Vicki Lane Mysteries

Chicken Cacciatore

2012-02-02T00:03:00.002-05:00

Oh, yum! I served it over noodles with a green salad on the side. The recipe is straight from my Fannie Farmer cook book, which is much-stained and held together by a rubber band.

Chicken Cacciatore

1 oz. dried mushrooms (I used porcini)

1/4 cup olive oil

1 medium chicken, cut in pieces (8 or more)

1 large onion, chopped

1/4 cup dry white wine

1 clove garlic, minced (I used three)

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 cups canned tomatoes, drained

1/2 teaspoon allspice

Freshly ground pepper

2 bay leaves

1/2 teaspoon thyme, crushed

Salt to taste

for the Gremolata garnish

Grated rind of one lemon

1/2 clove garlic, minced (wimps! I used 2 cloves)

3 tablespoons minced parsley

Put the mushrooms to soak for half an hour in a cup with just enough warm water to cover. Heat oil ion a large skillet and cook the chicken till lightly browned on all sides. Add the onion and saute a few minutes, then splash in the wine and let it boil up. Lower the heat and add the garlic, paste, tomatoes, and the soaked mushrooms and their liquid (carefully strained,) and the seasonings. Cover and cook slowly for about 40 minutes or until done. Remove bay leaves, taste and add salt, if needed. Mix together the lemon rind, garlic, and parsley and scatter over the top of each serving.

Gardening? Really?

2012-02-01T00:03:00.002-05:00

The last day of January and the temperature was nearly 70. I had to get out and pull a weed or two. And Willa was moved to do a little excavating.

That handy hole reminded me I'd been meaning to transplant some daffodils. I know you're supposed to do this is the Fall but I always forget exactly where the big crowded clumps are once the foliage has died.

These are in bad need of thinning -- they don't have buds but maybe next year, once they're not so crowded. So I'll separate them and plant them back -- a little deeper and with lots of room.

Dogs have often influenced my gardening -- I may put a thorny bush here to prevent dogs making a path or a big rock there to discourage lounging in the soft dirt of the flower bed.

So weird, to have weather like this. It's pleasant, of course, but the potential for snow remains. Still, it feels good to have dirt under my fingernails again.

Six Thousand Words?

2012-01-31T00:04:00.002-05:00

Boys' Play Time

2012-01-30T00:03:00.004-05:00

Yesterday our nephew Drew and his little boy came over. The last time they were here, Jack had fun playing with a toy cow and some hippopotami. They had hay to eat and there was poop (coffee beans) to clean up.

So I went to Tractor Supply and got a little tractor and some farm animals to surprise him the next time he was here.

Jack drove the tractor and herded the animals and shoveled the poop. Then he took a snack break while Ali Ali and Willa watched with interest.

Mean while, Jack's dad Andrew and Justin were busy, searching through the cubby holes for toys from their own childhood. They discovered a major treasure trove of GI Joe action figures from the 80's.

Justin spent a good bit of time explaining to Jack which were the good guys and which were bad.

Uh oh! The bad guys have invaded the peaceful farm!

The big boys are working out a scenario . . .

The blue napkin is a pond -- the perfect thing to do with the action figures who'd lost their legs.

Look like they're wading in deep water, don't they?

I'm not sure why the fellow in pink is guarding the poop...

But undoubtedly the strategists know.

Note the cup of milk and the two glasses of Scotch in the midst of the action. . .

Justin helps Jack plan an aerial attack from the corner cupboard.

Meanwhile, I was in the kitchen photographing more action figures.

They're a wild and crazy gang. . .

Trading Up

2012-01-29T00:02:00.007-05:00

“There’s no question at times of my life, partially driven by how passionately I felt about this country, that I worked far too hard and things happened in my life that were not appropriate"

Newt Gingrich, quoted HERE.

Blue Skies . . .

2012-01-28T00:05:00.007-05:00

Smilin' at me,

Nothing but blue skies

Do I see...

And very welcome they are, after several rainy overcast days.

Ball Hooting in a Gaum

2012-01-27T00:05:00.015-05:00

This unseasonably warm and rainy weather that has flowers blooming too early has also made the ground muddy. John came in from getting fire wood and told me that the way into the pasture was a big gaum and he was afraid the Kubota ATV would go to ball hooting if he wasn't careful.

Before we moved here, I would have thought maybe he was speaking in tongues. But I've learned the language.

A gaum (or gom) is a big mess -- in this case, a patch of mud, though it could apply to a teenager's room. And ball hooting means sliding around. The term come from days of logging with horses -- pulling a big log down hill was dangerous for man and beast and you definitely didn't want that log to go to ball hooting.

Lemon Curd Pie

2012-01-26T00:05:00.003-05:00

It was a birthday request from Justin -- and one of my own favorites. Lemon curd, whipped cream, pastry, chocolate -- you know you want some.....

Start by making a pie crust (yes, you can use a pre-prepared one but I bet it won't be as good.) I follow a standard recipe (1 1/2 c. flour, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/2 c. Crisco. 4-5 TB. cold water. I substituted vodka for the water, having read that this made for a flakier crust, and it worked quite well.)

Bake the empty crust at 425 for 15 minutes ot till the edges begin to brown. Remove from oven, sprinkle with semi-sweet chocolate drops, return to oven for five more minutes. When you take it back out, the chocolate will be soft. Take a knife and spread chocolate to cover the bottom 0f the crust. Set aside to cool.

For the lemon curd, you'll need a double boiler (or a large and a medium sauce pan.) Also, the grated zest of two large lemons, 6-7 tablespoons lemon juice, 1/4 pound of butter, 1 cup sugar, and 4 eggs. (No, this isn't health food.)

Put the zest, lemon juice, butter, and sugar in the top of the double boiler over simmering water. Don't let the water boil. Stir now and then till the butter melts and the sugar dissolves.

In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs till thoroughly blended. Stirring constantly, spoon a little of the hot lemon mixture into the eggs. Add a little more and when it's well blended, pour the egg mixture into the double boiler, still stirring. Continue to cook over simmering water till the curd thickens (10- 20 minutes.)

Remove from heat and let cool.

When the curd is thoroughly cool, pour into the chocolate-coated pastry shell. Top with whipped cream (I used a cup of heavy cream, a tsp. of vanilla, and a tiny bit of sugar, maybe
a teaspoon.)

Shave some bitter-sweet chocolate on top . . . Chill for a few hours to let the curd firm up a bit.

The chocolate on the pastry will harden and you'll need a firm hand and maybe a serrated knife to cut the pie.

Very tart, very sweet, very satisfying.

