An afternoon with a Beekman Boy

What better way to celebrate a day off -- a Friday, no less! -- than to meet Josh Kilmer-Purcell?
Beer. Well, yes. And so there was beer, too. Not with Josh, alas, though we extended the invite. :)
At Shuler's Books in Lansing, MI, we went to hear Josh read from the hysterical, touching book, The Bucolic Plague, an account of how he and his boyfriend, Brent, left the big city to become gentlemen farmers in upstate New York. Josh started on time (a big deal to me!), was adorable in person, and read the section about meeting Martha Stewart. Then we got to ask questions, and finally, we lined up to get our books signed.

Brian poses

Becky poses. :)

Josh signs. I don't know why this one came out so funky.

Aaand... the model walk! Very nicely done, Mr. Kilmer-Purcell and Audience Lady!

We had a fabulous time, and will definitely go out to see him again. He even remembered that I'm the shy girl who couldn't talk on the phone to him last year when Brian asked him to call me and wish me a happy birthday and he agreed! How incredibly nice is that! And I freaked out. Sheesh.

Yes. If you ever think to yourself, "She can't be as shy as she says she is, " YES I AM. I could barely talk to him today, and when he asked if I was still shy and I said yes, he hugged me anyway! What a wonderful person.

Also, he made me cry when he talked about Brent.

Okay, so we're back to work this weekend, both of us. Lastly, if anyone's got some time to read a short story for me, I'd be much obliged. First person to email me at: gshep72 AT sbcglobal DOT net

Thanks, everyone!

Twas a Rum-Soaked Evening...

Once upon a time, a girl bartended whilst making her dainty way through this world. She was quite good at it, and sometimes, she misses those days. Later on, this girl grew enamored of a darling pair of men called The Fabulous Beekman Boys, and she found that, despite herself, she was intrigued by their fruitcake recipe. One day, she decided to combine a lost passion and a new intrigue and see what would happen.

It was this! A Rum-filled Evening With Fruitcake and Music!

There are many recipes for Rum Runners, but this is a classic and how I made mine (note that I eyeball these things when actually making them, and don't measure):

Rum Runner

1 ounce Rum (I used Captain Morgan, since I was already using it for the fruitcake)


1/2 ounce Banana Liqueur

1/2 ounce Blackberry Brandy

teaspoon Grenadine

5 ounces pineapple and orange juice

You could substitute sweet and sour mix for the juice, but bah. Just don't. Anyway, mix, drink, smack your lips and call me Sheba.

While I was drinking this sinful concoction, I made fruitcake, using the Beekman Boys' Generous Fruitcake Recipe. Note that this is a two-night endeavor, though really fairly easy. The first night is just chopping the dried fruit (and eating a good amount) and then pouring the rum over it to soak a day. Stir occasionally.

I call this picture, "Haf made fruitcake, runned out of rum, haf gone to bar to find more."

The fruitcake recipe made a generous THREE fruitcakes, which are delightful and moist and have converted this former fruitcake-despiser. Highly recommended. Oh, music? I don't recall much except for a lot of Live and Bush's "Mouth," played extremely loudly.

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Guess what? Just in time for Christmas, my flash fic horror story, Under the Boardwalk, has been posted for your enjoyment! I am fiddling with the microphone to see if I can read this one aloud, but my speaking voice is not my favorite thing in the world. I think I sound sultry and sexy, but I really sound like a broken clarinet in need of serious work.

While you are over at TKnC, may I recommend the story there I read earlier? The Blood Makes Me Whole by Dorothy Davies, which is AWESOME, not least because it is about Strange Thing From Outer Space.

Last but not least, over at the Vintage Photo community on LJ, this terrific shot of Stan and Olly Horsin' Around. When I was little, I watched a lot of t.v., especially on Saturday mornings and afternoon. Oh, the Monkees on Saturday afternoon! Huge crush. I also watched lots of old comedies. Not the Three Stooges -- no, no, NO. Ick. Abbott and Costello could occasionally catch my attention. But Laurel and Hardy? Oh, my. How I loved them. Love, love, loved them. I would giggle and fall over on the floor, and I just ate up everything single thing they did. Ain't they just the best?

If I am not around til after Christmas, may you all find in your stocking exactly what you wish for. I hear Santa is very generous this year. And know that I will be toasting all of you with a rum runner on that day.

A Bounty of Beekman -- prepare thyselves

I promised myself I wasn't going to blog today but I HAVE IMPORTANT BEEKMAN NEWS!

Please, don't everyone get up and mob the blogger all at once. ;)

Farmer John and Jason's website

Farmer John's blog

That's right! You can follow Farmer John right here on blogspot! He's a very unassuming guy, really sweet. And, uh, he loves goats. :) I have, however, just spent far too much time considering which of his does I would buy. If B would let me get goats. Which will probably happen about the time he lets me get chickens. Which, we may all assume, ain't gonna happen in this decade.

