Early this morning, I saw this hanging in the back yard. Impressive, isn’t it? Beautiful, actually, especially as it catches the sun. There’s symmetry and purpose in this spider’s construction. As I got close to snap the photo, it looked like she was doing a little repair work in […]
Last Thursday, as I was driving around in D.C., I was listening to The Diane Rehm Show on WAMU. It was a rebroadcast of an interview she conducted with E.L. Doctorow (one of my favorite writers) who had recently died. The subject was Doctorow’s book, “Homer and Langley.” Doctorow’s book […]
This was an interesting question posted to the writer John Updike by John Freeman, an interviewer on PBS’s Blank by Blank. This interview with Updike, who found a way to write with four small children running in and out all day long, intrigued me. I, too, have four small children […]
If you are a fan of The Andy Griffith Show, you know who Otis Campbell is: The lovable town drunk who has access to Mayberry’s jail cell after his usual Saturday night spree. He lets himself into the jail on Saturday nights if Andy or Barney isn’t around to ‘check’ […]
How was your Fourth of July? What did you all do? Traditionally, we go to a fun neighborhood block party that includes the usual cookout, outdoor games for the kids, and a parade. It rained cats and dogs all morning, but thankfully, the sun came out right before noon! Our […]
Now comes the hard part. It’s writing time. I took a break for a few days, and I’m finding it hard to get started today. I don’t think of myself as a natural procrastinator, but some days I just don’t feel like it. The pencils feel like they weigh 50,000 […]
Eighty years ago today, AA was founded. You can read about it, here. Also, here. I’m lucky to have found AA. It works for me. AA isn’t for everyone; there are also no guarantees when you come into the program. But somehow, I have found that it works for me […]
Tomorrow, I have a field trip planned to the Daughters of Charity Provincial Archives, and I cannot wait! Why is this such a big deal? Well, other than the fact I love Sisters — I grew up in fear and awe of them, in a good way — this is […]
This is courtesy of Fr. James Martin, S.J. The original post can be found here. A New Serenity Prayer God, grant me the serenity to accept the people I cannot change, which is pretty much everyone, since I’m clearly not you, God. At least not the last time I checked. […]
Notice the date. In sum, here’s what happened, 97 years ago. Emmett was hospitalized at Pensacola Hospital for almost a week prior to his death; he went through a few days of harrowing delirium tremens (and was likely strapped down during the time). It wasn’t a regular hospital room; Pensacola […]
Tell my story. 