Why did I gravitate to country/folk music and to simple recipes with great ingredients? People. Real people. Not celebrities or rock star chefs.
Yes, my dog died, perhaps a guy left me for another gal and my pickup (SUV) may have a flat but I want to hear the stories of real people. As a teenager or early twenties-something you don’t know anything about love and loss. It’s only when you’re older and wiser (and wearier) that you know something about life, and certain things ring true.
Love, when you find true love, keep it. If anyone lies to you about anything except “do I look fat in this” ditch them. There are few true friends in this world – if you have one, keep him/her. As to in-laws, know your spouse and you’ll know what you’re getting into, and if his Dad has no hair at age 50, he won’t either.
Cook with abandon, whether you know how or not. If you don’t know, watch your mother, m-i-l or friends, or take a class. In my mind, nothing shows love more than a well thought-out and crafted meal to appease guests. I love cooking meals just for us, or for family, friends and large gatherings. Given time to plan and prepare I can wow our guests. Given 15 minutes, with my essential pantry (see right column for entries) I can pull something together on short notice.
My guitar has had little action lately except for making sure it is properly humidified. But I’m starting to dream again about music and am particularly fond of a couple of songs in the critically-acclaimed movie, Crazy Heart. I’m reading the novel now (got through half of it in a day) and admire T Bone Burnett and his cohorts for the music.
I’ll debate any issue I know something about but when the issue is me, and I’ve no idea the source of information and am deprived of any data, that’s just throwing punches in the dark. Around here they make sure you don’t have a clear target, a person to politely talk to in order to make things right.
As of this morning we may lose our home, a dear part of our family and more. Love and loss. Perhaps I can write a country song around it and make amends. Not so cheery today, Dee
Cooking with Dee 
You can’t just leave us hangin’ like this!!!
Wassup babe?
Sorry about the possible impending losses. What up?
My guitar is getting lots of action, and so are my knitting needles. My hands are tired! There must be a song in that, too.
Current favorites for listening: Sonny by Mary Black/Delores O’Keane/Emmylou Harris and In a Town This Size by John Prine (but sung by Dan Wetzel, Kristen Grainger & TJ Morris). Two interesting stories!
Family is OK, we’re going to fight the living situation (one owner here is furious that we’ve been living here for a year with … a well-behaved dog so has made it a life goal to get rid of us).
The neighbors would all rather have us here than the complainers so the soap opera continues. Now I have to keep the shades down in the morning until after he walks by else he’ll look in the windows and no doubt get out his clipboard and report us for preparing food in the kitchen or having a spot of dust on the coffee table.
Apparently these folks are devotees of the “do unto others before they do unto you” school of thought and Jim and I are the opposite. We don’t have interest or time to spy on our neighbors and submit reports to the HOA.
Funny story from some old neighbors, both since passed. Had a house on 500 acres and someone complained about noise coming from the house. The reply: “Get off my land!” Priceless. Dee