Diary of an Artist's Retreat, Part II

    Miss Boogie loves being an artist-in-residence, though technically the Mom is the artist. Miss Boogie must sit in all those tiring poses while the Mom sketches her. Miss Boogie says, "It is more difficult being a Muse than one might imagine."

After she worked all day, the Mom took Miss Boogie into Coloma to Easy Street. It’s a very nice bar and grill on the main street near the movie theater. (Boogie noticed that the movie theater will give you popcorn for 50 cents, if you bring your own bucket. She hopes to go back there before the residency is up. She is looking for a bucket.) They, Easy Street not the movie theater, have Bell’s on tap. It is Berrien County. 

    The Mom and Miss Boogie sat at the bar. The Mom had an “Easy Street,” wheat and struck up a conversation with the bartender, Amanda. Turns out Amanda, who looks about 24, is 34 and has five kids. The oldest is 17. The Mom was flabbergasted. “Yup, that’s what the winters here will do to you.” Amanda said.

    Amanda had just planted a lilac bush in her yard. She said lilacs were her favorite, so there was an instant bond with the Mom. The smell of lilacs reminds Amanda of her grandmother. Amanda’s eleven-year-old daughter wants to know how soon the bush will be beautiful. “When God lets it have time to grow.” Amanda said. “Everything happens for a reason in its own time.” The Mom thought she heard Amanda’s grandmother, or maybe her own.

    Amanda had lots of great tips for spending time in Southwest Michigan, especially food tips. Her mother-in-law runs a restaurant in Keeler called Keeler’s Keg and Kitchen. They’re famous for their pizza, but Amanda says the Keeler Prime Sandwich, au jus, with green pepper (mango as they call them in Indiana) on a homemade roll is the best. The Mom took the challenge and wrote down the directions because the best Italian roast beef and mango ever is still at Art’s Pizza in Anderson, Indiana. 

 

Miss Boogie was licking her dainty lips over the Italian roast beef when she heard the best news of all.

    If you follow Friday Road south, out of Coloma, go under the freeway, about half a mile, next to the Contessa Winery, there’s a  chocolate shop (Vineyards Gourmet) with truffles and hand-dipped chocolates made from all the native fruits of Michigan and their newest creation, chocolate covered bacon! Miss Boogie’s tiny pink tongue was curled all the way over her tiny black nose, and she was in a tap dancing rapture that would make a Sufi swoon.

Diary of an Artist's Retreat

  

    Miss Boogie is fond of pie. 

    She has been on retreat with the 2^nd Mom at Blueberry View for not quite two days. Already they have found two bakeries. Miss Boogie has observed that there are certain necessities for the writer on retreat—baked goods, homemade soup and a bottle (perhaps two) of white wine. Miss Boogie volunteered to taste the baked goods to determine if they were fit for the Mom. The Mom trusts Miss Boogie’s palate. 

    Miss Boogie found Alinda’s pies at Bob’s Barn Farm Market and Bakery to be especially good. Alinda, though she goes by Lyn here because people are confused when she says, “Alinda.” They think she is saying, “a Linda,” which makes no sense if you think about it. It’s like “the Donald,” but nobody else would go by such a name. Oh, well, maybe “the” Moms. Anyway, Alinda specializes in pies from fruits native to Michigan. The Bob’s is located in a blueberry field, after all.

    Miss Boogie has already reviewed the cherry and blueberry. Tomorrow she will try the peach, and on Thursday she hopes to sample the pineapple upside-down pie. Though she doesn’t believe that pineapple is a native Michigan fruit, Miss Boogie trusts Alinda’s fine arts of pastry.

    Miss Boogie has also observed that as with other sports requiring stamina, carbo-loading and energy snacking are important in long-distance writing—novels, screenplays and anything with a deadline. The Mom bought a bag of apricot kipfels, at the Golden Brown Bakery in South Haven, that Miss Boogie keeps hiding, (“No, no!” Miss Boogie insists. “Write ‘moving.’”) in order to provide the Mom appropriate breaks in her long stretches of sitting at the computer. “Miss Boogie, where are the cookies?” 

Proper hydration is also essential for the writer. Miss Boogie makes certain the Mom has plenty of fluids.

 

Which is easy since they are in the heart of Michigan wine country.

    A mason jar of lilacs awaited Miss Boogie and the 2^nd  Mom when they arrived at Blueberry View Retreat. It was an omen. Lilacs are the Mom’s favorite flower. She misses them in Virginia. They have difficulty, as does nearly everyone, surviving the hot summers. Lilacs fill the spring countryside of Michigan, however, and the Mom had imagined gathering huge bouquets at the "midnight" florist.

In truth nearly everyone has several overloaded bushes in their yard and gladly let her have as many arms full as she liked.

    Miss Boogie is happy to report that the Mom is actually working. In the first two days she has written 18 scenes for her screenplay, made 5 new drawings, and carefully taken down dictation for 2 new Adventures of Miss Boogie.

    Whew. The Mom deserves a nap.