by assignment, 200 self-revelatory words

Persistent Ardent Thoughtful Risk-taking Integrity-true Content Interested and interesting Artful   Loving Out-going Understanding Intelligent Singer of harmony Empathetic   Justice-seeking Action-oriented Colorful Kind Sense of humor aloud (allowed)...
No good deed goes unpunished

No good deed goes unpunished

I first heard this statement in the summer of 1997. A wise mentor gave it voice after I’d written a ground-breaking grant and determined to shepherd its project to fruition. Naive person that I was, I learned its lesson hard. Eight years later I was diagnosed...
Jello

Jello

My arena of influence has expanded into the Land of Eat, specifically the Province of Dessert. Who knew that such a thing could occur, especially in a human burned out long ago on the confection perfection demanded of/by a 4-H practitioner who achieved Grand Champion...
Strawberry Blonde

Strawberry Blonde

  “What did you do to your hair?” my mother said. I blinked at the remark.. I wasn’t prone to mirror reflection, growing up matter-of-fact about my appearance. Just like her, my model. We’d vacationed in California, and I had enjoyed my...
Unpacking

Unpacking

Moving is an overwhelming endeavor. There are so many components to the process, as well as so much stuff. Moving is an overwhelming endeavor because it’s packed with emotions, some happy, some hopeful, some sorrowful and regretful. Moving is an overwhelming...
Sprezzatura

Sprezzatura

sprezzatura PRONUNCIATION: (spret-sah-TOOR-uh)  MEANING: noun: Doing (or giving the appearance of doing) something effortlessly; effortless grace; nonchalance. ETYMOLOGY: From Italian. Earliest documented use: 1957. In 1957, the year of this term’s earliest...