SOMETHING ABOUT NOTHING A friend of mine just finished auditing a course in literature. As the authors studied were foreign and unknown to me, I asked her to recommend any she thought were especially entertaining. She responded by bringing a bag of the books from the reading list with

(Reprint of Doll Purchase was Meant to Be by Caroline Miller, published in Grit, 12/2003) Last December, I drove some friends to a local mall to finish their holiday shopping. My shopping was done so I wandered up and down aisles admiring displays. In one store, I found a tumble of do

MAKING A DIFFERENCE The real, “It’s a Wonderful Life” was originally called “The Greatest Gift.” The short story was written by Philip Van Doren Stern and appeared in the magazine, “Good Housekeeping” in January, 1944. While the film classic, dire

THE LONELY CROWD As I write today’s blog, I am also working through some edits my publisher has requested for my third novel. I won’t reveal the title as I don’t officially have a contract, yet. We’ll have to see how the editing goes. To rewrite a book I thought I’d finished

SEARCHING FOR THE MIND OF GOD Despite the hectic demands of the season, I’ve managed to finish the book I started, “Stephen Hawking: Quest for the Theory of Everything,” by Kitty Ferguson (Blog: 12/9/10). It is a biography of the cosmological scientist who caused a sensa

THE PLUS IN MINUS Recently, I visited a friend who has just finished a round of chemotherapy. The tumors are arrested at the moment, but the slim victory came at a cost. He was thin. A hat pin would cast a larger shadow. He moved slowly, too, but proudly and without a cane though the

A SHORT RANT ON FREE BOOKS A friend of mine who lives in Canada recently admitted she hadn’t recommend either of my books to her book club because the members aren’t book buyers.  They prefer to borrow from the library. I’ve heard that logic before (Blog: July 13, 2010). When I

WHEN ENOUGH IS ENOUGH Several days ago, I went with a friend to see the latest Harry Potter movie, Part 1 of “The Deathly Hollows.” I enjoyed myselfas I am a Harry Potter fan, but I always view these experiences with two minds. The books are long and detailed, so a movie i

ANOTHER INCONVENIENT TRUTH Last night I watched the film “My Fair Lady” and went to bed humming “I could have danced all night, I could have danced all night…”  As it turned out, I should have danced all night. It would have made more sense than to lie tossing and t

ART AS A GAME OF WINNING AND LOOSING I’ve confessed many times that I tend to read magazines whenever I sit down to lunch. I like the fashion publications best because they are visual and don’t require much reading. Because I like fashion and consider it an art form, I ordered a D