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Quick, easy, and very tasty no-bake cookie
Posted by doggonedmysteries
I thought I’d post one of my favorite and easiest cookie recipes today. They taste somewhat like a chocolate macaroon.
Aunt Violet’s unbaked cookies
2 cups of sugar
1 stick of margarine (must be margarine butter makes them too soft.)
½ cup of milk
Bring to a boil in a saucepan, mix well so sugar dissolves—cool slightly
Mix together:
1 cup of flake coconut
3 cups of quick oats
4 teaspoons of cocoa
1 teaspoon vanilla
Add all at once to the sugar mixture
Drop by spoonfuls on waxed paper, let set until hardened.
Posted in Food
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, Cookie, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Food, gifts, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
A gift from Mom Nature
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Mother Nature bestowed an unusual sight upon us this evening. The sun was setting and I happened to look out my kitchen window. In the eastern sky there was a magnificent rainbow. There was no rain, the sky was clear.
I called DH to the window to see it. I phoned G and told her to go outside there was something in the east she had to see. She went out with phone in hand and I giggled to hear her gasp in wonder at the sight. The colors were vibrant in the early evening sky.
As the sun sank lower and the rainbow disappeared, dear old Mom wasn’t finished. She grabbed her paintbrushes and the brightest pinks, oranges, and reds she could find and painted us a breathtaking sunset.
Every so often, when there are more bad days than good, Mother Nature manages to make us smile. DH and I most certainly needed to smile today and we did.
Posted in Misc
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, gifts, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
I sent myself a PajamaGram
Posted by doggonedmysteries
It began with an idea for a character in one of the books I’m working on—her pajamas. She’s supposed to have a pair of PJs with bulldogs on them. My character secretly collects all things with bulldogs. (Not unlike the way that I collect bull terriers.) She owns a bulldog. Yes, this book has a bulldog and not a bull terrier. It’s not from the Doggoned series and one of these days, I’ll reveal more about this book, but not yet.
Anyway, back to the research…I went surfing for a pair of bulldog PJs. What I found I wasn’t happy with so I kept hunting through sites that sold PJs. I hadn’t intended to buy anything. Truly dear readers, I did not intend to buy anything. I was looking for my character’s PJs. I wanted to be able to describe them in detail.
Then I hit the PajamaGram site. I told you I collect bull terrier stuff, right? Over the years, a friend has presented me with New Yorker magazine covers that have that white dog, the one that sorta kinda looks like a BT, on it. (I need to get those framed one of these days.) Well there they were, New Yorker dog PJs. I squealed with delight. DH got curious and came to see what I had me so tickled.
I pointed to the screen where I’d enlarged the fabric pattern. By this time, I was wiping drool off my chin.
He laughed when he saw the dog he knows so well from our collection.
“I have to have them,” I said.
“Yes, you do.”
I looked at the price and started to waffle. “I do need some new Jammies. The PW conference is coming up…my old ones are looking ratty. But—“
“Buy them. They’re cute.”
The cheapskate in me reared its ugly head. “They cost way more than I’d normally pay for any.”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake, just order them.”
“They can be your Valentine’s gift to me.”
DH rolled his eyes. “Don’t worry about it. Buy them.”
Posted in Dog related, Misc, My books, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, gifts, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
Happy New Year!
Posted by doggonedmysteries
A toast!
A toast to my dear readers…
May most of your wishes be granted.
I’d never say all, for a person needs to dream.
Good health.
Long life.
May the love of friends and family warm you.
Smell the roses.
Dance as if no one is looking.
Sing with joy.
Keep your feet on the ground and your head in the clouds.
And please keep on coming back here.
Posted in Holidays
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, comedy, Craft of writing, Crafts, Dead, Disability, Dog humor, Doggoned, Dogs, Family, Fiction, Fish, Food, Gardening, Gardens, gifts, Happy New Year, Healthcare, Holidays, Home, Humor, Koi, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Pet humor, Pets, Pond, Ponds, Rescue Dogs, Snow, Writer, Writing
Puppies and kittens for Christmas—not a good idea
Posted by doggonedmysteries
There’s nothing more stressful to a young animal than to arrive in a new home smack dab in the middle of the holiday confusion and excitement. For quite a few years, I managed a small pet store. We specialized in purebred kittens. Around Christmas, the owner would push the sale of them and offered to stay late on Christmas Eve so they could be picked up then. I protested his zeal the first year I worked there and managed to get him to change his policy a bit. We still sold the kittens but the new policy saved the babies from the stress of the holidays.
