The sound of two wooden goblets in a toast . . .

Earl Rutherford doesn’t fill his hand-carved wooden goblets with wine, but he says it would hold. His beautiful bowls, vessels, eggs, etc. are carved from walnut, oak, hickory and ash he finds along the road. I met the artist and asked him to “toast” an empty goblet with me, to see how it would sound. The venture yielded a satisfying, muted “clack.” The next best thing was feeling how smooth he makes the wood.

The Groves native makes the wood speak to him from his Beaumont workshop. You can see it on display this January at Texas Artists Museum. Some of it is for sale, but don’t ask for the ice cream scoop with a wooden handle. He made it for his wife.

In Rutherford’s profile, he tells that he was first introduced to wood turning in his junior high wood shop class. He worked at Texaco and had a business on Twin City Highway, so he “shelved” his hobby until about 2000.

“You never know what the grain will look like until you turn the bark off and then, as you shape it, it continually reveals more hidden character and grain patterns,” he says. “And it’s quite rewarding to see the long shavings fly off as the shape evolves.”

The profile notes he’s active with Woodworkers of Southeast Texas and a group meets each fourth Monday at his Beaumont home.

And by the way, Earl says he’s not related to Verna or Cal, two of Port Arthur’s famous Rutherfords.

TAM is also hosting works by Lamar students this month.

Okra, prayer cards and Tet

Okra is African, Carolyn Thibodeaux said she learned while setting up Holidays Around the World at Port Arthur Public Library. The holidays aren’t over. Tet, Vietnamese New Year, will fall on Jan. 23 in 2012 and welcomes the Year of the Dragon. Buu Mon Buddhist Temple assembled ornaments for a holiday tree to help share their culture. Thibodeaux, who is the children’s librarian, said some cultures that don’t have a traditional Christmas tree took the tree as the American symbol to tie in their history. The display will remain up at the library, 4615 Ninth Avenue, through Jan. 10.

Thibodeaux and I admitted to each other that we sometimes learn things, forget them and relearn them. I believe I already knew that dreidels have letters to symbolize the words for “a miracle happened here.” These spinning toys where taken out so that Jewish scholars could pretend they were gambling instead of reading religious documents in public, the local display explains.

The book “Gator Gumbo” is put out in the Cajun display, where I loved finding a very old holy water bottle, and a photo book where someone had lovingly kept collected prayer cards. Fava beans from the Italian Americans, Kwanzaa candles and Mexican bingo and paper flowers help show how cultures decorate, eat and worship during the holidays.

“It’s a huge success,” Carolyn Thibodeaux said of the collection reflecting the area’s cultural diversity.

Ahsan Tariq, a native of Pakistan and a library employee, helped assemble a display that includes dolls in traditional garments. He said he hopes Holidays Around the World will promote a better understanding of people who call Port Arthur home.

Quilter alert:

Jenni Beaumont of Golden Triangle Quilt Guild has “patched” through a message that the Bi-Annual Quilt Show will be at the Beaumont Civic Center on Feb. 10-11.

“There will be over 250 quilts on display and for anyone who loves art and creativity this is a must-see show. It is like walking through an art gallery,” Beaumont said. “Our theme this year is Garden of Quilts. There will also be vendor booths, quilts for sale, a silent auction, a boutique and lots of special exhibits. We do have several members that are nationally recognized ‘Master Quilters.”

She says there are more than 200 members from Southeast Texas and Southwest Louisiana. The website is: www.goldentrianglequiltguild.com

ddoiron@panews.com

cal merchant delivers turkey; saves Christmas

Leslie Symmonds shares a story on why she likes to support local businesses, which in turn, support their loyal clients.

Symmonds, of Ace Real Estate in Port Neches, tells it like this:

“On Christmas Eve around noon, my sister, Marilyn Uptmor, picked up the order my Dad, Harry Gardiner, had placed at Billy Joe's in Port Neches. He ordered a smoked turkey, green beans, potato salad and cornbread dressing for our Christmas meal. Billy Joe's staff had everything packed very nicely. My sister took the food back to my Dad's house and put it in the spare refrigerator. On Christmas morning”

“We all panicked a little! My Dad called Garry Richards, and Garry met us at Billy Joe's on Christmas Day and gave her the turkey. He was very apologetic and we were so thankful that he was willing to meet us, and that he had a turkey available. If we had ordered it from a corporate outfit, we would have been out of luck. There's a lot to say about dealing with locally-owned businesses, and customer service is what keeps those businesses alive. Garry Richards showed us that customer service is key to his business,” Symmonds said.

