Happy New Year

Well it's all over bar the shouting in the Antipodes. New Year's Day is here and the beginning of a new decade, or is it the end of an old one. Wishing you all a happy, healthy, prosperous and bright 2010. Now if these fireworks had been in Blogland Lane, there wouldn't have been a bloody tree in the way!

Art Project from another Blog

What is Red for You? is an interesting project I read about.  I wanted to share it with the folks of Blogland Lane.

Also-please drop me an e-mail at blogland.lane@sbcglobal.net if you want to participate in the Art Box Exchange Project Number 2.  I will send out your exhangee information January 1.  Exhangee is not a word, but I think it should be.

Hello!

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Just stopping by to say hello and wish my friends and neighbors on Blogland Lane an abundant, prosperous, and PASSIONATE new year. I can't tell you what the symbolism or metaphor is in this image I've included. You'll just have to use it however you wish. ♥

From Snowed in Oklahoma

My ellie rises from the snowbank-spreading her light to the world!  I was kind of disappointed with my first ever effort at a light display (other than tacking lights along a fence post).  I shrugged it off and left it up and vowed to improve next year.  Then the blizzard came along and transformed my meager efforts into something more, and reminded me that any effort at all is better than not trying.

Shine on with all your lights.

Wishing all a Delicious Christmas!

I made Sugar Plums and thought I'd share the recipe...they are delicious!

2 cups whole almonds
1/4 cup honey
2 tsp grated orange peel
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup finely chopped dried apricots
1 cup finely chopped pitted dates
1 cup confectioners sugar (I ended up using a 2nd cup as the first cup got lumpy with nuts)

Preheat oven to 400. Arrange almonds on a baking sheet in a single layer and toast in oven for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool, then finely chop.

Meanwhile, combine honey, orange zest, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg in a medium mixing bowl. Add almonds, apricots, and dates and mix well.

Pinch off rounded teaspoon-size pieces of the mixture and roll into balls. (Rinse your hands often, as mixture is very sticky.) Roll balls in sugar, then refrigerate in single layers between sheets of waxed paper in airtight containers for up to 1 month. Their flavor improves after ripening for several days.

(ours didn't have a chance to ripen...they disappeared as soon as they were made!)

Makes about 3 dozen bite-sized balls

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas To all my sweet neighbours! :) Wish you all are having a great holiday!

[Photo Source: Flickr]

Merry Christmas to all . . .

May the peace of this night follow you into all your days to come.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Happy Holidays to All My Dear Neighbors!

It's cold and snowy in Oklahoma right now but at my house in Blogland Lane, we're having a heatwave, a tropical heatwave!

MULLED WINE AND MINCE PIES

HAPPY HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE IN BLOGLAND LANE

AND HAVE A WONDERFUL 2010

MY HOUSE IS OPEN TO EVERYONE OVER THE FESTIVE SEASON - THERE WILL BE A CONSTANT SUPPLY OF MULLED WINE AND MINCE PIES.

IF YOU WANT ANYTHING ELSE, YOU'LL FIND ME UNDER THE TABLE... WITH A GOBLET OF MULLED WINE... SURROUNDED BY MINCE PIE CRUMBS...

Even With a Mouth as Big as Mine...

...it is possible to bite off more than you can chew.

Sorry to be so invisible lately. Here's to a 2010 with more time for good friends!

Hope everyone has a safe, warm holiday with people you love.

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In a perfect world . . well this is a perfect world is it not? I begin again. In a perfect world I am young and slim with a man by my side who respects me more than adores me. In a perfect world, my son has matching socks and keeps his room tidy. In a perfect world, the only thing that kills us is tiredness and a willingness to join the cosmos. In a perfect world we argue and discuss but never seek retribution or revenge or award our sister the 'silent treatment'. In a perfect world, I can walk into a phone box and transport myself into any state, age or nation. In a perfect world, food just appears as in Narnia and there are no messy kitchens or dishes to wash. Trees and flowers grow replenished by the sun and evening rain. Lovers fall in love before they have sex, nobody gains weight because cheap food is healthy, water tastes like anything you want it to, illness squeals in frustration at it's inability to take hold. Seas don't rise and ice flows don't melt and politicians have the people's interests at heart. In a perfect world we don't argue about money or loss or relationships or hardship. In a perfect world, Christmas is for children and warm and welcoming and fun and joyous. For one day this year, I'm going to pretend that it is perfect.

Have a wonderful Christmas everyone. Be kind to each other today and every day. Think of those less fortunate and remember those long gone. Hold those you love close and I wish you peace and good fortune in the coming year.

