Vibrant Nation

Arlene Wright-Correll

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arlenewrightcorrell's avatarArlene Wright-Correll is an award-winning artist, author, and art instructor. At the age of 68, she decided to pick up her paint brushes again after 54 years and paint, in mostly gouache watercolors and pastels, the flowers, herbs and fruits that grow at Home Farm Herbery in Munfordville, KY. She is the resident artist and workshop instructor at Avalon Stained Glass School.

  • Any melon worth its salt

    When I was a kid growing up that was a famous slogan for Morton Salt and may still well be. A big treat for us in the summer was watermelon, cantaloupe and honey dew melon. Nothing else came into our little world.

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  • A smart gardener starts small

    With the cost of produce escalating higher and higher and healthy cooking and eating awareness setting into the main stream of our lives, more and more people are considering starting their own organic vegetable gardens.

    There is no need to create a large garden or to even consider a large garden.  Think small and be smart about it because any plant deserves your consideration and responsibility.

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  • Words that inspire

    from T.H White's, The Once and Future King and I thank him for writing it as it has held me steadfast many, many times.

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  • Matting your pictures is not as hard as it looks!

    Many times we feel that we are not capable to doing things that others make look simple such as matting your own art or photos.

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  • How to save money by buying at a farmer’s market

    The other day we received a flyer from our Hart County Chamber of Commerce alerting us to the fact that Munfordville was going to have a Farmer’s Market on Tuesday and Friday commencing July 7th until the end of October. Not only was that good news, it started me thinking about Farmer’s Markets.

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  • How to "make it nice" on a shoe string

    It was getting towards the end of the month and even though I did not need a thing, nor did I seem to want a thing, I realized I was getting low on money. What brought it to my attention were all the sales flyers that were coming into our post box.

    This got me to thinking of our younger days when we were just starting out and really did want or need things and quite often were low on money.  How did we manage with 5 kids and ourselves?

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  • New Years Eve in Brooklyn

    When I was a child living in Brooklyn, New York, we lived in the tenements, called “railroad flats” on Kosciusko Street with my grandmother.  They were called “railroad flats” because they were long and narrow with each room walking into the next one like a railroad car.

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  • Arlene's Roasted Herb Potatoes

    When we had the Bed and Breakfast and Campgrounds in Tennessee I often found myself cooking dinner for as few as 3 guests, but as many as 25 guests. To make my life very simple my menu included two choices"Take it or Leave it!" It simply consisted of whatever I felt like cooking that day.

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  • How to live with Fibromyalgia

    I was to the point if someone said, “All the pain will go away if we amputate your right leg”; I would have signed up for the operation!

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  • How to live within one's budget

    Trying to be frugal or live within one's budget seems to be almost impossible nowadays. Us old folks have a couple of advantages such as those old enough to have been born in the early 30's were probably a part of a family who experienced the "Great Depression", nowadays we don't seem to need as much as we used to and hopefully our meager savings are not being eaten up by medical bills.

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  • How to have a Tuscan vacation without leaving home

    Whether or not you are a vegetarian, this article is worth the read.  I love Italy and especially Northern Italy and most especially Tuscany.  I look back upon my visits to many of the places and remember them all with fondness. 

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  • How to host a wine tasting party

    I was once asked, “Is all that swirling, sniffing and spitting that goes on during wine tasting really necessary?” Yes!!!!  Do you need to serve white wine with fish?  No!!! But it usually is a good choice.  Making good choices is something you can learn.  There is no snob appeal here. Wine is an intricate part of today’s life in the good old USA.  It has been an intricate part of the world for thousands of years.  For over a half a century I have been tasting wines. I consider myself a consumer, not a connoisseur of wine…. Both good and bad!  

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  • How to make and keep an easy kitchen

    Many years ago a dear friend of mine flew in for a business meeting and while he was here he took several meals with us.  During one of them, he said, “Arlene, you keep an easy kitchen.”  Bob was alluding to the fact that I can put together fairly decent and tasty meals very quickly.   Over the years I have thought about that statement often and decided that I truly do.  With that in mind I would like to share some thoughts with you on how you can keep an “Easy Kitchen”.

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  • Working for my Grandmother

    I was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. and lived there until I was about 9 or 10 years old. Then we moved up to Queens until I was 12 yrs old and after that out onto Long Island until I got married.

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  • How to live an easier life

    Dale Carnegie is quoted to have said "Today is life -- the only life you are sure of. Make the most of today. Get interested in something. Shake yourself awake.
    Develop a hobby. Let the winds of enthusiasm sweep through you. Live today with gusto."  

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  • How to know what tree to plant

    At the end of every Louis L’Amour novel he asked his readers to plant one tree a year. His premise was that it only takes about 30 minutes to cut down a tree and it takes years for one to grow. He realized that millions of trees are cut each year and many are not being replaced. Today, the forestry industry replaces what it cuts, but developers and builders cut down many trees to build homes and rarely replace any. It is up to us to plant a tree.

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  • How to create fused stained glass jewelry

    Creating fused stained glass jewelry is really not hard at all. One need not have any artistic talent. One only needs a kiln or access to one. Here are some pieces I recently made.

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  • Anatomy of a watercolor painting

    I keep saying that anyone can create art and all it takes is knowing a few simple techniques. There is no great mystery to it and one really does not have to think they need great talent. One just needs to enjoy the few hours one spends creating a picture in any kind of medium.

    With that in mind I will use today's painting as the subject matter and took pictures of it as I went along creating "Remains of the Day."

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  • How to create art with pencils (part 2)

    Now that you have amassed your drawing tools you can decide whether or not you want to hold your pencil in the handwriting position or the under hand position which is simply clasping your pencil lightly with your fingertips holding the pencil under your hand.  This position is favored for drawing long flowing strokes.

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  • How to create art with pencils (part 1)

    Drawing is one of the easiest and simplest forms of art.  Not only is it one of our earliest introduction to art as all we have to do is remember our childhoods with a simple piece of paper and a pencil, we need to remember it is also a way to discover our “inner artist” that is still sitting there waiting for us to resume our work

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  • Everything you ever wanted to know about pizza, but were afraid to ask

    Pizza is one of my most favorite foods. I love it hot, I love it cold, I eat it leftover pizza for breakfast and it is a pretty healthy food. I love New York pizza by the slice. In Brooklyn we always asked if any one wanted a slice of pie and that meant pizza!

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  • Would you make your next vacation a learning vacation?

    Would  You Make Your Next Vacation a Learning Vacation if it was "Budget Friendly", taught you something artist that you never thought you could do and had fun doing it?

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  • Everyone has hidden art talents

    The art of living well in today's world is important. Find out exactly what your art talents are.

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