Sven
I knew it was going to be a bad week because I never managed to get diddly squat done during holidays. So I put in extra effort Monday and Tuesday and came up with 3,164 words. Good thing too, because sure enough it was the only writing I got done all week.
Alice
Suzie’s House 44: A Little Get Together
This is the episode that caused my little blockage problem a few weeks back. Conceptually it would have worked fine right after we met Joseph and Sean, but I couldn’t get over the feeling something was missing. Maybe more than one something. Apparently I tried to skip over too much. 😀 To my FanLit friends, I apologize for taking so many artistic liberties with your names.
I huffed up the stairs, then took a half a minute breather before knocking on Cindy’s door. From the loud music and laughter, I guessed the party had already started. Chris answered the door.
“Look everybody! Alice is here.”
Several people called out a greeting. “Hi, you all!” I waved back.
I recognized most of those in the room. There was Sasha by the window, looking out as though wishing a cloud would come along and carry her to a bright and beautiful place. Lara and Kelly and Maura stood around the table full of booze bottles, talking and pouring at the same time. Cindy had a Café Frion in her hand. She grinned then lifted her glass in salute. Ashley wasn’t there yet, but I already knew she was working and would be late.
“Alice! Come here and show us how to do that pose de café thing you told us about.” Lara and Kelly waved me over.
As I crossed to the booze table, I noticed two guys and a woman in the front room looking at the neighbor’s house. They all had red hair.
“Cindy, who are they?” I asked as soon as I reached her.
“Do you like my new friends? I saw the one with the short hair sitting in his car outside one day. He went to visit my neighbor, Suzie. You remember Suzie, don’t you?”
“Thin woman, likes to wear skirts or dresses, kind of a Suzie Homemaker type?”
“She’s an accountant, just like you, you know.”
Actually, I hadn’t known. I never really spent much time with her. She wasn’t one of the people who took part in the Run/Walk for Life – the charity run where the rest of us met. I shrugged.
“Anyway, I was in the Caribou last night and saw him again. His name is Joe and his brother’s name is Sean.”
“So you’re interested in Joe?” I looked him over more closely. There was something a little harsh about the set of his face and the tension in his body, a kind of aura of danger. I figured Cindy could handle it, but deserved better.
“No, no. Not him. Sean.” Her eyes flicked to the other one, the man with shaggy red hair hanging just past his collar. She got a shy little smile, the kind that meant she had it bad.
Unluckily, the woman standing between the two men looked at Sean at the same time and gave him a dazzling smile. Women don’t smile like that at men they aren’t interested in.
“It looks like he already has a girlfriend.”
“Who, Christina? No, Christina’s all right. She’s interested in Joe. She introduced me to them.
I wasn’t so sure, but I wasn’t about to argue. I’d much rather enjoy one of Cindy’s parties.
Cindy was good at a lot of things – making drinks, cooking, walking, but throwing a party took the cake. Within minutes I was pouring Kailua in a liqueur glass, joking about the way Lara and that Christina girl both kept lifting their glass and staring at the layers, and discussing heart rates while walking. The Marathon Forever Survivors, as we called ourselves, were doing a 100 miles in 100 days challenge. Some of us got together to go walking every day.
I was having a wonderful time right up until I wound up next to the red heads by the front window. Just my luck to still be standing next to them when all Hell broke loose.
The previous was Suzie’s House 43: To Clear the Air
This is Suzie’s House 44: A Little Get Together
Next is Suzie’s House 45: A Party with a View
Thursday Thirteen #6: Things I'm Thankful For
1 – I’m alive. Always a good thing.
2 – I live in a country where it IS possible to improve your lot with a bit of work and intelligence, and no one can force you to give up your dream.
3 – Romance is a huge section of the novel industry with plenty of diversity.
4 – I love my family – not the given most people assume.
5 – There is always something great to read out there somewhere. I might have to try five or six books to find it, but eventually something will catch and keep my attention.
6 – It’s Thanksgiving, which in my book is an excuse to get together with people I love.
