Ooh Chloe

Ahhh Thanksgiving is here. I can almost taste the food. Yummy spices fill the air: sage, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. We have already built a few fires in our fire place; which is divine with a cup of hot spiced tea. I fully intend to put up the Christmas tree on Friday and switch from my "*Almost* Christmas" playlist on Spotify (half Christmas, half regular music) to "It's Christmas Time Pretty Baby!" (ALL Christmas) to top off my Christmas spirit. But before that, there's Thanksgiving! I LOVE rice with everything in me. I could eat rice every day. This is an old recipe from none other than Harriet Nelson! This is my new favorite meal. It would be perfect for a holiday dinner. It is so easy! It is not the healthiest though. Oops. I guess we all have to splurge every once in awhile. I do mine a little different than Harriet, I will note the difference. Harriet Nelson's Favorite Chicken 1 1/2 cups long grain white rice (not Minute rice!) 1 can Cream

I'm putting song titles in parenthesis. To get the full effect, you should definitely listen as I mention them. I remember when I sang  my first "special" at church. I was anything but a seasoned singer. In fact, I had a terribly flat and airy voice. I was shaking all over and utterly terrified. When I finished my two minute song, as scared as I was, I knew that someday I wanted to be in the band. After years of taking voice lessons, singing more specials, and occasionally filling in when the the lead singers were gone, my time had come. When my preacher asked me if I wanted to join the band, I couldn't spit out my, "yes," quick enough. ( Fools Rush In by Rick Nelson). The months that ensued brought some of the greatest memories of my life. For the first time, I felt like I belonged somewhere. The days or weeks between practices and Sundays felt like an eternity. I'm pretty sure the people closest to me were beyond tired of hearing about the band as th

Simplicity is key in my life. I may be a complicated individual, but I do appreciate the simple things in life. Here are seven things that, though simple, bring a special joy to my heart and sparkle to my eye. Music: Music is something that I cannot live without. Have I honestly made it one post without referencing it? I am listening to music as a write (Now Playing: Only the Lonely by Roy Orbison). Nothing makes me happier than four chords masterfully arranged to make a sweet melody with a deep, smooth voice. One of my favorite quotes about music is by Tom Waits, he says, "I love beautiful melodies telling me terrible things," and nothing could be truer. Playing Guitar: Although this kind of falls under the music category, there is a difference between listening to music and creating it. There is something so moving to me that I can make those beautiful melodies with my own two hands and put my own thoughts with them, or I can take someone else's song and recreate it w