V is for.....

Closing in on the end of the alphabet here at Beach Treasure. Did you' all know that Deb finished her Wordplay last week!? I'm remiss in mentioning it. I was gonna throw a big party for her, balloons, confetti (shaped like letters of course), cheesecake. The best of intentions and all that..

In the meantime the rest of us keep chugging away. I had someone new post to me that they had started their Wordplay just this week - all the way back at A with the entire alphabet waiting for them. In some ways I envy them, this has been a wonderful project for me. And I still hope to turn it into an altered book eventually. But another part of me is excited at the prospect of finishing my alphabet. Heh, it's not often I actually get to finish anything! It's that damn raven in me, always distracted by the next shiny object or idea. And speaking of idea....

I have another idea in the works (well, in my head) for a new blog community project. I haven't mentioned it yet because I'm still trying to work out the kinks in my head. Uhm. Well. Honestly? I'm trying to get started and having a hard time kicking myself into gear, even though it's something I've wanted to do for months already. Something I want to do once a week although this project doesn't work with words. It works with ingredients. I'll try to shake my head clear enough to announce it very soon. Of course that doesn't mean the end of Wordplay. I'm not done with it. Lots of folks are still rambling along their chain of personal letters. Hopefully folks will continue to find the project for years to come.

And now, back to V. I gotta finish up here and get to a couple of Very important plans today.

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Virginia - not the state. The aunt. My father's sister. She taught me to knit. She was one of my first teachers in the kitchen as I watched, fascinated, while she made complicated cookies each year for the holidays. She taught me about decorating, raising boys, and how to cheer like a guy for your favorite football team. She passed away many years ago but for some delightful reason she still stops by on occasion to say hello.

vampires - I was "bitten" by the vampire genre about six or seven years ago and am thrilled by how many new authors are now writing in this style. Laurell Hamilton's Anita Blake vampires are probably my favorite as they were my "first". Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire series are probably come next - I'm reading Deader then a Doornail at the moment.

vineyards - I lived for over a decade in Sonoma Valley, surrounded by the rolling mediterranean hills blanketed in vineyards. In the spring the vineyards are fields of golden mustard. In the summer, rolling shades of green. Autumn, the vineyards set the world aflame in hues of orange, yellow, and red and the harvest makes the whole valley smell like an earthy cabernet.

vacuum - something I don't do often enough. Fortunately I have hardwood floors. The only rug in the entire house is now an area rug in the livingroom, so I don't have that much vacuuming I don't do anyway. (Don't ask me how often I sweep.) It also took me about forty years to learn how to spell "vacuum". I'm a really good speller, but this word was one that eluded me.

vanilla latte - my drug of choice. Grande, half caf, soy please.

vegetarianism - I was a fairly consistent vegetarian in my early twenties. Went back to eating meat for the convenience of it, and cravings, when I was pregnant with Joe. It was just easier to throw a slab of animal tissue in the oven with a couple baked potatoes then it was to create the vegetarian cuisine I was used to making. My second son was born a vegetarian - didn't eat meat for the first six years of his life, his choice. Since then I've gone back and forth in how much meat I choose to eat but even at my most carnivorous, I probably eat a tenth the amount of meat the average American eats. In the last few years I've cut way back on how much I eat meat and that only if I eat out. Except for an occasional holiday dinner for guests or rarely, fish, I don't cook meat at home.
I don't try to become a complete vegetarian because I do eat dairy and eggs a bit, and so it seems to me that to be responsible for all parts of the animals that are raised on my behalf, I should eat all parts of them. At the rate I'm going however, it will take me another fifty years to eat one cow, but that seems about right. I don't want to have to kill my own meat, but I don't loose sleep over eating creatures either. I would perhaps, except for the fact that I am very much aware that it's no less killing to eat a tomato or a carrot or a bowl of pilaf. Those foods also "die" for you to consume as well. One could argue that a carrot is less sentient then a chicken, but having spent a lot of time in the garden, I would argue that it is probably less of a stretch then we are comfortable admitting. The bottom line for me in my food choices (my good food choices that is - my decadent food choices are completely indulgent and irrational, driven by hormones, frustrations, anger, and other vagaries of life which I am unwilling to take responsibility for).... as I was saying, my food choices are driven by two ideas: 1) that they are healthy and ultimately health giving to my body and mind and 2) that I always lovingly acknowledge and am grateful for what has been given to me by the animal, the plant, the farmer, the cook, the earth herself.

vegetables - I'm one of those odd people who love vegetables. I love them in the garden, I love them on my dinner plate. I love all those odd old fashioned vegetables that the cashier at the market holds up with a look of "what IS this?" on his face. I love vegetables from faraway countries and cuisines. I love good ol' fashioned corn on the cob, peas in the pod, tomatoes fresh off the vine. I love veggies cooked and raw. Flowers aren't the only jewels of the earth. Veggies rock!

vignette - for some reason I use this word a LOT! I suspect I often think in vignettes. Maybe it's an artist thing - to be able to capture a scene, a moment,to hold it in one's head in a soft edged embrace.

violets - one of the very first plants to brave the long, cold springs up here in the mountains. They pop out of the ground underneath the larger plantings all around the edge of the house even when the rest of the yard is still covered in snow. They taste sweet, just like they smell.

volunteer - If I had been paid for all the volunteer hours I've put in over the years, I'd be rich. Of course that would have defeated the whole idea of "volunteering". The experiences have rewarded me in many other ways. I am both happy and grateful that I had the opportunity to give as much as I have to assorted causes and organizations over the decades. In part because now that I'm old and feeling used up, I don't have to feel guilty when I usually say NO these days. Damn, I've got a cynical streak in me. Well, hey, that's honest. Half joking, but honest. I sincerely do feel enriched by all the work I've done over the years, but I also acknowledge that I'm ready to spend time for me now. If I were to volunteer time presently, and I do, just not regularly, it's for William's football team, or for my political beliefs.

vanilla - the real stuff, not the fake vanilla flavoring you can buy in the spice aisle - yech! Real vanilla smells wonderful, tastes wonderful. Put it in my food. Put in in my lotion or shampoo. It's my daughter's favorite scent and always reminds me of her.

variety - is the spice of life.

Vanna - I always feel a bit embarrassed, tuning in for my Vanna fix any night I can. Isn't Wheel of Fortune an old person's show?

vertigo - something I developed at heights after my first child was born.

veterinarian - my sister is a veterinarian. With all our pets, it's amazing how handy that can be! Hehehe. She's probably just grateful to live far away so her only contributions to the health of my animals is the many late night or weekend phone calls to her for advice. Why do animals (and people, for that matter) always wait until the clinic closes to get sick or injured?

vintage - I am a sucker for all things old and sentimental

Vulcan - I had such a crush on Spock when I was a pre-teen. Live Long and Prosper. Can you do the hand thing? I can.

vocal - I can be when it's important.