April Fool’s Day Quiz

Hey, it’s April Fool’s Day!  We’ve got to be a wee bit foolish, right?  So here’s my contribution: an April foolish quiz. 

True or False: (answers at the bottom)

1. In the 1400s a law was set forth in England that a man was allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have the rule of thumb. 

2. In the 1500s, a challenging game was invented in Scotland. The rules stated:  ”Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden.”  We know the game by it’s acronym: GOLF.

3. The first novel ever written on a typewriter was “A Tale of Two Cities.”

4. The thing bulletproof vests, fire escapes, and windshield wipers have in common is that they were all designed by firefighters.

5. In Shakespeare’s time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When a person pulled on the ropes, the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase: “Goodnight , sleep tight.”

6. In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts. When customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them, “Settle down! You’re two sheets to the wind!”

7. We humans don’t get goose bumps on our faces.

8. One last foolishness.  Read the following paragraph:

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the first and last ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can still raed it wouthit a porbelm. This is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh?

Answers:

1. TRUE. I discovered this lovely fact while researching In the Name of Submission, my book on wife abuse.

2. FALSE.  This is an old wives’ tale… I mean an old husband’s tale.   Mary Queen of Scots herself played the game!

3. FALSE.  It was Tom Sawyer.

4. FALSE.  They were all invented by women.

5. TRUE.  Sleep on that tonight!

6.  FALSE.  They would say,  “Mind your P’s and Q’s.”  Some people still use that expression.

7.  TRUE.  But our hairy animal friends do.

8.  I knew you could do it!

Yesterday’s Writer or Today’s?

You’re a dinosaur writer if you can remember:

• Writing your first draft on a pad with a pencil.
• Pulling out a dictionary to check spelling.
• Typing and retyping your entire book manuscript on a manual typewriter. 
• Accumulating a big box of tapes to hold your tape-recorded interviews.
• Endless hours researching in the library.
• The card catalogue and the Reader’s Guide to Periodic Literature.
• Sending meticulously typed proposals by snail mail.
• When there was no such word as snail-mail.
• Being sent on an all-expenses-paid book tour by a publisher.

 Times do change.  I have done my best to pass these milestones with equanimity and am even managing to adjust to e-books and on-line printing.  But the news I got today was the final straw: the Encyclopedia Britannica will no longer publish print editions.  That’s right.  This bastion of everything you could ever hope to know will soon be only digital.  After more than 200 years, those stately volumes through which we loved to thumb will no longer be.

And little wonder.  The Britannica’s best year was 1990 when 120,000 copies sold.  But in the next six years, the number fell to 40,000.  Today, the online versions serve more than 100 million people all around the world.  So it’s good business to move on, though it still doesn’t make me feel better.

I like change.  I embrace it. But change can go too far. Which is why I checked the Encyclopedia Britannica’s website to see if I can still get a set.  The good news is that I can.  The bad news is that the final hardcover set would set me back $1,394.  

Hmmmm….  Never mind. My nostalgia seems to have faded.

“We are tomorrow’s past.”

Mary Webb, Scottish writer

Chai Tea Recipe – Yum!

All this promotion of my latest book, The Hope of Shridula, which is set in India at the time of independence (1946-1947), is making me thirsty for one of my favorite tastes of India:  Chai Tea.

Basically, chai (also called masala) is black tea brewed with spices and milk.  Each ingredient you add changes the flavor in a subtle way. Ask two dozen Indians for the best recipe and you will get three dozen answers.  I’ll give you my favorite, then at the end I’ll add alternative ingredients you can toss in at your discretion.

 

                                          

1 cinnamon stick

12 cloves
1 Tbsp anise seed
6 green cardamom pods, crushed
1/4″ ginger root, sliced thin
1/4 tsp black pepper corns, coarsly cracked

Put 1-1/2 cups of water in saucepan. Add the spices and bring to a boil.

Cover, turn down the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.  Add:

6 Tbsp honey or brown sugar
1 cup milk

Bring the mixture back to a simmer. Add 2 Tbsp of Darjeeling tea.  Cover and turn ff the heat.

After 2 minutes, strain the tea into two cups.  Serve immediately.

 Enjoy!

 You might also want to try any of these common additions (but probably not everything all at once!):

2 bay leaves

1/ tsp fennel

1 vanilla bean

Want to settle down with a good book while you sip your Chai Tea?  I would suggest The Hope of Shridula, or book #1 of the series, The Faith of Ashish. 

