Shellie Rushing Tomlinson
Welcome back to the porch, folks. For those of you who aren't
from these parts, I have an announcement: It is officially
summer in the south. I turned on the ceiling fan before y'all got
here, although I guess it was more from force of habit than
anything. All it really does is stir the air a bit and cool the
mosquitoes. But, hey, that nice whirring sound kinda soothes
the nerves, don't you think? ~smile~
No fish stories this week. I'm still getting over last week's
"cute" emails. Incidentally, I still think y'all could've been a
little nicer about the size of my bass. I'm sure your mama taught
you better.
I hope you enjoy this week's issue. The recipe is a real keeper,
sent in by a fellow porcher. Jessica outdid herself in the kitchen
trying it out for us. And then, on top of the "Three Cheese
Spaghetti Bake" she made my "Pull Apart Bread" for dessert. (You
can find that one in the Recipe Archives.) By the way, are you
prone to eating more when you haven't been the one doing the
cooking, or is it just me? (groan)
To all the fathers on the porch, let me say, "Happy Father's Day"
a little early. I hope Dad's Day is extra special for all of you.
Hugs,
Shellie
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~~Chuckles~~
"The Cow Pony"
The Monday Afternoon Club, an organization of wealthy women,
met and decided that this month's outing was to be at a dairy
farm. Most of them had lived in the city all their lives, and
had never seen such a thing.
The day came, and the ladies filed into the rented bus which
whisked them off to their destination. On the way, they watched
out the windows as the city squalor turned into lovely,
unpolluted countryside.
Upon their arrival they were greeted by the farmer who invited
them to make themselves at home and look him up should they have
any questions. Several hours later, Myrtle stepped into a building
and viewed something she thought was quite remarkable. Noticing
the farmer walking by, she hailed him and he sauntered in.
"Sir," she inquired, "Why doesn't this cow have any horns?"
The farmer cocked his head for a moment, then began in a patient
tone, "Well, ma'am, cattle can do a powerful lot of damage with
horns. Sometimes we keep' em trimmed down with a hacksaw. Other
times we can fix up the young 'uns by puttin' a couple drops of
acid where their horns would grow in, and that stops 'em cold.
Still, there are some breeds of cattle that never grow horns.
But the reason this cow don't have no horns, ma'am, is 'cause
it's a horse."
~special thanks to Dude Halley for this week's chuckle~
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~~A Taste of the South~~
"THREE CHEESE SPAGHETTI BAKE"
Phil and Phillip have lobbied hard for me to adopt a policy of
not putting anything in the emag that we haven't tried at home.
The debate is tabled right now; Jessica is home and happy to run
the test kitchen. (Did you know that you can get twice as much
done in a day when you don't have to stop and cook supper?)
"THREE CHEESE SPAGHETTI BAKE"
• 1 16 oz. pkg. Angel hair spaghetti
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• ½ cup Romano cheese, grated
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 Tbsp. Olive or vegetable oil
• 2 tsp. Garlic powder
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• 1 28 oz jar spaghetti sauce
Cook spaghetti according to package directions (do not overcook); drain.
Add 1 cup mozzarella cheese, Parmesan Cheese, Romano Cheese, egg, oil,
garlic powder, salt & Pepper.
Press into a greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Top with spaghetti sauce.
Cover & bake at 350' for 20 minutes. Uncover......sprinkle with remaining
1 cup mozzarella cheese and bake 10 additional minutes or until heated
through and cheese is melted. YIELDS: 6-8 servings.
~Today's recipe comes from Sara Duncan in Louisiana. Thanks, Sara,
this is delicious!~
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Please forward ALL THINGS SOUTHERN to your friends and family!
(You can also email them the parent site by going to
http://www.allthingssouthern.com and clicking on the link that
says "email this site to a friend.")
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~~Spotlight on the South~~
SPOTLIGHT ON THE "The REAL LINCOLN" by Thomas DiLorenzo
I had a difficult time trying to decide whether of not to
spotlight this book, but not for the reasons you might expect.
