By Barbara J. Eikmeier It was a few anxiety-filled days, in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, waiting to hear from our daughter, who had just moved to a small mountain community in western North Carolina. Her community was spared the massive flooding and power outages, losing only cell service and internet for a few days. […]
By Barbara J. Eikmeier Every part of the oleander plant is poisonous. I’ve known this since the 1960’s or early 70’s when the California department of transportation planted them in the median along the then new Interstate 5. Disease and drought resistance and deer resistance (due to their poisonous properties,) they grow into huge evergreen […]
By Barbara J Eikmeier I wrote an entire novel in my dreams the other night. It was a suspense thriller with a mysterious murderous. The plot was riveting and the characters vivid in my dream world imagination. When I woke, I knew I’d dreamt a novel but didn’t remember a single detail. How frustrating is […]
I gave away my winter coat. It was a long wool coat with generous sleeves, easy to fit over a bulky sweater or blazer. It was a classic style: Notched collar, button front, buttoned bands at the sleeves. It was camel colored. The same color as my dog. Some would call this coat ageless – […]
By Barbara J Eikmeier My mother, at age 91, helped me up off the floor. It was one of those moments that will stay with me for a long time. Dementia has left her passive. Arthritis has left her bent over at the waist and often in pain. She uses a walker, moves very slowly, […]
By Barbara J Eikmeier One of my favorite things about reading is “going to new places” when the setting in the story takes me away. Sometimes I unintentionally read several books set in similar places, such as WW2 Europe. Or, I end up reading books where the setting is either not well developed or not […]
By Barbara J. Eikmeier I once read that for health and prosperity a person should strive to watch two sunrises a year. I know there are some people who see two or three hundred sunrises a year. I’m not one of them. As for sunsets, I’m well-rehearsed on the shift of colors, time of day […]
By Barbara J. Eikmeier For many years I collected sea glass. I filled a small jar with pieces from beaches in Hawaii and California. It took a long time to fill my jar. Imagine my surprise when my sister took me to Glass Beach in Fort Bragg, California. I felt like there was more glass […]
By Barbara J Eikmeier It’s back-to-school-time which means it’s time to paint the high school parking lot AGAIN. An annual tradition at our local high school, it’s a senior privilege. My children didn’t attend this school, so I’m strictly an observer of the annual changing of the guard in the school parking lot – a […]
By Barbara J Eikmeier It was the first really hot day of summer. My car didn’t have a chance to cool down between errands. I was hot. My car was hot. Then I stepped into the CVS pharmacy. The blast of cool air from the air conditioned store hit me at the door. In […]