“A mere trifle.” That’s how Clement Clarke Moore referred to the little poem he wrote for his children on Christmas Eve, 1822. Initially titled “A Visit from Saint Nicholas” it has become known as “’Twas the Night Before Christmas” or sometimes “The Night Before Christmas”. Clement Clarke Moore was a brilliant scholar who, after earning […]
Her name was Marlena and she was introduced to me on the first of the school year (3rd grade, I think). She and her family lived in a rental house right next to the elementary school. She must have moved away after that year because I can’t remember her in any of the other grades. […]
I found Baby Jesus in my Christmas stocking this morning. Not the real One, of course, but the one that had been missing for a couple of days from my tabletop Fontanini nativity scene. I’m pretty sure the one who put it there was my 4 ½ year old granddaughter, Brileigh. I’m letting the grandchildren […]
I never thought of Dr. Z (short for Zimmerman) as a man with a sense of humor. As our dentist for over 25 years, he was always quiet and unassuming. Soft spoken. Small hands. This morning I was sitting in his chair for him to affix a new crown on my 2nd molar and he […]
This was a test. I’m sure of it. A couple of weeks ago I got an email saying that the internal hard drive that came with my year-old computer was being recalled. Some defect that could make it potentially crash was a possibility. I was instructed to back up my hard drive to an external […]
Spring forward. Fall back. I don’t get it. I’ve never really understood why we observe Daylight Saving Time, but like almost everybody else in the world, I’ve observed it every year. This fall (when I changed all the clocks in the house – again) I decided to do some research to find out where this […]
Halloween. It’s the only time of year that we’re not only allowed, but encouraged to pretend to be someone else. No matter what you think of the idea of Halloween because of its pagan origins, you have to admit it’s fun to dress up and pretend to be someone else just for one night. You’re […]
That’s the word for today. (Yeah, it’s another word that my husband with the master’s degree brought to my attention.) It came to his mind as we were traveling the circuitous roads of North Georgia last week. Deciduous, which means “falling off at maturity”, is mostly used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose […]
Circuitous. It’s a cool word. Dennis used it one day and I had to look it up. (He has a Master’s degree and I don’t.) Anyway, I like the word but I haven’t found a good way to use it in ordinary conversation. But I will use it here to impress my readers as I […]
It’s October 5th as I begin writing this – my mother’s birthday. Though she’s been gone for over 20 years I still think of her often and especially on this day. My mother was a plainspoken, simple lady. Not simple as in not smart, but simple as in she wasn’t complicated. No pretense. No frills. […]