Why I Write—It’s Not (Much) About the Money
It’s the middle of tax preparation season, a time of year I hate. I am still amazed that when my father died on January 5, 2015, he already had his 2014 tax information pulled together. Even now that my husband and I use an accountant, it takes me weeks of moaning and groaning to compile […]
On Casings and Crowns: The Minutiae of Building a New House
Building a new house has taught me all sorts of esoteric terms. Our online construction schedule tells me we’ve already been through damproofing and we are headed toward prebatt tubs. Those words mean nothing to me, but I don’t think I’m expected to understand them—I don’t have to sign off on anything having to do […]
My Jewelry: What’s In a Name?
I’ve described before some of the problems I’ve faced because my parents decided to call me by my middle name. My awkward appellation has apparently been too much for certain jewelers tasked with inscribing my name or initials onto pieces I’ve been given. During my current decluttering initiative, I found a bracelet I’d been given […]
The Kansas Museum of History in Topeka
Earlier this month I had a day by myself in Topeka, which is just over an hour’s drive from our home. I’d accompanied my husband when he had an all-day conference there, but I had no obligation until his group dinner that evening. So I designed a day to suit myself. I spent the morning […]
Reflections on My Snow-Shoveling Career
Last week I shoveled our driveway and walks three times in one week. Kansas City’s winter hasn’t been as bad as in some places, but it’s been worse than we’ve had in several years. As my husband said after the third storm in a week, “This is like winter used to be.” Well, it’s not […]
Developing Plot in Scrivener, and Then . . . A Synopsis!
A few weeks ago I had to write a synopsis of my current work-in-progress to submit it to a contest. I hate writing synopses. My novels are over 100,000 words, and I’m supposed to capture the plot and essence of the story in under 1000 words? Nevertheless, I found this synopsis easier to write than […]
A Reflection on Diversity
I’ve written before that my children taught me many lessons about diversity as they grew up (see here and here). This post is the story of another time I learned something from my son about diversity. This occasion happened within a few months of my son’s third birthday. Exactly when it happened I don’t remember, […]
My Son’s First Birthday Party
Today my son turns thirty-seven. As I’ve been going through boxes, trying to declutter, I found some pictures of his first birthday party. Obviously, I would never throw these pictures out. In fact, I find it very hard to throw out any pictures. Finding these snapshots completely stopped my decluttering while I reminisced. The big […]
On Punching Up and Pizzazz
I met with my real estate agent for three hours one afternoon last week. She’s a neighbor and a friend, so I knew I could be open with her about all the quirks and cracks and over-full closets in the house. Still, it’s a very vulnerable feeling to reveal your secrets to an outsider, the […]
The Chemical Reactivity of Metals: A Science Project
I rarely entered science fairs as a student, but when I was in the seventh grade, everyone in the class was required to submit some project to the school science fair as part of our Science grade. I moaned at home about needing a topic, and my father suggested I do something on how metals […]