The night after my first marriage there was a terrible tornado. So tempting to draw an analogy here but that would be a cheap shot. It was a small wedding in my parent’s backyard in June. It was a balmy, wildflower scent wafting, sunny day. But the next day was Midwestern hot and humid with
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Impulsive Hair War Apocalypse
People are stressing about their hair during the Covid-19 pandemic. It needs cutting, or dyeing or shaving or something. I’m no stranger to hair wars. I’m an impulsive, risk taking person who’s had a mullet, braids with feathers and bells, lank ponytails, asymmetrical cuts, partial shaves and lots of different colors. Below are some of
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Which One is the Marrow Spoon?
My Mother was a real stickler for manners. As the youngest, I caught the convergence of Mom’s good manners and a passion for all things British which included formal dining. I was about 8, when she called me into the dining room for lessons on how to successfully dine. I enjoyed these sessions with my
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Too Hot Two Bangs, Too Cold One Bang
When the ex and I first moved to the land I live on now, we rented a neighbor’s cottage. It was a rustic, cozy place with an outhouse close by and no running water. There was a cistern at the top of the land where you could fill water jugs plus there was an outside
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Question: what did she mean by saying “that explains a lot about you?”
My Mom was delightfully, wickedly, intelligent but born in the wrong era for the outspoken woman she was. She loved us, but children and family really weren’t her thing. You had to believe she meant well when she said some of the things she did. That wasn’t easy sometimes. Check this out. I was born
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Riding the Updraft
I drive by an active limestone quarry on my way home. It’s common to see 20 plus vultures sailing on the updrafts from the stone pits. I figure it’s the one beauty in a vulture’s life: to be sailing in the sunshine on the updrafts. Ken says we might want to be worried about the
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Have you ever done something really stupid?
When I was in my 20’s I lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I love Ann Arbor and as time has passed I see my life there as having been a time of excitement, new ideas, new experiences and huge growth. However, for various reasons a lot of it sucked at the time. One winter day
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Fire Escape Voyeurs
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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Sweating With the Kitties
We have 2 cats: Zim and Jack Pumpkinhead. Sadly, some of our family developed cat allergies so the kitties got demoted to permanent outside status. Jack doesn’t mind being outside because he’s a former stray who has never been inside although he knows that inside is where the cat food lives. Zim is unhappy about
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Superwoman has a cold
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
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
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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