The Queen's Proclamation

 

 

 

June 2008
News, updates, & pronouncements from Pat Ballard,
the Queen of Rubenesque Romances

Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent. 
Eleanor Roosevelt

Something to think about....

“If you look deeply into the palm of your hand,
you will see your parents and all generations of your ancestors.
All of them are alive in this moment.
Each is present in your body.
You are the continuation of each of these people.”
Thich Nhat Hanh

Each one of us came from a long line of "someones." We may not know who those people are, but they had to have existed for us to be here. None of us just "happened" to appear on this Earth.

For some, it's easier to forget the ones who brought us into the world. Maybe we're embarrassed by the circumstances, by the bloodline, or some other reason. Maybe there is bitterness from the past and some just want to forget that person or persons ever lived.

But the fact remains that a little of the blood of every person in our family who has preceded us in this life does run through our veins. It doesn't contaminate us if there was a "bad" person in the family. Nor does having a saint in the family make us a "good" person. And we don't become famous just because we had a famous ancestor. But it's there, just the same.

I happen to be one of those people who takes great pride in my family tree. Sure, there are the "less desirables," and sure, there are those who think in terms directly opposite of what I think and believe. But they are my people. Their blood runs through my veins and my blood runs through theirs.

And for me, there's a wonderful sense of "belonging" because of this. Almost as if I have immortality, even in this life.
 

A Word From Pat

Happy June, everyone! I hope we all had a good May!

I have to say my month of May has been varied and exciting.

On May 12th I got a speeding ticket. May 12th was a good day for me. And yet I allowed the speeding ticket to cloud that "feel good" day.

Yes, I was guilty of speeding. But―do you ever wonder how "the force" works? On this particular strip of the street I know the Metro cops are known to use their radar on us "innocent" folks. I'm the one who usually has my cruise control set on the correct speed limit so I won't get a ticket. I'm the one who is always telling Joe to "slow down, they'll get you!" I'm the one who other drivers roar around and give a nasty look because I'm going so slow. Yet―yet in one brief 15-second time slot I forgot to reset my cruise control and I'm the one who got a ticket!

So, yes, I was bitter for a couple of days. But I feel better now.

The reason I was a little distracted that day (actually, I was on a natural high because I felt so good) was because I was on the way to meet Peggy Elam, my publisher, and Bunkie Lynn, a fellow author, for lunch. We were meeting to work on the presentation we'd like to make at the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville this fall.

And little did I know that Peggy had brought the proof of 10 Steps To Loving Your Body (No Matter What Size You Are) for me to see.

So, in spite of the ticket, it was a good day.

Since then, 10 Steps To Loving Your Body (No Matter What Size You Are) has been officially published. I was very excited and honored to have Bunkie Lynn, author of The Big Girl's Guide To Life, and Janey Milstead, former Editor-In-Chief of BBW (Big Beautiful Woman) magazine endorse the book.

Joe and I went to Mississippi for the Memorial Day weekend. I was surrounded by a brother and sister-in-law, a sister, aunts, uncles, first cousins, first cousins' children, and beyond that. It was very special for me because these were people that I had missed seeing at Thanksgiving when I couldn't make the trip because of my gall bladder surgery.

So, for the moment, my family cup-o-love is overflowing.

Everyone have a great June!

                                                     Love,

                                                                    Pat

Visit Pat's Place at www.patballard.com | Write me at patballard@bellsouth.net
 

10 Steps to Loving Your Body (No Matter What Size You Are) by Pat BallardNew from Pearlsong Press:
Pat's first nonfiction book,
 10 Steps to Loving Your Body
(No Matter What Size You Are)

As a young woman Pat Ballard almost died trying to starve her body into a societally approved size. In 10 Steps to Loving Your Body (No Matter What Size You Are) she shares the steps she created―and took―to heal the damage of years of dieting. Join her in celebrating size diversity, self esteem, positive body image, and health at every size.

Your body is a unique work of art.
There never has been, nor will there ever be,
another body just like yours.
Learn to love it and it will love you back.

More info at the Pearlsong Press website. (All copies of 10 Steps purchased from the Pearlsong Press website are autographed by Pat.)

Links About The Queen & Her Books

Pat's Place website
The Queen's Blog
About Pat Ballard
Dangerous Curves Ahead
The Best Man
Abigail's Revenge
Wanted: One Groom
Nobody's Perfect
His Brother's Child
A Worthy Heir
Pearlsong Press blog posts about Pat

Weighty Matters

Body Mass Index: a big fat lie
by Patrick Basham and John Luik

There are four central problems with Body Mass Index (BMI), a method of comparing someone’s weight and height first proposed by the Belgian researcher Adolphe Quetelet in the nineteenth century and which has found increasing currency as a measure of the "obesity epidemic" in recent years.

First, it fails to provide an accurate measure of overweight and obesity. Second, it is arbitrary in its classifications of normal, overweight and obese. Third, its classifications of overweight and obese generally do not correspond to increased risk for premature death or serious illness.

And fourth, its unscientific character has allowed it to be transformed into the major tool for misrepresenting the risks of overweight and obesity and justifying a "war on fat."

