Showing posts with label spirits. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spirits. Show all posts

Monday, February 17, 2020

Soul Food Spirits (Southern Ghost Wranglers Book 1) - Amy Boyles, Author


Quick Yeast Bread

2 tablespoons yeast (or 2 x 7g pkts)
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups warm-hot water
14cup cooking oil

Put 4 cups of the flour, yeast, sugar and salt into large bowl.
Pour in hot water and oil and mix until combined- it will be sticky.
Add the remaining flour in increments until dough is no longer sticky.
Knead for about 5 minutes until dough is elastic and smooth.
Place dough back into bowl and cover with a damp teatowel and let it rise until double its size- about 1/2 hour.
Punch it down and divide dough into two pieces.
Roll pieces long enough to fill two well oiled loaf pans and leave to rise until dough has reached the rim of the pan.
Bake at 400F for 40 minutes.

Rub hot breads with water and wrap in a teatowel to'sweat' to soften the crust.

Soul Food Spirits (Southern Ghost Wranglers Book 1) - Review by Martha A. Cheves

"Blissful, you're suspended."
My heart popped out of my chest and hit the floor with a thud.  "I'm sorry, what did you say?"
Then Anita, the woman who had bested me for my dad's job by sleeping with his superior, who spoke to me like I was three years old, who had the audacity to put a picture of her with my father on her desk, slowly opened her mouth and enunciated every single syllable.
"Blissful.  You.  Are.  Suspended."  Her eyelids popped open.  "I've got the paperwork already filled out.  You are now officially not a member of the Ghost Team.  You have been suspended."


My dad's death a few months ago left an oozing wound in the establishment he helped create - The Ghost Team.  With the help of secret funding from the government, my dad, Vince Breneaux, created a crew of highly capable, clairvoyant agents whose single mission was to seek out rouge spirits, those hellbent on attacking and plaguing the living, and sent them on to the other side - the light, as we call it.  Naturally, since my father had been director of said team, when it came to promotion time, I was a shoo-in.  But, as I said, Anita got the job instead of me and she has had it out for me from day one.  Now she has decided to suspend me.  And the only way I can hopefully prove my worth is to the beautiful town of Haunted Hollow and bring in one of the most feared spirits ever - Lucky Strike.  Even my father couldn't bring him in and send him to the light.

Blissful's first day there turns out to be a disaster when she decides to have lunch at the Soul Food.  It seems that one of the spirits in the establishment takes a liking to her and starts up a conversation.  Since Bliss can see her but the other customers can't she decides to carry on a very 'light' conversation with her. But as it turns out, the more they talk the more visible the spirit becomes.  This causes everyone in the restaurant to see her with most of them taking pictures of both Bliss and the spirit with many being posted to the internet.  So much for trying to stay in town without being noticed.

This book was a joy to read.  It's filled with humor as well as tons of ghosts - both good and bad, or so they appear.  And the same can be said for some of the living residents too.  I enjoyed Book 1 so much that I can't wait to read book 2.

Monday, July 3, 2017

Ghost Hunting Diary Volume VI - T. M. Simmons, Author



Ghost Hunting Diary Volume VI Recipe

Aunt Belle and I stopped at a little café beneath a river bridge one day. We ordered the catfish basket and it came with really delicious cole slaw. The slaw dressing had sweet relish in it, the first time we had ever tasted anything like this. Since then, we always add sweet relish to our slaw dressing.

Easy Cole Slaw

I package cole slaw mix from deli
½ cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup sweet relish

Add salt and pepper to sugar, stir to blend
Blend salt/pepper/sugar mixture into mayonnaise
Stir in sweet relish

Pour over cabbage slaw mix and chill for an hour or so

Ghost Hunting Diary Volume VI - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of: Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

Nearly every call I get pleading for help from a person distressed over a haunting begins with them insisting they have a demon in their home.  In thirty years of investigating the paranormal, I've only encountered what I believe were three actual demons.  Unfortunately for me, one of those infiltrated my own home and tried to abolish what I hold dear.  Have no doubt - demons are real, and they're the nastiest, most malicious entities on the face of the earth.  They have no conscious, and while they do know right from wrong, wrong and destruction of your life (both physically and emotionally) are what they wish on their human prey.  They have patience far beyond anything within our human ability and begin their destructive infiltration slowly, in a barely perceptive manner.  If not exposed early on and banished, they will weak havoc on your entire life.

