In Pursuit Of Maine: January 17, 2015 - Woodland Friends

Saturday, January 17, 2015

January 17, 2015 - Woodland Friends

I have lots of bird friends, field sparrows in particular. They come to visit me all the time. Yes, I provide food, but even if I didn’t, I think they would come. They’re not very afraid of me, and I am trying to train them to eat from my hand. I have trained a couple of squirrels already, so why not birds as well? I love having company.

This is one of the good things about winter. Life slows down a lot. The busyness of summer cannot distract me now. The lack of natural food forces different kinds of animals to open up a bit, to trust a bit, to do things outside of their nature. It’s quiet now, so we can hear one another’s thoughts. The birds know I want them here, so they come. Their chatter keeps me company, although sometimes I have to tell them to keep it down a bit.

Someone once called me a recluse. Obviously, she did not know about the birds or the squirrels. She did not know about the rabbits or the deer or Old Jack. And she did not know about the Good Folk of the woods, the peapod pixies in particular. A recluse? Me? My place is always busy and open to new friends. The fact that most of my friends are not human should not come into play here. My heart is big enough for everything.

Daily visitors to the homestead.

"The Plain Maine Cookbook" is my own collection of vintage Maine recipes that will immediately bring you back to a simpler time, a less confused time. These recipes are more than just comfort food. They're family food, traditional food, simple food, plain food. One bite and you'll say, "Ah, yes! I remember my grandmother used to make this. I had forgotten all about it!" Recipes for whoopie pies, funnel cakes, fried fiddleheads, haymaker's switchel, coffee can bread, glogg, and much more are in these pages. There is even a recipe on how to render lard. So open the door and go back to some simple, time-tested foods you can prepare easily. You'll find that you save money and waste less by "making do" with commodity cooking. What's in the pantry or in the garden is what's for dinner.

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I’ve chosen 37 unique fairy tales that will be loved by both adults and children as they can be read and interpreted on many levels. But if you are looking for only sweet tales that end in joy and fairness, you may want to pass this book by. Some fairy tales are simply “dark,” and that is because sometimes life is simply dark. Not always, of course, but often enough. Sometimes the hero lives; sometimes he dies. Check out my book, “Fairy Tales of Maine,” in the photo link below. If you are brave, you might just meet yourself in one of these tales.