7 – The Internet lets me get out of my house without leaving my chair. Ok, this one isn’t so good for my exercise program, but I’m happy with it anyway.
8 – I live minutes away from some excellent hiking.
9 – While the snow is deep and the temperatures have plummeted, I’m warm and dry and comfortable. A couple of centuries ago this was not a given.
10 – There is plenty of food in the house and about to be more. Yes, I still have some trimmings to pick up.
11 – I got the turkey in plenty of time, so I haven’t had to poke it like I did last year.
12 – I don’t have to hand pump all the water I’m using. I’m going to be even more thankful about this one after dinner.
13 – My husband hasn’t gone to fat, but doesn’t mind that I did.
I had a miserable time with my links last week, so I’m going back to Mr. Linky for now.
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By George! He’s Found the Perfect Girl
You all knew Mrs. Fitzherbert was going to be of interest to Prince George. Can you guess how he reacted to her lovely image?
*****
Mrs Maria Fitzherbert was the widow of Thomas Fitzherbert. The Fitzherberts were an old Roman Catholic family. By the time the Prince met her she had been married and widowed twice. She had also spent most of her life in France; all of her adolescence in a convent. After the death of her second husband she chose to move to London. She had inherited, along with a tidy sum of money, the lease on a nice house on Park Street. She took up residence there and lived a quiet and sedate life.
What little socializing she did do was mostly with other Catholic families in London. It came as a surprise to her that she had caught the Prince’s eye while attending the opera. It came as an even greater surprise when the Prince began courting her with the usual multi-volume letters and small gifts. Her surprise turned to shock when he began declaring his undying love for her.
She let him know, in no uncertain terms, that she would never consent to be his mistress. She was a good Catholic girl, end of conversation. And as he had every reason to know, marriage was totally out of the question. The Royal Marriage Act had been passed to prevent just such a union. The Act said that no member of the royal family under the age of 25 could marry without the Kings consent.
As if that weren’t enough, another law, the Act of Settlement, had been passed specifically to prevent the Prince, or anyone else in the line of succession, from marrying a Roman Catholic upon pain of forever renouncing his claim to the throne. Let’s see, the Prince couldn’t marry a Catholic, couldn’t marry at all without dad’s permission and the Catholic lady he loved wouldn’t touch him with a ten-foot pole because she was such a good Catholic lady.
What to do? What he usually did to win the hearts of recalcitrant ladies. He started behaving like a loonie. Fits of swearing his undying love, bursting into tears at the mention of her name, threatening to kill himself, he probably managed to cough up a bit of blood as well.
He swore to anyone who would listen that he intended to give up the throne, his allowance, his family, everything he held dear, if only Maria would be his. He proposed to her over and over again. His beloved Maria was so entranced by the Princes declarations that she decided to return to France. Without telling him. She probably meant to, but what with packing and all, it slipped her mind.
The Prince got wind of her plans and decided that he had, perhaps, been too subtle. Yes, that was it! He had been too low-key! She didn’t think he was serious! Well, he had a plan to take care of that!
****
Oh dear. Funny how often Prince Goerge makes me say that.
Thank you Mr. Al.
Alice
Turkey Stuffed Cabbage
This isn’t going to work with leftovers, and I’m sure you’re about to see more than enough turkey, but for some reason it came to mind.
1 head cabbage
1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1/2 lb. ground turkey
1 small onion, minced
1 slice stale whole wheat bread, crumbled
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup water
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 can (16 oz.) diced tomatoes
1 small onion, sliced
1 cup water
1 medium carrot, sliced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1. Rinse and core cabbage. Carefully remove 10 outer leaves, place in saucepan and cover with boiling water. Simmer 5 minutes. Remove and drain cooked cabbage leaves on paper towels.
2. Shred 1/2 cup of raw cabbage and set aside.
3. Brown ground beef and turkey and minced onion in skillet. Drain fat.
4. Place cooked and drained meat mixture, bread crumbs, water, and pepper in mixing bowl.
5. Drain tomatoes, reserving liquid, and add 1/2 cup tomato juice from can to meat mixture. Mix well; then place 1/4 cup filling on each cabbage leaf. Place folded side down in skillet.
