A Selection of Poems by Christine DePetrillo

I often write poems when I'm experiencing writer's block. I'd like to share some with you today. Enjoy!

Here are two serious, nature-inspired ones:

LEAVES

Summer green

         fades,

autumn red

         flares,

to orange

yellow,

brown,

blankets the

         ground

awaiting the

         arctic veil

of

snow.

Fading sun

graying sky

frosty crispness

quiet hush

leafless trees

dark twigs

wait like soldiers

                  for the icy assault

flakes fall

frozen bullets

covering all in

         white

                  folds

                           of

                                  snow.

****

REFLECTION

Silent soldiers

standing tall in the ranks

needled arms raised

against the ambushing

sun

Autumn marches in

spraying its yellow, orange, brown

ammunition on the

vulnerable

Only the strong emerge

unscathed

true green

evergreen

Quiet river

remembers the battle

reflecting the victory

of the

pines

****

And here are two silly, food-inspired ones:

OH, THAT CRANBERRY SAUCE!

Wiggly

jiggly

red

sloppy

floppy

round

Sliding

off my

plate

headed

for  the

ground

Slipping

through

my fingers

landing

in a

mound

Grandma

steps

right in it

and it

doesn’t make

a sound

Sticky

icky

blob

three days later

when it’s

found.

****

SQUASHED

It’s orange.

It’s bumpy.

Mom’s is

Always lumpy.

It’s squash.

Serve it cold

Or serve it warm.

Either way

It’s got no form.

It’s squash.

Eat it now.

Don’t delay.

Best to get it

Out of the way.

It’s squash.

Take a drink.

Wash it down.

I’ll try my best

To hide my frown.

It’s squash.

Time for dessert.

Oh me, oh my

Cut me a slice

Of that apple pie.

Oh no…

it’s SQUASH!

Be sure to check here after Thanksgiving and into December for The Roses of Prose Annual Holiday stories! Free holiday cheer! Also, join the Facebook reader group I co-host with author Amanda Torrey at Small Town Hearts. We have a blast over there and we want you to be a part of it all!

Toodles,
Chris
www.christinedepetrillo.weebly.com

Why Do Heroines Never Eat? Tell Me Why for a Chance to Win A Pre-Pub Copy of Saving Maggie!

Glenys O'Connell @GlenysOConnell

This is something that has bothered me for a long time, so I'm reposting from an earlier blog. Tell me what you think - would you like to see better fed heroines?

I read a lot of ‘woman in jeopardy’ and romantic suspense novels, and it really bothers me how emaciated and malnourished those heroines must all be by the end of the book.

Now, maybe it’s just those few extra pounds on my rear, caused by too much computer time and too little exercise, so I could just be bitter about this, but have you ever noticed how little these usually over-active heroines ever eat?

It’s not unusual for them to have coffee for breakfast, be stalked, run off the road, shot at, sprint through miles of woodland, swim a lake, have wild sex with the hero, have a massive fight with the hero, rush home to run into the arms of a crazed kidnapper, be rescued or get themselves out of a scrape, and then remember that they’ve not eaten since coffee at breakfast the day before.

Yeah, really. I’d be chewing off my own foot, I’d be so hungry.

Lovely Food from My Daughter's
 Wedding Reception!

And what do they do then? Set up a good meal with all the foodgroups? No, it’s usually just another coffee and maybe a bit of unbuttered toast. And the coffee’s not a Tim Horton’s double-double – it’s almost always black.

How do they do it? Why do they do it?

Is it the wild sex that keeps them going? Or fear that interfers with normal digestive processes?

Sadly, I get really cranky if I miss a meal, so I guess I’m just not good heroine material. I’d be more likely to shoot the first person to annoy me, rather than solve the crime, save my skin, and bring everything to a happy ending.

So, what do you think? Should we start a campaign to provide a healthy breakfast and organic snacks for malnourished heroines?

