A poem — A kitchen is the perfect place to make love. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gentle arms curl around my waist, tug me away from the stove, from my chores of the day, my cares, to wrap around me for a slow dance in the kitchen, while the sauce for dinner simmers, to sway to…

Holiday intentions gone terribly wrong — A few years ago, newly-minted husband in hand, I lost my mind and issued a group invitation to my daughter, her boyfriend, and her grown children for Christmas dinner. My daughter is a lovely, if somewhat scattered, person who never responds to anything in a timely fashion. She seems totally…

A poem —

He has an unerring eye for what looks great — You wouldn’t think a guy who used to ride with Hell’s Angels would know what’s trending in the world of fashion and what looks great on his wife, but my husband has never failed to surprise me. He knows how to style himself, too. Even when he’s hard at work…

My ex died much too young and I wasn’t prepared for it — Standing beside my daughters while they buried their beloved Daddy was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. The Wrong One Died Today I stood beside you there, Watched our daughter kiss your hair. I held her youngest while she cried — Thought to myself, ‘The wrong one died’. I laid a rose across your…

Small-town Saturday night — I’d lost my mind and agreed to accompany my BFF and her mother to Karaoke Night at the local Legion. I don’t know what I was thinking. Any outing that involved alcohol and a party was always a dicey proposition when my friend was involved. She was a lot of…

I definitely left my comfort zone — The young man standing quietly on the sidewalk in the heart of Portland’s historic Pearl District caught my attention. Beside him, a dirtier, more ragged man hunched. He was bent intently over his own hand, head nearly touching the brick building, fully absorbed in what he held. …

There’s always a road not taken — Do you ever wonder what if? What if things had been different, what if you’d just done this thing instead of that thing? Made this choice, not that choice? Years and years later, I reconnected with a high school flame, who had been a basketball star. We tried several times…

Just when you think you’re all that and a bag of chips — Before my husband and I moved to our present home, we were residents of one of the largest, most pretentious lake communities in our State. …