Howdy!

Good morning!  Well, today, I thought — in view of the fact that we are in the middle of an election year, that we might have a look at the beginnings of our country — way back in 1770’s — and Native America.  Right now because the book I’m writing is due to my publisher very soon and because I’m writing about the Iroquois, I am steeped into Iroquois lore and history.   And I have discovered some incredible things.  Here follows some very interesting things in my consideration — interesting only because I certainly didn’t learn about any of this in school…hmmm…

• Did you know that long ago, long before the white man set foot on this continent, there were two men who brought peace to a people and established a government of the people, by the people and for the people?  Those men were Hiawatha and Deganawide (de-ga-na-Wee-da), or the man known to the Iroquois as the Peacemaker.  Their tribes were constantly at war amongst themselves due to the tradition and obligation to kill anyone who had killed any of their own family.  Because of these blood wars, the people were constantly in strife. 

These two men — who together brought peace to an entire nation that lasted over 300 years — have all  but been forgotten in our history (this is not the Hiawatha or Longfellow’s poem).  When our forefathers first met the Iroquois, they were impressed with not only their idea of freedom, but also with their form of government.  In the Iroquois nation of long ago, the elder women would pick their leaders because the power of the government was held in their hands.  No leader was allowed to accept remuneration for his service — it was considered his duty to serve, and that was pay enough.  And no leader who served his own means, or who showed little fortitude (cowardly behavior in the face of treason) was allowed to serve.  In fact, such leaders were taken out of office at once and their shame stayed with them throughout the rest of their lives.

Debates amongst the Iroquois sachems (as their representatives were called) were long and hard, and no person was interrupted before he was finished speaking.  Nor was any action ever taken before there had been debate, and even then, a man was never forced to do the biding of another man if he disagreed.  Several moments of silence were also left open at the end of any speech, in case the speaker thought of something he might have forgotten when he was speaking.  Oratory was considered a skill that every man should acquire.  And those who spoke well were admired greatly.  It might take a while for the people to decide on an issue, true, but once decided, and united, the Iroquois proved to be a terrible foe.  Both Thomas Paine and Benjamin Franklin, as well as Thomas Jefferson, admired the Iroquois form of government.  In fact, Benjamin Franklin wanted our own Constitution to be modeled after the Iroquois government much more than it was.

But if the Iroquois government was so rich and so full, what happened to it?  Why are the Iroquois alloted only a small reservation in America?  This is a rather complex question and is best answered in a complex way, but I’ll be as brief as I can.  The founders of the Iroquois Confederation, whose vision was to bring peace to Turtle Island (North America) might have been more than a little upet to see how their people took the peace so hardily gotten, and used it to force their will on other Native populations.  It happened once the white man came.  The white man came with trade goods that far exceeded the Iroquois’s own.  And it got to the point where the white man’s goods could not be done without.  Once this happened, it became a contest tribe to tribe to takeover the trade.  Unfortunately, this was often encouraged by the French and English in order to weaken the Indian Nations, but on the whole I think it was done without the knowledge of what was happening to the Native American Nations.  The Iroquois, because they were united, surfaced as the Nation to be respected, even though that was often done at the destruction of some of the other Native Amerian Nations.  Be that as it may, the Iroquois became so invincible that the English and the French were caught trying to buy their friendship, in a quest to bring their own rule to North America.

The Mohawk eventually created a Covenant Chain with the English, which is why the Mohawk (some of them — not all) fought with the English against the Americans during our revolution.  However, the Native American has a long standing love of freedom and independence, and several tribes within the Iroqouis Confederation fought right alongside the Americans during our fight for independence.  Yes, they lost their lands, but they lost their lands to the corporations who coverted their lands for their own ends.  And unfortunately for us, when our forefathers wrote that “all men are created equal” they truly did mean all MEN, and in particular all white men.  Luckily for us, because of our right to speak freely, we in America eventually corrected this error to include all women and all people of any color.  And so after the revolution in the 1770’s, when the corporations came to take over the Iroquois land, there was no one at that time to speak out for Native Americans.