It's a very interesting read, a one-sitter for me. No, I stewed
over whether to spotlight this book because it's potentially
controversial, and I've tried so hard to keep squabbles off
of our porch. In the end I decided I wasn't doing anyone any
favor by being lilly-livered about a book I found fascinating.
Some books you read for pleasure, some you read for education.
Saturday morning I picked up Tom DiLorenzo's book, "The REAL
LINCOLN" to see what all the fuss was about. By Saturday night,
I had a lot of answers and even more questions, but at least I
understood why it was causing such an uproar among historical
scholors. The issues of the debate were clear: Abraham Lincoln,
"Honest Abe, the Great Emancipator", or Abraham Lincoln,
"Calculating Politician and the Father of Big Government".
Was the War between the States a tool used by a brilliant
politician to transform the limited, decentralized government
our founding fathers intended into a highly centralized, activist
state? Could the United States have followed the example of dozens
of other countries and fazed out the inhumane institution of slavery
without the loss of 600,000 American lives? Or, was the bloody
demise of slavery the only possible way to end its evil?
By respectfully refraining from offering my own conclusions, I hope
you'll be challenged to read the book as I did--with an open mind.
Whatever your political leanings, you'll be glad you did.
Through a mutual contact, I was able to arrange an interview
with the author of "The REAL LINCOLN", Mr. Thomas DiLorenzo. You'll
find our short Q&A along with his bio here
~Shellie
Click to buy your copy.
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~~It's Been Said...~~
"Southerners can claim kin with anybody. It's one of our
most dextrous talents."
----Guy Davenport
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~~Southern Comfort~~
"Mercy, Not Sacrifice"
I was studying in Matthew, Chapter Nine, when I read these
words: "Go and learn what this means, I will have mercy and not
sacrifice." I admit, I kept reading with barely a pause.
A few verses later Jesus repeated himself, but this time with an
admonition for not following his earlier advice. "IF, (emphasis
mine), you had known what this meant: 'I will have mercy and
not sacrifice, you wouldn't have condemned the guiltless.' "
Suddenly, it didn't sound like a bad idea to spend some time
"going and learning". My understanding is far from complete,
but I'll tell you what I've found so far.
At first I thought of "mercy" as just being willing to overlook
wrongs. But, in studying the original Greek, I discovered that
"mercy", as it's used here, goes a little further, suggesting a
loyal act of love or devotion born out of a prior relationship,
especially a covenant relationship. Mercy isn't just an internal
feeling and sacrifice isn't just an external action; there's a
relationship between the two. Maybe an analogy will help to explain
it.
If you're a parent, chances are you've found yourself, at least
once, watching a great performance known as the "The Noble
Martyr", starring your own little darling. (Maybe you've
even starred in this role a few times yourself.) It's a role
requiring the actor or actress to go to great lengths to portray
the sacrifices of obedience. I know I've seen my little stars
perform a household chore, like folding clothes, complete with heavy
sighs and drooping shoulders that were meant to cause me--their
audience--to appreciate their great sacrifice of time and energy.
Unfortunately for them, their dramatics never inspired a great
rush of gratitude, but rather a certain amount of irritation.
Now, if we can replay the same scene a little differently...
This time you come in from work and the same child is folding the
same clothes--but now she's doing it because she knows you're tired
and there is still supper to cook and chores to do. You recognize
that she is doing this out of her relationship and love for you,
her parent. At this point you leave immediately to go buy her
a car. (Just joking.)
There's a lot more to this one; maybe we'll continue it next
week. For now, let's wrap it up this way. When our relationship
with Jesus is so intimate that we obey His commands out of love
and not duty, we'll meet the approval of the only audience that
really matters--an audience of One.
~Shellie
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~~Southern Exchange~~
Your letters:
Hello Shellie,
My Paw Paw always told us when we were little that a cotton
mouth snake smelled just like cucumbers. I can't tell you how
true this is, I never hung around long enough to smell any.