Impatient

2012-01-25T00:02:00.002-05:00

Eager for Spring blooms,

I bring quince branches inside --

Pale petals unfold.

Early daffodils

Are eager too -- don't they know

It's January?

At the River

2012-01-24T00:04:00.002-05:00

Our little riverside park, where the rafting companies put in to go down river to Hot Springs, is being enlarged and tidied up.

This silo was the inspiration for a scene in In a Dark Season where the valiant Phillip had to climb up and then down into it in search of. . . something awful.

Of course, in my imagining, it was at least twice as tall.

Rumford Complete Cook Book

2012-01-23T00:08:00.007-05:00

At the library last week, as usual, I had to peruse the offerings in the ongoing book sale. I'm a fool for old books...

Of course I don't need another cookbook -- but I was seduced by the hand-written recipes...

A good pickle recipe is always worth having...

And I love the way she added to it...

Banana pudding is an staggeringly popular dessert in my neck of the woods but not one that I like very much. Even topped with meringue, the way lots of folks fix it.

Willa's Boyfriend

2012-01-22T00:04:00.003-05:00

Another Window

2012-01-21T00:03:00.059-05:00

I see blogs as windows into other places, other lives. And a new window -- one that I've been hoping for -- has just opened. My very good friend Louise Langsner has begun a blog called The Garden Kitchen -- " a blog about food: growing, foraging, cooking, sharing, enjoying. It’s about adventures in the kitchen…alchemy, discovery, amazement."

Louise is one of the very best, most creative cooks I know. We've been friends for over thirty years and I've enjoyed many an incredible meal at her house. She has a way of combining unexpected ingredients that is nothing short of genius.

Louise cooks for the students at Country Workshops and seems to be capable of conjuring up a meal for twenty without breaking a sweat. She's also a dedicated gardener and her cooking is informed by the wonderful fruits and vegetables grown on the Langsner farm. Her first post, inspired by a recent trip to Italy, describes the cucina povera of Puglia and Southern Italy.

If you like to cook or to read about good food, if you enjoy gardening, if you want to look through yet another window, hop over HERE and meet my extraordinary friend Louise!

Words to Live By

2012-01-20T00:04:00.009-05:00

Today is the first day of the rest of my life!

But I still have to clean up yesterday's mess. . .

and pay yesterday's bills. . .

Elizabeth Von Arnim

2012-01-19T00:02:00.002-05:00

After hearing it recommended time and again and after seeing one of the characters on Downton Abbey receive a copy, I decided it was time for me to explore Elizabeth and Her German Garden. Published in 1898 and written by Elizabeth von Arnim, an Australian woman married to a German nobleman, this book had huge popularity in its day and the author went on to write many more, including Enchanted April.

I wasn't sure at first -- in the beginnning this semi-autographical book struck me as little more than the grumblings of a wealthy woman who doesn't seem to like anyone very much. But I went on, captured by the descriptions of her garden -- her plans for it and her very real eye for beauty.

And as I continued, I began to appreciate the protagonist's rebel spirit, feminist outlook, and, most of all, her dry wit. Left alone with uncongenial house guests, Elizabeth laments:

"My husband goes off after breakfast to look at his crops, he says, and I am left at their mercy. I wish I had crops to go and look at -- I should be grateful even for one, and would look at it from morning to night, and quite stare it out of countenance, sooner than stay home and have the truth told me by enigmatic aunts. . ."

I'm hooked. I downloaded six of von Arnim's novels on my Kindle (for a pittance as they're out of copyright) and am half way through The Solitary Summer. Terrific January reading!

Mid-January Miscellany

2012-01-18T00:04:00.001-05:00

Fantasy Time . . .

2012-01-17T00:01:00.032-05:00

I'd love to have a vardo -- a bright-painted gypsy van--
The traditional interior is spectacular if a tad busy for my taste.

I've wanted one ever since reading Wind in the Willows . In the

passage below, Toad is showing Rat and Mole his new acquisition.

"He led the way to the stable-yard accordingly, the Rat following

with a most mistrustful  expression; and there, drawn out of the

coach house into the open, they saw a gipsy caravan, shining with

newness,  painted a canary-yellow picked out with green,

and red wheels.

'There you are!' cried the Toad, straddling and expanding himself.
'There's real life for you, embodied in that little cart. The open road,
the dusty highway, the heath, the common, the hedgerows, the rolling
downs! Camps, villages, towns, cities! Here to-day, up and off to
somewhere else to-morrow! Travel, change, interest, excitement! The
whole world before you, and a horizon that's always changing! And mind!
this is the very finest cart of its sort that was ever built, without
any exception. Come inside and look at the arrangements. Planned 'em all
myself, I did!'

. . .

It was indeed very compact and comfortable. Little sleeping bunks--a
little table that folded up against the wall--a cooking-stove, lockers,
bookshelves, a bird-cage with a bird in it; and pots, pans, jugs and
kettles of every size and variety.

'All complete!' said the Toad triumphantly, pulling open a locker. 'You
see--biscuits, potted lobster, sardines--everything you can possibly
want. Soda-water here--baccy there--letter-paper, bacon, jam, cards and
dominoes--you'll find,' he continued, as they descended the steps again,
'you'll find that nothing what ever has been forgotten, when we make our
start this afternoon.'"

It sounds nice . . .

Of course, to pull that gypsy van, I'd need a Gypsy Cob.

They're available HERE

Curves

2012-01-16T00:04:00.011-05:00

~~~

By Request . . .

2012-01-15T00:30:00.003-05:00

Ms. A suggested that my little garden fella needed ear muffs.

But it's not easy to find winter wear in his size. . . .

So I improvised.

Oh, No!

2012-01-14T00:05:00.006-05:00

Snow!

Not too much. . .

But too cold for wading . . .

Already melted at the lower elevations . . .

Winter Color

2012-01-13T00:04:00.005-05:00

The Mother of All Rainbows

2012-01-12T00:04:00.006-05:00

Holy moly! I think this is the best rainbow I've ever seen here -- and we get quite a few.

The pot of gold is evidently in the cemetery adjoining our farm. Hmmm...

What a treat!

All the way from here to there...

And then it was gone.

River Cane

2012-01-11T00:03:00.014-05:00

River cane grows wild along many branches in our area. There's none on our place -- perhaps in the past the farmers got rid of it or perhaps it prefers a lower elevation.

River cane was an important resource for the Cherokees who used it to make baskets . . .

Blowguns . . .

and flutes.

The hot links will take you to more information about these indigenous crafts, as well as to the sites where I found the images.

Impressionistic Turkeys

2012-01-10T00:01:00.002-05:00

The turkeys are back -- about fourteen of them. I saw them promenading down the road and hurried out to the porch to get a picture. As soon as they saw me, they picked up the pace and were soon out of sight.

A bit later, I'd forgotten all about them when Willa set up a frantic barking from the dining room window.

"Monsters at the bird feeder! Danger! Velociraptors! DANGER!"

I ran for the camera again. The poor turkeys were panicked at all the barking and between the rain and the dim light and my hurry, the pictures came out very odd indeed. But I thought that first one had a real impressionistic feel to it as well as a nice composition of straight and curving lines.

A Whiter Shade of Pale . . .

2012-01-09T00:03:00.007-05:00

~~~

Hard Decisions

2012-01-08T00:02:00.005-05:00

The so-called dwarf evergreens that I planted around our fish pool over twenty years ago have grown far taller than the word 'dwarf' had led me to expect. Evidently dwarf means 20 feet as opposed to 40.