 So this brings me to my controversial question of the day.  Are you ready?  Recently some Americans in — forgive me I can’t recall the exact state — but I think it was Delaware, lost their homes to some big corporations.  The state government literally came in and took over their land — they were given money for the land, but not what it was worth.  That land was then turned over to the corporations.  In Texas, there is the Trans Texas Corridor being built as I write this, to unite Mexico, the US and Canada.  Millions of acres of land are planned for confiscation in order to build this highway — which will be owned and operated, by the way, by Spain.  Many of the people who live on this land, have lived on it for generations.  Perhaps I am wrong in my evaluation, but this precedent seems awfully similar to what happened to the Native People in New York State so long ago…i.e. land confiscation in the name of the corporation.

 Then we come to the recent declaration by the Lakotah.  The Lakotah Declaration of Independence.  In their own quest for freedom, the Lakotah in late December/early January of this year, declared their independence from the United States.

 So here’s the big question:  There is a long tradition of freedom in this country, tracing directly back to Native America and our own ancestors.   Are you ready?  What’s your opinion?  Do we still live a country that is free today as it was fifty years ago?  What do you think?  So come on in and let’s have a talk, maybe we could even, in the tradition of the Iroquois, debate the issue.

And don’t forget, THE LAST WARRIOR comes out March 2008!

I have a confession to make here at P&P.  I’ve never considered the Texas set historicals I write to be westerns.  My first book, THE TEXAN’S BRIDE, was set in East Texas during the 1840’s, the days of the Republic of Texas.  CAPTURE THE NIGHT was a Beauty and the Beast story set around a group of Frenchmen who came to Texas to establish a Utopia.  Then my Bad Luck books–well, they’ve taken me to England and Scotland and even Tibet.   I always had a Texan hero or heroine, but I never wrote anything that I considered a true western.

Until now.

THE LONER is my May release and this time, I think I wrote a real western.  Why?  Well, for one thing I decided to write a western historical romance, not a historical romance set in Texas.  Subtle difference, but important to me.  Also, this book has some real old-fashioned outlaws and an outlaw enclave.  It’s a bit bloody.  I’ve never killed so many people in my life.   It’s also part road book where the hero and heroine must camp in harsh lands with little water and lots of cacti and boulders.  They also visit a small town with a Marshal Dillon and Miss Kitty type saloon.     

Still, the settings aren’t really what make THE LONER a western.  It’s the characters.  My Loner, Logan Grey, is to me, a true Western hero and it’s not because he wears a cowboy hat and carries a gun and uses it.  It’s because of the man he is inside. 

 So how about y’all, P&P readers?   For you, what makes a “Western” a western?

Thanks barrel-loads for blogging with us this past weekend, Georgina!  We’d like to extend an invitation to mosey back any ol’ time your purdy little heart desires.

And the fun’s not over yet.  Two lucky winners will soon be holdin’ their very own AUTOGRAPHED copies of Georgina’s new book TO WED A TEXAN!

And the winners are….

Maureen

and AndreaW

YEE HAW, ladies!  Send your addresses to me at SaintJohn@aol.com, and I’ll get them to Georgina directly, so she can mail your books out to you.

I am delighted and honored to be asked to guest blog for Petticoats and Pistols.  Today, I want to talk about a subject that’s seldom given much attention: funny Westerns.

In my long career, I’ve met many interesting people and known a lot of writers such as Louis L’Amour (he used to live in Choctaw, Oklahoma,) and Dee Brown, author of Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee.  My Chickasaw Indian brother-in-law is the former head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington D.C. so I had plenty of research material to write all those Indian romances I did in the first part of my career.

Why did I change subjects? This came about because my editor commented on funny scenes in one of my serious romances and asked if I could write a series of what she called ‘Western romps.’

I decided to give it a try and produced: To Tame A Texan, To Tempt a Texan, To Tease A Texan, To Love A Texan, and now my latest Zebra March release: To Wed A Texan.

