Beth Trissel's Blog, page 97

To Win An Ebook of Time Travel Romance Somewhere My Lass

Visit my interview at The Romance Reviews and leave a comment for a chance to win one of three giveaways of light paranormal romance Somewhere My Lass. Winners chosen at the end of May.  So pop on in.  I'm a little late getting word out, because I forgot I was over there.

Blurb:

Neil MacKenzie's well ordered life turns to chaos when Mora Campbell shows up claiming he's her fiance from 1602 Scotland. Her avowal that she was chased to the future by clan chieftain, Red MacDonald, is utter nonsense, and Neil must convince her that she is just addled from a blow to her head–or so he believes until the MacDonald himself shows up wanting blood.

Mora knows the Neil of the future is truly her beloved Niall who disappeared from the past. Although her kinsmen believe he's dead, and she is now destined to marry Niall's brother, she's convinced that if she and Neil return to the past, all will be right. The only problem is how to get back to 1602 before it's too late.

The balance of the present and future are in peril if she marries another, and the Neil of the present will cease to exist. An ancient relic and a few good friends in the future help pave the way back to the past, but will Mora and Neil be too late to save a love that began centuries before?

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Amazon kindle, Arts, Literature, paranormal romance, romance, Scotland, Time travel romance

How Important Is Organic Gardening to You?

And does it apply to your lawn?  Americans regard their pristine green lawns as sacred, but at what cost to human and animal health and the environment?

I believe in and practice organic gardening.  This means no chemical pesticides or fungicides (I never use chemical fertilizer) only approved products such as insecticidal soap, neem oil, the natural fungicides available like copper soap shield, baking soda, olive leaf extract and garlic…I mulch with compost, well-rotted manure and hay, encourage earth worms and other beneficial insects to make their home in my garden.  Some of my favorite flowers are naturally seeded wild varieties.  As are my weeds, but a weed is only a misplaced plant.  And I have plenty of those.

An excellent company that sells environmentally responsible products for the lawn and garden is Gardens Alive.  I like what I've tried from them and they're expanding their product line to include seeds and plants.  They're a bit pricey so watch for sales and special offers.   Making your own compost is FREE.  So are many other organic alternatives.   Worms multiply rapidly under the right conditions and they're a gardener's best friend.

My newest thing (and FREE for me) is to mix a little unpasteurized milk with my organic brews and spray or water the plants with it — like giving them a shot of the healthful benefits of yogurt with all the micro-organisms in raw milk.  Most people can't do this because they don't have their own cows (goat milk might work too…hmmm…)  Anyway, I'm seeing some amazing results.

Strangely the EPA regards milk as potentially toxic to the soil, while it's actually beneficial to soil pathogens and plant growth.  If there's any kind of milk spill the EPA freaks out and treats it like an oil spill.  All the dirt has to be dug out and disposed of.  The EPA is forcing more and more regulations on small family farmers like us, already hard-pressed to survive and in compliance with their environmental restrictions, while doing nothing to check the chemical pesticide, herbicides, and fertilizers that lawn treatment companies spread on countless suburban lawns.  They do nothing to regulate chemlawn and companies like them, even though the chemicals dispersed into the environment are proven hazardous to human and animal life, increasing the risk of cancer and other diseases and disorders.  The run off from all this stuff ends up in rivers and bays.  When you consider how many lawns there are in America, it boggles the mind.  Not to mention all the toxic stuff they dump on golf courses.

Farmers are strictly regulated as to what can be spread on their fields under a government approved nutrient management plan that also includes regulations of natural fertilizers like manure.  Soil samples, etc, are required.  Farmers must take into account under what weather conditions anything is applied or be held responsible for negligence, while lawn companies don't have to meet any of these requirements.

I remember when a suburban friend called me in a panic because chemlawn had just been to her home to spray the lawn and it was windy that day and the whole place reeked of the herbicide called 2-4-D.   Sickening smell.  The spray had drifted onto her beautiful flower beds.  I looked on in horror and could only suggest she hose everything off, but it didn't work and she lost plants.  She later developed a nerve related disorder from exposure to one of the chemicals.  Not just from that single incident.  The doctor felt it was the repeated exposure.  She's gone organic now.

