So, how's it going--whatever "it" is in your life--be it your love life, hair loss, housebreaking the dog, dealing with hiding the eggs from both the kids and the dog until it's time to hunt them, and feeling that if you hear the words (names, I should say) "Hillary" and "Obama" your rash will come back?!  Lift up your heads, chickies, flex your fingers, march in place for a few minutes, recite the Pledge of Allegiance ( the Thought Police has not yet been able to invade your home!) and repeat after me---"I will choose, just for today, to be positive and glad to be able to function and see and hear the messages of friendship and family that I'll receive and I'll laugh."

A great soother and uplifting thing to indulge ourselves in is simply going OUTDOORS, whether it's to sit or clear out some of the leaves and mulch from the flower beds, sweep the patio, or sit there and watch and listen to the birds, dog or cat, and then plan where you're going to plant the roses this year--and speaking of roses, my first book for this Non-Fiction column is "Complete Roses; Featuring 100 Easy-Growing Favorites--A Foolproof Growers Guide"--how's THAT for a  great segue into the Non-Fiction column (no applause please--just remember it can be done, in case the next lead-ins to a column are in left-field and abrupt!) 

Everyone loves roses--they're so beautiful and so, if you buy them, expensive and impractical--and so appreciated by the one who gets them!  (Personally, I love the apricot-peach color of roses but I'm well aware that the deep red ones and the pinks are the most popular--that says something about one of us, doesn't it?)  Rose growers are a breed apart, as the old saying goes, in that they usually are really INTO soil analysis, when and where to cut them back, they have the proper tools and insecticide and, let's be honest, are generally intimidating, so let's look at this book and get some tips on how to do it better. 

Unfortunately, for my beginner sense, the first page that I opened to gives you a test on how to identify your soil type--so, I moved on to Microbes and Fertilizers. However, planting Bare-Root Roses (and learned about shading newly planted roses on a hot day), installing an irrigation system, and pruning roses became more familiar territory. The house we're in now was Don and Gayle O'Kane's and they had really lovely roses in the front and some of the side of the house, so, this Spring, Himself and I pruned--and prayed.  The irrigation "drip" system Don had we had used at our former home, Sage Hill, and it works really well.

In this book are GORGEOUS pictures of easy-care roses  and the closest I could find to the "soft" colors I like is entitled--wouldn't you know it?--"Touch of Class", developed in France and introduced here in 1984. However, all of them, whether climbing or cutting variety are really worth checking this book out for.

Please turn in your poems for our Poetry Contest by April 14 and remember the Coffeehouse is in the Coronado Museum, May 2, at 6:45 p.m.  We'll announce the winners of our 3 categories then and hand them their checks--followed by introduction of the judges and our guest poetry readers--plus cookies and coffee or iced tea.  Hand in 2--two--copies of your poem with your contact info on one sheet but NO contact info on the other and remember--WE WILL NOT RETURN YOUR POEM--"No matter how you beg and moan, we'll not return so, keep your own."  Perfect!  

I can't think of a more intriguing idea than to enlist "a few hundred American women to keep a diary of their thoughts and actions on June 29, 2004", as these authors, Joni Cole and B.K. Rakha, did for their book, "Water Cooler Diaries; Women Across America Share Their Day at Work." Actually, what they did was ask these women to write their book for them! That's what many pro speakers do--ask people for their experiences and opinions and permission to put them in book form--with, of course, proper credit given. Anyway, there are funny, wise, intelligent, dumb, soul-searching and poignant entries in here.

For example, one lady has her own Web site/cottage industry as an etiquette consultant and answers questions that she receives, obviously on a return E:mail, and also tells about the rest of her day. There is also the diary , for a day, from Sara Moulton, chef for "Gourmet" magazine; Sarah Fisher, who has raced at Indy 6 times, who tells what it's like at the track and how she prepares for a race; Patience Bourne, long-distance truck driver, who talks about food available at rest stops, checking back with the main office on whether a load she's picking up is correct, and she has found rest areas to be quieter than truck stops--plus she has a trucker buddy who's been a help over the last year and a half on routes and weights.

Anyway, these ladies all have really interesting stories and it's been on of those quiet best sellers, mainly by word of mouth, and I guarantee you you'll enjoy checking it out. There's only one "Connie" in the book and she works for Del Monte foods, which doesn't sound too wonderful and exciting, but, as a friend of mine often says, "One never knows, do one?"

Love the title, "Chasing Skinny Rabbits; What Leads You Into Emotional and Spiritual Exhaustion---and What Can Lead You Out", by Dr. John Trent, and he says everyone has some--"it may have been a promotion we chased after or maybe it was the one person we just knew was the one--or our need to serve others (even in our own church) that started out giving us so much energy, then left us feeling squeezed out and discarded like a sour dishrag."  Sounds rather familiar to any of us, I'm sure, and Trent helps us avoid chasing down the trails and ending up in the bogs. He calls it the Wise Hunter lifestyle and gets us "on the trail toward purpose, substance, and significance."

I certainly agree with his thoughts on our friends--"the more you hang around quality friends, who are willing to support you and comfort you in love when you need it, the safer you'll be." But, of course, isolate yourself from these friends and travel a single-path trail all by yourself, and you'll cut yourself off.  My confusion, at times, is deciding whether his analogy of The Great Stag is referring to Bambi's father or Jesus--I'm serious! The book certainly has excellent points in considering your individual choices and the dangers or benefits thereof but sometimes it st-re-tch-es the reasoning a bit. So, decide for yourself and come on in and read parts of it and see what you think.

What is it about the French and their worldwide fame for cooking? Do we care? Are we influenced/intimidated by their reputation? Yeah, to a large extent we are and a large number of cooks would like to know their secrets on fruits, veggies, wine, cheese--actually, any segment of the food list--and they're always surprised to learn that their secrets (the French, that is) are simple and very good. So, come on in and pick up, "Nobody Does It Better:, by Trish Deseine, with the sub-title of, "Why French Home Cooking is Still the Best in the World", which will explain and simplify a lot. 

In 1961, the elected President of France, Charles de Gaulle, asked;"How can anyone govern a country that has 246 kinds of cheese?"--actually, there are over 500 today. Good cheese is expensive--the French eat TONS of it, along with home-made bread, butter, wine and meats and yet they have "half" the heart disease and body fat of the Brits--and probably us!--and I'm sure that one of their secrets is that they eat small portions--capital small--and they walk a lot vs. riding in cars everyplace. I find, to my horror, that if I'm going to have Lunch at Salty Dog or One Way Deli (both are favorites!), I drive the car there--from the library, for Heaven's sakes!  My British grandmother, Foof, would regard me with amazement and say--"Get out of that car and walk up there--it's 2 to 3 blocks!" I would also suggest reading the book, "French Women Don't Get Fat", in your spare time. Anyway, this book has great--and many times very simple--recipes to try.  Come on in and just look at the beautiful pictures! 

Hey, guys, I'm off to the pool for exercises and simple relaxing, so don't eat too many chocolate bunnies, open the cards from your family members, keep a weather eye out for the Easter Bunny, and watch the  sports news for the results of K.U. and K.State Basketball games! Water your early flowers but don't plant any this soon--they'll probably not make it until warm weather.  You're all good eggs and much appreciated--remember the Poetry Contest and the Coffeehouse AND our "Lunch at the Library" April 8. Come in and get your copy of the book we'll be discussing over the sandwiches (bring your own, please) during that noon hour--"My Sister's Keeper"--and come and exchange viewpoints and opinions on it. See you then! Bye!