Posted on February 16, 2013 under Storytelling with no comments yet

Oops….. sorry about the typo in my earlier post. Shouldn’t try and send new posts at 5:45 a.m. before getting the first coffee in my system. Enjoy your apple pie!!!

Do check out this story. The part at the end was contributed by one of the seniors at one of our story exchanges. It is a true story.

Posted on February 16, 2013 under Storytelling with 3 comments

My family has the DNA for sweetness.   No, not that kind of sweetness.   It might have something to do with the fact that we were served dessert every single day of our lives until we left home.  So let’s get this straight.  I have an addiction.  There, I’ve come right out and said it.  I am addicted to sugar.

Over the years I have learned how to manage this addiction.   You see, I am a marathon runner and part of the discipline of running is to lay off the sweets, especially before a marathon.  So, in the months leading up to race day, Sunday is the only day of the week that I allow myself to have dessert…. TGIS, as it were.

Sometimes the craving for sweets is overpowering.  There is an excellent bakery in our neighbourhood and on Thursdays, they make world class lemon meringue pie.  I always walk to work but most Thursdays I take the car.  I know that if I walk, I will go past the bakery and will feel this giant magnet sucking me towards the entrance.  Once I cross the threshold, I know it is game over.  I stand in front of the rack of warm pies and beg for the courage to say no.  That usually lasts about five seconds at which time I am elbowing anyone in my way to get at the Holy Grail.

The first time I ran the Boston Marathon, I decided to treat myself after the race with a lemon pie.  A friend scouted out the great bakeries in Boston and brought it to my hotel room the night before the race with a sign attached: “do not touch until after the race”. Those of you crazy enough to run marathons know what it is like when you have about two miles to go.  Every muscle in your body is screaming for you to quit.  It is at this point that the mind is supposed to do the heavy lifting. I remember passing Fenway Park and the only thing that kept me going was the vision of the pie waiting for me in the fridge.

I will eat just about any dessert, although the rutabaga cookies and parsnip pie my wife once made are still in the freezer.  Seasonal desserts are my favourite.  Strawberry shortcake in the summer, pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving and, of course, plum pudding and fruitcake at Christmas.

Undoubtedly, apple pie is the best known and most well- loved dessert.  The story was told recently about a lady who went to visit her friend well out in the back woods of the county.  Upon entering the house and after exchanging greetings, the guest noticed that pie preparations were underway.  Apples peeled and cored, flour, sugar, lard and a rolling pin graced the counter… and a set of dentures.

“Do you always take your dentures out when you’re making pies?” the guest asked politely. “Oh, dems are not mine” was the reply.  “They’re the old man’s. They make a nice edge around the pie crust.”

The next time you sink your teeth into a piece of apple pie, be on the lookout for false teeth.

 

Posted on February 15, 2013 under Storytelling with no comments yet

Last evening we held our second story exchange at a local senior’s apartment complex. The format is quite simple. We gather around a table ( 15 of us last night ) and I get the ball rolling with one of my stories. It is meant to stimulate conversation and for the seniors to dig into their deep reserves of stories from days gone by. We go around the room and anyone can tell any story they want. Towards the end of the session I read a second story to wind things up. The first week the folks were a bit reserved but last night they really got into it. We talked about desserts ( do you know what forach is? ), outhouses and wakes. And speaking of wakes, I am going to put together a story about wakes and funerals. If any of you have good stories about this topic, let me know. I plan to compare the modern wake to the ones that were held at home in days gone by.

I will be posting a new story on my blog on the weekend. You will never view apple pie the same way again after reading this!