15 Bean Soup

The sun is shining as I write this, but since we've had a wide variety of weather this spring, I am observing a rainy-day tradition in my family--I'm making homemade soup. I soaked the beans overnight, because that's how my mom does it, and rinsed them off this morning, before adding new water, salt, onions, some garlic, pearl barley and brown rice to the mix. Now, for the crockpot alchemy--gradually, as I write my pages and go about the normal business of a Monday, whatever that might turn out to be, the delicious aroma will fill the house.

Soup is almost medicinal, in my opinion. (Has to be homemade to qualify, though.) It nourishes, it comforts, and it smells good. Not only that, but it's better the second day than it was the first. Soup is great when you're sick, or just feeling a mite on the fragile side, but it can be hardy, too, of course. Maybe its real magic is that it is usually made and served with that most amazing of all secret ingredients: love.

Lest some of you begin to think you've stumbled onto a cooking blog, when you were looking for mine, let me assure you--you're in the right place. :) Sometimes, I'll be talking about soup.

:)

The crockpot is plugged in.

I'll be writing today, I'm happy to say.

And that's the news from Linda's kitchen table.

Friday Slog Blog

Guess what--it's raining. (Sigh.) Hence the title of today's post.

I definitely don't have the bad-weather blues, though. I did a 2 hour chat on Facebook last night, and it was so great--the next best thing to all of us rubbing elbows at a party. All together, there were well over 500 messages, and I was blown away! There were a few familiar names in the bunch, too--like Heather Alling. Hey, Heather. When it was over, I was so happy and so exhausted that I was in bed and sound asleep within minutes.

Someone asked what ATCs are, and that tells me it's time to explain that again, for the sake of the newcomers. :) ATC means Artist Trading Card--it's a work of art, the standard size of any trading card, made specifically to swap. My cards are mostly collaged. I trade actively on Art42.org and Swapbot.com--it's lots of fun. I make tons of them--it always unscrambles my brain.

There's a new baby in our circle today--Danica Marie Korrell. Welcome, sweetie.

Yeehaw!!! PLEASE NOTE CHANGES!

Yesterday afternoon, I got some VERY good news--"Garrett" is #2 on the New York Times list, with an asterix beside it. That means, ladies and gentlemen, that it is actually tied for the #1 slot!

I was more tired than I thought, after attending BEA last week, and even though I've intended to write every single day since, I must admit that I haven't. As much fun as I had in the Big Apple, it takes me a while to get back in the groove when I've been traveling.

From 5 to 7 pm today, Pacific Time, I'll be on the Linda Lael Miller fan page on Facebook, answering as many questions as I can. I'm still floored that such a group even exists. My sincerest thanks to Nicki Boyle for heading it up--incredible.

And that's the news from my kitchen table, at least for now.

Tune in tomorrow.

Rainy Day Blues

I've got them, for sure. (And I didn't even watch the news this morning.)

Time to think about all the things I'm grateful for...

Time to remember that rain makes the earth thrive.

Time to smile and throw myself back into the story I'm writing.

And P.S.: In case you're interested, I'll be chatting on Facebook tomorrow, June 3, from 5 to 7 Pacific time. Just search for the Linda Lael Miller page and join us!

More later.

Ready to Roll!

I'm all rested up, after a quiet weekend, and ready to hit the ground running in Stone Creek, Arizona.

Things I did:

I made ATCs for current trades.

I listened to "The McKettricks of Texas: Tate" on my iPod. (Yes, I really did. And I enjoyed it, a lot.)

I made a brief visit to the casino on Saturday. Suffice it to say, I've had better days playing slot machines. I hear they're retiring my favorite, Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile, and I may need special therapy to get over that. (Just kidding.)

I ordered a stack of books from Amazon, including some on "Trigger Point Therapy", touted by the author of a favorite podcast, "Cast On". Brenda Dayne, the hostess, has serious shoulder problems, and she recommended the books. No, I don't have shoulder pain, but I'm no spring chicken and it never hurts to know how to make some part of the anatomy stop hurting, does it? (Okay, I admit it. I'm terminally curious--about everything. It's a Gemini thing.)

And so, off to meet up with Steven and Melissa and the rest of the Stone Creek outfit.

More tomorrow.