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"Tropical Depression" Launch Day

4/27/2023

Today is the publication day - "launch day" in the book lingo - of my new novel "Tropical Depression." I feel like doing something special to commemorate the day, but all I can think of doing is going over to Giant Eagle and buying a celebratory donut.
Somehow with every book, as launch day approaches I'm always ever-so-slightly nervous that the publisher is going to change their mind at the last minute and call the whole deal off. But once again that didn't happen and it appears that the deal is on for real and the book is out.
I wrote “Tropical Depression” as a stand-alone story, though it is the third and final (I think) book of a trilogy of dramedies that tell a continuing tale about human relationships and contemporary social issues that span the distance from Northeast Philadelphia, the setting of the first two books,

...to the jungles and volcanoes of Nicaragua, where "Tropical Depression" is set.
The novel follows the story of a young Nicaraguan couple from the first book, Lupe and Ascensión Guzman, who, after being deported from the United States, have returned to their jungle village of Krukrulitos at the foot of the volcano Momotombo. Here they struggle to readjust to life with Ascensión's large, overbearing, over-opinionated extended family while they grieve privately for the American-born child they left behind in Philadelphia. Furthermore, Lupe has begun suffering from bouts of debilitating depression that make her the object of derision among Ascensión's up-in-your business relatives.
But the young couple finds an unexpected friend and ally in a gay expatriate American woman with long-simmering family issues of her own that have made her a knowledgeable veteran of emotional volcanoes and jungles of the heart.
Though the all characters and the story of "Tropical Depression" are complete works of fiction spun in my head that bear no resemblance - thank goodness - to any real people or events, I based the novel's setting on a Nicaraguan jungle village where my daughter worked some years ago and that I visited when I came to see her.
Me on the bus in León, Nicaragua.

My sister Romaine designed the cover,

...which captured exactly the stylized, minimalist, rather lonely look I was hoping for.

And my daughter Theresa,

...snapped my bio pic.

And, of course, there were lots of other kind, generous, skilled, knowledgeable people to whom I'm infinitely grateful who helped me along the way with the proofing, correction, suggestions, production, advance reading, reviewing and all the other things that needed to be done for the book to happen.
But the things were done, the book happened, and "Tropical Depression" is now available all over the internet as well as from my publisher Black Rose Writing,

...but here's the Amazon link just in case anyone is interested: https://www.amzn.com/1685131832

And here's the Barnes & Noble link, too: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tropical-depression-patti-liszkay/1142982760?ean=9781685131838

Also in case anyone's interested, here's the link to a few early Goodreads reviews (scroll down the page for the reviews): https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/86517578-tropical-depression#CommunityReviews

Now I guess I'll wait to find out what the rest of the world thinks. ;)

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Aloha, My Loved Ohana

4/26/2023

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"Tropical Depression" by Patti Liszkay will be released tomorrow, April 27, 2023 by Black Rose Writing
Available on Amazon https://www.amzn.com/1685131832

"What do Nicaraguan migrants leave behind when they come to the United States? Patti Liszkay’s uplifting, heart-warming Tropical Depression will introduce you to the loving, squabbling Guzman family as they deal with births, adoption, poverty, and family feuds. WARNING: This novel could change the way you think about our immigration policy!"
- Sid Meltzer, author of "Unwitting Accomplice"

ALOHA, MY LOVED OHANA

...Continued from previous post:

On Friday, the last day we would be together as ohana - Hawaiian for family - at the Hale Koa, Tom and I stayed at the hotel while the others drove to the north shore of the island to beautiful Shark's Cove for a final day of snorkeling in the tide pools.

It turned out to be a good snorkeling day.

That afternoon after everyone had returned from Shark's Cove we gathered beneath Gus, the magnificent old Indian banyan tree in the Hale Koa courtyard, for a family picture.

Tom and me.

That evening Claire, Miguel, Tom and I decided to walk the mile from the Hale Koa to our go-to-dinner spot and popular local eatery, the food court at the Ala Moana mall, where, apparently, quite a few other people had the same idea on this Friday night.

Then we walked back to the Hale Koa.

