December: Join in the Celebration!

Christmas Festivities –The 12 days of Christmas in Rector, AR- 2012!
     On the FIRST DAY, someone will OD during the NIGHT OF CHOCOLATE, a salute to the excessive indulgence in chocolate.  Night of Chocolate is a celebratory dinner theatre event with a plethora of chocolate desserts, inspiration of the Clay County Arts Council. Even if an excessive amount of chocolate consumption and a chocolate fountain suggest otherwise, please, no partridges! 

      On the next DAYS of CHRISTMAS, I’ll avoid Doves and Hens, Geese and Swans. But, it’s GOOD LUCK to have a BIRD and a NEST in your Tree. The wreath for the front door is a creation of ribbon, netting and ornaments, featuring browns, golds, pine cones, a couple of flashy, whispy-tailed gold accent birdies, plus a splash of turquoise. About 50 lights give the design a golden glow, spectacular with the brick colors of the house.
     Soon, Ladies and Lords will dance and leap during the Rector Christmas Parade and Festival of Lights Extravaganza. Floats, bands, and beauty queens will promenade brightly down Main Street. The festive event concludes at the Community Center with a party featuring desserts, entertainment, and an opportunity to sit on Santa’s lap!

     On the Golden Days of Christmas, I’ll salute WHITE GOLD!  The formal tree occupies a corner at the den entrance.  It will feature natural fiber cotton bolls (White Gold), along with 2 Christmas Cotton decorative stems I bought at Charlene’s. I do love that tree, decorated in cream, brown, green, white, and of course, a turquoise touch.  The Traditional Family Christmas tree reminds me of stockings and mice napping, and lovely days of cookies and milk for Santa. That tree will be in the downstairs den by the fireplace where my sons would expect it.
     Pipers and Drummers will declare Deck Wars (version 2.0).  Let the fun continue. My offering was a weak second compared to my neighbor’s gargantuan red lighted bow that can be seen “for miles.” I’ll have to try harder this year.
     Finally, the Maid(s) will be cleaning!  Alas, the only Maid in my house is ME.

The theme for Christmas Weekend and Christmas Eve is “A Charlie Brown Christmas” (1965). Linus speaks to Charlie Brown who is “depressed,” lamenting the commercialism of Christmas.  Linus reads from Luke (KJV): “I bring you good tidings of great joy! For unto us is born this day….a Savior who is Christ the Lord.”  That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown!  Marvin’s children and grandchildren will celebrate with us on Christmas Weekend and my children will be arriving Christmas Eve! Let Us Never Forget: Christ is the Reason we Celebrate.

Peace, Love, and Hostess Cupcakes

     Twinkies, I learned when teaching 8^th graders, have a shelf-life of 10 years or more.  Preservatives, sugar, sponge cake, cream filling, more sugar, and more preservatives fuel ADHD kids to delirium.  At the conclusion of one notable parent-teacher conference, the mom confessed, “I knew I should not have let him eat all those Twinkees.”
     Hostess cupcakes (orange=my favorite), Ding-Dongs/King Dongs, Twinkees, fried pies, and other delights that sugared our childhoods may forever fall from the grocery shelves and along with them, colorful balloon packaged Wonder Bread. With so much name recognition and brand surety, another buyer must rescue the company.  Childhood and second childhoods would not be the same without Hostess.
     Nothing stays the same, though, including holidays.  Some states, Colorado being primary, will be experiencing euphoria at the thought of relatives visiting. Imagine this conversation: “So, your mother is coming to spend Thanksgiving and stay through the New Year?  Hey.... that’s totally cool.  She can have our room. Cool! Love it.” My sister-in-law might invite me and all my family to spend the holidays with her and my brother. She’ll cook enough food for an army and after we’ve eaten the first morsels, we’ll all form a Love Commune and live together in peace and harmony forever more.
      It must be a Christmas Miracle!  Yep, it is.  Colorado legalized not only medicinal but recreational use of marijuana.  Blend it, pour it, shake and bake it, add it with granola to your cereal, include it as a spice in all your recipes.  “Let Peace Begin With Me” – the new State Motto of Colorado!   

The State of Gratitude

       Our land is arrayed in orange, red, brown, and yellow hues prompting jaw-dropping amazement as we gaze upon leafy decorations splashed against crisp, Fall blue skies.  Autumn colors have reached their peak here, just in time for Thanksgiving.  Too bad it seems that so few will acknowledge the call to thankfulness.
       Maybe it’s because holiday decorations include a Turkey, the fowl that lost the National Bird election to the regal Bald Eagle.  Perhaps some wish to skip Thanksgiving because their favorite football games and the coma-inducing plethora of pigskins have dulled their conscience.  I have been guilty, myself, of referring to the holiday as Turkey Day, a salute to my week in the kitchen and the recipes that focus on turkey, dressing and pumpkin pies.
       Recently, however, my senses were accosted as I shopped.  Television commercials have informed that the colors of the current season are Green and Black – Green for cash and Black for the bottom line that is not red, thus the decision to move Black Friday to Black Thursday or Black Thanksgiving, or Black November.
        Can we not take even a single moment to express our thanks not only for the food on our table daily, but for our families, our health, our very breath and say it directly to the author of all bounty, each goodness, God Almighty? 
        Commercialism is rampant.  We all understand why merchants wish to entice us to launch our Christmas preparations early.
We understand the state of the economy. 
We need to examine our state of gratitude.