The evils of lawn companies fills pages on Google, so I won't go into it all but you can see for yourself here.   There are organic alternatives to a healthy lawn. I found a link with helpful info: http://www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/organic-solutions/lawn-care

Our yard needs frequent mowing despite the lack of any care at all, just encouraging earth worm activity.  However, there are a number of weeds mixed in with the grass, especially after last summer's drought, and we need to do some reseeding.  But I'm gradually expanding the surrounding flower and herb beds and seeding more wildflowers.   Far more interesting than grass and I love all the butterflies and birds they attract.   I'd also like to put in another water garden.  Lots of fun with fish and frogs, dragon flies and water plants.  Make your yard and garden ALIVE and filled with bird song.  Don't spread or spray scull and cross bones stuff on it.  Read labels and discover what's in those bags you use on your grass, and BEWARE of lawn companies.

*Pics of our farm & the valley, except for the first pic & that's from istock.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Beneficial insects, Compost, Garden, Google, Home, Home and Garden, Landscaping, Lawn, Organic, Organic horticulture, Plant, Shopping

Gift Baskets and Romance~

Who doesn't enjoy a beautiful gift basket?  This post is contributed by Diane, a gift basket blogger and writer of gift basket reviews.

Bring on the Romance with a Gift Basket.

When people think of romance, flowers and chocolates come to mind. However, these two items are not the only things that can inspire romance or reignite passion. Whether you and your partner just got together recently or have been dating for years, a well-prepared romantic gift basket will work wonders for your relationship.

There are countless romantic gift baskets available out there, but you should make your own if you really want to impress your sweetheart. It would be better to handpick the contents yourself and place them in a nice package. Before you choose the contents, think about your partner. The basket is your gift to the other person, and they should enjoy what is in it.

In most romantic gift baskets, alcoholic beverages and chocolates are staples. The baskets usually include either wine or champagne. When you make your own basket, choose the drink that both you and your partner will like. If you are a guy and your girlfriend or wife is pregnant, skip the alcohol and settle for sparkling cider instead. Chocolates can also be added, especially since it's known as an aphrodisiac. Other edible snacks which pair perfectly with your chosen drink can also be included in the basket.  (*Basket pictured can be purchased at Gourmet Gift Baskets.)

If you want a romantic night to pamper your partner, you can choose to include spa essentials in the gift basket rather than snacks. You and your partner can enjoy spa treatment without leaving home by spending quality time in the tub. This means you have to stock the basket with items such as scented candles, bath salts, bubble baths and loofahs. Do not forget to include massage oils, so you can treat each other to a relaxing massage after you get out of the tub. Nonetheless, if you truly want to treat your partner to a spa, feel free to include gift certificates.

If you want the romantic evening to end on a more passionate note, you might want to add some items which are just for lovers. There are a lot of things in the market which encourage couples to be more intimate with each other. These include satin blindfolds, flavored body butter, chocolate body frosting as well as edible body paints. Just remember to select only the items which your partner will be comfortable with.

If you want to boost the romance factor, forget flowers and chocolates; create your own basket instead!~

Thanks Diane.  I also like the idea of a romantic picnic basket.

For more on gift baskets for any occasion visit Diane's lovely site at: http://www.giftbasketreviews.net/

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Basket, Bath salts, chocolate, Easter, Ethnic and Regional, Food, Gift, Gift basket, romantic gift basket, romantic picnic, Shopping

My New Nonfiction Release, Shenandoah Watercolors

Shenandoah Watercolors

Written in a month by month journal style, Shenandoah Watercolors follows a year in my life on our farm in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. This collection of word paintings begins in May 2003 and concludes at the end of May 2004––a highly significant year for our family as it turned out.

Uncertain what route to pursue regarding its publication, I set it aside and continued to work on my fictional historicals for The Wild Rose Press. However, my mother showed Shenandoah Watercolors to a local historian who insisted it beautifully captured a vanishing way of life and must be published, an insistence that nagged at the back of my mind. With the evolution of the eBook world I decided to self-publish and share Shenandoah Watercolors with my fans.

