When Lightning Strikes Twice

Posted on March 14, 2021 by DiFreeze

WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES TWICE is an inspirational story about a mother and daughter diagnosed with cancer six weeks apart. The book, by Gina Elkon Rubin, journals the family’s long journey to recovery, and how they were able to come out on top with the support of family and friends.

Published by Freeze Time Media, When Lightning Strikes Twice is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and elsewhere. It’s also available as an ebook n Amazon and through other outlets.

Visit Gina Elkon Rubin’s author page.

Ramblin’ On My Mind: Kent DuChaine

Posted on September 25, 2020 by DiFreeze

For nearly 50 years, Kent DuChaine has lived the life of a traveling bluesman. He first picked up guitar as a teenager in the mid-’60s back in his home state of Minnesota. After the British Invasion helped to repopularize many of the traditional blues players in the states, Kent was fortunate to jam with and learn from the likes of Muddy Waters, Bukka White, Howlin’ Wolf, and Lazy Bill Lucas, among others. In 1977, after nearly a decade of searching, Kent found a 1934 National Duolian steel guitar that he named “LeadBessie.”

He spent three years (’89 – ’92) on the road with the legendary Johnny Shines, who was the final traveling companion of one of the founding fathers of the blues, Robert Johnson. Together, Kent and Johnny contributed to the Grammy-nominated album, “The Roots of Rhythm and Blues: A Tribute to The Robert Johnson Era,” and to a W.C. Handy Award-winning album, “Back to the Country,” with Snooky Pryor. After Johnny’s passing in 1992, Kent began traveling overseas a couple of times a year to play festivals and bars throughout Europe, which he still does to this day. Kent estimates that he and LeadBessie have traveled some three million miles and played over 10,000 shows throughout North America and Europe.

Published by Freeze Time Media, Ramblin’ On My Mind is available on Amazon and as an ebook through various outlets.

Visit Kent DuChaine’s author page.

The Missing Lifeguard: A Young Man’s Reckless Journey from Youthful Innocence to Bold Maturity

Posted on November 20, 2018 by DiFreeze

“The Missing Lifeguard: A Young Man’s Reckless Journey from Youthful Innocence to Bold Maturity” is the true story of an Irish Italian kid from South Philadelphia, living the lifeguard dream on the Jersey Shore and in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The story starts in 1967 and spans many years, from youthful innocence to bold maturity. More like an adventure story than a biography, with love, sex, drugs, smuggling, near-death experiences, bank robbery, kidnappings, and murders. But still a heartwarming love story, with humor, heartthrobs, heartbreak, and a feel-good ending. The author tells it like it was.

This is James Ciletti’s first book. Visit his author page to learn more about him. The book is available from Amazon in print and as an ebook.

George Bailey’s Got Nothing On Me

Posted on May 11, 2017 by DiFreeze

Growing up on a traveling carnival and surrounded by a host of real life Damon Runyan and O Henry characters has proven to be a truly wonderful life for Cy Holliday, author of “George Bailey’s Got Nothing on Me: A Narrative History of the Holliday F amily.”

The author’s paternal grandfather, father, and mother were instrumental in providing him a firm foundation for all of life’s challenges. From Broadway to carnival midways to the Atlantic City Boardwalk, these stories speak of a simpler time, but the life lessons are as applicable today as they were in the past. Mom was a Broadway star who worked with all the big band leaders of the 1930s and ‘40s. Dad was a carnie that grew up during the depression and lived by his wits. Grandpa was a carnie and a prizefighter. They and their friends formed the basis of what became the author’s life story, and a fascinating look at a different time in our country. Covering seven generations of the Holliday family from the 1700s to today, George Bailey’s Got Nothing on Me takes the reader on a unique genealogic ride with characters that are far from perfect and certainly not “politically correct.” Filled with individual triumphs and tragedies, it is as interesting a family memoir as you are likely to find.

“George Bailey’s Got Nothing on Me” is available in print and as an e-book.

Please visit Cy’s Author Page to learn more about him.

Wake Up Bitch and Fix Me Some Chicken

Posted on May 30, 2015 by DiFreeze

Freeze Time Media released “Wake Up Bitch and Fix Me Some Chicken” on May 7, 2015.

