Winner of the "Horse Doctors" book

Stephanie Mertin-Slaughter won the book "The Horse Doctors." Thanks Stephanie for being a part of the Webbspun World.

Win a copy of the book "The Horse Doctors"

Giving a copy of "The Horse Doctors" from the AAEP away.

Email, message, sign up at WebbspunIdeas.com or call me to be in the drawing. This is a brand new copy that is still in its plastic wrapper.

The Nashville Experience Guidebook release date and price

The Nashville Experience Guidebook will be release on Nov. 24 and will have a price of $24.95. Order yours now for Christmas or birthday presents.

Great lyric to a song as read in "The Long Way" by Bernard Moitessier:

...and vanishes in the sunshine without paying for his drink....I have paid for mine, and at the same time I haven't, and it is wonderful to be that free. I feel happy, light, at once detached from everything and in control of everything, as when all debts are wiped away and you can live your own life.
~lyrics to a song that Mr. Moitessier forgot the tune and lyrics except for that one line.


Bernard Moitessier


His boat, "Joshua"

Yesterdays quote from the Webbspun Ideas newsletter

The ability to concentrate and to use your time well is everything if you want to succeed in business--or almost anywhere else for that matter.
~Lee Iacocca

Jessica Burkhart, former Nashvillian, has a book published at age 21

Jessica Burkhart loves her horses. But scoliosis — and subsequent spinal fusion surgery — ended her equestrian career before she hit her teen years.

So, she started writing ... and writing ... and writing.

More than 100 magazine articles later, the former Dieterich resident is releasing her first book. “Take the Reins” is the first installment in the eight-part Canterwood Crest series. It is being released Jan. 27 by Simon & Schuster.

The protagonist in “Take The Reins” and subsequent tales of Canterwood Crest is Sasha, a small-town girl who attends an exclusive Connecticut boarding school. Burkhart said Sasha has more than a little bit of Jessica in her.

Read more about Jessica in the Effingham Daily News.

Book to inspire you to get out and see our country

AMERICAN RUINS, a Merrell publication, is the first photography book to document historic ruins throughout the United States. It presents a stunning visual record of ruins ranging from ancient Native American dwellings in the Southwest to the remains of Gilded Age mansions on the East Coast and a king’s summer home in Hawaii.

Luminous infrared photographs expose crumbled walls, weathered facades, and overgrown flora, and are accompanied by brief essays detailing the historical, geographical and architectural significance of each site. This landmark publication raises awareness of and appreciation for overlooked ruins that remain unknown even to most Americans. It captures the visual poetry of each place and offers a new way of seeing the landscape, the past, and the collective identity of America.

Visit the website and order the book at American Ruins book.

Julian Van Winkle tells us about the Van Winkle bourbon book

Sinsational Celebrity Tales by Norm Clarke

I'm sure this will have some wild stories of all kinds and from lots of names that you will recognize.
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Pre Order Vegas Confidential: Sinsational Celebrity Tales Norm Clarke's newest book, Vegas Confidential: Sinsational Celebrity Tales ($12.95, Stephens Press, February 2008), dishes up a feast from Sin City's Ace Insider on celeb's club hopping, spending sprees, outrageous behavior, big wins and huge losses.

Discounted pre-orders are $9.95 and include free shipping.

My Nashville

I have read a book called "My South" by Craig McMahon and I love it. If you get a chance to read it, do it because it is a wonderful book that gives you the feel of what makes the South so special.

I would like to create something here called "My Nashville" and hear how you all feel about Nashville. I want to hear from Nashvillians and people that have visited our great city. I want to know what part of Nashville touches you deep in your heart and why you live here or wish you lived here.I look forward to hearing your input.

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My Nashville:
Walking around inside the Ryman and imagining the history and wishing the walls could talk.

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From the book "My South"--

My south is home. It’s the tall pines under which I played in my youth. It’s the soft red clay that was a key ingredient in my mud pies.

In my South, people still say “please” and “thank you,” “yes, ma’am’ and “no, sir.”

My South is sunset symphonies and fine wines…and southern R&B so alive that you can’t sit still and gospel so good it brings you to tears.

"Kindness of Strangers"

The title comes from a book I read back in the late 1990's that told of Mike McIntyre traveling across the country with no money and simply relying on the kindness of the people he met to feed him, give him rides and whatever else he needed. It was a really good book that provided an idea of the kindness of people that we so often take for granted or assume doesn't exist anymore.

I know during my travels around the country I met many people who had to rely on the kindness of strangers to get from one place to another. I met hitchhikers and people at concerts carrying hand-made signs with the city that they wanted to get to written with an offer to help with grass, gas or whatever they had to spare.

I saw people outside of concerts with their index finger hold up to show their need for a "miracle." A "miracle" was when someone had an extra ticket and was willing to give it away to someone wanting to get into the concert. You could see in most peoples eyes the desire to get into the show and the belief that someone would come along to make their day.

I saw people that were hungry being fed by people who had kitchens set up to make and sell food in the parking lot. I saw many people sharing kindness and blessings with others and often saw that good deed paid forward by the person who received it and they couldn't wait to do the same for someone else.

I've seen the kindness of strangers while on a mission trip to New York City, in my own city, on the road and everywhere else. I see how most people truly want to help others and hope that kindness will be there during their time of need.

Can you share some kindness with a stranger today? Could you buy a sandwich for someone hungry or pay a bill for a needy family? Could you find a way to make a difference today?

"The Long Way" by Bernard Moitessier

A fantastic read that gives you such a desire to hop on a boat and attempt to sail around the world and just get lost in it. After putting the book down I had to remind myself that I just wasn't that kind of person but I truly did get swept away by the book and the stories or his adventures.




The Long Way recounts the incredible story of Bernard Moitessier's participation in the first Golden Globe Race – a solo, non-stop circumnavigation rounding the three great Capes of Good Hope, Leeuwin, and the Horn. For seven months, the veteran seafarer battled storms, doldrums, gear failures, and knock-downs, as well as overwhelming fatigue and loneliness. Then, nearing the finish with victory in hand, Moitessier suddenly pulled out of the race and sailed on. His 37,455-mile journey continued for another three months, finally ending in Tahiti. Never once in all that time had he touched land. ~Sheridan House Publishers







Quotes from Bernard Moitessier:
"You do not ask a tame seagull why it needs to disappear from time to time toward the open sea. It goes, that's all."

"I am a citizen of the most beautiful nation on earth. A nation whose laws are harsh yet simple, a nation that never cheats, which is immense and without borders, where life is lived in the present. In this limitless nation, this nation of wind, light, and peace, there is no other ruler besides the sea."

Bernard Moitessier-
April 10, 1925 Hanoi, Vietnam – June16 1994 near Paris, France

Also by Bernard Moitessier:
~Sailing to the Reefs~Cape Horn: The Logical Route
~Tamata and the Alliance
~A Sea Vagabond's World