Butt in Chair Equals Early Death?
This past school year I gained 12 pounds. Yes, you read that correctly. Ordinarily during the school year I gain anywhere from 5-8 pounds, but this past year set an all-time record for me. I was horrified and still am because 8 of those twelve are still hanging on....
Graziano Gardens
Last Saturday I was feeling lonely because my hubby was away, my friends were camping or otherwise occupied, and I needed a little inspiration for my house and garden. I've also been trying to do something creative other than writing to, as my husband says...
Southern Roots and Northern Blossoms
Hello to my readers and to any new followers I've gained recently! Thank you for reading my words. I started this blog two years ago, and I am so glad I did. When I started writing two years ago, I just wanted a place to record my thoughts and practice the habit of...
Perspective: On the Inside Looking Out
At the end of June I began work on another revision of my novel to incorporate what I learned at UW Madison's Write-by-the-Lake in Laurie Scheer's class, Mastering Your Genre. I highly recommend this class for everyone working on a novel or screenplay, but you could...
Wisconsin Wednesdays
During summer I'm amazed by the beauty of Wisconsin, especially the rural areas where I live. It comes fast and furious because there is a finite number of sunlit, warm summer days here up north. All of us appreciate each of them and spend as much time out in the...
This Literary Child of Mine
Yesterday my husband and I were talking after a relaxing weekend, and he said something that gave me pause. We had spent a lovely weekend together and were rehashing how nice it was to spend time with a good friend and not have a deadline to meet. We spent Saturday...
Media Speak
Have you noticed anything about the stories the media reports on the evening news ? Well, if you haven't, perhaps you haven't been paying too much attention, or maybe you don't watch mainstream news. But I do. I live out in the country and don't get cable. I could...
I Belong to Two Places
A couple of years ago I read a book that has stuck with me, The Conditions of Love by Dale M. Kushner. As I read, I dog-eared pages and underlined passages even though my copy is a hardcover, not a paperback. I couldn't help myself. It's that good. Each time I go back...
My Writing Forecast
Great Plains clouds rolled in this morning like smoke billowing from a great fire dragging their ragged edged cousins along behind them. Rain and storms have arrived this morning and will develop again later today, but that is not unusual here in June. Weather in the...
Overworked and Overwhelmed?
This weekend I did something radical, maybe even revolutionary. I didn't work. I mean for my job. Not working is the exception, not the rule when it comes to my job. Ordinarily I work from 7:25 AM until 3:30 PM at school. I commute so I drive half an hour each way....