My mother, Pat Churchman, did the spectacular cover and was of immeasurable help in editing this book, reading it over and over.  We originally intended to include some of her wonderful photographs of the valley and mountains, but the enormous undertaking involved was too daunting.  As it was, I had to hire an editor to format the manuscript for epub, not as easy as you might think.  So I invite you to explore this blog where many of mom's photographs are featured in various posts on gardening and rural life.

Description of Shenandoah Watercolors:

Author/farm wife Beth Trissel shares the joys and challenges of rural life on her family's small farm located in the scenic Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Journey with her through the seasons on the farm, owned by her family since the 1930′s, and savor the richness of her cherished gardens and beloved valley. This journal is a poignant, often humorous, sometimes sad glimpse into a vanishing way of life for anyone who loves or yearns for the country and even those who don't.~

Shenandoah Watercolors is available as an ebook at Amazon Kindle and at Barnes & Noble as a Nookbook. (However Barnes&Noble hasn't gotten my cover up yet and I have no idea why.  Amazon was prompt.)

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Amazon kindle, Barnes & Noble, Commonwealth of Nations, country journal, creative nonfiction, family, family farm, Garden, gardening journal, Hal Borland, nonfiction ebook, Pussy willow, Rural Virginia, seasonal nature journal, ShenandoahValley, Southern country journal, The Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, United States, Virginia

Welcoming the Gracious & Talented Mona Risk

I'm so pleased to have my friend author Mona Risk on my blog today.  Mona always has such interesting things to share with us.

I love visiting your beautiful blog. Thank you for hosting me today, Beth, as I talk of old trees that intrigue me.

You've come to the right place.  I love trees and count them as old friends.  :)

Some of the oldest trees in the world are:

Promotheus tree in the Grand Basin National Park, Nevada.

St Augustine: oldest magnolias trees, 600 years-old, its bark and hardwood filigree are used to make pendants.

Seychelles:

Hosting unique species like the mythical Coco-de-Mer or the rare Black Parrot, Vallee de Mai is in fact an ancient palm forest, home to numerous species of birds, insects and tropical plants.

We traveled by catamaran to the island of Pralin and trudged through the Valley of May, a dense forest where hordes of mosquitoes feasted on our legs and arms. But we kept on treading uphill to photograph the huge trees, called Coco-de-Mer, or sea-Coco, and their unusual fruits. The trees are either male or female. The male blossom brings to mind a big virile male member, and the female nut looks like a female pubis.

The Virgin Tree in Mataria, Egypt: One of the oldest trees in the world is the highly regarded "Virgin's Tree" at Mataria, in the outskirts of Cairo, that is said to have offered shelter to the Holy Family during their sojourn in Egypt. There is another tree next to it believed to be as old, but the Virgin's Tree still carries foliage while the other has no leaves at all.

Pilgrims frequently visit the Virgin's Tree and ask for miracles. Women hoping to conceive encircle the tree seven times. Sick people claim to have been cured of cancer and other diseases when they came to pray at the tree. There are many poignant stories associated with this tree. When a soldier was ordered to destroy it and cut a branch from the tree, blood came out.

The village of Mataria enjoyed great popularity among pilgrims from the Holy Land. It was regarded as a blessed place and leaves of the balsam were believed to have medicinal properties. Inevitably pilgrims began to deplete the foliage, even stripping the bark of the trees, which, it was rumored, provided healing balm when boiled.

In the 15th century a charge was collected to allow visit to the garden.. A Dominican monk, Felix Fabri, wrote that a fence was erected around the tree (which he referred to as a fig tree with a hollow trunk, in which there was a small chapel and two lamps) to restrict pilgrims to the sacred enclosure to four at any one time.

Today's Christian Coptics who make pilgrimage to the Virgin's Tree at Mataria point to a new miracle — a faint image of the Virgin and Child has appeared on the bark of the venerable tree.~

*Fascinating.  I had no idea.  And now, onto Mona's wonderful stories.

