Allison Bruning's Blog, page 51

CWA: Seized

It stares at you as if it knows your innermost secrets. You hated that feeling. Last night at dinner you told Tasha that you thought you were getting close to identifying a group of soldiers who were working with the thief you had killed. She had seemed pleased with your progress. Thankfully, she didn't ask you anymore questions. Other than the one that you knew was bound to come up sooner or later. Were you going to accept her proposal to stay on the ship? Reluctantly you had agreed. Not because you had wanted to serve on board for the rest of you life as her personal security officer. No. You did it because you knew that you might be able to gather more evidence against the military for using kidnapping innocent civilians and manipulating them so that greater pieces of arts would be produced in the United States. You were certain the evidence you had gathered so far wouldn't be enough. But if you could create a scandal by providing proof the the families of the missing MIA soldiers that their loved ones were still alive maybe, just maybe someone would listen to you. After dinner you have snuck into the secret lower level where you had found the small boy a few days ago and began to journal your ideas. You wrote a letter to your closest friend, a professor at Harvard that had believed in your story about the cruise ship before you had decided to leave. Tasha had told you that you wouldn't forget the experiences you had and would gain on this cruise because the crew needed to remember everything so they could protect future passengers. But you didn't quite trust Tasha. What if she erased your mind and made you remember starting at the next cruise? No, you had to keep everything written down. You had stayed down there well into the night then snuck back into your cabin where you found Tasha and a few guards inside. You had panicked thinking Tasha had learned the truth. You knew you had to remain calm. Tasha had asked where you had gone. She had been wanting to speak to you. You told her you were spending time with a fellow passenger. She had smiled and told you, "Well whoever it was won't remember you so you might as well enjoy yourself." After a brief discussion she had bid you goodnight then left with her guards. You slept peacefully last night only to wake at the announcement this morning that the ship had arrived in Denver, Colorado. Who knows what you find today?
[image error] owl by Archibald Ballantine
@http://www.flickr.com/photos/zoetnet/...
The door is opened by a thirtysomething woman with long, dark, straight hair and a wide smile.  She is perhaps a little on the plump side, but her tailored slacks and blazer enhance her figure.“Welcome to my condo,” she says.  “Come on in.”  Then, over her shoulder, she calls, “Joseph, they’re here.  Are the appetizers ready yet?”“Nearly thawed,” a cheerful male voice replies.  “The wine’s poured, anyway.” The owner of the voice approaches the door.  He is tall and thin, with dark hair pulled back into a ponytail.  He looks back and forth from the woman to us and grins. “Don’t leave them standing in the hall, Naomi,” he says, taking her gently by the shoulders and moving her out of the doorway.“Whoops, sorry,” she says as we enter.  “Anyway, hi.  I’m Naomi Witherspoon and this is Joseph Curtis.  He’s, um, here a lot.”“I’ll get the wine,” he says, rolling his eyes.“Anyway,” she resumes, cutting a look of fond exasperation at him, “there’s not much to see, really.  It’s a regular one-bedroom condo.  The living room is here on the right.”  The room is decorated in a comfortable, modern style.  A sofa lines the wall just inside the door and a couple of armchairs face it across a glass-topped cocktail table.  The wooden parts of the furniture are stained black and the upholstery is dark browns and blues, with red accents.  A fieldstone fireplace and the flat-screen TV hanging above it dominate the wall to our right.“I was sold on the place for three reasons,” Naomi goes on.  “One, it was within walking distance from the law firm I worked for.  Two, it has two fireplaces – this one and the one in the bedroom.  And three, it has a great view of the Front Range.  For a girl from the flatlands of the Midwest buying a condo in Denver, there didn’t seem to be any point in buying a place that didn’t have a view of the Rockies.”  As she speaks, she crosses to the far wall and pulls open the vertical blinds.  We ooh and aah obligingly at the snow-capped peaks.“Over here is the kitchen,” she says, dodging a desk piled high with papers and law books on the way.  “I didn’t bother getting a dinette set.  My work hours are so crazy that I never have time to cook.  We usually get takeout, or thaw something, and eat it at the breakfast bar.”  She indicates the raised portion of the island that separates the kitchen workspace from the living room.  Glasses of white wine stand ready for us, and Joseph is just putting some hot appetizers on a plate next to them.“Help yourselves,” he says, taking off a pair of hot mitts, so you do.  After a few minutes, Naomi moves the tour along by saying, “Over here, through this doorway, is the bedroom.”  You step inside with the rest of the group.  She skirts the queen-size bed to pull back the blinds on the window on the far wall, giving us another view of the mountains.  The light from the window highlights the fireplace, a slightly smaller cousin to the one in the living room.  A cozy reading chair, flanked by bookcases, sits nearby.“This door leads to a walk-in closet,” she continues.  “Down that hall is another closet for the washer-dryer, and the bathroom is at the end.  And that’s pretty much it.”  She holds out her hands, palms upturned.  “Any questions?”In the slight pause that ensues, you hear a series of soft noises from the fireplace.  Then a great horned owl swoops out of the opening, takes a turn around the room, and lands at the foot of the bed.You gasp, but Naomi seems anything but surprised.  “Joseph,” she says, frowning at the bird, “I thought you told me the chimney cover was fixed.”He fluffs his feathers at her, and you get the impression that if owls could smile, this one would be grinning. [image error]

Where to Buy Seized:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Seized-Pipe-Woman-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B007MGRCBUSmashwords:  https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/172655Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/seized-lynne-cantwell/1109760776?ean=2940014719216&format=nook-book


[image error]
Where to buy Fissured:Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Fissured-Pipe-Woman-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B008ZDE6JUSmashwords:  https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/216150Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fissured-lynne-cantwell/1112548021?ean=2940014884471

Who Is Lynn Cantwell? [image error] Lynne Cantwell grew up on the shores of Lake Michigan. She worked as a broadcast journalist for many years; she has written for CNN, the late lamented Mutual/NBC Radio News, and a bunch of radio and TV news outlets you have probably never heard of, including a defunct wire service called Zapnews.  Lynne’s vast overeducation includes a journalism degree from Indiana University, a master’s degree in fiction writing from Johns Hopkins University, and a paralegal certificate.  She currently lives near Washington, DC.  Visit her blog: http://hearth-myth.blogspot.com.

