Writing about Easter in the Middle Ages has got me thinking about village life back then. It’s harder to pin down the lives of ordinary medieval people because they left little of themselves behind. I’ve walked over a fair few…
Month: April 2019
LIFE AS A DEPUTY ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICER – Marilyn Armstrong
I live in a small town. Just under 13,000 people call Uxbridge home. The village, or as we say around here, “downtown,” has a classic brick town hall, circa 1879, an elegant old library, and several other historic buildings. Our… Read More ›
THE MOST NIMBLE OF ALL SQUIRRELS – Marilyn Armstrong
RDP Monday: Nimble This is our squirrel. He shows up in the middle of the day and hangs around, in the most literal sense, for hours. He wraps himself around the feeder like a fur coat, hanging by one paw… Read More ›
DO WE WANT TO ELECT ANYONE? – Marilyn Armstrong
I was just glancing through another post on The New Yorker asking whether Joe Biden is electable. I have read similar stories in the Washington Post and other newspaper, online and offline about every potential candidate. It’s almost as if… Read More ›
THE BRIGHTEST DAFFODILS – Marilyn Armstrong
DAFFODILS! I took these the last time we had sunshine, so it must have been Wednesday. Since then, it has been cold and rainy … but at least I got the daffodils when they were at the finest. There may… Read More ›
A UNIQUE PRODUCTION – BY ELLIN CURLEY
I recently had a unique, rich and rewarding experience. I wrote and helped put together a multimedia theatrical production about a horrific pogrom in 1919 that wiped out over half of the 1200 inhabitants of a Ukrainian town called Felshtin…. Read More ›
BUCOLIC CREATURES AND THE FEEDERS ON THE DECK … Marilyn Armstrong
FOWC with Fandango — Bucolic How much more bucolic can one get than spending hours staring out the window, watching nature nibble its way through our feeders? These days, every time I get up for any reason, the first thing I… Read More ›
PROUD TO BE CIVIL – Marilyn Armstrong
Politically correct. What outrage that term produces! How dare anyone tell me how to behave, how to speak? I can say anything I want. I mean … look at our president! Yeah. Look at our president. Take a good look…. Read More ›
FIRE! – Rich Paschall
Engulfed in Flames, by Rich Paschall Fire fascinates. Fire frightens. Fire feeds. Fire consumes. We may all have a fascination for the dancing flames in a fireplace or a campfire. We may be able to sit and watch for hours… Read More ›
ALMOST SPRING BY THE BLACKSTONE – Marilyn Armstrong
Photographs: Garry and Marilyn Armstrong Almost spring does not mean the same thing everywhere. In New York, it meant that everything was budding. We were waiting for it to burst into bloom. Cherry trees and apple trees were often already… Read More ›
THE GARDENER’S RESPITE – Marilyn Armstrong
FOWC with Fandango — Respite My right shoulder hurts. A lot. At least half of that is an old injury from my riding days … and the rest is probably hauling heavy pots — with and without food — in the… Read More ›
THE JOY IN JERUSALEM – Marilyn Armstrong
The odds favor that, if you live a full life, you will witness events that are historically important. Depending on your definition of “witness,” you’ll inevitably witness a lot of history. You can’t avoid it. Some events are more dramatic… Read More ›
ROMANTIC ME – Marilyn Armstrong
LOVE AND MARRIAGE ARE NOTHING LIKE A HORSE AND CARRIAGE I was 18 when I married for the first time. I was in my senior year of college, working at the radio station and beginning to get the hang of… Read More ›
FROM THE SIDE – THE BLACK & WHITE CHALLENGE – Marilyn Armstrong
Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: View From the Side
THAT GOOD OLD RULE OF THIRDS – Marilyn Armstrong
A Photo a Week Challenge: The Rule of Thirds Photography – Garry Armstrong and Marilyn Armstrong The whole point about this rule — which is not a rule, but a guideline — is to try to urge photographers to not put… Read More ›
RASH! – Marilyn Armstsrong
RDP Friday: RASH I have a rash and it itches. Occasionally, if I scratch it a lot — which I often do in my sleep — it hurts, but mostly it itches so much I’m ready to tear my skin… Read More ›
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION FOR THE UNKNOWING – Marilyn Armstrong
Every nation revises history. They leave out the bad bits — slaughters of the innocent, unjust wars against minorities and civilians. They invent heroes, turn defeats into victories. American history is no different. It’s relatively easy to make our history… Read More ›
THE END OF REPUBLICAN ROME – Marilyn Armstrong
Imperium, by Robert Harris Random House Sep 7, 2010 Fiction – 496 pages It’s déjà vu all over again as we travel back with author Robert Harris to Republican Rome just before it became Imperial Rome. In America, we complain of corruption. Lying… Read More ›
OUR FIRST TULIP (MAYBE THE ONLY TULIP) – Marilyn Armstrong
FOTD – April 26, 2019 – Tulip We had two sunny days and after this, it’s supposed to pour with heavy winds for the next few days. So we got out and took some pictures. Thus I learned we have a… Read More ›
ONE MORE TIME: DOOM DESTRUCTION AND THE DNC – By Tom Curley
I originally wrote this on election day 2017. It reminded me of a post I wrote a while back that sadly is still as current as it was back then. And it will be current next year too. And the… Read More ›
HURRY, HURRY, HURRY – Marilyn Armstrong
FOWC with Fandango — Hurry Hurry! Today’s our last chance for this great deal! Hurry! If you don’t pay by Friday, you might lose your payment plan! Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! This is your last chance, your final opportunity! Everything has to… Read More ›
HOUDINI DOG – BY ELLIN CURLEY
Tom’s brother, Todd, came for a visit with his dog, Houla, a Catahoula Leopard Dog. She’s only fourteen months old so she’s still a puppy, with puppy energy and a puppy’s desire to play constantly with my two, older dogs…. Read More ›
LIFE SHOULD NOT BE THIS HARD – Marilyn Armstrong
From ChosenPerspective’s Song Lyrics Sunday 4-21/19 It crossed my mind that her song said the same thing. Life should not be this difficult. We didn’t start this fire, but someone did. Perhaps it was started by the very first human… Read More ›
BUT ANYONE COULD DO IT … Marilyn Armstrong
We all have friends who do stuff we can’t do. They make a perfect pie crust and the filling is great, too. They build and refinish their furniture. They tune the car and rewire the basement on Saturday afternoon and… Read More ›
