Vintage Romantic Author
I must admit, it doesn’t take much for me to feel euphoric. I was anxious about a recent dental exam. Since I took a lot of antibiotics the first part of the year and wasn’t in great health, I imagined those months might have negatively impacted my teeth. Euphoria set in the moment the dentist …
Only rarely does a glib comment fall off my tongue. Recently, when a friend was having trouble finding the word she wanted to use, I explained that happens to me too. It’s why I’d rather write than talk! I understand a lot of people study for years before they attempt a novel. I know there …
There I sat with six “completed” novels and no idea how to proceed. A friend of mine told me about her old friend, a published author of six books, and offered to e-mail her on my behalf. I hoped she would agree to answer a few of my most important questions. Thankfully, she did. Author …
I remember the good old days when infrequent sightings of rabbits in our neighborhood seemed quite charming. Those days are gone. Those scrawny, timid rabbits are gone, too. They’ve been replaced with chubby, bold marauders—the bane of my existence. The first battle was over our lawns—both front and back. Between the rabbits and the drought, …
Gertie pushed her black-rimmed glasses up the bridge of her nose as she peered at the cookies in the oven of the brand-new Garland gas range. Daddy always claimed having the latest household gadgets at home made him a better salesman at the mercantile, but Gert thought there was more to it than that. Gathering …
It must be time to write about Christmas decorations. I’ve been collecting since the first year I was married. I used to be able to recall every decoration, where and when I bought it, but no more. There are just too many. My mind has said goodbye to those particular memories, making room for more …
There is nothing quite like the smell of turkey roasting on Thanksgiving. Sage and onion scent the house while the oven provides warmth. It’s the essence of the holiday. I took a cooking class as an elective in high school. The teacher was a Doris Day look-a-like, a young mother and excellent teacher. I still …
For some, writing is a lifelong obsession. It might be poetry or short stories, or simply committing their daily activities to a diary. For me, writing is a recently acquired passion. There were indications I might be headed down this road. I always enjoyed writing letters and e-mails. Through the years, a few friends commented …
I am a fabric junky. There is no 12-step program I can join or I would consider it. Colors, patterns, prints and textures call to me from quilt and fabric stores. I have my own leaning tower of jelly rolls—2½-inch strips of color-coordinated fabric wound in a cylinder. I never met a fabric I didn’t …
My paternal grandparents still seem the oldest people I ever met. They looked incredibly decrepit. My mother told me it was because they led hard lives. When they moved to California from Nebraska in the 30s, they first owned a farm on Sepulveda Boulevard in Van Nuys. Later, they downsized to a little house on …