“The Pipe Woman Chronicles” really get rolling on December 21, 2012.  Lynne is celebrating the kickoff of the events in Seized with a Winter Solstice Advent Countdown contest!  The prize is a $25 Amazon gift card and an “I Survived the End of the World” key chain.  Stop by her blog – http://hearth-myth.blogspot.com – to enter!

LID: Procrastination Perfection

[image error] Christmas tree phase one by Scott Feldstein
@http://www.flickr.com/photos/scottfel...




December 19
National Evergreen Day





Procrastination heaven! National Evergreen Day is the perfect day to remind you to put up that Christmas tree, if you haven't done so already. Most people like to use a live tree. In 2011,  30.8 million live Christmas trees were purchased in the United States, with a real market value of $1.07 billion. The most popular evergreen varities used as a Christmas tree are Scotch pine, Douglas fir, Noble fir, Fraser fir, balsam fir and white pine. Christmas trees are grown and harvested in all 50 states. This year, Christmas tree farms planted 46 million seedlings. Farmers usually plant three seedlings for every tree they cut. It will take 6 - 10 years before these seedlings grow large enough to be harvested. To learn more about Christmas tree fact you can visit  http://richmondregister.com/lifestylescommunity/x942835825/Christmas-tree-facts-350-million-Christmas-trees-are-growing-in-the-U-S
With six days until Christmas, most people have already found their tree and decorated it. 
Where Did The Christmas Tree Come From?
Evergreens were used before the time of Christ to celebrate the winter season. The ancients believed the evergreen would keep away witches, ghosts, evil spirits, and illness. During the winter, the ancients would make boughs of evergreen then hang them on their doors and windows. 
The Evergreen tree wasn't used as a Christmas tree until 1510 in Riga, Latvia. Riga had been a center of trade and a stopover for pilgrims during the medieval age. There were many merchant guilds in the city. Their purpose was to build inter-city trade. One of these guilds, the House of Blackheads (Melngalvju nams), was establishedby German merchants from Lubeck Germany. The Blackheads consisted of young, unmarried merchants and ship captains in the Hansa cities. An organization housed by the House of Blackheads known as the Brotherhood of the Blackheads was in existence between 1334 until 1939.  The tree was attended by men in black hoods. The brotherhood had set it up in order to be burned.  The next day, the brotherhood went back to the tree only to find the local children had decorated it with paper flowers and dried fruit. It was so beautiful they decided not to burn it until after Christmas. The tree was burned during the first week of January. Thus a new Christmas tradition was born. 



The custom of the Christmas Tree continued in Riga. During the middle ages, it had been decorated with ribbons, dried flowers, straw dolls, weave, and possibly fruit. People would dance around the tree singing songs and having other celebrations. It stood in the center of town until the first week of January then was burned in the town square.  
According to the firstchristmastree.net "In 1584, the pastor and chronicler Balthasar Russow wrote of an established tradition of setting up a decorated spruce at the market square where the 'young men went with a flock of maidens and women, first sang and danced there and then set the tree aflame'. In that period, the guilds started erecting Christmas trees in front of their guildhalls: Ingeborg Weber-Kellermann (Marburg professor of European ethnology) found a Bremen guild chronicle of 1570 which reports how a small tree was decorated with 'apples, nuts, dates, pretzels and paper flowers' and erected in the guild-house, for the benefit of the guild members' children, who collected the dainties on Christmas Day."
The idea of the Christmas tree spread throughout Germany. Yet it wasn't allowed inside the home until the 16th century. Martin Luther, a German preacher, was walking through the woods at night. Looking up at the sky to the stars, he was awstruck at the beauty of the night sky. He went home and told his children the sky had reminded him of how God has sent Jesus to the world. Martin Luther brought one of the trees inside his home so they would never forget that lesson. 

CWA: Desolate Desert

The sky stretches for miles as the cruise ship hovers over Phoenix, Arizona. You flip through the journal the boy had given you the other day, hoping to find more secrets to this ship. Nothing. You close the journal, place it in your satchel and leave your cabin with the satchel on your hip. The hallway is crapped with families preparing for the next tour. The cruise ship descends so gracefully while you are walking you barely feel anything. You make your way to the deck. Ant like buildings and cars below you grow larger as look over the railing. Phoenix. Are you ready for this?

[image error] Phoenix approach by: ddension @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/ddenisen...

