April 26 . Issue 167 - Paul Yanuziello

It is only with the heart that one can see rightly: what is essential is invisible to the eye.
Antoine de Saint Exupery

The featured picture is of cherry blossoms, doing their thing this week at Cedervale Park in Toronto.

Welcome to my monthly journal. The place for me to share five points of interest. The things that have motivated me, kept me involved, and provided some joy.

1. With feet firmly planted back in Canada, it’s cold most days. I’m not used to it, but I should be; cold plunges every morning; the cold is in my blood. Since 2017, I have adopted a cold plunge routine. When I have the chance to go in the river, I do; when I can’t, I just take an ice-cold shower. Great, just great.

Make sure you check my events page. I have a few events lined up for this summer. I am looking forward to my reading and Kindle Creativity workshop at the Wasaga Beach Public Library on June 7th.

2. Does anybody have any experience with Kickstarter? I’m considering a Kickstarter campaign for my new project. I have the manuscript written and it’s well into its 2nd draft. I have the illustrator on board and working on the illustrations for each chapter and giving consideration to the book cover. We always do a little something for the back cover, and I have a synopsis I can share with you. Life on the River, synopsis.

My publish date for the new book is late August or early September. If I can get everything together before that then I will have an earlier release date. And that would be awesome.

3. I know, I should be focused on only one project at a time, but that’s not how I roll. I’m still promoting my last project, Dojo in the Woods and will continue to do so in the foreseeable future. I am happy to report that Dojo in the Woods is part of a promotion starting on May 1st.

My book is with good company, there are some fantastic books in the middle-grade genre. Dojo in the Woods is on sale throughout the promotion in the e-book format. The promo will run through the month of May and end on May 31st.

4. My time has been split between the Grey Highlands/ Blue Mountain area and Midtown Toronto, also known as York, while in the York part of town, I’ve been helping out at Naka Ima Karate. The head instructor, Tim sensei, a 6th dan under Nishiyama sensei. He likes to split the class up between beginners and more experienced karate-ka and sometimes I help out with either the juniors or the seniors.

My experience with teaching kids is attributed to High Five training and also to my friend Scott Langley sensei, who provided me with his teaching syllabus for children. It is a highly informative document that puts teaching karate kids into a perspective that is aligned with the High Five training. Thank you High Five and Langley sensei.

5. I have been inspired by my recent foray into hand drumming. Wasaga Beach Public Library offers a hand drumming circle, “Rhythm of the Beach”. Most people who attend have their own jembe, or they borrow one from the library’s stock of drums. It’s fantastic when a library has drums! They may have five or six spare drums and a few doumbek or darbuka’s, which is what I bring to the drum circle.

With this inspiration, I dug out my Middle Eastern Rhythms instruction manual, written by Mary Ellen Donald, and brushed up on actual technique. Then, I found myself watching some amazing hand drummers. I especially enjoy listening to Zakir Haasan, a tabla player, accompanied by Rakesh Chaurasia, a bansuri player. I was fortunate to see Zakir live on a couple of occasions. Some Middle Eastern drum specialists, too.

Did I mention my mother’s dance studio, ‘The Academy of Dance Arts‘, was the first dance school in Toronto to offer belly dancing? In this highlighted article by Anne Vermeyden, author of The Popularization of Belly Dance in Toronto, Canada (1950-1990): Hybridization and Uneven Exchange.

My mother, Marguerite Yanuziello, and her associate Maria Morca brought to Toronto from NYC and other places, some of the best Middle Eastern dancers and musicians. My interest and my first doumbek came about because of that exposure to dance.

Thank you for reading. If you know of anyone who may be interested in this journal please share with them. If you are looking for any children’s books, all of my books are available through your favorite bookstore. Please remember to check for my new middle-grade e-book, Dojo in the Woods on sale for a limited time. (Only through Amazon.com and Amazon.ca.

Be well, stay safe, and keep reading.

paulyanuziello.com