The Mother Load

What is The Mother Load?
The Mother Load was the name of the weekly humor column I wrote for The Spectrum & Daily News in St. George, UT, from 2000 to 2009. It is now the name of the humor blog you see here today. It's quite punny, don't you think?

How did The Mother Load begin?
I knew I could write and thought I should be writing for the paper in my town. After receiving some much needed encouragement from a friend, I sent an email to the managing editor saying just that. She emailed me back and set up an appointment and asked me to bring in a few samples. After a moment of panic in which I wondered what samples were, I wrote two humorous pieces and a serious article about my son's medical condition (write what you know, right?). She laughed through the first humorous piece and said, "This is funny. I'm publishing it. Write something like this every other week." She introduced me to my first editor, Jennifer King (Hi, Jenn!), took my picture, and a column was born. Within 6 months, The Mother Load was bumped to weekly publication and the rest is history.

What can I expect from The Mother Load blog?
I used to have a schedule of daily and weekly posts I followed meticulously. I used to be way cooler than I am now. Nowadays, my kids are older and involved in more stuff (so much stuff) and I've got 2 part time jobs and a masters degree I'm pursuing. I post when I can and try to do that several times a week if not daily. What I Learned Today posts represent a running conversation with my mom, telling her what I learned via silly pictures and captions. Outrageous News, Stupid Products, and Awesome Products posts are just as they sound. When the inspiration hits, I write an old-school Mother Load Column. All this stuff is usually funny (to me) and always funny (to my husband). It might be funny (to you!).

Do the people in your "What I learned today" pictures know they're being posted on your blog?
Absolutely! I ask permission of all my What I learned today subjects. I also usually let them know what I'll be writing. This is not People of Walmart. Also, there's no way to turn off the shutter sound on my cell phone camera, so I couldn't take a surreptitious picture if I wanted to. (This means even my kids know when they're getting a blog pic taken.)

I have an idea for your blog! Can I send it to you?
Yes! I welcome all Mother Load column ideas and Stupid Products/Outrageous News/Awesome Product suggestions. I'll have an email account set up for this purpose by the end of the day and will post it on the main page. I regret that I can't accept pictures of people for the What I learned today feature, as I wouldn't be able to verify the subjects gave permission for their images to be used; however, if you'd like to send pictures for this feature that don't include human beings, I'm more than happy to check them out.

I love your blog! Should I tell my friends about it?
Yes, yes you should. As much as I'd like to say I'm doing this for the betterment of humanity, I do hope to make this blog profitable for my family. The more hits I get, the more money I make, and the more able I am to keep doing it. (If I can use the money to keep up with medical bills and sock away some money for the kids' college funds, that would be great too!) If you like what you see, share it!