One Reason Why I Love Summer

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It can pretty much be summed up in one photo … fresh, local farm produce.

They don’t call New Jersey the Garden State for nothing! And even though many people have the sadly mistaken idea that New Jersey is all about the refineries and crammed highways that occupy a very small portion of the eastern part of the state, far more of the state is devoted to agriculture. In fact, New Jersey is the number one producer of blueberries in the nation, and second in cranberries. And anyone who’s ever been here knows there is nothing like a Jersey tomato.

This morning I passed the small farm stand in Alpha where I’d stopped last week. The corn is outstanding – I bought bi-color and white, both super-sweet – tomatoes, white peaches – yum! (see above) and a few other items. Starting in the spring, and straight through summer and fall, there are farmstands and farmers’ markets everywhere, and you can easily find whatever is in season. A farm more local to me, Phillips Farms in Holland Township, has “outreach” if you will, into the city. Their produce is featured in farmers’ markets in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. If you live in the city, check here to see where great produce is near you.)

So you can keep your heat, your humidity, and crazy weekend shore traffic.  My summer leans towards great fresh food!

Books vs. Movies – Part 2

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I’ll be honest – I started this post on June 3, shortly after  I had seen the movie The Bridges of Madison County and compared it to the book. There’s no time like the present, someone once said, so I’m finally the getting this up as a post. As I look at the novels I currently have waiting to be read, I must admit I am often drawn to those where I could watch the movie version as well.

However, when I think about other books that I’ve read and their movie counterparts, the results are mixed. I’ve listed a bunch, and again, these are very personal preferences reflecting what I like to read and which movies I’d go see.

The Shipping News – Annie Proulx – both movie and book excellent!

Shawshank Redemption – Stephen King – really liked both

Silence of the Lambs – Thomas Harris – book so gripping I couldn’t put it down, movie was also gripping, but not quite as good, though truly terrifying

Red Dragon – Thomas Harris – Book was excellent – the prequel to Silence of the Lambs; movie a huge disappointment, and almost nothing like the book

Because of Winn Dixie – Kate DiCamillo – both excellent, book still a bit better

The Secret Life of Bees – Sue Monk Kidd – book excellent, movie really quite good

Lord of the Rings – R.R.Tolkien, Harry Potter Series – J.K. Rowling,  Narnia Series – C.S. Lewis – I lump these together – perhaps unfairly – because they are all series, fantasy and of epic proportions in film. I loved the books that I read from these series, and that was not always all of them, but I really loved the movies, too. Either way, you can’t lose.

White Oleander – Janet Fitch – Outstanding book, couldn’t put it down; the movie not really even worth seeing

The Invention of Hugo Cabret – Brian Selznick – I like the storyline, but it wasn’t a favorite book of mine; Martin Scorsese really brought the story to life. Preferred the movie.

2001: A Space Odyssey – Arthue C. Clarke –  Movie by Stanley Kubrick – One of my favorite movies, and I feel it far outshined the book, but I’m real biased on this one.

The Joy Luck Club – Amy Tan – an amazingly complex and engrossing book; the movie couldn’t possibly carry the book’s  richness. Book better by far.

The Devil Wears Prada – Lauren Weisberger – Here’s a case where the movie was just fabulous and fabulously funny. I got the book after seeing the movie and was disappointed.

The Horse Whisperer – Nicholas Evans – I saw the movie first on this one and it was excellent, so I read the book. Also excellent and I’d recommend both.

 

Well, that’s my two cents. Do you have a loved book that was made into a movie and a thought or two about it? Or a great movie and the book you read later? Let us know!

The Clinton Red Mill

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Perhaps one of the most notable landmarks in Hunterdon County, NJ – if not the most notable – is Clinton’s Red Mill. It is rich in history, the museum grounds host all type of events including historical reenactments and music festivals, and annually, the museum itself  offers one of the best known and most frightening Halloween hauntings for miles around. It is also one of the most photographed landmarks. Meeting a friend in Clinton over the weekend, I took the opportunity of photographing it myself from a few angles.

From the Leigh St. bridge

From the banks of the South Branch of the Raritan River, on which the mill sits

From a small park along the river further north

Should you visit Clinton, it will be hard to miss the Red Mill, but if you check their web site, you can time your visit with one of many events either at the mill or in the lovely town of Clinton. (I see  the museum is showing Hugo outdoors on August 3!)

