This N That: 2023

Monday, November 13, 2023

THE OLD FARMHOUSE REVEALS ITS SECRETS: Parts 1 & 2

The old farmhouse is a major setting in my inspirational thriller, Bibles and Bones in the Forest, coming soon from Miller Words. https://www.facebook.com/MillerWords

Until then, Join the home tour and move step by step, room by room, floor by floor, closer to the secret in the attic.

https://florareigada.blogspot.com/2023/10/the-old-farmhouse-yields-its-secrets.html

https://florareigada.blogspot.com/2023/11/the-old-farmhouse-reveals-its-secrets.html

The old Cellar

A vintage photo of the grand stairway

Tuesday, November 7, 2023

THE OLD FARMHOUSE REVEALS ITS SECRETS: Part 2

This vintage, grand stairway picture was taken in

the Victorian home where I grew up.

I modeled the old farm-

house grand stairway after it.

The group gathered in the spacious farmhouse kitchen to begin the next leg of the tour.
Tiffany took a dreamy breath, “I can almost smell all those home-cooked meals prepared with love over the years and recall the laughter of those who enjoyed them. It’s like this place has memories in the walls.”

Bob admired the vintage tin ceiling. “How long have those tiles been there?”

Raul shrugged. “As long as anyone can remember.”
He cleared his throat. “As you can see, the stove and refrigerator have seen better days. But thanks to our mom and Stella’s dad, we have new countertops and oak cabinets.”
Stella gave a little laugh. “My dad taught her how to use tools and build things. Now she can’t stop.”

“They installed them the last time they visited,” Laura explained.
A room visible through an archway contained toys and a child’s table and chairs.
“Tyler’s playroom,”
“It may have once served as a place to dry clothes when it was too cold outside, and they would freeze on the line,” Laura added.
She pointed to a narrow stairway that led upstairs from the kitchen.
“Some people call them the maid’s stairs, but we never had a maid,”
Raúl led everyone through the rest of the first floor, stopping to point things out or answer questions.
“Yes, the ceilings are ten feet high, and yes, we use all the downstairs fireplaces, but mostly the one in the foyer since the heat rises up the stairway. Note the smoke stains on the ceilings.”
“Do you know who built the house or lived here previously?” someone asked.
Laura answered. “A man in his nineties told our parents it was built by a farmer and his wife, who had ten kids and parents living with them. They lived here for generations, but the place had long been empty when our parents bought it for almost nothing. They made repairs when they could, but it was a never-ending job.”
“Yup,” Raul agreed. “It requires almost constant maintenance.”
Bob could not stop admiring the home’s amenities. “But look at the glass doorknobs and antique light fixtures. The place is amazing.”
Josh agreed, still running his hand along the wall, occasionally tapping it.

“The construction is solid. Many older homes were built with lath and plaster, making them structurally stronger than the drywall construction of today’s homes.”

He paused in the living room, or parlor as it was called in more formal times, to admire the scrolled marble fireplace with andirons to hold firewood.
“Are those pipes sticking from the wall old gas lights?” Bob asked as they moved on.
Raúl nodded. “That they are.”
He motioned everyone to the foot of the grand stairway, broad at its base, then tapering up along a wall to a landing, from which a shorter stairway rose to the second-floor corridor. A picture window stretched along the stairway.
Its railing, the decorative newel post at its base, and the ascending row of balustrade posts gleamed with fresh varnish.
“Stella polished them,” Raúl gestured to his wife.
When the group applauded, Stella dipped into a well-practiced ballerina curtsy. It was as if she was on stage. She pranced up a few steps.
Only one more floor to go until they discover the secret.

** A fictional setting in my inspirational thriller, Bibles and Bones in the Forest, coming soon from Miller Words, the old farmhouse combines an actual farmhouse in rural Virginia, with the Victorian home on Staten Island, New York, where I grew up.

Explore the house more in "Bibles and Bones in the Forest." https://www.amazon.com/Bibles-Bones-Forest-Flora-Reigada-ebook/dp/B0DFX39JD7/ref=sr_1_8?camp=1789&creative=9325&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.KeRtc2O1DKK5kd0DVLJcLVYojkY8Xr1C3W0KpG1U0Hb-oQpyeVeRV1gyHutC

Monday, October 23, 2023

THE OLD FARMHOUSE REVEALS ITS SECRETS: Part 1

THE OLD HOUSE REVEALS ITS SECRETS

“Hey! You guys wearing combat boots?” Carla called to other twenty-somethings in the young couples Bible study as they clomped single-file down the worn, wooden cellar stairs.