The plot of To Wed A Texan: Cash McCally, Texan gambler, is trying to set up a championship boxing match in Dallas.  He thinks it will be a profitable cinch.  Enter Bluebonnet O’Neal Schwartz Purdy, widowed President of the Lone Star Ladies for Decency and Decorum.  This prim librarian is determined to stop this savage and uncivilized fight and enlists her ladies, the governor and the churches.

Based on a little known episode of 1895 Texas history, the struggle became a hilarious spectacle.  The militia and the Texas Rangers are called out, four governors and the presidents of two countries got involved as well as Bat Masterson, Judge Roy Bean and even an African lion and a goat.

In my version, Cash decides the only way he can get the lady out of his way so he can proceed with his boxing match is to woo and seduce her.  Can  stubborn Bonnie resist his virile charm and continue her crusade?

Which brings me to humorous Westerns; I love them but there just aren’t many out there, either in novels or movies.  I remember: Hallelujah Trail, by my old friend, Bill Gulick, The Rounders, Cheyenne Social Club, City Slickers and two starring Oklahoma native, James Garner: Support Your Local Gunfighter and Support Your Local Sheriff.

So I challenge you readers; can you think of any other funny traditional Western novels, romance novels or movies for those of us who love them?  I know there have to be some I missed, so put on your thinking caps.

By the way, I want to give away two autographed copies of To Wed A Texan.  Cheryl will draw the names for me.

If you’re interested in learning more about me or want an autographed book mark, my website is: romanceauthorspage.com/georginagentry or try snail mail at: P.O.Box 162, Edmond, OK 73083

Gracias to you readers and the ladies of Petticoats & Pistols,
Georgina Gentry

P.S. Coming in 2009: To Seduce A Texan

The winner of Molly’s drawing will get an autographed copy of either The Winter Pearl or Sanctuary.  Are you on pins and needles?

 And the winner is…..

Terry Stone!

Terry, please send your address and choice of books to Molly at mollyb83@sbcglobal.net, so she can send your book out.  Congrats and enjoy!

Thanks for being our guest today, Molly.  It was a pleasure havin’ you with us here in Wildflower Junction.  Come back real soon, now, ya hear?

For the answer to this question and more, stay tuned.  

Hi, my name is Molly Noble Bull, and I am the author of five novels and am contracted to write five more. I was born in Kingsville, Texas. Kingsville is located in Kleberg County, known for the famous King Ranch.  

Kleberg and nearby Kenedy County are home to some of the largest ranches in South Texas, if not the United States. My late father and my maternal grandfather managed ranches in Kenedy County for half a century. I spent part of my growing up years on the Santa Rosa, a sixty-thousand-acre cattle ranch.  

Some of you might like for me to answer questions on “Cowboys in South Texas” as background material for future books, so let’s get started:  

Q: How can you tell a real cowboy from the drugstore kind?  

A: First of all, today’s real cowboy would never wear flashy cowboy clothes, even if he were entering a rodeo. Sparkly and shiny is out for a real cowboy. But it’s pretty normal for a cowgirl’s clothes to sparkle and shine whether she has ever visited a drugstore or not.  

Q: What would a real cowboy wear to work?  

A: For everyday, he would wear jeans that he probably bought at Wal-Mart, a long-sleeved work shirt, high-topped cowboy boots, and an old Stetson or a cap with a bill. His most expensive items would be the boots followed by the weathered Stetson. The jeans, the shirt and the cap with a bill would be the cheapest on the market. He might also wear snake-guards if he plans to walk around in the brush.  

Q: Why the long-sleeved shirt? And what might it look like?  

A: The Texas sun is hot. A long-sleeved shirt keeps the arms and shoulders from sunburn attacks. It also protects the body from insect bites and helps keeps brush from scratching the arms and shoulders. The shirt might be an old dress shirt that he once wore to church. It would be white or blue or some other conservative-looking color. It might also be a western-cut shirt, but it wouldn’t be flashy.  

