Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column - December 17, 2021

Dear Reader,

My husband and I are celebrating 44 years of marriage tomorrow. It feels like we've been together all of our lives, yet it also feels like we're just beginning the journey. Such a happy, loving marriage, we are truly blessed.

Forty-four years...we may be getting older, but the romance is still in bloom. When we get in the car to go somewhere, my husband opens my door and frequently tells me, "Suzanne, when we're driving somewhere together it still feels like we're on a date." When I get ready to turn in at night, my husband has already turned down the sheet and plumped up the pillow on my side of the bed.

It was a simple start, married by a Justice of the Peace. No diamond ring, instead I wear a gold initial ring on my finger that was passed down through my husband's family. No honeymoon. My husband and I were running a business together (throughout our marriage we've always worked side-by-side), and we couldn't get away for a honeymoon, but we hardly even noticed. The important thing was just being together, and we still feel that way.

Today, I feel thankful and so very fortunate to have married a man who has helped me create a life that I never dreamed possible, until I met him. My husband makes me feel loved and cared for, and he's given me the opportunity to experience a sense of family--something I never felt when I was growing up. And whenever I want to learn something new, my husband supports my desire to try and cheers me on.

It's true, anniversaries make you think about love and romance, but I guess what I'm trying to say is, the most romantic moments of my marriage are in the day-to-day happenings of life, and being married to my dear husband makes me love every minute of them.

Happy Anniversary, Bob...

Love, Suzanne

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

Dear Reader Column - December 16, 2021

Dear Reader,

Two more cookie recipes today. Book club reader, Donna C., is right when she says her favorite cookie recipe is great! Thanks for sharing, Donna...

"Hi Suzanne...here is my favorite oatmeal/chocolate chunk cookie recipe that everyone loves and they stay soft.

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup peanut butter

Mix together and add 2 eggs and 3 teaspoons vanilla. Then add:

2 cups flour
2 cups quick cooking oats
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Add one package of chocolate chunks. Drop heaping tablespoons of dough on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375 for 8 minutes (or longer depending on your oven)

Enjoy!” Happy Holidays -- Donna C.

The second recipe I’m sharing today is a one-bite cookie. Eat it guilt-free (not to worry), after all how many calories could be in a one-bite cookie?

Chocolate Crackles is a favorite holiday cookie experience for my family. I make the dough ahead of time and refrigerate it for three hours. So it's an easy, fun activity for friends or family. Simply take the dough out of the refrigerator, roll pieces of dough into little balls with your hands, dredge the chocolate balls through powdered sugar, bake for 10 minutes and you have the makings of a holiday party activity.

They are one-bite cookies, but you might find yourself indulging in three or four chocolaty "bites."

CHOCOLATE CRACKLES

6 T butter
3 squares (3 ounces) unsweetened chocolate, melted
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp real vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Confectioners' sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream the butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla. Add the melted chocolate and sugar and blend well. Stir together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the creamed mixture and blend well.

Refrigerate 3 hours, or until firm. Shape the dough into balls about one inch. Dredge each ball in confectioners' sugar (powdered sugar), coating thoroughly. Put on a cookie sheet, two inches apart. Cookies may seem slightly underdone, but will firm up after cooking, when they cool.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes on a greased cookie sheet or use parchment paper.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

Dear Reader Column - December 15, 2021

Dear Reader,

Baking Christmas cutout cookies with my grandkids last weekend reminded me of a column I wrote years ago about the first time I finally succeeded. (Click on the link at the end of today's column and you'll find the recipe that finally worked and be sure to take a look at the old photos, too. The kids were so young, and Grandma was, too!)

It's only taken me 61 years to master making cutout Christmas cookies and it almost didn't happen again this year. Decorating the cookies has never been the insurmountable step for me, it's rolling the dough, pressing down the cookie cutter and then lifting it ever so gently, to transfer the freshly cut cookie dough onto a baking sheet, without losing Santa's foot--that's been my challenge.

