Get To Know Me

Welcome to the Shiny Butter Blog.  Straight-up flavor, fresh and unfiltered.

I’m a wildly talented mother of two brilliant children; a college kid and a middle schooler.  I am pretty much mom of the year, every year- well, that’s what I tell myself.  We have an overly friendly, very soft cat that came from craigslist.  He is an oddball, as most cats are.

I’m a southerner born and bred, from the Piedmont of the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, and have been settled for over two decades now in coastal North Carolina.  I’m torn between wanting to go home to Virginia; to the most beautiful place on earth, God’s chosen land, in fact, or living close to the ocean, God’s vacation home.  Obviously, I’m not rushing into a decision.  Winter on the southern coast is a special treat, indeed- I mean, as I write this, it is a sunny, 68 degree January day.  You’re just not gonna find much of that in the center of Virginia.  Yet I still long for the rolling hills of Virginia, with the beautiful blue mountains always in view.

I have a girlfriend, my best friend, and she’s in a lot of my stories ’cause she’s just about everywhere I am and unless I’m trying to keep something from her, she’s in on everything I do.  (Of course, if I’m gonna put something out there on the world wide web, it’s likely that I won’t be keeping that something from her for long.)  Like me, she is wildly talented and has two brilliant children.

My goal here at The Shiny Butter Blog is to tell you my stories the way I see them and cleverly convince you that I’m a smart blend of wisecracks, irreverence, and witty observations.  I might let my passion show and get to shaking my fist about something that’s gonna push some buttons- and then again I might be more in the mood to make you laugh out of nowhere and spit your iced tea onto your computer screen.

I suppose the rest of what there is to know about me (for right now) can be randomly stated in a few short lists…

The good:

1. I can drive long distances.
2. I keep a reasonably clean house.
3. I’m a fine parent, though the fat lady hasn’t actually sung in that department yet, so I’ll just keep my cards close for now.
4. I’m fun at a party.
5. I can walk in very high heels.
6. I have naturally curly hair- not a talent, I know, but my talent lies in knowing not to argue with it.
7. I write thank-you notes.
8. I am an incurable optimist.
9. I can cook an impressive meal with nothing but condiments and pantry rejects- I should be on tv.
10. I make amazing popcorn.

The not-so-good:

1. I am a ridiculous procrastinator.
2. I hoard unopened mail.
3. I don’t change my sheets every week.
4. I start a lot of things that I don’t finish.
5. I don’t balance my checkbook.
6. I use the “stash and dash” method when company’s coming.
7. I once didn’t do my taxes for three years in a row.
8. I don’t eat a balanced diet and I don’t drink water.
9. I am stubborn and impractical.
10. While I realize that some things in life are as serious as a country song, I tend to make light of just about everything.

The irrelevant:

1. I like to polish silver.
2. My favorite food is the summer tomato.  With salt.
3. I don’t pay attention to the weather.
4. Listening to classical music on the radio makes me want to crawl up a wall.
5. I love to dance.
6. I like dry red wine and dry champagne.
7. I can hula hoop.
8. I love Scrabble.
9. I’m cold-natured.
10. My favorite junk food is Cheetos- crunchy, not puffy.