Norton Museum: Thinking Differently About Art, Writing, and Life
On my recent trip to Florida, in addition to viewing wildlife and water activities, I went to the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach. This was my second visit to the museum. In 2009, when I first went to the Norton, I was awestruck by a special exhibit showing Ansel Adams’s photographs juxtaposed with […]
Is Life a Beach or Not?
I’ve written before how much I love the ocean and how I count a year as good if I get to spend time on the beach. By that reckoning, 2014 should be shaping up to be a good one. I spent a day in late February basking in 80 degree sunshine on the beach at […]
Everyone’s a Critic
My husband and I recently returned from a week-long trip to Florida. I worked some on my writing, but mostly I drank up the sunshine and warmth. The respite from mid-western cold and snow was a much needed treat. But during the week, I did have to face several critics. As a writer, I know […]
My Blog Nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award
This is my week for blog chains. Monday I followed a tag by Juliet Kincaid, and today I am thanking Kate Loveton for nominating my blog for the Versatile Blogger award. Check out her blog, Odyssey of a Novice Writer. Calling me “versatile” is something of a joke in our household. My family does not […]
Author’s Blog Chain
I’ve been asked to participate in an Author’s Blog Chain this week, which gives me the opportunity to tell you more about my writing. Juliet Kincaid, a Kansas author and member of the local Sisters in Crime chapter, tagged me on her blog, Juliet Kincaid, Writer. Juliet has recently written a series of cozy mysteries featuring Cinderella, […]
The Secret Is Out! News of Gold Spreads in California
As I wrote last month, the California Gold Rush began in late January 1848 when James Marshall found gold on Johann Sutter’s land near what is now Sacramento, California. At the time, California was still owned by Mexico, though the U.S. Army controlled it, and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was about to be signed, […]
A Valentine’s Day Charm
On my last trip to visit my parents, my father and I were sorting through some of my mother’s belongings. She no longer needs her fancy clothes and jewelry, now that she lives in an assisted living facility because of her dementia. My father wanted my help in deciding what to give away and what […]
My Son, My Mother, and Hallmark Cards
Several months ago I was cleaning out a drawer that should have been cleaned out long, long before. I found a file of greeting cards from the year my son was born. (I won’t say the year, but I will say he was born in mid-February, in the middle of a big snowstorm much like […]
My Grandfather’s Quest for Sulfa
I didn’t know my grandfathers as well as my grandmothers. Maybe it’s natural for a girl to spend more time with her grandmothers. Maybe it’s because both my grandmothers had more forceful personalities than their husbands, my grandfathers. My maternal grandfather died when I was not quite ten, but I had lived with my maternal […]
Two Fortune Cookies
I keep two fortune cookie messages on my desk. They were in cookies I got from Chinese restaurant meals I’ve enjoyed since I began writing a few years ago. (I’ve received many more fortune cookies from many more Chinese restaurant meals, but these were the only two fortunes worth keeping.) One message reads, “You’ll be […]