For years I attempted the cutout cookie feat, and every year I gave up and made Spritz, Candy Cane, and Chocolate Crackle cookies instead. It's been especially frustrating for me since I mix and roll out pie dough without any trouble.

So this year, what the heck, I gave it another try (it's become a holiday tradition), but just like in years past, I failed--again. This time after I tossed the dough in the trash (and grumbled a few choice words), something inside me was determined to face the cutout cookie demon and I gave it one more try. The heck with my grandmother's tried and true recipe, I decided to venture out on my own and try a different recipe for cutouts--and it worked!

Easy to mix, easy to roll, never once did I amputate Santa's foot while transferring him to the baking sheet--and the cookies tasted amazing. My neighbors sent me a text suggesting I should consider starting a second career baking cutout cookies.

To read the recipe and see photos of our family's cookie decorating, click here. 

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

Dear Reader Column - December 14, 2021

Dear Reader,

Today's guest author, Carol M. Cram, loves the arts, food, travel, and writing novels about people who follow their passions. She is the author of three award-winning novels of historical fiction about women in the arts: The Towers of Tuscany, A Woman of Note, and The Muse of Fire. Carol's latest novel, Love Among the Recipes, is a contemporary read about a woman searching for new passions amid the sights and tastes of Paris.

Please say "Hello" to Carol and welcome her to the book club.

Sixteen years ago, I moved from the city to Bowen Island, a three-humped jewel set in the Salish Sea within sight of Vancouver, British Columbia. I grew up in the city and thought of Bowen Island only as a place to swim and catch shiners and stay in cramped and moldy summer cottages.

It wasn't a place to live year-round.

In 2005, all that changed when my husband called to tell me he'd found the perfect place for us to buy. With prices for Vancouver real estate perpetually on the rise, we'd long since given up the dream of home ownership.

"Where?" I asked, expecting him to say a fixer-upper out in the Fraser Valley, a two-hour commute in bumper-to-bumper traffic from the college where I taught communications.

"Bowen Island."

"Oh."

Well, why not? It was free to look, and island prices were almost within our reach.

On a sparkling blue day in April, we joined scores of happy day-trippers on the top deck of the ferry that shuttled between Horseshoe Bay and Bowen Island. The 360-degree view of mountains and ocean and islands captivated us. Could Bowen Island be our new home? The very idea seemed preposterous. I had a job at a college in the city, and our daughter was still in university. On the other hand, she'd be off pursuing her own life soon, and as commutes went, the ferry ride wasn't so bad, and definitely beat stop-and-go traffic for two hours.

The realtor took us to several places, none of which lived up to their website hype. We'd just about given up on the idea of moving to an island when we found ourselves on the deck of an unassuming two-story log home overlooking a jam-packed garden that we later discovered harbored a LOT of garter snakes, and a view of very blue water and green mountains. The neighborhood was called Bluewater and now we knew why.

We looked at each other and, almost at the same time, said yes.

Over the years, I've discovered an unexpected benefit of living on an island. The 20-minute ferry ride is just long enough to write a short scene in my current work-in-progress.

I drive on to the ferry, run upstairs to the passenger lounge, snag a window seat, and crack open my laptop. So long as I don't run into someone I know (a not uncommon occurrence when living on an island with a year-round population of 2000 souls), I can usually bang out about 300 words. Then, happy with my progress, I return to my car and either set off for a day on the mainland (the "continent" as we call it now) or drive home along a winding country road that cuts through dense temperate rainforest and affords occasional flashes of shimmering blue water.

I am grateful.

-- Carol M. Cram

Carol expresses her enthusiasm for the written word and the arts on Art In Fiction (www.artinfiction.com), an extensive database of close to 2000 novels inspired by the arts in ten categories. The website features blog posts, author interviews, newsletters, and The Art In Fiction Podcast.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

Dear Reader Column - December 13, 2021

Dear Reader,

The quality of writing in this year's Write a DearReader Contest was outstanding. Today's Honorable Mention piece was written by Judi King. Thank you so much Judi for sharing your story with us.

A horse.

Well, specifically, a horse and a carriage, at Blenheim Palace.

