I have not been writing on Open Salon for weeks now, and I’m afraid I may have lost many of the connections I made here.  I’m actually publishing a Christian children’s musical, and the proof process and the studio recording have taken every available neuron.

But I wanted… Read full post »

Today I got a phone call from an acquaintance who would like my endorsement of his candidacy for state office. 

I inquired why he is running against the current representative, and he tells me that, as a former representative, a certain “watchdog group” gave him exceedingly high rati… Read full post »

Pardon me for pointing this out, but I can see your parapraxis. 

I couldn’t help noticing.  Long ago, I taught junior high English, and though I was more creativity nurturer than grammarian, my eyes naturally focus on spelling errors, homophone mistakes, and typos. … Read full post »

This morning, feeling a bit stressed and anxious in my actual life, I decided to take a little virtual vacation and research my alternate lives on Google.  I typed in my first and last name, wondering about the big questions, “Who am I?  What am I accomplishing with my life?”&nb… Read full post »

My husband scheduled his own MRI. 

He became ill in Orlando, developing excruciating pain on the left side of his back, across the shoulder into the left side of his chest, and down his left arm, with his hand going almost completely numb.  

He has had multiple sclerosis… Read full post »

The donkey watching this scene seems to be somewhat amused. 

I spent seven hours in the emergency room with my husband today.  He has multiple sclerosis, and has been experiencing unbearable pain on the left side of his back, shoulder,/… Read full post »

This March, Poetic Friends sponsored a poetry contest benefiting The Bridge, a homeless services alliance in Dallas, Texas.  Poets from across the nation composed poems around the theme “Humanitarianism:  the doctrine that humanity's obligations are concerned wholly with the welfare o… Read full post »

Dogmom, this post is for you, and all the other families going through G/T testing with their children. Don't worry if your child doesn't "qualify," and don't let the school system label your child or put them into some kind of "below average" box.  Early test results are not… Read full post »

 

Suppose you open the newspaper today and find that Congress is debating a new piece of legislation that will have a major impact on your life, one that would wreak economic catastrophe on your small family business and other businesses like it across the nation.   

You mi… Read full post »

Our house… was a very very very loud house… 

With televisions in the living room, bedroom, and kitchen, simultaneously blaring sports, news, and cartoons.  When Mom cooked, she often turned on the ra/… Read full post »

 Cartouche started it. 

She wrote a funny and hugely-popular piece asking people to create an OS slogan.  NoisyNora suggested this:  “You can sign out any time you like… but you can never leave…”  

This echo of “Hotel California&rd… Read full post »

 Have you  noticed that as you enter your 40s-50s, trying to remember trivia becomes like an embarrassing and painful Jeopardy game, one with no timer and unlimited guesses? My husband and I were killing off gray matter watching the Idol results show when a commercial came on fo… Read full post »

Compassionate Hearts

Poetry to Help the Homeless

   I’d like to invite you to read the posts of the gifted and big-hearted writers who entered the open call:  Write a Poem; Help the Homeless.  I have been privileged these past days to read some amazing po/… Read full post »

POETRY CONTEST OPEN CALL

TOPIC:  HOMELESSNESS OR HUMANITARIANISM

DEADLINE:  SUNDAY, APRIL 26TH 

LOOK BELOW ENTRY LINKS

FOR DETAILS ABOUT THE OPEN CALL.

Entry links:  (Please read and rate your favorites)

1. From onecorgilover:  "A Prayer for the Lost and… Read full post »

When I started taking you to church for Mother’s Day Out, you would wrap yourself around my leg and howl.  The gentle teachers would pry apart your grasping arms and fold you into a hug and carry you into the classroom while you sobbed.  You wore red cowboy boots every day… Read full post »

 I passed a homeless man two weeks ago and gave him nothing, and I’ve carried him with me ever since. 

I was lost in downtown Oklahoma City, late for my daughter’s choir concert, when I saw an elderly, white-haired man digging through a garbage can.  His wrin/… Read full post »

Years back, when I was waitressing and smelled like garlic bread, I would often return home at midnight or later.  Car jackings were big in the news, and also that story about the rapist who hid under cars and slashed women’s feet to bring them to the ground, and my/… Read full post »

 

We went through a dramatic event with a relative this past year.  I’ve tried several different times to write about it, but no matter how much I obscure details to protect everyone’s privacy, I just don’t feel good about posting.  I was a bystander, and I gu/… Read full post »

 I went to my gynecologist two months ago, and while inquiring about recent health concerns, she asked, “Have there been significant changes in your life?  Are you experiencing any unusual stress?” 

Beyond the stress of lying half naked on the table having this conve… Read full post »