…is posted on my website now. I really think it captures the feel of the book, and especially of Gil. 😉

Go take a look, and let me know what you think.

If you’ve read ONE REAL COWBOY, you know Cord was a sucker for anything with apples in it. Since the apple season will be here soon, I thought I’d share the recipe for his favorite cookie. Enjoy!

Cord Tanner’s Favorite Cookies

Cream 1/2 cup softened butter or margarine and 1 cup packed brown sugar.

Add 2 eggs, 1/4 cup milk and beat well.

Stir into creamed mixture:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Stir in:
1-1/2 cups of chopped, peeled, cored apples (2 medium apples)
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Drop teaspoons of dough onto greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degree oven for 12-14 minutes. Remove cookies to rack while they’re still warm. Makes 4 1/2 dozen.

Note: a hard cooking apple works best.

File this one under bang up endings to Labor Day.

We’d just sat down to dinner last night when an explosion rocked the house. So we run around like chickens with their heads cut off, looking out windows. I saw the fire and smoke rolling into the sky first.

The house across the creek and south of us blew up. Actually, the firefighters are pretty sure a new grill on the patio/deck exploded. The propane tank flew across the street into a church’s parking lot.

The smell was awful last night, but with TV news helicopters overhead, most of it got dispersed faster. This morning, the stink is nearly all gone.

Good news is NO loss of life. The back of the house is totally gone, and it also blew a hole in their roof. Windows in houses on either side of this one were cracked or shattered. Scary!