Once upon a lifetime ago, I worked hard. I don’t know if you could call it overworked. I never felt I had more work than I could do — if only they would let me get to it instead of… Read More ›
Marilyn Armstrong
PLAGUE’S END
Flashback Friday – Black Death Since we have so recently gone through our own plague, it seems a good time to remember those good old days of the Black Death. This was originally published in 2020, but I have substantially… Read More ›
TRULY MY MOTHER
My mother was not a “regular” mom. This confused me a lot while I was growing up. Other mothers made cookies, kissed boo-boos. Hung out with other mothers in the summertime. Swapped recipes. Watched soap operas. My mother didn’t bake… Read More ›
A MOTHER’S WALTZ
Leslie Martel and Marilyn Armstrong MOTHER’S DAY – SUNDAY MAY 14, 2023 FROM swo8 (Leslie Martel): This weekend will be Mother’s Day. To commemorate it, we have created a photographic montage of families together. It includes eight generations of my family and three of Marilyn… Read More ›
FOR INSOMNIACS WITH DOGS WHO BARK
Come Sleep, O Sleep … Come, Sleep! O Sleep, the certain knot of peace,The baiting-place of wit, the balm of woe,The poor man’s wealth, the prisoner’s release,The indifferent judge between the high and low;With shield of proof shield me from… Read More ›
ONCE UPON A TIME, IN A FARAWAY LAND
Isn’t this how all fairy tales begin? Once upon a time in a faraway land there lived … They all shared a common thing, that life gave them a path to follow. That path led to adventure and something special and completely… Read More ›
MY BIRTHDAY TWIN WAS THE LATE ALWAYS GREAT DOUGLAS ADAMS
First of all, I always manage to miss International Towel Day on May 25th. It commemorates the day of Douglas Adams’ far too early passing. Towel Day is celebrated every year on as a tribute to the author by his fans. On this day,… Read More ›
SHARING AS FEBRUARY ENDS
Sharing My World -2-27-2023 I’m feeling very guilty because we ran out of birdseed. The birds keep coming back to the feeder and I have nothing to give them. Food IS on the way, but I don’t know if it… Read More ›
ALL WE NEED IS A CHEERY SONG TO BRIGHTEN OUR DAY
When you find yourself in Rome, sing a cheerful song. Presented by Monty Python and the “Life of Brian.” At my funeral, I hope everyone sings this song. It’s the bright side of death.
BALLS, NERVE, AND חוצפה
“You’re one tough broad,” my friend told me. I recognized this as a compliment. Maybe you have to come from New York or New Jersey to “get it,” but I got it. “Tough” includes brave, determined, and hard to kill…. Read More ›
THE GREAT WHITE HURRICANE OF MARCH 11, 1888
It has snowed every night for the past week but only a few inches at a time. We often get more snow (or rain) later in the day, but every morning when I get up, the ground and the deck… Read More ›
I’VE LOOKED AT CLOUDS FROM BOTH SIDES NOW
One sunset evening as the sun was setting over the Housatonic River in Connecticut, the sky went wild. If you stood on the dock and rotated, there would be a different color and formation of clouds in each degree of… Read More ›
AN OUTBREAK OF PEACE – CHRISTMAS 1914
The Christmas truce (German: Waffenstillstand; French: Trêve de Noël) was a series of widespread but unofficial ceasefires along the Western Front during the Christmas season of 1914. During the days leading to Christmas, German and British soldiers left their trenches… Read More ›
WHERE DID YOU GET THAT RAG YOU’RE WEARING?
A FLASHBACK FRIDAY FROM DECEMBER 16, 2019 “How come Gibbs is wearing a coat in Arizona in the summer?” I was talking to Garry. It was an NCIS rerun. We watch a lot of reruns, though this new fall season… Read More ›
WRITE ABOUT DOGS
Garry said I should write about dogs. I had a hard time explaining that in addition to the idea of what to write about, you need a “book concept,” an idea of where you will start, finish, and what will… Read More ›
TEACH YOUR CHILDREN
There is a lot of social media discussion about kids having no manners, especially offspring who display a lack of civility towards adults and their own families. I hear a lot of squawking from families how “they didn’t learn this… Read More ›
AND THE CHOIR SANG ON
For a woman who is essentially religiously neutral, firmly clinging to my position of “no opinion” like a limpet on a wet rock with the tide coming in — I love church music. I cannot help myself. Play me some… Read More ›
STILL IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD
Here we are again. Back in the middle of the middle of the middle. We need new people who have relevant ideas for giving us back our future, but instead? We’re looking for ways to “make things like they used… Read More ›
TRUTH & MYTH: EARP, HOLLIDAY & BAT
Everyone knows the story of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and the OK Corral. It’s possibly the most iconic story out of the “wild west.” But there are many more stories yet untold. I’ve been following the trail of this one for a… Read More ›
BALLS, NERVE, AND חוצפה
“You’re one tough broad,” my friend told me. I recognized this as a compliment. Maybe you have to come from New York or New Jersey to “get it,” but I got it. “Tough” includes brave, determined, and hard to kill…. Read More ›
SERENDIPITY: SEEKING INTELLIGENT LIFE ON EARTH 