I still don’t understand how you got a ship all the way out here in this porta-potty of a land. If you ask me, you had some extra-terrestrial intervention. No way could a ship get way out here without pyramid building technologies. But that’s just telling tales out of school. And anyway, now that you’re here, it doesn’t really matter how you got to this place. I have a job to do and I intend to do it right.
Welcome to Phoenix, Arizona. The shite hole of the Universe.
First off, it wasn’t my idea to come here. It was Spring’s. That’s my daughter.  That girl can’t stand the cold. Has this notion that snow is bad. Your hamburger truck breaks down in the mountains in the middle of January just once, and cold is evil forever. Of course, she takes after her dead beat dad. The fool wasn’t born in a cabbage patch. He was spewed from a cactus. But I’m not gonna get sidetracked talking about Ernie. That’s a story for another day.
I’m Lanie, by the way and I’ll be your tour guide.  Don’t worry, it’ll be quick. Matlock and my smoke break start in fifteen minutes, and I’m not missing neither.  Guess what I’m trying to say is look quick, get back on the boat, and save your questions for another tour guide.
Over to the left you have some sand. And over to the right you have some sand. Smack in the middle of the sand is…more sand. Way back in the days when everyone was bored someone thought it would be a good idea to put buildings on the sand. Big, shiny, heat collecting buildings. And then someone else decided to live in them. Eventually, a lot of people moved into them. I’m not sure why they haven’t all been cooked like a baked potato in the microwave yet, but trust me, they stay here long enough and that is coming.
Right in the middle of the tallest cluster of buildings is a little bar my daughter likes to go to: The Paradise Pub. I’ve been there and it’s a yard shy of paradise. But what does she know? She’s not worldly like me. She’s never been to a nude beach or a Phish concert. Her idea of an exciting evening is listening to live music at a coffee house. Poopy.     On the outskirts of the city are these things called suburbs. Tiny clusters of cookie cutter houses centered around a Target. It’s creepy really. And against my better judgment, I live in one.    That’s my house over there: the boring one next to the house with purple socks hanging from the trees. I live with my daughter, Spring, and her moron boyfriend Sam. Spring works as an ambassador to Casey the Walking Condom, and Sam reads books and eats potatoes. Spring has twin boys with attention problems. No idea where they got that from. Now where was I?  Oh, yes. I have my own room in the house, but I’m planning on moving out soon. I just need to save up a social security check or two, learn how to drive, and figure out the internet. Then I’m off to Bali or Belize or someplace where I can go topless without getting arrested.     I wish I could say more about this location, but it’s a dump. Spring might argue but as long as I’m tour guide that’s the official stance on Phoenix, Arizona. One, big, heaping dump.    Well, it’s been fun, but Matlock is on. I have to run.     With that I bid you an Arigato, Bon Voyage, and a Buenos Amigos.
[image error]

Who Is April Aasheim? [image error] April Aasheim  spent her childhood traveling around the Southwestern portion of the United States with her gypsy mother and her 'get rich quick' stepfather. During those formative years she spent time traveling with the carnival, living in an abandoned miner's shack, and learning to read Tarot Cards. After spending her early adult years in California, Tennessee, and Arizona, April finally settled down in Portland, Oregon where she has lived for the last decade. April is a mother, a wife, and a reluctant homemaker. She has written several short stories, maintains an active blog, and is writing her second novel: The Witches of Dark Root, to be released in early 2013.

LID: C is for #Cookies and Cookies are for me!

Cookies by John Smith
@http://www.flickr.com/photos/61287964...
December 17
National Bake Cookie Day
Don't those cookies just look delicious? Whoever decided National Bake Cookie Day was a genuis. There's just nothing better than eating fresly baked homemade cookies. Yum!
Cookies come in all shapes, sizes and are known throughout the world by various names. In the United States our cookies tend to be hand held, flour based sweet cakes that are either crisp or soft. My favorite kind of cookie is a soft one. There are nine different kinds of cookies. These have been identifed by wikipedia as:

Bar cookies consist of batter or other ingredients that are poured or pressed into a pan (sometimes in multiple layers), and cut into cookie-sized pieces after baking. In British English, bar cookies are known as "tray bakes". Examples include brownies, fruit squares, and bars such as date squares.Drop cookies are made from a relatively soft dough that is dropped by spoonfuls onto the baking sheet. During baking, the mounds of dough spread and flatten. Chocolate chip cookies (Toll House cookies), oatmeal (or oatmeal raisin) cookies and rock cakes are popular examples of drop cookies.Filled cookies are made from a rolled cookie dough filled with a fruit or confectionery filling before baking. Hamantash are a filled cookie.Molded cookies are also made from a stiffer dough that is molded into balls or cookie shapes by hand before baking. Snickerdoodles and peanut butter cookies are examples of molded cookies. Some cookies, such as hermits or biscotti, are molded into large flattened loaves that are later cut into smaller cookies.No-bake cookies are made by mixing a filler, such as cereal or nuts, into a melted confectionery binder, shaping into cookies or bars, and allowing to cool or harden. Oatmeal clusters, Rice Krispies Treats and Rum balls are all no-bake cookies.Pressed cookies are made from a soft dough that is extruded from a cookie press into various decorative shapes before baking. Spritzgebäck are an example of a pressed cookie.Refrigerator cookies (also known as icebox cookies) are made from a stiff dough that is refrigerated to become even stiffer. The dough is typically shaped into cylinders which are sliced into round cookies before baking. Pinwheel cookies are representative.Rolled cookies are made from a stiffer dough that is rolled out and cut into shapes with a cookie cutter. Gingerbread men are an example.Sandwich cookies are rolled or pressed cookies that are assembled as a sandwich with a sweet filling. Fillings include marshmallow, jam, and icing. The Oreo cookie, made of two chocolate cookies with a vanilla icing filling, is an example.

It All Started With Some Sugar
I can't imagine a world without sugar, can you? But it did exist.
sugar cane by Ton Rulkens@
http://www.flickr.com/photos/47108884... grew abundantly in the Indian subcontient but was not being produced for sugar until around the 5th century AD during the Indian Gupta Empire.  During that time, the Indians had discovered how to turn sugarcane juice into granulated crystals. Once it was processed they could store the granulated sugar without worrying about the sugar spoiling. Indian sailors would carry it along with clarifed butter whenever they travelled. As they travelled along their various trade routes the existence of sugar became known to various traders. Although the knowledge of sugar's existence became common knowledge along the trade routes the Indians kept how they made it a very closly kept secret. 
According to whatscookingamerica.net "In 510 BC , hungry soldiers of the Emperor Darius were near the river Indus, when they discovered some "reeds which produce honey without bees." Evidently this early contact with the Asian sources of sugar cane made no great impression, so it was left to be re-discovered in 327 BC by Alexander the Great, who spread it's culture through Persia and introduced it in the Mediterranean. This was the beginning of one of the best documented products of the Middle Ages." 
An Accidental Discovery During the 7th century AD,  Persians created sweet cakes by adding sugar to their bread recipes. The Persians used a clay oven fueld by a fire made of dry wood. It was hard to determine the oven tempurature. The Persians solved this problem by takinga a small amount of their cake batter and placing it on a pan. They would then place the pan into the oven. They would repeast this process until the batter was baked to the consistency they had wanted for their cake. Thus the cookie was born. Eventually the cookies became a special treat. 
Here's a Persian Cookie Recipe: http://chefindisguise.com/2011/12/20/mums-persian-cookies-cinnamon-almond-date-cookies-and-a-giveaway/
American Cookies - Colonial Recipes

