We arrived around 10 pm this evening at our home in Texas, exactly thirty minutes earlier than my husband’s projected time. The house was lit up, the Christmas tree all set after having been put up before we left the last time. We hauled in our bags and boxes of groceries we brought from LA…
Tag: writing discipline
Christmas Day Travels
We are en route to Texas, just getting settled at midnight at our motel 30 miles east of Albuquerque, New Mexico. We left LA at 5:45 am, stopped at the Grand Canyon, and are now here with outside temperatures right at 5 degrees. The roads are open, but there is snow in piles that has…
Eve of Christmas Eve
It is the eve of Christmas Eve and I have never before approached Christmas from this angle. We have decided to have our official “Christmas” once we’re in Texas, so tomorrow we’re just having lasagna and salad for lunch as a nod to Christmas Eve and attend church at 5 pm. No gift exchange, no…
Christmas and the “Spiritual” Gene
We don’t have a tree yet. Is it too late? It seems a bit on the late side. When I was growing up, my mother wouldn’t let us decorate the tree until Christmas Eve. “After all,” she’d say, “Christ isn’t born until Christmas Day and there are twelve days of Christmas.” As a kid I…
Seasons of Life
I have just come from the last meeting I will serve on the governing body of my church – the vestry is what that’s called in the Episcopal church. I have served for three years – this is my second three-year stint – and I have been responsible for Adult and Children’s Education for these…
Our Orange Grove
We went to Ojai today. That is where we have an orange grove. We have a little trailer on the land, plus water. No electricity. The trailer is nestled in the middle of the grove, plus we have a fire pit and sitting area outside. We’re proud of our oranges trees. They are healthy and…
Tired, but Grateful
I am really tired. I guess that might make sense since it’s almost Christmas, but as it turns out Christmas has nothing to do with it. It is term paper time in school and I have students in need of intense one-on-one for these papers. The good news is that I get paid to help;…
Twelve Surprises this Small Town Texas Girl Has Learned from Living in Beverly Hills
I have lived in Beverly Hill (or BH to the locals) for 17 years. I landed here with my family when my brother Jim was sick and needed support during the last year and a half of his life. He lived in West Hollywood, but due to the kindness of old Texas friends, we found…
Prompt: The Big Lie About Mr. “Perfect”
I went to visit a friend a few months back and while I was there, she had some visitors drop by. One was a woman in her early 30’s. We all sat for a while chatting and I eventually asked the question whether or not she was married. She said that she and her boyfriend…
Prompt: A Different Way of Thinking
Sally Johnson was angry. Another day without a job and here she was in the prime time in her life. She was smart, she was stable, she was relatively pretty and she had skills that had been honed by years of experience. And yet, no matter where she looked or how hard she tried, she…
20 Minutes a Day 