But wait! I have more Beekman news! Just as the month is ending, my September Beekman soap has turned into mush. Lovely smelling mush, true, but it's finished. I'm actually slightly nervous, because I fell for this soap hard, but October's soap promises "applewood burning in the fireplace and walks through autumn leaves," so my fingers are crossed for a happy shower tomorrow.

What, you want more Beekman news? Okay... There's a brand new group on Twitter called Beek Geeks. I'm following. :) Where do you think I learned about the blogs? And also, I learned that there will be a Beekman holiday special! And that I may ask a question of them that may get answered on the special! I am formulating questions as we speak, you may be assured.

And last, there is, my friends, some sad Beekman news. Prepare yourselves as best you can.

I took the Beekman Biggest Fan quiz and scored... 70%.

I thought I was gonna ace it. :(  B got 80%, so I hate him, of course. Seventy! *disconsolate face*

BTW, I never take quizzes. I don't care what personality type I am or who my Harry Potter husband is. Do. Not. Care.

So the fact that I did take this quiz ought to tell you something. But I am, I must admit, slightly worried. I don't want to be part of a fandom for the moment. I want time off from fandoms. And yet, I feel myself getting sucked into this world... I think it's okay as long as I don't write stories about them. :)

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Regarding yesterday's post: chapter one is finished. Oh, not edited, but I don't care. And I'm not caps-locking until the thing is entirely finished. But for now, I'm super happy. Also, I'm doing something I don't normally do -- I'm going in without a plan. I do know lots of stuff, such as overall arc and most of the characters, but I'm leaving it at that. Once I let go last night, he started talking. Oh, man, did he start talking. I couldn't type fast enough to keep up. And there was a niggling doubt at the back of my mind, a thought that went, "But this isn't exactly who you planned to be your protagonist! He's supposed to be--" and then I strangled the voice and kept on madly typing and now chapter two awaits and I don't have a clue what's going to happen, but it should be fun.

Also, what is on either side of the River Styx? Because I'm about to swim it. Google, here I come.

Thank you to everyone who listens to me blather, and especially those who drop a kind word in my direction. I've never been big on "cheerleaders," but I admit that it makes me thirteen kinds of cozy when some of you are so supportive.

God, who is this sap... Signing off! Beekman Bliss to All!

The Monsters of John Kenn; Beekman Boys

 It's been a while since I've been so blown away by something that I had to share it with you immediately. Meet the monsters of John Kenn:

John Kenn is a very busy person who, in his spare time, draws monsters on Post-It notes. I quote Cephalopod Tea Party:  It's as if Maurice Sendak and Edward Gorey had a baby, and all that baby did was read HPL.

And keep this in mind: Mr. Kenn writes and directs children's television shows.

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Still reeling from the brilliancy that is John Kenn, but I can relay to you the following:

I STILL LOVE THE BEEKMAN BOYS, POSSIBLY MORE THAN EVER.

B read Josh Kilmer-Purcell's book of their Beekman journey, The Bucolic Plague: How Two Manhattanites Became Gentleman Farmers, last month, and I have just finished reading it.

Let me repeat that: B read a book. In our twelve years together, he has started a handful, but never got far. He read this one in a weekend. He laughed out loud whilst reading, prompting me to make him read those parts to me. And then when I read it, I laughed at other parts, and read those to him. This book is an utter joy. A shamelessly fun read that never takes itself too seriously, it's a clever and insightful character study of city folks, country folks, and those who defy labeling. Accompanied by mounds of goat manure and heirloom vegetables.

It would be difficult to find a more loveable cast of characters, and what struck me is that they are loveable as seen through Josh's eyes. I had to wonder if I, in the same situation, would have made as many friends and have adored them as much. Josh's ability to laugh at himself and see the good in others is inspiring.

And yet, nothing in this book comes off as cloying or overdone. It's a sweet reminder that your Best Life is out there. And that you can be all the Martha you can be. As long as you wear your Wal-Mart barn-mucking boots and don't expect the lattice crust on your apple pie not to burn. Because it will.

Josh and Brent (and Farmer John and Polka Spot and Bubby the Cat and all 124 goats!) are currently filming season two. Thank you, Planet Green, for bringing them into our homes, especially mine. I knew from the first promos I saw months and months ago that I would love this show, and I haven't been disappointed. Since the very first episode, I have fallen in love with the Beekman Boys, and I am so glad to "know" them.

But wait, there's more! B gave me two of my birthday gifts early. (it was either that, or I continued to harass him non-stop)

A Year On The Farm -- 12 months of Beekman goatmilk soap

BLAAK -- Beekman's own cheese, an ash ride softer cheese that is 60/40 goat/cow milk.

We will be sampling the BLAAK later on this week. It's a testament to my love for the Boys that I asked for their cheese. I am not a cheese lover. But B most certainly is. Besides, we must do all we can do, friends, to get Josh out of the city and up at the Beekman full-time with Josh!

