Holiday Baking Season

Let the holiday baking begin!
As soon as I arrived back in Austin from my Thanksgiving travels, I started getting in the mood for baking all the treats I so love to make this time of year. I'm waiting until next weekend to start my Christmas season, but I know many of you are already there. I'm receiving a lot of requests for some of my holiday recipes. The favorites this time of year tend to be Homemade Chocolate Marshmallows (great for gifts,) Dark Chocolate Peppermint Bark (also great for gifts,) and Cranberry Pumpkin Bread (great for anything.) If you're wanting any of these recipes for personal use, I'm happy to e-mail them for free. (Of course, I charge for them to be published, as they are copyrighted and my own creation.)
I plan on continuing my experiments in the kitchen this year. I've made Peppermint Marshmallows and Vanilla Marshmallows before, and I think I'll try that again, maybe throwing in a little caramel dip for the vanilla ones. I'm also going to try a S'mores experiment with the Bark. That could turn out phenomenally. We shall see.
My theory in cooking is this: If everything going in to it is good, then it will be good! This has served me well. I love trying new things in the kitchen!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, I've been sick again, pretty badly, this time for over a week. Clearly, I need a reduction in stress because, under normal circumstances, I rarely get sick. Hopefully, over the Thanksgiving holiday I will get some extra rest and get my health back to normal.
And, on that note, have a great Thanksgiving everyone! Eat lots of turkey and cranberries and all that good stuff!

Writing

My faith in the ability of future generations to write is being restored, thank goodness. I am a guest judge for a school writing contest, and I have been surprised pleasantly by what the students have produced, and, in particular, I have been surprised by their creativity. I've also been doing some volunteer tutoring, and it's interesting for me to see how the kids' personalities come out so differently in their work.
It's amazing to think about all the different thoughts and layers of thoughts we have running around in our heads. My head just doesn't turn off, ever, and so many of my thoughts are intriguing, to me at least. I could never even begin to get all my ideas out, even if I published two books a year, every year, for forever.
I wish I were a little better about putting my thoughts on paper. I should be more disciplined about it, but it is a long process to train myself, especially when it seems my spare time is so limited. I am making progress on my book, however ...

Lantana - Best in Texas Music Magazine

I wrote a story on a really cool music group named Lantana for this month's Best in Texas Music Magazine's "Stars on the Horizon" section.
Lantana is made up of three women who are at least 35 years old and starting off a new direction in their lives. They have a little bit of a kick butt attitude, in a good way.
I had fun with the story. In one of their songs, "The Juice Ain't Worth the Squeeze," they sing about a phenomenon so many of us women are familiar with - the miraculous "growing up" of men that usually occurs around the age of 40.
Only through November 2006, you can read the story here.

2nd Annual Game Night

I hosted my second annual Game Night this past weekend. It was a blast!! Lots of good friends and good food and a little dose of healthy competition.
Here, some of us are scrambling to see who can come up with the best answers for Scattergories!

I Am Like a Wild Horse

"I am like a wild horse. You can't tame me.
You put the oats in the pen, though, and I'll come in for a nibble every day.
But the minute you shut that gate, I'll jump the fence and you'll never see me again."

(Love it. Love it. Love it. Wish I'd written it.)

Get Going - Vote!

* They didn't give me an "I voted" sticker this morning. : (
I was out walking last night, and I heard a father call his son. He told him that if he went to go vote he'd buy him dinner afterward. The mom jokingly cried foul: "He's buying votes!"
I hope everyone takes every initiative they can to encourage people to hit the polls today - - especially if you are on my side of the aisle!!! ;)
Get out today and vote. Don't put off today what you can't do tomorrow!

Pretty Pictures from Waldo County, Maine

Here are some pictures I took that I just thought were really pretty.

It was a gorgeous time of year to visit coastal Maine. I never imagined myself to be big on leaf-peeping, but I particularly loved walking through Moose Point Sate Park along Penobscot Bay and seeing so many great trees, which is where the middle two pictures are from.

Purely Gratuitous Photos

All work and no play ... right?

Thanks to Perry's Nut House and Weathervane Restaurant in Belfast, Maine for providing these scintillating photographic opportunities. ;)

Ghost Stories of Coastal Maine

While in Maine, I tried to find out as much as I could about the ghosts and ghost legends of the area. With so much history (and surely tragedy) there were bound to plenty of stories to go around, I figured, so I went in search of them!
At the Carriage House Bed and Breakfast, I heard about an eerie circumstance of a very heavy book being thrown across a room. Accident? It so happens the house once was owned by Impressionist painter Waldo Peirce, best friend to Ernest Hemingway. At that house, they did the kinds of things ornery guys did those days so it’s not so much of a stretch to think his ornery ghost still might be lurking around!
I stayed at a place I just knew was haunted - the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport - but I couldn't get the story out of the owner, no matter how hard I tried! I even found an orb on a picture of my room! Lack of ghostly disclosures notwithstanding, it was an awesome place to stay. I had my own fireplace, which I lit myself, thank-you-very-much. All of their food was organic or all-natural (particularly impressive to me,) and they hosted a tea each afternoon, an overlooked delight these days. The Inn also happened to be within walking distance of 170 outlet stores and shops! I think I'll have to go back and keep working the owner for those ghost stories! :)

Seaweed Lobster Bake in Belfast

What trip to Maine would be complete without lobstah, right?

