Image by author My grandfather was an executive at RCA back in the shadows of the long-ago mid-twentieth century. From his time there, he accumulated branded goods — RCA playing cards, cufflinks — and like other archaic family possessions, they were treasured. This past Christmas, my mother decided it was finally time to disperse some of these relics. Whenever my grandparents enter the room of our family gatherings — be it via relics or reminiscing — these two long-dead come

Image by author The other day, in the throes of the holiday mayhem of the things that needed to be done or might have needed to be — but good luck with that — a young man made my week. It started in a parking lot, of all places, between my car and whatever store I needed to visit for the umpteenth time. For the record, I do shop online. I’m not a cave lady, though I endeavor to be one, but not everything is best attained right outside your front door, packed inside three nest

Image by author Dear readers of this blog, Just a brief, though heartfelt message of good cheer as we go into the end of the year and the holiday celebration period. I hope these last days of 2025 are joyful for you. I want to thank you always for stopping by this blog and reading my thoughts on various subjects. I'm always thinking, that's for sure, for better or worse. May the new year be a good one for you, and for us all. Above is the cartoon I sent out to family and frie

Then he gave me a piece of his Image by author The other day I went to the mall to see Santa. I had a beef with him, and I was determined to straighten it out — straighten him  out. I’ve written clear, explicit letters to him every year, stating precisely what I want for Christmas. I put a seasonal-themed postage stamp on the upper right corner of the envelope and send it off, each year, certain it’ll be different, that he’ll finally bring me what I want. But what does he do?

Image by author I was standing in line at Old Navy, a pair of sweatpants in hand, waiting to check out. The two cashiers working the registers had a series of complicated customers — lots to return, lots to buy — so those of us in line did what we could to pass the time: scroll our phones, peer at the tchotchkes surrounding us, daydream. Sometimes I might strike up conversation in a situation like this — yes, I’m that lady — but no one seemed to be in the talking mood. Frankl

Image by author My sister-in-law said to me the other day, “How many times did you see your mom this past year?” I teetered, the answer unsettling before I even calculated the number. I knew it would be regrettably small. I live three hours from my mom under the very, very  best of circumstances. Meaning, .00005% of the drivers between the DC metro area and Philadelphia couldn’t be on Interstate 95 at the same time as me. More than that? Oh dear. And, there’s always more than

Image by author with special thanks to Chick-fil-A Dear Readers of This Blog, Thank you so much for stopping by, for reading, for checking out what nutty cartoon I have going for the week, for any comments and likes, for emails of sharing, for mentioning this when I see you, for your kindness and thoughtfulness--in short, for you. I always wanted to write, but didn't. This is why I started this blog. I had no idea how much work writing is, but a lot of things that turn from n

Image by author On the second evening of my husband’s big extended family reunion, we met at a burger & bar joint, shuffled into a private room that could house the scads of us, and shared stories. These were stories told to the person sitting next to you as the wait staff floated around the boisterous crowd, or to the person across the table who’d just made you burst out laughing and needed to hear your version of the same hilarity—a back and forth of the best kind. An explo

Image by author Hello, all. I hope this brief check-in finds you well. I'm down in Florida for my husband's big family reunion and having a wonderful time. I'm taking this week off from the blog, but I thought I'd unearth a few of my earliest comics from years ago and share them here. It's been fun to stroll down Comic Memory Lane. Some had me cringe--ugh, not funny. Others had me sorta smile. On average, I'm impressed by how much effort I put forth. See you next week! Image

Image by author This past weekend, I drove the three to eight hours to New Jersey to see my mom and sister. I live in a major metropolitan area. Driving time varies. There was a little of this (shopping), a little of that (dining), a lot of talking, and a solitary big loop tour on foot of my old adolescent haunts. I say “haunts” because it was the day after Halloween. The place was still haunted. I started my loop tour under a big sky, as opposed to the tiny one where I live.

Image by author If I were to dress up this Halloween, what would I be? Not because I am going to dress up, or typically do on this annual occasion, but the thought experiment has me wondering. What would it be like to knock on doors, a sixty-year-old woman, asking for candy, dressed as my alter ego? It all depends on the costume. I begin with an online search to scout out my options. Obviously, I could construct whatever costume I wanted, but let’s pretend I’m lazy and choose

Image by author I grew up with Peanuts . No, not as in almonds or cashews. As in Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy, and Peppermint Patty. I’ll give a shoutout to Woodstock, too. Back then, you’d access these characters in the comics section of the newspaper and then on holidays, animated on TV. My siblings and I would clump together and watch the Peanuts  television specials, and since there were few television shows for kids back then — far from the multi-screen blur that l