by Christine | Uncategorized
A new feature on the blog – every now and then, a Cover Reveal! Below is the brand new cover for MEDUSA – A LOVE STORY by Sasha Summers. Isn’t it pretty?
Medusa Blurb:
It’s said love can change a person. Medusa wasn’t always a monster…
Medusa is ruled by duty, to her Titan father and the Goddess Athena. She’s no room for the tenderness her warrior guard, Ariston, stirs. When Olympus frees her from service, her heart leads her into the arms of the guard she loves… and curses her as the creature with serpent locks.
Ariston goes to war with a full heart… and dreadful foreboding. He learns too late of the danger Medusa faces, alone, and a Persian blade sends him into the Underworld. But death, curses, nor the wrath of the Gods will keep him from returning to her.
Poseidon will use Greece’s war to get what he wants: Medusa. He does not care that she belongs to another. He does not care that she will be damned. He is a God, an Olympian, and she will be his.
Review: “This tragic and beautiful retelling of one of the world’s oldest stories tackles the eternal battle between duty and happiness. Medusa, A Love Story broke my heart then filled in the cracks with joy. Sasha Summers is simply a mesmerizing new talent.”
~Stephanie Dray, Author of the critically acclaimed Song of the Nile
And if you want to check out the trailer, here you go…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90fH7xoZiCo
MEDUSA – A LOVE STORY will be available SOON!
by Christine | Wine Friday
Whether you’re dealing with snow, or sleet, hail, or Arctic rainstorms, red wine is the ticket. Toss some spices in it, put it on the stove and heat gently – and you’ve got mulled wine. Recipes here. 
If you prefer your wine unspiced, but you want it to warm you up from the inside, take a nice big red – a Zinfandel, Syrah, or Cabernet – and put it with a bowl of chili, or a hearty minestrone soup. Pasta, or steak and potatoes also work to bring your internal body temp up. If you’re calorie counting, go with a clear broth – a chicken or vegetable-based soup, with an Asian flair. I like adding sliced ginger to my clear soups – gives a kick of heat, and the red wine works with the heat nicely.
So today, here are two Syrahs, purchased at Vons during their amazing 30% off sale (and I say that totally tongue-in-cheek), and a French red blend that I’m still remembering happily.
Alexander Valley Vineyards Syrah 2008 Sonoma County, CA, Wetzel Family Estate Regularly $16.70; on sale for $10.99 Alcohol 14% by Volume
On the Label: “This 2008 Estate Syrah shows the value of having an experienced winemaker with a deft hand for knowing how to best compliment what the vineyard delivers. Intense work in the vineyard, particularly necessary to get the best from this varietal, yielded lush fruit. In the tradition of the great wines of the Rhone, Wiinemaker Kevin Hall then blended in a good dose of old vine Grenache, adding some breadth to the wine, and a small amount of Viognier to soften the tannins and brighten the aromas.
“This wine exhibits and expressive nose of black cherries and violets and flavors of blackberry jam, strawberry and vanilla. Uncork a bottle to serve with a hearty beef stew and discover why our historic family-owned winery on the homestead of pioneer Cyrus Alexander continues to be recognized for producing superb estate wines that are superbly priced.”
My Take: I had been wanting to try an Alexander Valley wine for awhile, but it was too expensive – usually much closer to the $20 mark than the $10 mark. So finding it at $10.99 seemed like a good deal.
It was better than a good deal. This was a delicious wine, full in the mouth, nice and juicy and complex. The age on it added depth that I am sorely missing in all the 2010 wines I’ve been tasting lately. Unfortunately, I haven’t found any more of the 2008, otherwise I’d have bought some more!
My Rating: ~ Very, Very Drinkable ~ Why didn’t this get the “Slut” label? I’m not sure, but my notes say VVD so there you go!
Qupe Syrah 2009 Central Coast, California Alcohol 13.5% by Volume; Regularly 
$16.99 at Vons, on sale for $11.89
On the Label: Qupe. Syrah. Central Coast. www.qupe.com (and no, I’m not kidding! LOVE it!).
My Take: This was a lush wine. Not as quite as deep as the Alexander, it did have more of a spiciness to it, which I personally love. It smelled nice and juicy but the fruit didn’t hit you in the face – it was much more subdued than that. If you can find it on sale, definitely give it a try.
