A little about me and this blog

by Lisa R. Howeler, posted in everyday musings

I’m not sure when the last time I introduced myself on here was so I thought I’d do that today. 

Obviously, I am a writer, since I have a blog, but I am also a wife and a mom, a photographer and a follower of Christ. I attended college for journalism, earned a Bachelor of Science in it, and worked in small town newspapers for about 14 years, covering a wide variety of events and topics — from visits by former presidents and First Ladies to murder trials to stories about veterans of World War II to the reactions of 9/11. By the end of my time in newspapers I was on a desk job, typing up obituaries of all ages and by my fourth or fifth infant or child obit in less than a month, I knew it was time to move on.

I never got to the jaded status some newspaper reporters get to. Sometimes I wish I had. Going home, hugging your child to your chest, and getting fat on ice cream and fattening foods to try to drown out what you had heard that day or wrote about is no way to live.

I couldn’t compartmentalize wives crying over their sheriff deputy husbands’ murders, a mom losing her 6-year old to the brain tumor he’d fought his whole life (and her losing her life to that same type of rare tumor a few years later), five children dying in a house fire, car accidents, drug over doses, and children being abused. 

After years of all that with family drama piled on I think my brain broke a little bit. I feel bad now for the people who got caught in the friendly fire, mowed down by depression that had gripped my heart with ice fingers. Eventually, I ended up staying home with our son while my husband continued to work as a newspaper editor. Somehow, we were able to juggle life on one salary, but it was not and has not been easy. It has been, however, worth it.

 I’m still home with the kid, but now it is kids. Just two and I’m fine with that. In the same way I never wanted to be famous, I never wanted a ton of children. Not that I don’t like children. I just liked the idea of one or two, though when I was younger I never thought I’d have children at all. Now one of my main jobs is raising these two awesome children and homeschooling them (for now anyhow).

Because I don’t have a “real job”, I spend my days cooking (and rarely cleaning..I’m so bad at that) for the family, taking photographs of the family (I once tried it professionally but grew to hate it), writing on my blog, and most recently writing fiction in the form of novels.

I don’t have money for an editor, patience to try to query, so I simply write and publish on Kindle Unlimited, knowing there are probably some errors, typos, plot holes, but knowing I enjoy the storytelling side of things and I’m not too worried about having a huge following or readership.

I share stories on my blog as well and enjoy the interaction I receive here.

My fiction is what some might call “hokey” or what others might refer to as “cheesy” but I think sometimes life needs that. I experienced and wrote a lot about the cruddy stuff of life – the murders and death, rapes and fatal crashes or fires when I worked at newspapers. Even though my husband is still in the news business and that’s where I lived for so long, you won’t find me pouring over the news for hours on end or scrolling news sites for the latest tidbit of information.

These days I can barely stomach three minutes before I’m clamoring for the hokey, for the cheesy, for the light story that won’t remind me of all I learned in those years of journalism. I pull away from gritty crime shows, or at least from binge watching them. I crave what highlights the good moments of life, the lovely moments, the romantic moments.

I know all moments in life aren’t like that; I know too well, but I think it’s okay to focus on them as much as we are able.

You might wonder if I am full of myself, since my domain name is my own name, but the truth is that my blog is Boondock Ramblings. I started it 13 years ago but took a break and abandoned the domain name and couldn’t get it back later when I wanted it. Back then I blogged about my son and life in general and was somewhat of a “mommy blogger.”

I made my name the domain name a few years ago when I thought I’d make money at either being a photographer or a writer. Lately, I haven’t cared much about either of those things but it would be a real pain to change my domain address again, so I have kept it as my name. Who knows, maybe it will come in handy if I really do become a famous author one day, even though that is not something I want at all. I like meeting new people on my blog and sharing my writing, but if I had too many followers I’d probably shrink back into my shell where I am much more comfortable.

So, how about you? What’s your story? I’d love to hear it. Let me know in the comments.

Published by Lisa R. Howeler

Welcome to my blog! I am a wife and mom from Pennsylvania who also happens to write. I have been writing for 25 years, fourteen of those for smalltown newspapers in rural Pennsylvania and upstate New York. When I'm not writing about love, faith, and family life in a small town, I'm taking photographs and homeschooling my two children and also writing and publishing fiction. I blog a little bit about a lot of things on my blog Boondock Ramblings at www.lisahoweler.com.

