I'm not sure who the marketing genius was who came up with the idea of a cologne for men with undertones of chocolate, but she (I'm sure it was a female) was a woman after my own heart. The first time I smelled Angel for Men, I was in love. Admittedly, I am a born … Continue reading Angel for Men
Ticket to Ride
The year I was born, my mother bought a new Spring Yellow 1965 Ford Falcon Futura from Huntersville Ford. That car got me to the babysitter's, to Brownies and Girl Scouts, to church, and to Long Creek Elementary School on mornings it was too cold to walk the mile from our house. For eleven years, … Continue reading Ticket to Ride
Grandma Cartner
Growing up, I thought my family, the Cartners, were the real world equivalent of television's Walton family. My dad was number five of ten children that spanned twenty years from oldest to youngest. Almost every Sunday and definitely every holiday they and their spouses and children converged on the house where they grew up in … Continue reading Grandma Cartner
Well, Hello There!
I had accompanied my mom on a business trip to Orlando, Florida. We stretched the trip into a vacation that included a couple of days in Daytona on the way down, an extra day at the new Disney World Epcot Center, and a stop off in St. Augustine on the way home. We'd been to … Continue reading Well, Hello There!
Christmas Money
In my seventh year, Mama was teaching me about giving. It was one of her specialties. Nothing gave her more joy than watching someone's face as they opened a birthday or Christmas gift. She'd sing as she happily prepared sumptuous meals for our family or cleaned our house. If she heard of someone who was … Continue reading Christmas Money
Naugahyde Dreams
In my youth there was a chair that sat in front of a window in our family room. It wouldn't have won any style awards and, in fact, probably would have given Martha Stewart cold chills. It was what I suppose you would have called antique gold in color and was made out of Naugahyde … Continue reading Naugahyde Dreams
I’m Afraid
I'm afraid to write about your fate because it might open the gate. My dam would burst; I'd flood this place with words and tears of grief, a surging, spewing release. And no one in its path could stand to witness the grief coming from my hand. My heart would leak out all its pain; … Continue reading I’m Afraid
Pineapple Upside Down Cake
All my life I have enjoyed being a "helper". It started at Mama's side in the kitchen, continued through being the teacher's pet most years I was in school, and is manifested in my adult life through the joy I get at Christmastime, packing shoe boxes for Samaritan's Purse to hand out to less fortunate … Continue reading Pineapple Upside Down Cake
I Wasn’t Ready To Say Goodbye
On August 12th, 2019 the eighteenth anniversary of my mother's death will once again rip me to shreds. The worst day of my life started like any other Sunday. I got up with no alarm clock and began my day having breakfast with my husband, Darryl. My not quite 62-year-old mom had undergone rotator cuff … Continue reading I Wasn’t Ready To Say Goodbye
Robin's Eggs 