My folks had a running gag when watching Jeopardy. If they didn’t know the correct question they always said, “Who was Ralph Waldo Emerson?”
To trash it or not to trash it? That’s the question. This story gives five tips to help you sort through a lifetime of stuff.
When was the last time you reviewed your important estate papers? Do you need a do-over of documents? This story will help you start.
Dolly Parton recently celebrated 50 years at the Grand Old Opry. Looking back on her vast career, I glean five life lessons from it.
If you have a collection of something, you know that it grew one small addition at a time. There are important implications to this fact.
Anne Lamott’s sometimes-messy life becomes fodder for her writing. Life lessons abound in the nineteen books – fiction and non – she has written.
The recipe for a meaningful summer is simple: Take a walk; read a book; make a friend. The recipe for a simple cake? That’s included …
Writing contests – a way to monetize your writing. Read stories by contestants Annie Wood, Barb Dalton, Christine Rains, Tonja Betts, and Teresa Lynn.
There are lots of perks to Zoom meetings including these: You don’t have to drive anywhere, and you don’t have to put on pants.
I love to sleep in on weekends, & have to coax myself to get up the rest of the week. But one day, gratitude got …
Thanks to the pandemic I am a new and improved Granny. I learned how to play with the kids and how to engage them in …
In the documentary, The Social Dilemma, we are asked: “Do you check your smart phone before you pee in the morning, or while you are …
After the suffocation of a COVID winter in Ohio, my soul is bubbling in anticipation as Spring 2021 approaches. All I can say is, SPRING …
Merriam-Webster’s website features a Word of the Day. Here I try to use all 31 words from January 2021 in one cohesive story. Will I …
Since a sense of isolation is a reality during the coronavirus, it’s important to actively think about and foster friendships.
Two novels about teenagers remind us of these dual facts: It’s hard to be a teenager; it’s hard to have a teenager.
A mental health wellness tip for quarantine: Find fun activities and do them. Here are some ideas now! Genealogy, crafts, reading, and more.
Currently, “Nap on the Sofa,” is my lack-of-activity of choice. What can I do instead? Here are lots of options to chase away boredom.
A seasoned marathon runner offers tips that are strangely helpful for all of us who are trying to get to the finish line of the …
A catalog came in the mail recently. It had a two page spread of this year’s little-black-dress. Huh?! Has this company NOT heard about the …
Thanks to FaceTime, Zoom, and the ideas suggested here, you can win the game of togetherness with your loved ones, even during the pandemic.
The holiday season is always a challenge. It’s even more so due to the pandemic. I have a simple resolution to this problem – One …
Do you need extensive therapy, Prozac, and a lobotomy to get current day bad thoughts out of your head? Try music therapy instead!
As a single woman, my inner voice had something to say when my basement had water damage. This was it: I DON’T WANT TO HANDLE …
To manage our loss during the pandemic, we need to name it and claim it. Then we need to go on and grieve it.
Experience is a magical thing. It often allows us to salvage unsalvageable projects. This is true for quilters, writers, engineers, and you!
As we manage the losses brought to us by COVID-19, it is important to cherish those things we still have. In my case, eating ice …
You become who you hang out with, or put more humorously, “funny how much better we understand the Jell-O when we’ve seen the mold.”
Call me silly, but if my grandkids were binge watching TV, I wouldn’t be boasting about it, I’d be finding great books to suggest to …
I’m not alone in thinking soup’s a comfort food for stressful times. Thus during the pandemic, I’m eating lots of it. Here’s a recipe for …
It’s important to take inventory of your life. The President gives a State of the Union address annually. You should too!
I am giving myself – and you – permission to feel whatever the heck we feel during the strange, difficult, frightening, challenging times of the …
A friend once listened as I explained in detail something I was worrying about. The more I talked, the more dismayed he looked. Ultimately, he …
Clearly, there are times in life where there is no Plan B and where we just have to deal with whatever comes our way. The …
An abundance of choices is problematic whether we are buying jeans, or making decisions about education, career, friendships, sex, romance, parenting, religious observance, etc.
Here are some nightmares: Some parents scrape the solid material out of a soiled diaper and reuse it.
