The silent sentry deceptively contrasts against the cold winter sky. A Minnesota winter is both a threat and a reward.  “The beast is loose and kills tonight…” Two popular songs portray winter with contrary emotions. The Russian band, Krokus, leads into terror: Russian winter, broken hearts/Cold winds in the dark/The beast is loose and kills… Read More

As luck would have it, big snowfalls have not had much of an impact upon my life. There was one snowy day that sticks in my memory, though. The story was originally written for the “Parking” prompt. Snowbound     Read More

Blizzard  I was born in Charleston, SC where my dad was stationed during WW II.   After the war we returned to my folks’ native New York where they bought a house on the GI bill.  (See Parkchester, Celebrate Me Home,  Magnolia, The Story of a Garden,  and Mr Bucco and the Ginger Cat) And so… Read More

I don’t remember snow days when I was in school. That’s because school never closed for snow or cold winter days. We had warm hats, scarves, mittens, boots, and snowsuits. Think Ralph’s little brother in A Christmas Story. And we walked to and from school. So, it’s no surprise that I pulled my three little… Read More

I developed an awe of the men (I never saw a woman) who worked for CalTrans at all hours and conditions, keeping the roads open.  Read More

Ah, the New England Blizzard of 1978. A storm so legendary it should have its own theme song, sung by a baritone with a healthy dose of post-traumatic stress. You know, something like “The Snow Drifts Were High, the Power Was Out, and My Shovel Became My Best Friend (And It Judged Me Silently).” In… Read More

“My ex-husband thought of himself as a ‘breast man.’” She paused. “What have I gotten myself tangled up with here? A ‘floor man?’” Read More

The first charm is the card above, which was made for and given to me by my fairy godmother, Lenora Perkins.  Lenora taught me to shrug off stress.  She never prescribed anything to anyone.  I learned this by watching her. If a situation aggravated Lenora, she’d stop, compose herself, stare into space for a few… Read More

Three-Ring Circus A working woman who’s also a wife and mother can often feel like a juggler in a three-ring circus. I was working at a job I loved when I discovered I was  pregnant,  and I happily applied for a maternity leave to start two weeks before the baby was due.   (See My Brown-Eyed… Read More

Until the pandemic hit, the thing that caused me the most stress was my back pain. Read More