I love these plants but they have been blocking our view for too long. Our good friend, Doc Adams, got the ball rolling by volunteering himself for a spot of chainsawing. John and Justin assembled the implements of destruction and the guys went at it while I stood around pointing at things I thought needed cutting back.

John dragged numerous huge piles of branches to to a field to pile up for later burning.

As the day went on and the area began to open up, I grew bolder -- "Oh, just take that juniper down to give the azalea and the Hinoki Cypress more room."

Tough love in the garden.

It looks like a war zone now but I have faith that it will be an improvement. By summer, most of the evidence of this destruction will be covered in new growth.

Maybe it's the New Year -- but it feels so good to be making long overdue changes.

Pruning here, pruning there . . .kind of a life lesson, I'd say.

Another View

2012-01-07T00:04:00.036-05:00

After yesterday's post, which set the Deliverance banjos twanging for more than one of us, I wanted to bring this interesting book to your attention. Barbara Woodall, a native of the north Georgia mountains, writes of growing up Appalachian. She specifically mentions how hurtful many mountain folk found the Deliverance movie as it seemed to show their entire culture in an extremely negative light.

Woodall's heart-felt account of watching the changes that have come to the mountains is well worth reading, especially for those, like myself, who are part of that change. The book is also an excellent record of life as it was lived in the mountains, not so very long ago.

And by the way, the junky place in yesterday's post is definitely not typical of where I live. There are far more homes and farms that are well-kept.

Iconic?

2012-01-06T00:05:00.002-05:00

If I were to describe this place in a book . . .

I'd probably be accused of stereotyping . . .

Along the Branch

2012-01-05T00:02:00.076-05:00

Panther Branch, Anderson Branch, Doe Branch, Long Branch, Dry Branch, Laurel Branch, Back Branch -- in my neck of the woods, lots of the roads are named for the branches ( or creeks) they follow.

For years and years, all of us who lived along a particular branch -- even if it was miles long -- used that branch as our address. We were one of a number of families with the Anderson Branch address. But when 911 came to our county, there was a need for a bit more precision and all our various private roads and long driveways needed to be given names.

We chose Wool Branch, as that was what we had been told was the name of the little branch that flows down our mountain into Anderson Branch. Lots of folks used their family names; some were, more creative. And very often, the choice of the name is a clue as to whether the family living on that private road is local or a transplant.

I wonder who lives on Lothlorien Lane (which I just discovered on Google is about seven miles away) native or 'new' person?

In Search of Summer

2012-01-04T00:02:00.015-05:00

Yesterday the temperatures didn't get out of the teens. In spite of two wood stoves going, the house was chilly. So I went to to Chile, to enjoy Maria Cecilia's lush summer gardens at Casa Dulce Hogar.

I recommend blog travel to anyone looking for summer in the midst of snow and ice -- it's free; no security lines or baggage fees; and, unlike James James Morrison Morrison's mother, you can be back in time for tea.

South Africa and New Zealand are lovely at this time of year. . .

And Then There Was Snow . . .

2012-01-03T00:03:00.003-05:00

Mild weather and gorgeous sunrises. . .

Clouds rolling in . . .

The past few days have been a whirl of breaking out the blue and yellow to replace the red and green . . .

Now the house feels fresh and spare -- a good way to begin the new year . . .

And yesterday afternoon, the snow began . . .

The weatherman says it will be short lived . . . and that's okay with us.

Book Club Alert!

2012-01-02T00:01:00.018-05:00

If you're a member of a book club here in the US or Canada, your club can enter to win eight (count them, 8!) autographed and personalized copies of Signs in the Blood, the first Elizabeth Goodweather mystery.

Find full information over at NYT best selling author Dianna Love's Quantum Book Club. There are several titles available each month (many of which have rather steamy covers -- Signs looks a bit like a maiden aunt in comparison.)

QBC gives away books every month. Mine is available in January but if you're a book club member, you might want to remember this site.

On the home front, I'm feeling better. All of Christmas has been put away (except for a stack of red and green napkins that need ironing and I hope to resume blog visiting tomorrow.

Excuses, Excuses . . .

2012-01-01T00:03:00.003-05:00

I'd like to be profound, here at the beginning of my fifth year of blogging, but I have a bad cold and profundity just isn't possible.

Best wishes to all of you in 2012 -- may this be a good year for Earth and all her people.

Marriage of Arnolfini

2011-12-31T00:05:00.004-05:00

When I saw Ali and Willa in this pose, I immediately thought of Van Eyck's Marriage of Arnolfini . . .

A December Day

2011-12-30T00:02:00.002-05:00

Naked Came the Leaf Peeper

2011-12-29T00:01:00.003-05:00

"People are dying in mysterious ways around Asheville. Men once linked to a land deal are now dropping faster than the fall foliage. Assassin-for-hire Garnell Lee Ray has one last target in her sights--but not if detective J.D. Klontz can put all the pieces together first. He soon discovers that everyone is hiding something—or somebody—and all hell and hilarity will break loose before he finds out the truth.

"A zany Southern Appalachian take on The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Naked Came the Leaf Peeper is a serial collaborative novel representing the collective wit and genius of twelve western North Carolina authors." (from the back cover)

This group effort was conceived in celebration of the thirtieth anniversary of Malaprop's, Asheville's outstanding independent bookstore. I was honored and delighted to be asked to participate in this challenging exercise in novel writing by committee.

This is how it worked: After the first chapter was written, it was sent to the author who'd drawn Chapter 2. That author had two weeks to complete his/her chapter and then it was sent to author number three. And so on. We writers were kept in the dark as to who had written the chapters before ours.

