Susan

Five Minutes in Philly

August 27, 2026August 26, 2026 Posted in dating, relationships, worsts, dancing, drugs, Pennsylvania, pick-up lines1 Comment

She was tall and blond. He was taller and had reddish hair. They were both at Rite Aid in Valley Forge. Matthew had come in for his hair gel, LA Look, to maintain his spiked hair. He saw her in aisle 12. “I have trouble finding hair products for men,” he said, testing the waters.… Continue reading Five Minutes in Philly

Theft of your Intellectual Property

August 26, 2026August 25, 2026 Posted in California, author, friends, writing, editor, trust, critique group, mentor4 Comments

If you are a writer, then what you write belongs to you as your intellectual property. Be careful of critique groups and the people with whom you share your work. You must have an iron-clad agreement that your work is your work, and no one else is allowed to use it. This is a sad… Continue reading Theft of your Intellectual Property

A Mouse in the Bed

August 25, 2026August 24, 2026 Posted in memoir, Iowa, mom, grandma, storms, memory, trees, mouse, childhood, vole, validationLeave a comment

(re-run) When my oldest was in 4th or 5th grade, she told me one morning that there was a mouse in her bed. “There’s no mouse in your bed!” I said. “There is,” she said. “I felt it crawling over my leg.” She went off to school, and I told my mother, who was visiting… Continue reading A Mouse in the Bed

The Grass is Always Greener

August 24, 2026August 23, 2026 Posted in bedroom, dogs, emoji, humor, kiss, marriage, partner, relationships, roommate, texting1 Comment

(re-run) I had a meeting tonight with two girlfriends in solid hard-core relationships. One is married, the other is living with her guy. My relationship is with two roommates who fight a lot over squeaky toys and over who gets to go out the door first. They are roommates of the furry kind. So imagine… Continue reading The Grass is Always Greener

Peace Corps Fail

August 23, 2026August 22, 2026 Posted in dogs, memoir, Midwestern, Peace Corps, postal service, relationships, Spain, teaching, travel, Venezuela2 Comments

(re-run) It was in the spring of my first year of teaching when the call came. I was at Greenwood Elementary in Greenwood, Nebraska. I had applied to the Peace Corps the year before. They had just seen my application. They wanted to fly me to Chicago for an interview that weekend. They gave me… Continue reading Peace Corps Fail

To Flirt or Not to Flirt

August 22, 2026August 21, 2026 Posted in dating, relationships, humor, restaurant, California, online dating, deceased, aging, Catholic, funeralLeave a comment

(re-run) They found each other on Match.com. They had both lost their spouses. Don said he was looking for a good Catholic widow. He was involved with the arch diocese in Oakland. Sue was a recovering Catholic but thought maybe he was a solid guy. She agreed to meet him for coffee. He was good-looking… Continue reading To Flirt or Not to Flirt

God’s Favor

August 21, 2026August 20, 2026 Posted in cancer, car pool, Christian school, church, God, Heaven, helicopters, joke, kindergarten, memoir2 Comments

There’s the old joke about the man who is stranded in a flood. First, a guy in a canoe comes by and offers to help him. “God will provide for me,” he says as he turns down the canoe ride. Then a second guy comes by in a row boat and offers a ride. “God… Continue reading God’s Favor

Betting on a Jersey Girl

August 20, 2026August 19, 2026 Posted in betting, dating, firsts, marriage, marriage proposal, relationshipsLeave a comment

(re-run) He was working in Pittsburgh, auditing Gulf Oil for Price Water House. One of his married buddies approached the crowd at the water cooler and asked a guy, John, if he wanted a blind date with his wife’s friend from dental school. “Wait!” Arthur said. “You already have a girlfriend, John. How about me?… Continue reading Betting on a Jersey Girl

First Date with a Stoner

August 19, 2026August 18, 2026 Posted in bar, Beatles, best, boyfriend, California, dancing, dating, feet, football, friends, helpful strangers, humor, marijuana, memoir, music, relationships, socializing, worstLeave a comment

(re-run) You said yes to the guy who asked you out two years ago and you turned him down. Now he has shown up at a dancing venue in Concord on the same day you wondered whatever happened to him. You see, he lives in San Francisco and you live in Suburbia. Then you agree… Continue reading First Date with a Stoner

Skipping Work for Woodstock, 1969

August 18, 2026August 17, 2026 Posted in bands, best, helpful strangers, historic, humor, live music, Long Island, nature, outdoors, pig, postal service, rain, relationships, small town, vacation, vintageLeave a comment

(re-run) In 1969 Max Yasgur’s pig farm in upstate New York sounded like the place to be for three days and three nights. Frank had been delivering the Woodstock tickets for weeks on Long Island at his job as a summer letter carrier for the U.S. Post Office. He and the other summer carriers knew… Continue reading Skipping Work for Woodstock, 1969