Duck in the Well

When Ruth, my sister seven years older than I am, was young she had a baby duck. (This event happened before I was born.) For sport, she was chasing her duck through the yard. Our dad had removed the wooden frame that protected the well so he could repair it.

The results were not as bad as they could have been. Ruth didn't fall into the well, but her baby duck did. Upon her insistence, Daddy drew bucket after bucket of water to rescue the duck, but he never found it.

My sister's recollection of losing her duck in the well inspired a scene in The Dream Bucket.

Please help me publish this book by nominating it here: Kindle Scout

Character in The Dream Bucket: A Young Girl Named Trudy

As The Dream Bucket begins, ten-year-old Trudy appears to think she is entitled to have nice things. Her papa’s little princess, she deserves to live in a stately mansion with fine furnishings in her bedroom and an abundance of beautiful dresses to wear to school.

On page one, she learns that having things cannot make her happy. What good are pretty lamps, curtains, and rugs if Mama and Papa fight in their room next to hers? Not much later she learns how it feels to lose almost everything.

When circumstances strip away material things, Trudy’s sense of entitlement changes to an attitude of thankfulness. She soon learns to recognize her blessings. For example, when she lies down on the floor in a rotten shack, she thanks God she doesn’t have to sleep on the ground.

Please help me convince Kindle Scout to consider The Dream Bucket for publication.

Nominate The Dream Bucket.

Wash Pot

None of the blog entries will spoil the story of The Dream Bucket. I promise.

After the Camerons’ home burned, Zoe, Billy, and Trudy went looking for anything they could glean from the fire that had reaped most of what was theirs. It hurt to go looking around at the old house site.

Between the backyard and the chicken yard, the three-legged cast-iron wash pot stood waiting to be drafted into service to the little family.

With help, they set it up behind their new home. They filled it with water and built a fire underneath it to boil their clothes.

While having fellow writers critique The Dream Bucket, I discovered that not very many people know what a wash pot is. Some friends in the Taylorsville group on Facebook helped me find some pictures to show readers. Here is one of them.

The Dream Bucket is a slice of life the way it was about a century ago. I hope you’ll paint your own mental picture of this life in Mississippi, which was a little bit pioneer and a little bit reconstruction era lingering on.

Your nomination at KindleScout.Amazon.com will help Kindle Scout make a decision to publish it. Please CLICK HERE and select the blue bar underneath the presentation of The Dream Bucket that says “Nominate me.”

Old Mississippi Lifestyle

A Dozen Common Practices in the Good Old Days

1. Rolling hair on corn shucks
2. Drawing water from a well
3. Living in an unpainted house
4. Laundering with a black iron wash pot, galvanized washtub, and washboard
5. Hanging clothes on the line-- maybe bushes or fences if no line was available
6. Ironing with a flat iron made of iron
7. Riding in a mule-drawn wagon
8. Refrigerating food in an icebox containing a big block of ice
9. Robbing honey from a beehive in a tree
10. Cooking biscuits in a wood-heated stove
11. Cracking eggs and dropping then into a separate container just in case they're rotten
12. Tying a milk cow's tail with a string to keep her from hitting you in the face when she swats at horseflies

Life in The Dream Bucket was like this. Please nominate this book at Kindle Scout. CLICK HERE.

The Dream Bucket Featured in Kindle Scout's Reader-Powered Publishing Campaign

11/24/2014 . . .
11 days since Kindle Scout launched The Dream Bucket

19 days until the end of the campaign.

All campaigns last 30 days.

How many nominations does the book need?

Who knows?

All I know is that the more nominations The Dream Bucket receives . . .
the more likely it will receive attention from the Kindle Scout team
so it can be selected for publication.

Remember:
You have the power to select The Dream Bucket for Kindle Scout to publish.

Thanks for your vote!

CLICK

The Dream Bucket

What are your dreams?

What's in your bucket?

KindleScout

10 reasons why I'm excited about KINDLE SCOUT

What’s so exciting about having The Dream Bucket featured for nomination on Kindle Scout?

Amazon’s new publishing program is a stroke of genius.

Kindle Scout began a campaign 10 days ago to feature The Dream Bucket. Readers can go to KindleScout.Amazon.com and nominate it for supported publication.

20 days remaining . . .

Nominate The Dream Bucket today or by December 13, 2014, with a better-than-traditional contract. CLICK HERE.

The ten reasons why I’m excited:

1. The Dream Bucket is “hot.” It has maintained a spot in the Hot and Trending category every day for 10 days.
2. Many dear friends, established authors, cousins, Facebook friends, and some folks I don’t really know have supported the campaign by nominating (voting for) the book , sharing my comments, and “liking” my posts on Facebook.
3. Kindle Scout is providing a built-in platform of readers for my new novel by allowing Amazon customers to select the books to be published. If The Dream Bucket is selected, Amazon will give each person who nominated it a free copy of the book with an invitation (but not requirement) to write a review.
4. The Dream Bucket has a unique cover specifically designed for this project. The picture of the shack evokes curiosity about the mysterious events unfolding in the story.
5. This historical novel with an inspirational theme holds its own along with racy thrillers.
6. Kindle Scout gives me an open professional route to promote the book.
7. Amazon provides broad-marketing access.
8. Submitting to Kindle Scout is an opportunity to promote the book without hiring an agent.
9. Kindle Scout is the beginning of an excellent opportunity. This campaign has started to provide me a chance to share some universal struggles found in the hearts of the characters in the story.
10. KindleScout.Amazon.com presents new books in a clever, interactive way. This is a live website.

You have the power: 21 more days to vote for THE DREAM BUCKET

You have the power to select a novel for Kindle Scout to publish. Amazon will promote the book and provide a beneficial contract. My novel,The Dream Bucket, is in the list of unpublished works to be considered in a 30-day campaign.

21 more days . . .

THE DREAM BUCKET at Kindle Scout

Three weeks from now, Amazon will tally your nominations for The Dream Bucket. I'll receive an email to tell me whether it has been selected for publication.
If you haven't voted yet, please nominate (vote for) The Dream Bucket in Kindle Scout today or before December 13, 2014. Thanks to all of you who have voted. You are keeping the book in the "Hot and Trending" list.

Several friends have asked me if it is possible to vote twice. No . . . just once for The Dream Bucket. If it is one of the books selected and you voted for it, you'll receive a free Kindle copy.

The Dream Bucket, a Tender Romance

Until a few decades ago, a woman had no right to know specific details about her husband’s finances. The man handled the money, but what was a woman to do if she lost him?

The Dream Bucket . . . courage, self-discovery, grief, healing family pain, survival – a tender romance with threads of humor and mystery . . .
In the spring of 1909, Zoe Cameron shares a prosperous life with William and their two children – twelve-year-old Billy Jack and ten-year-old Trudy. Two days after William refuses to tell Zoe where he stashes his fortune, he dies in a fire that destroys their Southern mansion.

For more information about THE DREAM BUCKET, please visit Kindle Scout. If you'd like to see this story published in the Scout program, nominate it by clicking on the blue bar.

THE DREAM BUCKET AT KINDLESCOUT.COM

What The Dream Bucket is About

The summer of 1909 presents overwhelming challenges for the Camerons and the Bentons, two neighboring farm families in Mississippi. A farm bucket—the dream bucket—brings a glorious solution to all the problems that have made their lives difficult.

Ten-year-old Trudy Cameron overhears her parents, Zoe and William, fighting about money. Zoe wants to know where William hides his unlimited supply of twenty-dollar gold pieces. Instead of sharing this essential information, he slaps Zoe.

Two days later William dies in a fire that destroys their mansion. Trudy, whose father has indulged her and whose mother has been cold toward her, has nothing to rely on. Zoe lacks experience with the dairy and farming operations. The three survivors move into a rat-infested shack with a roof as leaky as a colander. They milk cows, harvest produce, and tend cornfields.

This is the beginning of The Dream Bucket, which has been selected by KindleScout.com to be featured in a campaign for thirty days. Amazon wants to know how many people will want to read this story. I'm asking you to go to KindleScout.com, find the picture of the shack and vote for (nominate) The Dream Bucket.

