On Monday I had to take my car to get an oil change, brakes checked, and a tire repaired. In the pre-pandemic days, I dreaded doing this kind of chore because it means sitting and waiting in an uncomfortable chair for a couple of hours with a lot of people coming and going. Now, it… Continue reading Welcome to the new “normal”
Recipe for Almond Flour Brownies
A few years ago, I was experimenting with different recipes to adapt for my blog. I found a great recipe to work with, and I thought I’d share it here with the addition of an optional ingredient. I won’t make you scroll as far here! 3/4 cup almond flour 1/4 tsp salt 2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa… Continue reading Recipe for Almond Flour Brownies
Monday, Monday
I have been working from home for the last several years, and Mondays are still in need of a jump start. My to do list today includes: submitting another short story to The Molotov Cocktail; updating the month’s discount code (it is LOVEJAVA, for 14% off this month); writing various blogs (like this one you… Continue reading Monday, Monday
How Do You Take Your Coffee?
There seems to be an infinite number of ways to prepare coffee. My husband often drinks his coffee black, whether it’s flavored or not, but he’ll also drink the sugary coffee concoctions that Dunkin makes. I remember a former coworker who always ordered her coffee “light and sweet,” so no skimping on the cream or… Continue reading How Do You Take Your Coffee?
The shadow knows
I started life as a tea drinker. That’s what my mother drank, so that is what I drank. And she was a grocery store black tea only kind of tea drinker – Tetley or Lipton – that was it, with enough sugar and milk to make you wonder if the tea was just there for… Continue reading The shadow knows
Are Coffee Beans Really Beans?
Jack, of beanstalk fame, probably had to listen to a lot of angry ranting from his mother when he told her he’d sold their cow for magic beans. Nowadays, some people refer to coffee beans as their “magic beans.” But are they really beans? Nope. Coffee beans do look like beans, but they are actually… Continue reading Are Coffee Beans Really Beans?
A moment of contemplation
It is Monday, and it is a Holiday, and it is Martin Luther King Jr. Day – a day to remember him, his works, his messages, his example to us all. His birthday was just a few days ago, on January 15th. He was assassinated on April 4th, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was 39… Continue reading A moment of contemplation
Where there is light…
Where there is light, there are shadows. In psychology the shadow self is what you yourself perceive as dark and weak about yourself, and therefore needing to be hidden and denied. But this depends on your own perspective on life, and your levels of self-esteem. To be truly healthy and well-adjusted, according to these experts, one must learn to… Continue reading Where there is light…
Freelancers
Some spies love yogurt (see: “Burn Notice”), some spies will take whatever they can get while disguised as “freelancers” (aka: mercs, soldiers of fortune, contractors, fixers, plumbers and a number of other colorful euphemisms). Whether you are a spy or just your average Joe or Jane trying to make a living, coffee can figure in… Continue reading Freelancers
Coffee adds reality to our fiction
We write. We write fiction. We often can’t write without our favorite hot beverage. But what do some of our favorite fictional characters have to say about coffee? In Anansi Boys, Neil Gaiman writes that Spider likes his coffee, “Black as night, sweet as sin.” In American Gods, Shadow accepts a coffee described exactly that… Continue reading Coffee adds reality to our fiction