Archives: 2010 March

For those who may not know it, St. Patrick’s Day, um, I mean Evacuation Day, is actually a legal holiday in Boston. So you’re probably asking what the frak is Evacuation Day? Well, it is a holiday that is celebrated in Boston to remember that the British Army got totally served by the Continental Army.

According to Wikipedia, “The 11-month siege of Boston ended when the Continental Army, under the command of George Washington, fortified Dorchester Heights in early March 1776 with cannons captured at Ticonderoga. British General William Howe, whose garrison and navy were threatened by these positions, was forced to decide between attack and retreat. To prevent what could have been a repeat of the Battle of Bunker Hill, Howe decided to retreat, withdrawing from Boston to Nova Scotia.

The British evacuation was Washington’s first victory of the war. It was also a huge morale boost for the Thirteen Colonies, as the city where the rebellion began was the first to be liberated.”

By a stroke of fantastic Irish luck (or design?) the day of withdrawal of the Brits falls on precisely the same day as one named for a well-known Irish saint. How fortuitous! (Otherwise, it would be very difficult to attend the St. Patrick’s Day parade : D) All schools, as well as city and state governments are closed– and everyone wears green to celebrate Evacuation Day!

“Irish Society of Boston organized what was not only the first Saint Patrick’s Day Parade in the colonies but the first recorded Saint Patrick’s Day Parade in the world. . .”

So, in the ’spirit’ of the day, here is a right fine recipe for Guinness Fondue- and here’s an Irish toast to all of my readers: May your thoughts be as glad as the shamrocks. May your heart be as light as a song. May each day bring you bright, happy hours. That stay with you all the year long.

Love and green bagels,
Dara

Guinness Fondue

half pint of Guinness Stout
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 pound grated cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon cornstarch
ground black pepper to taste

Heat stout and lemon juice in saucepan until nearly boiling. Mix together cheese and cornstarch, add gradually to hot liquid, stirring constantly until cheese has melted. Season with pepper to taste and simmer until thickened. Transfer to fondue pot and serve hot.

Traditional Irish Soda Bread torn into pieces for dunking along with vegetables such as celery, cauliflower, radishes, broccoli, carrot sticks, strips of sweet bell peppers or mushrooms. Chunks of cooked sausage also make great dunkers.

Greetings!

As most of you know, publishing is going through a transformative stage. E-readers are all the rage and there is a great excitement about what the coming landscape will look like. We, at House of Sages, have been trying to embrace the new- while at the same time lend our support to the gold standard. Some of us just love the feel, the smell, the sight and sound of books. Some of us love the convenience of e-media. Many of us embrace both formats.

It reminds me of that old song, ‘make new friends but keep the old, one is silver and the other is gold’. So many of our readers have asked us to put out a print version, as well as an e-version of Dara’s stories. I’ll be honest, it is a daunting task for us. But, it is an important one. In our quest to explore the new ways of delivering content, we need not give up the sheer joy of sitting quietly with book in hand in a secluded nook, unplugged, and keeping good company with the printed page.

So, for all of the readers and booksellers who have repeatedly asked us for the PRINT VERSION. . . Yes! For you, we will print THE NEW MATRIX OF DESTINY TALES which will include DEATH BY PLOOT PLOOT and CAT SCRATCHED! in ONE VOLUME.

To make everybody happy, we will do a ONE TIME PRINT RUN of the book. Please note WE ARE PRINTING EXACTLY TO THE ORDERS, SO IF YOU THINK YOU MIGHT WANT THIS BOOK PLEASE GET YOUR ORDER IN A.S.A.P. TO BE GUARANTEED YOUR BOOK. WE ARE TAKING THE ORDERS NOW. Books will start shipping in approx. 7 weeks.

Both of these MOD stories have have been best-sellers for us and have received terrific reviews:

“As usual I could not stop reading once I started. She has a way of grabbing your interest and you cannot stop until the story is done. Thank you!” – Nancy

“I loved it – I actually finished it last night – I loved it! I can’t seem to get enough of the Matrix of Destiny series!!!!!!!!!!!!” -Anita

“Death by Ploot Ploot floored me. Such a great story, and many laugh out loud moments.” -Lynne

“Death by Ploot Ploot was fantastic. Loved the book” -Diana

“I started reading the story and it is FANTASTIC. Can’t wait to finish. Thank you.” -Carry

The price of the 2 in 1 volume is $12.50.

TO PLACE YOUR ORDER FOR THE NEW MATRIX OF DESTINY TALES TRADE-SIZED PAPERBACK GO TO:
http://officialdarajoy.com/MarketPlace/CSDPPPrintmarketplace.html

ENJOY!
Best,

Cory-Webmaster
www.OfficialDaraJoy.com