bring to boil...

At times, I compare Life to Baseball, sometimes we strike out, get hit with hard balls, slide in to bases or hit home runs.  We can't predict what the game of life will be like,  all we can do is play our best and hope for a win. It has been a lesson for me to learn, no matter what hard balls I get thrown at me, I have to shake it off and keep playing the game. Over the past few weeks, I have had many hard balls thrown at me and I was ready to give up and throw in the towel. I knew I needed to take a time out, to think about things. I had to make a decision about my writing, if I would continue writing or quit. I hate to be a quitter and nobody likes a quitter. I lost a good friend last week, he was a talented writer and wrote a column for the local newspaper for years. Shock consumed me and I felt frozen for a few days. I found out that he took his own life, it made me feel as if, I were standing at a pitchers mount and someone hit me in the face with a baseball. At fi...

We all know that everyone of us makes mistakes, we are supposed to, it reminds us that we are human. Through out life, when we make a mistake, we are supposed to learn something from it. Mistakes teach us something, somehow and remind us, there is no such thing as a perfect person or a perfect world. This post is longer than any of my others, because I made a mistake and I want to share it with my readers. If one person can read this and learn from my mistake, then I guess something positive came from this. As I have pursued my passion, for screenwriting over the past year, I made a few mistakes. You see, writing a screenplay was one of things, that I had always wanted to do and never committed myself to actually doing it. I never doubted my writing ability or doubted myself that I couldn't do it. I was just being a lazy writer. When I finally told myself, it is now or never and found the motivation and time to write, I did it. For six months I was married to a screenplay, o...

Summer time makes me think about romance and love, or true love. Is it the sunshine that makes us fall in love or the beautiful Summer nights? The real question is will love last or is it real love? I think that the word love, gets misused and under used in many ways. Most people say it and don't mean it, or they can't say it at all. First comes love, then comes marriage, right? At least that is the way it supposed to work, just not for all of us. Relationships take time and you have to be willing to invest the time, into a relationship. Marriage takes work and if two people are not willing to do the work, the marriage won't work. Some people say they 'know', when someone is the 'one' for them. I decided to ask a few people I know, that have been married for a long period of time, what has kept them married. The answers that I have received are actually kind of amusing. I started with my uncle, he and his wife just celebrated their 42nd wedding annive...

This past week, as I was brainstorming what to write for this blog post, certain things happened, to get me thinking about endings. Everyone knows everything in life has an ending, a book, a movie, relationships, friendships and life. For the most part, nobody really knows how something will end. When a writer writes, we may predict that we know how our ending will go at the beginning. Then the story line may take us in another direction, because the plot thickens. When we get to the end, it may be something we never expected, whether it's good or bad. Bad endings suck and nobody likes a bad ending, but they happen. We live and experience an ending to something everyday, in someway, somehow. If someone gets on an airplane and it crashes, that's an ending that nobody wanted, it's bad, but it happens. If we read a book and we want the characters to do something different, than what the writer wrote, it's still an ending. Watching a movie and seeing a hero die off, ...

Over the past few months, I have been noticing the way many people, love the prestige of a title. You know the ones, that love to brag, about their job title. It amazes me how they act as if, a title defines who they are as a person. What would happen if the title was taken from them? Would it change who they are? We put a label on everything these days and many people act as if they have to have a label, next to their name. "I am the C.O.O" of such and such, "I am "Mrs" who ever, "I am the Manager" of what ever. It makes me think of the old saying 'There are people who want to be important and then there are people that are actually important'. Does wearing a label, really make people that important? Does it really define the type of person, that they really are? People love prestige and wearing a title next to their name, makes them feel prestigious. I have seen many people stripped of their job titles, they act shattered, as if t...

As we move into the most romantic season of all, summer time, it puts me in the mood for romance. Yes, I am a hopeless romantic, I love romance. Though I am single at the moment, doesn't mean that I don't like romance. Summer time is the time for star gazing ; watching the sunset and staying up all night, to watch the sun rise again, with your special someone. I enjoy a glass of wine, while watching the sunset alone. I also like to sneak out on my porch, early in the morning, to drink my coffee alone, as I watch the sun rise. Here are my 5 favorite things- to do in summer, they can be romantic. Ice Cream Date -  It may sound 'Old Fashioned' but sharing ice cream, is romantic. Pack a Picnic - Throw some food together, find a quiet, grassy hill side, throw down a blanket and have a picnic. Swim - Find a lake, ocean or a swimming hole and go for a swim. (Bathing Suit's optional) Nature Walks - Walking hand in hand, through nature, rejuvenates the soul. Sta...

