Monthly Archives: October 2022

I enjoy perusing the classified ads. People will post everything from attempting to reconnect with a long-lost love to selling a pair of slightly used shoes. There really is something for everyone. Since I’m new to town, checking out the … Continue reading →

I’d found myself in a grave situation, for sure!  After being unemployed for six weeks, dying in fear of eviction in another two if I couldn’t dig up rent money, I’d been undertaking a job-search, shovelling my way through the … Continue reading →

Being a 9-year-old, well, 9 years old in 8 months, would always present problems. After long summer days of playing baseball, throwing rocks at passing trains, teasing old man Jacob’s dog, and going to the creek to gig frogs, I … Continue reading →

Living in the year 1819 meant only one thing for a large segment of the population—poverty and despair. There were no government subsistence programs, unemployment checks, or homeless shelters. During this time in our history, the country was in the … Continue reading →

It seemed like a little spot, hardly worth noticing. Yet I stared at it nightly as it sat with me watching Breaking News. I half expected Wolf Blizer to come out of the screen and order me to clean that … Continue reading →

“Mike Eruzione?  No way!  Grandpa wasn’t that good a hockey-player.  No way he played with Eruzione!” “He says he assisted on Eruzione’s game-winning goal against the Russians.” “That game was played in 1980! Grandpa was born in 1935, so he’d … Continue reading →

Excited about Halloween, siblings Chris, Sarah and Nathan honored their annual haunted house tradition. Since childhood, they visited one haunted house to start the season off with a bang. Each year they choose a haunted house to fit their mood. … Continue reading →

He was placed in the wheeled ossuary, minutes after the sound of trumpets drowned out the empathy. Darkness hooded banal condolences and attempts to unbelieve the journey that was to be. A spiritual energy grasped the shoulder, a tug, then … Continue reading →

After Ian  by Diane Hanley 10/18/2022 (50 words, no “to be”) Before Ian, sand greeted waves.  Dolphins swam, gulls circled, scavenging.  Shore birds strutted proudly, palms swayed.  Beachgoers laughed, played, sunned, ate.  I watched from a shady spot at Doc’s … Continue reading →

Ron had met Charlotte at a high school dance. It wasn’t love at first sight or even like at first sight. They were simply tolerant of each other. From time to time, they would pass in the hall and acknowledge … Continue reading →

Florida driving is should be considered a contact sport. But upon further examination, I can see why we are the worst drivers in America. After looking at it from the other point of view, I understand why you don’t stop … Continue reading →

Talk about close calls! I still remember that bone-chilling, unexpected visit I made to the emergency department of our old hospital, a facility reminiscent of the dark ages of medicine.  My wife was away for the weekend with friends, and … Continue reading →

I suppose I shouldn’t be moving about yet, especially at night, but I just couldn’t sleep. I am curious to see what damage was done by Hurricane Ian. There are bushes and branches all over the place. It’s strange to … Continue reading →

I attended an author talk with Simon Winchester (author of The Professor & The Madman, among many other books) that was sponsored by my Ohio library a few weeks ago. I didn’t think I’d like the guy, but was mildly … Continue reading →

Here is the link to that Opinion piece I read on Thursday, 10/13: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/10/12/editing-writing-word-choice-avoid-very/

Froze but did not freeze Uncertain passion with a late fee Anger waited patiently For a chance to act decisively Rodgers sat the ten men down “It’s time we claimed the pigskin crown” Ayahuasca may be the only play A … Continue reading →

Crystalline blue skies rimmed with neon tangerine stretched across the Gulf of Mexico as my husband and I soaked in a late September sunset. “Look.” Bob waved his right hand from west to east and back again, emphasizing the vast … Continue reading →

(This is a story I’m submitting to a Vocal competition. I would appreciate a critique before I submit it.) The war had been raging for over a hundred years, but in the farming community of Tranquility, life carried on in … Continue reading →

I confess that I have been forced to turn off the news lately. Breaking News has broken me. Between nearly three years of Covid, a looming massive recession and the loss of 25% of my life savings, hurricane destruction aggravated … Continue reading →