Some parents take a diaper off, let it dry …
My back’s been hurting lately, and my posture is atrocious. I’m blaming it on the fact that I am ever-bent-over my smartphone. One of the …
My dad had a heart attack in his fifties. This caused him to make lifestyle changes that improved his diet and added more exercise. He …
When American airspace was closed after the terrorist attacks, all planes headed for the United States had to go elsewhere. Thirty-eight of them landed in …
I cherish family. I inherited this sentiment from my dad whose one black cloud in life was the fact that beyond his parents and siblings, …
I have a long history of taking something simple and making it hard. Two stories about soup making will prove my point and get us …
A fellow writer on Twitter gave this writing advice today: “Don’t dumb it down. You don’t need to assume the reader won’t understand what you …
This may very well be a reflection on my lack of baking skills, but I often have a helluva time getting a Bundt cake out …
It’s interesting that something so insignificant as shoes can be so significant. Thus, as I consider mine, I think I’ll just let them rest in …
The 24/7/365 nature of social media is problematic. Remember when you waited for a snail mail letter? When it did not come, you could be …
Journaling as a means of talking out a problem: When I tell a friend my problem, I give a piece of it away. The same …
With this blog I am using Lin-Manuel Miranda’s take on history. As I tell you what he has to say about Alexander Hamilton, I am …
The May 27th issue of People features an essay written exclusively for the magazine by former first lady, Michelle Obama. It’s called, “What My Mother …
My house is built on a man-made lake. Every window on the back has a view of the water. While beautiful in itself, the most …
“If your heart stops, do you want us to resuscitate you?” Being asked this question at 2:30 AM as nurses got me settled into my …
My granddaughter had difficulty going off to school at the start of kindergarten. To make stepping onto the big yellow bus more palatable, my daughter …
We need to reward ourselves for a job well done. An “A” on a report card always has and always will feel good. Whatever your …
My two-step recipe is intentionally simple. One needs to have a routine and stick to it; and one needs to take one step a day …
Most people do not think of it this way, but we are all experts at reinventing ourselves because we have done it countless times in …
Here is a life lesson I learned at the gym: When you go to a birthday party, be sure to eat the cake. I am …
PLEASE DON’T RUN when I tell you that today’s column is about how to design a quilt. Instead, be assured that whether I am writing …
I have to confess that before the Israel trip I was trying to bolster my courage as I worried about various things that might be …
This blog is a parking lot. I am parking everything here that I am worried about as I prepare to travel to Israel with my …
I love books and find that reading them provides me with three benefits. Books give me conversational currency – stuff to talk about – with …
On November 26, 2018, Newsweek.com printed a list of “The Best Christmas Movies of All Time.” On the list, at position #33 out of 50, …
The War of Art is a book that is ostensibly for artists, however it really holds lessons for anyone who is struggling with the art of …
I was at a retreat last weekend. It was not with a bible study group but yet, to borrow from the bible, it certainly did …
The Fitbit is a device that is worn on the wrist and used to track activity. At its most basic level, it counts the number …
When I tell you that this is the world’s best cookie I am willing to concede the point that perhaps it’s because it has so …
A traditional holiday dinner for a Jewish family finds the homemaker slaving over a hot stove. It’s astounding how many things have to boil in …
Thou shalt not “should” upon thyself. These are wise words that I would love to live by, but gosh, there are just so many “shoulds” …
At the end of a Jewish wedding ceremony, there is the dramatic moment in which a wine glass (wrapped in a napkin) is placed on …
I started to see a psychologist when my oldest child was 14. I saw that psychologist, Pam, for 21 years. I would have seen her …
The past cannot be changed, forgotten, edited, or erased. It can only be accepted. I believe that these words are true. I also believe that …
My daughters are unhappy about my single status and are often after me to find a new boyfriend. I tell them it’s a very rare …
My friend, Marilynn Asch, is known for the funny things she posts on Facebook. A recent post showed an obviously older couple, holding hands, as …
I’m in a plane, on a runway, waiting to take off. It’s three hours past my originally scheduled departure time and I’m on a different airline …
“Long story short” is a common expression these days as the speaker shortens a SAGA into a SNIPPET. But what if you need to tell …
Lots of people who do motivational work teach this recipe for happiness: FOLLOW YOUR PASSION! But what the heck does that mean? This movie, Maudie, …
Recently I visited Yellowstone National Park. Among other things, I learned about the HUGE system of fires that took place in the park nearly 30 …
I am a proud member of the Secret Society of the Cadbury Egg. Actually, along with my two daughters, I am a founding member of …
I am a prolific writer of love letters. I write nine per year, one to each of my grandchildren on the occasion of his/her birthday. …
A little bit plus a little bit adds up to a whole lot. I learned this life lesson 25 years ago when I needed a …
My financial adviser is a smart guy. He believes that we need to set up rules for my investments and stick to them. This keeps …
There’s this man. I guess I’d have to say I have a crush on him. He’s my age and he’s tall with a wiry build. …
When my son was a child, he had major surgery. As he was wheeled off to the operating room, I was comforted because he didn’t …
It is interesting to approach gratitude from this point of view: What things can I do today that I might not be able to do …
Over dinner, my son-in-law asked my grandson, “How were you kind to another classmate today?” I was wowed by this query! Just imagine if every …
This memoir deals with a mother/daughter relationship as told by the daughter who didn’t think – at least in her early 20s – that she …
You might think to read my title that I will talk about teamwork, or practice making perfect, or the fact that you win some and …
One of my goals in life is to continue to learn on a daily basis. In my effort to do this I have discovered that …
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