Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Happy Birthday Dad Contest!

Harry's birthday was December 9 and mine is this Saturday, Dec. 13. Harry lived to be 89. We always used to celebrate together since they were so close. My dad wasn't big on cake, but he loved pie so my mom always used to make him pie and me the lemon cake with cherries and whipped cream on top which was my favorite.

Gifts Growing up, us kids got him mostly ties or flannel shirts which were always his favorite kind. I always thought it would be so much easier if he liked sports because then I could get him sporting equipment or team apparel, but he had absolutely zero interest in sports. As I got older, I got more creative. Here are some of the gifts I got for him:

(1) a mail holder that said "With love . . . a Father is a Special Friend, thanks."
(2) a bird bath.
(3) Lumberjack jacket.
(4) a gift card to Home Depot.
(5) Tim Conway and Harvey Korman video.
(6) a sign for his desk which said, "Please Don't Straighten the Mess on My Desk, You'll Goof Up My System!"
(7) an L.L. Bean bomber hat.
(8) a cap that said "I have one speed, slow."
(9) Fleece shirts with a zipper instead of buttons when his fingers didn't work so well anymore.

He Bought Himself A Present:
The best though was when he called me on his 86th birthday to say he just bought a van for his birthday and wanted me to go with him to the dealership so I could sign to have my name on the title as well. He was always looking to make things as easy as possible for me when he died. The main reason he even bought the van was to fit the kitchen door in it that he made for me and Gerard, but it was also much easier for him to get in and out of than his station wagon. Click here to read about the "See Through Door For Cats".

Here's the Contest Part:
My dad always said not to go spending a lot of money on him. He was always thinking of others, even on his birthday. That's why I know he would not be pleased about this ad. In an effort to advertise my book, I jumped at the opportunity to get this ad in the NEW YORK TIMES which has a huge circulation. It was in there for one day, Sunday, December 7, but I had a hard time finding it even though I knew it should be in there. It was buried inside a special book section that was filled with other colorful and larger ads. I knew it would be black and white, only 2" x 2" and on a page with other similar ads when I purchased it; however, I did not realize there would also be so many other bigger colorful ads at the same time. (This offer does not apply to authors published through Outskirts Press because I'm sure we all received the same email about this "great" opportunity.)

To make matters worse, in chatting with some other authors at Author and Book Event Center. I learned that newspaper ads are pretty much a waste of money when it comes to marketing a book. All I can do at this point is hope they are wrong. I am embarrassed to admit how much I paid for this little ad but if one of my readers guess the price before Christmas day, I will send you an autographed copy of "My Funny Dad, Harry" in honor of his birthday. (hint: It's a nice round number.) I know he would say I was very foolish to pay what I did, although he would be nice about it. Live and learn!

Leave your guess in the comments and the first one to guess the correct amount, wins. If you have a blog, I can let you know on there if you are the winner. If not, you can leave me an email address so I can contact you if you win.

I miss you, dad. It's hard to believe it'll be two years without you in February. I still think about you and mom every day!

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hmmmmmmmm...I have no idea whether I'm even in the right ballpark here, but I'll say $100. don't laugh if this is a ridiculous guess! LOL

The Silver Age Sara said...

Lemon pie is my favorite! I loved reading about your Dad and birthdays and presents.
Maybe you will get some response from your NY Times ad. Sorry it was so tucked away.
My guess is 500.00.

Rene Perez said...

I already have a book, but I want to play anyway. $200?

Karen, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry" said...

Higher than all these first 3 guesses.

Sandee said...

Wow, you really did spend a lot. Okay, I'll say $750.00.

Have a great day. :)

Sandee said...

Oh, you really had a very neat dad by the way. :)

Anonymous said...

A nice round number...hmmm...zeros are nice and round. How about $1,000.000? That's got lots of nice, round zeros (though I sure hope I'm not correct - yikes!)
Karen C.

Karen, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry" said...

I know, I don't know what I was thinking!!! It's still higher! Actually, let me explain I kinda know what I was thinking. Keep in mind though this was before I had my little chat with other authors, but when we sold my dad's house, we got like $69,000 for it which I put into our savings and earmarked some for our basement remodeling and some for our new Kia (both of which my dad would approve of) and the rest I figured I'd use for marketing my book so one mantra is take advantage of every opportunity which is what I was thinking at the time. The deadline for December was in just a few days so it was kind of like a impulsive decision--I should know by now not to make big decisions on impulse, but like I said, I goofed!

Unknown said...

Hi! You have a great blog. I love all the pictures of cats. Thanks for visiting mine. You have a great idea about donating the book.

Anonymous said...

I am going to guess $1,750.

Anonymous said...

In my excitement to guess, I forgot to tell you happy early birthday!

Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday!!! December is a lovely month for a birthday. :)

The New York Times, eh? Well, I;m going to guess $2,500. I hope I;m right because your book looks very interesting. Even if I don't win, I'll be looking for it at the bookstore or library.

Have a great birthday.

Karen, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry" said...

Well now we have a range:
higher than $1750 but lower than $2500.

The Silver Age Sara said...

Wow, that's a lot of money for sure. I'd never have guessed that high.

Anonymous said...

Karen - thank you for the comments on my blog. I was so happy to have you visit. I've enjoyed your posts about your dad. . . it's touching to see how much you loved him. . . and how he liked flannel shirts! I visit just about every day (you'll know when I do). I don't want to guess at the cost of the ad - it might not earn back the cost but I am sure it was what our dad would have wanted.

BeadedTail said...

I'm going to guess $2,200. I enjoyed your post today!

Karen, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry" said...

Lower than $2200.

Anonymous said...

Hey there, Karen! Is it $1,800? ;o)

Karen, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry" said...

Abelle, Higher.

Anonymous said...

If I am allowed to guess again, I'd say it's $2,00 ;o)

Karen, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry" said...

Yes, we have a winner! Congratulations, Abelle! For all the others who ventured guesses, if you email me with your address at myfunnydadharry@sbcglobal.net, I will send you a nice bookmark as a consolation prize. It has a picture of the book cover with a short description on back with the publisher's website on it where you can order from.

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"My Funny Dad, Harry" Book Giveaway

Congratulations to all the winners of the giveaway for "My Funny Dad, Harry" at Red Pine Mountain. I am so happy that four of my regular commenters won! Read what Tim thought of it at Everyday Living.