Good day! Many of you know we live in Cyprus for the greater part of the year. Cyprus has a 300 –day annual record for sunshine and this helps produce many fine fruit and vegetables! During the course of the year we often have a glut of produce. At the time of writing the lay-bays along the country roads are full of pick-up trucks selling piles of water melon, honeydew melon, potatoes, sweet corn and tomatoes!

Now there only so many tomatoes you can eat in a salad and when you can buy them for literally a few pennies then NOW is the time to think about turning them into something you can lay down and keep. I frequently make chutneys, jams and other preserves and today I’d like to tell you how I make Sun-dried tomatoes for a snip of the supermarket price!

To make a pound (or roughly half a kilo) of sun-dried tomatoes, you need eight pounds (four kilos). Normally sun-dried toms are expensive, but by using cheap ripe fresh tomatoes I’m utilising the glut.

Method

Cut your tomatoes lengthways into four pieces. Place on a wire rack, sprinkle with salt and lay in the sun to dry. If you can cover with a wire food protector to keep bugs off, then good. Wire mesh is easily bought in a hardware store.

The tomatoes take about three to four days to dry. Once they’re shrivelled and dry (not blackened and crispy!), put them into clean jars, adding a piece or two of basil and a little salt. Pour olive oil over and seal. They can be used within a few days and will keep in a cold, shady for many months.

When you come to use the tomatoes in recipes, most of the time you’ll remove them from the oil and leave to soak for a while. Boiling water is poured over them and once soft they can be used whole, or chopped into pieces for pasta sauces, risottos and some meat dishes. I use the herby oil from the jar in savoury frying and dressings.

All simply delicious and so simple!

Sun-dried Tomato Paste

Take some sun-dried tomatoes with their oil and make a puree from them. This can be spread over fish, chicken or steaks to add a gorgeous flavour. You can also add to stir-fried and oven-baked vegetables too. A very Continental thing we do is to take some fresh bread, spread the puree over, and add sliced cucumber and a spoonful of local yoghurt. You can also add other herbs, such as parsley, garlic, capers and olives. Yum!

And what if you have no sun?

Proceed exactly as for sun-drying; simply put the racks of sliced, salted tomatoes into a cool oven and leave to dry. It will take a few hours at 50’C/120’F.

Sun-dried Tomato Pesto

Finally why not make your own fresh pesto which is far superior to bottled stuff!

Ingredients

Sprigs of fresh basil (about 6)

75g (3 oz) sun-dried tomatoes

125g (4 oz) pine kernels

4 chopped garlic cloves

25 cl (8 fl oz) olive oil

125 (4 oz) grated Parmesan cheese

2 good pinches pepper

Method

Place everything into a blender except the oil, cheese and pepper and blend well. Add the pepper and oil and give it a good whizz. Add cheese and give another whizz.

Amazing!

I hope you try out these very simple recipes and get a kick out of producing your very own preserves. Have fun and I’ll be back next time with more ideas from my sun-drenched island!

Thanks for dropping by!

Faithx

The Matina Tomato 82282 image was credited to Robert & Mihaela Vicol

So what do you reckon? Is there any justification for Fifty Shades of Grey reaching the top spot on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com and remaining there for weeks on end?

But what’s it all about? The author, E.L James is a TV executive, wife and mother of two, and is based in West London. Since early childhood, she dreamt of writing stories that readers would fall in love with, but put those dreams on hold to focus on her family and her career. She finally plucked up the courage to put pen to paper with her first novel, Fifty Shades of Grey…and she’s had the courage to go on and write two more novels in the same genre. And what genre is it? The book (I’ll really only cover book 1 here) has been described as erotica, erotic romance, twilight fan fiction, fan fiction crap (is there such a genre?!), contemporary romance, erotic intelligence to beautiful disaster! Who thinks up these titles of genre? There are more than 90 on Amazon!

Opinions are of course personal things and looking through the 8658 reviews on Amazon (No! I’ve not read them all!), the swing meter goes from perfect 5 *****’s down to 1*’s that many reviewers begrudge even giving them. Interestingly for Fifty shades of Grey, book 1 the average rating drops down to 3***, but the other two books in the series although having less reviews are registering at 4****. So has E.L James improved or is it her dedicated followers who’ve taken the time to write a line or two about her writing leaving those more disgruntled readers to ignore putting their thoughts down?