Of all the experiences that we had, all the places that we visited, a simple carriage ride was the one memory my mom relished from our trip to the British Isles.

We hadn't planned on stopping at Blenheim--it was just a spur of the moment "Oh, let's stop and look around." kind of thing. We were on our way back to London, when we saw the signs for Blenheim Palace. "Oh, should we stop?" "Yes--let's!" Giggling like schoolgirls, we pulled in the grand entrance and found a place to park. (Unlike our stop at Princess Di's home, Althorp, where we were rudely bounced from the grounds. But, I digress.)

We weren't sure where to begin exploring Blenheim, when, suddenly from around the corner, a lively and handsome driver and his majestic horse clip-clopped their way towards us. "Would you ladies like a drive around the palace grounds?" The driver, Ian, asked. He barely had the words out of his mouth when my mother swiftly claimed her spot in his carriage. I had no choice but to follow suit, although, I hate to admit, I wasn't as spry as my 51-year-old mom was!

Off we went--two American ladies pretending to be aristocratic duchesses on an afternoon drive to visit the Duke and his court. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, a rarity for English weather--the sun was out, the temperature mild, just the ideal day for a splendid carriage ride around the estate. My mother sat totally rapt as Ian pointed out the perfectly landscaped gardens, the Grand Bridge, and the Column of Victory. I would have paid Ian my whole paycheck just to have Mom spend more time perched up high on her carriage seat behind that white and black dappled horse--her face radiated pure happiness.

My mom was a child of the Depression, one of the youngest of ten, so life was a bit hard-scrabbled in those days, always making do with whatever they could find. My grandpa went town to town looking for any work they could get. I think those times they spent moving around the different farms was where my mom developed her love for horses. And for travel. When she married my dad, they traveled when they could, but with my dad helping to raise his younger siblings, plus a daughter from a previous marriage, they never did get to travel to England. Although we didn't share our feelings with words, my mom had passed on her love for all things British to me. Music and books were the things that connected us. My mom and I both plotted, planned and saved like mad to go to England. To see her getting to go to her oft-dreamed of places like William Shakespeare's home town, James Herriot's veterinary practice, Sherwood Forest, not to mention all the palaces and castles, it was touching and heartwarming. It was a fantastic trip, and while we had our ups and downs, (did I mention Althorp?) we never forgot a minute of it.

I didn't realize how much our adventure had meant to her, until years later after her death, one of my aunts happened to chat with me about that trip. She said, "You know, your mom really loved going to England. That carriage ride was all she could rave about for months and months. I am so thankful you all were able to go."

My mom never told me so with words, but whenever I see a mention of Blenheim Palace, my heart bursts with those memories, knowing what that one happenchance stop-off meant to her. So if you ever get a chance to take a carriage ride with a white and black dappled horse at Blenheim Palace, give it a fond pat for my mom. She'd be beaming with joy.

-- Judi King
Honorable Mention, 2021 Write a DearReader Contest

* Congratulations to the winners of this month's Chocolate Chip Cookie Giveaway. Your cookies are on the way: Susan S., Kathy P. and the River Valley District Library.

And congratulations to the winners of Love Is: A Yearlong Experiment in Living Out 1 Corinthians 13 Love by guest author Kim Sorrelle: Linda H., Carolyn H., Dorie F., Alexandria H., and Nancy O.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

Dear Reader Column - December 10, 2021

Dear Reader,

I was waiting in line the other day, making what I hoped was my last Christmas purchase. (I thought I was finished shopping, but there's always that one last thing you forgot, isn't there?)

It was a long line and the woman behind me started making small talk. Of course we eventually got around to asking each other what we were doing for the holidays. I told her my grandchildren were coming to visit and that I'd already hung their stockings on the mantel (their names painted with gold glitter), and how I'd been digging through old recipes, because my husband wants to make fudge and popcorn balls this year.

