Mugs Raffle!! Want to see who won the cool Osoporto mugs? Click the video! But I will be contacting this person via email as well so I can get an address for shipping purposes. Thanks all for participating. There's still a Beagle Freedom Swag raffle so why not pre-order to get in on that, or order another copy if you already have. Nothing wrong with that!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDmsOcvBKE0
Hey! Happy Monday!! Back to work, eh? Well, just wanted to let you know all slots filled in the Mugs raffle, so as soon as I can get it together to do it I will. Hopefully I'll get it on video for ya! But if you're still interested in some swag and you haven't pre-ordered -- or you just want to again, I have few slots left in the Beagle Freedom Project Raffle. Here's what you could win:
Yep, it's a scarf and cap to keep you warm in this chilly wet weather we're having. Or maybe where you are you're even having snow. You want to keep warm, don't ya? Remember as well I am going to donate 10% of all sales to the Beagle Freedom Project if publish goal met.
Anyway, stay tuned for the raffle...
Swag alert!!
Okay, now that I've got your attention, there's 122 orders to go by mid-February so if you're following and you haven't ordered "Women Like Us", now's a good time!! And, hey, even if you have pre-ordered, there's no harm in snagging one for a friend, or if you're a fellow Inkshares author and you have any spare credits laying around, by all means -- after all, two is often better than one, no?
Speaking of two, and here's where the potential swag comes in, I think it's time for a raffle, and the prize will be these two beautiful mugs you see here, courtesy of my friends at Osoporto (more on this in a moment). But take a look at the mugs! You want these, don't ya? The next 10 people to pre-order will be entered automatically into this raffle, and one random winner will be drawn from...a mug! So take a look.
Why these mugs? Well, water is actually a pretty prevalent theme in "Women Like Us". Henry's first memory of his grandmother Edith Vale, for example, is of her tossing him into her pool so that he can learn how to swim. Yeah, it's a little rough, but that's how Edith rolls. Both Henry and his father Andrew surf occasionally. And Mrs. Vale also owns a ramshackle cottage at Trancas, which is at the north end of Malibu and was, back in the day, a far scruffier place than it is today. Much like El Porto, which once was its own little town but now is part of Manhattan Beach (although many would glare at you if you mention this so maybe don't). Osoporto, which is where the mugs come from, is a site devoted to El Porto, and it features a whole line of cool clothing artwork and other goods. The mugs just seem like a good fit, and I love the way they look. If you'd like to know more about Osoporto, and its creator Jon Berry, hit this link:
So that's it for now. C'mon and get in on this raffle! And stay tuned because there's a Beagle Freedom-themed swag coming up too.
Ok, so technical difficulties with that last update, so let me try one more time. I was going to try to post a short video including Derric of the Beagle Freedom Project because my plan is to donate 10% of all book sales to this group. But it's going to take a while to get Derric's acting skills in shape. He was more interested in nibbling on my arm. Anyway, if you're interested in helping these beagles and other animals live better lives, head to beaglefreedomproject.org. You can click on "Rescues" and then scroll down to the "Midwest 10" to see Derric's first steps of freedom. Warning: these videos can make you want to sob. But here's a brief look at our attempt at video making, and I will try to get a better one soon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnMsnQrl40c
So I hope everybody had spectacular holidays. And if you're following, but haven't preordered "Women Like Us", why not do it today!. Oh, I'm also going to work on getting some Beagle Freedom swag to use as giveaways so stay tuned. Thanks all.
Hi! Time for another cocktail, I think. Again, people, a recipe, so put that glass down. But first a little background via a short excerpt from the book. Here Susan Jones, who has taken over as chef at an old haunt in Pasadena, is in the middle of a mid-shift rant when Edith Vale shows up with her friends, the girls, although all of them are in their 70's! This restaurant, like I said, is a venerable place -- here in LA think Musso & Frank, or Taylor's but every town has one -- and it's famous for cocktails. One of the ones it's most noted for is a Moscow Mule, best served icy cold in copper mugs but if you don't have copper mugs by all means use a glass. So first the excerpt, then the cocktail. And then if you haven't pre-ordered, please do so!
Excerpt
She spun around. There stood Edith Vale, Oatsie O’Shea, Evelyn Brookby and Tish Van Buren, all of them impeccably turned out in sweater sets and pearls, pocketbooks clutched in their hands, all of them bright eyed and more than a little lubricated after copious samplings from the cocktail menu. The four had decided to have their ladies’ night out at Chadwick’s that week, and Susan, already red-faced from the heat and steam of the kitchen, went a darker shade of scarlet as she wilted before them. She smiled sheepishly and dusted a plate of sole with finely minced parsley. “Did you ladies eat?” was all she could manage.
“It was delightful, dear,” said Oatsie.
“I haven’t set foot in this place since 1989,” said Evelyn Brookby, “but I’ll be back.”