“Wornout Memories”

Lubbock Aalanche-Journal had an online mention of “Wornout Memories,” by Ross McSwain, noting he references memories of early days in Port Arthur. Apparently his Uncle Ed said the area was “too thick to stir and not quite thick enough to plow.” Most of the book is set in west Texas, according to writer Glenn Dromgoole.

Recycle in Southeast Texas

Got stamps? Trinity Lutheran Church wants to get them. Fabiola Small wants your quilts and vintage jewelry, Port Arthur Beautification Commission can use seeds and supplies and Armor Shred can deal with your paper. Texas Recyclers Association, linked area recyclers in a pamphlet I picked up at the Port Arthur Public Library. TRA’s Maggie Bolden, 728-5465, can tell you more, especially about how she can use your electronic waste, from cell phones to ink cartridges.

ddoiron@panews.com

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Texas books round up good reads

Port Arthur naturalist Bessie M. Reid amazed an ornithologist one morning before she even changed from her kimono and house slippers. He witnessed her trained hummingbirds eat from her hand. She used droppers to feed them a brew with honey and meat juice. One-time neighbor Ryle Adamson, who has been a source for my stories, said her yard was a jungle, designed to attract birds. Reid reportedly grew plants to attract lice to feed feathered friends and the Port Arthur News reported when she got her college degree.

These juicy tidbits are from just one of the 850-pages of “The Big Thicket Guidebook: Exploring the Backroads and History of Southeast Texas.” Lorraine G. Bonney’s writings make up the book. I promoted it here in advance after I met one of the editors, Maxine Johnstone. Now that this big-old book is in my hands, I aim to spend 2012 getting to know my area more. It could take that long to thoroughly digest this fascinating book.

True crime

A department of law men figuratively scrambled over a fresh corpse to succeed a slain man in office. Those in charge surprisingly awarded the position to the dead man’s wife, who apparently later had to promote her husband’s killer. “Written in Blood: The History of Fort Worth’s Fallen Lawmen” is Volume II, covering 1910 to 1928. Richard F. Selcer and Kevin S. Foster tell some whoppers in this University of North Texas release.

Just 750 ideas for party time

Happy New Year. A new book, “750 Best Appetizers: From Dips and Salsas to Spreads and Shooters” offers more than a year’s worth of inspiration. I just saw Anthony Bourdain reminiscing of buttered radish slices on “No Reservations.” I’d never heard of this and a week later I find it in this book. They sprinkle the bites with crunchy salt. Grind up your own salt blends with peppercorns or loose green tea. Judith Finlayson and Jordan Wagman offer luscious spreads from chorizo pizza to panko-crusted beef marrow. Here’s a twist on the usual guacamole we Southeast Texans love:

Avocado Ancho Chile Dip

1 avocado cut into chunks

¼ cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon cream cheese

1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

1 teaspoon grainy mustard

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ancho chile powder

¼ teaspoon liquid honey

In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, pulse ingredients until smooth. Transfer to a serving bowl. Serve immediately or cover with plastic wrap, pressing down on surface of dip, and refrigerate for up to four hours. Wonderful with carnitas, tacos or tortilla chips.

ddoiron@panews.com

‘Quotable Dolly’ fits in your stocking

You can’t imagine this, but my family claims my voice can get kind of cranky or something when I’m telling them stuff they don’t want to hear. I jokingly asked my husband if I should try to sound likes a famous actress and deliver ‘lines’ in character. My husband suggested Julia Roberts. I’m thinking, she never seems to get that mad in movies, except for “Erin Brockovich.”

I had in mind Dolly Parton as Miss Mona in “Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.” She had homespun advice and a heart of gold. If she asked you to wash the dishes, you’d do so gladly.

