Casseroles and The Gifts, A Jacody Ives Mystery - Meet the Characters

Shoepeg Corn Casserole

1/2 C. chopped onion
1/3 C. green pepper
1/2 C. Celery
1 C. French green beans - drained
1 C. shoepeg corn
1 C. celery soup
1 8 oz. sour cream
1/2 C. cheese - grated
Salt and pepper to taste
1 stack Ritz crackers
1 stick oleo - melted

Sauté onion, green pepper, and celery. Add remaining ingredients except crackers and butter. Crumble crackers as a topping. Dribble melted butter over all. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

English Pea Casserole

1 sm. Onion - chopped
1 green bell pepper - chopped
1 stick butter
2 cans English peas - drained
1 C. water chestnuts chopped (with liquid)
1 can mushroom soup

Sauté onion and pepper in butter. Add peas, water chestnuts and mushroom soup. Put in square baking dish and top with buttered crumbs. Brown until bubbly and crumbs are brown.

Sweet Potato Casserole

1 lg. can sweet potatoes
1/2 stick margarine
1/2 t. apple pie spice
1 1/2 C. sugar
3 eggs
3/4 C. condensed milk
2/3 C. potato juice
1/4 t. vanilla

Heat potatoes and juice. Drain and save 3/4 cup juice. Mash margarine with potatoes. Add apple pie spice, sugar, eggs, condensed milk, potato juice, and vanilla. Beat all together in mixer. Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees. Put mixed topping on baked casserole. Place under broiler until brown.


Topping
1/4 stick oleo
1/2 C. sugar
2 T. milk
1/4 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
1/2 C. pecan halves


Hamburger Casserole

1 pound ground beef
2 tablespoons butter
4 medium sized potatoes
2 onions
1 teaspoon salt
dash pepper
1 cup tomato soup

Brown the beef in skillet with butter. Cut potatoes in 1/2 inch cubes and spread in a baking dish. Cover with half the meat. Add half the soup and a sliced onion. Season with salt and pepper. Repeat, using remaining ingredients. Bake 1 1/2 hours in a 350 degree oven. More soup may be added during baking if needed.




Gavin The nightmares were getting stronger, the screams louder, closer. And this time there had been blood and pain. The knot in his stomach still hurt, and there was a strange ache in his chest. An eerie sadness. “What the hell have I done?” he whispered.

Sarah She hated the dreams. Hated the feeling of helplessness they created inside her as the dying reached out, sending messages to loved ones, or crying out for vengeance against their attacker. Only this time the dream had been different. This time the message was for Sarah.

Carl “Didn’t expect an old biddy like you to hit a man so hard.” He groaned, opening his eyes and glaring at Millie. Clarence stepped next to Millie, placing an arm protectively around her shoulders. “I’m afraid I hit you, Mr. Jackson. Saw you skulking around and followed you.” Carl turned his fierce gaze on Clarence, but held his tongue. The old fart looked pretty tough, even barefoot. Besides, he wasn’t in any shape to take on the two of them.

Rob The words cleared the remaining fog from Rob’s brain. Taking the mug of steaming coffee from Carl’s hand, he sat down at the table. His head still pounded, but his eyes were sharp and clear, his voice strong, “I’ve got your back, Carl.”

Nikki
A heartbreaking smile lit up the small face. Gavin found himself entranced, images flowing through his mind. He could see himself teaching her to play ball, pacing the floor while she was out on her first date, walking her down the aisle. He mentally shook himself, dispelling the images as he concentrated on what she was saying. “I’m going to write books some day about a beautiful ballerina who travels all over the world and solves crimes and helps people.”

Millie Millie couldn’t stop herself from lifting the blinds and taking a quick peek to see if he was still there. A slight pang of disappointment filled her when she saw he had already entered the flower shop. “Flirtatious old coot,” she muttered to herself as she opened the bookstore for business. Always calling me Millicent. She stopped her muttering as she caught sight of her reflection in the mirror behind the counter. The slight flush on her cheeks and sparkle in her eyes belied her age, as did the spring in her walk. The old fool had her feeling like a teenager. Maybe she’d just take a walk over there and see those new roses. He could probably use a good cup of coffee. Might even ask him over for dinner one night. Possibilities. The old coot had definite possibilities.

