Blog
As a curious observer of life, I blog on writing, marketing, my prairie - anything that interests me in the moment. I like to have conversations with readers, so don’t hesitate to leave a comment. I'll respond.
On March 21, we woke to six inches of new snow. Normally, I’d say ‘How pretty!’, but then we were not exactly heading into Christmas. The daffodils stood tall in the snow. Three days…
Iowa’s roadways suffered a bug plague of unprecedented proportions over this past winter, according to an official of the Clean Iowa Ditches Coalition. “Litterbugs were out in force over the winter,” confirmed Illa Pickup, spokesperson…
Snow is gone, birds are back. Flocks of robins all over the lawn. Flickers in the tree outside my office window. Birds lined up to eat from a suet feeder David put up this winter…
It can’t last forever, this snow. I keep telling myself that. The days do get longer. Melting snow slides off the roof, plinks into the gutters, trickles in a steady stream out the downspouts. Yes,…
Yesterday’s hoar frost was followed by freezing rain over night. This morning I’m watching an ice storm wreak havoc outside my window. Limbs are coated with ice. The double whammy of wind and ice is…
Flocked Christmas trees were quite the rage in the 1990s. Maybe they still are. But I was never a fan. The white foam sprayed on the needles looked heavy, unnatural. It always looked to me…
I’ve always admired Minnesotans for how they embrace winter. I admit I waffle on the subject of winter. I love it. Or not. A couple of years ago, I vowed to go out every day.…
I returned from a pre-dawn walk through three inches of new powder, breathless from the exertion, warm in spite of frigid temperatures, the sound of snow crunching with every step. The snowplows hadn’t passed yet,…
My intent has been to write about my prairie at least once every month. But sitting here in my office, looking out across the area where I so hopefully planted a prairie last spring, all…
Nature dumped 15+ inches of snow on Des Moines this week. Fifteen inches of snow followed by winds gusting to 50 miles per hour. Snow swirled in whiteout waves. Drifts mounded up to window ledges.…