by Sarah | Jul 21, 2015 | All About Me, All of Us, Redefining Perfect, Story of Me
In case you’ve been living under a rock–or are new here–here’s a news flash for ya:
I’m from Buffalo.
Buffalo, the 716, is my home town and though I’ve now lived more years in Indiana than I did in Buffalo, I still miss my hometown.
Some things I miss more than others.
This list is all about a few of those things.
1. Anderson’s famous Beef on Weck – You haven’t lived until you’ve had one of Anderson’s famous Beef on Weck’s. That’s Kimmelweck, by the way. It’s essentially a Kaiser roll with coarse salt and caraway seeds. I don’t even need toppings, but many people add horseradish.
2. Sponge Candy – More specifically Fowler’s sponge candy. Anyone from Buffalo knows what it is. Everyone that isn’t gets a blank stare. Let’s just say it’s crunchy, melt in your mouth candy goodness wrapped in chocolate (milk chocolate is my preference, but orange chocolate works well, and I’ll “force down” dark chocolate if it’s all that’s around. I can’t begin to tell you how magnificent this is.
3. Sahlen’s hot dogs – There is no other. I, in general, despise hot dogs. Sahlen’s I will eat until the cows come home. The spices, the skin, the way they cook up on the grill. Nothing compares. Nothing. Still trying to wrangle a way to get them to Indiana without the willingness of Wegman’s (bestest grocery store ever) to move this far west.
4. Family – Like I said, I grew up there. I miss the days of family gathering. Grandma, grandpa, aunts and cousins. Even now it’s not what it was. Grandma & Grandpa are gone, my aunt is living in their old house, my cousin in the next city…but I still miss being that close to my family.
5. Anderson’s & its Frozen Custard – Yes, Anderson’s gets two mentions on the list, they are that good. Not only do I love their beef on weck, but Anderson’s itself (the original on Sheridan Ave) holds such dear memories for me. This picture is from the days when i lived there before they built on an indoor seating area…back when it was walk up only. It gives me a sense of nostalgia. Oh, and the soft frozen custard? Unmatchable. I’ve tried. It’s totally unmatchable.
6. Duff’s – The only place for wings far as I’m concerned.
7. Canada – Again, it was right there. We once had a cottage on Lake Erie, back when crossing the border was as easy as saying hi to a border guard. I miss the cottage, and I really miss the chocolate. Because Canadian candy is DA BOM. Seriously, Smarties (the Canadian version of M&M’s) are so much better…and every other candy. Trust me, there’s a difference.
8. My old House – That’s it. The neighborhood, the house itself, that tree in front was a wee baby when we moved in. Sure, memories are often rosy, but we were really happy there and after we left there we were here, our family separated (bro stayed to finish his senior year in Buffalo), and things were never ever the same.
9. Niagara Falls – It was right there. In some ways that made it less special, in others more. I mean, it’s the Falls.
10. Vinegar on Fries – The land where it’s so expected that you put vinegar on your fries, that vinegar is on the tables like ketchup. My favorite place to indulge is at Ted’s (where they, coincidentally, serve Sahlen’s hot dogs).
*~*
Okay, so clearly I have a dear, close tie to the foods of my home, since they clearly dominated this list. lol. still, I miss so much. ~sigh~
Of course, if asked if I’d want to live there again I generally say no. That doesn’t mean I don’t miss it with my whole heart.
by Sarah | Jul 20, 2015 | Books, Challenge, Holiday, Tuesday Tales, Writing
Welcome back to Tuesday Tales! This weeks prompt is Tiger.
Well, there’s the problem with writing short books, they really don’t last long in Tuesday Tales. I just put my first one in last week, and now Haunted Hearts is done in my files. This week’s scene comes from the last chapter.
Jenna and Bryce have finally decided to try this dating thing and have been going out for about 2 weeks. Kyle is Bryce’s cousin and friend:
If anyone had told Jenna as little as three weeks ago she’d be in her current situation, she’d have told them they were insane. As it happened, though, Kyle now sat across from her in her own kitchen.
When Bryce had shown up that morning, he’d had a pained look on his handsome features moments before Kyle had popped his head around the corner. Bryce had managed only a whispered apology before Kyle had started enthusiastic conversation about the search through the videos for proof of ghosts from their hunt.
Since Bryce was pretty busy during the week and Jenna herself had her weekends booked through Halloween, they’d had only a few short hours to do anything with the tapes. Of course, they’d also wanted some time to try this dating thing.