Joshua Taking the mike, Joshua lowered his voice. “Listen, Sarah, get everybody you can out to the old mill on Elliott Pike. I’m sending Gavin back with Nikki. I’ll stay here and watch Cooper until backup arrives.” Joshua clicked off, his eyes meeting Gavin’s over Nikki’s head. “That’s the way it’s gonna be, partner." Gavin nodded. He knew somebody had to stay. “No heroes?” Joshua grinned, popping a fresh toothpick between his teeth. “I ain’t the hero type.”

Clarence Millie smiled, still running her hand over the smooth surface. “She’s a real classic.” “Yep.” Clarence moved in, putting his arm around her. “Classics are hard to find today. When I find one, I tend to hold onto it.”

Excerpt and some homemade fruit, veggie and chip dips

Introducing two of my favorite characters - Billy Dawson and Charity Froste. Hope you enjoy the excerpt and some really great cookout dips to try.


“And so it begins.” Billy Dawson flipped over the tarot card, placing it on top of the first card.

Charity Froste sighed, poured two cups of coffee and took a seat across the table from him.

“Jacody soon be on his way,” she stated, sipping the thick hot liquid. She rolled her eyes, noticing the cards. New fangled toys was what they was. She touched the medicine bag lying between her two huge breasts. Now there was real magic.

Billy didn’t look up. He didn’t need to. He could feel her disapproval. “Tools, Miss Charity. The cards, the stones, the bones, they’re all just tools.”

“Dem’ bones don’t lie,” Charity chastised him.

Billy swallowed the laugh on his lips as the wind carried the sound to their ears. A lonesome sound. A sound of pain. A sound of heartache. The sound of a lost soul.

Billy turned over the next card. The Hanged Man.

Perhaps the sound of destiny.

Tonight a soul would pass into the netherworld. The white wolf would howl its mournful song. The elder would dance and sing his prayers to God. The dreamers would dream.

“Told you dem’ bones don’t lie.” Charity eyed him suspiciously. “You called the wolf, didn’t you?”

Billy shuffled the cards, ignoring the question. She knew the answer. “We can’t be interfering, Miss Charity.”

“He’s a good man.”

“Yes, ma’am, I reckon he is.”

“Ain’t right.” Charity clutched the cup tightly. Time was running out. Night would come all too soon. A dark night.

“No, ma’am.” Billy continued to shuffle, mindful to be respectful and listen. Answering her, although it probably wasn’t necessary.

Charity studied her reflection in the coffee cup. Lost in thought. “He didn’t choose the path he’s on.”

“No, ma’am. I don’t reckon he did.” Billy pulled another card. Miss Charity was losing her accent.

“Somebody chose it for him before he was even born. It just isn’t right, I tell you. And I can’t just sit here and do nothing. I can’t just watch him die. I’m not going to do that, Billy Dawson. You can’t ask me to do that.”

Billy reached for the last card, avoiding her searching eyes. He knew what she wanted. What she needed. She was waiting for him to say something. Answer the question she hadn’t asked. Condone her interference, or condemn her actions not yet taken. He could neither condone nor condemn. He’d already interfered. Now there was nothing to do but wait.

Billy turned the last card over. The Devil grinned up at him. A male chained to his left, a female to his right. His smile a mockery of everything Billy believed in.

Lifting his head he met her gaze. There was nothing he could say to ease her pain. “I’m sorry, Miss Charity.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cheese Dip

2 lb. Mexican Velveeta Cheese
1 lb. sausage
1 - 15 oz. can stewed tomatoes

Brown sausage and drain. Melt cheese on low heat. Stir in sausage and stewed tomatoes. Do not drain. (for those with a love of "hot" stir in some jalapeno peppers).

Bagel Dip

8 oz. package cream cheese
1 cup MIRACLE WHIP
2 - 3 oz. Buddig beef packages
1 bunch green onions, chopped
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
Dash of garlic powder

Mix all together and chill.

Onion and Bacon Dip

8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
6 slices bacon, fried crisp & crumbled
Dash of salt
1 medium onion, chopped fine
Miracle Whip

Mix first four ingredients together and add enough Miracle Whip to make smooth and of dip consistency.

Mexican Dip

1 - 8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 - 8 oz. carton sour cream
1 can refried beans
1 envelope taco seasoning mix
20 drops Tabasco sauce
3 green onions chopped

Mix all together. Spread in casserole dish. Cover with shredded cheese (about 1 cup). Bake at 350 for about 25 to 30 minutes until hot throughout. Serve with nacho chips.

