Uplifting Story…..

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When I write stories for the community paper, I have a target word count of 450-800 depending on the story. The paper is a weekly and if something isn’t time sensitive, it may get slipped to the following week due to lack of space. There are times when we know the story will “go long” and we make allowances for that. In a few cases, we set up a 2-part story to adequately portray the person/group/subject.

My intent when I went to write about the new Krab Kingz was a regular story of a touch of irony along with the extra difficulty in opening a restaurant under current economic conditions. I’d spoken briefly with the husband half of the couple, but when I was able to sit down with them both, I knew I would need to “go longer”. The finished article is here: http://www.southdadenewsleader.com/eedition/page-a03/page_c2d14d6c-1224-540e-bb7e-60744a393581.html

I wasn’t able to include as much as I wanted about how each on their own has been a shining example of achieving the American Dream. They’ve both worked hard all their lives, committed to community and church and always on the lookout for opportunities. An element that adds to this is their personal story of having known each other in their youth and then gone separate ways. Whether one believes in destiny or coincidence, they met again as adults, both single parents and still working hard. (I did not inquire as to what circumstances caused the single parenting – it wasn’t relevant to this piece). They took their time though and allowed a few years before entering into dating and ultimately marrying.

I feel confident they will succeed in this endeavor and can attest to the quality of the food. It’s interesting that they have a “fried” and “boiled menu” and they do recommend if you want fried as carry-out, you come in to order so you can then carry out as soon as it’s taken from the fryer.

 

No Scuba Yet…..

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I try to dive once a month, but it’s been tough since I was out in October. It’s a combination of available time and conditions. While weather conditions are the driving factor, there is also the matter of how crowded the boat is. Even though it might seem as if people wouldn’t be here diving, there are a couple of reasons the demand has been steady. First, it is an outdoor activity and the dive shop is taking all required and recommended safety measures. Next is people who would ordinarily go to other places in the Caribbean are restricted in travel to many of those places. While we have more “winter” than somewhere like the Bahamas, it’s still better than in our northern states. So, on those days when I can get away, the weather, boat situation, or both have kept me out of the water. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for February. That traditionally is a month I can’t get out and I’ll have to make an extra effort.

Speaking of scuba though, I just sent the manuscript for Idyllic Islands to the company I use for interior and cover design. Once they do their thing, and I make whatever corrections are needed, it will go to Amazon for self-publishing. The release date should be late February or early March. This is in the Chris Green mystery series. The book opens with her in Fort Lauderdale where she completed a “slam dunk” investigation. She and “Captain M”, a friend who owns the dive shop she uses there, are having drinks together before she leaves the next day to return to  the Bahamas. A guy comes up to say hello. He’s Conrad Langston, someone she worked with in Australia, and they haven’t seen each other for more than five years. He’s on his way to a meeting and they don’t have much time to catch up. He’s now with the company, Idyllic Islands, and is the Director for a private island that features a large resort, some private residences, a village, and offers all sorts of water-based activities. He invites her  for a visit to see what all they do.

She doesn’t think much more about it, goes back to the Bahamas to be with Jeff, and continue their work. Some cool things happen, then Jeff gets a telephone call from someone from his past with some shocking news. It’s nothing bad, but Chris decides he needs a couple of weeks without her and going to visit her friend is a good excuse. Everything is terrific the first few days on the island and it is impressive. I created some great characters and situations. An unfortunate fatal accident her fourth day there, is of course, not as it appears. It turns out a great many things are not as they appear. No spoilers here, but I will say unlike most of my books, the clues as to what might be going on are not as straightforward as usual. The second POV is also from her friend Conrad, who like Chris, isn’t aware of what secrets are being kept from him. Okay, that’s enough for now.

 

Adapting a Flounder Dish….

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We have seafood once a week, sometimes more often depending on multiple factors. We mostly grill although there are some stove top and oven dishes we do occasionally. I’ve posted before about the ham wrapped fillets and last night I did a variation of Flounder Imperial. An issue with any fish is of course the tricky part of not overlooking while still having it done. (I am not getting into the whole searing versus cooking here).