The woman standing behind me, her holiday story wasn't festive like mine. Her husband died a few months ago and so this would be the first Christmas since his death. I could tell she felt awkward sharing her story, and felt obligated to move the conversation on, because she didn't want to dampen the storybook Christmas I was dreaming about. But everyone has their own Christmas story to tell and I wanted to hear hers, too. We talked about her husband and the memories from their Christmases gone by. There was excitement and love in her voice when she told me about the necklace her husband gave her on their last Christmas together, how they went to a farm and cut a fresh tree to decorate, and "We always made taffy," she smiled, "it made such a sticky mess, but he loved pink and red taffy."

The woman will be traveling alone when she visits her daughter this year, but in her heart is one of the greatest Christmas love stories ever told, and I'm so glad she shared it with me.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

Dear Reader Column - December 9, 2021

Dear Reader,

Oatmeal or chocolate chip? What's your favorite?

I've always assumed chocolate chip cookies were everybody's favorite. But then the other day, when I shared my oatmeal cookie recipe, I asked readers, "What's your favorite? Oatmeal or chocolate chip?" I never would have guessed it, but oatmeal emails outnumbered chocolate chip.

I love to bake and every month it's my pleasure to bake two dozen chocolate chip cookies for three lucky book club readers. Be sure to enter today's giveaway...but now I'm not sure if I'll be sending chocolate chip cookies, or oatmeal cookies!

To see recent smiling cookie winners and enter, click here. The cookies are delivered right to your front door.

Thanks for weighing in, some reader replies...

"Hi Suzanne, thank you for the oatmeal cookie recipe. My answer to your question: both kinds are delicious! I'm sure whoever wins your homemade cookies would be delighted to receive either. I know I was when I won two/three years ago." -- Melinda

"I'm with you--I add chocolate chips to oatmeal cookies, too. Some people add raisins, which I think ruins the cookie. I think most people would be pleased to get any kind of cookie, but my preference would be good ol' chocolate chip." -- Susan

"Dear Suzanne, it was a general question (chocolate chip or oatmeal), yet you do always seem so sincere when you ask, so tonight I decided to answer. I think oatmeal cookies in the winter are far better than chocolate chip. There's nothing wrong with chocolate chip cookies, but oatmeal cookies give me a more warm, cozy feeling with a cup of tea or warm milk.

There you have it, my vote for a delicious winter cookie--oatmeal it is! (And of course, a few chocolate chips tossed in would make them even better.) Oh dear, now I want an oatmeal cookie and there's no oatmeal in the house to make them tonight. I'll take care of that tomorrow. Thank you for allowing me to be a little silly this evening. Enjoy!" -- Mary

"One of my favorite cookies is Oatmeal Chocolate Chip. They are the best. Raisins are a great addition too." -- Lynne

"Oatmeal cookies are my all-time favorite. I use the recipe on the carton of Quaker Oats. Sometimes I add raisins." -- Mary Lou

"I like oatmeal best." -- Peggy T.

Enter today's Chocolate Chip Cookie giveaway. I bake, FedEx delivers the cookies to your front door and you get to eat some mighty fine cookies. To see recent smiling cookie winners and enter, click here. 

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

Dear Reader Column - December 8, 2021

Dear Reader,

From my email bag:

Book club reader Mary Lee M. sent me a fun idea for the holidays...

"The year is zooming by and if you have someone who can't be home for Christmas, this is a fun thing to do. I did this when my daughter couldn't come home from college and had to work. I sent her a Christmas present [with 12 gifts separately wrapped], and then for the next twelve days she had a present to open. Example: the first day I sent bubble bath, then a small rubber duck, a floating candle, a CD of relaxing music and a small box of candy. For a weekend night my daughter got popcorn, hot chocolate, candy and a movie. She enjoyed it and so did her co-workers, who were anxious to hear about the next gift she opened. There can be a let down with a rush to get to Christmas, and then the let down when it comes and goes so fast."

Thanks for the idea Mary Lee, another gift idea that I guarantee will be a big hit is homemade cookies.

Every month it sure is a lot of fun to bake two dozen chocolate chip cookies for three lucky book club readers. If you've never entered the drawing, You're missing some mighty tasty cookies. It's easy, click here, and you'll see recent smiling cookie winners, too. The cookies are delivered right to your front door.

