I have a favorite quote near my desk and I hope it is correctly credited: “She wasn’t where she had been. She wasn’t where she was going…but she was on her way. And on her way she enjoyed food that wasn’t fast, friendships that held, hearts glowing, hearts breaking, smiles that caught tears, paths trudged and alleys skipped. And on… Read More

The list was long, and getting longer. My husband and I had an agenda, and it was to be handled in one trip to the Twin Cities. While the high gas prices invite consolidation, a day trip is a nice excuse to hang out together too. My husband rattled off his errands, I added mine, and we wisely decided writing… Read More

Bed shaking rumble. Flickering light washes my face and torments my closed eyes. Ker-BOOM! I give up and squint a sleepy eyeball at the hazy darkness. Another lightning flash highlights edges and vacant space. Ah, a thunderstorm is passing through. When I was a child my grandmother would wake me and make me sit up with her whenever a thunderstorm… Read More

Ah, to be well intentioned. The morning had started with a bang, and so I raced. Not in a running for a purpose way, but in an “I’ve got 20 things to do and 10 minutes to do it” way. Eating didn’t make it on the list, so by lunch my stomach was growling like a pack of wolves at… Read More

Booker and I were out for a walk and as the wind picked up he spotted an oak leaf bumbling across the road. The papery sound combined with random bounces was irresistible. He spurted forward hoping to attack the ferocious saber-toothed leaf-thing, but his hind legs weren’t in sync with his front and he took a tumble. Somewhat surprised, he… Read More

My husband left to visit his son and family in North Carolina today. I always celebrate his resolution to stay connected. It keeps his heart whole, and eases the worries he has when he is unable to look into his son’s face directly. His absence leaves me feeling a bit fractured. My smile is more measured, and my heart pines…. Read More

Melee is my daughter Sasha’s cat. He was a selected from a shelter and is now making their house a home. I think the lessons we can learn from Melee include: Never put off eating when the kibble is there before you. Even if you’ve just eaten three pounds of kibble, there is always a chance there might be a… Read More

In an effort to make up for a delayed spring, Mother Nature has sent an “I’m Sorry” note in the form of colorful birds. In a rare still moment, I gazed into our brown back yard and watched the performance at the bird feeders. Swooping, cawing, and nervously looking about, brightly feathered birds gave their bawdy dance to an appreciative… Read More

The grumblings of hardy Minnesotans can be heard far and wide. We love our state, but winter has overstayed its welcome this year. This morning I went outside to fill the bird feeders (they are hungry little music boxes!), and was greeted by a snow shower. My first reaction was, “Noooooo! It’s almost May for crying out loud!” (” For… Read More

In an effort to recycle, I planted my hyacinth bulbs from last year hoping they would return this spring. The issue was that these bulbs came in a pot as part of a blooming plant group, so I had no idea if they would be hardy over a Minnesota winter. To my surprise they did come back this spring…and it… Read More

Recently my husband and I hosted a young man looking for work. He is my son’s best friend, and we wanted to be able to help him when things were looking very bleak. For 2 1/2 months we adjusted to having a third person around, and while he was a perfect gentleman and very considerate, when he left for a… Read More

In our backyard sits a garden bench my husband made. It is simple in design, and I love it. Our dog Hunter used to see me sit on the bench and then jump up next to me and just…well, be with me. Hunter passed away two days before Christmas, and we were shattered. With any ragged cut the healing process… Read More

Sorry to blather on about my husband, but he is the best part of my day. I’ve been feeling the dings and dents of stress lately…I have homework to do, lots going on in my personal life, friends who are in a low place and need comforting, and so on. I mentioned that I was going to chain myself to… Read More

In Minnesota, the warm days of summer are a treasured collection. I have a favorite wicker rocker on our deck that is my get-away and read spot. For some reason, Booker has decided this is now his favorite spot too. He sits on the chair and actually rocks. Other times he keeps track of what we are doing in the… Read More

I met with my friend, Jodi Baglien today. Jodi is an Essential Oil Therapist, but that is a thin veneer to all of who she is and all of what she does. One of her newest blends contains a secret oil that almost makes the spiritual tangible. I keep a mister with the blend handy,  spritz myself daily, and allow the mist… Read More

Okay. It is no big secret that many women crave chocolate. It is also no big secret that many women would rather savor a choclate moment than a moment with the men in their lives. I’ll still take my husband over chocolate, but he knows it’s a fine line. Today I was feeling off balance–like there is too much to do in… Read More

Recently a friend gave me this lovely rag rug she made on a loom passed down through the generations. I love it for that reason, and for the thoughtfulness she puts into everything she does. She puts the craft into craftsmanship. As much as I admire Mary Ann, seeing the rug is a daily inspiration to bring joy into my… Read More

Somewhere, somehow, in recent years I have come to love clouds. I don’t even want to photograph a landscape or cityscape if the sky is completely blue. A clear sky lacks character, in my view, and viewfinder. This morning I woke to grey skies hissing out tiny spitballs of ice. It isn’t personal, it’s Minnesota doing a spring cleaning. I put on multiple layers… Read More

Every morning before I schlup out of bed, I take a few minutes to visualize the day I want to have, and to send good energy to those I love. I know it’s woo-woo, but it matters to me. Over time, our 18 year old cat, Shadow, has insisted on joining me. She makes sure she arrives in bed as… Read More

My husband came home from volunteering and plunked into a chair in my office. “Hey Babe!” I flashed him a welcome home smile . He sat staring at me until I couldn’t take it any more and asked, “What?” “Do you know how much I love your smile?” he replied. “Um, sure, sorta…” “Do you know why I love it… Read More

 Flowers! I love them. I crave them. I revel in their obvious and hidden colors. But! Minnesota is tolerating, at best,  the winter from hell. That would be frozen hell, and not the more popular hot hell my grandmother threatened I’d visit during some of my less than angelic days. (They were few in number, I promise.) As an indulgence, nay, as… Read More

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  The capicity of the human spirit to fly at the tiniest reward is amazing. In a short period of time Booker, our 4 month old Husky puppy, managed an allergic reaction to one of his vaccinations (which entailed panic on our part, and Benadryl for him ), discovered a way to escape from his fenced area to better greet us (which… Read More