I believe I've read everything written by Author T. M. Simmons and am never disappointed.  In Book VI we go through crossing overs, of those that didn't take advantage of the crossing when they died.  You'll learn about one of her favorite cemeteries 'Cottonwood Cemetery' as well as an old nursing home 'Calvert' where many have died and many are still hanging around.  But for the first time since I've been reading this Author's work, I've never heard her write about demons and after reading her experience with one that invaded her home, I'm glad to hear that they are seldom encountered.

You may not believe in ghosts, spirits, demons, nor other super-natural beings but I can assure you that if that is the case, after reading this book you'll at least start questioning your belief.  I personally feel that I've run into maybe 2 spirits in my life.  One was standing on the side of the road in front of a cemetery.  It was raining and when lightning flashed I saw him with a child standing there in the pouring rain.  After the flash, it was gone.  No there was no place for them to hide.  The area was open and even if they ran they wouldn't have been able to hide.  This little experience was what made me want to learn more about spirits.  Yes I said learn about the, not see any more of them.  The more I read and learn the more I want to stay 'unseeing.'

So, if you are in the least bit curious, this book, along with the whole series of Ghost Hunting Diary, are a must read.  I've surely enjoyed them.  This author also writes some really good mysteries involving some of her ghosts.  Check out Silent Prey and Northwood Prey for some enjoyable reading.

Friday, September 19, 2014

Ghost Hunting Diary Volume IV - T. M. Simmons, Author




Simple Fried Green Tomatoes
(A T. M. Simmons Special)

In the south, we love our fried green tomatoes. There are several ways to enjoy this delicious dish. In fact, my husband and I each cook them differently. I like them prepared both ways, but here is mine:

1 egg
½ cup milk
Beat together by hand, then beat in:
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup cornmeal
This should make a batter that looks similar to pancake batter.

Select 3 firm green tomatoes, wash and core them, then slice into 1/3" slices. Put salt and pepper on them, to taste.

Heat ½ inch of canola oil to about 350 degrees in either an iron or electric skillet. Dip tomatoes into batter and fry until golden brown on each side. Serve while hot. Yum!

You can also cheat and get the Whistle Stop Fried Green Tomato Batter Mix to use for your coating. It's also delicious!

My husband eats his fried green tomatoes on bread, but I love mine with just a fork.




Ghost Hunting Diary Volume IV - Review by Martha A Cheves, Author Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

St. James Jeepers Creepers - There are times during ghost hunts when I even scare myself silly...er...sillier.  In May, 1998, an occurrence at the captivating historical St. James Hotel, in Cimarron, New Mexico - a place with an extremely haunted reputation - turned into one of those incidents. Twenty-six deaths occurred in the St. James so when I saw a man that stood about 6 feet, with black hair and dressed in an 1800's style suit jacket the evening we checked into the hotel, I wasn't surprised.  I got the impression he was a gambler and I gaped when he winked at me.  This told me he was an intelligent haunting, one in which the entity can interact with our living dimension.  In other words, the recognition worked both ways.  Turns out he was one of the nice ones.  TJ is a different story.

Barney the Believer - Barney is my husband who doesn't believe in ghosts.  One day he came to my office, white as a ghost himself.  He wanted to know if we had a little girl ghost in our house.  We do so I ask how he knew.  His comment to me was "Because I've been watching TV and she just got up from the chair on the other side of the fireplace."  That was just the beginning of him becoming a believer.