After some time talking about the one video tape they’d managed to get through, Kyle turned the discussion to his Halloween party.
Bryce’s brow furrowed. “Kyle. I don’t think that’s going to work. Jenna doesn’t do parties and I really don’t feel like going, not that I ever have before.”
“Come on, everyone is in costume. No one will care.” Kyle looked pointedly at Jenna. “It’ll be so much fun.”
A familiar knot settled in her stomach at the idea of a party. So many people. She sighed and shook her head. “I usually don’t have fun in crowds.”
“But we could dress up.” Kyle grinned wickedly.
Over Bryce’s groan, she tried another protest, “But I wouldn’t even know where to begin on a costume.”
“Well.” Kyle pointed to each of them in turn. “There’s three of us. So we could be a lion, a tiger, and a bear.”
Jenna just stared at him, unsure what even to do with that. The longer she sat the more Kyle nodded, actually waving her on.
Bryce shook his head with a sigh. “I think you were supposed to say ‘oh my’.”
“Right.” The phrase clicked in her head, and she couldn’t help but smile. “Kyle, you are a sad, sad man. You know that, right?”
“I do.” Kyle finished off his coffee. “At least tell me you’ll think about it.”
“That’s the most I can give you.” Jenna glanced at Bryce, who smiled warmly. She turned back to Kyle. “But I just don’t know. I don’t like crowds, at all. A Halloween party seems like a bad idea to me.”
“Crowd, schmowd. It’ll be a small, intimate affair. Ten, twenty, fifty of my closest friends at most.” Kyle winked.
“Ten, sure. It’s that fifty that bothers me.”
Bryce reached out to squeeze Jenna’s hand. “Just get out of here, Kyle. Jenna and I are busy today, I told you that.”
That day was supposed to be the first time they were able to spend a significant amount of time together. They’d planned on making good use of it, although Bryce was being hush hush about his ideas for what to do that would keep them away from big crowds.
Kyle rolled his eyes and pushed to his feet. “Yeah, yeah. I know, you told me.”
Jenna smirked. “You aren’t as put out as you want to be. You’re too happy for him.”
Bryce’s grin grew when Kyle stopped to eye her.
Kyle frowned slightly. “How’d you know that?”
“A good guess?” Jenna grinned at Bryce’s snort.
“Right.” Kyle kept one eye on her as he left the room.
When the door closed, Bryce chuckled. “It’s not often I see him speechless.”
“Well, he earned it today.”
*~*
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by Sarah | Jul 20, 2015 | All About Me, All of Us, Bucket List, Redefining Perfect
Since it was just my birthday this weekend, I thought now would be a great time to revisit my 45X45 list. The last time I checked it was over two years ago! Yikes. I don’t even remember what’s on half of it. I have a feeling I might be changing a few things up. I have about 6 years left to clear the list, so let’s see where I am.
A color legend is probably important.
RED is done.
ORANGE is working on it.
BLUE is new (replacing something else).
****
45 X 45
Take a real vacation. (Not to Buffalo, not w/ the kids) (Done 4/23/12)Take my kids to Disney World. (Done, thanks to Make-A-Wish 10/28/14)See my name in print (get published, e-zine, paper-zine). (Done 6/24/12 – Sirens Call June 2012 Issue)Have a novel published. (Done 2/8/13 – Changing Tracks & 17 more times [so far] by 7/18/15)- Get my Dominion Falls books series in front of a producer.
- Completely tidy my house [w/reference to KonMari]. (Started w/ my clothes. Lots left to do)
- Take a photography class (or 2 or 3)
- Perform on stage again
- See Colorado
- Camp – really camp in the Rockies
- See Yellowstone
- Go skydiving. [Yes, I feel slightly insane here]
Go to a blogger’s conference. (done 4/23/12)- Go to a writer’s conference
- Get on a regular exercise regime & stay on it for more than 3 months.