 ”You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”

~ C.S. Lewis ~

St. Paddy’s Day in Ireland

Several years ago, I had the great privilege of spending Saint Patrick’s Day in beautiful Ireland. I was touring the country with a group screening the film Amazing Grace, and since I had written two books on John Newton–John Newton, the Angry Sailor and Once Blind: The Life of John Newton–I was invited to go along.

A fellow who sat behind me on the bus going north from the Dublin airport to Derry peered at me through narrowed eyes and asked, “Are you Catholic or Protestant?”

I had already been warned to watch out for that question. It wasn’t really a religious query. It was political, and it could be dangerous.

“Christian,” I mumbled as I buried my face in my book.

During my week in Ireland, I crisscrossed the country by car, a different city every day. On March 17, I noticed with stereotypical surprise that not one person was wearing green. “So, how do you celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day here?” I asked a group of locals.

“We watch the telly,” one said. “The Saint Patrick’s Day parade from New York.” The others nodded their agreement.

“Do you eat your dinner of corned beef and cabbage before the parade or after?” I asked.

They stared at me gap-mouthed.

“What’s corned beef, Mum?” a little girl whispered to her mother. Her mother told her to never mind, that it was not worth discussing, let alone eating. In fact, not one person in the group would admit to ever having tasted it. Cabbage was okay, they allowed, but only with lamb. Not corned beef. Goodness, no!

Finally someone asked me the question they were all obviously dying to have answered: “Why would you eat corned beef and cabbage?”

“Lots of us do in America,” I said a bit defensively. “All the grocery stores run big specials on it. We eat it so we can celebrate our Irishness. It’s what we do on Saint Patrick’s Day!”

After a week of criss-crossing Ireland, I settled on the plane from Dublin to Atlanta in my aisle seat. But when I glanced over at my row mate–a rather hefty teenage boy–I saw that he was crammed into the window seat with his leg was awkwardly propped sideways to accommodate a plaster cast that encased his leg, foot to his thigh.

“It’s a long flight,” I said. “Let’s trade seats.”

He smiled appreciatively. His name was Sean, he told me, and he was nineteen years old. He was on his way to Florida, and he hoped to stay there with relatives. Before the plan even left the tarmac, he asked, “Are you Catholic or Protestant?”

“Sean, my lad,” I said with a sigh, “it’s a good thing we have nine hours together. What I am is a Christian. But you are on your way to the U.S., so we do need to talk!”

I have so many good memories of Ireland, but what I cherish most is that long flight home. I really enjoyed it. I hope Sean did, too.

“I believe in the sun when it’s not shining, I believe in love when I feel it not, I believe in God even when he is silent.”

Irish saying

 

FREE Kindle Downloads!

I have been so, so encouraged by all the comments I’ve received about the Grace in Africa trilogy, and now the newly releasing Blessings in India books.  Thank you everyone! 

All this week, you will find free Amazon Kindle downloads on a couple of the books: 

• The Call of Zulina, book 1 of the Grace in Africa series, will be available for FREE download Monday the 19^th through Wednesday the 21^st.
• The Faith of Ashish, book 1 of the Blessings inIndia series, will be available for FREE download March 22 and 23.

If you haven’t read them, please… help yourself on those days.

If you have read them, you might consider urging your friends to get them as well.  Or perhaps your book club.  Both of the books have discussion questions in the back.

If you like the books, I’d love to have you write a review for Amazon or CBD or Barnes and Noble.

Thanks so much!

 

The Call of Zulina

George Clooney and Me

George Clooney went to Sudan without me! 

No great surprise, I suppose, considering that he has no idea who I am.  And that his visit to the deadly border region between Sudan and South Sudan had to be kept hush-hush.  And that he was meeting with South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir, who would likely have shut the door in my face.

I do think George Clooney is good-looking, and I think he’s a great actor.  But most of all, I appreciate his commitment to using his privileged life to help the people of Sudan.  Lots of famous people talk about helping a particular project.  They pose fetchingly with a poor little kid from the region and offer emotional sound bites, then make their way to comfy accommodations.  But George is serious about his involvement.  He went to war-torn Sudan in January 2011, just as the people there were casting votes to separate into two countries.  George was so moved by what he saw that he helped found the Satellite Sentinel Project (it uses satellites to track soldiers’ movements and attacks) in the hope of heading off more aggression. He even got malaria like as real anybody. Now, after this latest trip, he is testifying before a U.S. Senate committee.

My last visit to Sudan was before the cease-fire and vote to split the country.  I must say, I have never heard such heart-wrenching stories as were poured out in the refugee camps.  And never have I been so inspired by the dedicated resilience of a people. I would love to go back and follow up on that trip.  So many new stories to hear!

