Thanks well wishers!  My cold seems to be subsiding.  Chicken soup is the cure-all   I may need to review low sodium chicken soups!

The common cold - images of hot chicken soup, soft tissues, cozy quilts and comforters . . . NOT! More like, runny snotty stuffy red noses, mucus-laden coughs and bad bed hair!

I shoulda' had a tee shirt made that reads, "We went to Philadelphia and the only souvenir I brough home was a lousy cold" . . . damn you Rhinovirus!!

Being a born and raised Philadelphian I'm proud of our Phillies team. PHILLIES ARE GOIN' TO THE WORLD SERIES, AGAIN! Now that's what I'm talkin' about!

P.s. Philadelphia Eagles . . . watch and learn!

Excerpts from a Slacker's Journal:

It's been a month since I've written a Veiw Points review . . . yes I've been slacking, sorry!  However,  my second book is motoring right along.  I'm excited to announce 10 more new chapters are completed.  And I've kept my Friday Weekly Writers Blog up-to-date as well.  not bad for a slacker!  I have purchased a few new kitchen products.  I look forward to reviewing them very soon.  Until then, I think I'll slack a bit more and perk a pot of fresh coffee, eat a slice of homemade apple pie and enjoy one of the dozen of movies I have recorded,  but never seem to watch. 

P.s. If you are a member of Facebook I now have a Fan Page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Deb-Martin-Webster/113852291821?ref=mf

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas at Biltmore!  They've started putting up the decorations and soon the 36 foot Banquet Hall christmas tree will arrive!  Nothing smells better than fresh pine in a room with 72 foot ceilings and three fireplaces you can literally stand inside of . . . beautiful!  If you've seen the movie Richie Rich that's the room they used as the family's dining room. Come visit if you live in or around the Asheville area.

I love fall evenings when the sun is setting low in the sky and shadows begin to get longer. As the weather changes from the hot and humid dog days of summer, cooler temperatures steer me back into the kitchen signaling . . . Baking Season!  Cookies, cakes, breads and pies all taste better when they're home made.  This week I'll share one of my favorite autumn recipes with you.  It's so good that Dinah Shore and Ella Fitzgerald sang a song about it, "Apple Pan Dowdy" and it goes like this: 

Shoo fly pie and apple pan dowdy
Makes your eyes light up,
And your tummy say howdy.
Shoo fly pie and apple pan dowdy
I never get enough of that wonderful stuff.
Shoo fly pie and apple pan dowdy makes the sun come out
When heavens are cloudy,
Shoo fly pie and apple pan dowdy,
I never get enough of that wonderful stuff!

Wonderful stuff, indeed!  It's an easy recipe to follow and fun for the entire family to prepare:

Ingredients:

5 cups apples peeled and sliced - I use Fuji or Golden Delicious
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped pecan [optional]
1/2 cup dried cranberries [optional]
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup molasses
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
1 egg
1/4 lb. butter
1/2 cup whole milk or butter milk*

Preparation:

Place peeled, sliced apples in a baking dish, sprinkle with nutmeg, pecans, dried cranberries, cinnamon and a pinch of salt and pour molasses over the apples. Cover with foil and bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for approximately 30 minutes, until apples are soft.

Place all-purpose flour, baking powder, sugar and a pinch of salt in a mixing bowl. Beat egg in another bowl and then add to the flour mixture. Add melted butter and milk; mix and pour over apple mixture, spreading it as evenly as you can -- showing a few apples on the outside edges.  Drizzle a 1/4 cup of molasses over batter.  Return to oven and bake another 30 minutes or so, until browned. Eat hot with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or cool with a dollop of whipped cream.

* If you use buttermilk use 1 full cup

One of our little barn cats Penelope was killed yesterday morning while trying to cross our road.  I really miss her.  She was my favorite out of the three.  The momma cat and her brother have come down from the barn and are staying close by our house.  It's as though they are looking and waiting for her return . . .  so very sad, it is.  We buried her next to our pet rabbit George.  As with all our pets who've passed on we've planted daffodils on their tiny graves as a reminder of how much love and beauty they brought into our lives . . .

ONE YEAR, ONE MAN, ONE WORLD:  President Obama awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize . . .a proud moment for America and the world!

Happy First Day of October!  I always dismantle my summer gardens and plant my spring bulbs in October.   It's the feel of the warm October sun on my face and that crisp feel in the air tells me it's Apple Butter Time! 

I'll be heading out to the orchards Saturday to pick apples with Pete and Samaya.  If you're read my book you know this is a "Tradition" we've done since she was able to walk!  Nothing like lifting a child into the air and letting them pick their first apple from the tree, harvesting as many as we can carry in our baskets and the intoxicating scent of apples on the ride home! 