A simple act of kindness, is any gesture big or small, that you can do for someone else. Many of us forget each day, to do or say something kind, to someone else. Kindness can be as contagious as laughter or even sadness. All it takes is one person to start it, to effect everyone around them. Imagine how happy the world would be, if each person did or said something nice, to one person, each day. There are so many different ways, that you can be kind to other people. Kindness is like a prayer, neither have to cost money, they can be done anywhere and only take a few seconds of your time. When you see someone in public, that looks sad, it only takes a moment to say something nice, to make a person smile. Pay someone a compliment about their hair, eyes, car, clothes or anything. It only takes a second to hold a door open for someone else, entering a door, that you are entering. If you are driving in traffic, is it really going to hurt, to let a car cut in front of you. I see this...

I was introduced to triple crown racing, when I was a bartender. The establishment that I worked at offered Simulcast Racing. It didn't take much persuasion for me to jump in on the excitement and become addicted to the thrill of the race. Though I have never actually been to  Churchill Downs  for the  Kentucky Derby , I found the best seats available, were the ones offered through Simulcast racing. Triple Crown Racing, draws in a crowd and the energy and excitement come together in one room, during a race and make for a memorable experience. The tickets for the Triple Crown races, have to be bought in advance. The expense for travel and ticket prices, can become expensive. There are many Simulcast racing outlets across America, that offer the best front row seats, for each race. Most Simulcast sights, have a party for each of the three races. The establishment that I worked at, had promotions and gave away prizes. The party always started, when the horses were d...

Yesterday, I had a long conversation with my 85 year old grandmother, I told her my personal goals and what I hope that I can achieve in my life. Her response was, "Bobbie, you have big dreams." I reminded her that everything started with someone having a dream, some bigger than others. To make her understand what I was talking about, I pointed out what the world was like when she was a child. I reminded her that when she was a young girl, people were still using a horse and buggy for transportation. Because of someone having a dream or dreaming big, the auto industry eliminated the horse and buggy. In her life time, she has seen television change from the big box, black and white to flat screen, big screen, colored, hi definition. The telephone has changed drastically in her life time as well, there are no longer telephone operators connecting calls and eaves dropping on conversations. The cell phone has replaced the land line phones. All of this was possible, becaus...

I have started writing my second Screen Play, this time around, I realized I love to create characters. As I was deciding on names for my characters, I thought of it as naming a baby. In a sense, when a writer creates a character, it's like giving birth. Writers decide on the name, the description, the personality and mold the character into what we want them to become. We make sure that our character has something that they have to over come, something that triggers the growth through out the story line. In the beginning of a story line, a character may live in fear and by the end, they become fearless. We decide if our characters are going to be a villain or a hero, or maybe the villain that becomes the hero. Writers develop how each character, will interact with the other characters in a story line. I did my research on character development, with my first Screen Play. As I created each character, I never understood the growth and development concept, until I was finished...

We all have our habits; they may be good or they may be bad, what ever they are, they are habits. The things that we do, on a day to day basis, everyday. Our habits define how we live and what we do. I kicked off the year, not wanting to set resolutions and set myself up for failure. I started thinking of all I want to change for myself, then started looking for ways to change those things. Over the summer, I read a Joyce Meyer book called 'Making Good Habits'. My daughter had read some of her books and I could see positive changes in her, so I decided to read one. As I read the book, I thought of all of my habits, good and bad. One week after I read the book, I started changing my writing habits, I knew If I didn't write everyday and work on my Screen Play, it would never get written. I had to change my habit, of writing when I felt like it. It took six months from the time I wrote the words fade In, until I made it to Fade out. With the re-write's and the edit...

North West Montana offers several romantic mountain get away's, with accommodations. You can spend the days nestled in front of a fireplace or taking nature walks. Breathing the clean mountain air, spending quiet, quality, alone time together. With two Ski Resorts in the area, you won't have far to travel, if your in the mood to hit the slopes. There are many outdoor activities to choose from such as, Horse back riding, Snow Shoeing or Cross Country Skiing. Some places offer airport shuttles from Glacier International airport. Kalispell  is the heart of the valley, that offers shopping and any other accommodations, you may need. With Valentine's day approaching, I did some research of the most romantic places to visit, though I think that any time of the year, the mountains are romantic. Here are my 5 favorite picks: Bay Point On The Lake; Located in Whitefish, and overlooking Whitefish Lake, they offer condo settings to make you comfortable. ( baypoint.org ) ...

I am one of the many, that love to tune into the Hollywood award season. The Emmy Awards, The SAG and the Oscars, I love it all. This year I am extremely disappointed in the outcome, in many ways. It seems to me, none of the movie's that came out in the beginning of 2013 were mentioned.  There were actors that put out some really good acting and never got a mention, that is disappointing. A good example is  Dwayne Johnson  , he did some fine acting, in the movies he starred in and never got a mention, from what I saw. The man starred in, what was it, four movies for the year and no nominations, that's disappointing. He really took his acting to another level,  in the roles he played as a Daddy, a Crackhead, a Joe and a Bad Ass Cop and no nominations. What is wrong with Hollywood! Then there was the fashion and I love fashion. I do think that Tina Fey and Amy Poehler were stunning, at the Golden Globes, they always deliver.  As viewers at home watching, we a...