What’s E.L James got that many thousands of other hasn’t? She published book 1 in April this year and book 2 a week later, followed by book 3 two months after that. A case in point and don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining…my two latest novels, The Seeds of Time and the sequel, Harvest were published in June and July this year. They are different genre and written very differently. Both books have 100% 5***** rating…but despite having a good following from my own more modest fan base I can only dream of being able to compete. And there’s a very good reason why…

…You see she has had the most perfect advertising campaign and exposure that any writer can dream of. For every time a review is written (warning, extremely bad language here), or there is a video made  (very funny) E.L James simply can’t put a foot wrong! Bravo!

It’s not about the writing in this example. It’s in the publicity. Her marketing and promotional campaign has been phenomenal. Her product has been presented and pushed to the very top in a matter of weeks. Her publisher, Vintage Books says they have sold over 16 million copies of the books in the U.S since the spring!

Just today, E. L James is watching another phenomena take off!  According to the Mail on line, Lelo the Swedish brand of high-end sex toys have seen a 400% hike in sales of their pelvic-floor exercise system! And Amazon has also been impressed by high sales of ‘sexual awareness’ geisha balls! And finally there has been talk of a spike in a baby boom due to fifty Shades of Grey.

So here’s me thinking…maybe I should be advertising these products on my website instead of my own books...just joking!

Seriously, whatever you may think, E. L James has done it right. Don’t knock her for being in the right place at the right time and producing something that just once in a while captures everyone’s attention, love it or hate it!

And if you’ve already read Fifty Shades and you want one more book to love then…you know where to look!
Thanks for dropping by and for your fab support. Have a great day and weekend to follow!
Faith x

Good Day! Many of you know that we live for most of the year in Cyprus. It’s an island which is just about big enough to live on without feeling too claustrophobic.  Cyprus has a lot going for it; some beautiful scenery, good weather, they’re behind with the times and living in the 60’s (which we like!) and income tax on pensions is lower than the UK! NOT that I’m a pensioner but my other half is as he’s over sixty and the tax saving makes a big difference to income.

I can easily say that because of the excellent weather we spend a huge amount of our time outside. We’re fortunate in being active and able. We regularly walk, hash (a bit like hare and hounds with many false trails thrown in), run, belong to various drama groups and generally socialise a lot! Our friends here are mostly like-minded and live life to the full.

I’ve heard the saying; if sixty is the new forty…then we’ve still got a lot of living to do. Recently I’ve taken stock of all out friends around us. Perhaps it’s because we live in a place where the weather is conducive to being active and fine weather always puts me in a good mood as no doubt it does you too. And looking at our friends I came to the conclusion that if we lived in a colder climate then we’d probably not do half as much as we do.

Most people dread getting older – I know I do. But reading up on Google that, ‘sixty is the new forty’ led me to look up and learn that fifty is the new thirty!

Strangely enough, I couldn't find any Google proof that seventy is the new fifty, but maybe now that I’ve mentioned it someone will come up with just such a post. The only drawback to all this is, as I’ve passed my 30’s and 40’s I feel I’ve been cheated out of some of my youthfulness!

In an article on ezine.com, Alison Braidwood suggests that sixty is the New Forty because once the first Baby Boomers start to hit 60; they’re radically reshaping society’s notions of how “older adults” are supposed to act. Instead of sitting at home with a nice cup of cocoa and the cat, they’re travelling, dating, and refusing to relinquish their youth. Today’s older generation enjoys good health and a vitality that would have been unthinkable just a generation ago.

I know there’s a world recession, but some people are still able to plan their retirement at around 64 and many want to begin a new career. Why not? Men and women in their 70’s and 80’s compete in marathons. Seniors teach and take classes, travel, and live fuller lives than ever before. Indeed one statistic states that the average for entering a nursing home is now 81! Compare this to the 1950’s when it was 65. What a difference! But does this improved health and vitality, a more active lifestyle and a reprieve from the nursing home make Sixty-Five the New Forty-Five?

I found a post written by Davis Solie who may have an answer which is closer to the truth. The article on ELDR.com  says Sixty is the New Sixty.  Good health and an impressive array of lifestyle options, he says, certainly make many of today’s sixty year olds look different compared to their parent’s generation. But appearances can be misleading. In their rush to celebrate biological vibrancy, sixty year olds could miss a crucial piece of information about what occurs developmentally on the journey to seventy.