I'm trying a different Apple Butter recipe this year . . . I'll let you know how it turns out!  And don't forget to go outside October 3 or 4 depending where you live to enjoy that big, beautiful harvest moon! 

HOW NOW INTERRUPTING COW, HORSE, etc.....

Cows . . . what gentle creatures they are.  They give us milk, eat grass and hay, have four stomachs, and moo.  Well at least that's the image city folks have.  I dare anyone to drive down a country road, by a cow pasture and not hang your head out the window and MOoooooooooo!  You can't help it.  Cows just have that effect on city folk. 

Country folks have an entirely different relationship with them.  Picture if you will a bucolic pasture, the sun coming up over the hill and twelve cows, mooing . . . mooing . . . and MOOING, at 5.a.m. in the morning.  Sleep interrupted.  It's now 6 a.m. they're still mooing!  By 7 a.m. I'm sleep deprived, and screaming at this gentle creature asking them if they understand how annoyed I am. I walk over the fence, ranting, pointing my finger at their huge heads swearing I'll make a leather wallet out of all of them if they don't stop.  I stopped and realized it's not even dawn and I'm having a tyrannical argument with a cow . . . a COW!  I'm so ashamed, but continue to brow beat the beast for waking me up; sad indeed.

It's now 9 a.m. - our neighbor has arrived.  Oh joy, they are finally being fed.  Peace quiet and tranquility at last.  I sat on the porch enjoying my morning cup of tea and our horse came over from the larger pasture neighing and snorting.  The barn cats not far behind him, screeching, and howling for their breakfast, a school bus ripping down the road back-fires! Peaceful country living . . . I think not!  I can't believe I'm able to write.  My blog is done so I'm going back to bed.  Have a great weekend fans and I'll chat with you again next week.   Until then I'll leave you with a joke: 

Knock, knock.  Who's there?  Interrupting cow . . .   Interrupt . . . .MOOoooooo!

Disclaimer: No cows were hurt, humiliated or made to feel inferior or responsible for my sleep deprivation during the creating and/or writing of this blog.  Said neighbor was not chastised for his tardiness in feeding said cows nor was his pointing and laughing at me ranting at said cow to be offensive to said author.

Happy Autumn Equinox!

 I wanted to share one of the reviews I received this week for my book.  It was reviewd by ReviewTheBook.com  Enjoy!

"A Hot Dog Stand In The Himalayas, by Deborah K. Martin is a book to be treasured! This book is compelling from start to finish. The author chronicles a grandchild's special relationship with her grandmother from childhood through early adulthood and illustrates how profoundly a grandparent's love can impact a child's life.  

I found myself making mental comparisons between the grandmother in the story and my relationship with my own grandchildren. Hopefully they will remember their relationship with me with as much joy.   The storyline, as seen through a child's eyes, is very descriptive and makes you feel you are along for the ride as an "invisible friend." As the main character ages, she realizes that her grandmother has always been instrumental in adding a dimension of wonder and imagination to the way she experiences life.   Whether you are a parent, grandparent or hope to be in the future, don't miss this book! It will give you new insight into the ways a child views the world and how you can add to the magic!" 

Reviewed on 09/16/2009 by ReviewTheBook.com Member Cathy Deskins

A few weeks ago I started a discussion entitled Misconstruded Lyrics.  Little did I know it would come back to haunt me.  

Me and my granddaughter  were watching a local beauty and talent pageant and she began singing, "There She Is, Miscellaneous!"   She didn't understand why I could not stop laughing.  Come to think of it I like her lyrics much better . . .

Last week I harvested the first crop of concord grapes from our restored grapevine. I've added a photo of them in my Photo Section.  If I do say so myself the grapes were pump, sweet and perfectly formed. To the dismay of my friends I didn't have enough to make wine but more than enough to make grape jam. PBJ's anyone . . .

While on vacation I re-read the story of The Old Man and the Sea a novella by one of my favorite writers, Ernest Hemingway. It was written in Cuba in 1951 and published in 1952 and the last major work of fiction to be produced by Hemingway and published in his lifetime.

Being one of his most famous works, it centers upon Santiago, an aging Cuban fisherman who struggles with a giant marlin far out in the Gulf Stream. The story itself some would say is a story about a man set out to catch a fish, perhaps; however the true story is not a story at all, but a life lesson for Santiago. As he prepares to sets sail on the vast ocean in his small boat to do battle this giant fish he realizes how minuscule he is in the scheme of things. He pondered how his life is indeed small compared to the challenges he faces. Then, as the battle between man, sea, and fish begins - his life lessons begin. He learns strength, endurance, hardship, excruciating pain, victory, defeat and the satisfaction of knowing that he did what he set out to do. His quest - was to catch a fish, however, the journey and life lessons the fish taught went far beyond a simple fishing trip.

In life we all encounter situations that challenge and test our medal. The lesson isn't winning or losing . . . the lesson is having the courage to show up!