The Dream Bucket

Jacob MacGregor, Transcendent Hero

Have you watched a television series or read a series of novels with one character serving as a common thread in many stories? No matter what happens, this one heroic person is always an important part of the action.

Jacob MacGregor is such a character in the Covington Chronicles. He first appears in Secret Promise as a self-absorbed young man, but he grows into an admirable person. In The Courtship of Miss Loretta Larson, he steps into the background but remains important to the story by being a supportive friend to Loretta. In The Dream Bucket, he is a true friend of the young widow Zoe.

The epitome of greatness, Jake makes the best choices in the situations that present themselves.





Please help publish The Dream Bucket by going to KindleScout.com and nominating (voting for) it.

Villians

Elvin Trutledge in THE DREAM BUCKET is one of the favorite characters of the authors who critique my writing. He's the kind of villain people love to hate. So is Johnson Daniels in THE COURTSHIP OF MISS LORETTA LARSON.

First, let me say that I researched these names and couldn't find that they belonged to anyone. If they do, please accept my apology. I do not wish in any way to cast aspersions on anybody.

Behind every character in a novel is a background not always revealed to the readers. Backstory can get in the way of the progress of the plot. It's fun though to show some of this back story in a blog so the readers can know more about what is going on or where the writer came up with the idea.

Elvin Trutledge in the summer of 1909 could have taken over the entire book if I'd allowed him. The inspiration for him comes from a great song, "Paradise" sung by John Prine. I'm sharing a link to it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEy6EuZp9IY

Thanks again for all the nominations (votes) for THE DREAM BUCKET to be published by Kindle Scout.

Names of Characters in THE DREAM BUCKET

On November 17, 2014, with 26 days remaining in the Kindle Scout Campaign, I want to share some information with you about naming characters in THE DREAM BUCKET. A friend asked me on Facebook why I chose the name Cameron. The answer was for no reason except it's simply a pretty name with a study old Southern sound. I've had some great friends with that name, but not with the characters of the Camerons in my novel.

Most of the other names in the book have no special significance. Some of them appear in SECRET PROMISE and THE COURTSHIP OF MISS LORETTA LARSON, but you don't have to read those books before you read THE DREAM BUCKET, which is involved right now in the campaign.. The campaign must end before THE DREAM BUCKET can be published. Thanks for voting.

A Dream in My Bucket

In August 2011, The Dream Bucket placed second in the book proposal category at the Texas Christian Writers Conference. I had written the entire book back then, but for the last four years I've revised the manuscript over and over. With the helpful advice of an agent/editor, a writer/editor, and three critique groups in Texas and Louisiana, along with useful information gleaned from books about writing, I've worked to make The Dream Bucket enjoyable to read.

After writing and self-editing The Dream Bucket for five years, having started it in 2010, I considered it finished. In the meantime, I had written two books that preceded it in a series.

At that point, a friend sent me a note on Facebook about the Kindle Scout program. The rewards are generous, and the requirements were doable. I'm really excited about this publishing opportunity.

First an author submits a novel with a a catchy title and a one-liner that introduces it. The author must also provide a short autobiography, a brief synopsis, and the answers to three of the questions from the list, and a cover suitable for a Kindle book. Supplying all the items listed above, I submitted it. The next day, Kindle Scout informed me that it would be placed online for readers to vote on.

Unlike the usual Kindle programs, which allow the writers total freedom to publish whatever they choose, Kindle Scout is a "reader-powered" publishing system designed for books not previously published. Readers have the privilege of deciding which books will be considered for publication.

At this time, I'm at the mercy of readers and friends, who are nominating The Dream Bucket. The campaign will be completed on December 13, 2014. Nominate (Vote for) The Dream Bucket here: THE DREAM BUCKET at Kindle Scout

Remember the calaboose?

In the town of Taylorsville, Mississippi, a flimsy tin shack squatted on the main street across from a row of stores back in the fifties. The proud citizens of our town pretended it wasn't there. Even now, it feels like taboo to reminisce about it. Some of our kin and the family members of our friends--the men our parents called "sots" in hushed tones--spent time in the local jail.

Did you ever quake in fear, horror, and embarrassment on Saturday afternoon in Taylorsville when a drunken acquaintance would stagger down the sidewalk? Everyone south of Center Ridge and east of the Y in the Mize road went to town on Saturday. Everybody saw. People knew but were kind enough not to mention what happened on Saturday afernoon.

I'm not sure about the chronological order of the images recorded in the mind of my childhood. I just remember the drunken man yelled loud enough to be heard a block away, looked through the crowds of men milling around for some enemy so he could settle a feud with his fist, tripped on a crack in the sidewalk, fell, received a blow from an officer's bill club, was dragged across the street, and transported to the calaboose. He stayed there until he sobered up.

Who knows when Taylorsville had its first jail? I wanted to look inside, but no self-respecting female would have walked within twenty feet of it. When it was empty, some of my friends played pranks in the calaboose.

The imaginary town of Taylorsburg, which vaguely resembles our beloved Taylorsville, contained a similar jail when the twentieth century began. It was also constructed of flimsy tin.

In the year 1908, Zoe Cameron, a prim lady in THE DREAM BUCKET, enters the village calaboose. Discover why she goes there and what happens when she opens the door and steps inside. I want you to read this part near the end of the book.

Please help me convince Kindle Scout that THE DREAM BUCKET is worthy of a contract. Go to Kindle Scout and nominate (vote for) THE DREAM BUCKET.

Announcement about The Dream Bucket

https://kindlescout.amazon.com/category/158566011

28 more days remaining in the Dream Bucket campaign . . . still listed as "Hot"

Thanks, friends!

I'm grateful to you who went to https://kindlescout.amazon.com/category/158566011
or
https://kindlescout.amazon.com/ yesterday, wrote your own reviews, pasted or wrote original requests for others to vote, sent e-mails to your friends, let me know you voted, and just gave me all kinds of encouragement.You helped me start this campaign with momentum to get THE DREAM BUCKET published by the Kindle Scout program.

Three Questions about THE DREAM BUCKET

Kindle Scout requires each participant to answer three questions. Here are the ones I chose with the answers. I could have written volumes about these, but Kindle Scout reined me in by allowing only 300 characters.

Q. Is there a message in your book that you want readers to grasp?
A. In the early 1900’s farmers had the treasures that mattered most—a sense of humor, love for one another, respect for the land, and reliance on the Lord to see them through any situation. I hope, though, that readers grasp the joy of this story so much that this message becomes secondary.

Q. Where did the idea for this book come from?
A. When I was 17, our home burned to the ground. My father went inside the burning house and pulled out some valuables. He moved into a house he kept for sharecroppers. I moved into an apartment in town. My mother alternated between the two residences. This loss inspired THE DREAM BUCKET.

Q. This book is part of a series, tell us about your series.
A. THE DREAM BUCKET, an independent, complete story, shares some characters and locations with SECRET PROMISE and THE COURTSHIP OF MISS LORETTA LARSON. These three books, known as THE COVINGTON CHRONICLES, show life in and around a Mississippi village in the early 1900’s.

Nominate THE DREAM BUCKET HERE.

The Dream Bucket by MARY LOU CHEATHAM: Two Families, Many Dreams

Campaign:
November 14-December 13, 2014
Vote to have this book published.

Synopsis

Ten-year-old Trudy loves Papa more than anybody else until she hears him slap Zoe, her mother. She is so angry at him she wishes he’d die. When he accidentally sets fire to the family mansion and dies in the fire, she is not prepared for the shock. William has cautioned Zoe not to pry into his financial arrangements. She wants to know where he keeps his money in case his life should end. How will she survive as a widow? The family has nowhere to call home except a sharecropper’s shack.

Categories:
Romance,
Historical Romance
Go here to vote.



Please go to kindlescout.amazon.com
Vote for THE DREAM BUCKET.
If Kindle Scout publishes this book, you will receive a free copy to read on your Kindle or computer.