2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

In a mixing bowl cream sugar and butter until light. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Blend in milk and vanilla. Stir together flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and 1/2 teaspoon of salt; stir into creamed mixture. Form dough into one-inch balls. Place balls two inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Lightly flatten balls with the sugared bottom of a tumbler. Bake at 375 until done. 10 to 12 minutes. Makes about 8 dozen. 

2 cups of packed brown sugar
1 1/2 cups butter, softened

**********************

4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Currants raisins, licorice etc. for decorating 

Cream sugar and butter; add egg. Beat until light and fluffy. Stir flour with spices and baking soda; add to creamed mixture. Mix well. Cover; chill dough for about 2 hours. On floured surface, roll dough to 1/8 thickness. Cut with a gingerbread man cutter. Place on un-greased cookie sheet, decorate by pressing ingredients lightly into the cut-out figures. Bake at 350 until lightly browned, about 8 to 10 minutes. Cool 1 to 2 minutes; remove to rack. Makes about 72. 
What is your favorite cookie recipe?

CWA: Memories to Last A Lifetime

Attention passengers, this is Cheryl your Cruise Director.  Today will be an exciting day touring another island and exploring fabulous beaches.  Don’t forget your sunscreen.  All passengers please report to the main deck to board the transport to the island.
The ship assumed an eerie quiet with only a few crew members remaining to prepare for the passengers’ return.  An occasional chirp from a porter’s walkie talkie interrupted the sleepy silence.A slim shadowy figure slunk down the deck hesitating at cabin 13.  Glancing to the left, then right, the figure rapped quickly on the door.
Welcome my friend. A rotund man opened the cabin door illuminating the shadowy figure in a swath of bright light.  She flinched under the glare and slipped into the cabin quickly.Please make yourself at home.  A spot of tea perhaps or shall I order from room service?  I suspected we would speak today when I saw that you had not signed up for the day trip.

 “But but, how did you know I would come to speak to you Doctor?  We had never met before the Captain’s banquet and even then we barely spoke.   I found your book on memoir writing in the ship’s library after the Captain introduced us and mentioned that you wrote books while helping people discover the story within them. Time allowed me a few quiet moments to read it and I felt inspired.   It was only then that I knew we needed to meet.   You certainly do know how to unlock the secrets in the brain.”
Well, quite honestly, when I learned of your trip, I booked a cabin as well knowing that our time to come together was imminent.  My intuition spoke loudly that I needed a cabin as someone; you in fact, would require my assistance unlocking memories.   Am I correct in assuming that vacationing on this cruise has helped your memories come rushing back?  How confusing this must be for you.  Frightening even.   I used this cruise an opportunity to help you focus on your special story—the story of your life.
“You’re right.  I have a story to tell and am not quite sure how to do it.  With our 30th high school reunion fast approaching I’m trying to decide whether or not to attend.  Those four year broke my spirit; however, I want to teach people through my life experiences.  Your book will guide me on this journey down memory line.  A memoir.  That’s what I want to write.” 
Well, let me get my favorite guide to capturing your life stories.  It appears that you have already spotted my latest book, Slices of Life:  The Art and Craft of Writing Memoir on the side table.  Simply a fabulous read if I do say so myself and it specifically leads you through your life journey one step at a time to find that slice of life to fine tune into a memoir. 
Let’s start on this together.  First, we’ll make a list of memories.  Write for 5 minutes as fast as you can just jotting down whatever comes to mind.
The clock on the wall marked each second with a harsh tick.  Scratching of pencil to paper was the only other sound to fill the silence.
Snow ball fight with Sharee
Jasper the mouser
Finding new hair on my body
Parking with George
Police scanners are bad
Purple Jesus in typing class
Graduating from college
Breaking up sucked
Tequila hangover
I want a divorce, ok
Building a nest
184,000 miles and counting
HPV