Many had bombarded Raul and Stella with questions about their rambling old farmhouse, where the group met that day. To satisfy everyone’s curiosity, the couple had invited them on a tour from the cellar up.

Children’s squeaky voices, whining, and adult chatter added to the drumbeat of shoes on the stairs until the group gathered at their foot.

Raul spoke over the crowd.

“My sister, Laura, right here with her husband, Chris, will help explain things. Most of you know we both grew up in this amazing house.”

She pointed to an overflowing laundry basket beneath a chute.

“There’s the laundry chute I was talking about. In the old days, it used gravity to get dirty clothes and linens from bedrooms to washtubs.”

"But of course, my lovely bride has a washer and dryer,” Raul added, his eyes drinking in his wife’s beauty.

The toned ballerina stood on tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

Tiffany, the Bible study teacher’s wife, shivered and pulled her sweater tighter.

“It’s cold in this cellar—just like it’s always cold here in the Adirondack Mountains.”

The Florida native was having trouble adjusting to the recent move.

Raul motioned to an old, rusted chain.

“It’s a heavy chain, likely used to hoist hay into a hayloft in the old barn. My Papa dug the chain from the ground, where a barn burned long before we moved here.”

Off to the side, Josh, a building contractor, was running his hand along the stone wall,

“These walls feel sturdy. How thick are they?”

“Our father said at least two feet,” Raul answered.

ow th

Laura nodded. “They’re strong and sturdy but always damp.”

The tour continued through the cellar, which was quite extensive.

Raúl pointed out a discarded pot-bellied stove and a long-abandoned wine cellar strewn with empty glass bottles.

“Is there a way out of here other than the stairs?” someone asked.

Laura led the group to a worn door made of vertical wood planks. She unlocked and opened it, pointing up stone steps leading outside. The cool night air blew in.

As everyone headed back upstairs, Carla proclaimed with a good-natured laugh that the cellar had all the charm of a dungeon.

The others laughed and gathered for the next leg of the tour.

“Three floors and fourteen rooms to go,” Laura said, motioning everyone onward.

Each step takes them closer to uncovering the secret that will change all their lives.

--------------------------------------------

** A fictional setting in my inspirationl thriller, "Bibles and Bones in the Forest," the old farmhouse combines an actual farmhouse in rural Virginia with the Victorian home on Staten Island, New York, where I grew up.

Take the complete tour, and a Christmas tour too, in "Bibles and Bones in the Forest," E-book FREE on Smashwords through January 1.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1611634

Paperback on Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/Bibles-Bones-Forest-Flora-Reigada/dp/B0DFW73TV9/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.PbNi-GQD9QFC_gYEW5m-uLfiOgX5drbaANc-4v55N9LQ5io5xUnvOwMvhletQt4QtY8kbP3YjI5QVnZNL1klZdkyW

Likes and reviews greatly appreciated.

Saturday, June 10, 2023

STEVEN IS OUT TO GET EVEN

LOVE'S SWEETEST DELIVERANCE: BOOK 2 IN THE CASTLE IN THE SUN, ROMANCE/MYSTERY SERIES.

When Liz Bertelli thought her life was over, she discovered a locket filled with secrets, that sent her on a new journey. That mystery led her away from her verbally abusive, ex-husband Steve, to St. Augustine Florida and Carlos Martin, in the first Castle in the Sun novel.

In Book 2, Liz and Carlos gather with family and friends for a festive, holiday feast. Liz's best friend, Rosa

An unexpected and disturbing phone call interrupts the Christmas meal. Steve is back and
Even though Liz's ex-husband, Steve, had left with
another woman, he just cannot bear to see Liz happy.
determined to ruin Liz's future plans. Hoping to avoid trouble, Liz and Carlos return to Florida. There, they set their sights on restoring a Victorian home into a classy bed and breakfast.

But, as an approaching hurricane rustling palms and stirring up waves, signals impending danger, Steve's escalating behavior forecasts trouble for everyone.

Will Steve ruin Liz's chance at happiness? Or will Jack and his motorcycle buddies be able to tame the hurricane? And what is with that acorn?

Just as an approaching hurricane rattling palm trees and pushing waves signals danger, Steve's escalating behavior forecasts trouble for Liz and Carlos. Will he ruin their wedding plans? Find out more in the book.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BBFRHJT?ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_tkin_1&storeType=ebooks

Check out the series:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08RY3TR6H?ref_=dbs_p_mng_rwt_ser_shvlr&storeType=ebooks&fbclid=IwAR1K_5R9XWvciiIusF1kMp