• Spring marches in

    Well, it’s more of a tip-toe, really. But the days have been warming up, and I can definitely see the shift in the seasons. The fun part has now begun where I get to see what pops up in the garden beds. Yesterday, I also noticed hyacinths starting to emerge from the dirt. Two of…

  • Dreaming of Spring

    “February” by Jane Goodwin Austin I thought the world was cold in death; The flowers, the birds, all life was gone, For January’s bitter breath Had slain the bloom and hushed the song. And still the earth is cold and white, And mead and forest yet are bare; But there’s a something in the light…

  • Happy New Year!

    It’s been quite a start to the year for me, much as it was quite an ending to last year. We’re still not completely settled in yet (and I still have a gaping hole in my kitchen cabinets where a dishwasher ought to be by now — we’ve hit a few snags with Home Depot),…

  • A new chapter

    The last time I posted, I was finishing up the gardening season. I had converted the vegetable patch into a pollinator garden, and I was proud of how well it was thriving in a short amount of time. It’s time to say goodbye to that garden now. And to this suburban house in a typical…

  • I Found a Quilted Heart

    I went for a hike today and found this hanging at the trailhead. I’ve been having a rough time lately. I’m going to physical therapy for severe TMJ that has impeded my ability to eat comfortably and even talk normally at times. Also stressed out for other reasons I won’t get into here. This made…

  • Pomp and Circumstance, Part 2

    Twenty years ago, I was experiencing my first semester as a grad student at Miami University. From the very beginning of my program — maybe even when I first decided to attend grad school — I pictured myself walking across the stage to get my diploma. Eyes always on the prize.  It wasn’t meant to…

  • Doing its job

    My pollinator garden is just beginning, and already it’s doing its job. This was my discovery when I was in the garden this morning. I am hoping birds don’t pick it off, of course. Fingers crossed I will soon have a monarch pupa!

  • When life gives you tomatoes, make freezer tomato soup

    It’s that joyous time of summer when the tomatoes are ripening. Even with one plant, I have more tomatoes than I can possibly eat on my own. And since we’re still working from home, I can’t take them to the office. I decided to use up some of the tomatoes by making tomato soup. Don’t…

  • Garden Update

    I mentioned in a recent post that I was converting my vegetable garden into a pollinator garden. It was my intention to do the bulk of that work next year. Well, I’m ahead of schedule. I realized rather quickly that it was a huge mistake to grow crookneck squash. I had THREE plants (because I’m…

  • Day made

    I’ve been a member of the American Copy Editors Society for a few years now. Recently, they reached out to me for their weekly Interview with an editor series. My interview was published today. https://aceseditors.org/news/2021/interview-with-an-editor-karyn-johnson