Thanks so much for having me back to RomConInc., Elaine!
The U.S. experienced some record shattering storms this winter, and all that snow and ice reminded me of how much I used to like the cold season. Down-hill skiing, hot chocolate, snowmen and sledding—what’s not to love? Plus, it’s such a cozy feeling to curl up on the couch next to a roaring fire and crack open a book while the world outside turns white. Or it was, until an ice storm last year had me trapped without power for over a week. In my neck of the woods, no power means no water and no heat. I am no longer a fan of cold weather. And I learned a little something from that adventure.
I would have made a terrible pioneer.
Oh, I kept life and limb together during that storm. I chopped and hauled fuel for the fire, I got up every two hours during the night to add wood to the fire, I cooked on the fire, I melted whole icebergs for the horses and the plumbing on the fire. I took a chainsaw and ropes and chains and dragged thirty foot pines off the fencing and the stable. I made it work. I was cold, exhausted, and smelled like toasted wet-naps, but I made it work.
I hated it. I absolutely loathed being cold, exhausted and stinky. And I am a little ashamed to admit that I might have been something less than stoic toward the end. Particularly when the ice began to melt, leak through the damaged roof, down the walls and into the basement.
Okay, I got bitchy. Which leads me to the conclusion that while I might have survived being a lone pioneer, heaven help me if I’d gone west with a wagon-train. Someone would have shot and left me for the buzzards before we reached the state line. Sooner, probably, since pioneers didn’t have chainsaws and wet-naps.
In other words, I do not have the makings of a western romance heroine. Not a likable one, anyway.
How about you? Do you think you have what it takes to have been a successful pioneer, lady of the manor, a sea captain’s bride? If you had the chance, would you try?
I’m giving away two books from my historical Providence series to two posters today, so be sure to comment! You can read about the series, and the anthology, A Christmas Ball, with Jennifer Ashley and Emily Bryan, at www.alissa-johnson.com.
