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When did food get so complicated?
I remember the first time I heard of free-range chicken. Having grown up on a farm, I couldn't think what that meant. What other kind of chicken could there be? Then I found out about tiny cages, cut off beaks, and other abominations. And I learned that "free-range"...
Appalachian Thursday – Lightning Bugs
You know it's summer in the mountains when the lightning bugs start putting on a show. As kids, we loved to catch them and drop them in a mason jar with holes poked in the lid. Then we'd put that jar on a dresser in our rooms to watch them twinkle until we fell...
Time to Complain About the Heat
Ah, June. Those days of complaining about how cold it is are well behind us. Mild spring days have wound down. Some afternoon it's even getting . . . hot. While the first true day of summer may not be until June 21, school is out this week, I'm going bare-legged in...
Appalachian Thursday – Summer Outdoors
In the cool of the evening my husband and I often sit on the front porch steps. We chat lazily, watch Thistle poke around, and wave at passing cars. It's a very Appalachian-summer thing to do. Of course, if we were kids, we'd be up and off the steps taking advantage...
How Real Should Writers Get?
We've all read those novels. You know the ones. The heroine has been riding in a covered wagon for two months when she meets the dashing cowboy who saves the wagon train. He finds her lovely in spite of the fact that she hasn't washed her hair since late winter and...
Appalachian Thursday – Feuding
I'm currently working on a story idea that involves a feud. One of my goals in writing stories set in my beloved Appalachians is taking some of the stereotypes and clichés and either debunking them or shedding new light on them. So. Feuding. In the style of the...
What Character Did You Want to Be?
I literally wore out a set of Little House on the Prairie books. I read the covers right off of them and kept going until they were in pieces. I LOVED those books. And I wanted to be Laura. I wanted to wear a sleeping cap when I went to bed in a loft. I wanted a...
Appalachian Thursday – Kilt Lettuce
I made my first trip to the local farmer's market last week. There was an ABUNDANCE of spring greens available along with green onions, garlic scapes, and a few of last seasons potatoes. Which means it's time for kilt lettuce! I don't know for sure, but I assume the...
Meet Sarah