The following day, Saturday, April 9, some of the family left the hotel at dawn to catch an early flight back to Los Angeles. But for the rest there was time for one more splendid breakfast at the Koko,

...one more walk through the Hale Koa botanical garden,

...and a little more time on the beach.

And then our children were packed and ready for us to drive them to the Honolulu airport for their flights home.

After we dropped the kids off at the airport Tom and I returned our rental car and took the city bus from the airport back to the Hale Koa;

...for we would be staying for another wonderful week in Honolulu.
But it wouldn't be the same without our ohana.

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Chinatown, Cheese Corn Ice Cream, And Other Honolulu Delights

4/24/2023

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"Tropical Depression" by Patti Liszkay will be released on April 27, 2023 by Black Rose Writing

CHINATOWN, CHEESE CORN ICE CREAM, AND OTHER HONOLULU DELIGHTS

...Continued from previous post:
On Thursday morning some of the group went on a hike, some opted for a beach day, and Theresa and Mayren,

...decided to trek into downtown Honolulu to visit Chinatown.

Along the way they visited some of the markets,

...and sampled some of the wares.

A watermelon green tea smoothie and a taro smoothie.

When lunch time rolled around they stopped to look in the window of a Thai-Lao restaurant on Hotel Street called Olay's.

While they were looking a man exited the restaurant and said to them, "This place is really good." And so they decided to give it a try.
The interior was cute and whimsical,

...but then they were led to the back of the building, which opened into a charming garden.

...with a fish pond.

They ordered beef pho, which they said was great,

...and a salad with black crab and papaya, which, despite its enticing appearance, was apparently not particularly great.

After lunch they walked a few blocks north of Chinatown to Kukui Street,

...to visit the Izumo Taisha Hawaii Shinto shrine.

On their way back to Waikiki Mayren and Theresa stopped at a halo halo store, halo halo being a frozen ice creamesque confection that nonetheless comes in some unexpected flavors.

They each decided to try a pick-three sampler. Theresa tried avocado, lychee, and ubi (a kind of purple island yam),

...while Mayren opted for mais con queso (corn with cheese), coconut with pandan (a sweet tropical plant), and ubi.

I asked the girls how they liked their halo halos. Amazing, they both agreed, like delicious ice cream.
But what did the corn cheese flavor taste like? I asked.
"The flavor was so soft but so good," said Mayren. "Kind of like corn cheesecake."
Corn cheesecake. Okay. Though I was afraid to ask what the avocado tasted like.

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Allergic to Paradise?

4/17/2023

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ONLY THREE DAYS LEFT to enter the Goodreads Giveaway for the chance to win a FREE copy of "Tropical Depression" by Patti Liszkay:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/86517578?utm_medium=api&utm_source=giveaway_widget
Enter today! Entry period thru April 20, 2023

“Two extended and blended multi-generational and crosscultural families become intertwined and interwoven with each other to form a tangled web of relationships. Funny and emotionally moving.” –R. Bruce Logan, co-author of the award-winning Back to Vietnam: Tours of the Heart

ALLERGIC TO PARADISE?

...Continued from previous post:
On Tuesday morning we all met up for breakfast at the Koko at Kalia,

...the Hale Koa breakfast eatery,

...with a beach view,

...and the world's best breakfast buffet.

Omelet Station

Crispy Bacon

Grand Marnier French Toast

Waffle Station Fixin's

After our fabulous Koko's breakfast we packed our beach and snorkeling gear into the car and some of us drove and some of us opted to walk the two miles up Kalakaua Avenue, the main thoroughfare through Waikiki that runs parallel to the shoreline,

...to Sans Souci Park Beach.
Sans Souci is a state park of enchanting tropical trees,

...set in a green space that slopes down to a beach that offers a panoramic view of Waikiki,

...including the historic pink Royal Hawaiian Hotel,

...as well as the mountains off in the distance.

We came to Sans Souci because we'd heard that there was great snorkeling here, and it was so close by. The general consensus among the snorkelers in our group was that the variety of aquatic life to be seen here was decent, about as good as what one could find on our Fort DeRussy beach (see previous post), but that the sea here was so gentle and easy that this made for a very nice snorkeling experience.

