Black-eyed Peas for Luck

Eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day brings luck for the whole year. That’s the legend, anyway. Personally, I’ve never been a fan. I grew up with them and spent hours of my childhood hoeing, watering, and shelling them. According to my husband, by mother’s are the best, picked fresh from the garden, shelled with a few snaps thrown in, and home-canned with a little salt pork, but I could never develop a taste for them.

I always managed to consume a few on New Year's but didn't enjoyed them until this year. I found a recipe in the newspaper for Hoppin’ John (black-eyed peas and rice), but not the traditional recipe I’ve used before with sausage and lots of cayenne. This one called for dried peas, a ham bone, and collard greens. I happened to have a bone left from the Christmas ham and some frozen spinach to substitute for the collards, so I gave it a try. Who knew black-eyed peas could taste so good?

So, the lesson for me is to keep trying new things. Maybe I’ll eventually develop a taste for some of those other things I never enjoyed, like exercise and public speaking. Maybe all that luck I’ve stored up by eating all those black-eyed peas on New Year’s will help with the process. It can’t hurt.

Speaking of luck, rafflecopter is giving away an ipad mini. Here's the entry:

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September Giveaway

It seems the November Giveaway link in the newsletter is sometimes landing people here. Click on the BLOG link on top and the November post will be on top. So sorry for the confusion. -Beth This month, I'm giving away a copy of AN ALASKAN HOMECOMING and a string of hearts bracelet to one lucky reader. (US only, if someone without a US mailing address wins, the prize will be two ebooks). You must be a newsletter subscriber to win. If you're not already subscribed, you can sign up HERE . You must be 18 or older. Void where prohibited. a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Snow Sculptures at Fur Rondy

Photo by Bill Roth / Anchorage Daily News Fur Rondy (short for rendezvous) is the annual winter festival in Anchorage, where residents fight cabin fever with activities like the snowshow softball, the running of the reindeer, and outhouse races. There are other activities too, like hockey, sled dog races, and a poker tournament. My favorite event in Fur Rondy as always been the snow sculptures . The frozen equivalent of sand castles, snow sculptures are, by their very nature, temporary. Beautiful, whimsical, or just funny, they’re created solely for the enjoyment of the artists and passersby. To bring a smile. Like the bloom of a daylily or a rainbow, their short life is part of their charm. It's easy to put off going to the Grand Canyon or the Statue of Liberty. They'll always be there, after all. But come spring, that snow sculpture will be gone forever, so we'd better enjoy while we can. They encourage us to live for today. What temporary pleasures have ...

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