Ok, time’s up.   What do you have on your list?  I see a mixture of events, people, and emotions.  Does any one thing draw your attention more?
“I haven’t thought of Purple Jesus for years.  No one expected such a goody-two-show like me to fall in with the bad crowd.  I want to write about being a misfit. ”
Really?  Purple Jesus you say?  Ok, that is what you will write about next.  We’re going to create another list but this time I want you to include all of the people, places, sounds, smells and details about Purple Jesus that you remember.  I’m only giving you 3 minutes this time so write fast and don’t worry about making this perfect.
More scratching on paper as the clock ticked slicing the silence.  The Doctor continued to study his visitor who crinkled her brow in concentration as the words poured onto the page.
The mysterious doctor stroked his beard before speaking.  Purple Jesus was a kool-aid and vodka drink you snuck into high school typing class in empty Fanta grape bottles for a semester?  Really, you never got caught?  I’m sure that there is more behind this story so our homework tonight is to write up a draft to share at our next session.
Based upon your list, most of the memories on your first writing dash deal with high school.  Perhaps that is the slice of life that your memoir will write about.  What would you want to teach readers who pick up your book?
“My high school years sucked.  I would want to teach readers how to survive being the outcast in high school without feeling like a victim.”
That sounds like an admirable memoir to write.  If you read Slices of Life:  The Art and Craft of Memoir Writing, you can continue on this writing journey alone.  This well-written book contains all sorts of fun activities to pull those hidden memories from your brain onto the page.
“Doctor look at the time.  I didn’t realize how much fun writing for a memoir could be.  Quick!  I must leave now.  Today’s excursion returns any minute and I don’t want anyone to know I’ve been here.  Not until my memoir on surviving high school has been published.”
Snatching the doctor’s copy of Slices of Life off of his side table, the slender lady slipped her wrap over her shoulders and quietly opened the door to cabin 13.  Scurrying back to her cabin, she flipped open to the first activity in the book and began to write.  As the hours passed, the pen slipped from her grip as her head slid onto the pillow.
A brilliant sun illuminated the deck after breakfast the next morning, blinding the slender lady as she sought out the cruise director.  “Excuse me Cheryl, I am looking for the passenger staying in cabin 13 but I can’t seem to locate the room.  Can you help me?”
“Oh honey, cruise ships never use the number 13 when numbering cabins.  Too much superstition comes along with that number.  I’m sorry that I can’t help you."
“Hhmm…so where did I go that morning and whom did I speak with?  This book.  Where did it come from if I didn’t take it off of the doctor’s side table?  Slices of Life:  The Art and Craft of Memoir Writing has unlocked so many memories and I know that writing a memoir is possible.  I want to thank him before leaving.  Maybe I am losing my mind and this cruise was a bad idea.  A story though lies under the surface of my memories about surviving under the radar in high school.  It needs to be told.”
With the help of porters, passengers queued up to disembark from the cruise ship.  The slender lady frantically asked crew members and guests about the rotund doctor but no one knew of such passenger.  With only a few minutes left to thank him, she slid the copy of the book into her purse.  Sometimes my imagination gets the best of me so maybe I imagined the whole session she wearily thought. But where did I get this book?  I may never know how it started but with this magical book, my memoir will be on shelves before the holidays.
Who is Cheryl Stahle?
“Dear Blogging Friends, I want to do a virtual tour promoting your books on my website.  Just put your character on a cruise ship.”   Allison’s message came through while I was relaxing on the beach so I’m attributing my eager ‘yes’ on too much sun exposure.  Sure, why not?  Well, Slices of Life:  The Art and Craft of Writing Memoirs by Cheryl Butler-Stahle has no characters.  It doesn’t have a setting either.  Piece of cake?  Let’s just say, this has been fun and funny as I worked through various drafts to include on this tour.  Thank you Allison!
Here’s my world in a nutshell:  Multitasking writer enjoys chaos and chardonnay.  Cheryl Stahle, memoirist, writing coach, teacher and author facilitates memoir writing workshops on the east coast as well as virtually reaching a global audience.  Cheryl’s latest book Slices of Life:  the Art and Craft of Memoir Writingavailable at www.yourbestwritinggroup.comas well as Amazon and Doylestown Bookshop (and frequently a box of them sits in the trunk of her car for impulse buyers) is receiving rave reviews for its style and ability to lead writers through the memoir process.  Check out her workshops,  programs and blog at www.yourbestwritinggroup.com.   

LID: #FirstNations Create an American Legacy

[image error] Maple Sugar from Canada
By:Jan Smith
@http://www.flickr.com/photos/26085795...

December 17
National Maple Syrup Day









Get those pancakes, French bread and waffles ready. It's Maple Syrup Day!
I can be very picky about what maple syrup I serve on my table. Growing up in North Central Ohio I was raised on maple syrup that wasn't a national brand but came from the small farms in Ohio that tapped it. Maple syrup operations in Ohio? My homestate may not be on the east coast but it is one of the states that produces maple syrup. In fact it is the fourth leading state to produce maple syrup. You can learn more about Ohio maple syrup at http://www.ohiomaple.org/facts.htm#Ohio%20Maple%20Facts
I also grow up in an area where there still is a large Amish population. I mainly grew up eating Amish maple syrup. You can take a tour of the Amish maple syrup production at http://www.experience-ohio-amish-country.com/maple-syrup-tour.html
The making of maple syrup is an old American tradition that began with Native American on the east coast. It was a Native American food that was unknown to the Europeans until colonists came to the New World. The colonists were not familiar with maple sugar because the Sugar Maple only grows in Northeastern and North Central parts of the United States. Sugar Maples cannot grow where it reaches 100 degrees nor can they survive in below 0 tempuratures. It can grow to be 125 feet. The Sugar Maple is only one of the five types of maple trees that can be tapped for their sap. It is used the most because it creates the most flavorable sap. The Sugar Maple sap contains about 2% sugar but can produce up to 6%. The tree must be forty years old or twelve inches in diameter before it can be tapped. It can only be tapped for its sap three times.  During any given season, once the tree is tapped it can produce up to 10 gallons of sap but some trees have been known to give more than 70 gallons. It takes about 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of maple syrup. This is why our maple syrup can be so expensive.
 Below is a video that shows how the Native American used the Sugar Maple sap.

Maple Sugar played an important part in 17th century Native American life. It was viewed as a source of nutrition and energy. No one knows how the Native American began to harvest the maple tree for its delicious sugary sap yet there are many legends. Some of those native legends can be found on the First People's website here:  http://www.firstpeople.us/FP-Html-Legends/HowMapleSugarCame-Salteaux.htmlandhttp://www.firstpeople.us/FP-Html-Legends/GluskabeChangesMapleSyrup-Abenaki.html
Harvesting a maple tree for its sap can be done anytime of the year but the best time to do so is during late winter/early spring. This is because the optimal tempuratures to make the perfect sap run is 20s at night and  40's in the day. If the nights are too cold it will take the sap longer in the day to warm up. If daytime tempuratures reach above 40 the enzymes in the sap will change the consistency. Once the tempurature reaches 50 the sap will cease to run. The late winter/ early spring also creates pressure within the tree to help the sap run. The perfect season to tap a tree can range anywhere between 2 to 8 weeks but the norm tends to be 4 to 6 weeks. The season ends when the maple trees begin to sprout buds. If sap is collected from a tree that has already begun to sprout buds the taste of the sap will change from a maple flavor to a more "buddy" taste. After maple sap is collected it can be made into sugar, cream or syrup.
After the Native Americans taught the European settlers how to tap a maple tree and make maple sugar, European settlers adopted the the maple sugar as a sweetner for their food. Maple sugar was perferred by the colonists because sugar was too expensive to procure. Maple Sugar became as common as colonial households as table salt is to us today. 
The Native Americans not only made maple sugar but also maple syrup. This was usually done in a camp. When the maple sap was gathered it was carried back to the camp where they would placing the maple sap into clay pots. The pot were placed ontop of a simple fire with a roof made from branches used as a lid. The process of making maple syrup is time consuming. The Native Americans would had a feast in the camo while the maple sap was boiling. Native Americans traded their maple syrup with the settlers but were not so quick to share how they had made it. Eventually they shared their secrets with their new neighbors. In 1690, the first European to create maple syrup was a French missionary. In the 17th and 18th centuries, colonists were creating not only maple sugar but maple syrup as well. 