I drew chapter four. What fun it was to pick up the characters and plot lines that had been laid down and expand on them -- or give them a slap and send them off in another direction!

The final result is a wild, irreverent ride through Asheville and western North Carolina. (My chapter is set in Marshall and Sodom Laurel.) It's great fun to see some serious 'literary' authors let down their hair to write a far-fetched thriller. And the final chapter by Tony Earley is a kaleidoscope of hilarious action that resolves the many threads of this multi-parented story in fine Shakespearean style.

The novel will be on the shelves at Malaprop's very soon. But it's available for pre-order HERE.

On the Third Day of Christmas. . .

2011-12-28T00:04:00.003-05:00

It was a day of drifting fog and intermittent rain . . . perfect for writing the Christmas thank you notes.

When they were young, the boys and I would do this together . . . and occasionally I would receive thank you notes from the family members who'd been charmed by the boys' letters. Then, of course, I'd have to write a thank you for the family member's sweet note . . .

I don't know if this is a generational thing or a Southern thing but I do know I'd be haunted by my mother and grandmother if ever I quit writing thank you notes . . .

Blue Owl Levee-High Apple Pie

2011-12-27T00:05:00.006-05:00

We received this rather improbable pie as a Christmas gift -- shipped frozen all the way from the Blue Owl Cafe in Kimmswick, Missouri. And as Claui's parents, sister, brother-in-law and three kids were coming for lunch yesterday, it seemed the perfect time to see what a Levee-High Apple Pie was like.

First it had to bake -- almost two hours...

When at last it was done, there was a tub of caramel sauce, laced with chopped pecans, to be microwaved and spread over the dome.

And then it was time to try to make slices -- not easy. We ended up with somewhat disassembled slices on our plates.

But once we topped them with dollops of Charlotte Russe, left over from Christmas dinner, the messy presentation hardly mattered.

Post Christmas Post

2011-12-26T00:05:00.002-05:00

Hoping everyone's day was as pleasant as ours . . . with or without dogs.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T00:05:00.004-05:00

Holiday Cheer

2011-12-24T00:05:00.002-05:00

One of my uncles included this with his Christmas card:

Just a note to let you know that I have reached the ripe old age of 93

with poor hearing, diminishing eyesight and lots of bad habits.

Rock on, Uncle Gene!

Statement of Faith

2011-12-23T00:05:00.003-05:00

Despite no sign of the sun on its big day, the winter solstice,

I continue to believe . . .

. . . that the nights will shorten and the days will lengthen.

With Apologies to Dr. Seuss

2011-12-22T00:03:00.037-05:00

The sun did not shine; It was too wet to play.
So Willa sat in the house all that cold, cold wet day.

She sat there with Ali; they sat there those two

And she said, "How I wish we had something to do.

Then Ali got the binky and the battle began. . .

These two played hard and long till Ali was whupped.

Something to to do on a cold rainy day.

There's Glory For You

2011-12-21T00:03:00.010-05:00

It's always nice to be appreciated. An anonymous commenter left the following on one of my past posts:

Thanks for placing up this article. I'm unquestionably frustrated with struggling to research out pertinent and rational commentary on this matter. everyone now goes in the direction of the amazingly much extremes to possibly generate home their viewpoint that either: everyone else within earth is wrong, or two that everyone but them does not genuinely recognize the situation. pretty numerous many thanks for the concise, pertinent insight....

Of course, the fact that I was being praised for my concise, pertinent insight into the making of cheese biscuits tends to make me a little suspicious. . .

Bright Cold December Day

2011-12-20T00:05:00.002-05:00

Some chose to stay in near the fire . . .

The Almost Moon

2011-12-19T00:04:00.078-05:00

"When all is said and done, killing my mother came easily."

The opening line gives warning that this is a strange, dark book. I tried to read it several years ago and didn't get much farther then the first few pages. But for whatever reason, I picked it up again and this time found it compelling.

Sebold is a wonderful writer and I was fascinated by the low key manner in which she dropped in the back story bit by tantalizing bit, allowing the reader an increasing understanding of the narrator's behavior.

Following Sebold's NYT bestselling THE LOVELY BONES, this unsettling look at a family, bound by love and madness, was not popular with many of her fans. Read the Amazon reviews and you'll see what I mean.. Many disliked the protagonist. Quite a few felt betrayed

I don't know. It's not a book I would recommend to everyone. If you're looking for feel-good, this isn't it. But it didn't make me feel Just Awful either in the way that, oh, say, Death of a Salesman does. The ending, while somewhat ambiguous, had a taste of redemption to it. And I found myself enthralled and moved by the daughter whose love and hate of her mother plays out over the course of this novel.

Have any of you read this? I'd be interested in your thoughts.

(Google image)

Outside/Inside

2011-12-18T00:03:00.000-05:00

...ah, the joy of shelter . . .

At First Glance . . .

2011-12-17T00:08:00.005-05:00

. . . I thought the worst.

Then I paid attention to the relative sizes of the con trails.

Willa is home and in good spirits . . . though still a little sleepy from the anesthesia and the tranquilizers the vet gave her. Evidently she didn't like being in a cage.

Rum Balls

2011-12-16T00:06:00.008-05:00

One of my favorite memories of Christmas is of the rum balls my mother used to make. So I spent yesterday morning, hands sticky with dough, enjoying the intoxicating fragrance, and singing (I was alone in the house -- the only condition under which I attempt to sing):

Away, away with rum, by gum,

Rum by gum, rum by gum.

Away, away with rum, by gum,

The song of the Temperance Union.

We're coming, we're coming, our brave little band,

On the right side of temperance we do take our stand.

We don't use tobacco because we do think

That the people who use it are likely to drink.

We never eat fruitcake because it has rum,

And one little bite turns a man to a bum.

Can you imagine a sorrier sight

Than a man eating fruit cake until he gets tight?

(For more lyrics, go HERE.)

Rum (or bourbon or brandy) Balls

1 box vanilla wafers...1 cup chopped pecans... 1 cup powdered sugar ... 3 TBS. white corn syrup ... 2 TBS. cocoa powder ... 1/2 cup rum (or bourbon or brandy) additional powdered sugar for coating rum balls.

Crush vanilla wafers. (I remember putting them between sheets of waxed paper and using a rolling pin to do this. The food processor is much easier and less messy,)

Sift sugar and cocoa powder into the crumbs. Add the pecans and mix well. Stir in corn syrup and rum and mix well. Roll into balls (buttering your hands helps a lot) then roll balls in powdered sugar (no snickering there, you in the back.)

Store in air-tight tin. Makes about 3 1/2 dozen (I doubled the recipe.)

