Everything you wanted to know about Sadie but were (not) afraid to ask

One of the things I think we need to improve on here at the paper is doing follow-up articles on folks we have chosen to feature in the past. It's something I'm working on, and am proud to say I have a few calls out to contacts trying to get updates on individuals who served as focal points in some of our most popular features.

When you work at a newspaper, it's so easy to write something and as soon as the last letter is typed, throw the notes away and move on to the next assignment, forgetting about the last one. It's not because we don't care, it's just part of the job.

This isn't something that solely happens to reporters. I think it happens to all of us. Ever e-mail a friend all about a story of yours or a problem you're having, then get too busy to tell them how it all worked out? Maybe I'm crazy, but that kind of thing happens to me all the time. I forget to update people. Of course, that's not saying much, because I forget everything.

So, to all my reader friends out there, here's update number one from me: I'm still forgetful.

I love hearing from my readers and love hearing your comments about news articles, feature stories and columns we publish at the Times-Gazette. Lately, I have received a lot of calls and e-mails asking me some questions about things I've written about in the past. Here are some answers to several of my most favorite questions.

What have I decided to name my baby?

After a great deal of debate, we have finally picked out a name for our little girl due in January. I had originally wanted to go with Dani, after my dad, Daniel Killian, but couldn't settle on a middle name. I thought about Dani Killian, but that sounded too much like my dad. I thought about Dani Grace, but that name is already taken by some local folks whom the whole county seems to know. I thought about Alanna Killian, and loved it, but it wasn't Dani. And the main focus I had from the beginning was picking a name that was meaningful.

My husband had mentioned a middle name to go with Dani a while back that I loved, but I was afraid it was too masculine. Then, my friend sent me a link to an article talking about how the latest trend in baby girl names is boys names for girls and/or what we'd think of as nicknames making it to the birth certificate (For example, you may name your child Betty instead of Elizabeth, Bob instead of Robert or Dani instead of Danielle.) With that one link my problem was solved and I'm proud to announce my baby's name will be Dani Rae Fowler.

If you like it feel free to tell me. If you don't, and think it's too masculine, well ... too bad. My goodness I have learned that everyone truly has an opinion about names!

How has your dad's illness progressed?

I spent last weekend home in New York to celebrate my dad's 53rd birthday. He made it to another birthday, which is remarkable considering the grim lung cancer diagnosis he received back in March. At first, things weren't going so well with the chemotherapy. Since July, doctors have changed the course of his treatment, including the type of chemo he receives, and he seems to be tolerating it well (well enough that we have decided the chemo is slowing the progress enough to make it worth continuing chemo), considering it is chemo.

Though weak and frail, he remains kind and hopeful, and I hope he is around for many more birthdays. Thank you all for your prayers.

Have you had any strange food cravings lately?

Let's see, right now I'm drinking a chocolate mint milkshake from Arby's, just after returning from a trip to New York where breakfasts consisted of either banana bread with chocolate chips, pancakes loaded with real maple syrup or homemade cookies. My days ended with Stewart's ice cream. Does that answer your question?

Are you still wanting to sell your car?

Yep, despite my emotional attachments as admitted in last week's column, and against the advice of a few friends, I will sell the car. Thankfully, pictures come in handy when keeping the memory of something, someone, or a particular moment in time, alive.

Would you consider doing a series on local chefs?

I would love to do a series on local chefs, but beginning a series like that is more difficult than I care to get into in a column. So the short answer is no, however, I would love to feature anyone who loves to cook or has a special recipe or cooking story to share. Contact me if you're interested.

What's a good recipe for potato soup?

I loved this question! Though I didn't have a great one on hand, I asked around and did some research. This is one of those recipes that when you research it you're bombarded with hundreds of recipes looking back at you. How do you know what's good? This is when good friends who know how to cook come in handy. I asked around and got some tips on making potato soup and plan to make my own version for this week's Simply Delish (scary, since I am a firm believer in following recipes). If you see it featured on 3B it must have been good. If you don't, well, all I can say is that I'm not a professional chef and sometimes things just don't go the way we all hope.

That's it for now, friends. Please send story ideas, recipes, candidates for Sunday Conversation and any other comments, complaints and concerns my way. Until then, I'll try to keep my word and begin updating you about folks we've featured in the past. If you have someone in particular in mind, please don't hesitate to e-mail me.

-- Sadie Fowler is lifestyles editor of the Times-Gazette. She may be reached at sfowler@t-g.com.