For the soaps, I am currently using -- of course! -- September. You can look up all the descriptions at their website, but I will tell you that this one has quickly become addicting. There is something herbal/medicinal about it that reminds me of my childhood, and I can't get enough. I've actually showered twice a day for the last few days, just so I can smell it all over me. And instead of using the hand soap dispenser in the bathroom, I reach in the shower for the soap. I want to bathe in this scent. In addition, we've both remarked on how creamy it is, and how clean you feel afterwards but not dry at all, which is usually the case with soaps and our skin, no matter what they say on the packaging.

You can find both the soap and the cheese and a wealth of Beekman goodness at Beekman 1802. I highly suggest reading their blogs.

It's All Happening on the Gertrude

Happy weekend!

Here's what's going down on Gertrude:

1. Laughing about "going down on Gertrude." (street I live on; my mind is as filthy as yours, I promise)

2. Have had a haircut. Or two. It used to hang to the middle of my back. It's now brushing my shoulders only if I tip my head back a bit. I love love love it. It's light and freeing. And it makes me feel a bit wild.

3. Finished one of two short stories that have been consuming me for a few months now. As soon as I wrote the last words this morning, I immediately got pen and paper and wrote three things that need to be edited. I'll get to that shortly. I am hoping this story works the way I intended it to, and I want it to be the very best version it can be. I feel slightly emotional about it, which is strange since it's essentially a very creepy story.

Why emotional? For a very long time now, I've written according to deadlines and themes and requests and word counts, and so on. For the first time, I've written two stories that are a product of nothing except my imagination + my desire for the story itself. I didn't spend a single moment while writing thinking of where these might find a home, who would want them, what if I was going on too long or not writing in a certain style. I've given myself free rein with these two, and I'm deeply proud of them.

4. Beekman Boys! My obsession grows. If you don't know about The Fabulous Beekman Boys on PlanetGreen, click and find out more. Then catch up on episodes; they air them fairly regularly. New episodes Wed nights at 9, with previous episodes leading up to them.

Josh and Brent are two city boys who bought a farm in upstate New York. Brent gave up his job to work the farm and make it successful; Josh remains in NYC five days a week, their main income while they get the farm off the ground. He comes up on weekends.

The farm is home to (currently) 124 goats and diva llama, Polka Spot. And no word of a lie -- I've never had even the slightest interest in Twitter, and now I'm seriously considering joining just so I can follow Polka Spot's tweets. Oh, sure, Josh and Brent tweet too. And they're on FB. But Polka Spot! As she says, llike Josh, llike Brent, llove llama.

If you want to watch the live Goat Cam, a 24/7 live cam from inside the barn, go here. I'm racking up the hours watching them. Polka rules that barn. I've also caught a glimpse of Farmer John as he cares for the goats. Very exciting stuff. ;)

The goats supply the milk for Beekman cheese and soap. I've been perusing Beekman 1802 making a list for my upcoming birthday. FYI, I've got my eye on their September soap. And B is dying for a taste of their ash-rind cheese, BLAAK.

Yeah, we're a little crazy for Beekmans over here. They do make farming fabulous. I love their blogs, I love the goat cam, and I am wondering how far it is to Sharon Springs...

And in case you were curious: B is definitely Josh, and I am soooo Brent.


5. Whale Wars. Last night's episode finally showed what exactly happened when the Japanese whaling ship rammed (deliberately) the much, much smaller Ady Gil. The Ady Gil weighs 18 tons; the Japanese whaler weighs over a hundred.

I remember when the news first aired the story, but seeing it like this was completely different. Watching Pete Bethune watch the boat he'd built himself and skippered for four years gradually sink and eventually be cut free was really difficult. And the footage is simply damning. I agree with Bethune; the Japanese captain probably meant to clip them and damage them just enough to send them home for repairs. What it did instead was ram them, taking ten feet of bow off, while men sat on the top of the boat and were nearly washed over. Then the Japanese water cannoned them. A mistake, but an abominable one. It was horrific, and they are very lucky to all be alive today. You can see footage and pics at the link above.

B and I are staunchly anti-whaling. Having watched Whale Wars for some time now, we wonder why the entire world isn't up in arms over what is going on in Antarctic. I read an article recently talking about the International Whaling Commission, and the enormous bribes that are made to keep the whaling industry afloat. It's truly sickening. If you have ever had the privilege of seeing these creatures in their natural habitat or in an aquarium, I don't see that you could ever find it possible to harm one of them, much less harpoon one and drag its body onto a ship and flay it open.

Whale Wars has brought the plight of the whales into the spotlight, and I know a lot of people condemn the Sea Shepherd crew for their methods. But as one of the former crew of the Ady Gil said last night, how does throwing rancid butter or tangling the props of the whaling ships compare to deliberate bodily harm? The Sea Shepherds are doing what no one else will step up and do, and I applaud them.

Aaaand... off my soapbox. B is on his way home -- no power from recent storms, so his place of employment is closed today -- and we are going to get some beer and sit outside and watch the birds at the feeder. Enjoy your weekend!