My Rating: ~ Very Drinkable ~
thanks to http://cheapwinesnobs.wordpress.com for the photo!
Bon Midi RED 2010 South of France Pays d’Herault 55% Merlot, 45% Grenache Alcohol 12% by Volume Regularly priced at $3.99 at Fresh & Easy
On the Label: “Producing some of France’s finest modern wines, the Midi region has everything French winegrowers need to make great wines. This is Cezanne country, the land of great artists and great wines, where the landscape is covered with sunflowers, rows of lavender and lush vineyards.
“A rich, full bodied red with blackcurrant fruit, chocolate and pepper aromas. Serve at room temperature. Enjoy on its own, or with barbecued meat dishes or spicy pasta. Made from Merlot and Grenache grapes grown in the premium vineyards across the Midi region. Enjoy now or store carefully for up to 2 years after purchase.”
My Take: I loved this wine. We had Bison burgers at home, and this wine was the perfect accompaniment. It also reminded me of driving in the Netherlands and stopping at a gas station – we picked up two bottles of French wine for about $3 a piece, and they were some of the best wines we had all trip.
This is a wine to share. To keep around on the off chance you’ll have company, or to open when nothing else seems quite right. It’s a warm, ready, willing and easy wine to drink right now, no matter what the weather, and considering its a 2010, that shocked me.
My Rating: ~Very Good ~ Excellent Price~ Run, don’t walk, and stock up on some of this. You never know when I’ll be dropping by!
As usual, this is just my honest opinion and depend upon my mood, the weather, and what cycle the moon is in. Your taste buds will differ.
~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~
Demon Soul is available for the Kindle and the Nook! Demon HUNT coming soon!
My Rating System: Undrinkable, Barely Drinkable, Drinkable, Very Drinkable, Very Very Drinkable, and the ever popular Stay away! This is MY wine, you slut!
by Christine | Uncategorized
I do two things that are just for me. One of them I do with other people, and one I do alone. Well, in the car.
I take Tai Chi. Every time I go back to it after an absence – whether that absence is one of a couple weeks or a couple years – I can feel my entire being release. Relax. Breathe.
Go here to see a beautiful example of the 24 form Tai Chi .
I take it for myself. I go alone – no husband, no sons – just me. It’s my space – the people there are genuinely happy to see me, and email me when it’s been a while. It’s a place for me to cherish myself, to feel that connection back to my ballet dancing days, to breathe and get in touch with the energy of life. When I see friends there, that makes the class better – but when I only have acquaintances around me, that’s fine, too. I’m accepted.
The first time I went back – at the very end of January, after two full years and then some – the emotions ran high. I hadn’t planned on going back – but Tom had been urging me to. Tai Chi is the perfect thing to do when you need to regain your sense of balance! I had worn the appropriate shoes that day – so I went to the studio, bought a new set of clothes, and signed up for a month.
When Sifu saw me try to sneak by the children’s Kung Fu class to the dressing room, she did a double take, excused herself from her class, and came over and gave me a hug. It’s that kind of place. I felt I had come home.
I’m exhausted both mentally and physically after class, but my body, mind and spirit are better the next day. It fills a need I have that I don’t realize – and I am so grateful for it.
thanks to library.thinkquest.org for the image
The other thing I do for myself is sing. Not just to the radio – I have a set of cds that I borrow from my hubby. They’re vocal exercises, but with a bit of a jazz beat. So it’s not operatic, but it is fun! I also have another cd that helps me learn how to harmonize. (Um, but no, I don’t do karaoke. Never have, never will. That will be all.)
I do almost all my singing in the car – yes, I know, I should be standing up – but still, it’s a fun way to use up some energy, it keeps me awake when I drive, and it exercises my voice. I used to take voice lessons a couple of decades ago, when I thought I might want to do musical theater; but I have to tell you, these exercises are much more fun than what I used to do. And I think I’m a better singer now, too. Everything I’ve heard says that people sing better as they age. Or maybe that’s just opera singers…
So, there you have it. Two things I do, just for me, that don’t benefit anyone else. They are my personal joys. I probably do more, but when I stopped to think about it, the other things that are joys also bring joy to others, and that’s not what I was aiming for this go-around.
What are your personal joys? Do you do anything “just for you” that doesn’t benefit anyone else? I’d love to hear about it!