I'm ready to bake, are you ready to dunk and munch?

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Happy Holidays,

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

Dear Reader Column - December 7, 2021

Dear Reader,

Howard Andrew Jones, today's guest author, lives in a lonely tower by the Sea of Monsters with a wicked and beautiful enchantress. He's the author of the Ring-Sworn heroic fantasy trilogy starting with For the Killing of Kings, the critically acclaimed Arabian historical fantasy series starring Dabir and Asim (beginning with The Desert of Souls) and four Pathfinder novels.

When Howard's not editing Tales From the Magician's Skull or hunched over his laptop mumbling about flashing swords and doom-haunted towers, you might find him lurking at www.howardandrewjones.com, where he blogs about writing craft, gaming, fantasy, adventure fiction, and assorted nerdery.

Howard Andrew Jones can be reached via e-mail at: [email protected].

Be sure to say "Hello" to Howard, and when you do, you'll be entered in his book giveaway. He has two complete sets of The Ring-Sworn Trilogy. To enter, email: [email protected] (And please be sure to include your shipping address.)

Heroes

I think a lot of us are inspired by heroism before we really know what it is. For my part, I tuned into an original Star Trek re-run for the first time when I was five. Before long I saw Kirk and Spock stand against a horde of angry miners after they discovered the creature everyone thought a murderous monster was simply defending its young from genocide. Those two faced their own prejudices and changed their minds when exposed to new information, then risked
their lives to see the just thing done.

I wanted to be like THOSE guys. Episode after episode, even if they didn't always have the right answer, even if they sometimes made mistakes, they struggled to do the right thing when there might be no reward but death. They risked everything for their friends, their allies, and those who had no voice. When I look back on that touchstone and those that followed, like the accounts I read about brave soldiers and civilians in the Second World War, I'm not at all surprised that I've ended up writing about heroes.

Nowadays, when fame seems easily acquired by looking good, possessing a lot of money, or shouting loudly, heroism can be taken for granted, or seen as quaint: often the most celebrated modern figures are those who get away with things they probably shouldn't, or those who act the most outrageously entitled. These are cynical times, I get it, and sometimes it seems that facts and truth are dead (along with irony) and that heroes are just people whose dark sides haven't been scooped yet.

But I don't think I'm alone in remaining fascinated with heroes, and wishing we heard more about them. Heroism can supersede our cultural wars because it isn't about defending a narrow set of beliefs dictated by a few who want to stay in power. It isn't defined by ideology, but by the selflessness of those who protect others. Above all, heroism stands in stark contrast with selfishness, that most common of evils that creeps into a person or a society too self-indulgent to keep it at bay.

I have an honest love of adventure stories, and I surely hope my fiction amuses and even thrills readers. But if my words can provide solace and, dare I hope, inspiration for someone to stand tall in the face of adversity, and to take right action when wrongs are being committed, why, that will be a pretty grand thing.

-- Howard Andrew Jones

To be included in the drawing for one of two copies of Howard's The Ring-Sworn Trilogy, email [email protected] and please be sure to include your shipping address

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

Dear Reader Column - December 6, 2021

Dear Reader,

I promised a couple weeks back to share my oatmeal cookie recipe. Today's the day! Start baking. They are scrumptious!

My mother's oatmeal cookie recipe is a great one. But I can't help myself, I always have to toss in some chocolate chips, too. I bake a lot of chocolate chip cookies and I enjoy giving them away. I'm wondering if people would like oatmeal cookies (maybe with some chips added), just as much? I'm curious what you think. Oatmeal or chocolate chip?

My Mother's Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 cups oatmeal
(add chocolate chips if you like)

Bake 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes

My mother didn't give me any step-by-step instructions. I suggest mixing the butter and sugars, then adding the eggs and vanilla. Measure and mix together in a different bowl, the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add it to the butter mixture just until mixed. Then stir in the oatmeal. (And then I toss in those chocolate chips.)

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Happy Holidays,

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]