I watch but have been slack in contributing but then . . the real world isn't quite as perfect as we would like . Thank God for this little refuge where all is simply tickety boo!

wishes...

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!

Intrepid Author Braves Blizzard

Here's the proof that I braved the terrible weather to travel boldly North for a book signing and BBC Radio interview in York . . .

OK, the weather unexpectedly turned wintry after we arrived in York. We had a lovely visit despite the freezing conditions.

It's Hard Work But Somebody Has To Do It...

A certain counselor named kj has been making clay angels and snow people and an occasional rock star, right along side her young clients who, by the way, know how to play a whole lot better than all the grown ups who don't play often enough. This holiday season: Play. I doubt you'll regret it.

A few Days Late-Leftovers Anyone

I confess-I missed my own party-and what a fabulous turn out.  All day I kept having this feeling that I should be somewhere else....but chalked it up the the busy time of year.  I'm glad the door is always unlocked at Blogland Lane.

Wouldn't it be nice if we could have it that way in the real world?  Always unlocked, people coming and going at will and their own convenience?  Now THAT would be a party to celebrate.

Our grad school office was like that-never locked, and you never knew who was going to be in there when you showed up at 2 a.m on Wednesday to work on a paper.  Sometimes we worked, sometimes we said to heck with it made coffee and chatted the night away, sometimes someone was asleep on the couch to get a respite from home.  Good times-just like here.

I've just heard CUT SHORT is having its 2nd reprint in 6 months. My publisher is pleased (phew).

A huge thank you to everyone who has bought CUT SHORT this year.

Here's hoping sales continue to snowball in 2010. Talking of which . . . it's snowing again . . .

Did I Hear 'Party"!

What is a party without good food!  It relaxes everyone and makes friends of perfect strangers.  Food is the ultimate Goodwill Ambassador.

I couldn't do better than Rosa's Deep Fried Squash Blossoms with Chipolte Dip.  The Southwest is full of these wonderful tastes.  They are stuffed with ricota cheese flavored with nutmeg and cardomon. 

Step outside your comfort zone and dig in.  They will make your toes tingle!

Merry Christmas to all my wonderful friends at Blogland Lane!  You are all treasures and I love spending time with you.

Holiday Party at # 13

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Oh gosh. I've been so busy, preoccupied, active, even a little consumed with holiday tasks that I almost forgot to show up for Debra Kay's party. All I could muster is this cake I happily bought at Wieneke's shop. It is as tasty as it is beautiful, and here's the best part: every time you cut a piece another piece replaces it, so there is always enough. Isn't that part of the magic of Blogland Lane?

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I hope to see you all on New Year's Eve. And I heard there might be an impromptu happening at Cookie's Cafe pretty soon.

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In the meantime, happy holidays. And pray pray pray for Renee. She lives at # 9 and a half and we need her in the neighborhood. I think she actually might be a real life angel.....

Party at #13...I'm there!

It's time for the holiday party at Debra Kays, #13!

I thought I'd bring my famous spinach lasagna. Famous only because that's what I'm usually asked to bring!

I spent the afternoon making homemade peppermint ice cream. Man, it's always worth the effort!

Finally I brought some Amaretto DiSarrono for an apperitif. One of my favorites. It just helps all of the nights indulgences go down much more smoothly ;)

Thank you Debra Kay for hosting this festive party. I'll stay and help you clean up. (That is if I haven't had too much Amaretto!)

A Generous Dollop of Joy and Love

With Christmas music playing softly from the radio in the background, I embarked on a baking frenzy the other day.

Debra Kay's party was coming up...and Christmas is just around the corner...there was no time left for fancy folderol.

And so I thought, since Christmas would not be Christmas without something from my kitchen, Chocolate truffles, along with Caramel and Snow popcorn would be quick and easy.

Huh.  Easy maybe, but there is no such thing as quick, once one begins in the kitchen.  There are myriad decisions to make...and decisions at this time of year make my head hurt. Should I add nuts to the truffles, will I add dried cranberries to the fudge, how much popcorn should I pop?


But with the old favourite Christmas carols swirling through my head, once I began collecting ingredients the baking became joyful, instead of a chore.

And everyone knows when baking is done with love and joy, the end result will always be good. It makes no never-mind what the ingredients are...the infusion of love, with the addition of joy, is all that is required.

Similarly, when a dish is brought to a party with those lovely feelings of bonhomie, very rarely do they fail.