CWA: Not Your Average Senior Life

The cold winter winds of the Great Lakes crash into the side of the cruiseship while the sun plays with you mind. It was so beautiful outside with its slightly cleared skies. The sun highlighted the clouds as if heaven had decided to give you your own personal light show. It has been raining nonstop all night and through the morning. The rain had followed your ship from Northern Ireland to Lake Huron as if the angels were weeping. You wondered if the angels wept because you had made the made the wrong decision. There was still time for you to change your mind. Tasha wasn't expecting an answer for a couple more days.  
Suddenly as if your thoughts held meaning to the weather events, the rain stopped. The clouds part quickly over the horizon. You stare the cafeteria window wondering. Was that a sign you were on the right track? 
"Ladies and gentlemen may I have you attention," Dalton announces from the front of the room. You turn to give him your full attention. "Now that the rain has stopped we can safely approach our next port. We will give you twenty minutes to finish your lunch. Afterwards, you will have ten minutes to prepare for the tour. Thank you." 
Thirty minutes. You could do alot with thirty minutes. 
[image error] Along the Great Lake Huron by: Jimmy Brown
@http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimmybro...
I’m Agnes Barton and I’m seventy-two and a private detective or senior snoop as most people call me. I thought I’d stop by today and give you a tour of Tadium, MI, that’s on the shores of Lake Huron. For those of you that don’t know, Lake Huron is on the eastern side of Michigan.
Tadium is populated primarily of persons of a certain age also called senior citizens. Fuzzy’s Ice Cream Shop is where my best friend Eleanor Mason and I love to eat. It’s a real nice place to eat and throw down for an ice cream fight. We also have another great place to shop called The Backdoor Store. It’s a bikini shop with a backroom you have to be over eighteen to shop in, laughs.
We also have a bed and breakfast in town, Robinson’s Manor, where an entire family was murdered twenty-eight years ago. It’s a cold case we kinda got opened by default.
Whether you are looking to chill on the beach or have ice cream, Tadium has all the things bigger cities have, we even have a little crime now and then, but thanks to Eleanor and I it’s not for long and usually solved.
One of the best things I like about my town is the small town appeal. Sure most folks know all your business, but it’s nice to see a friendly face or two. While most people think seniors should act their age I wonder if they think everyone over sixty should be lounging around in rocking chairs. 
[image error]
Armed and OutrageousSenior sleuth — Grandma Mazur meets Murder She Wrote — cozy mystery.
Agnes Barton is not your typical senior citizen living in Tadium, MI, on the shores of Lake Huron. She drives a red hot Mustang, shops at Victoria's Secret, rankles local police officials, and has a knack for sticking her nose where it doesn't belong.
What does a murder that happened forty-three years ago have to do with missing tourist Jennifer Martin? Agnes makes it her personal mission to find out, and she's not letting the fact she's seventy-two get in the way. Butting heads with Sheriff Clem Peterson is something she's accustomed to, but lately Clem seems to be acting even more strange, making Agnes wonder what he may be hiding ala the Martin disappearance.
Agnes’ partner in crime, Eleanor Mason, tags along, Watson to her Holmes. Together, they unearth clues. If only Eleanor would behave, as although lovable, she has a knack for getting into trouble by tangling with her rival, Dorothy Alton, or flirting with anyone—male or female—and gossiping! She's incorrigible, but she does carry a Pink Lady revolver in her purse, one that has proved useful at times.
Life for Agnes and Eleanor is shaken up when Agnes' former boss and secret crush comes to Tadium. Before long, the lady sleuths have more on their hands to contend with as goons roll into town and bullets begin to fly.
Adult content.Amazonhttp://www.amazon.com/Armed-Outrageous-Barton-Mystery-ebook/dp/B007Z5Y30Q/ref=cm_rdp_productOn sale for 99 cents through Dec 19th.
Who Is Madison Johns?
[image error] As a child, Madison Johns preferred to distance herself from other children her age, and had been described as a dreamer. Even as a small child, she remembers staying awake many a night fighting dragons, whisked away to foreign lands, or meeting the man of her dreams.
She was a voracious reader of historical romance in her teen years and has always wished to one day journey to England, France, Ireland, and Scotland.
The writing bug bit her at the age of 44 and she pounded out three books since that time. As the publishing climate changed she took a risk and decided to self publish, first a collection of two horror short stories geared for YA, Coffin Tales Season of Death.
Madison's caring nature had led her to work in the healthcare field, where she was employed as a nursing care assistant at a nursing home, and it was there that she was inspired to write her first mystery, Armed and Outrageous, introducing amateur detective Agnes Barton. The book depicts two elderly ladies digging up clues with enough laugh out loud antics to make James Bond blush.