6. Add tomatoes, sliced onion, water, shredded cabbage, and carrot. Cover and simmer about 1 hour (or until cabbage is tender), basting occasionally.
7. Remove cabbage rolls to serving platter, keep warm.
8. Mix lemon juice, brown sugar, and cornstarch together in small bowl. Add to vegetables and liquid in skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened and clear. Serve over cabbage rolls.
Bony Apatite
Alice
Sven This Week
I did 3001 words for the week. I’d planned on doing that much every two days. This is particularly bad because I know this coming week will be worse and I was trying to play catch up since I have yet to reach the 7,000 a week goal. Boy, I’m going to have to be very fast in December if I’m going to finish this thing before Christmas.
Alice
Suzie’s House 43: To Clear the Air
Previously in Suzie’s house Ben helped his mom set the table. Now they are sitting at the table for dinner, but it’s actually a few days later. I’d link you to the episode involving Vin and Miranda, but it was on the newsletter as it wasn’t quite PG13 rated.
Everyone sat around the dining room table looking all stiff. Ben thought maybe they should be eating in the kitchen at the kitchen table like he and Mom did before everyone moved in. Then maybe everyone would go back to the way they were supposed to be.
Vin kept looking across the table at Miranda with these really sad eyes. Whatever him and Miranda were arguing about before dinner must have got to him. Miranda wouldn’t look at Vin. She kept looking from Drew to Mom and back and talking about what she thought she might cook for dinner tomorrow. It all sounded like leftovers to Ben, but he didn’t mind. His mother’s leftovers were better than school food any day and miles better than the pizza his dad always fed him during visitations.
Drew and Mom both kept looking at him every few minutes, which made him nervous. He didn’t think there was anything in his teeth or on his chin or anything, but he kept dabbing his napkin on his face in case he was wrong. Probably they were just worried about him.
So far everything was ok. Drew walked him to and from the bus stop, and the guy who shot Vin wasn’t there either time. It was scary, but nothing was going to happen because they had each other, so why did they all have to be so tense.
He tried cracking a couple of jokes, but everyone just sort of smiled at him. No one but him laughed. After a while he gave up.
Then Vin leaned way off to the side. His face scrunched up like he was in pain. Ben thought maybe he was going to pass out or something. Drew must have thought so too cause he got out of his seat at the head of the table and went over to grab Vin’s shoulders.
Vin unleashed the longest, loudest, most obnoxious fart Ben had ever heard. It went on and on, stinking up the whole place.
“Whewhhh!” Drew jumped back and fanned the air in front of his nose, making a face.
Ben couldn’t help it. He started giggling. Miranda held her hand over her mouth, but Ben could see her smile behind it.
“Vin!” Mom said from the foot of the table. She was trying to look all mom-like, but Ben could tell she wanted to smile too.
Vin just grinned and shrugged. “A man has got to do what a man has got to do.” Like he didn’t mind at all.
Ben couldn’t help it. Giggles turned into laughing and laughing turned into laughing so hard his stomach hurt and everyone else was laughing too.
Just like that everything was fine again. Miranda wasn’t all stiff anymore and Vin wasn’t sad. Even Mom and Drew were talking and smiling.
Nothing could ruin this home thing they had going. Even when there were bad guys out there who wanted to kill them, and everyone got all tense it was still home. Nothing could keep them from feeling good for very long. Nothing could touch this.
Nothing.
The previous was Suzie’s House 42: A Little Understanding
This is Suzie’s House 43: To Clear the Air
Next is Suzie’s House 44: A Little Get Together
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Placed here because wordpress wouldn’t let me edit the original entry.
Thursday Thirteen #5 : Things on my Desk
| Thirteen Things about Alice Audrey
1 – A computer. Actually, just he keyboard and the monitor, but that’s close enough. (leave your link in comments – BE SURE TO LEAVE THE ONE DIRECTLY TO YOUR POST FOR BEST RESULTS, I’ll add you here!) |
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By George! “Now, about my allowance….”