I talked my boss into holding the Christmas gift kittens until after Christmas. So what if they stayed with us a couple days longer? Instead of taking the new pet home for the holidays, our customers would present their gifts to the intended people in a different way. Some would buy all the needed supplies, wrap them, and put them under the tree with a note that the kitten would be theirs after the holidays. Others would give the intended giftee a picture of their new pet to be along with a collar, or toy, or bag of food. Most of our customers thought this a great idea when I explained how stressful arriving in a new home is on a normal day and was so much more so during the holidays. In fact, they took great pleasure in buying twice as many things for the new pet to put under the tree for the giftee than they would normally buy.
I managed to schedule pick up dates so we weren’t jammed with people on the same day too. All of this saved the kittens the stress of being in a new home when stress and activity levels are off the scale. They would enter their new homes when things were calm and they had time to acclimate to their new families.
I know several dog breeders who have done this for many years. Many of them refuse to allow a pet to leave their premises until after Christmas. Reputable breeders will gladly hold the pups (or kittens) until after the holidays.
If you plan to give someone a pet for the holidays, spare the animal the stress, present the person with the pet’s supplies or a picture, and a note that their new companion is waiting for them.
Posted in Dog related, Holidays, My blog, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, comedy, Craft of writing, Crafts, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Dogs, Family, Fiction, gifts, Holidays, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Pets, Rescue Dogs, Writer, Writing
Have A Happy Holiday!
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Whatever holiday you celebrate at this time of year we hope it brings you joy, warmth, wishes granted, and love.
With all our love,
MW, DH, Gavin, and Patty
Posted in Holidays
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, comedy, Craft of writing, Crafts, Dead, Disability, Dog humor, Doggoned, Dogs, Family, Fiction, Fish, Food, Gardening, Gardens, gifts, Holidays, Home, Humor, Koi, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Pet humor, Pets, Pond, Ponds, Rescue Dogs, Snow, Writer, Writing
Bad TV commercials
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Is it me or are the TV commercials getting worse? It’s bad enough when we’re assaulted by one bad erectile dysfunction medication commercial after another, but now it’s Christmas shopping commercials. Does anyone else find that blond lady on the Target commercials downright psycho? She’s enough to give you nightmares.
And don’t get me started on the mannequin with her jazz hands. Give me cute. Like the Armstrong Floor commercial with the skate boarding Bulldog. Give me snappy and witty but please don’t tell me to have a happy period. If Mother Nature ever showed up here to hand me a ‘present’, I’d slap the crap out of her.
It’s no wonder parents go broke at Christmas. Little Johnny and Janie are inundated with commercials for expensive toys they must have! Excuse me, but what child NEEDS a $30.00 cell phone? Children lose things! Heck, they lose mittens that are strung through their coat sleeves around their necks or hermetically sealed to their coat cuffs. Guaranteed you’ll be hearing about how they lost that phone within a week. You might as well go flush the money down the toilet, or go lose it at the gambling tables. It all amounts to the same thing.
There are no limits to the insanity.
Posted in Favorite TV shows, Misc, My blog, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, comedy, Craft of writing, Crafts, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, gifts, Holidays, Home, Humor, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, TV, TV commercials, Writer, Writing
For what are you thankful?
Posted by doggonedmysteries
I promised Dave, that sometime this month I’d do a post on what we are thankful for, so here goes.
I’m thankful for every moment with my Dear Hubby, the love of my life, may we have many more years ahead of us. I’m thankful that I’m healthy. I’m thankful that we have a roof over our heads, our mortgage is paid, and we have food on the table. I’m thankful for the love of two silly dogs.
I’m thankful for the love and support of my wonderful Aunts and Cousins. Have I told you all lately how much I love you?
I’m thankful for all my wonderful friends who never fail to lift my spirits. I love you guys too.
