Long, long ago  . . . in a galaxy far, far away . . . there were no cell phones.  So when you traveled out-of-town and spent the night in a hotel, you were required to trust the resident alarm clock that was often provided as one of the amenities—if, that is, there was a […]

Please note the picture of the large toe that occupies someone’s right foot (that someone being yours truly—as you can probably tell, pedicures are not my thing).  Also, please note the malformation of the toenail attached to said toe.  That crease that runs from side to side is the point to which it has grown […]

I’m constantly scanning Pinterest, searching for interesting monuments or unusual methods of transportation for the deceased (aka hearses), or perhaps inspirational quotes or those that attempt to put grief into words.  Not long ago I found one that falls into that last category; one that spoke so strongly to me I knew I had to […]

This time of year you’ll often hear people refer to a “Christmas miracle”, usually in jest over some random event that’s easily explained but also just happened to work out for the best, in spite of the odds.  Normally for me, just surviving Christmas is the miracle . . . but this year . . […]

I was ready for it this year.  Christmas was not going to catch me unprepared.  Not again.  Last year was, in my perfection driven brain, a disaster.  I couldn’t get the house decorated, shopping wasn’t happening, I hadn’t managed to find the cute, personal odds and ends with which I like surprising my family, and […]

I have a friend (surprising, I know . . .) that I don’t get to see very often, and when I do it’s usually because of my work, not his, which doesn’t make for the best of circumstances. We’ll spend as much time as possible catching up and comparing notes on kids and grandkids and […]

It’s been a busy week . . . but that’s to be expected, you say.  ‘Tis the holiday season and the blank spaces on most everyone’s calendars tend to rapidly disappear.  There are work parties and church parties and friend parties and family parties and all the parties, one right after the other.  There are […]

I had the misfortune of needing to make a trip to Wal-Mart on Thanksgiving morning to pick up some items I thought I needed.  I say “misfortune” because . . . Wal-Mart.  And Thanksgiving.  I say “thought I needed” because it turned out I actually had no need for them whatsoever, which was just a […]

There was a gentle breeze which was nice, given that the day was warmer than usual for a November afternoon.  I had traveled as part of the small procession, across town, through the hills and hollers, and onto a small country road, lined with trees so close I believe I could have touched them had […]

Say kids, what time is it?  For those of you old enough to remember, I’ll tell you right now, “it’s Howdy Doody time” is not the correct answer. IT’S THE HOLIDAY SEASON!!! Are you surprised? Truth be known, probably not.  If you get catalogs by mail, then you’ve been overrun with the things for at […]