Jimmy John’s, Gourmet Sandwich Shops

Do you ever wonder what the history is behind a restaruant where you like to go? Or what’s behind the name of a sandwich shop that sells food you love?

Having discovered some of the world’s most delicious sandwiches in Jimmy John’s in Lubbock, TX (4730 Slide Rd. 806-795-0800) and in Amarillo, TX (4730 Slide Rd. 806-795-0800), I decided to check on the name.

Jimmy John Liautaud, the owner/founder, started his first sandwich shop in 1983 when he was nineteen years old, and now there are about 200 of them. His story is fascinating. Go to www.JimmyJohns.com to read more about it. Also look at the information at Wikipedia

To learn about the sandwich it is necessary to try one. The menu overwhelms me with a plethera of enticing choices. I like #6, the Vegetarian.

Included on the website is a thorough chart of the nutritional value of the items.

Bon appetit!

Eating Chinese Buffet Food

Most of us consume an inordinate amount of calories when dining at a Chinese buffet. As much as one thousand in a meal. (And lunch from the inviting pans of hot food may contain more sodium in it than most of us need to consume in a day.) This food has a Chinese influence, but it is Americanized with all our demands for high calories.

According to Calorie Count About.com, a serving of General Tso’s Chicken has 844 calories per serving. One solution is to get a tiny piece of chicken.

Next, a pile of crab Rangoon awaits hungry diners. Just one. That shouldn’t be too bad. Chicken is a popular diet foods, but the chicken on the buffet is fried and dipped in various sweet syrups. A mere bite of one and another . . . which one tastes better? Soon a mountain of food piled on a plate awaits our tingling fingers and salivating palates. At the table it all tastes alike because we mix it together, or at lest stack it in close proximity.

We know to avoid all those fried foods with crusts. Instead of fried chicken, we can choose chicken with broccoli, and for being good we can select one high-calorie food we’ve been craving. The broccoli cancels the calories.

Soup isn’t too bad. A cup of egg drop soup, if it isn’t loaded with chicken fat, may have as few as 100-120 calories. It is definitely a better appetizer than an egg roll, which may have 200-300 calories. Since we’re craving the crisp taste of something chewable, let’s try a spring roll, which supposedly has half the calories of an egg roll.

Who isn’t in a hurry these days? Sometimes we don’t like to spend time ordering food and waiting for it. This Chinese buffet has to be an improvement over fast food, right? Hurried travelers and business people often find Chinese buffets practical solutions for the problem of obtaining a quick lunch. Let us remember though that we don’t have time to go back and get a second or third plate of food.

The Great Wall Buffet, 2005 Lamar Street, Sweetwater, TX 79556, is a typical Chinese buffet restaurant. I honestly don’t see much difference in most of the Chinese buffets I’ve visited throughout the South.

One of the popular buffets in Ruston, LA, is Peking Restaurant, 1300 North Vienna Street. It has improved. Sometimes it features fresh, tasty sushi at the end of the buffet line. There’s something about all that food that is addictive. Plate after plate, we consume it until the waiter comes and offers a serving of ice cream.

Ruston now has a leaner alternative: Teriyaki Grill, 1913 E. Kentucky Ave. #6, Ruston, LA 71270. We can order Asian food, freshly prepared and not go back for seconds. At the restaurant’s website there are pictures of beautiful food, low in caloires and ample with proteins . . . but what about the sodium content?

Eating at the Airport

One of the most entertaining ways to occupy time when I have to occupy an airport is to find something to eat. It’s important to take the food to a place near the gate for the pending flight. Occasionally there are places close enough to allow me to sit at a table, but more often than not it is prudent to sit in a chair and nurse carry-on luggage, along with food and drink.

Boarding a plane on Hollywood Avenue in Shreveport, LA, I learned two valuable lessons. First, liquids are not to be purchased before checking in at security. If there’s not enough time to eat in a civilized manner, it is better to check in and walk to the inside section. Two food counters are in this airport.The one outside the security check place seems more appealing. I think it may have more choices on the menu. It’s possible to buy a sandwich out there and take it through security, then buy a drink at the inside place.

The sandwiches at the Tailwinds are mouthwateringly delicious, the employees are pleasant, and the dining areas have an inviting ambiance. The entire airport has fascinating paintings on the walls. There is one problem though. It seems to take forever to cook a hot sandwich there.

The food service in DFW is quite different. Because the airport restrateurs are accustomed to seeing people run from gate to gate with the boarding places changing frequently, the cooks don’t dally around. Cousin’s B-B-Q, for example, can provide a delicious meal in a flash.

What's Great at McAlister's Now

When my friends and family go with me to McAlister’s, I order the same meal every time until something even tastier comes along. My favorite was the veggie spud until the Savannah chopped salad entered my life. By the way, men like salads; they find the Savannah chopped irresistible.

According to the McAlister’s website, A Savannah chopped salad consists of sliced, grilled chicken breast, dried cranberries, Gorgonzola cheese, honey roasted almonds, tomatoes and cucumbers. Chef's dressing selection: Sherry Shallot.

Calories: 440, Total Fat: 16 g, Total Carbohydrates 43 g, Dietary Fiber 11 grams, Protein 32 grams, 11 Weight Watchers Plus Points.

A typical conversation goes like this:
“Do you want to go to McAlister’s”
“Yes.”
Such a conversation means without saying:
“It’s time we had another Savannah chopped salad.”
“I’ve been waiting for you to say that.”

We’ve indulged in this salad at 1202 Pecanland Road, Monroe, LA 71203; also at 1671 E 70th St, Shreveport, LA 71105. The salad always tastes the same, which is somewhat wonderful, and the salad dressing is always on my mind.

Many more salads await us, but this first one we tried is so good we haven't been able to move on.

A fellow author reviews Secret Promise

Having a fellow author compliment something I wrote is a gratifying experience. Kathy McKinsey, a sensitive writer who has written some family novellas, reviewed Secret Promise:

Secret Promise. Delightful. Heart wrenching.

Mary offers us both in this gripping story from Mississippi in the early 1900s. Jake and Caroline struggle with tragedy and sorrow, and wrestle through ups, downs, and twists before they find joy, love, and a sweet relationship with God.

Kathy McKinsey

My Cheatin’ Wife

Jameson Gregg through his clever writing is helping me lose weight.

Sharing:

I suspected my wife was fooling around behind my back. Recently, I found smoking-gun evidence and she confessed. Suspicion confirmed.

The trouble all started when she watched Oprah on TV one afternoon. I cringe when she watches Oprah. Some new diet or exercise regimen is always in my near future.

Sure enough, she announced we were going on the “clean gut” diet. The next day, Kroger’s produce section must have gone barren because our kitchen counters were laden with red, green, and yellow vegetables of all shapes and sizes. Full sink, cutting boards, boiling pots and whirring blenders. The place smelled like a bomb exploded in a cabbage patch.

I gagged on the spinach “milkshakes” and that left only veggie soup – no meat. After a few days of this torture, my legs were wobbly. Stars filled my eyes when I stood. The rabbit that nibbles my grass in the morning was eating better than I was.

I grew lethargic and shed pounds like water through your fingers, symptoms that my wife mysteriously seemed to avoid. Being the faithful husband, I carried on nonetheless.

She announced we were switching to the “pre-surgery” diet, something she lifted from a magazine.

“Why do we need the pre-surgery diet,” I protested, “when we have no surgeries planned?”

“That’s beside the point,” she explained. “It’s for rapid weight loss before surgery and it’ll be good for us, trust me.”

I became delirious from hunger. Cloudy thinking. Couldn’t remember where I put things. Lost favorite baseball cap. Looked in her car and BOOM! The smoking gun – an empty Wendy’s bag!

I grabbed it and confronted her. “What vulgarity have you inflicted upon your body? Have you been two-timing me?”

“Oh that. Goodness, I forgot to throw that away. I was running errands and my blood sugar got down on me [translation: she got hungry] so I had to grab something quickly, that’s all. Wendy’s was the closest thing.”

