“Happy as Larry”

“Happy as Larry”

Greetings in America, a land of congeniality. In other parts of our country not blessed by irrepressible sunshine, people converse about weather. I’ve shared the jaw-dropping, weather-related comments of some of our visitors from Elsewhere in America in another...
Conversational Repair Strategies

Conversational Repair Strategies

Conversation is an essential social endeavor, at the heart of being human. Conversation is dialogue, not monologue, though some people seem not to know it. It is also not diatribe, for anger just isn’t that interesting. It does not create ties that bind....
Stalwart

Stalwart

The bulbs were easy to slid into the damp earth early last December, the month of persistent mist and drizzle. They’d spent the obligatory six weeks in the refrig to emulate frost. Direct from Holland, their purchase was commemoration of my seventh year of...
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds

As an avid Beatlemaniac, I have long agreed that the Beatles transformed the world. From men’s hairstyles to social attitudes to musical innovation, their hands touched more than our hearts and their musical instruments. But who knew that the world’s most...
Last Rites

Last Rites

Yesterday I posted about Death and Taxes, the American inevitabilities. It was a scary day for a friend and her husband, which prompted thoughts of such a day in my life. Over 100 days have passed. With some emotional distance, perhaps I can write it out…it was...