FROM THE HEART WITH GINI RIFKIN: September 2026

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

Meet Liz Flaherty...celebrate Shades of Green

Thank you for joining me today, Liz. Would you care for tea, hot or iced. We also have scones, custard tarts, and Banbury cake.

Hot, please, and maybe I could have two scones. I just love them.
Me too. 'I'll have the same. We're like Hobbits here, we have second breakfast, and then there are elevenses with the goats.

Gosh, you're such an accomplished and award-winning author, does writing come easily for you, the words just flying from mind to fingertips, or is it more a process of determination? What is your approach.

It used to come easily, but not so much anymore. It isn’t the writing itself so much as the building of the story. I am far too prone to writing myself into a corner and sitting here whining until I find my way out.

Apparently you're method has been quite successful. Was there a specific event or idea that triggered the main plot for your Shades of Green?
Cari, the heroine, had supporting roles in the first two Harper Loch books, Pieces of Blue and Patches of Red. While I had absolutely no plan for writing about the romance of a pastor, “Preach” didn’t leave me much choice. I like her a lot!

I'm guessing we will too. I see you're a quilter. How fun. I’m delving into weaving and spinning. When did you become interested in the craft, and do you see a connection between the creative processes of quilting and writing?

I’ve always sewn a lot, and some idiot (that would be me) promised my grandkids—the Magnificent Seven—that I would make each of them a bed-size quilt after I retired. So I did. I don’t quilt much anymore, but I still sew. The only connection I know of between the two crafts is that if one of them is going well, the other one definitely is not. I think that might just be human nature.

Yes both writing and weaving can be relaxing one minute and then turn to frustration, persistence is a must. If travel to outer space was more common and affordable, would you go?

No. Not interested at all.

What would you like to be for 48 hours—a rock star, butterfly, a tree, a ballerina, a soaring eagle….

A tree. I could lend such comfort. Shade, adventure, beauty … Wouldn’t that be cool? Oh, what a lovely response. Trees are so special.

Amazon: https://a.co/d/0dKnw8fA
D2D: https://books2read.com/u/3RRAgL

Anything you would like us to know about your new release?

That Cari’s story is truly one of my heart and that Harper Loch is also a setting of my heart. I so hope you like the book and feel at home at the lake. I’ve no doubt those special feelings shine through.

Thank you, Liz Flaherty for stopping by the farmlette to share a little about yourself, and to celebrate the release of Shades of Green. The critters and I always love when nice people drop by.

Thanks, Gini, for having me visit! I like the Farmlette and its pictures!

Blurb:

Pastor Cari Newland’s life is stuck in the middle.

Her friends and parishioners at Harper Loch are mostly older than her thirty-three years… or they’re younger. While she likes being a single minister, she would also like to meet someone who sees her as someone besides “Preach.”
She gets hugged a lot, she realizes, but she never gets held. She’s never been the daughter her parents wanted or the woman her long-ago fiancé needed. Her life is good, but it’s lonely.
Enter handsome navy pilot Zack Grant. Visiting his parents at the lake, he attends a wedding Cari officiates. They talk and they dance and they are … interested. But Zack’s life is a thousand miles away and Cari’s life is firmly in Harper Loch. When interested begins to grow into something more, Cari and Zack must decide how to fit into each other’s world and whether or not they can make a long-distance romance work.
But Cari’s life is in the small lake community in Michigan. Zack’s is in the Florida Panhandle. And neither of them has any intention of changing locations.

Amazon: https://a.co/d/0dKnw8fA
D2D: https://books2read.com/u/3RRAgL

Excerpt:

“Want to dance?”

“I’d love to.”

I wasn’t surprised by how well he danced. I thought he was one of those people who did most things well. I was glad I was wearing heels, though, because he was close to a foot taller than me. He led … no doubt about that … but he didn’t drag me around on the floor.