Plus the park in the background made for a pretty view from the beach as well.

Theresa and Mayren at Sans Souci Beach

However as for me, soon after we arrived at Sans Souci Beach my sinuses began filling up, my eyes watering and my nose running.
"What's going on, Mom?" asked one of my daughters. "Are you allergic to paradise?"
(I was definitely allergic to something. My guess was some of the flora or fauna growing in the park, as I was immediately better after we left).
When lunchtime rolled around we walked a couple of blocks from Sans Souci to a cute restaurant called LuLu's.

...where the vibes were as good as promised,

...as was the view,

...and the food.

And, as in the spirit of Aloha folks were welcome to enter in their beach wear, I had my first experience of eating in a restaurant in my bathing suit.

It was kind of liberating.

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Fort DeRussy, Hawaii

4/15/2023

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Enter the Goodreads Giveaway for the chance to win a FREE copy of "Tropical Depression" by Patti Liszkay:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/86517578?utm_medium=api&utm_source=giveaway_widget
Enter today! Entry period thru April 20, 2023

FORT DERUSSY, HAWAII

...Continued from previous post:
Our hotel, the Hale Koa, Hawaiian for House of the Warrior,

...is actually part of an American Army installation, Fort DeRussy,

Located on Waikiki beach, Fort DeRussy is a recreation facility for active duty military personnel and their families, but can also be used by military retirees, as is my mate Tom.
Tom, back when he was a 23-year-old First Lieutenant.

The Hale Koa lobby, an open-air structure, overlooks a courtyard,

...lush with tropical plants,

...and in the center of which is a massive Indian Banyan tree named Gus.

Beloved by staff and hotel visitors alike, Gus is over 80 years old, and the two towers of the Hale Koa were designed around this tree.
The courtyard opens into a botanical garden,

...within which is tucked a swimming pool.

The botanical garden opens into another courtyard, in which can be found another lovely tree,

...as well as Happy's, the popular on-post short-order eatery,

...where the food is, in fact, quite good,

...and where we've eaten a good number of lunches and dinners.

Next door to Happy's is the Barefoot Bar.

There's also a snack bar overlooking the beach,

...next to the aquatics complex that also overlooks the beach.

Fort DeRussy opens onto a pretty stretch of Waikiki Beach,

...where the snorkeling is purported to be exceptionally good,

...with a view of Diamond Head.

Next to and across the street from the grounds of the Hale Koa, Fort DeRussy stretches on for half a dozen acres of green space that is open to the public to enjoy.

Fort DeRussy also houses the U.S. Army Museum of Hawaii,

...and there is a unit of the U.S. Pacific Command here, the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies.

I would imagine that being stationed at Fort DeRussy, Hawaii must be the best military assignment on the planet.

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The Hawaii Cat Cafe And Other Things

4/12/2023

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THE HAWAII CAT CAFE AND OTHER THINGS

...Continued from previous post:

...Continued from yesterday:
After our nearly 30-hour odyssey from Columbus to Honolulu (see previous post) Tom, Theresa, and I got to the Hale Koa hotel around 4 am Monday morning,

...and to bed at 5 am, which was 11 am in our still-on-Columbus-time brains, and probably why my confused brain snapped awake an hour and a half later at 6:30 am and refused to go back to sleep.
And so, after a vain attempt to tuck my brain back under the covers for just a little while longer I got up, spent a few minutes enjoying the views from our balcony,

...then decided to go for a walk.
I continued down the front entrance,

...and headed towards downtown Waikiki,

...snapping some sights along the way,

...including several fine-looking feathered locals.

I walked only a couple of blocks from the hotel as far as the Bank of Hawaii, which must surely rank among the world's most beautiful bank buildings.

I then returned to the Hale Koa and joined my mate for the breakfast buffet at the Koko at Kalia, which is one of the hotel eateries.

My favorite, the vanilla bread pudding.

After breakfast I strolled around the Hale Koa snapping some pictures of the place.

Then, while some of our group went to the beach, and Claire and Miguel, avid bikers whom we've nicknamed the Biking Vikings, pedaled around the island,

...I took a long nap.
Later that day we visited the Hawaii Cat Café, a place some of our group happened upon they day before while walking around Waikiki.

