MY CHARLIE

MY CHARLIE

Charlie

I am dedicating this post to my dear Charlie. After the 30 years he and I battled schizophrenia, we finally lost to that devastating disease. I say he and I because I was with him every step of the way as was his entire loving family. Charlie never wanted fame and fortune, all he wanted was a chance to be like everyone else and lead a normal life. All who remember him say he was the most selfless person they ever met. He laughed all the time and bestowed little gifts to those he loved. He never refused anyone anything asked of him and he was big on thanking everyone for any kind thing they did for him. Charlie was an innocent and touched the heart of all who met him.

Charlie on recent kayake outing

A crater scooped out a hole in my heart since the day he left us. I can only hope that it will one day fill again with love. I have been cocooned in the womb of my home, Woodloft, since October 5th. I know that I will once again leave here to enter the world of people and life as it goes on for I have others to live for. If you see me out, know that I am hurting but that I am a survivor and will go on, one step in front of the other. I have hopes that one day soon the creative juices needed to create artwork will return. The art may be different for awhile because Charlie was my best art critic and I will be missing his sweet advice as I sculpt and paint. Thank you all for reading this sad post. I wanted you to know.

Much love,

Cheryl

THE BEST FROSTING I HAVE EVER TASTED

THE BEST FROSTING I'VE EVER TASTED

Vanilla Frosting With Chocolate Cake

Long ago, when I was a young girl, my best friend's mother would make an amazing cake every Friday. I did everything imaginable to get an invitation to spend the night with Karen so that I could taste a piece of that scrumptous cake. I especially loved the frosting. It was rich but not overly sweet. Years later when Pauline passed away, Karen and I were sorry that we had not thought enough to obtain the recipe from her. I don't think she even wrote it down. Just recently, with the help of google search, I finally found several recipes that were very similar to Pauline's. So, after much experimentation, I finally was able to duplicate it! To me, it brings back the days of my childhood and everyone who tastes this frosting, begs me for the recipe and tells me it is the best ever!

Fluffy, Rich and Decadent!

Here it is:

PAULINE'S FAMOUS FROSTING

Ingredients:

1 Cup sugar

1 t. vanilla

1 Cup butter

5 or 6 T. flour

1 Cup milk or a bit more

Method:

Whisk flour and milk together and heat on medium burner, stirring constantly. Remove from heat when it thickens. Cool to room temperature. Cream butter and sugar together till fluffy. Make sure there are no sugar grains left-in other words, beat for a long time. Add the cooled milk mixture and beat even longer. Beat til the mixture looks very light and whipped. I sometimes add chocolate syrup or other melted chocolate to create a chocolate frosting. It is delicious over chocolate cake.

Hope you agree with me!