Tag: celebrate

Brewin’ Up Some Christmas Moonshine

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It’s Celebrate The Small Things Day. Something I’ve achieved each week, no matter how small. If you’re interested in doing the same thing sign up here at Vicki’s blog.

Today, I’m going to be completing the second step in something I started a month ago: a batch of moonshine–hooch, booze, white lightning. Actually, it’s yellow lightning: Limoncello to be exact, an Italian lemon liqueur traditionally made from the zest of Femminello St. Teresa lemons steeped in grain alcohol until the oil is released. Only I used vodka and Trader Joe’s lemons, fourteen of them, which I zested at night while watching TV.

Steeping Limoncello

This second step consists of boiling up a simple syrup (sugar and water) and adding it to the brew.  And then in 20 days or so I’ll strain the mixture through triple-folded cheesecloth into these cute little bottles and seal them. Voila! Christmas gifts for my family and friends. And a jar of vodka-steeped zest to jazz up my fish dishes. Maybe, I’ll even have a bottle of Limoncello left over for myself to add to the one I got from the friend who showed me how to seal the bottles. Check it out below, all nice and frosty from the freezer. Cheers!

Chilled Limoncello

By the way, Limoncello recipes abound on the web, mine is a three-page deal from said friend, if you like I can type it up and email it to you.

 

 

Celebrating a BIG Thing

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I’m a couple of days late getting my Celebrate The Small Things Day blog posted, which I’ve been doing every Friday. (If you’re interested in doing the same thing sign up here at Vicki’s blog.) Just as well, considering it’s a big thing I want to celebrate.  My publisher, She Writes Press, landed Ingram Publishing as a distributor. Excellent news for me and my memoir, Loveyoubye.

Bottom line what this means is that I’ll have a sales force behind me, men and women who will go out and pimp my book. I’ll also be eligible to get reviewed by Publisher’s Weekly. And then as part of getting Ingram on board, SWP streamlined and improved all of its metadata. This is also a biggie. This is the configuration that optimizes the chances of a book selling.  Only thing, Loveyoubye will now only be coming out in April 2014, instead of next month. I was so ready to get the whole thing over with, so ready to get my naked body and soul out there, to have the neighbors look askance at me, to have my ex-husband sue me, (I’m kidding about this . . . I think), to ignore negative reviews. Ah, well, later.

Something To Celebrate

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It’s Celebrate The Small Things Day. Something I’ve achieved each week, no matter how small. If you’re interested in doing the same thing sign up here at Vicki’s blog.

So I finally sent that essay to L.A. Times Affairs, a first-person column in the Los Angeles Times chronicling romance and relationships. They want stories grounded in the present with a strong sense of place, rooted in Southern California.

I crafted the essay from my memoir, Loveyoubye. It’s a big scene, one I’ve been working on for awhile. The only thing is, it’s kind of a mixed bag sending it now instead of after Loveyoubye is published, which would allow me to give interested readers a link to buy the book. But according to my editor it’s a good idea to build interest before the book comes out as well. So I’m going with that and holding my thumbs that my piece gets published. My American friends, if you would cross your fingers for me, I would truly appreciate it.

Celebrate The Small Things

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I joined another Blog Hop. This is a good ‘un.  So every Friday I’m going post something I want to celebrate that I achieved in that particular week. If you’re interested in signing up, check host Vikki’s post  here!

So here’s what I want to celebrate. I finally went to Chiropractor Tim. I love getting “straightened” out, it’s always such a relief, and get this, I get a free massage along with the adjustment! But for all the lamest reasons in the world I always put it off until I can’t turn my head, or until I’m crawling on all fours. What is that about?

Anyway, so not only do I get relief and much soothing (well, unless I get Olga The Terrible as my masseuse and she rips out a couple of back muscles in her enthusiasm to loosen me up, but she does put them back nicely I must add), I have a fabulous conversation about writing and learn more about Tim’s almost completed novel.  Oh, and on the way home I stop at 85°C Bakery Cafe, a Taiwanese chain of bakery/coffee shops. The line was out the door, but I didn’t care, a medium iced Sea Salt Coffee with its inch of cream on top was worth the wait!