The Hawaii Cat Café is a cat shelter and adoption center where one can have a snack and a drink, and, for a fee, visit and play with the cats. Which we did.

Our friendly barista.

I noticed that the Cat Café decorator and myself shared the same taste in wall hangings.

My kitchen:

We purchased half an hour of play time in the kitty room, during which we joined the other patrons who were visiting with the kitties.

It occurred to us that this was good for the cats, as it taught them to be sociable and affectionate to humans and therefore nice pets for the folks who would hopefully soon adopt them.

That evening some of the ohana*, back from our day's occupations, met in the lobby of the Hale Koa, and from there we walked a pleasant mile to the Ala Moana shopping mall,

... where we had dinner at our favorite go-to dinner spot, the mall food court,

...which, as we learned on our last trip, is also a popular eating spot among the local folks.

And then there's the added benefit of a nice after-dinner walk back to the hotel.

*Hawaiian for "family."

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Houston, We Had A Problem (But It Was A First World Problem)

4/7/2023

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THREE WAYS GET A DISCOUNTED OR FREE PRE-RELEASE COPY OF "TROPICAL DEPRESSION" by Patti Liszkay:
1. Pre-order before April 27 on Amazon Kindle at pre-order discount price

2. Pre-order before April 27 at Black Rose Writing for a 15% discount using promo code PREORDER2023
https://www.blackrosewriting.com/romance/tropicaldepression?rq=Tropical%20Depression

3. Enter the Goodreads Giveaway before April 20 to win a FREE copy of "Tropical Depression"
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/86517578?utm_medium=api&utm_source=giveaway_widget

HOUSTON, WE HAD A PROBLEM (BUT IT WAS A FIRST WORLD PROBLEM)

Such a delightful time did we all have last year during our family trip to Hawaii (see post from 4/8/2022, https://www.ailantha.com/blog/a-second-once-in-a-lifetime), where we stayed at the Hale Koa, a beautiful hotel for active and retired members of the military located at Fort Derussy on Waikiki Beach in Honolulu,

...that we decided that those of us who could would do it again, same time, next year.
And so the day after I arrived home from last year's trip I called the Hale Koa and made reservations for the first week of April, 2023. Within the next few days we had our flight and rental car reservations sewn up as well, and our same-time-next year trip was organized.
But, of course, even plans organized a year in advance can become unorganized in a snap, as happened to us late the night before our trip when those of us flying from Columbus - Tom, Theresa, Theresa's friend and myself - were notified that our April 1 flight to Honolulu had been cancelled due to high winds in the Midwest.
Theresa's friend was re-booked on a later flight that same day. Tom, Theresa, and I were assigned a flight the following day, Sunday, April 2 with an itinerary of Columbus to Houston, then Houston to Honolulu. Our flight was to leave Columbus at 6:33 am and arrive in Honolulu at 1:23 pm Hawaii Standard Time, which is 6 hours behind Columbus, Ohio time.
When we arrived at the Columbus airport at 4:45 am the place was a sea of people.

The check-in lines intersected each other as well as with the TSA line, which wound through the airport almost to the entrance doors. Apparently we weren't the only Central Ohioans whose flights from the previous day had been cancelled due to the Midwestern winds.
"We'll never make our flight!" said Tom and I at the same time. We weren't even completely sure which check-in line was for our airline, United, but we chose a likely-looking line and moved along with it, taking turns every other minute to moan that we'd never make it.
When our turn at the check-in arrived I asked the clerk if we'd make our flight. "Oh, sure you will," she chirped, appearing totally unperturbed by the massive chaos on the other side of her counter.
As it turned out, she was right, and we arrived at our gate for our Houston flight with minutes to spare. And so we lined up to board our flight with our fellow travelers, who were legion.

