My mom, and cancer.

My mom struggled with cancer. Three times. The last time it killed her. But she loved us. And the best time we had was when I stayed with her through chemo, and she did her sudoku and her news programs, and I sat across from her and worked on my computer and we looked up from whatever and smiled at each other, and she blessed me with her and I tried to bless her with me, and it was beautiful.

The work of a writer

#writerslife 

I'm going to tell you writers something you know.

NOBODY loves your story as you do. Not your editor. Not your readers. NOBODY.

So: you're editor will make your story readable? No. HELLS no. YOU will. It's _ALL_ on you, fam.

What does this mean?

That means any grammar or spelling or syntax errors?

You fix them the INSTANT you see them. If you don't then the error in the next print is YOUR FAULT.

And infelicity? You rewrite it. Throw out the whole d-mn chapter and start over if you have to.

Be ye perfect, writers.

Who reads your work the most? You do. Go in there with a red pen and circle, THEN FIX, RIGHT AT THAT SECOND, anything, ... ANYTHING, that doesn't work.

The #writerslife isn't easy. Don't pretend it is. Don't ignore your errors. Own up to them and fix them. NOW.

I read, then reread, a chapter I publish, 5-6-7 times THAT DAY. I fix every, single error I find, and republish or resubmit that chapter EVERY TIME I find and fix errors.

EVERY TIME, lovelies.

Every time.

How does this work?

"Not And Or," ch 8, published 2023-09-03. I reread that chapter today and saw an error on the first page.

I. was. furious.

I fixed that error and republished. NOW.

There have been 9 readers of this chapter.

All future readers will NEVER see this error.

Writing is more than spelling or punctuation.

But if those things are wrong, they are distracting, degrading your work, SIGNIFICANTLY.

Writers. Your writing is YOUR BABY. You, and only you, love your baby and are proud of her.

Your readers need your work.

Give them your best.

Peppermint Patty, My dad, and Remembering our Soldiers

Dear Dad, Happy Memorial Day, but is it happy that we remember the soldiers who died for … us? Or who died because they died, and that’s just sad.

I’m thinking of you, every breakfast I make. I made an olive bread/toast olive-cheese omelet sandwich and had bratwurst with that. But I remember your cinnamon-sugar bagels, and those are my favorite breakfasts, because they’re yummy and because they’re made by YOU! 😃 

Remember how Peppermint Patty would get angry with Charlie Brown, whom she would call ‘Chuck’, but then, when they reconciled they’d shake on it. But she wouldn’t let go of his hand. 🎼”You’re holding my hand, Chuck!” she’d sing gaily and she wouldn’t let go, watching him blush in embarrassment.

I think Peppermint Patty wanted to be loved, and I think she loved her ‘Chuck’ and wanted him to love her back, but she held all that inside her, this sadness, with a sly, winsome humor, joking with him, but still wanting to be loved.

I remember you here, looking out for me when I was sick, coughing during COVID, but you still took care of me, but then, I remember how home called you back. You were a visitor here, welcomed and loved, but still a visitor, not at home.

I hope you’re happy at home. Are you going to visit a Cemetery this weekend, and remember the soldiers? Connecticut is blessed in that you can walk down the road to a Cemetery and remember the dead. That’s what I do, when I visit a cemetery: I say their names and I pray for them. I pray that they are remembered and I pray for their peace in the next life.

Peppermint Patty: so good at sports, so cool, so confident … I think she’s the saddest Peanuts character: I think Charles Schulz knew that.

asdf

A man's a man for a' that

I 'love' it when women occasional post that men should be more sensitive, caring, thoughtful, socially-outgoing, ...

That men should be women.

Look. Why do men never post the opposite?

Because men love and respect women as they are.

Ladies, you love your man because he's a MAN.

And, sure, it'd be great if he crafted you a crème brulée and massaged your feet and lovey-dovied you to death.

But don't wish your man to be a woman: you'd eventually hate him for his effeminacy, and you got exactly what you wanted.

The reason that he's quiet around other people, that he doesn't plan out Mothers' Day, that he has work so you have to go to that function or take care of the family is because he's a man, and he's doing his job, as a man.

Pining for him to be a woman only brings resentment.

Instead of finding fault of what he's not, maybe, instead, recognize, to him, verbally, what he is.

Instead of noticing when he doesn't do something, maybe notice when he does: he's making an effort, for you, to please you, because he loves you.

Women: you have the power.

You can build your marriage and your family, or you can wreck it with just one word or just one look or just one tiktok.

And, yes, it's all on him, too, but as a man, not as a woman.

Think on these things, then thank God your man's a MAN.

Coffee Liqueur recipe

Guessssss who's gonna make dat 'coffee liquir'?

If you guessed the ol' el geophf, you guessed right(ly)! 😎 

From simplyrecipes.com.

Okay. 1 1/2 cups of ground coffee into a bourbon jar. How are we going to do that without spilling?

EASY-PEASIES!

Well, take 1, anyway.

Okay, NOW we've got the hang of it!

Pouring coffee grounds into a bourbon jar, taketh twoeth.

No disasters, DESPITE my daughter's snarky predictions. 😤

Coffee and rum, steeping. Now: we wait three weeks.

How do we KNOW when three weeks have elapsed?

#labeling #protip 

Status report

Day 0, and the coffee/rum has turned to clay.

I'm adding Rum to the mix and checking the seal is airtight.

I may need a lot more rum, which sounds like not-a-problem, right? ... until I serve 185-proof coffee liqueur, and everybody be like: 💀smh. 🙄

Irish Cream recipe

Okay. ('Ope' as my daughter, Li'l Iz, now says)

I'mma makin' di Irish Cream.

Stand back, people, and watch. #ProAtWork

Recipe from allrecipes.com.

My slight alteration: 

I’m using peppermint syrup instead of almond extract to make peppermint Irish cream.

3. Pour Irish cream into peach schnapps bottle. 

4. Wait for my cara spoza to make what she thinks is a fuzzy navel.
5. Run.
6. Hide. 😅
7. Have self-preservation kick in, and label the bottle correctly as “peppermint Irish cream.“

Why is there never scotch tape in the house? 😤 #TheRealQuestion.

The result kicks like a mule. I added coffee ice cubes and coffee, and that kicks like a mule too! #Whiskey.

The. End.

Drambuie recipe

HOW TO MAKE DRAMBUIE!

a recipe by geophf from seriouseats DIY

Step 1: 1/3 cup honey. 

... if the honey doesn't come out of the jar, run water continuously over it until the honey starts to flow.

Not that I had this problem ... 🙄

Narrator: He did. 

Step 2: 1/2 cup filtered water.

The better the quality of water, the better the drink. 

Step 3: 1 tsp ground or crushed fennel seeds.

Now, some use mortar and pestle, which is totally fine. I use my coffee grinder (after cleaning it thoroughly), which gets the same results: fennel seeds cracked open and powdery.

Step 4: 1 Tbsp fresh rosemarie leaves.

It turns out to be about one sprig's worth of leaves. 

Step 5: combine ingredients and heat until integrated into a syrup, swirling continuously.

This all happens pretty quickly: 5 or so minutes.

Step 6: pour everything into your bottle, don't filter anything, you want this all to steep. Add 3/4 cup Scotch or Whiskey, ... the cheap stuff is fine for this recipe, as the herbs really make their powerful presence felt in Drambuie.

Step 7: let steep for 3 days. Then: filter. Then: drink. Can be refrigerated for up to 6 months (???).

I don't refrigerate Drambuie, and my last bottle lasted for over a year in the liquor cabinet, but you store it however you like.

The. End.