Certainly, I’ve been reading some of the neat cozy detective series that are around, and a few more writers are making their heroines a bit more gastonomically realistic, so maybe there’s hope yet.
By way of protest, and to do my bit for starving heroines, I'm adding two yummy recipes to my upcoming release, Saving Maggie, from Crimson Romance. The recipes are for a chicken stir fry delux and some decadent byut healthy cookies. You just gotta see them!

Let me know what you think – should heroines have normal meals like the rest of us, or is starvation an important part of their diet? One lucky commenter will receive a pre-pub galley copy of Saving Maggie!


Glenys O’Connell admits to a love affair with food, and isn’t above a junk food meal when she’s pushed on deadline. Her heroines eat well, everything from home made macaroni tuna and cheese casserole in Judgement By Fire to an elegant three course meal at an expensive Dublin hotel, in Winters & Somers, while Maggie Kendall & Detective Josh Tyler make a wonderful chicken stir fry together in upcoming release Saving Maggie.(Crimson Romance, December 31, 2012)

November is Fun, Family, and Food by Jena Galifany

The holidays are supposed to begin with Thanksgiving. That is the date that most people observe as the opening of the festive season. I like to start with November 7th as that is my birthday! One week after Halloween, my holidays begin.

Sherri, Bill, Mom, Jena, and Dee

Holidays are for reconnecting with family. This year will be awesome because my oldest sister, Dee, her son Patrick, his wife, Tam and their daughter, Bella are moving back home from Texas. The really thrilling thing is that they will be here in the next week to ten days and my mother doesn't know they are coming. She will be so happy and that's what holidays are all about.

Last year, I was able to help my only brother come home for Christmas. Mom hadn't seen him and his wife and son for a couple of years. We were able to surprise her and her tears at seeing my brother made it all worth it. I want to do it again this year and we will all be together for Christmas for the first time in about five years. This is going to be great!

Holidays are for good food and a lot of it. Since we have a selection of picky eaters, the holidays include a main coarse of turkey, ham, and/or enchiladas with tacos, depending which part of the family we are with. I know it sounds strange but my mother-in-law likes the enchiladas and tacos because they are quick, easy and make for fast clean up. Works for me!

I like one dish meals for the ease of preparation and the ease of clean-up. Though the enchiladas are simple,
Chilliquillas are even better. Here's how it's done:

Chilliquillas

 

14 or 16 Corn Tortillas cut into small triangles

1 or 1.5 lbs of Ground Beef or Turkey, browned & drained

2 cans of mild or medium Enchilada Sauce (or you can do 1 of each)

1 pkg of Shredded Cheese

1 small can of diced Olives

 

Cook cut tortillas in hot oil. Make sure they are all softened by oil. 

 

Add meat, drained olives & sauces.

 

Mix all together so everything is coated. 

 

Let sit for a few minutes for flavor to mingle. 

 

Add cheese, mix and add more on top.

 

Serve with sour cream & diced green onion if you want. 

 

Enjoy

Quick, easy and only one skillet used in the preparation. the recipe may be doubled if you have a large family or it may be served as a side dish. (My thanks to Claire Martinez who shared this recipe with me years ago when we worked together.)

I believe that by Thanksgiving, you will have many traditional holiday recipes to try during the holidays so I wanted to begin the collection with something out of the ordinary. I hope you enjoy this dish and hope that you have wonderful holidays ahead!

_____________

Begin your Holiday shopping now. Ebooks make excellent gifts for all of your buying needs. I hope you will consider checking out my books available from Whiskey Creek Press and Red Rose Publishing. To see all of my books in one place, and read excerpts, stop by my WEBSITE.

Clive Hanson is destined to be a comfort to those traveling the rocky road of life. He does his best work on Christmas Eve.

Emily Ann Brewster wishes for one wonderful evening spent with a friend. What she gets is stuck in an elevator with a strange gentleman. And it's Christmas Eve.

What he does,and what she needs, is a miracle.

My short holiday story will lift your heart. At only $.99, it's a great gift and a great way to begin your holiday season. Buy it at Red Rose Publishing.

May your holidays be special and filled with fun, family and fabulous foods.

Cheers, 
Jena'