These are just 2 of the stories in the author's diary and this is the 4th diary this author has published that I've had the pleasure of reading.  I've heard about ghosts and spirits my whole life.  I 'dreamed' one morning that my grandmother was standing at the foot of my bed telling me everything would be alright.  Apparently I was asleep with my eyes open because I could see her and the room I was in full color.  I once bought a house where I would get a glimmer of someone out of the corner of my eye and freeze when I sat in a certain area in my living room.  Turns out the previous owner, a woman who loved to cook, had passed in that special spot in the living room.  If we admit it, we've all probably had some kind of unexplained 'happenings' at some point in our lives and through reading T. M. Simmons' books, I truly believe that I've experienced a few ghosts of my own.

Oh yeah.  If you have a ghost/spirit in your home, this book will tell you what would be the best way to handle your type of ghost/spirit.  Yes there is more than one type and each is handled differently.  At this time, I have no ghosts/spirits in my home.  I have a friend who died in his home and the woman living there now has told me he comes back now and then to check on the items he left in the attic.  She has never removed anything from there so he seems ok, but she does hear him now and then rummaging around and many times he will forget to turn out the light.

This, like the others before it are extremely interesting.  I'm enjoying learning about the experiences the author and her Aunt Belle have gone through and can't wait to learn even more when I read Ghost Hunting Diary Volume V.

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Ghost Hunting Diary Volume III - T. M. Simmons, Author




Southern Fried Chicken and Gravy
(One of T. M. Simmons' favorite dishes)

1 cut-up chicken
3 cups flour
2 tbls. corn starch
1 tbl. baking powder
½ cup canola oil
1 can condensed milk
Salt and pepper

Lay chicken in sink and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper to taste. (If you want, you can freeze the back for noodles later rather than cook it.)
Combine flour, corn starch and baking powder. Shift together.
Heat oil in large iron skillet to high heat.
When oil is ready, dredge chicken pieces in flour mixture and add to oil. (Save flour mixture for gravy.) Cook each side until nicely browned, then lower heat to medium low and finish cooking, turning often so chicken doesn't burn.
When done, remove chicken from skillet and drain on paper towels.
Pour off excess oil until there is only a thin layer in the bottom of the skillet, leaving in any small pieces of chicken or skin that came off during cooking.
Turn heat back up to medium high and sprinkle 3-4 tbls of flour mixture into oil.
Stir until flour begins to brown.
Turn heat down to medium and pour in one can of condensed milk, stirring as you add it. Add water if gravy is too thick.
When gravy is thickened, turn off heat and serve it with your fried chicken and mashed potatoes. Yum!


Ghost Hunting Diary Volume III – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

***Billy and Lucy York had been to Goshen Cemetery once previously with two other ghost hunters. From what they told me, I wanted to visit this historic graveyard myself.  I wasn’t deterred by the rumors and tales abounding about Goshen, nor by the fact invitations to a few other paranormal investigator friends to join us were turned down flat.  Word about evil entities and how dangerous Goshen could be had spread through the paranormal community for years.  Perhaps I should have been more forearmed, but hindsight is perfect vision.***
 
Reading this Author’s diaries has been quite fascinating to me and as soon as I finish one, I can’t wait to read the next.  Her experience in the Goshen Cemetery would have scared the heck out of me but what happened as they were leaving would have probably given me a heart attack. 
 
As her diary went on through other outings, I was drawn to wishful thinking when she told about her short chat with a Dr. Griffith who was examining her ‘horseless carriage’ one night while she was visiting a friend.  That’s one event I think I would have enjoyed after my heart rate slowed down just a bit. 
 
The Ghost Hunting Diaries all take you into what most of us can call the unknown.  For T. M. Simmons, it has become the purpose of her life to deal with those who haven’t passed over yet and to encourage them to make the decision to leave their ‘unlife’ for a peaceful one on the other side.  But all isn’t fun and games when it comes to ghosts.  Some are humorous and enjoy playing jokes while others are quite evil and enjoy wreaking havoc on those around them.  And some are simply demonic and quite dangerous.
 