We were exceedingly grateful to have made our flight to Houston, though it took most of the flight for my heartbeat to return to normal.
We had about an hour layover in Houston, which gave us just enough time to thread our way through the crowd there,

...to reach the gate for our 9:50 am Honolulu flight.
However we needn't have hurried. A few minutes before boarding the gate agent announced that a slight repair was needed in one of the plane lavatories, and so the flight was delayed until10:15 am. Except that the repair wasn't quite finished by 10:15, so the time was pushed back to 10:30. Until it was discovered that the problem wasn't just one lavatory, but the whole lavatory system in need of some regulating, which would take a couple of hours. The new departure time was 1:30 pm. There was some grumbling among the passengers, but most of us just went off and found ourselves a spot wherefore to chill for a while.

As 1:30 approached and we were once again crowded around the gate waiting for - hoping for - our groups to be called,

...it was an intrepid agent indeed who stepped before the crowd and confessed that what was ailing the plane lavatory was in fact no small boo-boo, and our flight was now unequivocally cancelled. Furthermore, there were at the moment no available planes to take us to Honolulu. There was, however, a plane arriving from Chicago at 6pm that looked like a promising possibility.
Seconds later the gate counter was swarmed by passengers, hoping to accomplish I knew not what.

A few of them were angry and gave the beleaguered gate agents some serious grief, which only ballooned with the next announcement of a new departure time of 7:45 pm.
The rest of us, though, wandered off to while away the next 6 hours, at least some of us somewhat placated by the $45 voucher each of us was given to spend on airport food, though try as we might, our group didn't come near to accomplishing the goal of spending it all.

As it turned out, we did not depart at 7:45 pm, but received this notification at 7:46 pm:

And, finally, by 8:30 pm we were on board our plane to Honolulu. Except that it wasn't really final, because, of course, being on board isn't the same as being in flight, and about every fifteen minutes a friendly voice over the intercom apologized for the delay and assured us that we would be taking off soon. When at 10 pm the wheels of the plane began rolling a cheer went up from the passengers. That was actually a nice moment.
It was around 1:30 am when we landed in Honolulu. And after the thirteen-and-a-half hours we'd spent in the Houston airport followed by the eight-and-a-half hour flight from Houston to Hawaii, it was unexpectedly lovely to step into the Honolulu airport and hear mellifluous Hawaiian music playing in the terminal,

...and then to step out into the warm island breeze,

...and catch an outline of palm trees in the distance, their palms gently moving in that breeze.

It was after 4 am when we arrived at the Hale Koa. The lobby was so quiet and ethereal in night light.

Our room

We'd been traveling for twenty nine and a half hours. But some destinations are worth the voyage

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Outrage Is A Terrible Thing To Waste

4/1/2023

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Yes, there's plenty of outrage to go around these days, but for the love, people, don't waste yours on the stinky kettle of fish a debauched old billionaire has gotten himself into.
Donald Trump doesn't need your outrage on his behalf. He has a battalion of lawyers, lieutenants, advisers, PR people, high-powered connections, media-spinners, and a fortune in money, assets and power working for him, and he doesn't need all the agita that's being suffered for sake.
Don't worry about Trump, he's well-heeled, well-provided for, and well cared for. However his hush-money-to-the-porn-star trial turns out he'll surely somehow spin it to his favor, just as he does all his misdeeds. And he'll probably still end up running for President again and, as his spin-artists are suggesting, using his mug shot as a campaign poster.
So, America, don't squander your outrage on such a trifle,

...but rather spend it where it's sorely needed.

In fact, this country needs gather up a red-hot mass of angry energy, consolidate it from sea to shining sea, and assemble it into a giant national nuclear bomb of outrage over all the American children and adults killed by assault rifles in mass shootings.
Then drop it right here.

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​ALOHA, MY LOVED OHANA

​CHINATOWN, CHEESE CORN ICE CREAM, AND OTHER HONOLULU DELIGHTS

​​ALLERGIC TO PARADISE?

​FORT DERUSSY, HAWAII

​HOUSTON, WE HAD A PROBLEM (BUT IT WAS A FIRST WORLD PROBLEM)

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ALOHA, MY LOVED OHANA

CHINATOWN, CHEESE CORN ICE CREAM, AND OTHER HONOLULU DELIGHTS

ALLERGIC TO PARADISE?

FORT DERUSSY, HAWAII

HOUSTON, WE HAD A PROBLEM (BUT IT WAS A FIRST WORLD PROBLEM)