When we left off Prince George had just moved into Carlton House. Can you imagine what would be on his mind?
*****
The Prince was wishing on moonbeams if he thought he would get 100,000 pounds. Negotiations dragged on. In the end Fox convinced the Prince to accept the 50,000 from the civil list and the Cornwall revenues with the understanding that a capital sum of 60,000 pounds would be provided separately, by Parliament. When would that happen? Um…later. The Prince accepted “in the handsomest manner.” Said Fox.
Carlton House was part of the deal. At the time the Prince took possession of it, it was nothing like the palace it would become. It was in Pall Mall, then, as now, a high rent neighborhood. And it had a garden that, in splendor, was all out of proportion to the house itself. The Prince’s grandmother, the Princess Dowager of Wales, a title once held by Anne of Cleves, had seen to that. She had spent lavishly on the garden and it was considered the most beautiful in London.
In fact, one of the Kings conditions for allowing the Prince to have the house was that he maintain the garden. He did. It was the scene of many a famous, or infamous, party. And now that the house was his, the Prince could begin an obsession that would last the rest of his life and put him millions of modern dollars in debt. Building and remodeling.
Didn’t the Czarina have the Winter Palace in St Petersburg? Didn’t the King of France have Versailles? Was his Highness supposed to be like his old man, saving candle stubs and toasting muffins in the fireplace? Not likely, Buster! The Prince had taste. He was not going to hide that under a bushel, thank you very much!
While building and expanding, he bought art. He bought furniture imported from around the world just for him. He sent buyers to France, Italy, the Netherlands, even the Middle East, to search for objects d’art, The finest china and crystal stemware for his dinner parties. Gold and silver plate, Gobelin tapestries, walls paneled in silk, nothing was too good, or too expensive.
By the spring of 1784 the house was ready for the Prince’s first official ball. People were stunned by the magnificence and expense of it all. So was the King. In letter after letter he admonished his boy to be more frugal. Yes, he had to maintain the garden and His Majesty realized that that was expensive. Of course the house needed repairs, His Majesty was aware that upgrades had not been done in a timely manner. But damn it all boy, silk wallpaper?
He also went on about the Prince’s chums. His Royal Majesty just plain went on. The Prince’s reply to all this? “Yeah, sure dad, whatever. Now, about my allowance…” The spring of 1784 was notable not only for the opening of Carlton House for social duties. In March, the Morning Herald carried this small announcement; “Mrs. Fitzherbert has arrived for the season.”
*******
Mrs. Fitzherbert? Uh-oh.
Thanks Mr. Al.
Alice
Poetry
While helping my son find a poem for a class assignment I ran across this:
Wishes for Sons
i wish them cramps.
i wish them a strange town
and the last tampon.
I wish them no 7-11.
i wish them one week early
and wearing a white skirt.
i wish them one week late.
later i wish them hot flashes
and clots like you
wouldn’t believe. let the
flashes come when they
meet someone special.
let the clots come
when they want to.
let them think they have accepted
arrogance in the universe,
then bring them to gynecologists
not unlike themselves.
Lucille Clifton
He’s supposed to memorize and recite it. The above just didn’t cut it, and he didn’t like Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, Robert Service or William Carlos Williams. So I ended up writing one for him:
SHEC
Screaming, running, skating, slamming
Bodies everywhere
Grind the rail
Goofie foot
Tall tale
Did you see that move!!
Sick, I tell you sick move on the half pipe!
Wham
He broke his arm in three places
But wouldn’t come out of the cage.
Next week watch.
I’ll show him up.
Just need to fix my trucks.
SHEC is the name of the local scate board park. He seems to like it.
Alice
Thai Turkey Salad
Got turkey on your mind? Not like this I’ll bet:
1/4 cup plain non-fat yogurt
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1 bag (10 ounces) mixed salad greens, chilled1 pound honey roasted deli turkey breast, cut into thin strips
1 mango, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
3/4 cup green onions, sliced
4 Tablespoons lightly salted roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
1. In small microwave-safe bowl, combine yogurt, peanut butter, brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger and hot sauce. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and microwave at 50% power 1 to 1-1/2 minutes, until brown sugar is dissolved. Allow to cool while preparing salad. In large bowl, combine chilled salad greens, turkey, mango, bell pepper and onion.
