Tasting Paradise

I have no sense of taste or smell since inhaling a product like Comet Cleanser when I was a baby. Chemical burns took care of taste buds and whatever's needed in the nose for smelling. That being said, if I don't write about my lunch yesterday at Square Burger, I'm going to explode.

I ate the turkey burger and COULD TASTE IT! If you've always been able to taste food, this may not have any significance to you, but for me, it opened up a whole new world. It gave orgasmic experiences a new flavor for me. I've never eaten so slowly in my life. I didn't want it to end. The texture of the meat with the taste of its juices rendered me speechless, but I have to say, I tingled from the top of my head all the way to my toes with every bite I swallowed.

I found out that the meat offered at Square Burger is grass-fed beef and pastured chickens. Now, I'm not sure where they get their turkey or salmon, but if they do that for beef and chicken I can just imagine how well loved and nurtured their turkey and salmon are. Let's just say that my taste buds can tell the difference between drugged animal meat and drug free. There's a huge party in my mouth when pulling an organic carrot out of the ground and snapping off the tip with my teeth, and there's just no one home when a store-bought nonorganic anything is eaten.

And then last night we had a business meeting at Square Burger with my daughter and her partners at RejuveNation LifeSpa. First thing we tried was the smoked salmon blinis. Oh my god, the chef should be knighted for sainthood! The description on the menu read: waffle fries with yogurt cream, smoked wild king salmon, salmon pearls, red onion, chives. I ate a masterpiece of culinary sensations that exploded in my mouth. Not only could I feel the round smoothness of the pearls and the dips and curves of the fries, but I could taste the salmon! I don't have words for what it tastes like, and I'm not sure I could get that explicit about how it made my body feel, so let's just say that it's an experience I would love to explore again.

Smoked Salmon Blinis

Square Burger

On November 12, 2008 I moved to McKinney, Texas, and at that time there was a closed building on the southwest corner of Kentucky and W. Virginia that had a sign promising that a restaurant called Square Burger was going to be opening.

On June 14, 2010 it became true. Here's Katy standing in front of the 33 beers on tap. Not only is she pretty, but the wall itself is a work of art. There's Moose Drool, Blue Moon, Lawnmower, and 30 others. Here you can have a flight -- three beer samples for $6.00. I highly recommend it. If you're not sure what you want, pick three names that sound good or let the bartenders pick them.

Here's to Brandon Horrocks, one of the owners. (He's the one standing behind my friend, Tom Michero.) Here's to someone who kept at it and made it happen, someone who brought people into his life who could fulfill this dream.

The building on the southwest corner of Kentucky and W. Virginia is open now. It has been for three days, and I've been privileged enough to be able to walk through those doors, to sit in the love stool, and belly up to the bar.

So, thank you, Brandon, for what you've done. It's brought a new place to the square that we can meet our friends, make new ones, and enjoy great burgers and 33 different beers on tap! And I haven't even mentioned their wines, appetizers, and desserts, or that the chef/co-owner came from Wolfgang Puck's Spago.

What are you waiting for? They're open Monday through Thursday 11-11, Friday and Saturday, 11-12, and Sunday 11-4. Get over there and keep them busy. The food's fabulous. The company's extraordinary, and you may just see me sitting on my love stool.

The Fifth Element

Everywhere I look in this town I see one beautiful porch after another. Every walk I take I want to capture at least a dozen images of these porches. This is a fairy land here with rows of cottages. My friend Cindy introduced me to the Fifth Element today, and I believe that's what McKinney is. Cindy pointed out to me in the book, B is for Beer by Tom Robbins, exactly what the beer fairy calls the fifth element.

"...That's right, another basic component of reality, one that's as nourishing as Earth, as shifty as Water, as invisible as Air, and as dangerous as Fire."

The beer fairy continues with: "I'm only labeling it an 'element,' understand, because it doesn't fall into the category of animal or vegetable or mineral. It disobeys the laws of physics and it moons the rules of logic, just as the two of us have been doing today, actually, although you seem to have taken it completely in stride. What is it? Some people call it transcendence, some used to call it magic...before that word got used up.