Rx IN RUSSIAN is available at TWRP and Amazon.com in print and ebook.

 An American Pediatrician

A Russian Surgeon

A woman who lost a son and her illusions about marriage and family.

A man with four adorable sons who badly need a mother

Can attraction and love overcome guilt, duty, and a clash of cultures?

 "Mona Risk writes heroes with heart, heroines with spunk in stories and settings that are simply unforgettable!" — Roxanne St. Claire, Killer Curves, National Bestseller.

Excerpt:

Jillian approached the hospital bed and rotated the handle. A metallic screech filled the silence. Damn bed. Fyodor hoped she didn't notice his blush as she played with the handle. Why did he feel as if he must pass a test? It wouldn't have bothered him to admit weakness in front of an older colleague.

"I'll add automated beds to the list of equipment to be shipped to your hospital," she said, her tone calm, revealing no arrogance or criticism. "Dr. Vassilov, I'll do my best to modernize the place while I'm here."

"Spacibo bolchoy. Thank you so much." He wanted to hug her, kiss her, tell her he was happy she wasn't the well-aged expert his government had promised as visiting physician. If she conducted business in this highly professional manner, it would be a daily pleasure to work with her.

He studied her oval-shaped face with its serious expression and lingered on her high cheekbones, delicate straight nose, and the chocolate brown strands that curled on her shoulders. A daily pleasure indeed.

Her eyes widened as she leveled a business look at him and dug two white teeth into her lower lip. "If there are things you specifically need from me, don't hesitate to ask."

"I will keep your offer in mind. Spacibo bolchoy, Jillian." His gaze swung to her delectable mouth. "I hope I may call you by your given name?"

She nodded and smiled. "Of course, Fyodor. No need to be formal when we're going to work together for six months."

He liked the way his name trailed on her lips. Fy-o-dor. Like honey. Her accent glided over his skin, caressed his heart, and stirred a desire he thought he had well under control.

Nyet. Stop there, Fyodor. His smile of admiration faded.

The lovely American was out of reach as far as he was concerned. He had an altogether different mission, a father's duty to find a good mother for his children. A well-disciplined officer and doctor, he always performed his duty, no matter what it cost. His glance swayed toward Jillian. The cost of performing his duty was escalating by the minute. Regret knifed through him, and he repressed a sigh.~

BABIES IN THE BARGAIN winner of 2009 Best Romance Novel at Preditors & Editors and winner of 2009 Best Contemporary Romance at Readers Favorite.

Rx FOR TRUST, winner of 2010 Best Contemporary Romance at Readers Favorite and 2011 EPICON.

Rx IN RUSSIAN just released by TWRP

All books available at The Wild Rose Press, Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com

http://www.monarisk.com/

www.monarisk.blogspot.com

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Botany, Coco de Mer, Dendrology, Egypt, Felix Fabri, Garden, Holy Land, Medical Romance, romance author Mona Risk, Tree

Thomas Jefferson's Beloved Monticello

The gracious home designed and built by Founding Father and Renaissance Man Thomas Jefferson is just a hop and a skip over the Blue Ridge Mountains from us.  I always enjoy a visit to this lovely home and its magnificent grounds. Among the many interests of this brilliant man, Jefferson was also impassioned about gardening.

The ongoing efforts to preserve his legacy are a rich investment in this vital part of our heritage.  I've long been fascinated with colonial America, partly inspired by research into my ancestors.  This far gone time doesn't seem so distant here in Virginia where much of that history took place and many of these amazingly gifted early Americans made their homes.

