Are You Ready for Some Football? What We're Writing: Jenn McKinlay

 JENN McKINLAY: I mentioned last week that I was working on FONDANT FUMBLE (two NFL players buy a Fairy Tale Cupcake franchise and mayhem and murder ensue, natch) and I was reviewing my methods of murder. Now, of course, I'm in research mode and looking at cupcakes with a football themes. OMG, y'all, look at some of these brilliant cupcakes!

Nutter Butter Football Cupcakes

https://bakedbroiledandbasted.com/nutter-butter-football-cupcakes/

Chocolate Cupcakes with Reeses Peanut Butter Egg Footballs

https://www.momlovesbaking.com/easy-superbowl-football-cupcakes/

Chocolate Football Cupcakes with Coconut Grass and a Truffle Football (Vegan, dairy free, whole grain)

https://www.texanerin.com/chocolate-football-cupcakes/

Yes, writing this series is a real hardship. LOL. While these pictures and recipes do inspire, I'll be creating my own recipe for the cupcakes cobbled out of a little bit of this and a little bit of that. 

I have my own chocolate cupcake recipe that I like to use, but I am loving the green coconut, so that's a possible add. As for the football, the Nutter Butter ball is genius, so I might be tweaking that as well. I am definitely not someone who follows recipes exactly. I look at them more as guidelines to jumpstart my own creations. 

How about you, Reds and Readers? Do you follow recipes exactly or do you look at them more as suggestions? 

Random Sunday Thoughts

 

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Random Sunday thoughts. 

Football:  What do we think about football? Okay, once I learned the rules, it was fun to watch IF the game "mattered." It's also a good time to fold laundry and catch up on administrative stuff, because you don't really have to watch the whole time.  Is it too violent, though? Too dangerous? More dangerous than driving a car?

Cars. Have you SEEN the traffic? Around here, traffic is insane, I mean it, people have either forgotten how to drive, or figure that in the pandemic, the police won't stop speeders, so all the laws are forgotten. I already hate to drive, but this just makes it worse. It's as if 80 MPH is the norm, and you should go faster, much faster, if you can. People don't even stay in their lanes. It's terrifying.

Terrifying? We had a chipmunk in our house. I saw this THING streak by, out of the kitchen and down the hall, the fastest thing I have ever seen. It was too big for a mouse, and too small for a rat, and where did it go? Our house is big and full of things, and many rooms have no doors. So yikes, I thought this is bad. But--okay, trying to think like a chipmunk--I'm not going to veer off course and go into a room. It's running, so it's going to go straight. So I went where I would go if I was a chipmunk, and there it was. Perched on the back of the navy blue leather couch in the living room, as cute is it could be, wide-eyed and striped and just sitting there. We finally escorted it out the front door.

Yeah, the front door. Are there going to be trick or treaters, do you think? (I mean, it seems like the perfect time for masks, and why didn't they just declare all days Halloween rules? YAY dress up day, Halloween, masks are good! But no.)  So will you have trick or treaters this year? 

And if so, and you never know, you better get candy. Just in case.  I am already planning Twizzlers and Mounds and Snickers, you know me. 

Which means you know I love Sue Grafton. And I read on Facebook that her family has sold the rights to the Alphabet mysteries, and someone is going to play Kinsey Millhone in a TV series on A & E. Ah, Sue had always said that she did not want this to happen.  What do we think about this?

And what do you think about going to the movies anyway? Have you been to an actual theater? Even to see Daniel Craig? We have decided to pass on this, and we even got popcorn to make at home. Because on a Sunday afternoon, it's fun to watch TV and eat popcorn. What's on? Football. What do we think about football?

What are your random thoughts for the day, Reds and readers?

 

Stranger in a Strange (Seahawks) Land

INGRID THOFT

Think back to February 1, 2015.  Unless you are an avid football fan (or live with one,) you probably don't remember where you were on that particular day.  My husband and I were at home in Seattle watching the Superbowl, that nail biter of a game between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks.  If you watched the game, you were either thrilled with the outcome (Yay Pats!) or despondent (insert crying emoji).  But it's not the game itself I want to focus on; it's the two weeks leading up to it.

Did it ever feel so lonely being a Pats fan?  Did my husband ever feel more out of place when donning his "flying Elvis" hat?  Is there anything more divisive (putting politics aside, of course) then loyalty to a team or a place?

Do you stick with your pack, even far from home?

People have asked me if we ever considered shifting our allegiance to the Hawks when we arrived in Seattle to which I always give a resounding "No!"  What kinds of Pats' fans would we be if 3,000+ miles were all it took to dampen our enthusiasm?  But we're not unique in this regard.  Head to any sports bar in any city in America on Sunday, and you'll find fans far from home.  Each big screen will have a small crowd before it, wearing the hometown team's colors, connecting to their sense of "home" if even for three and a half hours.