We may do some of the things we did when we were in our forties, but our sixties are actually different.  We may want career changes at 55, but at 65 conventional employment sources are harder to come by. Not everyone wants to engage older workers.  We do feel the aging and no amount of nutrition, exercise and plastic surgery can keep us from feeling this.

But there’s a rim of gold on that beckoning cloud.   Once you pass from 40 to 50 and upwards, you become more at peace with yourself. I know I feel less inclined to worry about what others think, and I’m more appreciative of what I have.  I adore my family; I always have, but before when I took them for granted; now I think a lot more before doing something.

Being at peace with oneself can also mean you have more time to spend on your friends, family and fulfilling a dream. Although the jobs may not be there any more for older people, those who can afford to are channelling their spare time into other pursuits. For me, apart from what I’ve already spoken about, I’m head over heels in love with writing - -and I know a heck of a lot of people who feel the same. So whatever your age, once you give up the permanent employment there’s still a wonderful life out there beckoning you, be it pursuing a dream, helping out with a charity or setting up a small cottage industry to run from home.

Now for fun…some favourite old age jokes…

70-year-old George went for his annual physical. He told the doctor that he felt fine, but often had to go to the bathroom during the night. Then he said, "But you know Doc, I'm blessed. God knows my eyesight is going, so he puts on the light when I pee, and turns it off when I'm done!" A little later in the day, Dr. Smith called George's wife and said, "Your husband's test results were fine, but he said something strange that has been bugging me. He claims that God turns the light on and off for him when uses the bathroom at night."

Thelma exclaimed, "That old fool! He's been peeing in the refrigerator again!"

                                                            ***

A senior citizen was driving home on the freeway when his mobile rang. Answering, he heard his wife's voice urgently warning him, "Tom, I just heard on the news that there's a car going the wrong way on A3. Please be careful!"

"Hell," said Tom, "It's not just one car. It's hundreds of them!"

                                                            ***

And finally, how do you know when you're getting older?

Everything hurts and what doesn't hurt, doesn't work.
Getting lucky means you find your car in the car park.
The gleam in your eyes is from the sun hitting your bifocals.
Your knees buckle and your belt won't.
Those issues of Reader's Digest just can't come fast enough.
You hear your favourite song on the elevator in the supermarket.
You give up all your bad habits and you still don't feel good.
Dialling long distance wears you out.
You're the one calling the police because those damn kids next door don't know how to turn down the stereo.
You actually want socks for Christmas.
You and your teeth don't sleep together.
After painting the town red, you have to take a long rest before applying a second coat.
The little grey-haired lady/man you help across the street is your wife/husband.
There's nothing left to learn the hard way.
Your little black book contains only names ending in M.D.

Thanks for dropping by and taking the time to read this. And remember - live life to the full!

Faith x

Good day!

I'm delighted to invite you all to help yourself to a free copy of The Seeds of Time.

This is the first book in The Crossing series...and is action-packed with adventure, suspense and romance. The sequel, Harvest was released just this week, and I know once you've read The Seeds of Time, then you'll want to get your copy of Harvest too. It's a natural follow-on. The Seeds of Time has already received some fabulous reviews in the short time it has been published - and I'm sure you'll enjoy reading it too!

Don't forget, all books are available on every Amazon site, worldwide.
Have a great day reading your free copy! Thanks for dropping by
Faithx

Good day!

I'm delighted you can join me in my excitement today. I'm proud and very pleased to announce the publication of 'Harvest', Book Two of The Crossing. This book is a natural follow on from 'The Seeds of Time', and we discover our heroes, Richard and Billy facing new challenges,  romance and a dark secret. Will they find what they are both looking for, and especially Richard?
'The Seeds of Time', has been blessed with some fantastic five star reviews and I'm hoping readers will enjoy this volume as much. I've even been asked if there will be a sequel to 'Harvest' - well......maybe!
So if you're looking for a new read..something containing plenty of action, adventure, romantic suspense and a little sexy scene or two, then I'll be delighted if you give my new book a try.
Thank you for the support you all give me. I've said it before and I'll say it again - we writers need you readers and I never forget it.
So find somewhere comfortable to lie back and indulge yourself in a little,  'Harvest'.

Many thanks
Faithx

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