Hi Ho, the Greenery-O

2011-12-15T00:07:00.024-05:00

Time to fill the empty pots on the front porch with some nice Christmas greenery. (And to send that Halloween/Thanksgiving pumpkin down to the chickens.)

For the first time ever, one of our holly bushes had significant sprays of berries and I took full advantage.

Here a berry, there a berry . . .

Love that wired ribbon -- saved from a past Christmas present.

A nice mix of green and silver and gold is handy just below our front porch -- the yew and holly berries are a little farther away.

Fill some vases for the house and make a sheaf (if that's what it's called) for the front door . .
.

And a little more greenery by the greenhouse entryway . . .

Still to go, six sheaves for the stairs and some bits for the mantelpiece. Fortunately, I'm not going to run out of raw material any time soon. . .

Eddie Says. . .

2011-12-14T00:03:00.007-05:00

Vicki spent most of Tuesday at big stores in Asheville, laying in provisions for Christmas and beyond. Vicki does not like to shop so she rewards herself with a nice dinner with sparkling wine. Now she is enjoying some post-dinner port and pecans and chocolate, after which she will do the dishes and go to bed early, as Willa has an appointment at 6:15 AM for a ride to the spay/neuter clinic . . .

Regular blogging will return tomorrow.

The Never-Ending Story. . .

2011-12-13T00:05:00.003-05:00

And then there was the tinsel. These pretty things give a lovely finishing touch -- as long as they're hung so that they dangle loose and straight. If you just hook one on one of the branches, it will tend to stick out at a silly angle, defying gravity and looking nothing like an icicle. The only solution is to hang them from the wires of the lights or to remove some of the needles on the tip of a branch so that the little tin icicle can hang straight. It's a tedious job but it's done!

At last all the ornaments are on the tree, from the crocheted snowflakes and the stuffed hearts and the doves and the candy canes and the red bows and Justin's kindergarten paper star to the survivor of the starfish couple given to us by friends

I still have to cut greenery and bring it inside --- later in the week. But the corner cupboard is wearing its Christmas look. . .

There are lots of Santa's and several creches, including this odd one from India (I love the off-hand way the shepherds carry their sheep and the Fifties suburban housewife hairdo that Mary sports.)

These little figures from Italy are my favorites. I gave them to my grandmother about fifty years ago and there was also a lamb. The lamb disappeared a while back -- I think William got it. And the canopy (the wire thingie from a champagne bottle) on the manger was added by one of my boys -- and now it's a part of the Christmas tradition.

Almost There. . .

2011-12-12T00:05:00.002-05:00

We had the usual help making the popcorn/cranberry chain yesterday . . . this year the tree sits up higher and we left off the lowest tier of garland because of the pup.

It's almost there -- the next step is to hang the tin icicles but that can wait till morning light.

Crow Three Ways

2011-12-11T00:05:00.002-05:00

How Did the Cat Eat the Grindstone?

2011-12-10T00:04:00.002-05:00

.... Little by little, they say. And that's how we're getting ready for Christmas. The flight of die-cut metal angels has returned to its usual spot. The tree has been wrestled into place. The Christmas pillow covers have been brought out . . .

Once the branches have relaxed, the lights will go on then, come Sunday, we'll string popcorn and cranberries and proceed to decorate the tree.

I have a real feeling that Willa is going to be a challenge -- we may end up leaving the lower part of the tree bare

The Proper Look for the Season

2011-12-09T00:03:00.004-05:00

After a very (over two inches) rainy Wednesday, the rain turned to thick snow in the night and we awoke to cooler temperatures and a white-frosted world.

The skies were clear and as the sun rose, the fluffy snow began to melt.

But it was just enough snow to make me think of sleigh bells and hot cocoa... and to keep me on task getting the house Christmas ready.

Fading Day

2011-12-08T00:03:00.002-05:00

Time to Dig the Taters

2011-12-07T00:03:00.002-05:00

The latest we've ever waited but last Sunday afternoon we finally got to it. Our nephew and his son, our great-nephew, came out for some farm time and to help with the harvest.

As usual, we were fully attended by dogs -- including Willa on a long, long lead. She was let off for a bit and was ecstatic to be running free but when she started down the road she had to be retrieved and releashed.

There were wooden crates lined with hay to store the potatoes . . .

Otis feels the cold and was happy to take advantage of the hay.

Pit bull or snuggle bug? You be the judge.

Oops...

2011-12-06T15:09:00.000-05:00

Our internet went down yesterday and has just returned . . . I hope to come visiting this evening. Right now I have a bunch of groceries and Christmas shopping to put away . . .

The Jersey Girl and the Full Bull Experience

2011-12-05T00:02:00.010-05:00

Silverbell is in season and, though she's had four calves, she's never had the Full Bull Experience since her previous owner used AI (artificial insemination) on all his cows. We are taking the easy way out -- opting to let Big Red do the job . . .

***

Farm Morning

2011-12-04T00:04:00.003-05:00

This was around 11 yesterday morning. At this time of year the sun just skims along the top of the ridge to the south.

Xena and Clover are weaned now and enjoying lots of hay. Dexter (below) is still bottle-fed but he's eating hay too.

Looking down the driveway. . .

Tractors are amazingly useful.

My friend who took home a truckload of composted manure after Thanksgiving came back for more.

Kate the donkey seems to find her new thick winter coat a little itchy.

Jarscapes

2011-12-03T00:04:00.023-05:00

Because sometimes you just don't know what to do with those cool wax lips . . .

or the remains of your kids' action figures from thirty-some years ago. . .

driftwood and river rock, broken bits and pieces you thought you'd mend someday . . .

marbles and wishbone and that odd little what-ever-it-is...

How many jarscapes to make a collection?

Wordless Willa

2011-12-02T00:01:00.001-05:00

Ecology of a Cracker Childhood

2011-12-01T00:05:00.001-05:00

Janisse Ray's Ecology of a Cracker Childhood is a double-barreled treasure of a book, combining a fascinating personal narrative with beautiful nature writing. Her memoir of growing up poor in a south Georgia junkyard on the edge of the piney woods blossoms into a lament for of all that has been lost as yet one more old-growth forest is destroyed.

Ray sees and praises the little things that most of us have missed, hurrying through Georgia to get to the Florida beaches or the Carolina mountains, but her focus is on the majestic long leaf pines that once covered much of the Southeast and she writes of them with beauty and passion.

As I read, I was reminded how those trees formed a backdrop to my youth. The house I grew up in had quite a few of these looming presences in the yard. Our suburb had been built on what was once cow pasture. . . and before that, pine and palmetto woods.

