A Different Way of Doing Things
The writing group I belong to used to meet weekly. That was before COVID. Then, for a while, we didn’t meet at all. Eventually, we started getting together via Zoom, although we didn’t meet every week. Like many people and organizations, we discovered there were pros and cons to Zoom meetings. They were better than not being able to meet at all, and allowed long-distance members to take part. But technical glitches were frustrating and annoying. When it was okay [...]
Just a little time
A friend of mine commented on last week’s blog about my New Year’s Resolution to spend an hour, first thing in the morning, writing. He suggested that one hour might be too big of a commitment at first, and that it would be better to start with a shorter amount of time – 15 minutes, perhaps, or even just 10. I’m sure many people would question how long it would take to write a book – or accomplish anything, for [...]
I firmly resolve…
I’ve decided that 2023 is going to be the Year of the Book. This is no relation to the Year of the Tiger, Rabbit, Ox, Dragon, Snake, or any other animal celebrated in the Chinese New Year. Instead, it’s related to my New Year’s Resolutions. I’ve realized for a while now that I’m not spending enough time, on a regular basis, on any of the books I’m writing. I have four that are in various stages of completion, from great-idea-and-outline-done [...]
Change of Plans This Christmas
After a mid-December trip to California to spend a few days with our daughter as she recovered from surgery, we were home packing our bags again, this time for a trip to Minnesota – with an overnight stop in Chicago – to spend Christmas with our son, daughter-in-law, and three grandchildren. The night before we were scheduled to leave, however, we decided to cancel our trip. Although we had already dug through our closets for any cold-weather clothing we still [...]
Oh, those bells!
I heard some church bells ringing the other day, and – perhaps because it’s the Christmas season – it made me think of a column I wrote long ago. I dug it out of my files and reread it, and realized it was just as appropriate today as it was then. I hope it inspires some fond memories for you. Christmas bells bring music, memories, and peace “Christmas bells, those Christmas bells, ringing through the land. Bringing peace to all [...]
Advice for Gift Shopping
“Something they want, something they need, something to wear, and something to read.” This reminds me of the traditional bride’s wedding-day advice to have something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. But this one isn’t about brides or weddings, it’s about buying children’s gifts at Christmastime – or any gift-giving occasion, for that matter. I first heard this saying from my hairdresser, whose son is close in age to my grandchildren. We were talking about buying gifts for kids, [...]