Happy birthday to my home state, right next door to Arkansas. Theodore Roosevelt was President when a brand new state, Oklahoma, was added to the United States of America. On November 16, 1907, Indian Territory and Oklahoma Territory became one state, the 46th state, joining the Union. It’s a state of prairies, oil fields, cattle […]

Terror in the Moonlight
Ulysses’ low growl woke me. Groggily, I turned over and opened my eyes. “What is it, Ulysses?” I whispered as I dropped my hand to his head. He stood stiff and alert on the floor beside my bed. Moonlight flooded the room, making it seem almost like day. What was happening outside? It was of interest […]

Winter Cat
I have a soft spot in my heart for Manx cats. My mother’s cat, Boxcar, was a Manx. Boxcar had only one litter of kittens in her entire life, two little Siamese and a tiny runt, born a whole day after the first two. The little guy was a Manx and looked just like her. […]

The Cozy Mystery That Almost Wasn’t
As I completed the third Ned McNeil moonlight cozy mystery, Moonstruck and Murderous, I looked back at the last one, By The Fright of the Silvery Moon. I remembered the terrifically hard time I had writing just the right opening scene. On this one, Moonstruck, I think I wrote no less than six beginnings […]

Waiting for the First Snowfall
Anticipation, eagerness, impatience–will it or won’t it? I gaze out at the dark morning, waiting for the first snowfall of the season. The morning is dark and damp. Although I can’t see rain falling, it must be raining some, a fine mist, perhaps, because driveway, street, and deck are wet. The temperature is dropping […]

Walkin’ Through the Leaves, Gettin’ Really Cold
For those of us old enough to remember Johnny Ray’s song, Walkin’ in the Rain, this morning we could sing, Walkin’ Through the Leaves. There’s not much wind, just a bit, but leaves are falling like rain because last night, the thermometer sank really low! It’s only about twenty degrees now and the mercury was […]

