The Allred Christmas party

     The Allred cousins are all grown up. Most of us are in our 30's or 40's. Yet we are still close. Every other year, we have a big family reunion, like the one described in The Narrows Escape. That may be the only time we get to see almost everyone at once, but luckily we have other opportunities. Last night we had our annual Christmas party for all the Allreds living in Utah. Although there were a couple of the cousins missing, I counted 13 of my cousins there with their families, as well as two sets of aunts and uncles. Tonight, my parents are hosting another Allred Christmas party for all the Allreds living in California. We also get together for the 4th of July, weddings, etc. When I hear others complaining about how much they can't stand their cousins, I just can't relate. I know each one of my cousins and their spouses by name. I know most of their kids by name (although it gets a little harder each year to remember them all). And best of all, I love spending time with all of them. Our family reunions and other family parties have kept us close over the years. They have allowed our kids to get to know each other and become friends.
     If you don't feel close to your extended family, I encourage you to find ways to get together and renew those acquaintances. Find a large place to get together, enjoy a potluck dinner together, play some games, or just talk. Make sure that there are plenty of activities to keep the kids occupied so that they are enjoying themselves too - otherwise it might turn out to be a bomb rather than a blast. And don't give up if the first time doesn't turn out as great as you are hoping. Sometimes it takes a few years for those family ties to gel - especially if you haven't seen each other in a while. If you stick with it, the benefits can be fabulous! Over the years, I've seen friends come and go as circumstances have changed; but family - families are forever!

DTB Fort

Some of my favorite memories from the DTB club were building our forts. It seems that we built one at every reunion between the ages of 7 and 15. Not only that, we built forts at other places - including several different spots around my neighborhood. In the first drafts of the Narrows Escape, I had the family reunion take place in the White Mountains of Arizona, totally separated from the hike. When I changed location, I changed the fort too to match the new setting. Of course I pasted the old scene among my deleted scenes files in case I ever wanted to use it again. Here is the original:

             After completely examining their fort, they began exploring the surrounding area. They hadn’t gotten very far when the rain started falling again.

“Not again!” exclaimed Devin. “Why does the rain always have to ruin our fun?”

“Should we go back?” asked Brady. “Maybe we can work on our book some more!”

“But we did that all afternoon!” complained Devin. “I didn’t come all the way to Arizona to read and write. We can do that at home.”

“We can always wait it out inside the fort,” suggested Trey, ducking back inside their retreat.

Devin and Brady followed him in. They had to stoop over slightly so as not to bang their heads on the “roof,” but there were plenty of branches to sit on. Devin was pleasantly surprised at how well the roof was doing at keeping the light rain out. There were only a few spots where the water was seeping through.

“Hey, we’re pretty good builders,” he said proudly.

“You mean architects,” corrected Trey.

“What’s the difference?”

“Architects sounds more professional,” said Trey.

“Well I’m just glad we don’t have to go back,” said Devin. “In fact, we can hang out here instead of in the camper every time it rains.”

To pass the time, they played Tic-tac-toe by using a stick to scratch in the damp earth. They were running out of dirt when Devin heard a voice calling out from the other side of the river.

“Shh! Quiet! Someone’s coming!” hissed Devin.

The three boys sat silently, without moving, listening to the drumming of raindrops against the tree, and the gurgle of water from the nearby creek. Devin could feel his heartbeat pounding as they waited for the threat to pass.

“Brady! Devin! Trey?” the voice repeated.

“It’s my dad,” announced Brady. “I better go find out what he wants.”

Brady carefully climbed up the wet branches to the lookout post. As he disappeared from view, Devin heard him call out, “Hey Dad, over here!”

Brady lowered himself back into the clubhouse. Several seconds later, Uncle Darrell followed – though a bit more cautiously. He was wearing his familiar red jacket and his favorite cowboy hat. The three boys’ coats were slung over his left arm, dripping wet from the rain.

Once inside, Uncle Darrell had to stoop over almost double to keep from hitting his head. A low branch still knocked the hat off his head anyway. He carefully placed it on again and gladly accepted Brady’s invitation to share his branch. Then he passed out the coats.

