Monthly Archives: April 2011
Washed Away
Hi there! If you live anywhere in the mid-west you are probably stuck inside right now, just like me. That is if you are fortunate enough to still have a home. It has been raining and/or tornadoing (This is actually a word in the urban dictionary! Imagine my surprise.) for the last seven days. I’m not usually one to complain about the weather, but this is crazy. My heart goes out to all of the people suffering after the series of tornadoes or during the ongoing flooding. Continue reading
Long Hot Summer
By early July at our house the average daily temperature was at least eighty-five degrees. For about three weeks we experienced record high temperatures with nearly every day climbing to 110 degrees. It was not a dry heat. I kept the air conditioning set at about eighty five. This might not sound like much, but believe me, the house was much cooler than the outside. Also, if I’d set it any colder we would have alternately melted and then froze several times per day as we went in and out to do chores. Continue reading
First Spring
Having grown up in the extreme northern regions of the continental U.S., my husband and I were used to spring making a hesitant appearance in mid to late May. After our first winter in the southern mid-west, we were shocked when the snow melted in March. We were delighted when the daffodils and tulips bloomed the first week of April. The sunshine and warming temperatures lured us outside and the spring air made us ridiculously ambitious. Continue reading
The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Forking over thirty plus dollars for a book can be a bit hard to swallow at times, but overall The Wise Man’s Fear was worth every ha’penny. Patrick Rothfuss continues to demonstrate a proficiency for writing and playfulness with language … Continue reading
Bossypants by Tina Fey
Tina Fey’s new book Bossypants is definitely outside of my usual box; however, I read a great review on NPR.org so I had to give it a try. It was an easy read, highly entertaining overall, and frequently laugh-out-loud funny. … Continue reading
Practically Perfect
A glass of wine and a book, the practically perfect end to a practically perfect weekend. It all began with picking up my husband from the airport Friday morning and continued with a thunderstorm rolling through late Friday afternoon. My son and I sat in front of the open window and listened to the thunder, felt the wind blowing through the screens, and watched the dark clouds slowly cover the sky. Continue reading
Winter
Looking out across the landscape
As far as the eye can see,
There is not a single thing
That disturbs the serenity.
The barren branches of the trees
Are piled high with snow.
The boughs of scented evergreens
Dipping wearily so low. Continue reading
Chicken Tragedy
Our first real tragedy resulted from one of man’s own creations. We’d had the fox issue under control for some time now, so we had become a bit more casual about the chickens. One evening the flock was out eating grass and happily scratching for bugs as my son and I were eating dinner. After he’d had a bath and I’d finished up the dinner dishes, we headed out to shut the chickens in for the night.
It was late dusk, approaching full dark, and as we stepped into the garage a hen ran out from a corner of the garage straight toward us. Continue reading
Free Range vs. the Fox
One evening shortly after settling in to our new home we were driving down the road past our south pasture. I was looking out the window, enjoying the idyllic scenery, when I suddenly gasped and pointed.
“Foxes!” I cried in delight. “Aren’t they beautiful?”
There were two of them, lush red-orange coats and bushy black-tipped tails. They were shiny and healthy-looking. They really were beautiful. My husband and I were both very excited.
Ah, to be naive again. Continue reading
Writing by Hand
I prefer good old pencil and paper to typing on the computer- at least for the first draft of any given work. There are several reasons for this. Continue reading