My mom bought me a necklace for Christmas, a gift I selected on my own. One portion has Chinese characters. The other has the English translation: Happiness. I chose that necklace because I thought it might remind me of what’s important. My own happiness. I lose that sometimes. I lose […]

The anal part of me is really perturbed that the rug pad is peeking out from under there I really hope that y’all had a wonderful Christmas and a happy start to Hannukah! (And any other holidays out there since the all-inclusive “happy holidays!” is such a sore point this […]

Apple Cream Cheese Roll-ups Eh. I made these two years ago and I had some notion that I just HAD TO make them again. They can be a hassle, though. A lot to do with handling phyllo dough, but moreso the process of rolling them up. When you plunk the […]

Some double chocolate chip concoction My friend had a birthday in late October. I was browsing the mall in search of a gift for her. I wandered into one of those lotion/perfume stores and was assaulted with…Christmas music. Before Halloween! I was appalled, honestly. I’m not in the mood to […]

But barely! My child’s fierce and ferocious entry into full-fledged toddlerhood would just happen to coincide with the timeframe when I was tending to him solo, wouldn’t it? To be honest, he was a very good boy. His temper tantrums are living large, though, and I was stressed out by […]

This is what happens when you let some guy you work with take your camera and snap some pics. What was I thinking? There were beer glasses galore — and plenty of people drinking from them. And I hand over my baby? Not smart on my part. Still, I like […]

What I love is when I find a recipe that includes all of the ingredients I already have in my house and is also easy to make. It’s like I want to bow down to the recipe gods. I was a bit skeptical of this concoction at first, and I […]

The result, as tasty as it was, just wasn’t very photogenic. When I scooped the portions out of the pan, they kind of oozed and goozed and slopped onto the plate. The beginning, then, is what I give you: polenta, sundried tomato chicken sausage and bell pepper awaiting a go […]

Hitchin’ a ride on the Avis shuttle Back from another business trip. Long Island again. No, I’m not jaded, but it’s not like I got to hang out and enjoy the quaint towns of the island. I was workin’, man. And it was really tiring this time around. Plus, I […]

Along Ionia Street Labor Day is supposed to be about NOT working, but, as a freelancer, I sometimes have to make sacrifices. That’s how I found my way to downtown GR yesterday afternoon for a meeting with Gwen and Dottie. I purposefully arrived early so I could snap some shots […]

Yesterday the tyke was puking his little guts out. The result was a trip to the ER to get some assistance and rehydration — in the form of a yummy slushie. Today he’s clearly back to himself. And he discovered that slushies don’t just come from hospitals. They also come […]

I love to read before bed. Lately, though, I’ve been leaving myself with very little time to do that. Last night I decided that I was going to turn in early just so I could surround myself with catalogs and magazines and breathe a big sigh of relaxation. Especially since […]