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Hidden Easter Eggs In My Book : Part 1

Posted by Dan on January 6, 2010 No comments

First let’s define what an “Easter Egg” is. According to Wikipedia, an Easter Egg is defined as the following.

A virtual Easter egg is an intentional hidden message, in-joke or feature in an object such as a movie, book, CD, DVD, computer program, web page or video game.

Many movies and TV shows, like Lost, have hidden images and messages in them. When I wrote the story of Eartha, I had no intention of including any Easter Eggs. But as I started seeing the illustrations, the first Easter Egg came to mind.

There are a total of three (3) Easter eggs in The Tale of Eartha the Sea Turtle, and I will reveal one of them now.

The book is dedicated to the memory of my father-in-law, Ken DuCheney. I really liked Ken, he was a lot of fun to be around. He was always good for a laugh, whether intentional or not. Considering he welcomed me into his family without hesitation, he’d have to have been a great guy.

The image of the dedication (shown below) includes a sea horse, and five (5) fish. Each of these actually represents a member of the family. Ken, is represented as the sea horse. The larger of the five (5) fish is his wife, and my mother-in-law, Pat. The other four fish represent their children, Kenny, Steve, Lori and my wife Cindy.

So, there you have it. Easter egg number one. I’ll be posting the additional Easter eggs later on.

It’s all in the math.

Posted by Dan on January 4, 2010 No comments

I was recently talking to a collegue about web hosting, and the expression “99.9%” up-time came up. He was adminant about having a solution that had 99.9% up-time due to the crucial need for his site. I told him 99.9% really doesn’t mean much, and he disagreed. We looked at the hosts “promise” and noticed that the 99.9% up-time was within one year. This means that in any one year his hosting will be up 99.9% of the time. So, let’s break that down…

There are 365 days in a year. There are 24 hours in a day. This breaks down to 8,760 hours in a year. If we go by hours, 99.9% is 8,751. That means that his site could be down for 9 hours in any given period of 365 days.

Break it down further to minutes, and that’s 540 minutes. Most people can’t stand their site being down for 5 minutes. So 99.9% up-time means that if his site is down for 1 hour, they (the host) are still within their service agreement.

Even if the agreement stated 99.9% up-time per day, a day is 1,440 minutes. 0.1% down-time is 14.4 minutes a day.

In the end, he understood what I meant. Sometime we need to look beyond the promise to the actual math.

Okay, I know we all hate math, but the truth behind this is … think of all the things in our lives that are promoted as 99% effective. Perfection may be unattainable, but it doesn’t mean we should stop trying.

Class dismissed.

2009, a year of personal Review

Posted by Dan on January 1, 2010 1 comment

2009 was an interesting year. I think I did more traveling in 2009 than I have in any other year.  I’m not sure I’ll be doing the same amount of traveling this year, but its still too early to tell. There were also some milestones.

Yellowstone National Park

In May 2009, my wife Cindy and I went to Yellowstone National Park. This trip was planned almost a year in advance. We hire a personal guide for two mornings, and were up before the sun both days to see the wildlife. I cannot express how incredible this was. Never before in my life had I seen such a variety of animals in the wild. From bison to long horn sheep, to the wolves and bears, Yellowstone was definitely the pinnacle of travel destinations in 2009.

Nixa, and Branson Missouri

In June I surprised my family by showing up in Missouri. Only my brother and my sister-in-law knew I was coming. My nieces and my parents had no idea I was coming to visit. The first surprise was when my brother took Claire to the airport to pick up a “business partner”. Her statement “There’s Tuca!” made both my brother and I laugh (Side Note: My Missouri neices call me Tuka (Tooka) because when Alyson was young I’d chase her saying “Tickle Tickle Tickle” and she’d reply “No Tuca”, so the name stuck!) When we arrived at their home, so one was there, so I hid in Alyson’s room with my back to the door, while sitting in a chair. She walked in freaked out as I turned around in the chair. Next, we went over to my parents house. My brother announced to them, “You’re not dying.” Then, I walked into the room. I think it took about a minute before they realized I was standing there. It took longer to convince my mother she wasn’t dying. I spent time with my nieces at Silver Dollar City, and White Water Rapids theme parks. Alyson and I did the cave tour at Silver Dollar City.