36 thoughts on “A little about me and this blog”

  1. Love reading your story Lisa, so sad about the ugliness you saw and experienced in your profession. Better now to raise up some wonderful little humans. It will make our world better in the big picture of things. The time you take right now being with your babies will contribute so much to this planet…we need more of that. My husband still experiences PTSD from his time working with the “Hollywood people” it had it’s moments and we have lots of stories and life lessons we learned from it. Think it is why my husband hates movies. I will occasionally find a good series for him that he enjoys like Doc Martin, the heart doctor, and one was on HBO called Deadwood. He comes from a family of Italians that swear a lot so he isn’t offended by that and Deadwood series has a lot of that in it. But it is a funny old cowboy series that he really enjoyed. Just keep doing what you are doing Lisa, you are a good mom and even if you never become famous as a writer (hey, you never know) you can still make a few people happy with your stories.

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    1. I think Deadwood is the one my husband has watched some of at times. And thank you for saying I’m a good mom. I definitely fall on my face a lot but I’m working on it!

      Honestly, I don’t mind if I’m never famous with my stories. I enjoy meeting new people and that’s a lot more fun for me!

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    1. *whispering* sometimes I think I’m too authentic. 😉 And you are one of my favorites as well! No kidding! You’re writing challenges me, makes me cry, and makes me think and is very authentic as well, which is why I get a little giddy, yet also nervous, when I see you have a new post. I know I’ll love it, but I also know it may challenge me to think more about myself and my faith. I say to myself “OK. I have to save this when I’m not distracted and I need to prepare myself to think and learn from it.” You are among a couple of other bloggers I read who I do the same thing with.

      Luckily no one has to think too much with most of my posts 😉

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      1. Oh, thank you for your kind words! I think my writing would happen with or without followers, but I admit it is a lot more fun to have people to share it with!

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        1. That’s the same for me. I don’t seem able not to write..even when I don’t want to. I don’t know why I have that desire and I often find it pointless but then another idea comes up and there I go again….even if it is only in my journal.

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  3. Hi! Found your blog this week and am really enjoying it! I’m a bookseller in Avis who writes on the side for regional magazines. I will not bore you with the trek to that, but like so many who write here, I made a decision to be in a rural area and not simply follow the money.

    I’ve written for decades, but in the last year have been working on some fiction, now at about 30,000 words into a novel which will be completed (first draft) by the end of the year.

    Thank you for the peek into your life.

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  4. Pingback: Sunday Bookends: A book challenge for me for the rest of the year; books read; and photos from the week – Boondock Ramblings

  6. I loved reading about your life! And I just (finally) left my reviews for your books over on Amazon. Please don’t stop writing! Your books and your characters are a great encouragement. And believe me, I have read plenty of hokey and cheesy novels, and yours are NOT that! They may be clean and Christian based, but that is a big difference from hokey. Blessings to you as you continue to homeschool in this day and age! I homeschooled also, and I am so thankful for the memories that we all have from that time. (Even the difficult times are treasured memories now.)

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  7. I loved your story. Thank you for sharing it.

    Why did you end up hating photography!? You are a great photographer!

    I am with you on not wanting to follow the news. I am also with you on focusing on the light versus the dark.

    We’re all so tired of all the negative news. We need a breather. And you provide that to others in your writing and in your lovely photographs. Thank you!

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    1. I grew to hate it as a business. I hated posed, boring family photos where everyone was dressed the same and it was all people in this area wanted. I also hated that they wanted a bunch of stuff for very little money and would often try to talk me down in my price or write me a check for less than what I said at the last minute. I also hated that people didn’t want to pay ahead and when I got to the location they picked they sometimes wouldn’t show up.

      Then there was this weird competition thing among small town photographers that just got out of hand.

      I love photography. Just not the business of it.

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      1. Oh Lisa, I am so sorry! I hear you loud and clear! Funny how things go! As a graphic designer, I had my share of ppl talking me down price wise and all the headache one has to go through in order to make a living as a designer! No wonder I don’t do it full time either!

        It…pains me..that such a great photographer like you, had to have all those hurdles. I had no idea, photography is also a tough business just like design. Now I do.

        Thank you for sharing.

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        1. You’re welcome. I also live in an area where they don’t like anything new. So I wanted to capture their family as it is. I have a background in photojournalism so I prefer documentary photography and people in my area just stared blank at me when I said that or tried to offer it. I’d be like “so… at the creek with your family all dressed the same and looking at the camera while you scream at the kids to smile?” They would say “yep” and that was it. Sooooo boring and creativity destroying for me. I just gave up.

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        2. I agree. 100%.

          I am personally on a mission, to fight that stagnancy and redundancy in ‘how’ stuff ‘should’ look.

          Lisa, do what ‘you’ love. Take pictures of people as they go about life. Post them ‘here’. Capture ‘life’. Feed your soul. They may not understand how beautiful that capturing is! But you do. Don’t stop.