Flounder is not one of our local fish, but Hubby picks up the frozen type and to the best of my knowledge, there is no way to grill flounder as thin as it is. This leave stove and oven and again, timing is tricky. With our schedules, I did the grocery shopping last week and picked up an 8-ounce can of jumbo lump crab and one container of Publix lobster bisque. My intent was sort of a “deconstructed” Flounder Imperial. The “Imperial” part means a thin layer of mayonnaise is spread over the crab before baking. Since the point of paying extra for jumbo lump crab is to have the large chunks, that means they will take a little longer to cook than the thin fillets. To prevent the flounder from overcooking I used a two-part approach, although that does require messing up an extra dish.

Crab Imperial: 8 ounces crab meat; 1 Tbs Lea & Perrine’s; 1 Tbs any type mustard; 2 Tsp capers. Gently mix to coat the crab. Place 1 Tbs of butter in small baking dish to melt while preheating oven to 375 (can spray dish with butter spray instead). Put crab mixture in dish and gently spread a thin coat of mayonnaise over the crab (approximately 3 Tbs). Lightly sprinkle with paprika. Bake for 15-20 minutes until crab is hot and top is browned.

I lightly sprinkled the fillets on both sides with a chicken/fish seasoning mix (whatever brand you like or use Old Bay). Poured the lobster bisque into a 12-inch skillet, added some white wine to the container to get the rest of the bisque out and stirred that in. Heated the bisque over medium low to barely a boil. Reduced heat to medium low. Placed the fillets in and spooned bisque over them. Cooked for three minutes, gently turned, spooned more bisque over and cooked another two minutes.

The crab took 15 minutes. Try to time it so both dishes are done at the same time (I was off a little so moved the skillet to the back burner (no heat) while the crab finished. I spooned sauce on the plate, placed the fillets on the sauce and topped with the crab. There was some sauce left in the skillet and I poured that over the fish.

And no, this is not the kind of dish Hubby attempts.

 

Making Connections….

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The phrase, “It’s a small world”, exists for a reason. I’ve previously posted about Robs Rums and how Rob and Robin Burr hold an annual Rum Festival.  In a discussion yesterday, I was explaining how we came to actually meet each other.

For reasons that are not important, when I spun the character of Chris Green off to make a separate mystery series with her as an underwater investigator (Deadly Doubloons, False Front, Georgina’s Grief and soon to be Idyllic Islands), I decided to also have her be a rum enthusiast. When Hubby and I began to spend time in the islands, he took up estate rum and I drink it occasionally. I knew a few of the rums and went on-line to search for a guide to expand my knowledge. This is how I originally found https://www.robsrum.com

I introduced myself via email and explained I wanted to reference his site in Deadly Doubloons and future books. That’s when I discovered he and his wife Robin were avid divers and had traveled extensively for dives. It also happened to be close to the time when they were having the annual Rum Festival and he invited us to be their guests. We went, but as happens, they were of course quite busy with the festival and we didn’t have a chance to link up in person. Fast forward several months and a girlfriend and I were having lunch. She said she had some friends she wanted me to meet – Rob and Robin Burr – because they recently relocated from Coral Gables to Redland and with our diving in common, she thought we would all enjoy each other. I explained we “sort of” already knew each other and we did schedule a lunch together not long after that.

“There’s Always Next Season”…..

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Ah yes, the phrase spoken by millions of fans as the end of each sport’s year nears. In fact, I use this in my short story, “Midnight Pumpkins”. https://charliehudson.net/stories/story200703.html (It’s a fun read).

Anyway, I had so hoped my Saints would maintain the lead last night and pull off the win. The problem though is when one is in a playoff game against what is basically an equally matched team, mistakes will cost you. One or two are the most you can hope to recover from. There weren’t many more than that, but enough to mean the Saints’ season is over for the year. Now, I’m old enough to remember when making it to the playoffs was almost a dream – just having a winning season was considered something to celebrate. I sometimes wondered if part of the reason was New Orleans is a party town. One parties for a win of course. On the other hand, one can party to commiserate as well. There can be no question that Drew Brees as the quarterback has been the linchpin in turning the team into a contender for most seasons. With his injury earlier this year there is question as to if he was really healed enough to be playing last night and it is difficult to know what effect that might have had. There has also been a level of talk that this would be his last season in light of the age and injury. Ah, for those who don’t follow football, with Brees (age 42) and Brady (age 43) this was the first time two quarterbacks “that old” went up against each other in a playoff game. And the fact is, 40-anything is “old” in football years. While there will definitely be a “next season” for the Saints, we’ll have to see if the same is true for the player who has had such a major impact on the team.