"Our greatest happiness does not depend on the condition of life in which chance has placed us, but is always the result of a good conscience, good health, occupation, and freedom in all just pursuits."~ Thomas Jefferson

"Those who labour in the earth are the chosen people of God." ~ Thomas Jefferson

Monticello is owned and operated by The Thomas Jefferson Foundation.  To quote from their site, "Monticello is the autobiographical masterpiece of Thomas Jefferson—designed and redesigned and built and rebuilt for more than forty years—and its gardens were a botanic showpiece, a source of food, and an experimental laboratory of ornamental and useful plants from around the world."~

For more on Monticello and the work of the foundation click here.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Blue Ridge Mountains, Colonial America, garden at monticello, history, List of national founders, Monticello, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, United States, University of Virginia, Virginia

"The story of Easter is the story of God's wonderful window of divine surprise."~Carl Knudsen

I've always loved Easter, a joyous season when the earth is reborn in a swell of new life washed with vibrant color, a time of spiritual and physical renewal.    I can't imagine Christ's resurrection taking place at any other time of year.   This is most fitting.  As a six year old recently returned from an early childhood spent in Taiwan, I delighted in my first egg hunt in a neighbor's yard filled with blooming crocus and daffodils.  Tucked in the green grass and among those shining blossoms were the many-colored eggs, like hidden jewels.  Magical. And chocolate rabbits.  I was in awe of an American Easter.

Of course, in those days little girls wore hats and gloves and crinolines under their Easter dresses.  Yes, I was born in the 1800′s.  I also received my first white Bible on Easter, which is still my favorite one.  It had this new book smell and books were quite special back then because my father was an underpaid English professor and we were poor.  I just liked smelling my new Bible, but did eventually read much of it.  The names of my favorite Sunday School teachers are inked in the front under the section entitled Friends at Church.  I must have been a real nerd not to have any children listed.

Another early Easter memory is our family returning home from church and me climbing from the car to bury my face in a golden clump of daffodils by the back doorstep, beaded with rain.  Their sweet scent said spring to me.  And new life.  I always imagined the tomb where Christ was buried and rose again surrounded by daffodils and crocus.

"For I remember it is Easter morn,

And life and love and peace are all new born."  ~Alice Freeman Palmer

"Let the resurrection joy lift us from loneliness and weakness and despair to strength and beauty and happiness."  ~Floyd W. Tomkins

"It is the hour to rend thy chains,

The blossom time of souls."  ~Katherine Lee Bates

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Alice Freeman Palmer, Bible, Christ, Christianity, Easter, Easter Bunny, Egg hunt, God, Holidays, Jesus, Sunday School, Taiwan, United States

The Joys and Trials of Gardening

Spring came back, and went mad. After a long winter's nap, she woke up ready to party hardy.  I've battled to keep up as it suddenly seems everything needs doing. Today my back is grumbling and I'm suffering from my annual carpel tunnel flare up.  And still seeking the perfect wrist wrap, one that offers support while allowing some flexibility. I can't do anything with those wraps that imprison my hand and wrist in unyielding plastic like armor.  I like the Smart Glove but have to wash and dry it often to tighten it back up.  Maybe after two years I need a new one.  Even the simple ace hand and wrist support is helpful.  My best help is ibuprofen.  And the only individuals who want to assist me are quite small, or dogs. Not as helpful as you might think, but that's the crowd I roll with.

Back to the garden.

"Gardening requires lots of water – most of it in the form of perspiration."  ~Lou Erickson

"Gardening is a matter of your enthusiasm holding up until your back gets used to it."  ~Author Unknown

"Gardening is about enjoying the smell of things growing in the soil, getting dirty without feeling guilty, and generally taking the time to soak up a little peace and serenity."  ~Lindley Karstens, noproblemgarden.com

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: carpel tunnel, Directories, FAQs Help and Tutorials, Garden, Home, Hugh Johnson, Personal, Plant, spring gardening, The Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, Vegetable

April On Our Farm in the Shenandoah Valley

So far this spring is filled with remodeling our old farm-house, and gardening, when it's not raining,  and all the small people in my life, though not as much writing as I would like.  The remodeling is at an end, for now–there's always more to be done in future projects.

Weather wise, we've gone from a gradually diminishing drought to flood watches out today.  April 2011 is turning into quite a wet month.  I'm not sure what 'normal' is in the Shenandoah Valley, but I'd prefer less extremes.   Still, I seek for the beauty amid the imperfection and this spring is sublime.  Thought I'd share a few pics of our farm along with some favorite quotes.

