WTH is going on around here?

WTH is going on around here?

My, how quickly things change. The other day, I started to write a bit on business and the environment because I had just seen a video posted by the new President of France, Emmanuel Macron, inviting beleaguered American scientists, researchers and engineers to come...

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A Gloomy Little Kitchen Tale.

A Gloomy Little Kitchen Tale.

So, 2017 is shaping up to be the year Lanie learns to deal with disappointment. First, the human equivalent of a malevolent toe fungus took up the highest office in our country. Then, and maybe more devastatingly, our home appraisal came in so unexpectedly low that...

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Put it all back!

Put it all back!

Lordy, lordy, I've been off kilter for days. You see, last week, and for no good reason, I decided to move our furniture. You are maybe thinking that it isn’t really a big deal, but you would be wrong. Nineteen years ago we moved into our house. I looked around. I...

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1610 Days Until We Have an Empty Nest…Not that I’m Counting

1610 Days Until We Have an Empty Nest…Not that I’m Counting

Our second child is graduating this year. Not only that, but all of our kids are now teenagers. Occasionally a random child will catch me standing in the doorway of their room, a distant look in my eyes, and ask me what I'm doing. "Oh, nothing." I say, putting on a...

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It’s Gonna’ Cost You.

It’s Gonna’ Cost You.

  Last week I posted a video to my Facebook page, as you do. The video, which everyone has probably seen by now, was of Jason Chaffetz asserting that folks needed to stop buying themselves new iPhones and invest in their own healthcare. To make "hard choices" as...

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You Can Caucus When You’re Grown. For Now, Clean Your Room.

You Can Caucus When You’re Grown. For Now, Clean Your Room.

Congress has been in recess, and for the past several days, my Facebook feed has been swamped with articles about Republicans' complete bafflement as to their raucous town hall meetings. Honestly, do none of them have children? Specifically teenagers? I have four...

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Coughs and Sneezes.

Coughs and Sneezes.

Oy. How are you feeling? I'm finding out that all this barely suppressed, politically-induced rage is hell on the immune system. I think I've been some sort of sick all but maybe three days since the inauguration. Last week started with a cough and by the next day, I...

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Tending the Flame.

Tending the Flame.

I few months back I remember someone telling me about how our ancestors, when migrating across the most desolate northern climes, would carry a small, lit ember in a pack. Imagine! Imagine the miracle of being able to keep such a precious thing alive. Imagine the...

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Either locusts or darling angels. Hard to tell, really.

Either locusts or darling angels. Hard to tell, really.

A few weekends ago, I took a good look around and realized that I was terribly behind. It happens when you check out for a a couple weeks and spend all your non-work hours lying face down on the couch, contemplating an apocalyptic future, and perfecting your heavy...

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Good Advice from Dubious Sources.

Good Advice from Dubious Sources.

So, 2017 started out a little bit rough for this gal. Or maybe everyone woke up crying, I dunno. I blame my son. The night before he said, "I don't understand why everyone says 2016 was the worst year ever. 2016 was great. 2016 was the year Bernie Sanders almost...

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Blog Roulette?

Recent Comments

  • Pam on I’m fine.We will not be looking back on these years with a happy chuckle and a thought of how whimsical the Universe can be, but I imagine the silver linings will continue to provide useful, elegant lessons in how to love this life we are living. You are a blessing and joy in my life and I am much better for knowing you. And this entry is freakin' hilarious!
  • Geanette on I’m fine.You amaze me. That’s all there is too it. The fact that you are willing and able to even LOOK for a silver lining is breathtaking. And then you make me laugh outloud. “And the award for best use of the word fish stick in a simile goes toooooo......!” Oh Melanie.....keep filling our hearts with your observations and keep us laughing. We need inspiration like you. And now ... bonus ... I can say I’ve “read” Rilke! Big love, G
  • Pam on There are RULES, dangnabbit!Wow! Who is the noble cobbler? Mine took six weeks to repair the strap on my bag that I carry every day. I am aware that your cobbler didn't say that they would be ready in two days, he just agreed that she could pick them up. I am delighting myself with the fantasy of her coming in to get her eight unrepaired boots and stamping her tiny foot while said cobbler merely swings his awl to point to the wall -- Ready in Two Weeks.
  • Melanie Danke on Wakey, wakey.Gosh, you are sweet. Thank you for that.
  • Geanette on Wakey, wakey.Didn't think I could POSSIBLY love you any more, but after reading this one. I do. I do indeed. You make me laugh when there's nothing to laugh about. You make me see the world with new eyes. No small feat. God, I love you!

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