I especially recommend this book to those who are familiar with the southeastern US. But Ray's personal journey is inspiring on its own and the study of the ecosystem of her region might well inspire anyone to take a closer look at where they live, to take note of the intertwined lives of flora and fauna therein, to try to imagine it as it was in the past, and to think seriously about how what remains can be safeguarded.

Janisse Ray's website.

First Snow

2011-11-30T00:02:00.005-05:00

Here it is . . . the first snow.

I blame those of you who've been putting up your Christmas trees already . . .

But I did toss out my decorative gourds and mini-pumpkins Tuesday morning.

And then the sleet and rain turned to snow which meant . . .

Time to take off the shoes and socks and walk in the first snow --

an old Appalachian charm to to ensure health in the coming year.

Willa just wanted to eat it.

After Degas

2011-11-29T00:06:00.007-05:00

After Autumn's grand ballet,

A final flower lingers on the stage ...

Her faded finery flutters . . .

Pas de valse . . . en l' air. . . adage . . .

Unconsidered Trifles

2011-11-28T00:01:00.003-05:00

What Happens on the Bus ... Stays on the Bus

2011-11-27T00:04:00.023-05:00

Imagining voices of the past echoing through the abandoned school bus . . .

You sit here, Crissie, next to Tanya; she's in Miz Roberts's first grade class too. No, I ain't gonna sit with you; I got my own friends . . . Wonder will tomorrow be a snow day? . . . Debbie told me Travis likes you . . . Mack, Shane threw my shoes out the window! . . .

We was up late last night handing baccer . . . I'm like to yawn my head off . . .It don't matter; you can sleep through Math like you always do -- I'm gonna sleep through Math . . . That ol Shane he thinks he's something, him and them fancy shoes with the little lights on them. . . Loookit them big kids in the back-- he's got his hand up her shirt . . . You uns goin to the Christmas party?. . .

This old bus stinks . . . That's the third time this month it broke down . . . Mack says he reckons some of them transplanted hippies'll buy it . . .

Far out! The Big Blue Dream Machine . . .There's room in here for all of us -- put some bunks back there, leave the seats up here. . . Rainbow's got a trust fund -- she'll pay for new tires and Denver and George say they can get it running again . . . Fire up that doobie . . .So, San Francisco? Mexico? Canada . . .

No, the church bought it from some of those hippies that were living up in that old chicken house on the Brynum place. Those dudes spent most of a year trying to get it running and finally gave up -- most of them had moved on anyway and the feller that held the title was happy to get shed of it. Travis got it going with no trouble all except the heater. We're taking the youth group to Carowinds this Saturday and cold as it is, we told 'em to bring blankets so 's they don't freeze . . .

Ninety-nine bottles of beer on the wall, ninety-nine bottles of beer . . . Donnie's mother says we hadn't ought to be singing about no beer . . . She ought to have seen Donnie last week at the campout. . . . Amazing grace, how sweet the sound . . . I thought Tanya was one of them took that Wait Till Marriage pledge . . . And I thought she said she'd broke up with Shane . . . Look there in the back, under that blanket . . .

Cheese Biscuit Recipe

2011-11-26T00:03:00.002-05:00

Kath asked for this recipe ( my grandmother's.) Cheese biscuits were a popular Southern staple at parties when I was growing up back in the Fifties. They're really shortbread, not biscuits in the American sense of the word. These little bites are terrific served hot as an accompaniment to Bloody Marys.

Ba’s Cheese Biscuits

1 small glass Olde English Cheese (I don’t know if this is still around. You could substitute 8 ounces of any sharp, spreadable cheese. I used Kaukauna Port wine flavored spreadable cheddar. )

1 stick butter (1/4 pound)

1 cup flour (may add more if needed)

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon (or more) cayenne pepper

Cream cheese and butter together. Add flour, salt, and cayenne and mix thoroughly. Make two long rolls, as for ice box cookies. Refrigerate overnight or till well chilled.

Slice and place on cookie sheet. You may top each slice with a pecan half, if you like.

Bake about 10 minutes at 400 or 450. Bottoms should brown. Cool on wire rack; store in air-tight tin. If they lose their crispness, reheat for a few minutes.

Notes from Thanksgiving Night

2011-11-25T00:03:00.003-05:00

1. I took one picture early on and then things got away from me.

2. There was an immense amount of food -- but we really like this kind of leftovers.

3. Plus, we have friends coming Saturday for turkey sandwiches.

4. People outnumbered dogs -- seven to six.

5. Willa made sure to sit in every available lap.

6. The cats were put outside to avoid an Incident.

7. There is such a thing as too much andouille sausage in the dressing.

8. It's kind of cool to have the kind of friends who, during the break between dinner and dessert, take their truck down to the pasture to get a load of composted manure to take home.

9. 7:30 seems early to go to bed... but by the time I bathe it'll be 8, which is only an hour from 9 ... and it's either that or lapse into a tryptophan coma on the sofa.

10. Goodnight, my blog friends -- I'm thankful for the way you all have enlarged my world!

A Thanksgiving Wish

2011-11-24T00:04:00.029-05:00

Thanksgiving Help (?)

2011-11-23T20:00:00.000-05:00

What?

I was just looking. . .

Justin's Smoked Pepper Hot Sauce

2011-11-23T00:01:00.020-05:00

First wash a whole lot of jalapenos and habaneros . . .

Wearing rubber gloves (or you'll be sorry), cut off the stems (Justin did NOT seed and de-rib them, wanting maximum heat) then smoke them till they're soft and roasted. (Justin and John used cherry wood but hickory or mesquite would work.)

Whir up the smoked peppers in a blender or a food processor with just enough cider vinegar to make the mixture pourable.

Justin made about three gallons of this wonderful stuff and he brought us a half gallon. We decanted some into a soy sauce bottle, saved for the purpose. This will be kept in the refrigerator. The rest I put into zip bags to freeze for later use.

The flavor is smoky and intensely peppery and it is Hot. I like it in scrambled eggs, with ramen, and about anywhere I might use hot sauce. I'm tempted to add it to the Thanksgiving gravy . . .

Wet Day

2011-11-22T00:01:00.002-05:00

The view didn't change all day -- dark and misty with intermittent rain . . .

Though it wasn't cold (see the open windows,) it was a day to be thankful for shelter . . .

And rawhide chew-bones . . .

Bird by Bird - FAQ

2011-11-21T00:05:00.135-05:00

Darla asks: "In Bird By Bird, Anne has a chapter titled Plot Treatment . . . I read it and thought "OMG that is me right now" (minus the editor, advance and potential for being published.. LOL). Anyway, from what you've written before it seems like you don't run into this because you are very linear in your writing, but do you address this type of confusion in your classes? And/or have you run into it yourself? Color me curious!"

