Articles written by Vanessa Nelsen

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About me - Vanessa Nelsen

Writing is my life ~ besides my husband, three children, my home and my job, anyway.

I live in Pacific Northwest with my family and intend to eventually write that novel I've been planning since I was eight.

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Politics, News & Issues > US News Reflections: Virginia Tech school shooting: 1 of 106
I felt it like the beat of a drum or a thunderclap rip through my body from head to toe, and everything went black. Everything was numb for a second, and then I woke up. It was 3:24am Pacific Standard Time on April 16, 2007, and I was safe in my bed. My baby and husband were asleep next to me, and I had a horrible feeling. I... More..
Parenting & Pregnancy > Adolescence Connecting with your teenage daughter: Dos and don'ts: 1 of 13
I love my teenage daughter. She's sweet, impulsive, generous, kind and has that naive hopefulness of a person whose dreams have not be squashed by the cruel reality that no matter what you kindergarten teacher told you: you can't be whatever you want. Well, not without good grades, hard work and a whole lot of chutzpah. In o... More..
Politics, News & Issues > US News Crime: Virginia Tech school shooting: 24 of 98
April 16, 2007, Blacksburg, Virginia at Virginia Polytechnic University a few short days before the eighth anniversary of the Columbine, Colorado killings (April 20, 1999) is a dark day that will go down in infamy. Approximately 7am, the first shots rang out and took two lives. Officials were notified at 7:15am by a 911 call... More..
Home & Garden > Gardening (Other) True gardening stories: How it all went terribly wrong (humor): 43 of 140
Black Thumb My mother used to boast that she had a "black thumb", and only kept plants that refused to die. We never had a garden, ostensibly for this reason. It was also because gardens require a lot of effort, and since we rented our house, that seemed like an overabundance of effort for someplace we were going to eventual... More..
Parenting & Pregnancy > Parenting Methods Finding your role as a young mother: 11 of 24
Tips For Teens: Teenage Motherhood I want to start by saying that while I love my daughter and am blessed by her presence in my life, becoming a mother at seventeen is not something I would highly recommend. I mean, it beats jail (not that I would know, I've never been I just imagine). I didn't do drugs in high school, I did... More..
Health & Fitness > Alternative Health (Other) Quit smoking: Natural solutions to help you quit smoking: 11 of 20
I quit smoking over two-and-a-half years ago. I started smoking in my early teens, and even though I managed to quit briefly a few times, it was incredibly difficult to quit this last time. I used several non-chemical methods that I would heartily recommend to any smoker that has the desire to quit smoking. 1. I prayed for t... More..
Health & Fitness > Disease (Other) True life experiences: Living with an invisible illness: 5 of 8
I have fibromyalgia. When I was 24, I had just moved to the city with my almost-one-year old daughter, and as a single mother needed to find a flexible job in which I could make enough money to sustain my child and myself. I met a woman who had her own cleaning business, and she gave me a great start towards personal freedom... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Party Politics & Ideology Blind vs. discerning patriotism: 40 of 58
In a country founded by traitors to the Crown of England, and within a government designed to question its own lawmakers, leaders and judicial system, how can the people of this country view patriotism in any other way as steadfast as when we are questioning them ourselves? To absolve ourselves of our apathy by choosing to n... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Constitutional & Contract Law Was the US Supreme Court decision on abortion in Roe vs. Wade (1973) just?: 9 of 11
Roe v Wade was a court case that began in 1973, and dealt with the realistic social difficulties that a woman would find herself in if she were unmarried and pregnant. The 'just' decision that supported the oft-repeated, unsubstantiated 'woman's right to choose' was a decision by the Supreme Court justices in 1976 that the S... More..
Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: Valentine's Day: 44 of 50
There is nothing that fills the human heart with more dread than the expectations created by commercialism, trendy romanticism, and the evaporating almighty dollar less than sixty short days following the raging material extravaganza we call Christmas. Stores stock their shelves with heart-shaped boxes of chocolates, bakerie... More..