Q: What would a modern-day cowboy wear on a date or to church on Sunday?  

A: For the date, a cowboy would wear a nice pair of jeans that had been starched and ironed, his best long-sleeved shirt, also starched, his best boots and his best hat. To church on Sunday, he would wear a white dress shirt, suit and tie, his best boots and his best Stetson. Or he might dress just like he did when he went out on a date.  

Q: Tell us a little about how a real cowboy would talk.  

A: I cannot say how a cowboy talked a hundred years ago, or how they talk in other parts of the country, but a modern-day cowboy living in South Texas today would never say “howdy.” Sorry ladies. We just don’t talk that way in South Texas–never have as far as I know. My grandfather never said it. I also know a modern-day rodeo cowboy from North Dakota, and he doesn’t say “howdy” either.  

I could be wrong, but I think “howdy” is a myth dreamed up by Hollywood.  

Q: What would a real cowboy from South Texas say?  

A: He would probably say, “Hi.” Then he would offer his right hand in friendship. At one time he would have removed his hat when talking to a woman.  My sons still do that today. Most don’t. However, even today if he were talking to an older woman who was also a family friend or a relative, he would probably give her a big hug. We hug a lot in Texas.  

He would also say, “y’all.”

He would pronounce oil as “all.”  All well.

Foil as fall. Aluminum fall.  

Texans who are forty or older were taught in public and private schools to say “yes, ma’am” and “no ma’am”; “yes sir” and “no sir.” Then the government stopped allowing teachers to insist that children to do that, and I think it was a huge mistake. So today, most don’t say, “yes ma’am” or “no ma’am.”  

Actually, real South Texas cowboys and cowgirls talk pretty much like people do throughout the country, except our accent is different.  Ranch managers today are educated. One of our sons is a ranch manager, and he has a degree in Animal Science. Over the past hundred years, South Texas ranch cowboys have mainly been Hispanic.  

Q: Tell us a little about everyday life on a cattle ranch in South Texas today.  

A:  A cowboy’s main job is to look after the ranch and the cattle. This can be anything from checking fences and fixing windmills to putting out feed and burning prickly pear. We’ve had more than average rains lately, but during a drought when there is no grass, the cowboy burns off the thorns on prickly pear cactus so the cattle will have something to eat.  

Most ranches in South Texas today also sell hunting leases, and hunters from big cities come to ranches to hunt deer and turkey. Some ranches also provide exotic game from Africa and other countries. Today, the ranch manager often serves as a hunting guide as well as a cowboy.  

Q: Do cowboys today still ride horses?  

A: Absolutely. However, they spend most of their time riding around the ranch in pickup trucks. In a truck, they can carry feed and medicine for the animals, as well a rifle should the cowboy come upon a rattlesnake.  

Q: Thanks for all the information. Now tell us a little about your books and why your latest novel, Sanctuary, is set in France in 1740.  

A: Sanctuary was published in trade paperback on September 15, 2007, and it is the first of three long historical novels in the Faith of Our Fathers series about the Huguenots. Though my family were/are Texas Cowboys, my ancestors came to Texas from other states and other countries. Sanctuary, the first book in the series, follows the route some of my ancestors took from France to England to Scotland. Book Two will begin in Scotland, but again, much of the story takes place in England, and it ends in South Carolina. In Book Three, they finally get to Texas and become cowboys. You can read Mary Connealy’s review of Sanctuary if you visit www.christianbook.com. Just write Molly Noble Bull in the search slot.  

The Winter Pearl is the title of my long historical from Steeple Hill. Set in Colorado in 1888, it is very much a Petticoats and Pistols kind of book, complete with scenes of a shootout and a stagecoach robbery. The Winter Pearl was published in trade paperback in 2004 and came out from Steeple Hill again in mass-market paperback in 2007. It is still available, but like Sanctuary, it must be ordered from Amazon, christianbook.com, Target, Booksamillion or Barnes and Noble. 

Q: Besides Sanctuary and The Winter Pearl, what new books can we expect from Molly Noble Bull?  