At Belfast, Maine’s Three Tides, I took part in my first lobster bake! The owner baked about 15 lobsters, along with new potatoes, corn on the cob, eggs, and clams, in 1,000 pounds of seaweed over a flaming, hot fire. The seaweed pop-popped as the food neared being ready, and the smell was delish.

Seeing it baked this way was very cool! The seaweed gave the lobster a little bit of a smoky flavor and kept it superbly moist. It easily was the best lobster I ever have eaten!

Visiting Cabot Cove, Maine, Home of Murder, She Wrote

My trip to Maine was exciting for a reason that perhaps demonstrates my obsessiveness with mystery-solving, mystery-writing women.
I am a huge "Murder, She Wrote" fan. Huge. I have the entire first season on DVD, and I don't usually do that kind of thing. When I found out I would be heading to Belfast and Freeport, Maine, I immediately compared their locations to Cabot Cove, Maine, home of Jessica (J.B.) Fletcher. I discovered that Cabot Cove actually is a fictional location, but, from visual cues throughout the show, it can be determined that Cabot Cove is in the very same vicinity! I was so excited, I just can't even tell you! I immediately went online and requested "Murder, She Wrote" books to take with me on the trip. It was so cool to be where she solved all those mysteries and got all that inspiration for her stories! ;)
Doesn't this picture of Belfast look exactly like Cabot Cove?

River City Renaissance

The very first edition of the Austin arts magazine River City Renaissance has just come out, and I am pleased to announce I was part of this first endeavor. I have a story in it on the different performing arts venues in Austin, and the publisher was nice enough to put my picture and bio at the front of the magazine.

Home, Sweet Home

Whew! I have just returned from a ten-day cross country spree spanning from Kentucky all the way up to Maine. While I had a great time, I am happy to be home - I get to sleep in my own bed, detox from all the rich food, have a social life again (hopefully) and get back to the nitty gritty with work (although the trips themselves were work, as they were for my travel writing.)
I should be back to more regular posting here shortly, and I have some fabulous pictures to share, too.
It feels good to be back in Texas! : )

Horseriding - Daniel Boone National Forest

My favorite part of my trip to Kentucky was horseriding on a beautiful horse named Novar through the Daniel Boone National Forest. Novar liked people but not other horses - she was good to me! :)

The weather was beautiful. It was right before a cold front came through so it was still fairly mild, but there was a strong breeze rustling all of the leaves way above our heads. I loved it when they let us run the horses at the very end!

I've cemented a horse in to my future plans. You know, when I retire, my ranch in the country - now with a horse (in addition to my beach house, of course!)

Cumberland Falls in Kentucky

I've been staying on Lake Cumberland (literally, in a houseboat) touring Southern and Eastern Kentucky. These pictures are of the area near and of Cumberland Falls in the Daniel Boone National Forest. I took a very wet raft ride up to the base of this waterfall. The ride is called the Rainbow Mist because of the rain-like mist that pours from the waterfall. What I did not get to see - but I am super intrigued by - is a phenomenon called a "moonbow." On full moons and a couple of days each way, a moonbow is created around the falls. A moonbow is similar in effect to a rainbow. There are only two regular ones in the world - Zimbabwe and Kentucky. Who knew?

Where's Candidly Caroline Now?

Where am I now?
I'll give you a hint - I've had no Internet access, and even my cell phone hasn't been working! I've managed to scrounge a few minutes online, but that, too, will soon be gone!

I Don't Love Ana and Mia

I don't "heart" ana. I don't "heart" mia. I am not an angel.
I can not tell you how to throw up; I will not provide thinsperations; I can not show you pictures of bones sticking out; I certainly don't have any ana recipes - and I find it very discouraging to see your searches for these terms landing you here on a daily basis. Exactly how big is this problem? The enormity even staggers my frame of reference, and I consider myself fairly educated on the subject. Please find real help, not the kind you will find on friends of ana and friends of mia sites.

For my readers, you will find the comments (which have grown steadily) interesting on Pro Ana and Pro Mia - Still and Pro Ana and Pro Mia.

Newly Published Work

My "Smile at a Kid Today" column-style story just came out in Kansas City Parent. The story is a worthwhile read if you have a minute or two. It talks about how adults are really the only sources of meaningful compliments for kids and how we should exercise that ability often:
With peers - "Children know they are accepted only when they are included, but even that is really more the taking away of a punishment (being excluded) than the giving of a reward (a compliment.)"

Placing My Order for Mr. Right

I decided to check the accuracy so far for my Cancer and Dragon horoscopes. You'll remember I posted them at the beginning of the year. They have been surprisingly accurate so far, which is somewhat intriguing.
All the horoscopes I've read, in addition to these, seem to point toward me finding love in this last quarter of 2006 - a very welcome change, if it's true. However, my schedule as of late doesn't seem to support any serious mate searching so I'd like to get the ball rolling by placing an online order.
First of all, refer to My Must Haves and Can't Stands. These are essential, the Bible of Caroline Eligibility.
In addition:
1.) It'd be nice if he lived in Texas (or at least had a private, kick butt beach house on the Gulf.)
2.) Preferably, he'd be my age to lower 40's.
3.) My height or taller is a plus, but I've gotten over this hang-up.
4.) I'm a complicated person. I'm pretty sure I 'm a lot to handle so I need someone up to the challenge. Most men are not.
Please send resumes or curriculum vitaes, cover letters, and any applicable and substantial bribes. Submitted materials will be reviewed until the position is filled. Trial periods, perhaps concurrent with other applicants, may be required of the man or men selected, especially if multiple applicants are highly qualified.