Note: All photos/drawings/art/images throughout this blog are  © Jeanne Balsam and may not be reproduced without written permission. Thank you! 

It Helps If You’re Famous

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As I was perusing last Sunday’s Parade magazine, I noted a small mention of a new children’s book – The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell by TV’s Glee star, Chris Colfer, (he plays Kurt Hummel.) At first, I sighed. It sure helps if you’re famous, I thought. This is not to say that Colfer’s book isn’t fabulous – it may very well be – but the road to getting published for the rest of us is a long one, it seems.

I couldn’t help but wonder … with so many celebrities being published in children’s books  …  can they all really be such talented writers? Or I am just experiencing a moment of weariness on my own path?

Here are just a few of the celebrities who have published children’s books – Jay Leno, Queen Latifah, Jamie Lee Curtis, Joy Behar, Whoopi Goldberg, Tim McGraw, John Lithgow, Jeff Foxworthy, LeAnn Rimes, Ray Romano, Brooke Shields, Jerry Seinfeld, Henry Winkler, George Forman, Will Smith, John Travaolta, Katie Couric … and the list goes on.

It almost makes me wish I were famous, too, but for one thing …

There is one glowing gem in all of this … my journey to being published is just that … a journey. It’s been a road with delays and frustrations at times, it’s true, but also one with an endless and continuing richness of experience in the children’s book world, the company of friends and colleagues along my path, and a constant and evolving education on what constitutes a great children’s book. I know, when I am published, it will not be because I’m famous; it will be because I have written and illustrated something that is truly worthy of being in the hands of a child.

And that really counts for something.

Dragons and Gargoyles and … A Man on Stilts? Oh, My!

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Sunday was a miserable day to go anywhere … very hot and super humid. But … that does not stop the intrepid who have an art festival to attend!

Starting out with breakfast at a favorite restaurant in Frenchtown, Lovin’ Oven, (a post for another time), we made a super quick detour – all of 200′ – so I could photograph some outdoor statuary next door at Two Buttons. I wanted to send these fabulous cement bulldogs’ photo to someone who favors the breed, and I wanted to take the gargoyles because … well … they are fabulous and I want one.

The gargoyles come in two finishes – the bronze type patina and the rough, sand-like texture. These are surprisingly lighter than you might imagine, and largely hollow. Unlike the bulldogs, which are solid cement and weigh a ton. Every time I visit Two Buttons, I yearn for the type of property which would afford me a walled garden that someone who knew wayyyyy more than me would plant and maintain. It would have winding walks, stone resting benches where one could stop and read or meditate, and, of course, fabulous statuary. Ahhhh — maybe next lifetime.

This particular gargoyle, I was told by one of the owners, is a replica from a cathedral in Germany. Two Buttons is the import business started by Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love, and her husband Jose that she met and fell in love with in Bali in the last section of her book. It’s a huge warehouse of amazing things, worth a look.

These magnificent beasts photographed, we hopped in the car, over the nearby bridge to Pennsylvania and down the shady and ever-scenic Rt. 32 to Tinicum.

The Tinicum Arts Festival is an annual 2 day event featuring many talented artists and artisans. With rare exception, the vendors have fine quality wares and for this reason, it’s always a pleasure to attend this festival. (except for the absolutely wilting weather, of course.)

It was, in fact, so humid, that I didn’t even take any photos, but for Uncle Sam on stilts! My friend and I were both fading, but did make a few stops and a few purchases each. I may show these off in the future, but I purchased a beautiful pair of green tourmaline and sterling silver earrings, my treat to myself. And while I wavered, feeling somewhat guilty about spending even more on myself, my friend offered to treat me to the object of my desire, a beautifully wrought dragon mug.

There were quite a few very talented potters at Tinicum, and I could have easily purchased something from any of them, but I kept coming back to  Marian Van Buren and her River Otter Pottery. Small world, it turns out her studio is in nearby Flemington! Such a fine eye and such fabulous glazes. And then the dragon on the mug.

Well, it started to rain and we were done anyway, so onward to home. It wasn’t too long before that gorgeous mug was holding coffee. This mug is not on Marian’s web site, though something similar with frogs is. How gorgeous is this! It’s frightening to think how much I could have bought at this event if I really had more money to spend. But spending it with someone who makes art for their living, who brings their heart and soul to their craft … it seems supporting such artists is always money well spent.

 

The piece de resistance …