Out of the Closet
Here is the post I had planned for January 7. I think I’m ready for it now: One of the things I love most about my house is the huge closet in the master bedroom. It is about ten feet by fourteen feet and lined with rods on the sides and down the middle. I […]
A Lesson About Wonder from Myself at Seventeen
I was a valedictorian in my high school class. There were six of us with 4.0 averages (no extra points in that era for A+s or Honors or AP classes). Because there were so many of us, we were each given three minutes to speak at our graduation ceremony. We each chose one emotion to […]
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Social Media in Times of Stress
Before my father passed away on January 5, I had scheduled some posts on my Facebook author page about Clean Off Your Desk Day on January 12, and today’s Organize Your Home Day. I forgot about these posts in the middle of much bigger worries. So in addition to my emotional posts from this blog […]
Stories: Past, Present, and Future
A week ago when I posted, my father was alive. He was a regular reader of my blog, and often called or emailed me when I posted about family issues. He didn’t call me to comment on last Monday’s post about my grandparents’ house. But he did email me on Monday about one of his […]
Change in Plans—In This Blog as in Life
I had a humorous post lined up for today, but I learned Monday night that my father had passed away suddenly. You may remember that my mother died on July 4. He had missed her terribly for the last six months. He told me after Christmas that it was the first Christmas in sixty-six years […]
A Fireplace and a Chair Across Two Generations
Please forgive me for posting another Christmas snapshot, even though we are now in a new year. This is a photograph of my mother and her older brother from 1937. It’s a happier picture than another one I posted of these two siblings, and it brought back many memories for me, even though it was […]
Thank You, and Happy Holidays to All!
As 2014 draws to a close, I want to thank all my readers for their support this year and to wish you all a Happy New Year. I won’t post on this blog again until January 5, 2015. In the meantime, here are a few of my favorite Christmas posts from prior years: Super-Jesus and […]
President Polk Acknowledges California Gold Discovery Ten Months After It Occurred
It wasn’t until December 1848 that President James Polk acknowledged that gold had been found in California. President Polk was a strong supporter of western expansion. He had worked to acquire Oregon south of the 49th parallel for the United States in 1846. The Mexican-American War which President Polk supported left the U.S. in possession of […]
True Christmas Story: A Visit from St. Nicholas
In some families, Santa Claus comes to call ahead of Christmas Eve every year. Other families take their children to see St. Nicholas at the mall every year. I only remember one time Santa came to see my brother and me, and one later visit to the mall to see him. The evening Santa came […]
Kindergarten Show and Tell
My youngest sibling was in kindergarten the year I started college. When I came home from Middlebury College for Christmas my freshman year, this brother had a favor he wanted. “Would you come to Show and Tell with me?” he asked. “Okay,” I responded, somewhat surprised—why did I need to go with him to Show […]