Zain Mackey

Life Artist

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Fire Escape Voyeurs

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After a great breakfast at the Uptown Café, Ken and I headed to the car and as we buckled up, we noticed a couple arguing on the outside stairway of the apartment building in front of us. The woman was clearly angry and the guy kept backing up floor by floor as she moved toward

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Superwoman has a cold

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Many years ago I had an-eat–your-soul job. You know the kind: you should take some days off but they sigh and frown on it even though you just worked 20 hours overtime and slept under your desk a couple of nights when it wasn’t worth driving home. I was conscientious, a loyal, valuable and hardworking

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Thanksgiving chaos ala Mackey

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My Mother didn’t want to cook a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. She was more interested in sitting in her favorite chair, reading the convoluted history of the English monarchy while drinking a beer and eating popcorn. Actually, this sounds great to me so I totally get her attitude. I regret to say that we were argumentative

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Look Out: I Am the Alpha Chicken

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Here’s another post about a Thanksgiving Day disaster at my Dad’s family farm. I have mixed childhood memories about that farm. And check out the other T-day post called Stinky Dog Thanksgiving. In fact, check out all the other posts you might have missed, I dare you! I grew up in suburbia. My mother loved

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Stinky Dog Thanksgiving

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Thanksgiving for us meant a trip to the family farm in Kentucky where Dad’s aunts lived. One year Dad decided to go hunting while we visited and packed his guns and his hunting dog Chad for the trip. Bright and early on T-day we headed out to the Farm. Dad and my brother returned around

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Do I have to learn to gobble?

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I confess I’m not a runner. I’m a sprinter if something big, mean and ugly is after me but running for fun? No.  . So you might wonder why I signed up for a 5k Turkey Trot this Thanksgiving. I blame this on love for my daughter. She’s a great runner, doing half marathons plus she

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Did That Kid Just Call Us…

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When she was little, my daughter was obsessed with heavy earth moving equipment. Dump trucks, road graters, concrete mixers and so forth made her yell with delight. We spent time in the car traveling back and forth from preschool and work and she was an alert participant in the world. She would gaze out the

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Happy Birthday From Under The Bed

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Our family had a bizarre birthday celebration. The day of your birthday would dawn with both excitement and dread. There you were innocently eating your breakfast Wheaties laughing at Charlie Brown and Snoopy when the entire family descended on you. “Grab the legs!” someone shouted as you kicked viciously upsetting the cereal bowl. “I’ve got

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Fear The Dentist Part 1: The Dreaded Dry Socket

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My friend Charlene doesn’t fear the dentist. She’s never had a cavity and it’s just a friendly visit for her. Ok, she did have a rough experience with her wisdom teeth and the pain meds, but I’m talking about the regular dentist visit, not the oral surgeon stuff. Not me. I fear the dentist. They’re

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Clearly, You’re On The Menu

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Center Pointe, Indiana has an Exotic Feline Rescue Center, home to about 200 big cats representing 9 different species. The Center has tours but you’re not allowed to touch or interact with the cats. You’d be a fool to try. These are carnivores on steroids. The cats are in large, secure fenced-in areas but once

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Me and Mr, Jones have a thing going on…

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Every summer I wave at Mr. Jones when I see him outside tending his tomatoes. He’s the king of tomatoes, corn, beans, potatoes, zucchini and lettuce. I wave at him and he always waves back. Mr. Jones loves his downhome veggie patch. And I love Mr. Jones because he’s doing exactly what makes him happy.

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