It’s been raining here this week. Whatever the weather wherever you are, please drive safely – and drink responsibly!
by Christine | Uncategorized
During the drive back from San Diego last night, my 21 y/o son and I had a conversation about fortitude. How this one acquaintance of ours had the opportunity to really do something wonderful, but instead the opportunity got snatched away from her.
I wondered if it had been snatched away because she continually talked about being so tired, so stressed out, so worn from doing this something wonderful (which made others in the story think – well, she’s not up to dealing with this something wonderful, hence the taking away of the opportunity).
And I wondered – this would have been the perfect time for her to show the world that she DID have it in her to do awesome things. To triumph over nature and adversity. She didn’t, and that boat sailed without her. (Metaphor.)
I don’t understand that mentality. Maybe it was the way I was raised, but when things start to fall apart, the LAST thing you do is fall apart. You hold in your gut, dig deep, and get everyone over the hump so to speak. Then after the crisis has passed – THEN you can fall apart.
When I mentioned all this to my son, he said that lots of people don’t have that ability to dig deep and maintain their sanity while the sky is falling and at the same time take care of everyone else so they don’t get a concussion. (Okay – maybe he didn’t put it quite like that. But he could have, because he’s damned creative.) Which I guess I knew already, but it made me sad.
What do you think? Do YOU have that internal fortitude? (I think of it as what got everyone through two world wars. Dig in, do what must be done type of thing.) Does everyone have it, but not believe that they do? Can it be taught, or ripped out of a person?
Rosie the Riveter
Most important – is that kind of fortitude truly uncommon now? Have we as a society lost the art of doing more with less, and without whining about it? I’d love to know your opinion…
by Christine | Uncategorized, Wine Friday
Sometimes I like to step away from my wine and dip my toes – metaphorically speaking – into other libations. In my twenties, margaritas were my drink of choice (though I did go through many bottles of the low-end sparkling wines – Cooks, Freixenet, etcetera). Most of my friends had blenders then just to make those frosty, slurpee-like margaritas.
Hamilton Beach 58150 Muchas Margaritas Fiesta Blender
Now? Those blenders are used to make meal-replacement shakes. Sigh. Okay, where was I?
Right. Back in my twenties. So, one night my husband Tom was working at The Harlequin Dinner Theater down in Orange County (off Harbor Blvd somewhere) doing a play – don’t remember which one, but I had gone to see the show and have dinner. After the show, the actors usually gathered to drink – the bar was kept open for awhile. The bartender, a cute guy and no, I don’t remember his name, but anyway…he made us this drink called Between The Sheets. (One is supposed to put you there. I think, at that age and at my then-current weight, it probably did!)
This past fall, Tom decided to do something different and, after rummaging around in his memory, came up with this drink from our past.
I don’t knowwhat the state of your liquor cabinet is – but ours has bottles we
Thanks to Tom Ashworth for the photo!
haven’t looked at in a decade or so. (Plus it’s above our cereal. Doesn’t everyone keep their hard booze near the kid cereal?!) Most of what he needed, we already had. So he made the drink, and it wasn’t bad.
Then he bought slightly better rum, and the drink was suddenly MUCH better. Here’s the recipe – 1 shot rum, 1 shot brandy, slightly less than one shot Triple Sec, and slightly less than 1 shot fresh lemon juice (jarred lemon juice will work in a pinch). Fill a cocktail shaker with ice – pour in the alcohol and lemon juice, and shake. Strain into martini glasses (or shallow champagne glasses if you don’t have martini glasses). Makes 2 servings.
This is a nice, not-too-sweet before dinner drink – a special occasion drink – a fun, different, and hard to screw up drink. Even an after-theater drink – we had it last night, after getting home late from a preview of A NOISE WITHIN’s production of Moliere’s The Bungler (in their new theater in Pasadena, California – wonderful space!).
Anyway – last night we sipped, we split a plate of nachos, and we talked about theater. While wine would have worked, the slightly sour, slightly sweet Between The Sheets hit the spot and went great with the nachos.
Do you have a favorite specialty mixed drink? Please share – and the recipe, if you know it!
~~~
Thanks so much for stopping by! Wine bottles are threatening to take over my kitchen counter and my desk, so I promise I’ll toss up a wine blog again SOON.
