The Parting Glass

"The Parting Glass" is an Irish traditional song, often sung at the end of a gathering of friends. It was allegedly the most popular song sung in both Scotland and Ireland before Robert Burns wrote "Auld Lang Syne".

The Irish song is thoughtful and quiet, and I love to hear it. Here are the lyrics ....

Of all the money e'er I had,

I spent it in good company.

And all the harm I've ever done,

Alas! it was to none but me.

And all I've done for want of wit

To mem'ry now I can't recall

So fill to me the parting glass

Good night and joy be with you all.

Oh, all the comrades e'er I had,

They're sorry for my going away,

And all the sweethearts e'er I had,

They'd wish me one more day to stay,

But since it falls unto my lot,

That I should rise and you should not,

I gently rise and softly call,

Good night and joy be with you all.

If I had money enough to spend,

And leisure time to sit awhile,

There is a fair maid in this town,

That sorely has my heart beguiled.

Her rosy cheeks and ruby lips,

I own she has my heart in thrall,

Then fill to me the parting glass,

Good night and joy be with you all.

What Do You Think?

My First Love

One thing I think is common for all of us is that we always remember our first love. They are someone who makes an impact on our lives, helps us to feel those deep feelings of connecting with a special someone. We’re usually very young, and of course it doesn’t last, but we are left with an experience and a memory that stays with us the rest of our lives.

My first love was Davy Jones of the Monkees. I was just about to turn 11 when the Monkees came on television. I’d been hearing about it, seen the commercials and was anxious to see this show about a band. I was not into the Beatles, although my father made me watch them when they first appeared on Ed Sullivan. But this show looked interesting and fun!

I was hooked from the start. It was a terrific show for someone my age who was just trying to discover things like musical tastes and boys. And the sweet-faced young man from England just stole my heart. I put his pictures up all over my walls, wrote his name on my PeeChee folders, and saved my allowances to buy the Monkees albums. I was in the sixth grade, and the boys teased me for liking the Monkees, and Davy in particular, but I didn’t care. I was in love!

He was a good guy to have a first crush on. Funny, sweet and his music was gentle and happy. The Monkees embraced who they were. They weren’t the Rolling Stones or the Beatles, they were a band made for television and the young girls who would watch it. In recent times Davy continued to perform, continued to accept who loved him. He said recently that he knew his audience was filled with grandmothers, daughters and granddaughters. He knew, he said, how the music made them feel because he felt the same way about it.

When I started junior high the next year, I met my friend Beth. And -- oh happy day! -- she loved Davy too! We have spent many happy hours over the years listening to his music, talking about him, laughing over the memories. In our twenties we wrote him a fan letter, and took all of our Monkee albums and made a tape of songs that Davy sang lead on. About seven years ago we made a CD of it as well.

Beth and I finally got to see the Monkees on their 25th anniversary tour. Sooo much fun! Dancing, singing, laughing! One of the best experiences I’ve ever had. About 8 years ago Stan and I took the boys to see them when they came to town. Again it was one of the most amazing times. We spent most of the evening on our feet dancing and singing and laughing and just having the most fun you could ever have at a concert.

I’m listening to my Davy CD as I write this. My first love died February 29, 2012. He was 66. Too young to have died. Beth said she wonders if he still has our letter. I’m pretty sure he has our letter as well as all the letters that were written to him with love and sweet memories. Unlike so many former teen heartthrobs, Davy Jones enjoyed who he was and what he represented to so many of us.

He gave his last performance February 19th. He ended the show saying, “When you go home tonight dance like no one is watching, love like there’s no tomorrow, and if life gets to hard to stand, kneel. God bless America!”

I hope He blesses Davy as well.

Valentines Day 2012

We love Valentines Day at the Mullis home! We like to celebrate together, the four of us, and try to plan something fun for dinner. We've never gone out to dinner on Valentines Day, and always fix something special for the whole family. When the boys were little I'd make heart shaped pasta, but now that they're grown we tried something fancier.

When Stan was in college he worked in an Italian restaurant in San Luis Obispo, California. He eventually worked his way up to being a chef, and learned some amazing recipes. Tonight he made for us Shrimp Scampi! It's a special recipe, the sauce is a cream sauce, and it's served over a bed of brown and wild rice. We roasted some asparagus to have with it. It was a big time taste festival!

For dessert I found this super easy recipe that turned out to be off-the-charts incredible! Take a cheesecake (you can purchase a frozen one or make one, it doesn't really matter). sprinkle some toasted pecans over the top. We had caramalized pecans (get them at Honey Baked Ham) that our neighbor gave us at Christmas. Then drizzle caramel sauce and chocolate sauce over the top and -- Voila! -- turtle cheesecake! Sooooo good!

As Stan says, why do we only do this once a year?? Now to digest. Happy Valentines Day!