“Wake Up Bitch and Fix Me Some Chicken” is a humorous look at the patients and staff at a state-run mental health hospital. Whether divinely driven or by serendipitous happenstance, John R. Booth, after a career in the pharmaceutical business, found himself working as a social worker at the largest mental health facility in his state. In his first book, Booth chronicles stories of some of his most memorable patients. His preconceptions of what the patients would be like began an almost immediate transformation upon his arrival. He had heard all the stories and seen all the movies that depicted these souls as dangerous mental defectives and was sure that his life expectancy would take a turn for the worse with prolonged exposure to the “crazy cooties” he knew they must be infested with. The first day his ideas of mental illness began the transformation from shock and revulsion to seeing humor in the patients’ distorted reality and their reactions and adaptation to this reality. Some patients were truly scary and dangerous. Sometimes they would say funny things, and other times they would say things funny. Dan, Poor Pitiful Paul, Doug the Firebug, and all the others are real patients, with real problems, who are really funny, if you just look for it. Whether it is midgets in the walls, misunderstood English, fast-talking Gilbert, or the psychobabble of Nurse Kiki, rest assured, you will not “sleep right through it.” This easy read will keep you turning pages, give you a new view of the mentally ill, put a smile on your face, and, in the end, you’ll see why John believes that his patients are some of the most precious people on earth.

The book is available on Amazon as paperback and an ebook.

Visit John R Booth’s Author Page to learn more about him.

One Child at a Time: The Mission of CASA

Posted on December 11, 2014 by DiFreeze

Freeze Time Media released “One Child at a Time: The Mission of a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA)” on December 11, 2014.

One Child Freeze Time Blog

When children are taken from their family, due to abuse or neglect, they enter the custody of social services and are put into a foster home. Some of these children are lucky enough to be given a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA). “One Child at a Time: The Mission of a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA)” shares the experiences of CASAs working to give children a voice in court, and a chance to return to a safe home, or to find a new forever home. First, you will meet Kelly, an engaging three-year-old that told her CASA the first time they met, “The people came and took me away from my mommy and daddy. I was crying and crying. I had to go and see a doctor. The doctor gave me a stuffed animal to make me feel better, but it didn’t help.” The words of this small child floored the author. She seemed to have a better understanding of her feelings than many children much older. It’s no wonder that the author would become Kelly’s biggest advocate. The second section of the book is a compilation of experiences and feelings from a variety of CASA volunteers. All kinds of people do this work; the only requirement is a love for children. Volunteers are trained for two weeks before starting a case. Along the way, when questions or concerns arise, each volunteer has a supervisor from the CASA office that they can turn to for advice and a listening ear. The joy of seeing a child find the happiness and security each one deserves is an experience that fills a CASA’s heart with their own joy and happiness. It is the reason CASAs become hooked from the moment they take a case and meet their children.

Visit Yolanda Bryant’s Author Page to learn more about her.

From the Ground Up

Posted on July 15, 2012 by DiFreeze

Freeze Time Media recently celebrated the release of “From the Ground Up: From the Tractor to the Sabre,” the autobiography of Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame laureate Talmage E. Miller. Di Freeze co-wrote the book.

Driving an old tractor around the fields on the farm wasn’t too exciting for Talmage E. “Tom/Tal” Miller until one of the National Guard biplanes had a forced landing nearby. He ran to get a closer look at this big bird — too late. They got it fixed and blew dirt in his face when they took off. That instilled a bug in him to learn to fly, which he did one night at Denver Municipal Airport in 1936.

His training was delayed when his father was transferred to Lincoln, Nebraska. WWII came about and he learned to fly in the Enlisted Reserve under the CPT program, where he soloed in 1942. He graduated from the Central Instructors School at Randolph Field and was assigned to Tex Rankin’s Primary Flight Training School. The war was winding down and less demand for pilots closed the flight schools. Tex Rankin helped him get into cadet pilot training at Santa Ana, California. He got his wings in Douglas, Arizona, and was assigned to “bombing through overcast” school flying North American B-25s.

When the war ended, he returned to the farm, but eventually landed an instructor job at Sky Ranch Airport before being hired by Combs Aircraft, a Beechcraft dealer, to sell airplanes. He flew everything from the Bonanza to the King Air 200 turboprop and won many awards for aircraft sales. He later founded his own airplane sales company with Bill Haines, chief pilot for the Dillon Company. They sold many kinds of airplanes, from DC-3s to North American Sabreliner models 40 and 60 in many parts of the world.

He collected many friends and stories along the way. His book describes encounters with Olive Ann Beechcraft, Roscoe Turner, Paul Mantz, Frank Tallman, Elrey Jeppesen and many other well-known names in the aviation industry.

Visit Talmage E. Miller’s Author Page to learn more about him.

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Category Archives: Memoirs