LID: #Chocolate Fondue - Thank the #Swiss

[image error] Chocolate covered strawberries and marshmellows
By: Adam Sonnett
@http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnett/...
December 16
National Chocolate Covered Anything Day








Now this is a national holiday I could absolutely enjoy! I love chocolate. The darker the better. Chocolate covered treats such as the marshmallows and strawberries above are considered chocolate fondue. 
A Swiss and American Invention
Although fondue began in 18th century Switzerland it wasn't until the mid 20th century that chocolate was ever used. 
Between the 1950's and 1960's Swiss born Konrad Egli, or (to his friends and frequent guests) just Konni, bought out the owners of a Swiss restaurant in New York city known as Chalet Suisse. Chalet Suisse had been owned by Alfred and Clara Baertschi. Konni had been the head chef of the establishment before he bought the place from the Baertschi family. Chalet Suisee had already had a reputation for steady, reliable Swiss regional food, carefully handled made with nothing but the best ingredients. Despite the popularity of the restaurant, Konni was wanting something more from the menu.  He wanted something that would dazzle his customers. 
[image error] During the 1960's Konni added many innovations to the restaurant including air conditioning, which added more customers during the summer. One day, while visiting the the Swiss Center, he was introduced to Beverly Allen. Mrs. Allen was working with a Swiss based chocolate company known as Toblerone to promote their new mountain shape chocolate in the United States. (I had never heard of this company until recently when I saw one of these bars at Krogers. They are delicious! http://www.toblerone.ch) 
After hearing about the chocolate bar, Konni was inspired. In 1964 he created a sweet treat for his restaurant by using the chocolate in a fondue. He launched his chocolate dipped creation at his restaurants new 48th Avenue location. His creation was a sensation. It is interesting to note that Konni is also responsible for the creation of another fondue sensation - the fondue bourguignonne. Fondue bourguignonne is made by dipping meat into hot oil. Konni invented it during the 50's.
Chalet Suisee has long since closed but you can make Konni's fondue. Here's his recipe found on European Cuisines at http://www.europeancuisines.com/Switzerland-Swiss-Chocolate-Fondue-History-And-Basic-Recipe
Chocolate Fondue a la Chalet Suisse
Please note: this recipe is not suitable for chocolate fountains, as the almonds in the Toblerone will interfere with their workings.

For four people:

First prepare the things you're going to dunk in the chocolate. At Chalet Suisse, each guest was served with:

Tiny walnut-sized puff pastries
Fresh slices of Mandarin orange
Small inch-wide meringues
Cubes of white or golden sponge cake, pound cake, or angel cake
Small fresh strawberries (sometimes wild strawberries when Konni could get them)
Slices of banana
You might also want to consider other dunkables, like pieces of ladyfinger biscuit, and other small fruits like sliced kiwi.

Once everything is assembled, start the fondue. You need:

3 ounces of regular Toblerone
3 squares of Tobler Extra Bittersweet chocolate (about one ounce each)
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons kirsch, brandy or Cointreau
Break the Toblerone and Tobler bittersweet chocolate into their separate pieces and place in the top of a double boiler, or in a small saucepan set inside another one partway full of hot water. Pour the cream into a small pan and heat separately.

When the chocolate is melted, pour in the heated cream and stir well until blended. The mixture should be very liquid and glossy. (The bits of almond in the Toblerone will usually rise to the top: this is normal.)

Stir in the kirsch or other spirit just before serving.

Serve in a small fondue pot (you can get ones made especially for chocolate fondue) kept warm with a candle or other gentle heat source.

CWA: Enjoy Your Stay, But Be Careful Out There

The fresh Irish air had never felt better to you lungs. It had taken you all night to escape from that mysterious cavern like lower level. You hope no one noticed you as you had exited onto the deck. You cling to the boy's journal that secretly help the map he had given you and stare out at the Irish Sea. Ah, back in Ireland. You wonder what time period it is now.
"There you are," Tasha's voice echoes from behind you. With your back turned to her, you hide the journal in your robe then turned to her. 
"Tasha, where are we?"
Tasha walks to you. "Present day Ireland. We're heading to the North Ireland."
"North Ireland as in the IRA and all that? Are you trying to get us killed?"
"Haven't yet."
"Right." How many times have you heard that? And yet how many times had she placed her passengers in danger? There were far too many instances to count.
"I haven't seen you for three days. Where have you been," she asks stepping closer to you.
"Sick."
"Oh, I checked your quarters several times but you weren't in them."
"I was probably in the facilities."
"Sure. I didn't think of that. Are you well now or should I call the doctor?"
"I'm well. Thank you for asking. I just came out here for some fresh air before I get ready for the day.  How can I help you?"
"I was going to ask if you had thought about my offer but I will table the matter until you have fully recuperated. We will be docking soon in North Ireland. Our guest will be joining us on board. See you then?"
"Of course."
Tasha nods with approval then walks away. You sigh with relief. Thank heavens she had believed your lie and didn't press the matter any further. But one thing was for certain. You were going to have to make a decision sooner or later. 
[image error] Sea Stack, Eye of Ireland
As seen from the grounds of the Martello Tower in Howth. The white colour of the rocks is caused by the large number of sea birds living there. The lighthouse on Lambay Island can be seen on the horizon.
By: Christine Matthews @ http://www.geograph.ie/photo/2551288


My name is Mike Devon, and I gotta tell any cruisers who may be thinking of stepping off this ship to visit parts of Northern Ireland, you’ll see a different kind of country to the one that was my home for a time, back in the day.
It was a era when cruise ships didn’t visit these parts. Come to think of it, there were not a lot of reasons why anyone would even think about including this corner of Ireland in their holiday itinerary.
Back then, I would have told you to go home. If you had been absolutely determined to step ashore, I would have told you to wear a flak jacket….and then stay the hell out of my way! It was no picnic in those days, and the last thing I would have needed was a bunch of naïve thrillseekers blundering into places where they really oughtn’t to have been.
It’s all so different now, of course. Your first port of call will take you to Belfast, one of Europe’s top regenerated cities. There’s a lot for you to see, including the flagship Titanic Quarter, but you can find all that out for yourselves from the glitzy tourist brochures. I don’t do guide work.
What I will tell you is that you should get to the portside when the cruise ship heads along the County Down coast. It’s from here that you’ll catch a glimpse of Bishopscourt, once one of the world’s most secret anti-terrorist bases, and the place from where I operated.
A lot of things happened there. Most of it wasn’t very pleasant, but we were in a war where both sides neither asked for, nor offered, any quarter. It was every man for himself.
Keep going down the coast for another hour or so, and you’ll come to Dublin, where the last throes of action were played out in one of the bloodiest gun battles I’ve ever been involved in. I was lucky to walk away from that one. Many others didn’t.
So, enjoy the Ireland of today. It has made great strides forward. For some of us, however, we will always be rooted in the dark days. There are just some things you can never forget.

