Patti was certainly not writing about singing or music but something that is so necessary in our lives today: finding harmony with others across political, religious, race and ethnicity, family issues and more, that often bring discord ..read more

I had planned a semi-surprise 70th birthday party for my dear husband this year and all of the children and grandchildren were coming to our house, along with some aunts and uncles and cousins. We burn wood all winter and use a humidifier to keep the air breathable inside, but both things together make A. Lot. Of. Dust. And dusting ..read more

Our getaway location was an 1800 acre farm with the family name “Graves Mountain Farm” in operation since 1850s, (families settled there earlier in the 1740s, an interesting history!). In addition to raising cows, chickens, horses, sheep, apples, and peaches, it offers cabins and lodges, a swimming pool, volleyball court, horseshoe pit, a babbling brook with fishing, hiking, biking, local bands and singalongs, fireplaces….and plenty of great food options in season ..read more

At this stage of life, we’ve all lost precious and beloved and sometimes “too young” friends and family members. My husband’s family lost a cousin a couple weeks ago, and we really wanted to go to the memorial service. But it was 1100 miles away in Nebraska ..read more

Did you learn to type on an old-fashioned typewriter? I never realized commercial typewriters go way back to another century, when commercial typewriters were introduced in 1874. Wow ..read more

This past winter, I decided to re-pot most of my house plants. None of them were looking very healthy. Three of them had the nerve to go and die on me after the repotting. I did not mess with Dad’s philodendron ..read more

Our waitress can greet a table of regulars with an exact description of each person’s usual pizza, sandwich, or drink order, or if by chance someone at the table yearns for something different that night, she quickly alters her notes to include a switch out ..read more

Velvet was glaring at a skunk, a large one at that, likely male, standing stock-still facing the dog. I panicked thinking the skunk had already sprayed her. My heart sunk ..read more

I’m pondering this right now because I’m reading a journal I kept in the years 1970-71 when I was taking a “gap year” (like they call it now), where I was doing church-related voluntary service, teaching nursery schoolers in Kentucky. (That was over 50 years ago, good grief ..read more

“I write so I can live a thousand lives.” A young woman named Shea Megale wrote this which, as a fellow writer, I loved.  She is one of the most daring and amazing persons I’ve had the opportunity to meet ..read more