"April prepares her green traffic light and the world thinks Go."  ~Christopher Morley,  John Mistletoe

"Hoe while it is spring, and enjoy the best anticipations.  It is not much matter if things do not turn out well."  ~Charles Dudley Warner

"The year's at the spring

And day's at the morn;

Morning's at seven;

The hillside's dew-pearled;

The lark's on the wing;

The snail's on the thorn;

God's in His heaven -

All's right with the world!"

~Robert Browning

"April is a promise that May is bound to keep."  ~Hal Borland

"People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the whole time to have such things about us."  ~Iris Murdoch, A Fairly Honourable Defeat

"To be overcome by the fragrance of flowers is a delectable form of defeat. " ~Beverly Nichols

"Flowers… are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty out values all the utilities of the world."  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Flowers really do intoxicate me."  ~Vita Sackville-West

"The flowers of late winter and early spring occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size."  ~Gertrude S. Wister

"Flowers have spoken to me more than I can tell in written words.  They are the hieroglyphics of angels, loved by all men for the beauty of their character, though few can decipher even fragments of their meaning."  ~Lydia M. Child

"Those who labour in the earth are the chosen people of God." ~ Thomas Jefferson

"Cares melt when you kneel in your garden."

"A garden is a friend you can visit any time."

"Kiss of the sun for pardon. Song of the birds for mirth. You're closer to God's heart in a garden than any place else on earth." — Dorothy Frances Gurney

"But each spring…a gardening instinct, sure as the sap rising in the trees, stirs within us. We look about and decide to tame another little bit of ground." ~Lewis Gantt

"Though I do not believe that a plant will spring up where no seed has been, I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders." — Henry David Thoreau

"It is a greater act of faith to plant a bulb than to plant a tree."~Clare Leighton

"To dig one's own spade into one's own earth! Has life anything better to offer than this?"~Beverley Nichols

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Beverley Nichols, Bird, Charles Dudley Warner, Christopher Morley, Clare Leighton, Environment, Garden, Hal Borland, Henry David Thoreau, Iris Murdoch, Margaret Atwood, Mark Twain, Pussy willow, Ralph Waldo Emerson, ShenandoahValley, Shopping, United States, Virginia, Vita Sackville-West, ~Robert Browning

Rhubarb Pudding

One of my spring rites is making rhubarb pudding from the plants that have grown along the garden wall since well before my time, and I've lived here for several decades.  I've added some of the new, deeper red rhubarb plants over the years, but only one has survived.  This improved cultivar seems to lack the vigor of the old.  So I cut a few stalks from it, then return to the faithful clumps for the bulk of my harvest.  Today was my first pilgrimage to the rhubarb patch and I returned to the kitchen with a goodly supply of stalks.  Now the pudding is chilling in the fridge in the big brown and white pottery bowl I've had for ages.

I love this stuff.  Not everyone does and rhubarb may be an acquired taste, but many of our little people like it, and young children haven't had much of an opportunity to acquire a taste.

I don't use an actual recipe because, as with many old Southern dishes, my mother-in-law taught me how to make this, and I've adapted it somewhat, but I'll take a stab at a recipe for you.

Cut or purchase several good handfuls of rhubarb. The amount can vary. Chop the stems into two inch pieces and put them in a large saucepan (I use a 2-3 quart one) and barely cover with water.  Simmer, stirring frequently, until the stems are completely broken down.  Then whisk the cooked pieces until smooth.  Season with sugar to taste (I use about one to two cups depending on the amount).  Add two-three heaping tablespoons of instant tapioca (again, depending on how much liquid you've used) and simmer until the tiny pearls are clear. Add 2-3 tablespoons of strawberry gelatin and stir until dissolved.  Set mixture aside and chill in fridge until it sets. Add cut up strawberries if available after the pudding has cooled.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Baking and Confections, Cooking, Fruits and Vegetables, Gardens, Home, Home and Garden, Plant, Pudding, Rhubarb, Shopping, Tablespoon, Traditional Chinese medicine, United States