2. To serve, combine salad and dressing, tossing to coat. Top with peanuts.
If fresh mango is unavailable, look for jars of peeled and sliced mango in the produce department. Cut slices into cubes to equal 2 cups.
The Sven Thing
I was kind of counting on this week to make up for last week. At 1,000 words a day for 7 days I need to do 7,000 words a week just to stay even. I did 5,734. It would have been worse but I managed to bust through at the end of the week and did a couple thousand on Friday. Whoohoo! Still, with every single week running behind, I don’t think I’m going to have this puppy done by Christmas.
Alice
I’m #150 on Sven Have you seen how many people came after me? And I thought I was a little late.
Suzie’s House 42: A Little Understanding
When we left Ben a couple of weeks ago, he had just learned that the man who shot Vin is the same man who offered him a ride – or at least so everyone in Suzie’s house thinks.
Being in home was all different now that Ben knew what was really going on. Least he knew what was up with the guy who shot Vin anyway. There was something going on between Vin and Miranda, but Ben wasn’t sure he wanted to know about it and kind of ignored them.
They were in the TV room talking. Ben wandered into the kitchen where Mom was cooking up a storm. She must be really upset about something ‘cause it was supposed to be Vin’s turn to cook. That’s OK. Vin needed to sit anyway. Every time he stood around for very long his face got kind of grey like he was going to pass out or something.
“Mom? Can I talk to you about Mrs. D?”
“Sure, Honey.”
“She’d out to get me.”
Mom scrunched her lips together and nodded. “She certainly is. That woman should be in a mental hospital, not a classroom.”
Something inside Ben let go. His shoulder’s didn’t feel so tight and his belly too. He smiled cause he couldn’t help it. Mom believed him, just like that. He didn’t have to argue about it or anything.
“Honey, I’m not sure what I can do about it. I’ve already tried to talk to her, which probably only made it worse. I’m afraid I said some things to her that weren’t very nice.”
“Wish I could,” Ben muttered. Boy, he sure wished he could have been there and seen Mom lay into Mrs. D. It would have been totally sick. Sick like skateboard sick, not like running to the bathroom.
Mom tapped the wooden spoon on the edge of the pot, set it on the rooster spoon holder. “Be that as it may, I’m afraid I’ve only made things worse.” She smiled at him real quick while she turned down the heat under one of the pots.
“It wasn’t too bad today.” Actually, it was as bad as ever, but at least it hadn’t gotten any worse and he was still home with Mom and didn’t have to see is Dad for a whole extra week. Dad said he had something to do over the weekend. He didn’t say what, but Ben bet it had something to do with a new girlfriend.
“I have an appointment with your Vice Principal next week, but I don’t know if he will take me seriously after that little scene I made yesterday.”
“You mean when you burst into my science class looking for me and Mr. D was hanging off you and yelling and everything?”
Mom nodded.
“Was that about the man who shot Vin?”
Mom nodded again, looking very serious.
He’d thought it was kind of funny at the time. I mean, Mrs. D looked like a total freak in front of everybody, but his mom looked a little wild too. Anyone who knew his mom would have thought something major was happening. In a way, Ben guessed it was. He still got shivers when he thought about how close a call it was when the guy offered him a ride and he almost took it.
“So I don’t know if I’ll be much help dealing with Mrs. D. I’ll do all I can, but you may have to tough it out.”
“It’s OK, Mom. As long as you understand.”
“I do, Honey. I understand completely.” She have his hand a squeeze. “Would you do me a favor? Set table for me. It’s time to eat.”
“Sure, Mom.” Ben went to the cupboard, happy to help out. He didn’t ever want his mom to have an excuse to send him away. Besides, it felt good to help her. Unlike some people, she appreciated it.
The previous was Suzie’s House 41: Coming to the Point
This is Suzie’s House 42: A Little Understanding
Next is Suzie’s House 43: To Clear the Air