This is the third Ghost Hunting Diary that I’ve had the pleasure of reading and as I said, I can’t wait to dig into Volume IV.  If you like a good ghost/sprit story, you won’t want to miss T. M. Simmons’ own personal accounts of being a paranormal investigator.  They have sparked my interest.

Friday, February 15, 2013

Ghost Hunting Diary - Volume I - T. M. Simmons, Author


 
 
Cucumber-Tomato Side Salad
(I learned to make this years and years ago from one of my aunts. I've seen and tasted various other versions at gatherings or on buffets, but none are prepared like this simple one I make or taste like it. It always goes over very well at our own family gatherings. In fact, when we plan a get-together, one of the first questions I get asked from one son and a few others is: Are you going to make your cucumber-tomato dish?  T. M. Simmons)
 
Ingredients:
Two nice, red, ripe tomatoes
Three-four nice, firm cucumbers
One large yellow onion
One cup cider-apple vinegar
One tablespoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
½ cup sugar (or sweetener to taste)

In an adequate-size bowl or jar, mix vinegar, salt, pepper and sugar and stir briskly. Taste it to see if it is too tart or sweet for your taste, and adjust, if necessary. We like it pretty tart. Set aside.

In a large flat bowl or plastic storage dish, with lid, slice the tomatoes into thin slices.
Peel and slice the cucumbers into slices about 1/8" thick.
Peel and slice the onion into thin slices. Separate the individual layers of onion and add to tomatoes and cucumbers.
Toss the tomatoes, cucumbers and onions together.
Pour the vinegar mixture over the vegetables and cover with lid.
Place in refrigerator at least two hours before you want to serve them.
Approximately every half-hour, stir the contents to make sure the vinegar gets distributed over everything.

Enjoy!

 
Ghost Hunting Diary – Volume I – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; A Book and A Dish

 

The Green Room is haunted by a Confederate soldier, but for some reason, he only appears in the summer.  He had been wounded in the Civil War and found his way to The Myrtles, where he died from his wounds.  There are tales of people seeing six red-coated British soldiers carrying a coffin out by the pond.  A lady in white walks around the grounds, and both guests and townspeople have reported seeing her.  The most famous story about The Myrtles, though, is the story of Cloe, the black slave.  Clark Woodruff owned the plantation in the early 1800’s.  By 1982, he and his wife had three children, two girls and a boy.  There was a portrait of Woodruff in the game room, and stories say that people have actually seen tears flowing down it.  In those days the southern plantations were worked by slaves, and at times, the masters took mistresses from the workers.  One of Woodruff’s mistresses was Cloe.  Proud and protective of her status, since it kept her in the house and out of the fields picking cotton and other crops, Cloe intended to maintain her position.  Thus, she tended to eavesdrop in order to store up any information that might assist her.  When caught Woodruff ordered Cloe’s ear cut off and banished her from his bed.

 

Author T. M. Simmons doesn’t just write paranormal stories; she lives them too.  The ghosts above are just some that she and her Aunt Belle encountered while visiting The Myrtles in St. Francisville, Louisiana, just outside of Baton Rouge.  In her Ghost Hunting Diary Volume I, she gives us a look at what is involved in ‘cleansing’ a room and sometimes even a whole house.  But I think the story that got to me the most was when she and other members of the North Texas Paranormal Research Society visited Goshen Cemetery, just out from Eustance, Texas on of all times of the year, Halloween. 

 

There have been times in my own life that I’ve felt there were ‘others’ among us but have always brushed this feeling off to excuses such as ‘I’m alone,’ ‘Its Dark,’ or ‘That was just the wind.’  After reading Ghost Hunting Diary Volume I, I’ve just about decided that there is a lot more to these encounters than we realize.  I have a feeling that by the time I get to her 4th Ghost Hunting Diary, I’ll be a true believer.

 
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