The Great Chili Debate….

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I was interrupted in posting this, so let me get it done this time.

As I may have mentioned before, aside from grilling, Hubby has a few dishes that are “his” and I do not mess with them.One is chili and as with many such dishes, there are variations and often strong opinions, and that doesn’t count the numerous Chili Cook-Offs. Some are of course community-based often as fundraisers and others are serious with significant prizes involved.

I may also have mentioned Daddy did a lot of the cooking until I began at a fairly young age – like nine – because Mother was often ill. Chili for us was with ground beef, onions, tomatoes, beans, and few seasonings other than salt pepper (red and black) and chili powder. We usually served it over rice and also with tamales. Now, for those familiar with the range of debate it starts with two issues – first is the use of ground beef and second is with including beans. A separate point is use of meat other than beef and I’ll get to that in a minute. Hubby adheres to the practice of no ground beef. He generally gets 3-4 pounds of steak and cuts it up rather than buy packaged pre-cut “chili meat”. He also uses the Carroll Shelby seasoning mix and yes, that is the Carroll Shelby of race car and Mustang fame. If he’s remembered to get them, he picks up a couple different fresh chili peppers. If not, he adds a can of chopped green chilies and we often have dried anchos or another in the pantry. He does use tomatoes of course and beans; sometimes black, sometimes kidney. We go with a medium heat and he adds hot sauce later as his tolerance level is higher than mine.

Okay, a quick word about meats such as buffalo and venison – they do work, but not something Hubby has ever substituted or even blended in. That leads to the recent discussion at his work about “white” or “chicken/turkey” chili. As I understand it, the one proponent in the group was quickly told that while it does include chili flavorings, it did not qualify to be called chili. As you can imagine, the same holds true of his opinion of vegetarian chili. And there may be a chili cook-off occur sometime in the future at the dive shop.

No Letup in the New Year…..

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With Three Kings day behind us, the tree is waiting for bulk pick-up and I’ll put the ornaments away later this afternoon. It turns out brie does not freeze well and Hubby wasn’t thrilled with the idea of brie stuffed pork tenderloin so I scratched that idea. Ah well, he did like the leftover lemon chicken topped with Havarti and dill. In other words, leftovers are just about under control again.

Being asked to do an extra article again this week for the local paper kept me extra busy and that doesn’t count extra tasks I’ve had with a couple of the non-profits I work with. On the other hand, I don’t ever have to worry about being bored. The big thing for many of my older friends now is hoping the supply of COVID vaccine increases soon to allow them to be seen to. Most have been severely restricting themselves since March. The issue here of course is the large population of older people as Florida is very much a retiree state. Hubby and I qualify to be in a higher priority, but will hold back for a while to let those who are both older and in more vulnerable health get the shots.

I am in the final stages of editing Idyllic Islands before contacting the same publishing group I used for Shades of Deception. That should put me with a February release. This is one of the books where the reader doesn’t have as much information as usual about odd goings-on, however, I have been assured by the two people who have read it there is enough to pick up on. Unlike many of my mysteries, the second point of view is not told by the “bad guy” (okay, it was a “bad girl” in the last one). I do have to get Hubby to go through his underwater photos and pick one to be incorporated as part of the cover.

Okay, let me close this out before I fail to post again. And no, I haven’t seen able to go diving yet. Sigh!

 

 

 

Finding More Ways for Leftovers….