“This is a nice set-up you have here,” Uncle Darrell said admiringly, as he inspected the makeshift roof. There were still only four or five drips.

Not bad at all, Devin decided. I’ll bet Steve and Shane couldn’t do any better themselves.

They quickly gave Uncle Darrell the “tour” – which they were able to do without even getting up. They then humbly accepted the praise he heaped on them for their craftsmanship.

"This is great!" Uncle Darrell repeated with a wide grin. “Your fathers and I used to build forts like this all the time in the orange groves and fields behind our house. We would spend hours and hours pretending we were Roy Rogers, fending off bandits and Indians.”

“Roy Rogers? Who’s that?” asked Devin, wondering if he was related to Buck Rogers from the twenty-fifth century – one of his favorite TV shows.

“My dad still has all his old Roy Rogers stuff in a box in our garage,” Trey explained. “He was some old cowboy.”

“Not that old!” laughed Darrell. “But I almost forgot. I was supposed to find you to make sure you guys weren’t getting all wet. Aunt Doris was afraid you were going to catch pneumonia or something, but you’re all much drier than the rest of us.”

“So we can stay?” asked Brady hopefully.

“I don’t see why not,” Darrell replied. “I’ll just go back and tell them what a masterful job you guys did.”

“All right!” exclaimed Devin, extending his hand so Brady could slap it.

Uncle Darrell left the way he came, and the three boys remained in their fort, playing games until the rain stopped. 

2014 World Series

Naturally, I'm disappointed about this year's postseason. The Angels were the #1 seed in the AL, finishing with the best record in baseball, only to be swept by the Royals. The Dodgers were the #2 seed in the NL, and have the best pitcher on the planet, as well as the best #2 man. Unfortunately, the Cardinals appear to be Clayton Kershaw's kryptonite, beating him twice in four games to knock them out of the postseason too. Brady (Dodgers) and Devin (Angels) would have been disappointed - but that doesn't mean that they wouldn't have been interested in the World Series. In fact, Brady would have been rooting heavily for the Royals for three reasons: 1) A Dodger fan can't root for the Giants; 2) He played for the Royals in Little League; and 3) He likes rooting for the underdog - and the Royals haven't made the playoffs in almost 30 years. Although Devin would have been tempted to root for the Giants just to spite Brady, both he and Trey would have also rooted for the Royals due to the underdog factor. They appear to be a team of destiny - winning a record 8 straight games to start the postseason. They have also set other records with their late inning heroics. Let's go Royals!

Congratulations!

As the 2014 baseball season ends today, I want to express my congratulations to both the L.A. Dodgers and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The DTB Cousins would be pleased, since Brady is a Dodgers' fan and Devin is an Angels' fan. Trey enjoys going to ball games to hang out with his cousins, and so since they are the home town teams, he would be pleased too. Since I am a fan of both teams, I will be faithfully watching them both compete for the title. It will get really interesting if both teams make it to the World Series for the first ever LA Freeway Series!

ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

I was nominated for the challenge by my wife to participate in the ALS Ice Bucket challenge. The challenge has been sweeping the nation, raising funds and awareness for Lou Gehrig's disease. Today I took the challenge and nominated the other DTB Cousins (Darin and Troy) to participate in the challenge as well.

Arthur at the Riverside Walk Trail

In the earlier drafts of The Narrows Escape, Arthur accompanied the rangers to the end of the trail rather than heading back upstream with Devin to search for Shane. Here is a deleted scene of his arrival at the trail's end:

          Arthur looked up, and there it was – the Riverside Walk Trail, the path that led back to the parking lot and civilization. But something was wrong. He had walked down the Riverside Walk several times over the years. On all his previous trips, there had been dozens of people milling about - playing in the river or just enjoying the scenery. Now there wasn’t anyone to be found. He looked up at the rain and quickly realized why.

          As he stood there, Arthur was quickly swallowed up with despair. He hadn’t realized it until now, but he had been fueled on by the hope that somehow he’d find Shane waiting for him here at trail’s end. As that hope flickered and died, he sunk onto the steps that led out of the river and dropped his face into his hands.

