CM Simpson: Writer & Gamer

For those who are interested. I try to cook from fresh whenever possible. It's cheaper, and the food tastes better. Recipe: In a pan, place two tablespoons of olive oil, a teaspoon of ground black pepper, and a teaspoon or two of garlic granules, or two cloves of finely chopped fresh garlic. Heat on medium until oil is hot. Take your steak and cut it into small pieces; alternatively, take a cup of steak pieces. Add to oil and  allow to brown. Add 4-6 thinly sliced mushrooms. Stir them through the steak. Add a small zucchini quartered and sliced. Stir through the steak and mushrooms. Add thinly sliced broccoli, cauliflower and carrots and stir through after adding each one. Add 1 1/2  cups of water. Cover pot, turn heat to halfway between low and medium. Allow to simmer for half an hour to an hour. Serve with bread.

I still have to get the knack of taking photographs in low light. This s the only semi-decent shot of a little white moth I saw at dusk one evening in late November.

The gardening continues, but I was forced to take a slower pace. It seems that even limiting the amount I did was not enough to avoid back strain. Day 7: I weeded and pruned and the muscles gave notice they were too sore to continue. Fortunately, nothing tore. I lost the rest of the day to lying flat on my back and sleeping. Not what I had planned. It was a loss of valuable writing time as I couldn't sit at the desk Day 8: Enforced day of rest. No gardening.

Sometimes writers used the months of the year to give them inspiration for verse. These calendar acrostics can use either an abbreviation of the month, or the full name:   JANuary makes all things new FEBruary is when the work ensures MARch is full of working cheer but by APRil the loading seems quite drear MAY brings cooler weather as autumn dies JUNe heralds winter and the cold winds fly JULy is a time for holidays, a mid-year break, exams AUGust is the coldest part of every year SEPtember sees schools resume and spring appear OCTober and the time wears thin before NOVember and university, senior school ends DECember is upon us fast, Celebration as the year breathes its last. Why don’t you give it a try? Try writing at least one calendar acrostic for each day of this week. You can find out more about how to write acrostics from the following sites: http://www.kathimitchell.com/poemtypes.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acrostic http://poetry