A: My next two books will not be historical novels. Runaway Romance is two short contemporary novels under one cover. My book is titled Alyson and it takes place on a cattle ranch in South Texas today. I don’t have a firm publication date for Runaway yet, but I will let you know when I do. And I hope Alyson will make my readers laugh, or at least smile.  

After Runaway, I have a non-fiction book coming up titled The Overcomers: Christian Authors Who Conquered L.D. (Learning Disabilities) Yes, I am dyslexic, and I wrote The Overcomers with four other Love Inspired authors with Learning Disabilities: Margaret Daley, Ginny Aiken, Jane Myers Perrine and Ruth Scofield.  

I am also contracted to write two more long historical novels in the Faith of Our Fathers series, and Tsaba House in going to reprint The Rogue’s Daughter, a novel set on a South Texas ranch in 1890 and first published by Zondervan in 1986. To be honest, I write better than I did in 1986 when Rogue first came out; so prepare for that. The good news is that it’s an honest to goodness western romance novel.  

Q: Anything else you would like to say before you say good-bye?

A: Yes. Please visit my website. www.mollynoblebull.com If you scroll down my main page and click Molly’s Family you can see pictures of my three sons on horseback and a picture of me on the Santa Rosa Ranch when I was twelve years old. And if you scroll down and click on Molly’s Books, you can see all my covers and read excerpts for Sanctuary and The Winter Pearl.  Thanks, y’all, for inviting me to come today, and I hope I’ll be invited back real soon.

Molly will be sending an autographed copy of either Sanctuary of The Winter Pearl (winner’s choice) to one reader, so leave a comment!

 There were 33 names in the hat ~

CONGRATULATIONS to Joan!   Please email your snail-mail address (stacey@staceykayne.com), and I’ll send out your Comfort Food cookbook 

THANK YOU to everyone who stopped in to share their favorite comfort foods and scents of home!

Be sure to enter our Spring Round-Up Contest if you haven’t already 

Darlings, don’t forget our two wonderful guests that will be on our doorstep this weekend. Molly Noble Bull will arrive tomorrow and give insight into those handsome cowboys. Miss Georgina will be on hand Sunday. Maybe she’ll tell us how on earth she got her picture taken with Sam Elliott. Oh my dear Lord, I do hope she does because I’m bursting with curiosity! This will be wonderful and we’ll have a bushel of fun. Come and join us; you don’t want to miss out for heaven’s sake.

I have noticed a recurring element in my books, which certainly hasn’t been intentional, but has been consistent nonetheless. I have a tendency to write quite a few meal scenes. I began to wonder if I’m often hungry while writing *g*, especially since while writing I don’t put much thought into keeping myself fed, other than randomly scrounging something up to keep me conscious. And yet for my characters, meals become a significant part of the story, and at some point in the story, an emotional connection or reaction to a food goes beyond physical nourishment–becoming a reflection of the soul that hopefully provides a deeper understanding of the character.

In MUSTANG WILD, Skylar savors the creamy taste of butter during a brief stay in a town, and for her, butter is a representation of having a stable home. There weren’t any butter churns out on the cattle trail. She finds delight in cooking on the trail, because it provides a slight connection to the feminine life she longs to lead. The hero does the cooking in BRIDE OF SHADOW CANYON, and his dried peppers take Rachell back to her childhood and the Louisiana spices she’s missed for so long–a time when she used to feel safe and secure. In MAVERICK WILD, Cora Mae literally cooks her way into the hearts of the men on Chance Morgan’s ranch. She tells how she cooked favorite home recipes of the girls in her boardinghouse, to help ease them into mill life by giving them some familiarity of home. Chance certainly has a favorable response to Cora Mae’s cooking, the familiar dishes reminding him of a time when life was simple. The heroine in my upcoming release THE GUNSLINGER’S UNTAMED BRIDE is a business woman who can hardly open a can of peaches, much less bake any sort of pie, but throughout the story, as she’s being dragged and chased all across the Sierra Nevada Mountains, she has a constant, desparate longing for her hot chocolate. For Lily, hot chocolate was her one sweet escape during a long period of bitter struggle and heartache.  When she’s finally reunited with her chocolate pot toward the end of the book, it’s a rather tender moment. While thinking about all of these scenes, it struck me that comfort foods are something I definitely identify with, and perhaps that’s why I use food as a way to reveal insights on the pasts of my characters’.