“Girls, maybe we should go. She’s obviously busy,” said Tish.
“Well, we wanted to pay our compliments to the chef,” said Edie. “But we obviously caught you at a bad time.”
“Oh, don’t leave,” said Susan. “Let me send out some desserts.”
“Darling, we all shared a blueberry buckle, and it was divine,” Oatsie said, “although do consider putting Floating Island back on the menu.”
Susan nodded. The ladies left the kitchen, and the dishwasher, Luis, practically invisible under the huge stockpot he was scrubbing, popped up and said, “I don’t know about anybody else, but that grey haired one? She had one hot ass. For an old lady I mean.”
“I’d tap it,” said Stacy.
Susan couldn’t help it. She forgot what set her off and started to laugh. And so one crisis was diffused, only to be replaced by another, when one of the wheezy old waiters tottered into the kitchen and said to Susan, “you’ve got a problem, honey-doll. You better get out to the bar.”
Moscow Mule (recipe adapted from the NY Times Book of Cocktails)
1 1/2 tbsps. fresh lime juice
2 tbsps. simple syrup
1/4 cup vodka
Ginger beer
Candied ginger or sliced lime for garnish, if you like
1. Fill a copper mug or glass with ice. Add lime juice, simple syrup and vodka. Top off with ginger beer. Stir vigorously. Garnish with Candied Ginger or lime slice.
This is an update with a corrected recipe. (Thanks Elaine Haney. You could be a copy editor!)
Okay, so I was trying to hit 150 preorders by the end of this week, but unless a flurry comes in, not quite going to make it. Fellow Inkshares authors if you have credits to spare, by all means pre-order again! Give it to your friends for the holidays. In the meantime, let's have another favorite cocktail from the book to go along with Susan's daiquiri recipe. But first here's a brief history of the Manhattan. By most accounts the cocktail was concocted in, where else, Manhattan. Some have it being invented in the 1870's for a banquet that honored Jennie Jerome, a Brooklyn-born socialite who was also the mother of Sir Winston Churchill. Other accounts credit a bar on Broadway near Houston Street as inventing it. Well, whatever the source, the Manhattan is surely a delicious cocktail. It's easy to make, and it's perfect for chilly winter nights because it kind of warms you up. So cheers to Edith Vale, and let's have a Manhattan.
Manhattan (Makes one. Feel free to double, or triple this recipe, depending on mood!)
2 parts whiskey (Maker's Mark is preferred)
1 part sweet vermouth
1-2 dashes Angostura Bitters
1-2 Maraschino cherries
Fill cocktail shaker halfway with ice. Add in whiskey, vermouth and bitters. Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with cherries and serve.
Excerpt Thursday! That's a thing, right? Here's a little passage about how Edith Vale met her first husband Frank -- if they hadn't met, there would be no Andrew, and no Susan and no Henry so think about that, Fates. By the way if you're a following fellow Inkshares author and you haven't pre-ordered, please consider supporting. If you have, order again by all means. Also coming up is another raffle, and this is going to be a good one if you're into cooking. So stay tuned for that. Now onto the excerpt. But first here's a little of the music that was playing, just to get you in the right mood. Listen to it as you read!
https://youtu.be/L0ILJt0976U
"When Edie Met Frank"
The wedding was a little bit of magic. She could still picture the huge terrace overflowing with pots of vivid red geraniums behind a vast house in Westchester County, with a lawn of emerald green that swept majestically down toward the Hudson, the river all shimmery under the light of a full moon. She’d never forget the moment she laid eyes on Frank. The meal had been served – pineapple cups followed by Chicken a la King - and Lester Lanin and his band were playing “The Hukilau Song”, an uptempo, lilting tune that brought Edie back to Hawaiian vacations with her mother, father and Evangeline, when Frank caught her eye from two tables away. He looked so dashing, chestnut hair slicked down with brilliantine, in a dinner jacket, crisp white broadcloth shirt and bow tie, and when he held out his hand and escorted her to the dance floor she felt funny little stirrings and flip-flops deep down inside. They kept dancing, as the band took them on a veritable world tour, with stops in France (“I Love Paris”) and Latin America for a mambo or two. “What is it about you?” said Frank as he expertly negotiated the sea of taffeta and silk swirling around them. “There’s something different. I can’t quite put my finger on it.”
“I don’t know,” said Edie. “These are mostly east coast girls. I’m from California.”
“That’s it! Me too! I knew I recognized something!”
His eyes twinkled and his whole face seemed to open up in a dimpled grin.
It might have been the champagne; it might have been nerves, or exhaustion even as the day had been packed with activities; it might have been his hand and the pressure he applied just at the small of her back as they danced; or maybe it was Frank’s heady scent, a curious, spicy blend of cigarette smoke, bourbon and some musky aftershave, but by the time the orchestra dove into “Old Devil Moon” Edie was as hooked on him as he seemed to be on her.