"It's a mixture of pure love, unlimited freedom, and total, spontaneous, instantaneous knowledge of everything past, present, and future--all rolled up in a kind of invisible ghost-sheet enchilada that can be periodically smelled and occasionally tasted, but rarely chewed and never, never digested..."

"There are those who regard it as a blast of divine energy, originating in Heaven, maybe, or in Another World. There're also people who are content to refer to it simply as the Mystery, and that's as good a term as any, I guess, although I'm rather fond of the jazz musician who, in a different context, once called it hi de ho."

"...they (people) are unconsciously pulled toward it, they hunger for it, they yearn to connect with it, to get next to it, even to merge with it."

"...adults still thirst for that connection, that alternative to the unsatisfying reality men have constructed for themselves, and which they feel locked into like a dungeon.

So, they resort to all sorts of things--a few enlightened, many destructive, most ineffective, some just plain silly--that might allow them even a breath or two outside the prison walls. To a certain extent, that explains the appeal of beer.

"Beer, if it's just the right amount--not too little and definitely not too much--may on occasion transport one through that crack and carry one close enough to the gates of the Mystery that one's granted a quick but entirely rapturous peek inside.

'"What's it look like?'

"The fairy smiled and rotated her wings. 'Everything. And nothing. Both at the same time. What does the electricity inside your atoms look like? What do forever and laughter and liberty look like? It's the face everybody shared before they were born and the joke they'll finally get after they're dead. It's the meaning of meaning, the other that has no further, and the which of which there is no whicher.'

"Be warned. When considering beer as a vehicle, one had better bear in mind that it's hardly reliable transportation. It's a very old cart, in fact; a wagon pushed and pulled by forgotten forces, by agricultural spirits, the ancient spirits of grain and the land. It's a wagon, my dear, that can easily swerve and run off the road."

So, therefore, dear readers, I am in the Fifth Element here in McKinney, Texas. It's the epitome of transcendence and magic! And especially at this time of the year when all the flowers are in bloom, including the magnificent magnolias. Fairies abound. I'm house sitting for some friends on vacation and while watering their hydrangeas this morning, I noticed a new subdivision of fairy condos. They are everywhere, my friends. Ah, relax and enjoy the magic that surrounds us all!

What's Not to LOVE About McKinney?

I've just had the most amazing day of my life right here in McKinney.

It started when I was driving my car out onto W. Virginia from my daughter's office, RejuveNation LifeSpa and two police officers on horseback pulled me over into a parking lot. Looking out of my rolled-down window high up to the face of the sweetest looking police officer, and I mean that in oh so many ways, I told him I knew why he pulled me over. Expired registration and expired inspection. Two citations later, they asked me if I had a driver's license because it wasn't coming up on the Texas site. Well...it's still Colorado, not even Steamboat Springs, but Longmont, where I lived another lifetime ago. Hey, listen, my license says it expires in 2012, why do I need another one? I didn't leave the country, just the state. I've lived in Colorado most of my adult life. I've had a Texas license for the two years I drove in Texas and ever since it's been Colorado. Oh lord...

So, after not being hand cuffed or arrested for a felony, which is what bribing a police officer is in this state, I spent my afternoon getting my car legal again in Texas. The people that work here are extraordinary! Lesleigh at the registration place was nice and friendly and just wonderful enough to hug if it weren't for the plate glass that divided us. And then there was Heather at the place I had to go to pay the citations. She apologized for the wait and then let me know she couldn't take care of me today because the tickets hadn't been processed. So, she's going to call me after they are and I'll give her a credit card number so I don't have to come back in! How nice is that???

Let's not forget the guy at FastLane who engineered my inspection. He made sure we were in and out of there so my daughter could get back to do her surgery at 2:15. She's a chiropractor and surgery with a scalpel wasn't on her list to do today, but it sure did hurry up the inspection and I did get her to her office for the next patient.

And then I went to the Department of Public Safety to get my license. When I handed the clerk my driver's license, she was floored that it was a Longmont one. She used to own a shop in Longmont. She told me which one. I told her where it was located because I was one of her customers!!! Right then and there we bonded like long-lost sisters.

And to think, it all started with the mounted patrolmen. They are also the ones in my daughter's photograph that hangs in her spa. These women tried for at least a half hour to just get their rhythm down, and they just couldn't do it. That is, until the two horses and the riders stepped across W. Virginia. It was a proud moment for all.