"What's This Cute Little Room, Dear?"

       Statistics show that the Kitchen is the most deadly room in the house.  Not just for the turkey, but for humans who are either clumsy or prone to run-ins with butcher knives.  “Chicago” (Cellblock Musical) lyrics for “He Had It Coming” intone that “he ran into my knife--- 10 times!”
       Pesky utensils such as potato peelers, kitchen scissors, paring knives, or Pampered Chef Choppers should carry Warning Labels declaring the implement to be one of “mega-mass destruction” or certainly a boast a warning similar to that of the Surgeon General regarding hazards to the health.  Scalding water and flaming skillets…..the Smoke Alarm should not signal that dinner is ready!
       Another potential hazard I recently discovered: what about Aluminum Foil?  Aluminum Foil can deliver a wound that necessitates cleaning with water, cloth, perhaps a kiss, and definitely a Band-aid.  Blood appeared, Neosporin+PainRelief was applied, and the tender area was covered to speed healing. No sling was necessary, however. When using the premium quality Aluminum Foil, exercise caution around unmarked, sharp edges.  Not only is there no warning label forbidding Microwave use, but there are no arrows, no “do not touch” notations, nothing to clarify for the consumer: Beware of Aluminum Foil edges. They can cut, possibly disfigure or maim. Amateurs should avoid not only the foil itself, but the boxed razor-toothed edge, also.
        Cooking, in and of itself, brings opportunity for creativity, but does not come without hazard, without risk.  Does your family recognize the risk you take daily when you enter the kitchen to prepare a meal?  Hazard Pay should be negotiated!  Or, as those Germantown Housewives are prone to do – just “make reservations!”

Politics and Philanthropy

               Rare is the moment when politics and philanthropy combine.  One has little to do with the other nowadays, except in this tribute.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012,  I was able to step into a voting booth in Rector, AR, and cast my ballot.  On that ballot in Clay County, AR, was Marvin Gatewood for Alderman, Position 2, West Ward.  He lost to the incumbent.  But, he got my vote and several hundred others.  I remain proud to have cast my vote for him and proud, knowing that regardless of the outcome, he will continue to work for his hometown of Rector.  He will share his business experience and his backbone and work ethic for the betterment of this tiny town.

Friday, November 9, 2012, Richard McAlister will be among several others out of Charleston, SC and the Bartlett Tree Experts (Scientific Tree Research, Residential, and Commercial International Company) to deploy to the Jersey Shore to assist in their recovery. He will be in the midst of Chris Christie’s New Jersey efforts to rebound from Superstorm Sandy and the most recent nor’easter.  I hope you will cheer for him and pray God to keep his hedge of protection around my dear, darling son. He will be in New Jersey for 10 days.

         My heart expands with pride (not the bad kind, I hope) in recognition of the hard work of these two men who happen to be cornerstones of my world.

Cotton Tycoon, Timber Magnate, Oil Baronnes

     Today, I toured the Graves’ Cotton Corporation Gin at Hargrave’s Corner in Rector. The facility turns out a huge bale of cotton every 2 minutes and 32 seconds.  Over the course of 7 years, I have learned about cotton fields, planting, irrigation, module trucks and we have stopped in Monette to examine a monster cotton picking machine. My formal Christmas tree uses ribbon and cotton bolls as accents. But, today, I witnessed a module expelled from the truck onto rolling pins and gazed as it moved along the conveyer to the place where the process of pulling the trash, hulls, and stray stems begins.  Loud is an understatement inside the gin. The sharp teeth of one of the initial processors separate the fiber from the seed.  And it all goes from there into a strapped bale, it’s inserted into a sleeve marked with the familiar 100% Cotton logo, and loaded onto a palate for market.  It’s a fascinating journey.

      As a young girl, I was afforded the pew-y opportunity to tour the International Paper’s mill in Camden. From pine timber billets to brown paper bags, I witnessed the process of turning pulp into paper. We had timberland in south Ouachita County and northern Union County, on “Auntie’s Place” so our family was interested in timber and Daddy aspired to be a mogul.  No matter how loudly the merchants in Camden proclaimed smoke-stacks which billowed clouds of stink to belch the smell of money, my little girlfriend circle practiced holding our breaths from Fairview to Duck Inn as we drove into Camden from the south.

     While Auntie’s Place had timber, there was also oil nearby. Never have I witnessed a gusher. Rarely do I cash a BIG royalty check, since our family’s portions have been divided now by multiple shares.  Oil companies are reopening wells in South Arkansas, and while I am not anticipating a gusher, it would be OH, So Nice!

     Set in East Texas, the novel Roses spans generations resulting in a fabulous saga involving a cotton tycoon (female) and a timber magnate (male). Their love story, decisions, heartaches, and tragedies complicate multiple lives, not unlike GWTW.  I’d highly recommend Leila Meacham’s novel. She is a former teacher and she lives in Texas.  Find it reviewed in the column to the right.