Read the rest of article: http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/earticle/5200/
 

Reader Review of the Month

Editor's Note: We're now featuring reader reviews of Pat's books in The Queen's Proclamation. Post a review at an online bookstore, magazine, or public website and email us at proclamation @ pearlsong.com to let us know, and we'll consider yours for inclusion in The QP. 

Endorsements for 10 Steps To Loving Your Body (No Matter What Size You Are) on the Pearlsong Press website (http://www.pearlsong.com/10steps.htm):

From the back cover:

"I have been a fan of Pat Ballard's writing, and her vision, for years.
If you haven't learned to cherish your life's vehicle―your body―this beautiful little book will make a big beautiful difference. If you already know what is truly important,
this book will re-arm you for the sometimes daunting task of living fully at any size."

Janey Milstead, writer/editor & past Editor-in-Chief of BBW magazine

"With her wit and wisdom, Pat shares the secrets to eliminating self-loathing.
This effervescent book lifts a woman's spirits and toasts life as it should be lived!"

Bunkie Lynn, author of The Big Girl's Guide to Life
 

Communicate with Pat via her "Amazon Connect" blog on Amazon.com!
 http://www.amazon.com/gp/blog/id/AC8LT66HFJQ1Y/ref=cm_blog_blog/102-0429066-5275365

Pat's romantic suspense novel Abigail's Revenge is featured on the Beautiful Portal website: http://www.beautifulportal.com/news.php?item.900034.8
and has been reviewed by AmaZe eMag: http://www.venusimaging.com/Magazine/2005/decjanrealistic/jennifer.htm

 An article on Pat has been posted at:
http://eastmanpublishing.com/epextra/articles/eparticle1007.htm.
And an EP Extra review of Abigail's Revenge is posted at
 http://eastmanpublishing.com/epextra/articles/eparticle1011.htm 

Look for an interview with Pat on Lonnie Cruse's blog at
http://www.lonniecruse.blogspot.com.

Calendar of Events

New from Pearlsong Press—Pat's latest (and first nonfiction) book, 10 Steps to Loving Your Body (No Matter What Size You Are).

See http://www.pearlsong.com/10steps.htm to order. All copies purchased directly from the Pearlsong Press website will be autographed by the author.

Hear―and see―Pat on the air at Radio Free Nashville! Listen to or download the mp3 recording of Pat's April 28, 2008 guest appearance on the Health At Every Size show with Dr. Peggy Elam on WRFN Radio Free Nashville by going to http://www.healthateverysize.info/2008/04/april-28-2008-h.html.

Pat regularly guests on Radio Free Nashville's Health At Every Size show, which airs every Monday morning. She's usually in the studio on the fourth Monday of the month. The show is streamed live over the Internet 10-11 a.m. CST Mondays. You can also now subscribe to the podcast of the show (automatically receive the mp3 recordings of the weekly shows on your computer, iPod or mp3 player) via iTunes. Click on the "subscribe in a reader" button/link in the upper lefthand column, and select "Add to iTunes" or the podcatcher of your choice.

Listen to the live broadcasts over the Internet at http://www.radiofreenashville.org/. You can also listen to the live broadcasts through your telephone via UPSNAP.COM. It's free for wireless internet enabled phones, but there's a small monthly charge for other phones. See the Health At Every Size show website or the Radio Free Nashville website for details. Davidson County, Tennessee residents can also hear the show live through the Secondary Audio Programming of Comcast cable's Channel 10.

For more on the show, check out the show blog at http://www.healthateverysize.info. You can also listen to or download recordings of some of the shows, including several with Pat, at www.pearlsong.com/audio.htm.

You can still hear the taped radio shows from Size Matters with Veronica, WCRS Radio, on Pat's website.

Show #1 discusses Pat's romance novels
http://www.wcrsradio.org/RadioStage/size/SIZE051.mp3

Show #2 discusses women of size and their sexuality
http://www.wcrsradio.org/RadioStage/size/SIZE052.mp3

 And check out the photos from the Nov. 6, 2004 Mississippi Authors Festival that are online at The Queen's Proclamation blog and The Pearlsong Letter blog. (Click on the Mississippi Authors Festival link under the "Photo Albums" heading in the lefthand column of either blog to view the photos.) While you're visiting, post a comment on the blog!
 

Give someone a good read as well as support in loving themselves.
Pat's books make great gifts!
 

Book Contest

Top 100 Women Sites (http://www.top100womensites.com/contest.htm) has been purchased by someone who is in the process of changing the site a little. I'm not sure if he is going to continue featuring the book contest.

I'll keep you informed.
 
Newsletter Archives

Read previous issues of The Queen's Proclamation at http://www.pearlsong.com/newsletterarchives.htm.
 

Subscribe Me! Remove Me!

Did someone forward this newsletter to you, and you'd like to sign up to receive future issues yourself? Use the form below to subscribe.

Already a subscriber, but want to remove your email address from the Queen's mailing list? You can also use the form below to unsubscribe — just fill it in, select "Remove" from the drop-down menu, and click "Go!"

First Name: Last Name: Email:

The Queen's Proclamation is published by Pearlsong Press.
P.O. Box 58065 │ Nashville, TN  37205  │ www.pearlsong.com
©2008 Pearlsong Press