Coincidentally, I came across a tiny little book called “The Quotable Dolly,” offering “A Collection of Rich Sayings to Live, Love and Laugh by from The Country Music Legend.”

“Home is where I hang my hair,” reads one page, among photos of the glamorous singer who can poke fun at her self. Pages are adorned with butterfly drawings, representing her love for the colorful insects. She says that it takes a lot of money to make someone look cheap.

“I like to buy clothes that are two sizes too small and then take them in a little,” is one that made me laugh.

Some are pretty deep, but others make you smile. In fact, smiles are a topic she shares:
“I always thought if you see somebody without a smile, give ‘em yours!”

Do it all again

All the Camp Fire girls would pack into the back of the Scroggs’ station wagon for the trip to Camp Niwana. If you’ve spent time in a space like this, you’ll appreciate the cover of “Young Me, Now Me” a little book offering Identical Photos of Different Decades. Three grown siblings in striped shirts and tube socks recreate the expressions and poses they had when the wagon first pulled up in their driveway.

Still a messy eater, an adult woman sits bibbed and covered with sauce opposite her baby self in the same situation. Cheeseheads, super hero tots and grimacing siblings still willing to pick at each other in Ze Frank’s book that will make you want to round up the family next weekend. This book is as funny as it is touching.

A Thanksgiving catfish, daddys who pass on their love of huntin’ and fishin’, a honey-dipped venison ritual and hog stories fill the pages of “Hide, Horn, Fish, and Fowl: Texas Hunting and Fishing Lore.” If you can’t be out in the woods you love, love the book that brings it all back to mind. University of North Texas Press just released this book and Kenneth L. Untiedt, secretary-editor of the Texas Folklore Society, has edited a collection of myriad stories of adventure and victory. One that hits close to home is “Deliverance II: The Tale of a Strange Encounter in the Big Thicket” that involves a cabin fashioned from a discarded paper mill felt; surly hunters and a possible still; a surprised, possibly “paintywaisted” visitor; and a bag of burgers.

Acting your age

The sister of a good friend promotes a skin serum that my friend is never without. She was offered a trip to Hawaii and rejected because she didn’t think she could keep her beauty products properly cooled with new plane regulations. So imagine my surprise she tried Stages of Beauty (without sister’s knowledge) at the same time the company was contacting me. It’s an all-natural line with goodies such as monk’s pepper berry and is divided into lines for age groups: Radiance (20s), Harmony (30s), Elegance (40s) and Grace (50s). Each formulated to address the hormonal changes/needs of your skin at that specific age. I’m working the Elegance, when one can expect skin to be more thin, more dry and less radiant and elastic. My classmates can also look for more freckles and sunspots . . . need I go on? So this beautifully-packaged pot of Treatment Cream is offering hydration, evenness and firmness and I’m glad I’m trying it in winter. It feels good going on and my face is happy in the cold wind.

Each line includes cleanser, serum, cream and angi-aging supplement. I won’t tell if you won’t.

Softish is soothing

Chewing a Pine Bros Softish Thoat Drop is certainly easier than swabbing one’s throat with glycerin multiple times a day. Victoria Knight-McDowell says that when she sold Airborne, she started seeking products her own family could use and she brought back the softish drops created in 1870. Her company revamped packaging and recipes and is selling Wild Cherry and Honey pucks of drops through CVS. They’re more chewy than a gummi candy and don’t have that “cough drop” taste. I think they’ll catch on again.

ddoiron@panews.com

Holiday happenings in Port Arthur
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, just like the song goes. Holiday Inn Park Central has a new feature in its array of Christmas scenes. An old-fashioned TV set has a tiny village with moving parts. It’s in Mrs. Claus’ bedroom, in the scene where Santa is presenting his wife with a gift, and a hot water bottle. The lobby is full of wonders.

Las Posadas/Bethlehem on the Boardwalk
Maria Block’s annual Christmas pageant is set for 5:30 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 17, on the boardwalk by City Hall in Port Arthur. Hundreds of luminaria will light the way as families recreate the Hispanic tradition of following the Holy Family as they prepare for the birth of Jesus. Angels will lead the search for shelter with Mary, Joseph and a donkey. Wise Men join the group and Our Lady of Guadalupe youth choir will perform.