As soon as I saw one I was gone, as fast as possible. LOL. Just
like the old saying about the stripes on a snake, the one that
tells you about whether it could kill you or be your friend.
I never met one I would want to strike up a friendship. My Paw
Paw once had a very brave pig that would eat all snakes that he
came in contact with. I loved that pig ;-)) Hope y'all been
getting a bit of the rain we have been having. I know most of
all of us could use it. It was fun "chatting" with you and I
won't take up any more of your time. BTW, I love your newsletter.
Kathy
Columbus, GA.
(Dear Kathy, I'm with you! I can't tell you how a cotton mouth
smells, 'cause I could never get past how he looks! On the other
hand, I like PawPaw's pig. Thanks for writing in. Hugs~Shellie)
__________
Dear Shellie,
LOVED every word you wrote. I'm an unreconstructed rebel
with my roots in the South though I have been away MANY years.
In 8 more days I will be 90 and still singing DIXIE!!!!!!
Mary Ellen Ramsey
Tucson, AZ
(Dear Mary Ellen, You're my new hero. A lot of older people are
intimidated by the computer. Obviously, you're not most people.
Happy 90th Birthday to the Singing Senior of ATS. Hugs, Shellie)
__________
Hello Shellie,
Shellie, We just built a new house,(cottage style), and built
a circle drive past the front door. We have a carport with two
doors into the house, one is directly into our laundry room
which is next to our master bed room so there are times as
empty nesters living in the country that we are not fully dressed
when going in there. We've already covered the door glass to
protect our privacy. Problem is strangers keep coming to that
door. One came this morning and I politely asked him why he chose
that door. He said "it was the southern thing to do". Hey, I was
raised in McComb, Mississippi. My mother is from Lake Village,
Arkansas. I live in the country out of Ruston, Louisiana. But I
don't want people coming through my laundry room! Is it unsouthern
to ask people to use another door?
Gene Lueg
Ruston, LA
(Dear Gene, Hmmm...I looked all through my "Southern Rules Handbook"
under "The Proper Use of Doors" and I couldn't find anything that
would help. So...here's my advice. Find a decorative little
chalk-board or write-on/wipe-off board and post a sugary-sweet
note on it that would make our southern moms proud. Maybe something
like, "Please use the front door. It's been provided just for you,
our very special guest." Let me know it it helps. :-) Shellie)
_________
Dear Shellie,
I've been reading your stories and such from the porch. Thought
some of your readers might enjoy this poem I wrote in 2000. I have
a Great Aunt named Gladis and ever since I can remember her nickname
has been T-Boone (she lives in Abbeville, La.). For some reason as
a child I knicknamed her T-Bone Steak. LOL! Anyway, here is a little
poetry for you to enjoy.
Huggies,
Betty Schaub,
Allen, Texas (Born and raised in Morgan City, LA -- still
southern and a cross between a girly girl and a tom boy!)
Click here to read
Ro mansin' T-Boone
(Dear Betty, I really enjoyed your poem. Thanks for taking the time
to share it with us. Who knows? Maybe it'll inspire some of your
fellow porchers to put their own rhymes down on paper. Hugs ~Shellie)
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ATS NEWS:
I'll have my All Things Southern booth set up at the Peach
Festival in Ruston, Louisiana, June 14th. I hope to see you
there. (If I'm not in the booth when you get there, you can
find me at the Peach Eating Contest. I'll be the one covered
in juice. ~Shellie)
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~~A Southern Definition~~
"If your dolls didn't have all their hair chopped off, shortly
after you got them...you could have been a girly girl."
--Shellie Rushing Tomlinson
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WHAT SOUTHERN MOMS TELL THEIR DAUGHTERS...
About love and marriage: "It's just as easy to fall in love
with a rich man as it is a poor one!" Do you remember your
southern mom's advice about love,marriage, relationships and
life in general? Then join the fun; this project is exploding!
Write me at tomtom@allthingssouthern.com to have your mom's
advice memorialized in my new book: WHAT SOUTHERN MOMS TELL
THEIR DAUGHTERS...
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