Now what do I do? He hadn't planned beyond this point, and his mind was too numb to think clearly. For the first time since setting out to find his son, Arthur wept. His emotions couldn't be contained any longer and they streamed forth in a raging torrent.

Finally, after letting go of his emotions, Arthur’s brain was clear enough to evaluate his situation. His first thought was to go to the ranger station to find out if they had any information on Shane. Hopefully they had found him and were holding him there, waiting for the rest of his family to arrive. The only problem was, he didn't have access to a car - and it was too far to walk.

He looked at his watch again. It was a few minutes after 1:00. The women weren't due for another hour. And being Allreds, they’d probably be late.

As he considered his situation, Arthur decided that he had three options. He could hike up the Riverside Walk Trail and wait for the women so that they could take him to the ranger station. He could hike down the river to search for his son some more. Or he could hike back upstream to reunite with his group and intensify his search.

          As he debated each option, a movement downstream caught his eye. There was someone down there. He was too far away to tell for sure, but it looked like a pair of rangers. Arthur immediately set out to find out what he could. On his way, he braced himself for the worst.

##

Arthur froze in his tracks. As the rangers approached, he could tell that they were carrying something. His worst nightmares were confirmed when he saw the body bag they were carrying between them. He immediately looked for a second one, hoping it was the couple he had heard about, rather than his son. But there was only one.

          He waited, unable to move, as they approached. His heart beat faster with each of their steps. Finally they reached him.

          "You shouldn’t be down here," one of the rangers informed him.

          Arthur tried to speak, but his tongue stuck in his throat. "My boy was taken in the flood. Did you find him?" he finally managed. The last part was so garbled that he wondered if they had understood him or not.

          "So you’re the father," the first ranger said, his voice softening with compassion. “Ranger Smith mentioned you when he radioed for us to start searching yesterday.”

          Tears streamed down Arthur's face as his heart burst open. The rangers carried the body to the riverbank and carefully laid it down.

"We found him just a few hundred yards downstream," the ranger explained as he unzipped the bag. "We were on our way back to our vehicle just now. I hate to do this to you, but we need you to identify him for us."

          Arthur didn't want to look, but he knew he had to. As the ranger folded back the bag, his heart leaped for joy. It wasn't Shane! "It's not him!" he announced gleefully.

Immediately he felt guilty for taking joy in someone else's pain. The happy expression faded from his face as he pictured the hiker's brother and family. "You didn't find his girlfriend?" he asked.

The rangers looked puzzled, so Arthur explained that he and the rangers had found the other group.

“We haven’t had any radio contact from them since early this morning – before you entered the Narrows,” Ranger Forte admitted. “So we hadn’t heard about the other group. But he’s the only one we’ve found so far.”

          "We're still searching. We'll find your son," promised the second ranger.

          For some reason, Arthur couldn't take too much comfort in that. He slowly followed the rangers back to the trailhead, fear once again gripping his chest. What happened to Shane? Is there any chance he’s still alive?

          When they reached the trailhead Arthur stopped, unsure of how to proceed.

          “What’s wrong?” asked Ranger Forte.

          “The rest of my group is still in the canyon,” Arthur explained.

          “Well, you should probably wait for them up at the parking lot where it’s safe,” the ranger urged him.

          “What do you mean?” asked Arthur.

          The rangers both looked up through the rain at the dark, cloudy sky and Ranger Forte said, “In all honesty, the conditions are ripe for another flood. We’re trying to keep everyone out of the area in an effort to avoid another disaster.”

Arthur felt his fear growing exponentially. His legs began trembling as he watched the rangers load the body onto a metal framed litter to wheel it back to the parking lot. What do I do now? Arthur didn’t know. He felt so helpless.

As they got ready to leave, they heard a shout from the river. Arthur turned excitedly, hoping to see Shane or his family. Instead, he saw the group of hikers he and the rangers had found inside the Narrows. Rangers Smith and Sorensen led the group, Smith bearing the injured teenager on his back. Arthur and the other rangers waited for the group to join them.

As they got closer, the hikers began noticing the body bag. Arthur could hear their gasps and sobs and see the grief plastered on their faces. The sight of them seemed to open the faucet to his own emotions. He could feel their grief as if it were a large blanket draped over his shoulders. His shoulders drooped further as he realized that the scene could very easily be repeated with his own family.

