Memories - grace grits and gardening

Sound of the Screen Door.

June 8, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner

Summer begins and ends with the sound of the screen door. Although most screen doors open and close year round, that sloooowwww swing open followed by a sharp slap shut sounds oh so different when the days are long and lazy. The screen door gets a summer workout as barefoot kids run in and out a hundred times a day. How many times did Momma yell, shut the screen door, you’re letting the mosquitoes in!?

In fact, she says that to me every time I go home.

I particularly like the sound of the screen door at the lake. I consider that music to be the song of summer. The slapping sound echoes across the cove.Continue Reading

ode to the Pay Phone Booth

May 28, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner

When was the last time you made a phone call from a pay phone booth? Heck, when was the last time you even saw a phone booth? While we’ve been busy texting and downloading and surfing the web, phone booths have disappeared right out from under our noses, much like the album store and the electric typewriter and a slew of other things I can’t think of because out-of-sight, out-of-mind. Sigh.

The phone booth in Prairie Grove recently received lots of attention when a lady fell asleep at the wheel and plowed into it. Since it only generated about four bucks in annual revenue, the Prairie Grove Telephone Company (serving the western portion of Washington County), debated about “retiring” it. Forced retirement is rarely a good thing. People took to social media and raised a hullabaloo about their beloved phone booth. It had become a photo op destination and part of what made Prairie Grove special. The phone booth was not only repaired, it’s been nominated to the National Register of Historic Places.

And that’s pretty cool.

Can you imagine all the phone calls placed in this small space since 1959? Words spoken. Promises made. Pleas pled by curfew-breaking teenagers. But mom…

The Prairie Grove phone booth is located in the parking lot of the Colonial Motel, across the highway from the Prairie Grove Battlefield.

There’s a phone book inside, too.

According to Smithsonian, the world’s first pay phone was installed at the corner of Main Street and Central Row in downtown Hartford, Connecticut. There’s a plaque to mark the spot. As phone booths become extinct, maybe Prairie Grove’s phone booth will someday be the last working pay phone booth.

Or maybe pay phone booths will become WiFi hot spots. It could happen. Maybe?

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

[tweetthis]Dial N for #Nostalgia. Ode to the Pay Phone Booth. #PrairieGrove #NorthwestAr @artourism[/tweetthis]

Musical Pairing:

Robert Cray – Phone Booth

on this Memorial Day…

May 24, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner

On this Memorial Day weekend while you enjoy time off work having fun with family and chowing on delicious barbecue, be sure to make time to remember those patriots who sacrificed all for our country, our freedom, our tomorrows.

Upper Cemetery, Brinkley, Arkansas

Unknown Soldier, Berryville, Arkansas

Fly your flag. Say a prayer. Meditate on how lucky we are to live in a democratic society. Do something patriotic today and everyday.

We don’t have a flag yet for our new (old) house, but after searching and searching, I finally found the bunting which we brought from our Dallas house. It was hiding in a drawer. I love the look of bunting, especially draped on old porch railings.

Our house is dressed up for Memorial Day

Our porch dressed for Memorial Day.

I decorated our Little Free Library for Memorial Day too! If you live in the neighborhood, be sure to check out our book selection for every age reader. Books change daily! And there are seeds in the bottom drawer. Zinnias were recently added (although I can’t promise they are still there).

Our Little Free Library is ready for Memorial Day!

Our Little Free Library decorated for Memorial Day! (Fayetteville, Ar)

Oh, and eat some barbecue! John will be grilling ribs—he’s a master at it. If it’s raining where you are, and it seems to be raining everywhere, try these oven roasted barbecued chicken thighs I made last week. Trust me, this is simple. I made this dish using only my right hand. Why? Because my left index finger was wrapped in a paper towel held above my heart/head to keep myself from bleeding out. #DullKnifeProblems #Distracted #NoTimeForStitches

Rinse and pat dry chicken. Place skin side down on an oiled cookie sheet. Roast at 425 for 30 minutes.
Coat with your favorite sauce (see mine below). Turn and coat the other side. Roast 10 minutes skin side up.
Slather on more sauce. Roast another 10 minutes. (Do not turn again.)
Repeat one more time turning the oven up to 475.
Let rest 10 minutes before eating.

I made the sauce using one cup of Bentley’s Batch 5 Reserve (my favorite!) mixed with two heaping tablespoons of apricot preserves and 3-4 chopped garlic cloves. (Recipe inspired by the one and only Pioneer Woman.) If you are a vegetarian, try this sauce with roasted veggies.

Happy Memorial Day folks!

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

[tweetthis]Take time out of your #MemorialDayWeekend to remember. #America #Freedom @BentleysBatch5 [/tweetthis]

America, The Beautiful – Cedarmont Kids