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Ah yes, my consistent concern for not having enough food for a group does always lead to leftovers after any gathering. Some can go to neighbors and friends and I’ve about exhausted those avenues. One item I was able to freeze and will use at a later time. Last night was risotto cakes as the side for lamb chops and the remaining shrimp to make it a Surf and Turf. The extra cheeses call for several adapted dishes. Tonight will be the leftover lemon chicken nestled in peppers and lemon sauce topped by Havarti with dill. At some point there is likely to be pork tenderloin flattened, stuffed with sun dried tomatoes and brie and either roasted or grilled. The smoked Gouda will go in sandwiches Hubby has as his default lunch. Hmm, now that I think of it, I need to find a recipe for cheese sauce that can be mixed with either vegetables or soup as the thickener. I have not been successful in just using cheese as a thickener because it has a tendency to clump instead. I know I am missing a fairly simple step because a couple of restaurants around do a roasted red pepper and Gouda soup that is delicious. Since New Year’s Day was on a Friday and we had the traditional meal to include black eye peas, we didn’t order pizza. That means Hubby will be short on breakfast of his usual leftover pizza and can do an egg dish instead loaded up with cheese.

Let’s see – I’ve about covered the bases for that and all the sweets – most of which were presents – have a long enough shelf life to be parceled out over time. It seems as though last year they lasted until about Easter. We won’t have leftovers Wed since it’s Three Kings Day and the spicy Mediterranean seafood stew is what is likely to be on the menu. We generally have that for either Christmas Eve or Three Kings Day. What kind of creativity does everyone else bring to the table during this time?

When Holidays Are Tragic….

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No, I’m not trying to be anti-holiday. I’ve seen multiple Facebook posts of people who have lost loved ones over the past few days. These deaths are never easy, but somehow when it occurs during a major holiday, it usually has extra impact. It can also mar that holiday for many years to come.

When I married my first husband, I was startled at the number of Christmas gifts; the regular one expected, but also one from the dog and Santa. I mean we were after all adults. And they were incredibly thoughtful gifts, the type someone puts time and effort into. Since we only had two Christmases together before he was killed, I never got around to finding out what that was about. Years later, my mother-in-law brought the subject up. As it turned out, her only sibling was a brother whom I knew had died fairly young. He contracted scarlet fever (I think it was) and died a few days before Christmas. Their father declared there would be no celebration of that or any other Christmas in the household. He never relented and so each Christmas was ignored. Once she left home, she was determined to cherish the holiday. Not that she didn’t love her brother, but she understood the two were not connected.

It isn’t just the person most affected in these cases; relatives and friends can sometimes feel awkward too about how to react. It is commonplace for the first major holiday (or any special day like a birthday) following a death to bring more pain. That can cause the individual to want to pull back rather than be around others. These feelings can be compounded if the individual doesn’t want to “spoil things for others”. If you find yourself in this situation, it is tricky. Inviting the individual for festivities and then being understanding if they decline is usually best. Or perhaps being able to have some sort of one-on-one interaction such as a luncheon can be good. It is possible the individual will want to express the sensation of additional emotion and a shoulder to lean/cry on is what is needed.

George Carlin’s “Stuff”…..

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Comedian George Carlin did have incisive wit. I essentially no longer watch comedy sketches as they all seem to be either mean-spirited or so vulgar as to be disgusting. Don’t get me wrong – I curse profusely  – in fact I can’t think of a day that goes by that I don’t do so. Nor do I mind the use of profanity in a witty fashion. When one can’t manage more than two lines of dialog though or have a focus on sex and bodily functions, I do not find that to be clever.

Anyway, notwithstanding Carlin’s famous, “words you can’t say on TV”, (for those of a certain age), one of his funniest segments was about getting “stuff”. The idea is that most of us don’t have much “stuff” when we go out as adults. Sure, we may have left things with our parents, but we generally don’t initially move into a place that will hold much stuff. As we obtain stuff, we suddenly think/realize we need a bigger place. Ah, we have more room. Well then let’s buy more stuff. Setting aside the multiple sizes of clothes many of us have as we age, it is not always us simply getting more stuff. Items from other generations may begin to come our way, too. Although moving on average every two years in the Army had definite issues, there was the tendency to clear things out in conjunction with a move. In the same way, when we had to clear out the front room and kitchen during the remodel of our current home, I did give away a number of boxes of household items and few pieces of furniture. While I have held the line somewhat, I once again look around and know there are probably things that can go.

On a related note, and a topic I have posted about before, is the matter of books. None of us can bear the thought of throwing away a book, but finding a place to give them to is very difficult. This is one of the major reasons we have two Kindles. This allows us to get lots of new books with no shelf space required. What to do about the seven crammed bookcases we own is another matter entirely.