Assuming the group of foreigners had exited the canyon via Chamberlain’s Ranch, and his own family had continued downstream, that meant that they were the only ones remaining in the canyon. If there were another disaster, they would have to face it on their own.

After helping the teen onto a second litter, they began the relatively easy hike up the paved Riverside Walk. Although Arthur generally enjoyed such hikes, he couldn’t find any joy in this one.

Baseball All-Star game

With Mike Trout winning the MVP award at this year's MLB All-Star game, it reminded me of an experience I had with my cousin Darin ("Devin") in 1989. My dad scored tickets to the All-Star Workout Day at Anaheim Stadium on 7/10/89. We got to watch all the stars do batting practice and participate in the skills competition from awesome seats right behind home plate. Back then, it wasn't just the HR derby. There was a competition between catchers on the accuracy of throwing out runners at second base. Benito Santiago of the National League won. The next competition was a relay from the outfield to home. The NL team of Andre Dawson, Barry Larkin/Ryne Sandberg, and Mike Scioscia were the winners. Unfortunately Larkin was injured during the competition, which might explain why it was dropped. The NL also won the Home Run Derby, with Ruben Sierra of the Rangers and Eric Davis of the Reds leading the field with 3 HRs each. The format was different from today, with the focus being on the league total rather than the individual winner. Like a true Allred, my dad took lots of pictures which we divided up afterwards. The most prized picture was a sweet shot of Bo Jackson, who ended up winning the MVP award the next day. It was a fun day!

Happy Fathers' Day

I know it was last week, but I was out of town on a road trip, and haven't had a chance to post an entry. I've struggled recently with what to post, since I've already shared all my pictures, and I don't have anything new to report. So, I've decided to do a shout out to all the wonderful fathers I know - particularly the three that inspired the DTB cousins' fathers: Uncle Darrell, Uncle Marvin, and Uncle Arthur. Their real names are Darvel, Merlin, and Rex, and they've taught me so much about the importance of fathers in the lives of boys. Although The Narrows Escape is fictional, it is loosely based on a true adventure, and the characters have taken on many of the characteristics of real people. Darrell, Marvin, and Arthur try to teach their children lessons that will serve them throughout their lives. They spend time with their children, and although they aren't perfect, they try to live what they preach. The relationships between these fathers and their children continue to develop in the further adventures of the DTB cousins - of which I've written two complete sequels. I hope to publish them someday - as soon as I determine the best method to do so. In the meantime, I am trying to follow the example set for me by my own father, as well as my uncles and grandfathers. So happy Fathers' Day!

Second anniversary

This month marks the second anniversary of the publication of The Narrows Escape. In one sense, it was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. In another sense, it seems to have ushered in the death of another. I am a published author, something I dreamed about since I was about 8 years old. On the other hand, I am realistic enough to recognize that it will never be more than a hobby. My family and close friends were very supportive, purchasing more copies than I had anticipated - particularly my parents who bought more than ten copies themselves to give out to friends. Yet sales in other areas are way below my minimum expectations. And sales from year two are down to a trickle. In other words, The Narrows Escape is on life support.
How do I change this trend? Obviously I have to do something drastically different. One option is to go digital. I plan on looking into that this summer. Another is to publish the first sequel. However, unless I change my marketing strategy, this is unlikely to have any effect. Since The Narrows Escape is self-published, I have to do all my own marketing. I have failed miserably in this area. As a school teacher, it would seem that I would have a natural platform in which to advertise to my target audience. However, although many of my students are aware that I have published a book, I have been very careful not to openly market my book in my classroom. I do not feel that it would be appropriate to pressure my students into buying it. Unfortunately, I have been too successful in that regard, since I am only aware of three that have done so. My best option might be to have an established publisher pick up the book. However, after years of pursuing that option, I'm not sure who else to approach.
So, that's where things stand. I have written two additional DTB books, but I don't plan on publishing them unless something happens to change my current status. I'm open to suggestions.
Thank you for your support,
Brad

