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Something Fishy
The water in my little fountain/pond turned green a few weeks ago — not slimy, mossy algae but particles suspended in the water. The algae bloom hid the fish from view. Something had to give. Wrapping the pump in filter media and stuffing it in a flower pot was semi-functional until changing the filter media…
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Spot On with Spotify
The way buying and listening to music keeps changing has long pissed me off. I’ve gone through vinyl, 8-track tapes, cassette tapes, compact discs, MP3s and a variety of music players and streaming apps. With the possible exception of the awful 8–track, each has pros and cons. Spotify, however, tops them all and keeps me…
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My Bubble-mate
This week marks nine months of working from home. The residents of my bubble (me and Toodles) elected not to celebrate the holidays. We talked about a party but decided to follow expert advice and avoid social gatherings. To be totally honest, Toodles was never a fan of the party idea. Crowds aren’t really her…
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An Attitude of Gratitude
An early mentor was a big believer in the power of positive thinking. He’d thoroughly researched positivity, often spoke on the topic, and developed a program on the subject for the Kentucky extension service. His sage advice and practical suggestions for fostering a positive attitude have stayed with me and served me well over the…
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I Love Annual Flowers
Fear of commitment has kept me from planting anything permanent in my garden. I have too many favorites and too little space. Before this year’s winter garden, nothing planted in the past seven years was suppoed to survive a hard freeze. Sticking to tender plants means starting over every year. Mostly. Some selections turned out…
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A New Holiday Tradition
I had no plans for Christmas this year. Vision issues and my diabetic puppy make travel difficult. Dinner with Andy has been the extent of my holiday celebrations for more than a decade. This year would be different. I decided to cook rib roast for my Christmas dinner. It’s not the kind of thing one…
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Predictions for 2017
Happy New Year! Can you believe it’s 2017? The older I get, the faster January seems to come around. My resolutions (I prefer to think of them as priorities) haven’t changed much, so this year, I’ll take a stab at predicting what will happen in 2017. Despite Mom’s fervent prayers, Donald Trump will be President…
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Campaign Promise
The other day I read that a blog like mine should steer clear of politics and religion. Venturing into either arena is likely to offend people who might (one day) buy my books. Well, as you know, that ship has sailed. My carpool pal and I discussed this issue on the way to one of…
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Goodbye Home Economics
The field of Home Economics was established many years ago to improve economic well-being and quality of life for families through research-based education in the domestic arts. Topics included nutrition, food preservation, food safety, money management, clothing construction, the use and care of fabrics and household equipment, parenting, household management, and more. In short, knowledge…
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An Avalanche of Catalogs
Since Thanksgiving, the mailman has deposited forty-nine copies of thirty different catalogs in our mailbox with more arriving every day. I was going to wait until Christmas Eve to blog about them, but my partner had a sudden attack of “clean this damn place up” and tossed them in the recycling bin. I take that…