Mission’s Attic Christmas
Mae Terro of Mission’s Attic said folks were lining up on Black Friday to shop the newly-created Christmas/holiday section of the resale shop.
“They come from a long way because there’s not another shop like this,” Terro said. The section of candles, trim, ornaments and gifts was all but cleaned out recently, but Terro said more donations arrive daily, at 3300 Twin City Highway. Mardi Gras and Easter selections go up next. Proceeds benefit United Board of Missions projects.

Port Arthur parade
I hope you’ll see me at Port Arthur’s Cultural Lighted Parade, which has been moved to 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 15, in downtown PA. It was set for Dec. 10, but Memorial High School’s football win changed things up. It’s great to reschedule events for positive news, instead of hurricanes. Bundle up and head out.
ddoiron@panews.com

Style and stocking stuffers
Can you be in style in time for the holidays? Even the font on the cover of “Southern Living Style” is classic, yet modern. I removed the book jacket so I could admire the cover as I slowly peruse this book with plenty of pictures of how we Southerners display our collections, prepare for parties, read and sleep. It’s no wonder other regions are so jealous.
Speaking of fonts, one designer tip is to print your monogram instead of stitching it. Consider collecting ancestral portraits (of anyone’s family) to group on the wall of any room, even the kitchen. I think I’ll mix up a mint julep and read some more.
“La Figa: Visions of Food and Form”
If I had mounds of avocado, cucumber, nori, grapes, etc. at my disposal, arranging them artistically on beautiful nudes would not be my first thought. Chef Tiberio Simone and photographer Matt Freedman thought otherwise, and have produced a breathtaking coffee table art book that is likely to take your breath away. Not the first to “play with food” or link food to sex, this tasteful book, to me, shows God’s beauty through human form and how we are fed and nourished. Nearly transparent cucumber slices resemble scales on a muscular man, spun sugar sculpts an abstract “hairdo” on a woman and a fresh-faced lovely bathes in a tub of cranberries. While many artists pick the most perfect bodies, this pair shows also highlights appreciation for plump and older-than-average models. The commentary on love of food and the making of this book are top-notch reads. This book is both fun and pensive.

Mad about it in your stocking
Mad Gab’s is already into minimal packaging, recycling, etc., in addition to quality product with beeswax, shea butter and organic extra virgin olive oil. So what’s new? The Wildy Natural line inspired by nature. A peacock feather design is on my pink lip shimmer. Lavender vanilla lip butter smells and feels heavenly and sparkly bronze lip shimmer, in a tube with a giraffe look, just makes me feel good. There’s more from “Gab,” and her do-good Maine-based company. Look them up.

Tassi has one upped the hair band.
Promising “Skin Care Without the Hair,” this stylish band is gathered so you can actually roll long hair up in the band and go about your makeup business without your locks falling in your face. Tassicompany.com will show you how to rock the look. One use and you’ll wish you’d thought of it first.
ddoiron@panews.com

Read up on Texas with an ice cream happy hour

Huntsville’s town square brought me a fabulous fall afternoon of antiquing, fried chocolate pie and Mexican food before I headed to The Texas Prison Museum and Big Sam. At the museum, they have T-shirts billing the city as “Huntsville, a gated community since 1849.” The city and its prison have come up in two new books.
“Steve McQueen” is Marshall Terrill’s thick read that includes filming he did with inmates. I’m about to scour the book for links to Port Arthur, where some say he spent part of his youth as a towel boy in a brothel.
“Gangster Tour of Texas” tells some crazy true stories with a twist. T. Lindsay Baker includes present-day and historical snapshots so readers can visit some key sites, such a court houses and crime scenes. In one case a woman said she was from The Beaumont Enterprise, and had traveled to a small Texas town to interview folks for a story on cotton crops. The Flapper Bandit was really trying to rob the bank. She tried that a couple of times, using different identities, and finally did it. Her lawyer lover helped get her out of the mess.
Huntsville’s prison comes up now and again in this fascinating book, which includes details on Bonnie and Clyde, a vet dealing in morphine, the Houston police dope scandal that rocked the department and a doctor who placed goat glands in his human male patients for “stamina.” He set up a huge business in Del Rio so he could broadcast from a powerful radio station in Mexico. Gambling in Galveston also gets its spotlight.