Culinary infidelity in the first degree. Furious, I stormed out and hightailed it to Wendy’s. I was in critical condition by then. Dizzy, I walked hangdog to the counter and could barely concentrate. Somehow, I rattled off “triple cheeseburger, large fries, and sweet tea.” Never had a triple in my life.

Meat and cheese, grease and ketchup, oh my. I instantly felt better. My vigorous, clear-thinking old self was back. Endorphins flowed like the chocolate Frosty that seeped into the cracks and crevices of my stomach. I clicked my heels in the air as I exited.

After that coming out, I went on a vicious eating binge to show my wife that two can play the game. Cheeseburgers, fried chicken, French fries, fried this, fried that. I went on a true pre-surgery diet – the open-heart variety. I’m happy to report we are back on a “normal” diet. I have forgiven her for her indiscretion.

Stop the presses, Oprah is back on TV!

Jameson Gregg Author
PUBLICATION: Dahlonega Nugget, The (GA)

SECTION: News, page 4A

DATE: April 16, 2014

Review of Luck Be a Chicken: The Gizzards of Wrath

Jameson Gregg mixes raw realism and compassion with brazen satire in Luck Be A Chicken: A Comic Novel. He paints the rough side of life with comic relief. Farce and embellishment live on the top drawer of his humor toolbox.

The sensory impact, the humor when it is least expected, and the nail-biting anxiety propel the rapid turning of pages to the end. This book digs into the inner core of some unsavory elements of society. As a result, certain events portrayed and the language spoken may disturb some. Delving into the minds of rough characters can be shocking.

Jameson holds a cracked mirror in front of us. Somewhere, some piece of us all is in there, and we wish it weren't. For example, Butterbean Sweat and his dumpling wife Ruby rely on junk food to comfort them. Bean's boss is a perverted, white-collar criminal who doesn't care if his chickens kill people—profit is king.

Let’s not lie to ourselves and pretend chicken plants don’t exist. Although Jameson places the reader inside the plant, he does so with a comedic touch and doesn't smother the reader with grossness as Upton Sinclair did in exposing deplorable conditions in meat packing plants in 1906. Jameson portrays substandard practices in a fictional plant but doesn’t imply that all or even most chicken processing operations are substandard. The compassion Jameson shows for the less fortunate in our society will remind readers of John Steinbeck. With a backdrop of humor, Gregg questions whether hardships are caused by poor personal choices or oppression of evil men.

The deer hunt brought back fond memories of Faulkner’s great short story, “Race at Morning.”

This humorist tramps out a twenty-first century version of the gizzards of wrath. He doesn't turn his eyes away from the segments of humanity lacking coping skills.

A highly entertaining read from a most-talented author.

Leaving the Garage Door Open

Have you ever left the garage door open when you needed to close it? Maybe you work in the yard or you use your garage for a tool shop. Breaking your routine, you go inside at the end of the day and leave it open. Since you always lower it, you don’t need to lock the door leading into the hallway.

Two a. m. you awaken and realize you’ve been sleeping in an unlocked house. Something in the night goes bump. . . . It’s an uneasy feeling.

Evidently this problem is common. The newest garage doors have built-in automatic door closers, but most house garages don’t have this great feature.

I’ve had some experiences with leaving the garage door up. I don’t like to think about them because they’re scary. A few weeks ago a friend introduced me to a product that solves the problem. It’s a little box that mounts on the wall near the garage door switch: Magic Closer

Magic Closer takes only about five minutes to install with a screw driver. It has three timer settings--5, 15 minute and 6 hour delay. Or if you wish, you can turn it off. No additional programming or syncing is necessary with your existing garage door opener. Before it closes, it gives audible and visible warnings.

After using it for weeks, I depend on it. I cannot imagine doing without it. This inexpensive devise is an integral part of the tight security system of my home. Because I like it so much, I’m sharing the information about it with you. Go to MagicCloser.com or click on the Amazon picture below:




Oh, here’s a surprise! The Magic Closer people include an 8 in One screw driver. Actually it’s much more. It’s a sturdy multi-screwdriver torch with a bright flashlight inside.

What I Like about McAlister's

McAlister’s food is about the same wherever we go. Whether we’re eating at Laurel, Mississippi; West Monroe, Louisiana; Lubbock, Texas; or Amarillo, the quality is still good, the food is tasty, and most of it is low fat .

Usually I order a veggie spud. I discovered the Texas restaurants serve a little bowl of red salsa with it but the Southeastern restaurants don’t always know about the salsa. Every McAlister’s where we’ve been has the same formula for making iced tea. It always tastes like Mississippi tea, which is not as strong as Texas and Louisiana tea.

Most McAlister’s Delis have similar décor. Dr. Don Newcomb, a retired dentist, opened the first of these fast casual restaurants in 1989 in Oxford, Mississippi, home of the University of Mississippi. Now there are currently over 300 locations in 23 states, ranging from Virginia in the East to Florida in the South to New Mexico in West to Indiana in the Midwest.

“The original restaurant was started in a renovated gas station, and many of the elements of that original look are present in many McAlister's Delis built today, such as a garage door, and nostalgic black-and-white tile.” (Source: Wikipedia.)

In addition to baked potatoes, the menu includes deli sandwiches, soups, salads, and desserts. At McAlister’s it’s possible to obtain a quality meal quickly and not load up on sodium. The waiters are courteous, the portions are generous, and there’s always a crowd.

Dean's Smokehouse, Stringer, Mississippi

The barbecued meat at Dean's Smokehouse is outstanding. My sister Ruth and nephew Eddy, who live at Shady Grove just north of Laurel, said, “Mary, you’ve just got to try this place. You’re going to love it.” I did and loved it. The next time I'm in the Laurel area, I'll go back.

Dean's Smokehouse is located in the Stringer community on 746 Jasper Hwy 15 North of Laurel about 4 miles north of Jones County, 2 miles south of Stringer ,just north of County Road 153. It’s on the east side of the road. You can’t miss it.

The phone number is 601-428-1022. Dean’s Smokehouse is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11:00 am to 9:00pm. You can use your credit card. Since the food is pricey and tempting, it is possible to need a credit card. People have been eating here since 2007. The day we went they were busy. Folks in Jasper and Jones County have been supporting this restaurant a few years. It’s good, even though it cost more than I expected.

They claim to serve Laurel's finest foods. While their food is tasty, I don’t think it’s Laurel’s finest because it isn’t in Laurel, and I’ve eaten somewhere in Laurel (not a barbecue place) that I preferred. Let’s just say Dean’s serves Stringer’s finest foods. At any rate, lunch was well seasoned and delicious.

The finest barbecue around – that’s another claim. I agree. It’s the best I’ve eaten in that part of Mississippi. All the trimmings – yes. The say they make their own barbecue sauce, baked beans, and coleslaw from scratch. It all tasted unique and yummy.

They advertise “unique ambiance.” What that means is the walls are covered with country antiques. It’s fun to look around at all the old stuff.

Dean’s Smokehouse has high quality meat and outstanding side dishes. The menu lists homemade dessert. The meal was so filling and tasty that we didn’t have room for it. By the way, Dean’s caters.

After 4:00 pm this barbecue place serves a ribeye steak dinner of USDA choice angus beef. Servings are 12 ounces or 16 ounces. The steak dinner includes a house salad, grilled toast, and a choice of loaded baked potato, home-style fries, or sweet potato wedges.

Here are the choices we had for lunch. Ribs ruled.
• 1/4 Chicken
• Pulled Pork
• Sausage
• Beef Brisket
• Sandwich Plate
• 1/2 Chicken
• 3 Ribs
• 1/2 Slab Rib
• Whole Slab
• Combo Plate (2 Meats)

Lunch plates are served with two of these sides:
• Corn Bread
• Onion Rings
• Baked Beans
• Coleslaw
• Potato Salad
• Turnip Greens
• Home Style Fries(skin on)
• Sweet Potato Wedges
• Side Salad
Another favorite is the chicken strip meal, three fried chicken strips with a choice of two sides.
Dean's Smokehouse

The Munch Box, Saline, LA

The Munch Box
1401 Fourth Street
Saline, LA 71070
(318) 576-3767

The natives of Saline say:
“Try the bacon cheeseburger.”
“Always get the chicken fried steak.”
“The fish plate is good.”