I bring Snow Popcorn and Hazelnut truffles to you, Debra Kay, with the greatest of joy! I'm looking forward to tasting all the goodies everyone else has made with such love. And thank you for throwing such a great party!



Merry Christmas, everyone!

Circling Her Head

As I climbed the steps to Renee's room, a riot of color danced in quick little movements on the porch railing.  I laughed as I saw the parrots finishing up the seed Renee had left out this morning.

Hot China tea and cranberry biscotti were waiting on the table.  Yummy!  As I sank into the thick cushions to wait for her return, I noticed a journal under the canister of birdseed.  The feel of soft leather and pages of faded, purple ink caligraphy was immediately mesmerizing.

This was the story of Turquoise Goddess or Changing Woman, who changes with the seasons.  She is change.  She is transition.

Remember to always walk in the pollen path of peace and blessing.

Be still within yourselves and know that the trail is beautiful.

Changing Woman reminded me of my childhood and I remembered two things.  The first was being in water and struggling to keep my head in the air.  But I found that if I relaxed and let it lift me up, I could float on the surface, bouyed up and held between the soft liquid bed and the blue sky above me.  And then I lost my fear.

The second thing was riding a gently galloping horse.  I could feel my body move with the animal beneath me.  There was no saddle and no bridle, just the animal and I, together.  I began to laugh and held my arms straight out, embracing the wind with my hair flying out behind me.  I knew that the horse and I were one, and I lost my fear.

And this is the knowledge that we had all forgotten, that we are all one being.

Changing Woman tells me of the truths that come from our storytellers and balladeers.  They sing of ancient knowledge and point the way.  She is showing me a new path.

We are Stardust.  We are Golden.

We are billion years old carbon.

And we need to get ourselves back to the garden.

(Joni Mitchel)

On the wings of an eagle, I soared past our ancestor stars.  All the chemical elements that make up all things came from here, forged by nuclear fusion to evolve in different ways.

The giant red star under us contains the same hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen and carbon now on earth.  Ahead is Rigel, the hot, blue white star made of silicon and calcium.  Far off in the vastness of the galaxy, the biggest supernovas explode the heavy metals into space that will gather and form new worlds.  Nickel, copper, silver, gold, mercury, lead and every atom that form our bodies, are all made of stardust under pressure.

We are change.  We are transition.  This is not the final form of our being.

We are Stardust.  We are Golden.

We are billion years old carbon.

And we need to get ourselves back to the garden.

I awakened with a start.  Had I been dreaming?  Renee had just poured a steaming cup of tea.  She smiled across the table and tilted her head to check the birdfeeder.

An eagle feather glistened in her hair.

Holiday Gathering at Number 13 December 20th

On Sunday the 20th I invite you all to a holiday gathering.  I'm just going to set out a big buffet table and start off with a few nibbly things.  Please join us and bring your favorite holiday dish.  It doesn't have to be a cohesive meal-I just wanted to see what everyone would bring.


Hmmm, I like so many, picking one is going to be hard.


As always-bring the pets along too-there is plenty of room to run and the horses and dogs always enjoy visiting with the other animals.

Holiday Priorities

Sometimes all it takes is dreams about all the jellybeans you could ever want.

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Sometimes a certain rabbit thinks that her priorities are a lot smarter than most people's.

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And sometimes this certain rabbit gets so gleefully mad she throws frozen peas at the kitchen window.

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And in that instance she also thinks she is a lot smarter than most people.

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Written by,

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Emily V.V. Rabbit

Bliss Gallery Friday Night Show

Welcome everyone to the second Bliss Gallery opening. Since I showed you some of my paintings last time, I thought I would show you some of my ceramic work, made with porcelain mix and porcelain clay. I have ornaments, pendants, wall hangings and mugs. If you would care to see more or (gasp) buy something please go to my ESTY site at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/BlissfulArts

There are more details there. Happy Holidays everyone! XOXO

Witches and Goblins

These are just a few of my dolls~: )

For Art Opening at Bliss Gallery

Earlier this year I got the glimmer of an idea to start making non-traditional Holy cards. Somehow, I got diverted after putting a few ideas together (something that happens easily to me) but now that I have them all together again in one place I'm thinking this might be fun to start working on again. These are by no means finished works; they are ideas in progress. I'd love to have feedback and input on this idea.

For Art Opening at Bliss Gallery

I wanted to be a part of the opening, but my day is pretty full tomorrow, so I am posting this tonight to appear tomorrow.  These are all images from this year, 2009.