The Chronicles of a VBG (Voluptuous Brown Gurl)

T hough a post may take only 4-7 minutes for you to read, it actually takes VBG about 3-6 hours over at least 2 days to complete. I like to allow my thoughts to marinate a bit before publishing, kind of like thinking about what you say in a fight - you can't take those words back so they'd better be the ones you intend and are willing to defend. I might write a page today and tomorrow none of what I wrote resonates any longer. Since I strive to be as authentic in this space as possible that just won't do. Despite the fact that I don't post weekly as I promised at the beginning of the year, at any given time I usually have several posts in the works.  What actually gets finished first has thus far depended  purely on what captured my attention in any given week but that's about to change. People are trying to work here!! At the urging of a friend who also happens to be our local librarian, my daughter and I attended the National Book Fair in DC last Fall.  W

You don't get the Voluptuous in VBG without loving great food. This gurl enjoys cooking as well.  I like to experiment - create steps to a dance if you will - of flavors, textures and delight for the eyes. So beginning this month, I'm sharing what I'm cooking and of course eating.  For the last 7 years, I have sent the Wunderkind away, usually to camp, for at least 2 to 3 weeks during Summer. It has always been very welcome ME time.  She loved it also because she got to  meet new folks and do stuff that she just doesn't get to do normally like sleep in the woods (don't know where she inherited this love) horseback riding, swimming at midnight, cooking by campfire, etc. Well this year that won't be the case because at 15 1/2 I just couldn't talk her into it. She did say next year she'd like to be a counselor in training (CIT) so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Anyway, because she is severely allergic to fish and shellfish I rarely get to cook it u

For a few weeks, I knew I needed to write a new post but didn't have anything that compelled me until I reflected on some recent events that all had a similar theme - bad behavior. I began to ponder why my fellow beings act so often in a manner befitting ownership of  the shirt below   I recently attended one of my favorite wine festivals.  It’s been my harbinger of summer for the last 4 years. Always a great gurlfriends' getaway and my first (and sometimes only) chance to encounter my favorite vintner, Heritage Wines, whose vines and tanks are situated 5 hours away on Lake Erie. This year due to scheduling and general busyness on my part, I decided to forgo the friend fueled tasting but was hell-bent on getting my share of some of that mighty fine Sangria.  So I made the requisite pit stop and when I arrived home ready to unwind and imbibe liquid bliss, I discovered t o my horror, I had been given 4 bottles of Strawberry wine instead of my beloved