Sog and the Fly

It Happened One Summer by Blanche Day Manos In my neck of the woods, everything gets ornery in the summertime. Critters, humans, even bugs are easy riled. There’s nothing like the heat of a white-orange sun blazing down from a copper-colored sky to make varmints out of the most lowly of pesky, everyday things, particularly […]

A Clue in the Wallpaper?

A Clue in the Wallpaper?

Sleep was hard to come by that night. My dreams were riddled with ghosts and scraps of paper which kept floating just beyond my grasp. When a tumble-down house fell in on me, I awoke, my heart pounding. I’d had enough. Stumbling downstairs, I aimed my feet toward the kitchen.             The nightmares were one […]

Above the Clouds

Tuesday Morning Thoughts People in Florida and in other places where Hurricane Ian left its mark have had way too much rain and flooding and heartache. Probably, to many, it looks as if they’ll never rise above the calamity. They are brave in facing what needs to be done and doing it. Many people are […]

Rain, Where Are You?

Parts of our country have a lot of rain, more than they need, floods; in my part of the country, we are parched and need rain desperately. I like to read or write when rain falls; I also like to write about rain, and I do–a lot. Here are excerpts from The Cemetery Club, Grave […]

Is It Really October?

Is It Really October?

You October people chose a wonderful month to be born. It’s a golden month, with the fragrance of apples and chrysanthemums, the time of harvest, a tucking in of plants,  and insects readying for a winter’s sleep. Your birthstone is the fabled opal. Read about it. It has a fascinating history. And, of course, your […]

Beneath the Moonlight

Beneath the Moonlight

The second of Ned McNeil’s moonlight mysteries, By the Fright of the Silvery Moon, inspired this poem.  What Lay Beneath the Moonlight An ancient church, deserted now, lay in a silv’ry light, Keeping watch o’er those who slept throughout the silent night. Did shadows move among the stones, was evil lurking near? Or was it […]