There are those foods that transcend the ingredients, flavors and scents that touch the heart.  Both of my grandmothers were amazing cooks—how I wish I’d gained an ounce of their kitchen wisdom.  Both had their signature dishes…when you walked in the door, the scent of Grandma Love hung in the air. Peach cobbler for one grandma, and chicken & dumplin’s for the other. When I think of them, those scents swirl up in my mind, taking me back to many happy memories of sitting in warm kitchens. For my husband, that food is crêpes, his Russian grandmother made the sweetest paper-thin crêpe she’d roll up with some fruits and a ricotta-like cheese and dust with powered sugar. Whenever we happen upon a place that serves traditional crêpes, his eyes light up and the ten-year-old sitting at his grandma’s kitchen table surfaces. Growing up my mom’s feel-good recipe was chocolate pie…likely why chocolate is my favorite comfort food

What are your favorite comfort foods?  Is there a nostalgic taste that takes you back, takes you home…takes you to a special place in time? Or perhaps a certain memory that carries the scent of a comfort food?

I have to run out today, but I’ll be back around 2:00 (CA time) to reply to posts. One lucky poster will win The Farmer’s Wife Comfort Food Cookbook, full of blue-ribbon-winning recipes! So give us a shout - recipes are welcome

What is it that makes a person a collector?  A recessive gene?  A childhood lack or longing?  An obsessive personality?  After pondering this question, I’ve decided it’s probably all of those plus other reasons I’ll never understand. 

My grandmother was a collector.  Oh my goodness.  The precious lady never threw away so much as a scrap of fabric, a piece of paper or a bread wrapper   I’m sure her frugality and saving nature was a product of her time.  From her I inherited the ability to stretch a meal that would feed four to making-do for twelve in the blink of an eye and without a trip to the grocery store.  I have learned to force myself to throw away cards and papers and magazines–however I keep binders filled with the articles and pictures I will use.  Eventually.  Someday.

My mother’s nothing like my grandmother.  She saves cards, books, mementos and letters, but has never had a problem getting rid of old toys, dishes or clothing.  However I have a couple of aunts who are collectors.

I ‘ve learned to weed through clothing and books and the kids’ old school papers and I have only one remaining box of cards and letters–okay, maybe two.  When we moved from the house where we raised our kids, I made them go through the boxes of school papers and drawings and look at them all before we pitched them, and I gave them all their report cards, etc.

Two years ago I did an office makeover, with all new furniture, cabinets and desks.  It was a huge job and I spent days going through filing cabinets, throwing away papers I’d moved twice and didn’t need.  I even reduced bookcases from FIFTEEN to nine–and gave away all of the books that were on them!

Now, if collecting is a gene, does that mean my children and grandchildren have it?  If it’s a compulsion, that does mean they’ll have seen enough in me and go another direction?  My oldest two daughters are minimalists, and the fact is an amazement to me.  When they’re finished with something, out it goes–furniture, wall décor, kitchen things–you name it.  Their homes are beautifully decorated and welcoming, with no excess clutter or displays of unnecessary items.  At one time my youngest daughter was the most like me.  Her bedroom at home was full, and anything the other girls or I were getting rid of, she wanted to keep it.  And she did.  But after having her own child and making several moves, it was easy for her to start pitching.

My daughter-in-law is an extreme minimalist.  She likes things plain.  She says it calms her.  The year we moved here, I was in the middle of deadlines, planning a trip for RWA, and didn’t have time to do all the painting I wanted or hang things or unpack everything.  I was getting depressed because I didn’t have my “stuff” around me.  When I mentioned that to my daughter-in-law, she glanced around and said, “I like it. It’s peaceful.”