Granite Flats

     Have you ever seen the show Granite Flats? It takes place during the 60's at the height of the Cold War. These three teenage kids who are very different in most ways come together to solve a mystery in town. In the course of their sleuthing, they discover a that the "meteorite" that one of them saw crash nearby was in fact a Soviet satellite. In any case, they continue to solve mysteries around town relying on their various skills. As my wife, daughter, and I were watching the first episode of season 2 the other night, my wife started laughing and said, "Timmy Sanders is so YOU."
     And its true. As he typed up their exploits, in their secret hideout, and tried to come up with the most thrilling title for each case file, I was reminded of my youth, searching for mysteries to solve with my cousins and/or friends. Since there really weren't any real mysteries to solve, we made them up, taking turns writing chapters in which our character would be the star, then passing it on to the next cousin so that his character would have a chance to shine. We completed at least full stories this way, and started a few others. I wish I could find the list of titles we brainstormed together. They would rival Timmy's titles any day of the week. Thank you Granite Flats for rekindling fond memories from the good old days.

March Madness

Which of the DTB Cousins would have been most interested in March Madness? If you said Brady, you're wrong. The correct answer it Devin. He would have filled out a couple of brackets - one with his favorite choices, and another with his "expert" opinion. He would have tried to convince his cousins to fill out brackets too. Brady would have done it, but wouldn't have paid much attention after his favorite team was out - unless it looked as if he might actually beat Devin in the bracket challenge (a dubious possibility at best). Trey would have agreed to fill one out, but would have been too busy to get around to it. Devin would have been highly invested in the whole tournament, trying to pick up helpful hints on how to improve his game. How do I know this? I'm one of the few people who have read the sequel to The Narrows Escape.

The second book of the DTB series, Drake's Treasure, takes place during the boys' first year of junior high. Devin and Brady both attend Prospector Jr. High, while Trey attends rival Foothills Jr. High. Devin tries out for, and makes the basketball team - his favorite sport despite being vertically challenged. Although not the major plot line in the book, his involvement on the team is one of the subplots in the story.

2013 excursion

Although I have hiked the entire trail twice, I have only hiked sections of the trail (the bottom portion) since writing my first draft of The Narrows Escape. Although I tried to hike the entire trail again for research purposes, on each occasion the flash flood warning was "moderate" (the same classification as that of our ill-fated trip), so I limited my explorations to short excursions while keeping a sharp eye on the weather and key signs of flash floods. Here is a picture of a sign on the Riverwalk Trail that describes what to look for:

My latest venture into the Narrows was last summer (2013). I went with my brother-in-law Darin, my nephew Spencer, and my daughter Erika. It was the first time into the Narrows for each of them. We hiked up to Orderville Canyon, then we went up that branch for a little bit before hiking out. It was late in the season, so the water wasn't as high, but it did get up to our waists at one point. Here are some pictures from that trip:

Super Bowl XLVIII

The DTB cousins would have been excited that the Denver Broncos were in the Super Bowl. It was the favorite NFL team of all three cousins - particularly because Trey's uncle used to play for them. In addition, the Broncos were the "home" team for Devin before his family's move to California. Unfortunately, the blowout loss to the Seahawks would have been an all too familiar theme. The first Super Bowl the cousins would have paid any attention to was Super Bowl XII, when Trey's Uncle Jon and company lost to Dallas Cowboys, led by Roger Staubach. Although that was the only Super Bowl appearance for the Broncos at the time of the first DTB book, The Narrows Escape, the Broncos went on to appear in three more Super Bowls to close out the 1980s. Unfortunately, those were all blowout losses too. It wouldn't be until January 1998 that their beloved Broncos, led by their aging star John Elway, won their first championship. Elway retired the following year after leading the Broncos to back-to-back Super Bowl titles. Unfortunately, that was to be the Broncos' last appearance in the big game until yesterday's debacle. Ah well, there is always next year.

New Year's Resolution

I used to write daily. Then after several setbacks, I became disheartened. I haven't written regularly for a while, but I'm excited about a new idea. My resolution this year is to write daily and finish my new manuscript by next summer. It isn't a DTB adventure, but if it is successful, maybe that will open up the opportunity to publish the other two DTB novels I've already written.