Are you happy now?
Spike, freeze and serve is the battle cry of two women whose late-night beer float became a book: “Ice Cream Happy Hour,” offering 50 ways to wet your whistle. It begins with the premise that readers like ice cream, and like spirits. Valerie Lum and Jenise Addison have done the science, so you just have to follow the directions to chocolate martini, ginger with dark rum, pink peppercorn with vodka . . . . you taste the idea. Here’s a quick garnish for pina colada:
Rum Pineapple Topping: In a medium saucepan over medium high heat, combine 1 pound pineapple cut into bite-size chunks, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 2 tablespoons rum. Cook, stirring occasionally until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Transfer about one-third of the sauce to a blender or food processor and puree, then return the puree to the saucepan and stir to combine.

Casting call
I’d hoped to report a review straight from the setting of “Cast Iron and the Crescent City.” A trim booklet explains how intricate florals, geometric patterns and even corn stalks were “cast” in the history of New Orleans. A mini tour of buildings, accounts of architectural outlines, bios of iron works owners and “maker’s marks” are included in the Louisiana Landmarks Society publication by Ann M. Masson and Lydia M. Schmalz. This quick read made me want to head to NOLA ( New Orleans, La.) right away, but I confess I’d be there for muffaletta and seafood as much as to gaze at fences.
Instead of reading the book from Jackson Square, I studied in before dawn on a Sunday morning, then came home to Texas by switching to the newly-released Historic Homes of Jefferson Texas,” Cherly MacLennan’s loving picture book on this preserved-in-time town. Instead of iron work, these homes have Texas Historical Markers as adornment. I enjoyed my first visit to Jefferson, and I’m ready to venture back, now that MacLennan has educated me on the nuances of tall windows, central hallways, the first gas meter, etc.

Get a look at Jefferson homes
A road trip to Greek Revival homes, a sense of early Texas and the love of preservation make up Cheryl MacLennan’s picture book “Historic Homes of Jefferson, Texas.”
The author seems like a woman you’d want to know. She’s a consultant, independent contractor, photographer, docent at the Institute of Texan Cultures and a volunteer at the St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store. She makes you feel like you already know Jefferson. I was there long ago at my first bed-and-breakfast venture and now I’m ready to pack up for more. I specifically imagine heading to The House of Seasons, with multi-colored panes of glass that glow like a rainbow.


Delicious sense
If common sense to you is pages of one-paragraph gourmet recipes, Domestic Engineer Paula Sole has it. She actually has “Common Sense,” a quick read on tips and ways for good living. She advocates a neat living space. I’m all for that. Here’s a quick dish:
Chicken Genovese: Cut up boneless chicken breast into small pieces. Saute chicken in extra-virgin olive oil until golden brown. Add three sliced onions. Stir consistently. When onions are golden, add water just to cover chicken. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 40 minutes. Serve over pasta.
Author’s note: “You’ll luv this dish!!”


Frenemies with food
“Frenemies,” in modern parlance, means you are both friends and enemies. A new book was billed as a story of a woman who considered food that way. It takes place in England, and is pitched this way:
“The new book, Clarice, tells the story of a young woman living in a world where food is both her greatest comfort and greatest enemy. Written by a retired physician, the book paints a modern-day portrait of mental illness and describes the path to recovery.”
I “realised” I may have been enjoying this book more because of British spellings, such as “colour” and phraseology that’s used “across the pond.” Clarice does binge and purge at times throughout her life, but I believe the book is most familiar with her relationships with men, married or not. She visits a psychic, and the prediction comes to pass for Clarice in a way that “got me” on the very final page.
Looking for healing
Our best friend is our little child within, and that friend can help us put our house in order. Meditate on that, Austrailian author Teresa Alexander writes in “Freedom Within: A Gift of Love.” The butterfly-on-flower book cover lets readers know this will be a touchy-feely experience. The author discusses colors of lights associated with energy and mixes short writings with poems about friendship, sharing, claiming the day, etc.
ddoiron@panews.com