Not everyone is a sports fan, but most of us have a place or a group to which we have allegiance.  Maybe it's your alma mater, a volunteer organization or your book group from before your move to a new city.  Our allegiance exists even when great distance separates us from the origin of that loyalty.  Or perhaps, distance really does make the heart grow fonder? 

So tell me about your team/group/club loyalty.  What makes the pull so strong?

If it's Sunday, It Must Be--oh, Wait. It's Monday.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN:  Was it one of you who told me she had a stack of index cards in her bathroom, each one with a day of the week ? And she’d flip it every night before she went to bed so the next morning she’d know what day it is? I have to say –although I thought it was funny, I secretly thought it was brilliant.

So—however you figured it out. Happy Monday! And how did you spend your Sunday?

There’s a song from Flower Drum Song, remember ? “Sunday, Sweet Sunday, with nothing to do. Lazy, and lovely, my one day with you. HAH. Sunday? Do nothing?

Of course we read all the newspapers  Sunday mornings, the Times, the Globe, the Herald.  And we have a million cops of coffee, and a lovely breakfast. That is SUCH a treat.

But then—often after realizing that we have nothing for dinner—we go to the grocery. I do the laundry.  I work work work.

Funny how as working people we have feelings for each day, and those indicators are what make it easy to remember what day it is.  Monday is oh, dear, work day, gotta get up and GO. Tuesday is: okay, getting stuff done. Wednesday is: Wednesday! Oh, my gosh, switch into very high gear. Thursday, a good day. I like Thursday. Things get accomplished. Friday—fun! No matter what, it’s only a day til the weekend. And whatever is not done on Friday...won’t be done til Monday.

But as any author knows, there’s no such thing as “do-nothing” weekends. As someone who’d trying to juggle jobs, weekends mean trying to fast-forward on writing—not resting.  But I love it, you know? Sitting at my desk ,working on the book, it’s transportingly wonderful.

And I am constantly amused by the Dowager Duchess on Downton Abbey, who once said--and you have to imagine that plummy voice:  “What is a weekend?”  Because of course, upstairs, there’s nothing that makes Saturday or Sunday different from any other day. Right? It’s all just keeping up the estate and well, whatever else they do.

She meant it to indicate one day of gracious living simply and elegantly runs into the next.  We mean it like—work work work.

And at least it used to be you could tell the days with TV—Sunday was Ed Sullivan, and Thursday was ER. Now you can watch whatever you want, whenever you want.

But Sunday is now a night for viewing decisions--and I bet those of us who watch TV on Sunday will instantly choose a side:  Football? Downton? Good Wife/MadameSecretary? Other?

Which do you choose, Reds? And then tell us: How do you spend your Sunday days—and evenings?  

RHYS BOWEN: I'm hooked on Downton Abbey (naturally). I know it's soap opera, but I have to watch. I'm not sure what will happen on the evening of the superbowl because Downton is on at 8 p.m. in Arizona where I am at the moment. One of us will have to retreat to the bedroom.

I bought John a smart TV for his birthday and hope he'll get Acorn so we can watch all the British TV shows. But unless I set it up for him, it's not going to happen. And I need time...

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I hear you, Rhys. I'm having a problem with my regular mail program (will receive but not send) that I KNOW is fixable if I can just find a couple hours to spend dealing with it, but I can't, so I've reverted to my gmail address for the foreseeable future.

Which means I could theoretically spend Sunday evenings upgrading my computer stuff, but do I? No! I love Sunday evenings, because the first half of the day is usually so busy for my family (church and youth group after, and then we always seem to have to stop at the grocery store on the way home...) What I like to do during these winter Sundays is put something into the crock pot at two (or better still, have Ross put something into the crock pot!) to be ready at six or seven - stew, or pulled pork on egg noodles, or a pair of soups. Then we all sit down in front of the woodstove in the family room and watch a movie together. When the kids were younger, Friday night was family movie night. Strangely, people in their teens and twenties seem to have other things to do on a Friday than watch THE INCREDIBLES with Mom and Dad.

Sunday TV shows? I catch them on Hulu.

HALLIE EPHRON: We watch Downton Abbey, too, if there's a new episode. The Good Wife? Didn't know it was on Sunday because I usually stream new episodes off their web site during the week... and regular TV shows seem to forever be on hiatus.

Mostly Sunday isn't much different from any other day since EVERY day is a writing 'work' day and what's available on TV is pretty much the same, too, since we got ROKU. The one extra: the Sunday papers. We get the NY Times and the Boston Globe and I usually save the Times book review and both magazines for Sunday night.


DEBORAH CROMBIE: For years we've had homemade (except for the crust) pizza on Sunday nights. We do deviate occasionally, but it's nice to have a routine. And I imagine you can guess that I've watched PBS on Sunday nights as long 
as I can remember! (Although there were years when PBS
had competition from the X-Files...)