Bird by Bird is an excellent book. In the chapter Darla mentions, Lamott tells of sending a novel to her editor only to have it rejected because, in spite of beautiful writing and fascinating character, there was no structure. He suggested she abandon the book and write something else but Lamott was determined to make it work. She wrote out a detailed plot treatment -- 500 to 1,000 words for each chapter, describing what was happening in each chapter -- where it began, where it ended, and what had to happen to get from beginning to end, as well as how the ending of each chapter would flow into the beginning of the next.

With this road map (it ran to forty pages) in hand, Lamott says that rewriting the book -- shifting and adding scenes -- went smoothly and the book was one of her most successful.

In my classes, I haven't yet dealt with an entire novel -- only 20 to 40 pages. But I do recommend that the students think about what their protagonist wants to achieve; what obstacles stand between the protag and success; and how will those obstacles be overcome. That's a very bare-bones plot line. I also ask my students to come up with a brief (under a minute) coherent answer to the question "What's your book about?"

As for me: I tend to start with an inciting incident and a plan for an outcome and just a vague idea of how I'm getting there. About halfway through the book, I'll know more of what needs to go in the rest of the chapters and start doing a somewhat abbreviated chapter treatment. The one time I did a very complete chapter treatment before beginniong the book, as I wrote I kept feeling I'd already done this and it was a little boring. On the other hand, I didn't waste a lot of time wandering in the wilderness.

What works for one writer may not work for another. But if you have written a lot of wonderful scenes but suspect you don't actually have a plot, Lamott's chapter treatment method may be just what you need to help your novel soar.

Jack Frost

2011-11-20T00:06:00.006-05:00

Recent Reading

2011-11-19T00:04:00.005-05:00

"Foul Matter' is the publishing term (who said those guys didn't have a sense of humor?) for the marked-up, coffee stained, original hard copy of a manuscript that the publishers return to the author once the book is in print. From whence it can go to a box under the author's bed, a closet shelf. or a library's archives, if the author is Somebody. (Mine are in a drawer.)

Foul Matter is also the title of a wonderful book by Martha Grimes in which she does to the publishing industry what Elmore Leonard did to Hollywood in Get Shorty. A fun read for a glimpse inside.

Three more recent reads -- Deb Crombie is a favorite of mine but I put off reading Necessary as Blood when it came out because some of the plot line was similar to my work in progress -- female protagonist agonizing over whether to marry her long time boyfriend. It's a wonderful novel -- as are all of hers -- with an interesting look at the international mix that is modern London and the clashes that can occur. I'm feeling like starting back and re-reading this series from the beginning.

Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier traces the life of Mary Anning who, though uneducated, was a great discoverer of fossils in the chalk cliffs near Lyme Regis. I enjoyed the story for the setting and because it reminded me of bits from The French Lieutenant's Woman. As with her other novels, Chevalier has a website that will enhance your enjoyment of the book -- lots of pictures of the fossils described in the novel!

Mermaid by Carolyn Turgeon is a kind of fairy tale for adults -- a retelling of the Little Mermaid story. Some lovely, lovely description.

Bleak . . . with a Promise

2011-11-18T00:03:00.004-05:00

Riding the Phrog Bus

2011-11-17T00:05:00.003-05:00

On Saturday I met in Hot Springs with most of the members of the workshop I led at Wildacres last summer. They were all eager to continue work on their books and had arranged to hire me to critique an additional twenty pages for each of them. For the past month, everyone has read and critiqued everyone else's work to be ready for this day. The group rented a house for the weekend and we settled in for a long day of work-shopping those pages.

The group calls themselves The Phrog Bus for reasons arising from silly jokes we shared last summer (you had to be there, trust me.) Their novels are as diverse as they are -- futuristic, post-apocalyptic thriller, political thriller, traditional mystery, and just plain good stories about interesting people meeting challenges in their lives.

We spent about an hour on each set of pages and, as always happens in these workshops, the input of the group was incredibly useful. If, as a writer, you're particularly attached to something in your own work, it's easy enough to ignore a suggestion from one person. But if the majority of a group have trouble with something you've written, it's time to pay attention -- assuming it's your goal to reach a wide audience and you're not just writing for your own pleasure.

I was also thrilled to find that the writing had tightened up and gotten more focused since last summer. The Phrog Bus -- Dianna, Sharon, Claude, Lourdes, Joni, Rosemarie, and Karen (who took the pictures and, alas, isn't shown here) -- is a hardworking group but they know how to have fun.

We took a quick break for sandwiches and then forged ahead with our work-shopping, bolstered by the knowledge that Rosemarie had a special treat in store for our dinner. That sweet thing had prepared a dinner following a menu from IN A DARK SEASON -- Beef bourguignon, parslied potatoes, a Painter's Salad, and chocolate mousse.

Rosemary had even brought glass plates from home to serve the salad on -- since that's the way it was described in the book. And the meal was accompanied by Biltmore red wine -- 'a naive little domestic, but I think you'll be amused by its presumption' -- again from the book (though first, let me hasten to add, from a cartoon in the THE NEW YORKER that Elizabeth and I read years ago.)

What a terrific conclusion to a long and rewarding day!

A Common Thread?

2011-11-16T09:13:00.000-05:00

Is There a Thread?

2011-11-16T00:05:00.003-05:00

Shadows

2011-11-15T00:04:00.004-05:00

The past's long shadows

Fall across today and stretch

Beyond tomorrow.

All our yesterdays

Were tomorrows and todays --

Shadows fleeting past.

All tomorrows soon

Turn to yesterdays and all

Pleasant dreams to dust.

But today remains

Sufficient unto our time --

All --no more, no less.

Ba's Banana Bread -repost

2011-11-14T00:04:00.000-05:00

This is what you do with those bananas that have gotten too ripe. Banana bread was one of my dearly loved maternal grandmother's standards and when I make it, it's always a memory trip. I have the recipe in Ba's lovely spiky handwriting and I have her little wire racks to turn the loaves out on to cool. The smell fills the house and I'm ten years old again, a tall skinny little girl who didn't hesitate to butter a slice of the still-warm banana bread.

Some household acts are more than just cooking or cleaning -- some are sacraments.

Ba’s Banana Bread

Really more of a cake than a bread, it's dense and moist and sweet. Excellent toasted with butter, delicious cold and spread with cream cheese, just fine all by itself.

