I’m sure most of us are familiar with some variation of the story about a reporter who once asked Thomas Edison how it felt to fail so many times while trying to invent the lightbulb. Edison replied, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” I can relate to that. It’s how I felt while making a loaf of sourdough bread. I actually tried making sourdough bread a few years ago, after reading that it’s a healthier bread choice for diabetics. [...]
I first met Jeannette when we both lived in Roanoke, Virginia, and were members of the Newcomers Club. In addition to attending the monthly luncheons, she and I were both avid readers and were members of the Newcomers’ Book Club, as well as the “Stitch ’n’ Chat” group, and a few other Newcomers small groups. When my family moved to Colorado, she sent me a letter telling me about an author who was local to my new area, and whose books she was enjoying. “I [...]
So here we are, a week into the New Year, and I’m still working on my New Year’s Resolutions. I guess that means “Quit procrastinating” is off the table. Actually, I haven’t been procrastinating. I’ve just been changing my mind a lot. Which means “Be more decisive” is probably also off the table. Here’s the thing. At Mass on New Year’s Day, our pastor’s homily touched on New Year’s Resolutions. As you would expect, he didn’t focus on losing weight or cleaning out closets, but [...]
I first saw it in an email ad from Kroger about a week ago. The email featured coupons, menus, recipes, tips, and even a timetable for preparing Thanksgiving dinner, including appetizers, side dishes, and desserts. I was drawn first to the recipes, of course, and that’s where I saw the photo of a turkey-shaped cheeseball, complete with pretzel feet, cracker face, and a colorful bell-pepper tail. It made me laugh just to look at it, and I could tell it would be fairly easy to [...]
There are times—like right now, on election day—when I worry about the state of our country and the world. I’m concerned about all the angry rhetoric, the threats of violence, and the explosive tempers that seem to be the norm these days. It makes me wonder what kind of example we’re setting for our children, and what kind of lessons we’re teaching them. Then I come across someone like Stanley Tucker. And I’m comforted and relieved to know that because of people like him, there’s [...]
My book club meets once a month, and each of our twelve members takes a turn hosting the meeting—serving snacks and lunch before we sit down to discuss the book. I always try to work the menu around the theme or environment of the book we’re discussing. Book Club was at my house this month, and the book we read was A Shadow in Moscow, by Katherine Reay. I highly recommend it, by the way—and since it’s a spy novel set in Russia, I researched [...]
I hadn’t even heard of Hurricane Helene until a few days before it hit. That’s unusual. Normally, there is a week or more of weather reports saying something is developing somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean that may turn into a tropical storm or a full-fledged hurricane. We always pay attention to hurricane news, even though we live so far inland in Georgia that hurricanes usually don’t affect us directly. There have been some exceptions, of course, such as Hurricane Irma, which left us without power [...]
During a visit with our daughter eight years ago, conversation turned to the coming election, and inspired a tongue-in-cheek column in which I appointed members of my family—myself included—to different government positions. Some of what I said is as relevant today as it was then, so I’m printing it again. I hope you enjoy it. The Department of Nice. That’s the federal agency I’m going to be in charge of after my daughter is elected president. My husband and I spent last weekend in Florida, [...]