A few thoughts and observations:
It’s the only place to eat in the village of Saline.
The Munch Box is a unique experience with delightful local color.
Service was prompt.
The employee was congenial.
The local people were friendly.

My lunch:
A well-prepared salad began the meal.
The Texas toast was tasty, but hush puppies would have been more in keeping with the other food on the plate.
My fries were cold.
The meal included generous servings of tartar sauce and cocktail sauce.
The oysters were cooked thoroughly without an excess of batter.

Local attractions:
Carolyn Dorman Botanical Gardens (The log cabin is in the Botanical Gardens.)
Saline Watermelon Festival in July

Did Adam and Eve eat collards?

If Adam and Eve ate collards, did they eat them raw?

According to an article in http://Creation.comthe original dark green leafy vegetable was . . . you guessed it . . . collards (or maybe kale).

Quoting from the article:
 Cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kohlrabi and kale , some of the most nutritious of all, contain lots of minerals and vitamins, and antioxidants that greatly surpass the power of vitamins A, C and E—the antioxidants commonly available in vitamin pills. They also have substances that inhibit cancer cells.1 Clearly, vitamin pills cannot make up for the benefits of eating the real food that God created. Furthermore, you can eat ‘boatloads’ of these vegetables without getting fat—it sounds like many of us should be eating a lot more of them.

 (The author of this article states that collards and kale are of similar nutritional value and origin.)

 Raw? Yes, high quality tender young collards are delicious raw in salads and wraps. Also, collards marinated overnight are as tender as cooked greens.

Friends and fellow writers ask me how I put my books together.

After stuffing myself with traditional Thanksgiving delights, I took a walk and thought about the way I write.

When I work on a writing project, I allow it to absorb most of me. I’ve tried not to become so involved, but I don’t seem to be able. Books about writing suggest making charts of the characters and listing the plot in individual scenes. I’ve tried, but so far I haven’t mastered those skills.

Instead, I move into the fringes of whatever I’m writing. At the moment I’m working on The Courtship of Miss Loretta Larson, which is a historical romance set in south Mississippi in 1908. Most of the story is Loretta’s, and she’s telling it in first person. I’m not Loretta, but I’m there listening to her and writing down what she thinks or writes in her journal. I’m her scribe.

Making charts confuses me. The characters change from what I originally conceived them to be. The plot changes as the characters deal with situations.

At some stages of the process, I have trouble concentrating on television programs, other writers’ work, or the life around me. In the middle of the night, I think or dream of the story. I awaken in the morning with the novel on my mind. I rush around so I can get to work writing . . . or is it play? Some writers tell me they don’t want to read other people’s writing while they are in certain stages of the process because they don’t want to be influenced. For me the problem is different. When my mind is full of my story, I cannot find room in my brain for anyone else’s book. At such times I read only nonfiction.

Some of my friends who have been published gazillions of times are much more organized. They know exactly what they want to say and how they want to say it. They organize charts of the characters, outline the plot, write a rough draft, and rework it two or three times. Voilà – a book is born.

I can’t work that way. Instead I write it and rewrite it. I take out, and I put back. I change the point of view. I look at the story through the eyes of different characters. In The Courtship of Miss Loretta Larson, as I said earlier, I’m Loretta’s scribe. Some days though I’m spending time with Chad to discover how he sees the events going on. After all, they are major concerns of his.

Once a week I bring two excerpts of the Loretta story to a critique group. While the critters crit my work, I crit theirs. The entire process is for me more play than work. It reminds me of sharing toys with cousins during childhood.

The process of going over my story countless times also reminds me of making furniture. I sanded and sanded and sanded until the wood was smooth. There was always a point at which too much sanding left the furniture rough because the soft sections of the wood became worn down. I have to look for that sweet spot in my writing where the project doesn’t suffer because I’ve rubbed out the smooth details that made it worthwhile.

Cabbage and Dark Greens

Leftover turkey giblet gravy – something to do with it
Ideas for turkey dinner leftovers are plentiful but what about leftover gravy?
Don’t throw it out. Use it as you’d use roux. Marvelous flavors will result from all those seasonings and drippings you cooked into your gravy. Take one little step to have delectable flavoring sauce. In greens? Yes!
—Sauté until tender:
1 stick celery, chopped fine
1 head cabbage, chopped fine
2 large onions, chopped fine
3 tablespoons olive oil
—Add and simmer covered until all the greens are tender:
1 cup water
1 pound frozen greens (mixed, turnip greens, mustard, collards)
1 tablespoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon seasoning salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
—While the greens are cooking, liquefy in blender:
2 cups giblet gravy
—Lower the heat and add the gravy along with the final two ingredients:
1 (14.5 ounces) can diced tomatoes
1 packet (single serving artificial sweetener
—Adjust flavors to your own taste.

Secret Promise Reviewed by Paul Elliott, M. D.

Mary Lou Cheatham is wonderful, skillful author who is accomplished at threading compelling fictional stories with romantic interest through an accurate historical framework. Secret Promise, set in south Mississippi in 1907, is an excellent example. Secret Promise is an intriguing variation on the Cinderella theme. Mary Lou beautifully captures and energizes in the reader the range of feelings and politics of the days of prohibition, racial discord, and substandard schools in her home state at the turn of the Twentieth Century.

Hortense Clemons, the epitome of a wicked stepmother, has two goals: helping her daughters marry successful men and keeping plenty of moonshine available to treat her lumbago.

These are the days of prohibition, racial discord, and substandard schools. On the positive side, 1907 is in the middle of the era of innovation. Model T's and Coca Colas are new. Women are exchanging their hooped skirts and whalebone for a sleeker natural look. Senator Clemons works to improve conditions in Mississippi, while his daughter Caroline helps keep him in office.

Rage, pride, and unforgiveness overwhelm Jake. Who will help him find his way back to God? Will Caroline have enough courage to embrace life? Join her as she flees from her attackers. Follow her as she crosses racial barriers. Sit with her at the governor's table.

Come follow Caroline and Jake on romantic train rides, strolls under an umbrella in the rain, walks at night under gaslights. Cry with them, laugh with them. pray with them. See Caroline and Jake sit in a fringed topped surrey on a bridge on a secluded road. Does Cinderella marry the Prince? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Does the Secret Promise get in the way? You'll have to read Secret Promise to find out.

Secret Promise has the elements of historical fiction, a spine-tingling mystery, and the beauty of romance, yet the story moves with an urgency that compels the reader to beg for more.

Whether you prefer history, mystery, or romance you should read this book!

Follow the link below to a new video about Secret Promise, an inspirational romance staged in 1907 in the South. Secret Promise

Let's Write Weekend, PPW's Exciting 2012 Conference

Frontiers in Writing, June 28-29, 2012, is 164 days away from today, January 16. I’m excited. And I’m grateful to the FiW 1012 Conference Committee:
Dr. Mike Bellah, Jim Gleason, Rory C. Keel, Phyliss Miranda, Barbara Propst, and Natalie Bright-Chair. Kenja Purkey, PPW President.

This year’s Friday night Keynote speaker is Jodi Thomas, New York Times and USA Today bestselling novelist and RITA award winner. Another featured keynote speaker is John Erickson, best known as the author of Hank the Cowdog series of books, audio-books, and stage plays.

Other speakers are Arizona poet and writing instructor Harvey Stanbrough, former acquiring editor and ghostwriter Hilary Sares, and best selling author Candace Havens.

In addition to the above lineup, Panhandle Professional Writers will feature Jeff C. Campbell, former criminal investigator and author; Jim Gleason, Community Relations Manager at Barnes and Noble; Craig and Nancy Keel, both prize-winning authors; and Phyliss Mirando, an outstanding presenter, who is also a New York Times bestseller; Chris Steward, an attorney specializing in copyright issues; and Mary Lou Cheatham, author of story cookbooks, devotionals, and inspirational historic romances.

