Author Archives

Opinionated writer with hopes for a better future for all plus a big helping of cynicism.

• WHO ARE YOU NOW? DIDN’T YOU USED TO BE SOMEONE?

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 30, 2020 • ( 18 )

  

  Fandango’s Provocative Question #80 From Fandango, a deep, philosophical question. We need some of those because everything else is about disease or the news. “I saw this question on a site that offers up a bunch of “deep, philosophical” questions and… Read More ›

• DOOMSDAY BOOK BY CONNIE WILLIS

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 30, 2020 • ( 10 )

  

  I read this for the first time when it was first published in 2008. It wasn’t available as an audible book yet, though it would be soon. So my first reading was words on paper. It’s the story of the… Read More ›

• BITTER ROOTS

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 30, 2020 • ( 21 )

  I am named after an aunt I never met. In my version of Jewish family, you don’t name babies after living people. Only after those who have passed. This is not true in all Jewish families. It depends on where… Read More ›

• LETTER TO AN OVERSEAS FRIEND – LIFE IN THE CRAZY ZONE

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 30, 2020 • ( 27 )

  

  Bonnie passed at the beginning of June. We were doing what we swore we would NOT do, which was keeping her alive when it was obvious that she was really gone. At least she was (mostly) physically healthy until the… Read More ›

• HOUSE FINCH, GOLDFINCH, AND A FEW MORE

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 29, 2020 • ( 6 )

  

  MOSTLY HOUSE FINCH, GOLDFINCH, AND A FEW MORE If nothing else, this pause in space and time has given me good reasons to go back through my downloads. I have an awful lot of downloads that are just sitting on… Read More ›

• A PHOENIX AND AN OAK LEAF: A CIGAR BOX GUITAR FOR ME

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 29, 2020 • ( 51 )

  

  Owen wanted to give me a present. it isn’t my birthday. it’s not my anniversary. It isn’t any special day. He just wanted to get me a really great gift, better than any other he had ever give me. So… Read More ›

• SLAVERY TO INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION ON THE BLACKSTONE RIVER

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 29, 2020 • ( 22 )

  

  You might say the Blackstone Valley was Alexander Hamilton’s dream come true. He wanted the U.S. to grow into an industrial and international powerhouse. This was the subject on which he and Thomas Jefferson fought. Jefferson wanted democracy and a… Read More ›

• THE LEAST CHIPMUNK CAME BACK (AND I HAD A CAMERA)

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 29, 2020 • ( 32 )

  

  Changing Perceptions This morning, while we were waiting for the appraiser, the tiny “least chipmunk” dropped by the feeder. These little chipmunks look very much like their bigger brethren, but the are less than half their size. The birds are… Read More ›

• HOMELAND MILITARIZATION CAN’T BE OUR FUTURE | VIEWS FROM THE EDGE – GORDON STEWART

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 28, 2020 • ( 4 )

  

  What is happening in Portland and American cities where Black Lives Matter continues to oppose the violence and lawlessness of those sworn to protect and serve. A search through previous Views from the Edge posts led back to August 22,… Read More ›

• SHARING MY WORLD? PROBABLY NOT YOUR BEST CHOICE!

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 28, 2020 • ( 21 )

  

  We are waiting on the appraiser to finalize this refinance which is pretty much set to go, minus the appraisal — which i think went pretty well. It takes about a week for an appraisal to come through and it’s… Read More ›

• DAYLILIES IN THE BACKYARD

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 28, 2020 • ( 6 )

  

  FOTD – July 27 – Daylilies The flowers are blooming and wilting in one day from the heat. And we could really use some rain … which we might get. Tomorrow afternoon or evening, assuming the weather guy is right…. Read More ›

• SQUARED PERSPECTIVE – BLACKSTONE RIVER – PHOTOS By GARRY & MARILYN ARMSTRONG

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 28, 2020 • ( 8 )

  

  Square Perspectives – 26 July 2020 So far, I’ve offered mostly closeups. Birds, a tiny chipmunk, squirrels. This time it the Blackstone River. These are photos I took in June, but they’ve been sitting in my “in box” ever since…. Read More ›

• GARDEN BIRDS ON THE SQUARE – Marilyn Armstrong

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 28, 2020 • ( 5 )

  Garden Birds Squared Today is the day I find all of my square birds that I’ve been saving since we got feeders! It has been so hot that the birds have not been coming out for seeds until the sun… Read More ›

• THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT – Marilyn Armstrong

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 26, 2020 • ( 11 )

  From ghoulies and ghosties And long-legged beasties And things that go bump in the night Good Lord, deliver us! – Traditional Scottish Prayer I’ve never met a ghoul and I have questions about long-legged beasties, but I can speak from… Read More ›

• CRAZY ABOUT SQUIRRELS – GOING TIGHTLY SQUARE

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 25, 2020 • ( 11 )

  

  The Smaller Picture – Going Tight It was early in the morning. I’d gotten up to get something more to drink. I looked out the window and there were squirrels. One per feeder. So, I gave the Duke a treat,… Read More ›

• John Lewis: “we all live in the same house”

  By Marilyn Armstrong on July 25, 2020 • ( 4 )

  

  Originally posted on Views from the Edge:
  Giving thanks for Congressman John Lewis So much can and should be said following the death of Congressman John Lewis, but every attempt to pay tribute to him here on Views from the…