Artichoke Dip

1 cup Parmesan Cheese
1 can artichokes
1 cup mayonnaise

Stir ingredients together. Bake in oven at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

Veggie Dill Dip

1 pint sour cream
1 cup Hellman's mayonnaise
6 tsp. dill weed
6 tsp. minced onion
4 tsp. parsley flakes
2 tsp. Lawry's Seasoned Salt

Mix all together, chill; serve. Good with veggies or chips.

Sample Sunday - WIP The Road To Hell

Sunday samples are a great way to get to know new authors, their works and works in progress. I decided this week to share a work in progress instead of an excerpt from one of my published books. Mainly because samples are out there of the printed books, as well as this is something totally different for me. I've never written in first person before so I'm anxious for comments on how you think it's going. I've been told this is somewhat of a combination of the movies Ghost and Constantine with a whole new twist. Perhaps it will make the big screen someday - who knows, I can dream can't I?
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CHAPTER ONE

You grow up poor you've got to wonder if God's got a sense of humor. All the crap life throws at you. And He gives you mothers. It's kind of like that guy Brandon Lee said in the movie The Crow--"Mother is the name for God on the lips and hearts of all children."

He got that right. My momma wasn't just a good woman. She was a Saint. Somehow she managed to raise four kids on a waitress' salary. And three of them turned out pretty good. Or would have. But that's another story.

Sometimes when I'm thinking about momma I have to wonder if she knew about God's sense of humor. She read us the good book every night, but she never said nothing about no sense of humor. Still, she had to know something. I mean, after three girls she got me. She had to figure God was up to something.

I’m Jake Savior, and yeah you might as well go ahead and laugh. Everybody else does. My clients are always telling me God's got a sense of humor. The people looking for me weren't looking for a savior. They were mostly searching the want ads for killer for hire. That's me. For the right price I put a lot of people out of other people's misery. Heck, I even done some for free. Some people deserve to die, and being the nice guy I am, I gladly obliged them.

But I'm digressing. Let's get back to God's sense of humor.

I'd a pretty good day. Won a few bucks on the horse races. Did a little charity work by ridding the world of one more piece of garbage. The courts seen fit to let a pedophile go--I didn't. So I was feeling pretty good about myself, except I was out of cigarettes.

Now anyone that knows me knows I love a good smoke. Last count I was up to five packs a day. Momma always said those thing were going to kill me. Turns out she was right.

Only a die-hard smoker goes out at 2:00 a.m. for smokes. Especially since all the safe places close down early, leaving only a few gas stations and convenience stores open at that hour. Still, I was willing to take my chances. It was too damn cold for thieves to bout and I really, really wanted that last cigarette before I turned the lights out and called it a day.

You've probably already concluded that I'm a smart ass bastard that beats my own drum. Some people will smoke anything. Not me. I'm a strict Kentucky Red's Best smoker. Which means whether I liked it or not I was gonna have to hoof it over to Winchester Road at this time of night. Not everybody carried Red's Best.

Being the cautious person I am, I scouted the parking lot and looked inside for milling customers. No cars and only one customer at the counter. I quickly ascertained he was one of the good guys like me, needing that last deep drag to calm his nerves before he called it a night. Boy was I wrong. Wrong place, wrong time and wrong guy. Five minutes after I entered the door of the Shaky Seven Gas to Go bullets started flying.

I've always heard that your life passes before your eyes when you're dying. Trust me, that's all bull. My last vision was that pack of Red's Best I held in my hand, and my last thought was how good that cigarette was gonna taste as soon as I got outside. Of course, that wouldn't have surprised anyone who really knew me. It wasn't any big surprise to me. I was surprised though. Having listened to momma all those years and growing up with three sisters extolling virtues that I never needed or wanted, I was expecting either that bright light to take me to Heaven, or most likely in my case, a little fire and brimstone trail leading to Hell. That didn't happen either.
# # #

Like the sample and want to know more? Check out Karen Cantwell's blog on January 20th where Karen and I will be discussing this work.

Want to sample my current works? Check out The Gifts, A Jacody Ives Mystery and/or Sacred Secrets, A Jacody Ives Mystery.

The Gifts

Sacred Secrets

Also available on Amazon in the UK, as well as B & N, Sony, Kobo, Diesel and Smashwords.

Have a great Sunday and Happy Reading!

If you like this, or even if you didn't--please leave a comment below. All constructive criticism is greatly appreciated.