I’m going to enjoy this conference. I’m bringing plenty of pens and notebooks. Now let me tell you another reason I’m excited. Check the last name on that list. This is the first time I’ve spoken at a conference. And it’s a big fabulous conference. (I know it’s good – I enjoyed the 2011 FIW Conference.)

During the next 164 days, I will continue to prepare my fifty-five minute talk scheduled for Friday, June 28, 2012, about overcoming rejection. I am delighted to present “Reject Rejection” with my insights as a writer on the way up writers’ hill. Let's Write Weekend

Terry’s Spicy Collard Soup

Terry Chrisman, a great north Louisiana cook, made a powerful pot of collard soup today. She said it had a spicy Italian-flavored kick. It was so good she didn’t have a leftover. She said she just made it up as she went along. She has a well-stocked spice rack. When she cooks, she says she “makes a pass by the spices.” Today she told us exactly what she added. With some cornbread, this soup would make an excellent New Year’s Day meal.

Terry’s Spicy Collard Soup
1 can collard greens (spicy ones)
1can pinto beans
1 can Rotel tomatoes and green chilies
1 can crushed tomatoes
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 chopped onion
1 heaping teaspoon garlic
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
a shake or two of parsley, Cajun seasoning, paprika, salt and pepper,
dash of Tabasco
1 cup seashell macaroni

Sauté onions and garlic. Add all other ingredients except macaroni. Add enough water or chicken stock (Terry uses water) to make it soupy, cook for ten to fifteen minutes, add macaroni. cook till al dent. Serve with parmesan cheese sprinkled on top. (Terry adds parmesan last and stirs it in whole soup. She also adds one teaspoon of dry ranch style dressing mix.).Serve with dollop of sour cream.

Character Interview with Caroline from Secret Promise

Secret Promise is a historical inspirational romance to be released in early 2012.

Mary Lou: Hello, Caroline. Thank you for taking some of your time to talk with us today. I know you are busy.
Caroline: Yes, I’m very busy this summer. I have to make dresses for my stepsisters to wear in a revue. The styles they have selected are elaborate. As a result, I have to spend more time on these dresses than necessary. You see, the fashions they selected are out of style.
Mary Lou: Why didn’t you tell them?
Caroline: They went shopping without me. They never ask my opinion. They just go buy fabric and bring it home for me to sew.
Mary Lou: Too bad. What is the special occasion that requires them to wear new dresses?
Caroline: In our little town of Taylorsburg, we’re having a revue. The young ladies are going to be presented. I think they are trying to let the eligible bachelors see them look their best. The new man in town, Jacob MacGregor, is the master of ceremonies for the event. My sisters have their eyes on him.
Mary Lou: What are you wearing to the revue?
Caroline: I don’t have time to make myself a dress. Besides, my stepmother would have a fit if I participated.
Mary Lou: Why do you allow your family to mistreat you?
Caroline: It involves a secret promise I’ve made. I must make sure my family looks good in the community.
Mary Lou: So you make sacrifices because of your promise? I noticed your eyes sparkled when you mentioned Jacob MacGregor.
Caroline: All the young women in town are looking at him. He’s the new owner of the Mercantile. He may be interested in my sister Lydia. At least, she thinks so.
Mary Lou: Your situation seems hopeless. How do you handle it?
Caroline: I have to trust in the Lord. I look to our cook Rachel and Aunt Haley as my mother substitutes. I try to deal with my resentment. Lydia is mean like her mother, my stepmother. Millicent, the baby sister, may turn out all right, but she has no discipline.
Mary Lou: Thanks again for the time. I know you need to get back to your sewing.
Caroline: Oops, my last sewing needle broke. I need to head down to MacGregor’s Mercantile to buy a replacement. Maybe I’ll see Jake.

When Cinderella Meets a Man like Job

Cinderella – the ever-popular old folktale of unjust cruelty – remains a favorite. For centuries Cinderella has been a favorite character. Imagine a real, true-to-life, beautiful young woman who is mistreated by a stepmother who abuses alcohol.

Now place this situation in 1907 in a south Mississippi timber-and-railroad town. What is the result? Caroline Clemons, who has made a secret promise she will keep no matter the cost. Her life’ struggles seem as impossible as those of the Cinderella we know and love.

To make matters worse, Prince Charming has endured a life similar to that of Job; but, unlike Job, he voices anger at the Lord. How can he overcome his perceived misfortunes and return to the love for God he knew before disaster struck?

Tonight I moved one step closer to giving you this inspirational romance with a historical setting. I edited the cover and the galley proofs. I am excited about sharing this book with my friends.

She lives alone with her dogs. They don’t hit her or yell at her.

A dear sweet friend of mine – let’s call her Sherrie – told me she found abusive men attractive. Her husband yelled at her, pushed her around, and eventually slapped her. She doesn’t divorce him, because she hopes and prays God will change his heart.

She has decided she should remain alone because she is not worthy of someone who would treat her well. Through a process of soul searching, she has come to realize why she feels unworthy of a decent man. When she was a teenager at home, her stepmother abused her. As she matured, she concluded she was unworthy of being treated kindly.
.
She lives alone with her dogs. They don’t hit her or yell at her. Her life has sadness in it that is painful to watch. Sherrie is beautiful, vivacious, intelligent, and accommodating. Her sense of humor and playful spirit brighten the lives of all the people with whom she interacts at work. Her Christian spirit radiates from within her.

When I was eight years old, I owned a little paperback novel telling the story of Cinderella. It was my favorite story. As soon as I finished it, I started over at the beginning and reread it. I never failed to emote with tears, laughter, or anxiety when I read certain passages. I knew Cinderella would marry Prince Charming, but in my heart I had trouble believing her story would end in such a happy fashion. At various points in the story, I used to stop and invent different conclusions.

In my romantic historical novel, Secret Promise, Caroline suffers from her stepmother’s abuse. Despite all her wonderful qualities, she sees herself as too flawed to expect a happy life. I hope you enjoy reading about Caroline, the brutal struggles of her life, her joys, and her sorrows. I hope you love Caroline as much as I have loved writing about her.

A Walk down the Street One Week before Christmas

My neighborhood in north Louisiana doesn’t know we have only a couple days of autumn remaining. The leaves continue to glow with the beauty of fall colors. Some years the trees and shrubs are lovelier than others; this year the leaves have been exceptionally brilliant with subtle nuances.

I took Foxy, my standard poodle, for a walk down the street to admire the leaves this afternoon, but she had eyes only for the cat that teased her. She’s more interested in the winter wonderland we have after dark than in the leaves. Tonight the twinkling lights with plastic snowmen catch her eye.



After Christmas my neighbors and I will settle into a gray world punctuated by evergreens. We’ll be saying it’s raining too much or not enough. We’ll rejoice if we see any snowflakes. As always, springtime will come early. Then summer, our dominant season, will take over.


Do you ever wish you could stop time and hold onto one lovely moment? We keep walking down the street and doing all our other business until the time comes when time is no more.

Secret Promise

Sharing with you the opening of my first romantic novel, Secret Promise. It is due to be released soon.

Chapter One
The Clemons Household

Spring 1907

The thought occurred to Caroline that no one would believe what went on inside the Clemons household. She slipped out of Millicent’s bedroom. Glancing over her shoulder, she rushed through the dining room back to the warm kitchen, leaned by an open window, and drew the breeze into her lungs.

“Land’s sakes . . . you done got too hot.” Rachel brushed the thick soft back of her brown hand against Caroline’s cheek. “Sit a minute. I’ll fetch you some cool water.”

Caroline swigged it down and set the empty glass on the worktable. “Thank you, Madear. Got to go.”

“You can’t let Miss Horsey catch you back here when you supposed to be at the front door.”

In the parlor Caroline plumped the needlepoint-covered pillows on the sofa. A burst of wind blew a filmy curtain into her moist face. Reaching to straighten it, she looked through the window in time to see two Tennessee Walking Horses pull an elaborate surrey with fringe trim into the circle drive.