Just for Valentine's Day

Since February is the month of Valentine's Day, my romance novel Finding Normal will be available until the 15th for 99 cents on Amazon.com http://amzn.to/xSqyH8

Summary: Cassidy Maguire is a world famous actress and singer who longs for the normal life she knew as a child. Deciding to take a break from her hectic life in Hollywood, she moves to the small town of Aspen Grove, Colorado to try to find some peace and quiet. When she meets the town’s veterinarian Seth Walters sparks fly almost immediately. Seth likes his life as it is, but his heart is drawn to Cassidy. Can they make their relationship work? And as rich and famous as she is, will Cassidy be able to gain the love she seeks and find normal?

Happy Valentine's Day ..... and happy reading!

A Promise

My best friend gave this card to me on our 40th birthays. I've kept it because ... well, because she has kept her promise....

Wake Up!

I saw something interesting the other day that has me thinking about the state of things in our modern rush-rush of a life. My husband and I were shopping at a local department store and I lost him. I decided to wait by the front doors and relax on the bench until he showed up.

As I sat there I saw a lot of people go in and out through those doors. But the thing that was so interesting to me was that a couple of times someone was leaving the store with their bags and the alarm was triggered. And absolutely no one reacted.

Now, I can understand perhaps the clerk that had checked that customer out not getting upset; after all they had just served them and knew they'd paid for their purchases. But no one else? The customer wasn't startled, no other customers were bothered by the ringing alarm, neither were any of the workers there.

Aside from the fact that it looked as if you might be able to walk out the door with merchandise without raising an eyebrow, I wondered about the impact our alarm ridden society has had on us. We have alarms, ring tones, honking and dinging going off around us all day long! Cell phones, car alarms, computers, MP3 players, stereos -- it's constant! To the point, I think, that we are numb to it.

Car alarms rarely alarm us. Most people react with "why don't they shut that thing off?" Obviously the store alarm had no affect. I know on my computer I usually have it muted so I don't have to listen to the beeps and dings coming from it. Cell phones annoy the living daylights out of most of us as well.

So my question is this? How do you raise the alarm? And what would get your attention these days? Anything?

Another Easy Supper

I'm still on this kick about easy recipes for after church. Today I made an oldie but goodie -- Stuffed Manicotti. It's so easy and delicious too. If your family likes pasta dishes such as cheese ravioli or lasagne, they will probably like this. One bowl, one pan, 20 minutes to put together, 1 hour to bake and you're in business!

Back in the 1960s a woman named Peg Bracken wrote a series of cookbooks called "The I Hate to Cook Book." She was sort of a combination between Erma Bombeck and Sandra Lee, a humorist who found easy ways to cook. I've made some changes to her recipe, which I've put in parenthesis. Either way works, it's just up to you which you want to use.

STUFFED MANICOTTI

1 16-oz container of cottage cheese (15-oz container ricotta cheese)

8 oz jack cheese, cubed or shredded (8 oz mozarella, shredded)

1 egg, beaten

1-2 Tablespoons dried Parsley flakes (optional)

1-2 teaspoons granulated garlic (optional)

1 package manicotti, uncooked

2 jars spathetti sauce

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a large bowl, combine cheeses, egg, parsley and garlic. Mix well.

Place a small amount of spaghetti sauce in the bottom of a 13" x 9" pan. Stuff uncooked manicotti with cheese mixture and place in pan. Pour remaining sauce over the stuffed manicotti. (I usually only wind up using 1-1/2 jars total).

Cover with foil. Bake 1 hour; let stand 5 minutes before serving. Yummo!

It's great with green salad and garlic bread. One package of manicotti makes 14. Enjoy!

I Love This!

A Super Easy Sunday Supper!

On Sundays we go to church from 11:00 until 2:00. When I get home I am ready to eat and relax, not cook, eat, and relax, so I'm always looking for easy recipes. This is one I came up with after sampling a bunch of recipes and weeding out what I didn't like. It takes about a minute to throw it together in the morning, and no time at all to finish up in the afternoon.

CROCK POT CHICKEN & DUMPLINGS



2 pounds chicken tenderloins (I've found using a whole cut-up chicken falls apart)

2 cans cream of chicken soup

2 cartons chicken broth

Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook on high. I put it in at 9:00 am and we ate at 5:00 pm. When I got home from church, I put in a small bag of vegetables. I'm partial to peas and carrots, but you can use whatever you like. Today I used mixed veggies and it was great.

Now here is where you can choose how easy you want to make it. You can get a can of biscuits and use those as your dumplings. Separate the biscuits, cut them into fourths and put them into the crock pot (with the lid on) about 1/2 hour before you eat.  OR you can make Bisquick dumplings as follows:

2 cups Bisquick

2/3 cup milk

Mix well, and use your cookie scoop to scoop out dumplings and place in crock pot.

Okay, so dumplings are the prettiest looking food in the world, but they are sooo good to eat! I serve them in soup plates because they are very liquidy.

All in all, it's an easy supper and lets mom have it easy too!