[image error]

Who is Joe McCoubrey? [image error] Mike Devon is the creation of Joe McCoubrey, a former Irish newspaper editor who is now a full-time action thriller writer. In the early seventies he was working in the Civil Service based at Stormont, the seat of the Northern Ireland Government, and was watching behind the scenes as some of the country’s most momentous events unfolded. These were the early dark days of the ‘troubles’ – events that reverberated around the world, and somehow served to push him towards his real passion of writing. He became a newspaperman, started his own media business, and took a front row seat as history was played out in Ireland.
His debut full-length thriller Someone Has To Pay was released by Master Koda Select Publishing in September.  He has also had a short action story Death By Licence  published in an anthology and is preparing a second full-length actioner, Absence of Rules, for release in January 2013.  He has now started work on an Irish crime thriller, also due out in 2013.Joe McCoubrey has lived all his life in the beautiful Irish town of Downpatrick, made famous by its association with the national Patron Saint, St. Patrick.
You can visit him at: http://joemccoubrey.com/
Links to Joe’s book:http://amzn.to/RqSXKphttp://amzn.to/SWYtDB

LID: Honor the US Bill of Rights

December 15
NationalBill of Rights Day


The Bill of Rights is one of the most important documents to ever have been penned in United States history. On December 8, 2011 President Barak Obama called upon all Americans to remember this significant American document by proclaiming December 15 as National Bill of Rights Day. Below is the proclamation that was released by the Office of the Press Secretary at the White House. 
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATIONOn December 15, 1791, the United States adopted the Bill of Rights, enshrining in our Constitution the protection of our inalienable freedoms, from the right to speak our minds and worship as we please to the guarantee of equal justice under the law. For 220 years, these fundamental liberties have shaped our national character and stirred the souls of all who dream of a freer, more just world. As we mark this milestone, we renew our commitment to preserving our universal rights and perfecting our Union.Introduced in the First Congress in 1789, the Bill of Rights was born out of compromise. The promise of enumerated rights enabled the ratification of the Constitution without fear that a more centralized government would encroach on American freedoms. In adopting the first ten Amendments, our Founders put forth an ideal that continues to define our Nation -- that we can have both liberty and security, that we need not sacrifice the rights of man for the rule of law.Throughout our country's history, generations have risen to uphold the principles outlined in our Bill of Rights and advance equality for all Americans. The liberties we enjoy today are possible only because of these brave patriots, from the service members who have defended our freedom to the citizens who have braved billy clubs and fire hoses in the hope of extending America's promise across lines of color and creed. On Bill of Rights Day, we celebrate this proud legacy and resolve to pass to our children an America worthy of our Founders' vision.NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim December 15, 2011, as Bill of Rights Day. I call upon the people of the United States to mark this observance with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.BARACK OBAMA
What Are the Bill of Rights?

Did you get all that? If not, here's a recap.


Freedom In The Making
"[A] bill of rights is what the people are entitled to against every government on earth, general or particular, and what no just government should refuse." 
--- Thomas Jefferson December 20, 1787 
James Madison's NotesIn the summer of 1787, the delegates from the first thirteen states gathered together in Philedelphia for the Constitutional Congress. Thomas Jefferson presented the constituion he had penned. The first Constitution contained a system of check and balances that favored a strong executive branch, a representative legislature and a federal judiciary. It was a remarkable document for its time. Yet it had one flaw. It was missing a Bill of Rights. The Constitution only stated what the government could do. Federalist were against adding a Bill of Rights believing it was unnessary while Anti-federalist saw the need for its inclusion because they were afraid of a strong centralized government. The American people wanted assurance from their new government would not trample upon their newly formed freedoms. In the end popular sentiment convienced the delegates that the United States needed a Bill of Rights. The delegates worked for four years to create the Bill of Rights. James Madison, a delegate from Virginia, reviewed all the proposals made by the other delegates and reviewed all thirteen state constitutions. He made certain that any proposal would not weaken the newly formed central government. James Madison had once written to Thomas Jefferson stating, ""[I have] always been in favor of a bill of rights... At the same time I have never thought the omission a material defect, nor been anxious to supply it even by subsequent amendment." 
James Madison approaching Congress with the Bill of RightsOn May 4, 1789, James Madison approached Congress stating he intended to introduce the Bill of Rights to them on May 25. During that time Congress was too busy discussing import business to hear about the Bill of Rights. When May 25th came around Congress was still in a heated debate concerning import laws. The discussion was shelved. Madison decided to try the topic again on June 8. Yet again Congress blocked him with other important matters. Frustrated, he rose to the floor and demanded their attention. He presented to them why they should include the Bill of Rights. They finally listened but not everyone was convinced. You can read his speech here: http://www.usconstitution.net/madisonbor.htmland you can learn more about his struggle at http://www.apsanet.org/imgtest/jamesmadison.pdf This is a link to the Bill of Rights Madison tried to propose to the Congress of the States on May 4, 1789. http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/resolutions.htm
The Bill of Rights were ratified on December 15, 1791 in Virigina. 
Watch this video for more information about the forming of the Bill of Rights. It is an very interesting video.