While scary creatures and haunted houses seem to pop up everywhere this time of year, and monsters, murder and mayhem dominate the movie menu, I personally prefer to celebrate my favorite season using decorations for autumn with all its vibrant colors, cooler temps and earthy scents. Oh, and pumpkin pie! However, there are two very misunderstood fictional characters in “literary monsterdom” that have garnered my interest over the years. The following is meant to present my analysis of their lives and what made them monsters in the first place. Continue reading →

I still have my Huffy Galaxie!

A random summer day in 1966. Greenville, Ohio. Two fourteen-year-old girls with stars in their eyes. Two bicycles (mine was a Huffy). Handlebar baskets trimmed with colorful plastic flowers—So Groovy! Two sack lunches. A couple of dollars in our pockets. One transistor radio. A spirit of adventure. Continue reading →

Sometimes you think you know something inside out. What it means to you at particular times may draw out your deepest, most heartfelt emotions. That’s it—there’s nothing else to learn or know. I thought I knew the cross. Continue reading →

Kenny, Judy & Mom in Galveston (1957)

Dear Kenny,

How did I get so lucky as to have an older brother like you? Five and a half years between us. Wow. What a blessing for a little girl to know she’s got a big brother who’s always looking out for her. You may have tried to camouflage your fondness for your little sis, but I figured that out early on. Ha! Saw right through it. My hero.

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George Frideric Handel

It only took George Frideric Handel a little over three weeks to compose Messiah, a feat that seems humanly impossible to me, considering what a classical masterpiece this oratorio is and the acclaim it received and still receives. Three weeks! It’s said that he never left his house during that time, and he Continue reading →