A Not So Random Photo and Family Forensics
National Siblings Day was a few days ago on April 10. I looked for a picture of my siblings and me to post on Facebook for the occasion, and I came across this one. I’d forgotten this photo, though it is on the CD that my father had made of old family pictures several years […]
On Birthdays, Goals, and Priorities
My birthday was yesterday. I celebrated sedately, ordering dinner from an Italian restaurant my husband and I like and cake from a bakery I hadn’t tried before. I also voted in a municipal election and met with a banker. It was a decent day, though I doubt this becomes one of my most memorable birthdays. […]
Distressed Jeans? I Can’t Even Wear Them Frayed
I read recently that the 1990s trend of distressed and ripped jeans is happening again. I never noticed it had stopped happening—I think I’ve seen torn jeans wherever I look for at least the last twenty years. Distressed jeans are a fashion statement I’ve actively avoided. They distress me. When I first noticed ripped jeans […]
Researching an Early Oregon Murder (Again)
My current work-in-progress has a murder in it. I won’t say any more than that in this post. As I have been writing this murder into my draft, however, I have gone back to research my ancestor’s murder in 1852 Oregon again. I’ve learned some facts that cast doubt on one of my earlier novels, […]
My Journaling, Then and Now
Twenty years ago today, March 16, 2002, I opened up a lined blank journal and began writing. I’ve posted before about my first words in that journal (“The only way to start is just to start—take the plunge”). I still recall the trepidation I felt as I faced that blank page . . . the […]
Women Who Led Through Story: An Art Show by Patricia Streeper
Last week I had the opportunity to attend an artist’s talk by painter Patricia Streeper at The Story Center, located in the Mid-Continent Public Library’s Woodneath Branch. Patti is a fellow retiree and friend from Hallmark Cards, and she has taken up painting since she retired. She currently has two art shows during Women’s History […]
A Book My Mother Gave Me: The Thorn Birds
My mother’s birthday would have been later this week, and so I’ve been thinking a lot about her. One of the things I think about is all the books we read and discussed. Both of us loved reading all our lives, from the time we first could read until, in my mother’s case, when she […]
Liveries in the Mid-19th Century United States
Writers of historical fiction often chase down rabbit holes of research they do not anticipate. In my current work-in-progress, I need my male protagonist to have a business. He is interested in caring for animals, but veterinarians schooled in how to treat animals were not common in 1867. So, my character has learned by informally […]
Well, Wordle You Know!
Like everyone else I know, I now play Wordle. I started sometime in January, and I treasure that small dose of satisfaction at solving the puzzle as a bright start to my day. When do I Wordle? If I wake during the night, I might pull out my tablet and Wordle away. If I sleep […]
Happy Fortieth Birthday to My Son
My son, my first child, turns forty in a few days. It certainly does not feel like forty years ago that I gave birth to him in a bad snowstorm. I wrote about his birth in an earlier post, so I won’t repeat that here. I’ve written many posts about my son over the years, […]