My Letter to Fear
Based on interviews with women, these essays about life (and all of its funny, sad and ridiculous aspects) were published in 2014.
Book Review: A Rant of Ravens by Christine Goff
Full disclosure: when I was approached about reading and reviewing “A Rant of Ravens” by Christine Goff, I knew absolutely nothing about birdwatching. I knew nothing about that world. I knew nothing about the monetary values assigned to birds in trade situations. I knew nothing about nesting patterns, etc. But there was still something intriguing
Happy New Year and a Question
Happy New Year! I hope that your New Year’s Eve was only as eventful as you wanted it to be and that you are in no way hung over today. As you go about finalizing your New Year’s Resolutions (or breaking the first ones), I thought I would pose you the question contained in the
My Favorite Things in 2014: Family
I feel like this year really was about family in some new ways, and I thought that it deserved to be #1 on my list of favorite things. First, I got the chance to spend some quality time with many members of Andy’s family. I’ve enjoyed getting to know them, and we’ve had the added
My Favorite Things in 2014: “My Letter to Fear” was Published
If you’ve read this blog for any length of time, I’m sure you could have guessed this one. I was still writing and editing “My Letter to Fear: Essays on Life, Love and the Search for Prince Charming” through 2013, so the notion of it actually being published and available to readers in early 2014
My Favorite Things in 2014: Being Exposed to New Authors
Thanks to this blog, I’ve been exposed to a wide range of new authors – new in the sense that they are publishing their debuts books and new in the sense that they were new to me. I’ve been lucky enough to read everything from mystery to historical drama to travel books in the last
My Favorite Things in 2014: Theater
Despite my less than wealthy status, I’m happy that I’ve continued to make going to live theater a priority. It’s not always easy, but it can be such a powerful experience that I hope that no matter what I’m doing professionally, I can always make it a part of my year. This year, I’ve seen
My Favorite Things in 2014: Two Christmas Celebrations
In 2014 I got to celebrate Christmas twice: once with my family in Ohio and once with Andy in Los Angeles. I feel like I got the best of both worlds in that I got to enjoy the season with people I love, in both traditional and non-traditional settings and ways. I decorated two trees,
My Favorite Things in 2014
The first of my favorite things about 2014 is an easy one: travel. I have been up and down the coast, wandered the interior and even briefly dipped my toes into some ghost towns. I’ve become very fond of hot springs, in-room fireplaces and road stops that have massive tree houses in the middle of
Why Aren’t You Good Enough for Your Good China?
The answer is, of course, that you are good enough for even the finest dinnerware, and yet we all keep that in reserve in the cupboard for the special occasions. And we don’t even question it. In fact, I never questioned it until I got into Jennifer L. Scott’s “Lessons from Madame Chic.” The book
Cleaning Hacks: Removing Candle Wax from Table Linens
I very rarely have advice for people in the area of cleaning. I tend to use tried and true methods. I rarely come across a problem that actually requires any fancy footwork. That was true until Thanksgiving. We had a lovely meal with friends and added the ambiance of candlelight around the dining room. It