A dark-haired man perhaps in his early twenties stopped the team next to a hitching post. He jumped out to tie the horses and bounded up the steps to the high front porch.

A Sneak Peak at the Back Cover of Secret Promise

Secret Promise, my first historical romantic novel, is scheduled to be released in early2012. I'm excited to share with you what is to appear on the back cover:

Caroline is in hiding. She knows that lying in her bed seems too dangerous. If the wind blows, the curtains will fly open. Anyone passing in the yard will see her. She pulls the bed sheets and quilt onto the floor to make a pallet. Then she snuffs out the candle and finds her way to her makeshift resting place.

Caroline prays for God's protection as she lies, holding her pistol. Soon the morning will come, but the sky is still dark. Clump-clump. Clump-clump. It isn't the milkman; the horses and the wagon sound different.

The wagon pulls into the back driveway, and a man's thudding steps came closer, closer, and closer. He pushes against her door. Stuck—this door is stuck. He crashes into it, but the door does not budge. How will Caroline escape?

She watches the front room through the crack by the kitchen door. She feels an inexplicably strong attraction to the handsome young man.

Years ago she made a promise, which she will honor at any cost.

Guest Blogger: Paul Elliott, The Collard Patch, The Story of the Collard Greens Cookbook

If you think you don’t like collards, you haven’t tasted our collards.

The Collard Patchstory cookbook began life in Sister Ruth’s Laurel, Mississippi, collard patch. She invited us to pick a mess of collards, and did we pick a mess! We even made a mess. After the first big black plastic bag full, Mary said, “Paul, what are we going to do with all these collards?”

With a cavalier toss of his head, Paul said, “We’re going to fix them and eat 'em.” Of course, Paul wasn’t even sure he liked collards, didn’t know what they tasted like. Four big plastic bags of collards later, the cleaning and chopping process saw dawn’s early light. What a J-O-B!

Now reduced to many freezer bags of chopped collards and much needed sleep, the challenge of what to do with them remained. Fifteen thousand messes of collard greens with salt pork somehow overwhelmed our interest in healthy eating.

When an online search for a cookbook devoted to collard greens was fruitless, searches for individual recipes showed very little diversity or imagination. Mary went to work thinking of unusual ways to cook with collards. Paul signed up as a certified eater.

It was quickly obvious that the files were the beginning of a fine cookbook devoted solely to collard greens and cornbread. Research revealed the amazing nutritional value of collard greens – better than spinach, turnip greens, and mustard greens. (For more details look in The Collard Patch.)

Mary’s creativity soon yielded delicious recipes from appetizers to desserts. Yes, desserts! Collard greens make chocolate taste better. Did you ever realize you can eat your chocolate and get your greens? Other than eating Mary’s creations, Paul created stories of growing up in collard country – tales of his misspent youth.

It seems that a second edition may be on the horizon and we have some inventory to clear. Grab your copies for gifts at an unbelievably low price. Stock up for Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, birthdays, anniversaries, and wedding gifts.

At $23.97 it was a cookbook bestseller on Amazon.com. This offer we’re making now on Amazon is good only while the supplies last. Maybe the price is too low. Go here to learn more.

Guest Blogger: Paula Taylor. Family Gardening Legacy, Traveling Bulbs

Paula Taylor lives in Amarillo. She is in the process of writing her first novel, which reveals her sensitivity as she delves deeply into her characters' motivations. She has a unique talent for turning a phrase.

Because I enjoyed her comments about bulbs, I want to share this article with you. Thanks, Paula.

My dad's mother was an avid gardener. She could grow anything...my dad can too! Anyway, my grandmother followed the habits of most women from her era and moved plants and bulbs with her whenever she moved. I can only imagine the arguments that caused with their spouses!

She came from Iowa to Missouri. Then to Oklahoma, next Texas, back to Oklahoma, Arkansas, Oklahoma, then Arkansas again before finally staying In Oklahoma in her later years. She moved plants everywhere she went as the story goes.

I always loved helping her in her garden. One of my favorite plants was a pink lily she called a “Surprise Lily” or a “Naked Lady Lily”. It was unique because it sent up foliage in the spring, died back to nothing, and then in late summer sent up a single stalk where a cluster of gorgeous pink lilies bloomed.

My dad has many of Gram’s bulbs and has shared this particular one with me. Being the “Greedy Gus” that I am, I wanted more. I found that these bulbs are almost antique and very difficult to find. Ultimately I located a company called “OLD HOUSE GARDENS” which salvages old bulbs from places and then cultivates them for stock to sell.

If you like flowers, a copy of their catalogue is a must. The pictures and descriptions are fabulous. I now have more bulbs planted in my yard and am dreaming of ways to use more of these beautiful old plants in the future.

A Christmas Special, Flavored with Love at a Ridiculously Low Price

Something nice for Christmas for Less than Five Dollars

Many readers and cooks have delighted in Flavored with Love, my story cookbook. My sister in Laurel, Mississippi, sold almost 2,000 of the first and second editions. When Paul Elliott and I wrote The Collard Patch, I revised Flavored with Love a third time. It has sold constantly on Amazon for $22.97. Not long ago I reduced the price of Flavored with Love to $15.00. Just in time for Christmas I have reduced it to $4.95, a price so low I'm losing money; but I want you to have this book to enjoy. It would make an excellent Christmas gift. Right now there are only three available on Amazon, but more will be on the way soon. When I wrote this, I used the pen name Jane Riley, my imaginary cousin. She tells about the cooks in my family -- the way they act, what they cook for holiday meals and for every day good eating.

You'll be surprised that it is a big cookbook in big print.

Product Description:
Flavored with Love, Mary Lou's Family and Friends Can Cook, Third Edition, is a wonderful story cookbook. Experience the recipes for some of the most delicious food you'll ever put in your mouth. Delight in the intimate glimpses into the lives of some precious, colorful people! Take a culinary trip through the South from Texas to the Carolinas, while you plan to spend most of your time in south Louisiana and Mississippi. Imagine the delightful aromas wafting through your house as you enjoy the heart warming stories. Flavored with Love introduces you to a beautiful blending of flavors in a cookbook packed with more than 300 favorite nostalgic recipes in big print. Enjoy the personalities related to the recipes. Learn secrets from the kitchens of some of Louisiana's favorite restaurants. Collect some hard to find south Louisiana recipes. Learn about the simple recipes that have won cooking contests. Have fun with food and cooking facts. You don't have to be a cook to enjoy Flavored with Love.

What Friends Say about Flavored with Love:
I have been browsing through Mary Cheatham's cookbook Flavored With Love for some time now, and have found it growing on me the more I dip into it. I started out skimming through it just reading the fascinating recipes. But after a while I noticed that the little stories around the recipes were not just filler, but fascinating in their own right. These stories are wonderful little snippets of Southern life starring Mary's family and friends from times gone by, evocations of an era when the pleasures of life were simpler and available to all, rich or poor. Buy it! Read it cover to cover. I particularly liked the story where little 4 year old Mary Lou caught the biggest Bream that had ever been caught and what happened to the Bream the next day. This story was, of course, followed by a recipe for Fried Bream. I live in Western Australia, on the opposite side of the world to Mary, and we don't get much in the way of Southern food out here (apart from Col. Sanders)... But Mary's recipes are so interesting, dripping as they do with the flavours of the South, and I certainly intend to introduce some of them to my family. I highly recommend Mary's cookbook, not just for her incredible recipes, but also for her personal introduction to her family and other interesting people via her warm and memorable stories. --Lex Edmonds, Perth, Western Australia

I own several cookbooks, and this is the only one I would suggest reading cover to cover. In real life I am an auto mechanic, and I have to use exact measures and specifications. I love to cook and not worry if everything is the same as last time. Mary's recipes can all be added to or changed just enough to make them your own, but her humorous way of preparing to cook a pan fish by first catching the fish, or the warning at the end of one recipe about beating your brains out with your tongue, these will only be found in a cookbook written by someone who cares about real people. Some of the best cooking I have done was at the expense of a healthy dish. I love cholesterol, fat, and salt. I am a Louisiana state certified food handler and probably the only mechanic to hold that license. The other day Mary came into my shop and told me that her radio, steering, and electric windows all quit working when she put her car in reverse. Most people would have doubted her, but knowing Mary, and some of the things she has done I started working on her car. I owe my job to a killer pecan pie, and hope to get a raise with this new book. May the Lord bless you and keep you, Mary. --Walker Gay, Choudrant, Louisiana

Mary Lou, thanks for a great cookbook. You share so many downhome real family recipes that it's often hard to decide what to fix next. The little stories you add all bring a smile to my face. You sure can cook. --Willie Crawford, Renowned Internet Marketer, Navarre, FL,

Cornbread Salad

We Southerners love our cornbread. For the Simsboro First Baptist Church Thanksgiving meal, I made Cornbread Salad, an unusual dish that has become popular on the salad bars of all-you-can-eat seafood and catfish restaurants. If you like the tastes of raw vegetables, bacon, mayonnaise, pickles and cornbread, you will be unable to stop with one bowl of this unique salad.

