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The Wednesday Wars
When teachers or former students and their parents ask if I miss teaching, my answer often disappoints them. After twenty-five years of rigid schedules, grading, report cards, school politics, recess duty, teacher evaluations, curriculum writing, and inhaling every...
Turkey/Chicken Tetrazzini
Today’s recipe is a family favorite at the Philo house. It comes from old South Dakota friends. Connie, who was Allen’s babysitter, served it often when our families had supper together. About six months after our move to Iowa, I developed a serious craving for...
Boy, Do I Feel Old
The signs of the advancing age of the people who live at our house are multiplying at an alarming rate. Some signs, though not necessarily welcomed, are expected. AARP mailings, which my husband and I refuse to open. New wrinkles, which we both try to ignore. Aches...
Pride Cometh Before the Mess – Recycled
My, oh, my! This post from February 16, 2009 was a reminder of how much has happened in the last two years. My mother’s house sold 4 hours after it was put up for in March of 2009, during the worst housing market in decades. Our son now has a pick up, a job, a wife, a...
Tough Women
This past weekend, Iowans enjoyed a break in the weather. It came just in time for Valentine’s Day, so women can wear dresses and strappy, spiky shoes instead of fuzzy sweaters, wool pants, and winter boots. KInda nice to set aside winter toughness for a few days, in...
I Am Not Alone
One of the things I like best about writing is being alone in our quiet house. Of course, an appreciation of quiet isn’t exclusive to writers. Parents dream of quiet while raising children. And elementary teachers, who spend their days surrounded by quivery masses of...