A Tale of Two Women, Books On Pre-order, and a Recipe for Healthy(ish) Fruit Pizza
Sep 04, 2024 7:17 pm
(Psst. My website got a facelift--it's about time someone around here did:)--so if you want to check it out, click the logo above!)
Happy September, friends. It is happy, too. Cooler temperatures, beautiful days. I've been walking a lot (since I hurt my knee on vacation so I can't jump or lift weights). And thinking a lot about what I want my life to look like.
Which leads to... STORY TIME
Just today I was thinking about a recent experience I had with two different women.
Story #1. I parked at the grocery store after a long day and when I got out of my car, I bumped the car beside me with my car door. It was a very light bump and I was inspecting it for damage when the woman--who was IN the other car (nope, I didn't see her there at first)--rolled down her window and said, "You just hit my car!" I apologized and said I'd accidentally bumped it with my door, but it didn't look like it was dinged at all. I invited her to get out of the car to check, which she very grumpily did. She seemed disappointed to see that I was correct--her car was not, in fact, dinged. She got back in her car and moved to a different parking space far away from irresponsible door openers like myself. And that was fine. But the exchange was really deflating. I certainly hadn't meant to hit her door. I don't usually pop out of my car and bang my door into innocent cars. It had been an accident, and one with (lucky for me) zero consequences. But the woman couldn't/wouldn't laugh it off as a part of the human experience, even though I think most of us have bumped a door here and there throughout life.
Story #2.
I was having a bad morning. I was supposed to make a potato salad for the soup kitchen that members of my church donate to. And I HAD the night before But then I'd woken up in the middle of the night realizing that I hadn't refrigerated it properly (that's it's own long, boring story) and that I would need to buy replacement potato salad or make more early in the morning. So I woke up early to make some, only to realize that I had no more potatoes, which meant a trip to the store no matter what. At this point, time was a'wasting and I figured I would just buy some premade and it would be good enough. I walked out of my door and was instantly stung in the shoulder by...something (I hadn't been stung by anything since college). Like, that first step out the door and blammo. Okay, it's still okay. I went to the closest store, only to find that they didn't have enough potato salad stocked, which meant I better hustle, because I had to make it and it had to be dropped off that morning. So I bought more ingredients (every single ingredient in case I'd missed something) and then saw this pretty little decorative bird (I have a thing for bird decor), which had no price tag, so I took it with me to the check out to see how much it was. Got my groceries. I was grumpy by this point. Things were not working very smoothly. My stung shoulder was swelling slightly. When the checker gave me the price of the bird, it was too much. I told her I would pass and she said, "But it's so cute." It was indeed, and I jokingly said, "Yeah, it is, and I'd definitely get it for half that." And then, right then and there, she rang it up for half it's price. Now, I don't know if she was allowed to do something like that, but it definitely made me more of a fan of this store, so it certainly wasn't a bad employee choice. But for me, even more important than that, is that it turned my whole terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day (and it was only 7:00am) on its head and made it good again. I went home with cheer in my heart and happily made a gallon of potato salad, delivered it, and went on my way.
Now, first of all, I've been both of these women at different points--I've definitely had bad days where I wasn't my nicest and I've also had moments of generosity. So I don't judge the woman who was somewhat rude (maybe she was having a horrible day too). But it did get me thinking.
Neither of these acts was big. In fact, they were both quite small, but they affected me in big ways.
Just a few weeks ago, when I was on my way to church, pondering my life, I realized that I don't really care what I do with my life career-wise or otherwise, but I want whatever I do to touch people for good.
And so, dear reader, I hope that the things I share and the books I write touch you and yourn for good. I hope they lift you up and make your life a better place to be.
And I have no idea why I'm thought-spewing, but there it is.
Now, onto lighter things...
Cat update:
The cats are getting along and they are adorbs. Here you can see my husband modeling the latest fashion in cat couture.
Bookish News:
Click is up for pre-order!
If you backed my Kickstarter, everything should have arrived or is on the way. I just shipped the book boxes (the final thing!) today. International backers, it will take a little longer for your stuff to arrive.
From the Sky, the final book in my Unlikely Heroes series is up for pre-sale! I'm flipping the tropes a little bit--this time it's the girl who's the EMS worker. She's a flight medic who gets called to an ATV park, where she meets--much to her annoyance--the happy-go-lucky owner.
A little more about it:
When there's an accident at Andy Pulman's ATV park, he doesn't expect someone so beautiful to fall from the sky--in the form of flight medic, Madigan Jones.
Unfortunately, Madigan is less than impressed with Andy, his business, and his happy-go-lucky way of life. After all, she's seen the way tragedy that can follow an accident--sometimes painfully close to home.
Now she keeps her life measured and careful.
But how much can you live if you're afraid to die?
And as a super duper head's up, I'm re-covering (getting new covers for) the Unlikely Heroes series to make a special boxed set, which will be available on Kickstarter--probably early next year. So if pretty boxed sets are your thing, well, I'll keep you posted.
And finally...
The Undersecretary just went live (the paperback and hardback are not listed yet, but will be within a few days!) It's still $.99 and will be at least until hardback and paperback are live (and probably through the end of this month). So grab a cheap copy. And, I mean, if you're one of those people who like to tip your baristas and stuff, well, just drop your dollar in the bucket and grab a copy.
It's one of my favorite covers in the series! Here's bit more about it:
Betrayed by someone they thought was a friend, Henry and Lucy make their way to China in search of the third piece of the clasp. But friends aren't the only ones in the business of deceit and betrayal, and soon Henry finds himself sick and powerless on the streets of New Luoyang.
With no language and Henry growing sicker by the day, Lucy fights desperately to find the next piece without losing Henry--in more ways than one. Because although Henry is surrounded by enemies on all sides, the most dangerous foe might be the dark doubt that is growing in his own heart.
Will Henry fly or fall in the exciting fourth book of The Determiner series?
Whew!
September Recipe (okay, I promised chocolate last month, but we just ate this and it's delicious and berries are almost completely out of season for the year, so I'm going for it):
Healthy-ish Fruit Pizza
Makes a small-medium pizza, which is 2-4 adult servings, depending on the type of adults living in your house
Prep time: 5-10 minutes
Cook time: 6-8 minutes
Cool time: 30 minutes
Crust (double this for a large pizza):
1/2 C all-purpose flour
1/2 C whole wheat flour (I used white whole wheat)
1/4 C sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
5 Tbsp butter
1 egg
zest from 1/2 of a small lemon (optional; my son said he didn't like the lemony flavor, but I'm ga-ga for it)
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
In food processor, combine flours, sugar, baking powder, and butter. Pulse until crumb-like.
In small bowl, whisk egg, zest, and vanilla. Pour this into crumb and pulse until it comes together into a lump of slightly crumbly dough.
Press this onto a pizza pan.
Bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes. Don't wait for it to brown or it'll be crumbly and unpleasant.
Let cool to room temp and add toppings.
Topping:
6 oz. Greek yogurt (I used full fat)
1/4-1/2 C sugar
Sliced fruit of your choice (we used blueberries, strawberries, and grapes)
Whisk together yogurt and sugar.
Spread onto cooled crust. Cut and then add fruit toppings. You'll notice I said to cut the pizza first. That's because...Tip: Cut this before adding your fruit. I read this tip somewhere after the fact and realized it was pure brilliance. Trust me, slicing a strawberry or other firm fruit when atop a soft filling can make for a messy slice.
Eat and enjoy!
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