I’ve often been called a “guy’s gal.” This is usually – I think– meant as a compliment. There are some stereotypical masculine pursuits that I do enjoy and which often lead me to rattling around in the boys’ club house. For example, I LOVE football. I’ve followed the Dolphins since 1972 and, as many of …
Just about every summer my GeeGee would paint the cement floor of her back patio. It was always this glossy battleship grey. We kids loved it because when it was wet it was damn near a slip-n-slide – are those things even around anymore? There’s also a great family story about my Grumps once painting …
Can you believe Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is thirty years old this year? Yepper, that teenage oracle of wisdom and guidance has reached the milestone of no longer being twenty-something. To celebrate, because how can you not celebrate Ferris, this weekend in Chicago folks will gather at Ferris Fest. If you’re in the area, put …
(Updated from post of May 2014) Awhile back, on a day when I was walking my dog Taz (I sure do miss that wonderful fella), I passed a mom and son waiting for the school bus. As we slowly trotted past, I overheard the boy, I’m guessing about nine years old, regaling all the fascinating …
I love to be involved in interviews. I have friends who hate to be subjected to the “dreaded” author interview. Not me: no question is too weird, too off topic or bizarre. It’s most likely because I’m Irish: we have an opinion about everything, will discuss anything, and we never meet a stranger who we …
What happens when 350 people, predominantly women, truck in from all across the U.S. to spend three full days laughing (and a little crying), eating (mostly desserts), and baring their souls to each other? Magic. In a place called Dayton. That’s not a punchline. Last week, the tribe of Erma gathered once again for the …
It’s become a time honored tradition, up here in the Middle-Aged Cheap Seats, to kick up our feet toward the end of every February, cocktail in one hand and popcorn in the other, and tune in for a favorite annual event: the Academy Awards, or as they are also known as, The Oscars. I host …
It will come as a surprise to few that I’m not a big fan of winter. This Florida gal just doesn’t have the chops to hang out in the snow. I moved to Virginia in 1995 and 8 months out of the year I love being a Virginian. But from December through March, Mother Nature …
Why someone puts pen to paper or fingertips to keyboard is an extraordinarily personal matter. If you ask ten people why do you write?, you’re likely to get ten very different answers. Because I write mostly creative nonfiction, my writing is particularly personal. I’ve often been asked: why do you share such intimate details of …
Oh, we Irish do love our toasts. We never miss an opportunity to wax poetic about the past, the here and now, and the future. Especially this week, as we welcome 2016, I’m reviewing my repertoire of go-to ditties. I thought I’d share a few of my favorites, just in case you find yourself in …