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: For us, Sunday night is about getting Kiddo ready for school. Why is he seemingly allergic to showers? Why do I have to say "Wash your hair" and "WITH SHAMPOO!"? Then there's the gather-up of the homework, library books, etc. for the following morning — because I'm not a morning person and can't leave it until then. So generally we DVR shows and watch them later... Downton Abbey, of course. And Hallie has got me hooked on The Good Wife. And there's actually another show on Sundays we watched, but I'm too embarrassed to admit in a public forum.... However, if you guess, I'll come clean.

HANK: Tell us, tell us, Susan! “Watched” means—it isn’t on any more? Or you don’t watch it anymore?  

And how about you all? Guess what Susan watched…. And how do you spend your Sundays?

And this week some fabulous people and blogs: an author who is going ot be even bigger than she already is, how one author’s books got made into Amazon TV! And we’ll introduce you to a new little critter—and you’ll want one of your own.

************************

Congratulations “Candidly Susan,” the winner of the audiobook There Was an Old Woman. Susan, please email Hallie “at” HallieEphron dot com with your mailing address!

On summer's end

Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability. ~Sam Keen

JAN: I biked down to South Beach this morning to get my last glimpse of the ocean before heading home. And now I'm laundering beach towels and packing up coolers with all the windows and doors open so I can get my fill of sea breezes.

And you know what I feel? Relief.

I loved the crystal clear days, the strong sun, the stars at night. But now? Enough of that.

How can I focus on the right name for a character or the clearest definition if all I want to do is get on my bike and ride to the beach? How can I puzzle out a workable plot when someone needs a fourth for doubles on a beautiful day? Clearly to get anything done, I need a chill outside, lots of clouds, and preferably a downpour.

In fact, I do my best writing between January and March just because the weather is so bad. Obviously, I have issues with self-discipline -- I've had to remove Solitaire from every computer I've ever had. I also get bored easily, have little tolerance for routine, and need a change in seasons just so I don't have to eat barbequed food for another eight months.

So it could just be me, but does anyone else look forward to cold weather for its positive effect on productivity?.

ROBERTA: Funny that you're so patient with slogging through tedious or difficult reading, Jan! You saw with Friday's post how much I'll regret the end of the summer produce season. (that's me, eating first!) We had to pull our cucumber plants out, and the zucchini, and the beans are looking peaked. And like Hallie, I hate winter. The thing that bothers me even more than the cold is the light. Or lack of it, I should say. It gets dark here in Connecticut by 4:30 in the worst part of the season. And that makes me feel like hibernating, not writing.

HALLIE: So THAT'S why I haven't gotten but a piddling amount of my new book written for the last three months!

For me, end of summer means college starts and my husband goes back to work. Which is one fewer distraction in the house but no one to hang out with at lunch. The worst thing about summer ending is winter is not far off. I hate hate hate winter. Hate ice, hate snow, hate being cold cold cold.

Ro: Summer started late for me and in the past few years it's ended late. In September I rent a house in Wellfleet. Most of the other renters and tourists have gone home and I get to pretend that I live in a small town with a general store that just happens to have a beach outside. The restaurants start to close and as the days go by there a fewer and fewer people on the road and on the beach. It's wonderful. I finished my first book at the house so it will always be special to me.For me the worst thing about the summer ending is that everything else is going to come so fast...Bouchercon, Crimebake, holidays, then the conferences start...aaayyyy!!

HANK: A box arrived at our porch in mid-July. Usually I'm the one who orders things, but I wasn't expecting a parcel. My husband said--oh, this is a surprise for us. Huh.

Inside was a turquoise blue two-person swimming pool float. Like a floating double chaise, where the two people are facing each other as they float. It's perfect for reading, and even has little spaces that are just the size of a diet coke bottle. Heaven.

All my vacation, 17 wonderful days from mid August til Labor Day, I'd write in the morning, we'd have lunch by the pool, then I'd come back in and write til 4. Then from 4 to 6--floating and reading.

Today, we're putting our float away. (After the football game, Jonathan says.)

Sigh. My white skirt is looking tired. Gin and tonics seem a little too chilly. My bathing suit is hanging on the shower rack, and hasn't budged for a week. We cook inside. Transition is transitioning.

But the dahlias are still blooming like mad. And the air is clear and dry. And I don't have to face a new math teacher or clique of classmates. I like it.

JAN: Oh dear, Hank. Now you're making me miss summer, when I was so determined to do away with it. But I must remind myself that the swimming pool float would be useless to me -- what without the pool. And of course, as you remind me, Patriots are on this afternoon -- and although I don't watch football -- I do make nachos at halftime. A perfect transition!