Las Vegas / Grand Canyon

October was a lot of fun. My brother-in-law and I met my brother in Las Vegas. I hadn’t been to Vegas since 1990 when I attended a Comdex convention. The three of us spent several days there, we say Ray Romano and Brad Garret. I took one day of the trip to take a tour of the Grand Canyon. It was a combination helicopter, boat, and land tour of the Upper rim of the canyon. The helicopter tour was amazing, and I also got to walk out onto the Grand canyon Skywalk. The skywalk is the glass horseshoe shaped bride with a glass bottom allowing visitors to look straight down into the canyon. It was a great trip.

Travel wasn’t the only thing that made 2009 interesting. I finally published my first children’s book, and wrote a second book. The entire process was very intricate and frustrating, but I know I have learned from any mistakes I made. Cindy and I made several trips to the Loggerhead Marinelife Center, as well as the Green Cay Wetlands. We also attended a seminar on speaking to animals at the Panther Ridge Conservation center. We  got to meet Isabella the baby Jaguar, and attended a fund raiser for the center.

Although the economy hit us pretty hard, and the future of many aspects of our lives are still uncertain, I still think 2010 will be a great year.

Stay positive, and enjoy the new year.

My New Years Resolution is …

Posted by Dan on December 29, 2009 No comments

Usually a new years resolution is to lose weight, exercise more, blah blah blah, yadda yadda yadda. Well the truth is, I have lost weight, and I will continue to lose weight as I am exercising more. So then, now what? Usually those are the resolutions people pick? I, on the other hand, usually state my new years resolution as thus, “My New Years resolution is to not have a new years resolution.”

My New Years resolution is to not have a new years resolution.

That statement in itself usually negates in own standing, so in one fell swoop I declare and fail at my resolution avoiding the deep regret that follows sometime in February when I realize I failed. Take that destiny!
But this year I thought about what I could resolve to do. Be a better husband? Are you kidding me, I’m an awesome husband, you could ask my wife if I let her speak to you. So maybe this year my resolution should be about me. (After all it’s my blog dammit!) Why should a new years resolution be something we just don’t want to do? Why not pick something we want to do. So my new years resolution for 2010 is … to write more, read more, and do more of the things I love to do.

My new years resolution for 2010 is to do more of the things I love to do.

I love writing, I love reading, I love nature photography, I love caring about the animals in need. These are the things I should resolve to do more of. Now, doesn’t that sound like a prelude to a great year?

So this year, don’t resolve to do something you loathe. Resolve to do something that makes you happy.

My Forthcoming Press Release and Interview

Posted by Dan on December 22, 2009 No comments

I recently hired Joel Samberg, a journalist and public relations writer, to create a press release for my book. This entire experience of writing this book has been a gamble for me. Have I made mistakes? Yes. Have I learned from them? I’d like to think I have. Hiring Joel was another gamble, and I think it was a great move.

After an extensive interview, Joel has created a great press release which is scheduled for release on the 4th of January. He will also be distributing the press release to several magazine, newspapers and third party distribution services.

Here are a few excepts from the press release :

“When I saw the real Eartha make her way into the ocean, I was immediately struck by the emotional connection so many of us have to our nautical friends, particularly since we are, in some way, responsible for many of the perils that can put them in harm’s way,” says Bodenstein, a lifelong South Florida resident who is making his children’s book debut. “My goal is to encourage young readers to actually feel the sadness Eartha feels when entangled, and the joy she feels when freed.”
“People are capable of doing so much harm, but they’re also capable of doing so much good, and giving so much love” comments Bodenstein. “Children are never too young to learn that about people, as well as about our delicate environment and about protecting all species on earth. This book accomplishes all that — while also letting young readers find another adorable sea friend to fall in love with.”

If you’d like to download a PDF of the press releases, you can do it here.
Tale of Eartha press release

Your copy of my book may be a collectors item.

Posted by Dan on December 15, 2009 No comments

Comic Book Guy - The SimpsonsHave you purchased a copy of my book “The Tale of Eartha the Sea Turtle”? You may have a collectors item.