God calls us to seek justice for the oppressed, to stand in the gap and offer protections, to provide a voice for those who cannot speak for themselves. I want to be such a voice.

George left me behind, but never mind.  I’ll find a way to go to South Sudan on my own.  Maybe I’ll even send George Clooney a postcard saying: Wish you were here.

“We are only successful as a human race by how we look out for the people who can’t look out for themselves.”

George Clooney

Write As I Say, Not As I do~

As I struggled over my current project, pondering and editing as I went along, I asked a writing friend for her input. “I’m still working on the first part,” I moaned. “I just can’t seem to get it right.”

“Why are you even rereading it?” my writing friend asked. “Concentrate on getting the first draft done. You can clean it up and polish it on the next draft.”

I cast an icy stare her way.  “On this particular project, I need to have the beginning fixed before I can go on to the rest of the draft,” I informed her.

She stared right back. “Not according to what you tell everyone else.”

I hate it when someone brings it to my attention that I’m not following my own oft-imparted pearls of writing wisdom.  My friend is correct.  I always have three things to say about the first draft.  Make that four things:

• “Don’t stop to ponder the words, or the structure of your sentences and paragraphs.  Just write.”

• “Don’t go back and edit. Get that skeleton of your book down.  You can flesh it out in your next draft.”

• “Don’t ask so many people for their opinions or you will keep rewriting and rewriting until you are so sick of the book that you’ll set it aside and never get it done.”

• “Get busy and write!”

Yep, those are my words, all right.  And I must say, it’s pretty good advice.  I think, just this once, I should listen to me!

 “I’m not a very good writer, but I’m an excellent rewriter.”

James Michener

In Heaven and on Earth

Wow!  Have you been reading about the solar storm that’s right now sweeping over planet earth?  It’s huge!  Don’t be surprised if your BlackBerry doesn’t work right.  Today is supposed to be the most intense day of the flare. Tonight, there is even a chance that we in the Pacific Northwest will see the Great Northern Lights brighten up our sky.

But that’s tonight.  Today I will keep my eyes earthward.  Spring is peeking through, and I don’t want to miss a single moment of it!

Blessed day to all.

Husband Dan planting my favorite–sweet-faced pansies.

 “Springtime is the land awakening. The March winds are the morning yawn.”

~Quoted by Lewis Grizzard in Kathy Sue Loudermilk, I Love You

Time and Posts Wait For No One

I was already feeling guilty for having left town without Owen and Twinkle the Star That Came Down From Heaven Marshall Strom Kline, better known as Twinkle.  But I was only away overnight, and, really, the cats should be used to it by now.  Still,

Twinkle ready to go!

they gave subtle hints that they were not pleased about being left behind. 

Okay, so I was already feeling guilty when I received a post urging bloggers to set a posting schedule and then to stick to it.  Ouch!

Yes, that’s what I should do. Of course it is.  Problem is, sometimes I’m away from home on my scheduled posting days.  Sometimes I’m simply too far under writing water to come up for air and write my post.  Now and then my brain just blanks out and I can’t think of a thing to say. 

Yes, yes.  I know all about writing posts in advance.  It’s a great strategy . . . when the application works.  But it doesn’t always, at least not for me.  I don’t want to warn readers ahead of time that I will be away from home because I don’t want to advertise that fact.  And sometimes unexpected stuff does happen. A couple of weeks ago, my tiger-striped cat, Owen, stumbled into my cup of tea and spilled it all over my desk. My keyboard died that night.  Ugh!

So, here’s what I have to say:  My regular posting days are Monday and Thursday.  I will do my very best to stick with that schedule.  Honest, I will.  But if I stumble, or maybe fall flat on my face, please understand that I’m doing my best.

“A cat has absolute emotional honesty: human beings, for one reason or another, may hide their feelings, but a cat does not.”

Ernest Hemingway

How Soon They Forget!

Did you catch Paul McCartney’s double performance at the 2012 Grammy Awards?  After he finished,  Twitter exploded.  No, not with messages from praise-gushing fans.  Confused twitterers tapped out:  Who is this guy? and  He sure is old to be starting out!  and Must not be much. Never heard of him. 

I really didn’t need another thing to make me feel old.  Just last week I reviewed a manuscript from a fellow much younger than I.  He said that when he was in high school he wanted to go on a mission trip to Russia but his parents said absolutely not.  ”You can go on a trip,” they told him, “but not to a communist country.  It’s too dangerous.”  So he showed them another possibility—a trip to the Middle East.  “Okay,” they said. ”That’s a good, safe place.”

How times change!  And how times change us.

Welcome to 2012~

“People change and forget to tell each other.”

Lillian Hellman