Today's Tarot Card Reading

I have read tarot cards for others, but only for the purpose of allowing them to find their own personal insight. To me, that is the basic purpose of the Tarot. To help you focus on your internal questions that perhaps you haven’t even heard yet, and sound them out until you find your own solution. I’m often surprised at the insight people actually see within the cards, and how the cards are beneficial in helping them understand the one person we have the most difficult time understanding—our self. A good tool for self introspection.

Having felt that inner confusion of something bothering me for days now, the deep musings, sometimes dark and mysterious, I knew that somewhere deep inside something was bothering me, and yet consciously I just couldn’t see or understand the problem. So this morning I took the time to spend a little me time and did my own reading, hoping to gain insight into what was really bothering me.

I used a five card spread for insight laid out as follows:

1) The general theme of the problem as it exists in the present;

2) Past influences still having an effect

3) The future

4) Reason behind my confusion

5) Potential within the situation

The very first card held a wealth of information. The King of Wands. My mind immediately went to my newest book, Sacred Secrets, A Jacody Ives Mystery. I thought about Clover’s interpretation of that card. “A good man, impassioned by his beliefs. A man who will—would sacrifice himself for those he loves.”

The general theme of the problem as it exists in the present. Writing is my passion. Creating plots, characters, stories and weaving them all together into a novel worthy of being read by others. Still, there is the internal conflict of the time I have to devote to my writing, versus the time I need to devote to making a living, my family, my friends and my home. The guilt that at times I’m neglecting someone or something to fulfill my own needs. And then there’s the time it takes to promote the work once it’s released. No one can read it if they don’t know it exists. Not having that $100,000.00 marketing budget means taking personal responsibility and time. Once again bringing up the guilt of neglecting the people around me. Card one was very insightful indeed.

Card two, “past influences still having an effect”. I pulled the four of pentacles. For me this card signified having a good life, but having just enough. Not enough to squander. A fear of losing what I already had. Not hard to see where that was going—once again to the problem of promotion. Devoting time to my passion took away time from my “earning” capacity. I’m comfortable now, but if I don’t work more, will I lose that comfort? And then what?

Card three was the future. I pulled the Sun. A beautiful card with beautiful meaning. Happiness, contentment and bliss. The ability to play. Be a child again. What a future that would be. And if this was a true internal feeling about my future, then why was I so confused?

Card four—the reason behind my confusion. I pulled the seven of cups. A mixed card. A card about ideas, dreams, thoughts, illusions, transitions and mystery. A card about choices. I hate choices. I hate making decisions. For years there was no one to help me make decisions, and I was constantly having to do everything on my own. Sometimes I would cry late at night, wishing that just for once I had someone who would take the wheel for a moment. Of course, idiot that I was, I had that all along. God. But even recognizing that, you have to let go of the wheel. Easier said than done. Lately I’ve been making changes in my life. Positive changes, yes, but still changes. And I’m scared. I went from a published author to an Indie author. Some would say that was a bad move. Perhaps. Could I have gotten a contract on Sacred Secrets? I don’t know I never submitted it to anyone. Is my writing worse because it wasn’t published traditionally? No. That’s the one thing I’m sure of. I put my very best into my first book, and I put 110% into my second. I have little doubt that Sacred Secrets is as good, if not better than The Gifts. But the fear remains, and only time will take that fear away.  And as every author knows, a traditionally published book doesn't guarantee success.  You may sell a few more than an indie author in the beginning due to publisher marketing, but in the end it all falls to the author.

Card Five—the potential within the situation. I pulled the 2 of Pentacles and laughed. No better card to point out the confusion of my fourth card. I needed to strike a balance. Travel beyond the conventional to reach my goals. Set aside time to write, time to work and time for family. I have a wonderful supportive family. They understand my passion. There really wasn’t a problem there, except my own problems and fears. Basically I needed to get over it, and move on. I was wasting time just dabbling in the confusion of my personal desires and passion instead of doing something constructive to make it happen.

A good reading? Yes, for me it was. I went in cold on this one, not asking a specific question, but allowing my subconscious mind to pull out what I need to know and see. Did it help? Yes, it did. My perspective has changed, and although I don’t write outlines when writing a book, I do intend to do some outlining today on time structures and making the most effective use of the time available.  Knowing what you need time for helps in making constructive choices on use of your time.  I need time for family, time for me (which includes reading time), time for writing, time for cleaning my home and time for promotion.  Not an easy task, but still the possibilities are endless.

Have a question about reading tarot for insight? Feel free to email me at: admin@prather-author.com. The best insight you’ll ever get comes from within.