I didn’t want the song to end, which was an entirely new feeling for me when dancing with a tall guy, but when it did and he pulled me into position for the electric slide, I had to push back my disappointment. Like I said, I wanted to be held by someone.

The reception progressed, and I danced with others, too, but mainly with Zack, feeling a buzz not unlike the one I get if I drink three glasses of wine too quickly. The band wound down into a few slow dances before the segueing gently into “Goodnight, Irene.” I remembered Grannabelle and Grandpap dancing to that when I was little. This band’s version was different, more Eric Clapton than the Weavers, but it still made everyone sway whether they danced or not.

The party ended, as they often do, with the host asking me to send the guests on their way with prayer. I was glad to do that, although it silenced the buzz I’d been enjoying.

People drifted away, calling out farewells as they went. Zack took my hand and looked at me for a moment. I looked back, regretful that the prayer, although heartfelt, had taken me back to being the pastor of Harper Loch Community Church. It had been fun and exciting for a while, being just a single woman in a swirly green dress with a handsome man’s arms around her.

“See you soon,” he said.

I hoped so.

Bio: The author of 20-some books and her husband Duane share an old farmhouse in North Central Indiana. They also share kids, numerous perfect grandkids, and cats. She loves to travel and he doesn’t, but it all works out.

Liz thinks one of the things that keeps you young when you quite obviously aren’t anymore is the constant chance you have to reinvent yourself. Her latest professional incarnation is as a women’s fiction author and she is enjoying every minute that she’s not scared to death.

She can be reached at lizkflaherty@gmail.com

Website: https://www.lizflaherty.net/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/lizkflaherty

Amazon page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Liz- Flaherty/author/B001J919R4?

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/lizkf.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lizkflaherty/?hl=en

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@lizkflaherty

LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/LizFlaherty

Monday, September 14, 2026

A forever home for Bucky the horse..

If you've visited the Murdoch's store in Longmont Colorado, you must have seen Bucky. He's pretty hard to miss. He has stood watch for more than 40 years at this store, and the prior store Country General.

Bucky has had an exciting life, greeting customers (especially the children), seeing many seasons come and go.

He's been in the Horse Expo

and the Longmont Christmas Parade.

When the store felt Bucky needed to find greener pastures, one remarkable, longtime employee, stepped right up. Carol has been at Murdoch's nearly 25 years and is your go-to person for knowledge not just about the store products, but about various animals and their care. She's also rescued numerous "real" animals, and stated, "what's one more. This one is an easy keeper, and the clean up is a breeze."

The big day came, and Bucky took one last look at the bright lights and tile floor, and was pretty excited about retiring to a nice barn with lots of hay and other animals to get to know.

Suited up for protection, and lets face it he looks great in blue, Bucky was ready to go, and the transport was on the way....or so we thought.

Roz and Dennis were just coming off a busy road when the flatbed and the truck parted company. Fortunately the safety chains were in place and held until they got onto a side-street.

Yep, we're going to need a different hitch.

Murdoch's had what we needed. The first one was the correct size but not enough drop. Second one was perfect. Back on the road, and made it to Murdoch's loading dock area.

Being a professional, and of good breeding, Bucky remained calm as he waited.

One final check, and time to load.

A big thank you to all the helping hands at Murdoch's,

you guys were great!

Thomas really had a knack for securing our Bucky for a safe smooth ride.

Ready to roll.

We got a few stares and concerned looks as Bucky now appeared to be a deceased equine as we slowly made our way to Carol's.

The last tricky part of our caper was to maneuver the flatbed as close to the barn as possible. Bucky was a bit heavy.

Go left. No right. No straight.

Oh just pull forward and start over!

Yay, you're home Bucky.

Now if Dennis and I can just figure out

how to loosen these cargo straps.

First peek into the barn and his new home.

Finally safe and sound and all in one piece. Diego, Carol's real horse, was watching. What must he think of this strange horse and new barn-mate. Bucky, you were fortunate to land in a great place for your forever home. Wishing you a long, happy retirement.