Daughter Liz left this morning to go pick up her boyfriend, Ron, and head out to parts far-away for 2 months. Here she is with me just before jumping in her car. She is dressed up because they were going to a wedding this afternoon and then leaving from there to head up the coast….
Category: Timed Writing
Too Tired Tonight So Here’s a Great TED Talk Link Instead
Ray has just arrived home after a week in Texas. That’s good news. I have been up since 6 am. I think now that life is back to normal, I’ll head to bed. This is not going to be 20 minutes of writing today, but I am proud of myself that I’m even posting at…
Heading Out to the Open Road
On Saturday morning, September 21st, my beloved daughter, Elizabeth, and her sweet boyfriend, Ron Wolfgang Betty, will head off on a two-month road trip across the United States. Both are recent law school graduates and are awaiting their bar exam results, which are exactly two months from being announced. They are dubbing this the “Beat…
If You Get a Hankering for Black Beans…
I made a big pot of black beans yesterday and I must say they were delicious. The recipe below is from the Food Network and is well worth trying if you want to switch up those pintos for something with a little more color and a slightly different taste. I ate these with red onion,…
A Disconnect in Medical Education
My daughter, Sarah, submitted her applications yesterday for residencies in Family and Preventive Medicine. She wrote two separate personal statements – with my help as editor – for these two branches of medicine. Now she sits and waits and hopes that she will receive requests for interviews from these programs, most of which are in…
The Beach + An Old Friend = Happiness
Today I spent the afternoon and evening with my buddy, Judy HG. We had a serious “girls’ day out,” which, I might add, was exactly what I’ve needed after lots of work over the past while. We headed for the beach at Point Dune. Here are pictures of our glorious day at the beach: I…
One Way to Spend An Evening…
Well, I’ve waited until twenty minutes until midnight to write tonight. That means I truly only have 20 minutes to write if I plan to post before the clock strikes 12. Or maybe I better plan on 18 minutes, since it takes a few minutes to cut and paste and then add tags plus a…
9/11 – What We’ve Learned; What We Still Are Learning
On the morning of September 11, 2001, my husband and I were lying in bed before taking our kids to school when Ray turned on the television to watch the morning news. Suddenly, I heard him say, “Oh, my God!” I looked up to see footage of the first plane plowing into the first tower…
A “Homey” Writing Workshop
I have recently decided to expand my teaching of writing to include small groups for adults (I teach primarily one-on-one and online); so I am offering a writing class in my home for the first time. This will span 5 weeks and will be for 1 1/2 hours every Wednesday from September 25 – October…
Lessons I’ve Learned from Losing 4 Siblings
As some of you know, I am from a family with six children (seven, except my little brother, Robert Alexander, died shortly after birth). All my older siblings: my sister, Leslie (11 years older); and my brothers, John, 9 years older; Jim, 8 years older; and George, 3 years older; have died. The only sibling…
20 Minutes a Day 