I’m thankful to be able to follow my own path in life.
I’m thankful to be who I am, all I’ve experienced—the good and the bad, who touched me, who I’ve touched, and for those who have gone before me. I’m thankful for the joys of living and the lessons of loss and grief.
I’m thankful for the people who take time out of their day to read what I write here.
Posted in Holidays, Misc, My books, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, comedy, Craft of writing, Crafts, Dead, Disability, Dog humor, Doggoned, Dogs, Family, Fiction, Food, gifts, happy, Home, Humor, joys, lessons learned, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Pet humor, Pets, Rescue Dogs, Thankful, Thansgiving, Writer, Writing
Thank you
Posted by doggonedmysteries
To all the people who clicked on my Keep a Breast icon I say, thank you. For those of you who didn’t I say, what are you waiting for? If my sister’s beautiful face didn’t move you to click maybe this will…
As I said, my baby sister had a great sense of humor. One day, after her first mastectomy, she startled my Dear Hubby into peals of laughter when she asked, “Want to play with my Boob?” and then threw her prosthesis at him.
Posted in In memory of...
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Breast Cancer, Bull Terriers, cancer, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, comedy, Craft of writing, Crafts, Dead, Disability, Dog humor, Doggoned, Dogs, Family, Fiction, gifts, Home, Humor, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
Chocolate is brain food
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Okay, that may not necessarily be true, but it works for me. I inherited the chocolate loving gene from my grandmother. I don’t eat so much of it as to gain weight I eat only a little each day. I can claim chocolate as part of the vegetable food group, can’t I? It comes from a bean…. Vegetable. It relaxes me, it helps me think, and I love it.
( Hey, Jennie, tonight I finished that dark chocolate bar you sent. It was yummy!)
Hmm. Therefore, if I follow that same form of logic as is found in the first paragraph, it means that coffee is vegetable juice. Oh, goody. I’ll tell that one to Dear Hubby’s doctor, it will crack him up for sure.
I drink gallons of coffee. Ask Dave he’ll tell you how I carry coffee with me at all times. When I visit the Aunts, I phone them from down the road a piece from the house and ask them if they have the coffee on. They always do.
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Chocolate, Coffee, comedy, Craft of writing, Crafts, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Food, gifts, Home, Humor, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
How do I get one of those?
Posted by doggonedmysteries
I’m the one gal in my family who was born without the shopping gene. Yes sir, this gal doesn’t like to shop. Dear Hubby is more willing to go shopping than I am. (Talk about your role reversals.) The man has ten times as many shoes than I do. His clothes take up at least three times as much room as mine. He has dragged me out shopping for clothes because my jeans were getting too ratty for his taste. Hey, faded, ratty jeans are soft and comfortable jeans. Some people would even say they were stylish except that mine were indigo in color and had no holes or wear marks when I bought them.
Have you seen the commercials on TV where someone is shopping for a computer and when they find the one they want (for under a thousand bucks) the ‘sponsor’ pays for it? Hell, I’ll shop my little buns off; for as they long as they want me to, if they buy me one, and I HATE TO SHOP. However, I sure as heck could use a nice new lap top so I can drag my manuscripts along with me wherever I go and work on them anywhere.
See me? I’m jumping up and down, waving my arms…Yoohoo! Look at me I’ll shop. I will, I’ll do it! Aw, come on. I’m offering to do the one thing I hate most.
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, comedy, Craft of writing, Crafts, Dead, Disability, Dog humor, Doggoned, Dogs, Family, Fiction, gifts, Home, Humor, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Pet humor, Pets, Rescue Dogs, shopping, Writer, Writing
New look
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Anyone who knows me knows that I have a habit of changing things. I do hope you all enjoy the blog’s new look.
Posted in My blog
Tags: Author, Beads, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Coffee, comedy, Craft of writing, Crafts, Dead, Disability, Dog humor, Doggoned, Dogs, Family, Fiction, Fish, Gardening, Gardens, gifts, Home, Humor, Koi, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Pet humor, Pets, Pond, Rescue Dogs, Scams, Snow, Writer, Writing
Doggonedmysteries 