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  8. Forensic anthropology/physiology with a minor in biblical archeology. Worked at coroner’s office. Dreamed of toe tags. Had to get out. Worked as mgr trainee/waitress/bartender at TGI Friday’s. I think I excelled at bar tending. I sure enjoyed it. But went back to science for a bit. Got married. Chose to be poor and stay home with my kids. Homeschooled them from 1990- 2017. Took a 3 year break in the last/middle part. Relocated to WA from CA. Three years later to AK. Pretty much empty nester. Think I found home here. I love it. Settled. 6 grandkids and counting. Life is good. I read a lot. I also have a blog (”Kaiserswest …the musings of a mom” over on WordPress). I am enjoying this phase so much. Hubby and I find that even after 36 years, we delight in one another’s company. Life is good.

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  9. Well, you may already know some of this, but here goes. My degree is in English Education; taught school for awhile, realized it just wasn’t for me at that time of my life. Married my college sweetheart and was whisked off to military wife life. My working career included stints as a daily newspaper reporter/editor in arts and entertainment department (but still heard all the terrible stories from my fellow co-workers in the newsroom); a technical editor; educational program director for a pro-life ministry; and finally a substitute teacher in a private Christian school. It seems I came full circle. But I took almost 20 years off to be a stay-at-home mom for our 3 kids
    in between all of that. Never regretted that decision although it wasn’t easy to live on one salary. Two decades ago, we traded suburban life for country life moving back to our home state – another decision never regretted. Now retired, I write my blog, dabble in other writing here and there, lead ladies Bible studies, enjoy taking photographs, spend as much time as I want reading and working crossword puzzles, AND adoring my grandchildren. As this world gets uglier and more out of control, I gravitate to the “hokey” and “cheesy.” The other stuff is way too dark for me as a believer in Christ.

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    1. I knew some of this, yes, but not all of it! I love it all (except that you had to work in newspapers, you poor thing). I’m sure the pro-life ministry was not fun at times, but so rewarding. And the private Christian school was probably challenging as well.

      Yes, the other stuff is just too dark these days. I feel like a turtle crawling in a hole some days but right now I have some health stuff flaring up and I have to detox from the stress to try to calm it all down. it’s a matter of my health at this point

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      1. Actually, the pro-life job was wonderful – I presented educational programs in schools and I enjoyed my job so much, The sub teaching in the Christian school was a complete joy. I loved it and the students and the teachers there! Take care of yourself and be well.

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  10. I love your story. Being a stay-at-home mom can be super hard at times but it’s something I’d never change.
    I really enjoy reading your stories, too. It’s so nice to be able to come here and fall into a nice feel-good tale that warms the heart. I’m so over the world right now, so your stories are much needed! 🙂

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  11. This is a great introduction! And I am with you most of the time lately, I am all about the cheesy and hokey right now.

    You know a bunch about me already, I think. I like nature and reading and being outside, all creatures (great and small!), was a vegetarian for 20 years (until the January), usually wear socks that don’t match since I don’t bother to match them up. I met my husband in third grade, started dating him at 17, and married him at 24. Wyatt was a surprise, we didn’t think we could have kids. I guess he showed us! I have a degree in History, and started three masters programs – Library Science, Historic Preservation, and Journalism – to have to leave them all. Once due to miscarriage, once because I was pregnant with Wyatt and I quit everything then. I have been a photojournalist, ran a school library for ten years, tutored for the Boys and Girls Club during college, and helped start a nonprofit animal rescue group.

    I enjoyed your intro – I can only imagine how hard it would be to encounter those stories day in, and carry it with you home in a compassionate heart.

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    1. Wow! Learning more about you was cool. I didn’t know you’d been in journalism too! You poor thing. And you did the right thing stepping back to raise Wyatt because he is waaaay better than a career in any of those things. But to have those backgrounds for your future?! Awesome!!!

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  12. I really like this introduction and learning about your life and experiences. I see a lot of authenticity here and I truly appreciate it. So refreshing in a world where there is so much pressure to be addicted to crisis. I honestly think it(constant crisis mentality) is a pathology, and one I have spent my adult life trying to heal from. Give me boring, give me hokey (as you call it) and the minute by minute real life with actual people. Oh, and as a MAJOR introvert, give me lots of time in solitude:)

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    1. What you said “in a world where there is so much pressure to be addicted to crisis.” Wow. That is no more true than in the world we are living in RIGHT NOW. The news world has always wanted us addicted to crisis because it is how they sell papers, air time, ads, etc. And yes, less of us need to be addicted to crisis because only then can we really start to see what’s going on and that we are so often being played by people in power — and the biggest people in power today are not the government officials..they are the media.

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So, what do you think? Leave me a comment! I love to meet new people and chat with ones I already know!

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