I realize almost constantly how very blessed I am to have had the mother I did.  But on Mother’s Day, the lesson is especially pointed.
My mom was the kind of person I always wanted to be, even during those rebellious times when I refused to admit it.  Mom never graduated from high school, but that’s […]

I’m beginning to think long and hard about returning to teaching.
For a dozen years, I taught English classes at West Virginia University, and even more than that at a local community college.  I always enjoyed interacting with the students and watching them improve their writing skills and appreciation for literature.
The only real drawback for me […]

I have just one word for those extreme shows on TV like “Survivorman” and “Man Vs. Wild.”  WHY?!
I may not be the most stable shelf in the bookcase, but I DO have better sense than to voluntarily be dumped in the middle of God Knows Where for a week with no food, no water, and […]

I noticed a fascinating little item while travelling over the detour last night.
If it were MY front yard being nipped away by speeding drivers unfamiliar with the road, added in with lots of extra traffic and dirt, I can only imagine how upset I would be, especially given Jolson’s propensity for escape. But it […]

Have you ever taken one of those online IQ tests?
I happened across one, and on a lark, I took it and scored a 138. Apparently, I’m a Visionary Philosopher like Plato, too.  But do you want to know what’s REALLY funny?  Check this out:
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Well, Route 2’s closure became even a little more interesting today when a truck driver disregarded the directive to detour into Ohio and wrecked on the back road, blocking traffic in both directions for hours.  It was literally a case of “you can’t get there from here.”  And this was only the first full day […]

I need help.  Once again last night, our little darling (Jolson) made a break for it.  Seems when I hooked her to the leash to let her out into the yard before bed, I inadvertantly caught the ring holding her tags instead of the much sturdier lash lead ring, and well, she must have lunged […]

The fates are converging to make my life miserable.  First, gasoline is well over three bucks a gallon now ($3.09 and up for regular grade unleaded), and now, the only real road we have in our area is closed for a rockslide repair that’s had it restricted to one lane for about six weeks.  That […]

Like most everyone else I know who has ever written for a living (or in grad school, for that matter), I’ve always secretly held the belief that the elusive Great American Novel was buried somewhere deep inside me. And, like most everyone else, if I DO have one flopping around in my psyche, it’s […]

It’s about time!  A judge in Los Angeles has apparently had enough.  Superior Court Judge Michael Sauer has sentenced Paris Hilton to 45 days in jail for repeatedly violating the conditions of her probation for the DUI conviction back in January.
I’ve heard all the arguments:  Celebrities need to learn they’re not above the law, or […]