Makes two loaves (freezes well)
2 sticks (1/2 pound) butter
2 c. sugar
4 eggs, beaten
2 c. ripe bananas, mashed well (3 large bananas = 2 c.)
2 tsp. baking soda, stirred into the mashed bananas
3 1/2 c. sifted flour (sift before measuring)
1 tsp. salt, sifted with the flour

Prepare your loaf tins by greasing well (more butter) and cutting a piece of waxed paper to cover the bottom of the pan. Lay it in the greased pan and grease the top of the paper too.

Preheat oven to 325.

Cream together the butter and sugar. When well blended, stir in the beaten eggs. Mix well, add bananas and flour alternately till you have a well blended batter. Do not over-mix. Pour into loaf tins and bake at 325 for about an hour. A knife or bamboo skewer poked into the middle of a loaf should come out clean.

Turn out of loaf pans, peel off waxed paper, and let cool on a rack.

Silent Sunday . . . with Pictures

2011-11-13T09:21:00.000-05:00

Silent Sunday

2011-11-13T00:03:00.003-05:00

Meet Dexter

2011-11-12T00:03:00.002-05:00

Dexter is our third bottle calf. He was born just before the great cow plague hit us and seemed to be doing fine.

But then John found him one morning, stretched out stiff and cold and seemingly near death. Evidently, whether it was the disease, the vaccine, or the medicine, his mama had suddenly quit producing milk.

So John brought the baby to a warm stall and began the re-hydrating process -- running a tube down the baby's throat and giving him a dextrose solution. It took three or four days, with slow improvement and finally young Dexter was on the come back trail, standing and taking milk in a bottle.

Now he's one of the bottle babies gang. Xena and Clover could be weaned -- they're eating calf starter and hay but still want their bottles. And Dexter has two big girls to hang out with.

Veteran's Day

2011-11-11T00:06:00.005-05:00

Today we honor veterans -- all who served their country in the military -- and I wonder what changes would occur if a term of service to the country -- military or otherwise -- were mandatory for all who wanted to vote. . .

Up Close

2011-11-10T00:01:00.030-05:00

Mel, over at Luna Secrets, had some amazing close ups of viburnum leaves which inspired me . . .

These are pear tree leaves.

What beauty . . .

And what a gift, however fleeting!

Help! I Need Somebody . . .

2011-11-09T00:02:00.005-05:00

Eat Your Words at Avenue M (on Merrimon Avenue in Asheville) is a new kind of book club. You don't have to join or bring food; you don't have to take a turn hosting; you just make a reservation and show up. For a modest price, you'll get a four course meal and lots of discussion of the book of the evening (which you are asked to read beforehand.) It's limited to 21 so that it can be a real discussion, not a reading or a talk.

By an amazing coincidence, Under the Skin will be the featured book next week (Thursday, November 17th at 5:30) and I'll be there to lead the discussion and answer questions.

Of course I'd love to see any of you who are in the Asheville area at this dinner. (Go HERE for information.) But I beg any of you who've read the book to help me think of topics for discussion -- seances? sisterhood? syzergy? (I threw in that last one, just to be silly and alliterative but on looking it up in Wikipedia, I found that one of its meanings (the union of opposites) is appropriate.

Please, if you've read the book, help me out and suggest a topic suitable for book club discussion!Or any question you might have re the book.

Dog Friends

2011-11-08T00:01:00.006-05:00

Ali and Willa are unlikely playmates...

In spite of a considerable size/weight difference . . .

They like to play-fight . . .

Willa is tireless...

And fearless. . . .

And she likes to win.

Blog Friends

2011-11-07T00:05:00.088-05:00

You know what's been really, really nice about visiting bookstores to do presentations for my latest publication? Meeting blog friends -- folks who read this blog and/or whose blogs I visit. Of course, I always meet nice folks -- book lovers, by definition, are nice folks. But what fun to meet people that I already feel like I know!

Tracy, who comments here often, showed up at Fountainhead Books in Waynesville; Carole of Writer's Porch, surprised me at City Lights in Sylva; Terry, whose great, great grandfather Benjamin Franklin Freeman I've written about was at Accent on Books, as was fellow dog lover Brenda, of A Scratch Behind the Ears.

Jim, aka Wayfarin' Stranger, was at Malaprops, en route home to Tennessee, and Nancy, who has so generously shared her aunts Inez and Odessa with me was there too.

And yesterday at Blue Ridge Books, as I started in on my book talk, I kept noticing a pretty, smiling young woman who was noticeably pregnant and somehow familiar but I couldn't make a connection (I'm appalling bad at recognizing people -- ask my family.) During the question and answer period, I found out that, lo and behold, it was Nicole of Rare Bird.

Nicole is in the middle of a high-risk pregnancy -- her little girl was very premature --two pounds -- so Nicole is on bed rest -- only allowed up four hours a day.

And she came to see me -- I am so honored and so touched...

Writing hasn't made me rich in money -- but it's enriched my life with experiences and friends like these -- and like you . . . I treasure you all.

Smoky Mountain Haze

2011-11-06T00:02:00.004-04:00

They say God cast a veil of mist over these beautiful mountains so mountain folks in Heaven wouldn't look down and be homesick...

If you missed my post on Creeping Woo-woo (the vortex kept eating the link...), it's still there at Jungle Red . . .

Back to the Vortex -- No, Really . . .

2011-11-05T00:03:00.015-04:00

They tell me that this time I'm really over at Jungle Red, explaining how living in a New Age vortex has led to creeping woo-woo in my writing. Do stop by and share your thoughts on woo-woo.

And by the way, notice how when I superimposed the picture of a vortex (lifted from the internet) over one of our own sunrises, THE SUN IS CENTERED IN THE VORTEX!

Coincidence? Or the Appalachian Crystalline Vortex at work?

You be the judge.

Aflame

2011-11-04T00:04:00.005-04:00

The vortex post will be tomorrow -- meabwhile, here are some pretty pictures . .
.
Really, I'd thought I was done with autumn leaves and then, at the school where my Wednesday night classes meet, there was this absolutely GLORIOUS row of maples. . .

Writing from the Vortex

2011-11-03T00:07:00.021-04:00

This sounds like bait and switch but really, it's just a mixup. I was told my guest post at Jungle Red would be up today. But it's not.

Turns out it's SATURDAY I'm over at Jungle Red, explaining how living in a New Age vortex has led to creeping woo-woo in my writing. Do stop by then and share your thoughts on woo-woo,

Today the Reds are discussing whether 99 cent Kindle books will be the death of publishing. And it's an interesting post, as are the comments.

Willa's Wordless Wedneday

2011-11-02T00:03:00.003-04:00