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CORKIE THE YORKIE
Beware! Corkie the Yorkie is a Sock Thief! is a fun and educational book written by Corkie and his School Psychologist best friend that teaches ABC's, 123's, colors, and so much more! Corkie was born April 7, 2007. I inherited Corkie from my mom (she named him ‘Corkie the Yorkie') in July, 2009, when her health was failing and she moved into an assisted living residence that did not allow dogs. She had post-polio syndrome after having had polio as a child, along with other medical issues. Corkie was only two years old, and with my dad passed away in 2004, Corkie was the apple of my mother’s eye. She wanted him kept in the family to stay connected to him, so she asked me if I would bring him home to Reno with me. I obliged. |
Beware! Corkie the Yorkie is a Sock Thief!For BULK SALE pricing, please complete the contact form here or call (775) 338-4300.
Corkie and I went on many travels together, he was a great traveler and a “rock star!” Where ever we went people lit up when they saw him, especially kids! He brought big smiles to many people over the years, which made me smile. Corkie and I made several airplane trips during the next year back to New Castle, PA, to visit my mom before she passed away in September, 2010. Seeing him when he visited made her smile big, which made me smile.
A few years later, around 2013, I was sitting in an airport, alone, thinking that if Corkie had been with me, he would have had a small crowd of smiling and giggling people around him. I was also reflecting about my mom and how much pleasure Corkie brought her, her last few years of life. It came to me, in that moment, that it would be fun to write a little poem or story about Corkie for my mom, and what better topic to write about than his habit of stealing socks. This act always brought chuckles to anyone who witnessed it, even to the victim of the sock robbery. Though it would sometimes be slightly annoying to get robbed while getting dressed, then having to chase this tiny, four pound, sock thief, one couldn’t help but smile while trying to wrestle the sock away from him. Corkie was a little rascal, but because he was so darn cute grabbing a sock as long as him with his teeth and scurrying away to hide his newly found treasure in his bed, you couldn’t help but forgive him. It was sitting there in the airport that one day that I pulled out my smartphone and wrote this little poem. Being a school psychologist it’s in my nature to include some sort of educational component, so I incorporated colors, counting and patterns. After seven years after that day, I mostly forgot all about the poem, only mentioning it or reading it occasionally to family or friends … until … the spring of 2020, when the world shut down due to the Covid-19 coronavirus. Corkie turned 13 and was starting to look his age a bit, but people who didn’t know him still thought he was a puppy because overall he aged very well. I had published my book “The Gospel of Santa Claus – Inspired by the True Story of Saint Nicholas,” the year prior, so I figured during the time of seclusion, and taking his age into account, it was finally time to publish “Beware! Corkie the Yorkie is a Sock Thief!” And now, here it is, arriving the fall of 2020! Written for ages 2-6, I hope and pray children of all ages, from 1 to 101, enjoy reading it together. 😊 Cheers and blessings, Wayne |
For BULK SALE pricing, please complete the contact form here or call (775) 338-4300.
Note:
On April 7, 2020, when turning 13, at Corkie’s annual check-up our vet said he was one of the healthiest 13-year-old dogs she had ever seen. I figured Corkie and I had some good years left together, so I really looked forward to this fall and promoting the book together with him making people smile with some fun, cute videos and doing some appearances at elementary schools, bookstores, etc. It’s with a heavy heart that I have to say that Corkie’s health deteriorated a little over the summer of 2020 and unexpectantly sped up in September. Corkie died on September 28, 2020. Though I got a picture with him with a printout of the book cover, the morning of the day he died, I was so sad I didn’t get a picture of him with the real book. I got the first proof book the next week. I had a chance to go back and add his death date to the end of the book in the biography section before final publishing, but I felt his beautiful, little spirit lives on in this book, as well as my mom’s, since they were both the inspiration for the book. So, I chose to leave the book as is because Corkie’s colorful, little life lives on in those colorful pages. I hope it makes you smile. |