Just watching HGTV and seeing new paint colors being rolled onto walls gives me a thrill and the urge to redecorate.  Now mind you, I love new paint and I adore and must have color, but I don’t actually do all the “work” myself, oh no.  My darling husband is the best painter in the world.  He has been known to balk at faux techniques or anything fancy, so I have to help out there, but I’m basically the packer, advisor and gopher.

We’re in the middle of a kitchen remodel right now, and it wouldn’t be so awful if I didn’t have so much stuff in boxes to work around.  But I’m getting more display space!

I’m not alone in my love for “stuff”.  I have a couple of friends who join me.  Sometimes we travel to antique weekend in Walnut, Iowa.  Oh my goodness.  Vendors and sellers from all over the Midwest come together for this yearly occasion.  The streets of the town are lined with campers and canopies and tents–business area, as well as the shady tree-lined neighborhoods.  The homeowners either set out their own wares or they sell food or drinks.  Kids pull wagons selling water and pop.  The legion hall and the school are filled with booths and tables.  We walked and browsed from early morning to late afternoon and didn’t see it all.  It was interesting to see what other people were buying.  One man bought a “four holer”.  It was a long old board with four holes that had once been the seat in an outhouse!  That was the topic of conversation everywhere he dragged that thing.  Why he wanted it or what he planned to do with is I have no idea.  I guess I do draw the line somewhere.

My friend Chris collects anything Snoopy, as well as wood handled cookie cutters, kitchen things, and red, white and blue, as well as German dollhouses and furniture.  My other friend, Carol, picked up doilies and fell in love with a pitcher and bowl set–she likes Victorian things.  I found a cup and saucer with red roses, a teapot made in Japan, a doily edged with pansies and a red and white potholder to add to my collection.  Also bought a floral teapot and a cup with no saucer.  I have extra saucers–you can pick up the pieces really cheap and then mix and match.  Now, obviously I didn’t need any of those things.

Part of the thrill of shopping flea markets and antique stores is “the hunt”.  Only die hards, like the breed we see in throngs in Walnut, will drive out of town, park in a field with parking attendants on horseback, and fight crowds in the blazing sun to look at every last thing to make sure they didn’t miss something wonderful.  And that’s the thing–once I’m there, I have to see it all.  Every last thing–every nook and cranny–every piece of glassware and each pie safe and all the old dolls and stoneware and–okay, I do skip over the vintage tools.  Hey!  There is something I don’t collect!  If I left without seeing it all, there would be a nagging question in my mind that I’d missed the one thing I couldn’t live without.

Among the things I collect are Beanie Baby monkeys, dogs and cats, Angel Cheeks, vintage chenille bedspreads, quilts, aprons and red & white crocheted potholders, white Pfaltzgraff dinnerware, Blue Willow dinnerware, vintage spice tins, white cream pitchers, pitchers, teapots, teacups and saucers, small plates with rose patterns, books, cookbooks, recipes, dolls, Josef figurines, Royal Copley planters, Royal Copley roosters, old photographs, Depression glass, deviled egg trays, vintage framed art of little girls, framed art of roses, hurricane lamps, vintage cologne bottles, old medicine tins, antique canning jars, vintage jewelry, not-so vintage jewelry, sterling silver charms, Christmas elves, Santas, Shiny Brite ornaments, Dickens Village houses, old board game markers, advertising tins with vintage girls, hat boxes, vintage doilies, painted metal serving trays, 40s and 50s tablecloths, glass bowls and old cookie cutters.

Some of you just don’t get it, I know.  You’re in the category with my daughters.  I admire you.  I do.  But I know there are some of you nodding your heads and thinking, yep, that’s it, right on the nose.  That’s me. 

What is it your passion to collect?  What do you find irresistable?

And if there’s someone reading this who has decided they don’t want all their good stuff anymore–call me.  I’ll be right over!