Here’s why.

Distribution houses, like Barnes and Noble and Ingram, require the price to be printed on the book, as well as being encoded in the ISBN barcode. In order to do this, I need to modify the cover of the book. That means the print run of the original sixty copies were printed without the price on the book. This makes them unique since all future print runs will be printed with the price.

So, if you have a copy already, then you have a collectors item. Now it may not be worth much more than what you paid right now, but, when the TV show, children’s toy line, and the movie (starring Miley Cyrus as Eartha) is released I’m sure you could sell it to the “Comic Book Guy’ on the Simpsons for a pretty penny.

The Storyteller in my head

Posted by Dan on December 13, 2009 No comments

The MindI have three stories rattling around in my head. As my second children’s book is being illustrated, I have been thinking about other ideas and concepts for new books. Instead of coming up with one idea … I have three. Now comes the hard part, formulating a story that is both entertaining, and contains a message.

I have to admit, ever since I visited the Panther Ridge Conservation Center this past weekend, I’ve been wanting to write a big cat story. Panther Ridge cares for big cats that cannot be released back into the wild. Although the enclosures that are their homes are spacious based on the size of the “cat”, I just feel that telling a story that ends with a big cat back in its enclosure just doesn’t seem right. But, fear not, I am formulating a story idea that will encompass both entertainment, and education that will end on a happy note.

Another story is based on a trip through the Everglades. Ever notice how scared people are of the Everglades? You mention it to some people and they tell you “There’s no way I’d go there.” hmmm, really?

The third story has to do with the importance of healthy eating and exercise, but is written with the “Brothers Grimm” in mind. It has to do with weight loss and obesity, something that many children are now facing.

Now if I could only make a living doing this. :)

My First Review

Posted by Dan on December 10, 2009 No comments

Steve Barancik of www.best-childrens.books.com has written what I think is a great review of “The Tale of Eartha the Sea Turtle”.  He was concerned at first because the book was rather specific in nature, and not a general story. I told him it was intended to be such a story, and here is what he had to say.

Bodenstein’s storytelling is a little heavy-handed for general audiences, but likely perfect for those with a special interest in undersea life – turtles in particular – or parents seeking a book with a message of environmental stewardship.

Me and my heavy handed writing. What the story doesn’t do is tip-toe around the problems that plague our ocean friends.  It’s intended to show how man’s negligence can and will continue to affect our oceans until we do something about it.

Author Bodenstein makes a point of the fact that some humans were responsible for Eartha’s plight, and others for her rescue. His narrator puts it directly to readers, asking, essentially, “Do you want to be one of the good people…or the bad?”

At the end of the book, the child clearly make a decision about how they feel about protecting our oceans most valuable resources, it’s animal life.

You can read Steve’s full review here.

The Bookstore is Open

Posted by Dan on December 3, 2009 No comments

announcement_clip_artThe official bookstore for Totem Tales Publishing, the publisher of The Tale of Eartha the Sea Turtle is open. We are now accepting orders for the book.

Just go to TotemTales.com, or click this link, and shop-away!

Order now, because a year from now there may be a “carpo-tunnel surcharge” for signed books.

Dan

Children’s Book Updates

Posted by Dan on December 2, 2009 No comments

boxThis week I will receive my first copies of  The Tale of Eartha the Sea Turtle. Some of these are promotional copies, others will be sold in my online store. As for promotional copies, I am sending them to turtle care facilities, some aquariums, and some children’s book reviewers. (know any?)

From there marketing will move online, and to promotional copies to other organizations like zoos, cruise lines (they have gift shops) and more.

Of course if anyone knows of someone, a friend, colleague, enemy, or otherwise, that may be able to help promote the sale of the book, please let me know. Any little bit helps.

In other happy news, I’ve started receiving full page sketches for the next book Steven the Vegan. I’ve also started sketching out the story for a third children’s book. This one has to do with the Everglades.

In other news, since AuthorHouse.com has not replied to any of my requests for a refund, I have contacted the Better Business Bureau of Indiana, and the Indiana State Attorney Generals office regarding their actions. All I have requested is a refund for the services they did not provide.

I will post again as soon as the Online Store is open.

Dan