Cornbread salad is featured in Flavored with Love by Jane Riley (my penname). My sister Ruth Ishee contributed it to the cookbook. She said I should take a big bowl of cornbread salad to the party. She was right. Several people wanted the recipe.

She suggested I dress it up by adding something. I made four batches and added one pound of frozen whole kernel corn (uncooked). Instead of four green bell peppers, I used two green bell peppers and two orange bell peppers.

Cornbread Salad

1 box (8½ ounces) corn muffin mix
1 egg
⅓ cup milk
4 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1 medium green bell pepper chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
½ cup sweet pickles, chopped
10 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 cup light mayonnaise
¼ cup sweet pickle juice

Preheat oven to 400°. Grease a 6-cup muffin tin. Blend the first 3 ingredients. Let the batter rest 4 minutes. Pour the batter into the muffin cups and bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Allow it to cool, and crumble it.

Combine tomatoes, bell pepper, onion, pickles, and bacon. Toss gently. Combine mayonnaise and pickle juice. Mix the mayonnaise mixture with the vegetables. Arrange the vegetable mixture and cornbread mixture in layers in a large glass bowl. Cover and chill 2 hours. Toss lightly before serving.

Mom’s Dressing, Our Family's Favorite Thanksgiving Recipe

Mom’s Dressing

My mother-in-law, Mary Cheatham, cooked this traditional family recipe. (Because her name was Mary and for a few more reasons, I have reverted to the name Mary Lou Cheatham to avoid confusion, although most of my friends except the ones in Taylorsville and on Facebook, call me Mary.)

Fanny, a precious friend in Peru, is a missionary and the wife of a missionary from Louisiana. She is planning to cook a USA Thanksgiving dinner and needs help. I am posting this recipe for her and for you if you’d like to try some of the best traditional cornbread dressing I’ve ever eaten.

2 batches cornbread prepared according to the instructions on the mix (Mom uses Martha White buttermilk mix; we use Jiffy®.)
½ - ⅔ large loaf white sandwich bread
6 large onions
1 bunch of celery less 2 stalks
½ bunch parsley
1½ teaspoons thyme
1 teaspoon sage
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
Salt to taste
5 large eggs
Hot water or chicken broth (depending on the use of the dressing.)
Cooking oil

In a huge pan crumble the cornbread; tear the white bread into small pieces.

Sauté the celery and onions in oil but do not allow them to brown. Cut the long stems off the parsley and tear the parsley into small pieces. Stir the vegetables and the seasonings into the breadcrumbs. With vigorous stirring, add the eggs. Continuing to stir, add enough hot water to make a moist dressing. (Alternate directions: if the dressing is to be served as a side dish instead of stuffing, moisten it with chicken broth.)

Cook the dressing in a scant amount of oil in a large electric skillet until it is warm. Adjust the seasonings according to your mood.

Store the dressing in the refrigerator until it is time to stuff the turkey. (If the dressing is to be served as a side dish at a later time, bake it until it is light golden brown on top. Store it in the freezer.)
***
Having lived in Louisiana for more than half my life, I’ve become addicted to cayenne pepper. This dressing is better if you shake a little cayenne into it. Stir well so one of your guests won’t get a mouth full.
***
Just a reminder: Stuffing is cooked inside a bird, and dressing is cooked outside of it. My mother-in-law used this recipe to stuff a turkey, and she always had two cake pans of it left over no matter how big her bird was.
One more note: My daughter and I have stopped cooking the dressing in a small amount of oil. (See the last step of the recipe.) Mom did that to avoid food poisoning from stored raw eggs. Instead of frying it again, we mix it just before we bake it. Then there is no danger. I never stuff a bird. Instead I cook it in a separate pan. It’s lighter and lower in calories. Also there’s no danger this way. The problem of food poisoning arises when a bird is stuffed.



This recipe is featured in Flavored with Love, available on Amazon.com

Edward H. Davis Interviews Mary Lou Cheatham, Part 6 (Final Section)

Ed: And finally, may we please use one of the recipes from your book -your choice -in our book, or do you have another (newer?) one you'd let us include?

Mary: As soon as we published The Collard Patch we realized we didn’t put enough recipes of our favorite way to eat collards when they are tender: wraps. We published a little bonus e-book called Collards Notebook, which I will gladly send to anyone who asks for it. I cannot make it into a Kindle book because it has colored pictures illustrating the following recipe.
Wraps with Collard Greens

Ingredients
Collard greens
Flour tortillas (12" is preferred)
Tuna spread (Use any spread you like, or use meat and cheese. In Flavored with Love, I have included a unique tuna salad recipe.)

Preparing the Wraps
Begin with thoroughly washed collard leaves.
Two methods to wilt the leaves:
Dip them into a shallow pan of boiling water for approximately 15 seconds and drain them on paper towels
OR
Wrap them in damp paper towels and microwave them 15 seconds or longer if they need it.
Second step: Fold the wilted leaves and cut the stem out. Try not to let the leaf fall into two pieces.
Tortillas are sometimes sticky. Warm the tortillas in the microwave 15 – 30 seconds, depending on the size of the package. Warming makes them more pliable – easier to separate and roll. Carefully separate the tortillas. (Tactic for separating the tortillas: work a sheet of waxed paper between them.)
Cover the tortilla with a collard leaf. The 12" size is the right size to go under a leaf.
Spoon a generous amount of the spread in a row on one end of the collard leaf and tortilla.
Too much spread will squoosh out the bottom.
You have two choices:
Make the wrap neat and skinny. You may need to eat two of them!
Make the wrap big and eat one.
A layer of Swiss, cheddar, or Romano cheese could be placed along the top of the spread.
Or if you are a spicemouth, you may want to add some jalapeño slices.
Wrap it tightly and carefully. Start at the side that has the filling on it. To reduce squooshing, you may want to fold in one side as you wrap it.
Toothpicks are useful to hold the wrap together.
Slice at angles or eat a whole one by yourself.

Edward H. Davis Interviews Mary Lou Cheatham, Part 5

Ed: We have found that mustard greens are more popular than collards in many parts of Louisiana.

Mary: What I learned from interviewing people that some prefer one green over another. Many people like to cook two or three varieties of greens in the same pot. Such recipes are included in The Collard Patch.


Ed: Do you have any idea why collards are more popular in the Hill Country?

Mary: They look pretty in flower beds. Those big broad blue leaves look like expensive plants.


Ed: And here's another odd question, related to something written by a Louisiana writer: Have YOU ever heard anyone use the phrase "a bate of collards" (meaning a mess)?

Mary: No, and I couldn’t find ”bate of collards” on google.

Ed: I know from your writings that your faith is at the center of your life: so can you see any connection there with cooking collards? (I figure that is a tough one, so you can ignore it if you wish!)

Mary: This question is an easy one, Edward. We all know that the body is the temple of the soul and the Holy Spirit lives within the heart of every Christian. Add to this knowledge the fact (as documented by food analysis) that collard greens are one of the most nutritious vegetables available. What better way is there to take care of our bodies – and honor God – than to dig into a plate of collards?