And even after receiving the tickets, I told the officers to come see my daughter for massages and chiropractic adjustments on the house. This time though my offer was not considered a felony. The citations were already in my hand.

McKinney Porches

I have never lived in such a beautiful community like this one. I am mesmerized by the houses as I take my morning walks. And there is truly nothing like wondering the streets at night with lights on inside the houses and seeing the gorgeous rooms of the most magnificent homes anywhere!

Hm...am I just a tad bit partial to my neighborhood? Could be, but just take a look at some of these pictures I've captured and see for yourself. It was a bright day so the pictures are a bit washed out, but still you cannot deny the beauty these people have put into their homes. To each and every homeowner, I say thank you. What a privilege it is to call this town my home!!

Who doesn't want to rock away the morning on this porch. Give me a mint julep on this bad boy and I could wile away some hours in deep pleasure!

You've got to admit how sweet and inviting this is. I wish I could show you all my pictures and all the houses. They each have something to shout to the world. Look at me. Just look at me. And more importantly, stay awhile...

I couldn't resist this one. I just love the little bistro table and chairs. I've begun a series of fiber art depicting some of these porches. I'll post my artwork on Jill Luigs Art as soon as I get all the pieces done. These porches have been such great inspiration for me.

And to my Colorado friends, you would not believe the prices of houses around here. They're selling for less than what we would consider a down payment!

I call this one the Alice in Wonderland house. What a gift to be able to call this neighborhood home. I am so very, very blessed. Thank you, McKinney!

Also, click onto ExpressiveHart (a blog by a dear friend of mine, Silky Hart Michero) to see more front porches in McKinney.

magical, miraculous McKinney

I moved to McKinney, Texas for many reasons, but one of the main ones was to get away from the snow, the feet of snow I had shovelled in Steamboat Springs. I grew up in the Dallas area, and I knew that snow didn't last but a few hours here. Not so this time.
Just a couple of nights ago here's what the downtown looked like.

There was no getting away from being outside at 10:30 at night to start a snowball fight with the only people brave enough to play in the snow. Let me just say that those were by far the hardest snowballs I've ever encountered. They might as well have been paint balls shot from guns.

It was romantic and juicy, so beautiful and alive. The air crackled with every breath. It was everything I ever thought snow could be, even though I'd been living in a state for 34 years that got plenty of it. There's nothing so magical as receiving such a gift when it's so unexpected though, and this truly was unexpected.

And, of course, it wasn't real until a snowman was born. Okay, maybe "man" is an exaggeration, but it was at least something made of snow that held twigs for its arms. It stayed vertical until morning, so that in itself qualifies as a miracle here in McKinney, Texas.

Days later, the snow is still on the ground, along with tree limbs and bush twigs. The sun has finally come out, and I plan to open a bottle of red wine, pour myself a glass, and toast to such an amazingly magical place that I now call home.

the newest great news...

First of all, I want to thank Monica at Lone Star Winery for being the perfect hostess for my very first book reading.

I had just received the galley of my first novel yesterday in the mail. I had it in my bag when my friend Sonja, her daughter Jennifer, her friend Justin, my daughter Alyssa, and I were sitting down sipping Lone Star wines. With the TV on and others at the bar, I began my very first reading, holding my very first copy of my very first novel. I started on the first page, and when I was done, the TV was off and everyone was listening to my words.

I cannot tell you how meaningful that was for me. I've always wanted to get a novel published, and the next thing I want is to have readings of my novel. I've imagined myself doing just that every time I had listened to Jane Smiley, Joyce Carol Oates, Wally Lamb, and many others stand at a podium, hold their books up, and read their words. I always saw myself up there. I always heard my voice. I always saw myself reading my own words on pages with my name on them.

And last night I experienced it all without the podium. I was sitting on a bar stool, so my perspective was still slightly higher.

So, Monica and everyone else in the Winery, thank you for a dream coming true. And just as I was finished reading, my best friend from high school, who coerced me into stepping out of my mundance and giving a voice to Grace (my main character) called me and I got to tell her the newest great news. We had talked for years about her going with me on a book tour. Who knows? That too could happen.