Hand craft (knit, sew) 1 item for ME for a change. (DONE 4/1/12)- Make a complete Victorian era dress from skin out. (underthings complete, corset 50% complete)
Get some crazy color in my hair (purple, blue, pink highlites/streaks) Done 2/11/12- Read the Harry Potter series aloud to my girls. (1/2-way through by 7/18/15)
- Sing Karaoke
- Relearn French. (Actually working on this at the moment)
- Pay my house off (long shot – but I can dream)
- Get a car that is less than 2 years old
Run a 5k. Done 9/22/12 Do something daring (paragliding, zipline, etc.) Done 7/14/12- See the butterflies at the Indy Zoo (Done 3/19/13)
- Be a reenactor at Conner Prairie
- Go on a road trip with a girlfriend
- Go on a hot air balloon ride
See Cirque du Soleil (Done 6/27/2012)- Ride a horse – not a trail horse. A real ride on a horse.
- Volunteer at Kennedy’s CF clinic
- Stop drinking pop
- Visit Disneyland [Been to WDW many times, would like to see the other]
Get a tattoo (Done 7/16/11)- Go on a Cruise [preferably Alaskan, but I’m not picky]
Go on a wine tasting (Done 10/16/10)- Have a photo at the State Fair (preferably getting a ribbon for it)
- Take my husband to swim with whale sharks
- Fly first class
- Read at least 50 of the 100 Greatest Novels (I am saying the book can be from either of the 2 lists there. In total I have read 8/50 at this point)
Have a real spa day (Done, thanks to Hubs, 7/2014)- Visit a real haunted location
- Sell a photo
- Visit Salem, MA
*~*
Well, I’ve made a few changes, obviously. Some are still long-shots, but if I don’t dream big it’ll never happen. I really need to not forget about this again. 45 is coming up faster than I care to think about.
What about you? What’s on your list?
by Sarah | Jul 19, 2015 | All About Indiana, All About Me, All of Us, Blogging Life, Photography, Redefining Perfect, Snapshot Sunday
We had a heck of a storm system blow through Indiana. While my house suffered with some flooding in our crawl space, I was able to get out and snap a few good pictures of the aftermath.
A walk in the park and some cleanup around the house found me a few good shots that I’m happy with.
Enough shots that this is going to spread out over a couple of weeks, I think.
Storm drain.
She survived the storm a little worse for wear.
Emptying the crawl.
A Troubled Bridge Over Troubled Water.
Emerging Beauty.
Reflections.
And that’s it for this week! More to come next week…considering I get my camera back out 😀
by Sarah | Jul 18, 2015 | All About Me, All of Us, Redefining Perfect
Today is the day.
I’m another year older.
Maybe a little wiser.
Maybe not.
One year from 40.
This past year was pretty amazing.
Disney.
Eagle.
Christmas.
So many books published.
So many books read.
I knocked some things off the bucket list.
My family got closer.
There were some ugly struggles, but overall the majority was pretty amazing.
I’m predicting excellent things for this year too.
Big things.
Small things.
I know I’ll learn knew things.
I’ll learn to let go, and hold tighter.
I’ll hopefully learn more patience.
This next year is the last of my thirties.
And I plan to make it a damn good one.
In case you’ve been living under a rock–or are new here–here’s a news flash for ya:
1. Anderson’s famous Beef on Weck – You haven’t lived until you’ve had one of Anderson’s famous Beef on Weck’s. That’s Kimmelweck, by the way. It’s essentially a Kaiser roll with coarse salt and caraway seeds. I don’t even need toppings, but many people add horseradish.
3. Sahlen’s hot dogs – There is no other. I, in general, despise hot dogs. Sahlen’s I will eat until the cows come home. The spices, the skin, the way they cook up on the grill. Nothing compares. Nothing. Still trying to wrangle a way to get them to Indiana without the willingness of Wegman’s (bestest grocery store ever) to move this far west.
5. Anderson’s & its Frozen Custard – Yes, Anderson’s gets two mentions on the list, they are that good. Not only do I love their beef on weck, but Anderson’s itself (the original on Sheridan Ave) holds such dear memories for me. This picture is from the days when i lived there before they built on an indoor seating area…back when it was walk up only. It gives me a sense of nostalgia. Oh, and the soft frozen custard? Unmatchable. I’ve tried. It’s totally unmatchable.
8. My old House – That’s it. The neighborhood, the house itself, that tree in front was a wee baby when we moved in. Sure, memories are often rosy, but we were really happy there and after we left there we were here, our family separated (bro stayed to finish his senior year in Buffalo), and things were never ever the same.
10. Vinegar on Fries – The land where it’s so expected that you put vinegar on your fries, that vinegar is on the tables like ketchup. My favorite place to indulge is at Ted’s (where they, coincidentally, serve Sahlen’s hot dogs).
