Just a quick note to let loyal blog-readers know I’ve added a few new photos to my photo gallery! They’re from my youngest brother Brian’s recent wedding, courtesy of my famous (infamous?) Auntie Corky who’s never without her camera for a Kodak moment.  

    My 2-year-old, Clara, was a flower girl for the first time.  I will never forget seeing her twirl around the floor at the reception with the other 2 girls in her “beeu-ful” dress.  Our son, Calvin, partied so hard before dinner that he was falling asleep before the cake was cut. (luckily he doesn’t know what he missed!) 

    As always, it was nice to see so many family members and old friends together for a happy occasion.  Weddings tend to bring out the best in people, don’t you think?

   Congrats, Brian and Kelly!  Ian and I and the kids had an awesome time, and we’re excited to have Kelly in the family.

Trish

I had the pleasure to serve as both the moderator and panelist for Wednesday night’s debate between Indianapols mayoral candidates Bart Peterson and Greg Ballard.

  I thought both were polished and prepared.  There were no bombshell moments or surprises.  They made their points and, for the most part, did it well. Hopefully they provided enough information for you to make an informed decision about who should lead the city of Indianapolis for the next four years.    Please decide carefully and then - vote.

  It is such an honor and privilege to live in a country where WE, THE PEOPLE can help decide who our leaders will be.  So many citizens of other countries have no idea how that feels.  Our freedom to vote is a wonderful thing but it was bought with a price.  And it didn’t come cheap.  My parents always tell me that if you, vote you have the right to complain.  If you don’t vote, they say, then you forfeit that right because you’re FIRST opportunity to speak out was in the voting booth.

A lot of people want to change the conditions in their schools, neighborhoods and cities.   Whether you’re a republican, democrat, libertarian or independent, please vote.   It is the first, and possibly biggest leap you can take to begin the very changes you may be seeking.

I hope some of you got to see a funny clip in our 7pm newscast today.  Our family’s dog, Charlie Parker, made his TV debut.  He and I got invited to be photographed for an awareness campaign for the Humane Society.  The ads will soon appear in papers and magazines, encouraging people to “love them as you’d love your own.”

   Truth be told, our Charlie P. is a lot of dog to love. 100+ pounds with 2-year-old puppy energy, he’s a beautiful Bernese Mountain Dog, with a very lovable, if a bit clueless and dopey, personality. 

      He was instantly best friends with everyone in the room, which made it a little bit hard to keep him in one place.  I’m not the expert dog handler that my husband is, but I did my best to wrestle and cuddle the big sweet bear into place.

   Charlie also left an ENORMOUS amoung of black hair on the white mat, and all over my white shirt.  I’m still picking it out of my lipstick.

   The gifted photographer pulled out every trick in the book and got some priceless photos.  (Did you know dogs can actually smile? If you’re not a dog person this may sound ridiculous but it’s true!)

   Anyhow, Charlie Parker has no idea what he just got himself into, but it looks like his 15 minutes of fame are off to a good start!

TS

Peyton Manning is not dead.

But for a while this afternoon we were starting to sweat.

The phone in the newsroom was ringing off the hook with rumors he’d been killed in a crash.

Someone heard it in their Bingo hall.  Another says a trucker friend heard it from someone connected with paramedics. Most had heard it through a friend of a friend, who didn’t know where the rumor came from. Even ESPN and CNN wanted to know what was going on.

We checked. Manning is fine - according to the Colts’ publicist who says he talked PERSONALLY with Mr. Manning.

  This happened to Mark Twain once.  The eloquent author quipped famously, after being reported dead in a newspaper, “Reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”

I am curious though, how many of you heard this rumor through some sort of grapevine today  - and whether you believed it?? What kind of info got to you… and where did it supposedly come from?  And how do you think news stations should go about handling such rumors? We feel obligated to set the record straight, without making TOO huge a deal out of something that turned out to be nonsense.

I’d love to hear your thoughts, Colts fans!

TS

…get out of the kitchen, right?

I had to tonight.  Stopped home for a quick dinner and my dear husband Ian, by all accounts a great cook, had sauteed some incredibly hot peppers.  I had barely stepped in the door when I was overcome by a vicious coughing attack. 

  Our 2-year-old, Clara, was also hacking away, asking, “What’s wrong?? Mommy sick?? I sick??”

Nope - Daddy’s just trying to kill us, honey.

His mom and stepdad are visiting, and brought us a housewarming gift of brand new pots and pans. Ian of course had to try them out.  Judging by the hot pepper ordeal, they work just fine.

 In his defense, Ian really GOES FOR IT in the kitchen.  He throws in a little of this, a little of that, and suddenly it looks like Emeril stopped by.

I on the other hand am a hopeless disaster.  I’m so terrified of repeating some of my past cooking catastrophes, that I rarely stray from what I’m SURE will work.  Improvising and “spicing things up” is not my forte.  I’ve had far too many important meals end up burned, undercooked, or with missing ingredients… and me, in tears of frustration.

   The thought of being “in charge” of a Thanksgiving meal almost gives me hives.  I can handle making A pie, or some cookies - MAYBE one salad or side dish.  It’s the multi-tasking that kills me.

 I’ve actually called that Butterball hotline in a panic  - the one and only time I really tried to figure out how to do a turkey.

    I say cooking is an artistic talent- you’re either born with the aptitude, or not. 

Ian doesn’t buy this argument. He thinks I’m just afraid to keep trying and failing.

I can do lots of things. I can speak Spanish. I can sing. I can tell stories. I can speak in front of groups of strangers.  I can make kids laugh.  I can swim. I can bike. I can read Dr. Seuss’s “Fox in Socks” -fast - without messing up even once. 

I’m okay with not being a great cook. At least for now.

I don’t need to.

I’m lucky enough to have Ian to make the meals that make guests drool and ask for seconds. 

TS