In Austin, a species of scarab beetle, a.k.a., the June bug, arrives in March and April. This specimen is Phyllophaga hirtiventris, a...

While you are self-quarantined: My husband Bill and I were late to the barn dance on this PBS documentary, but we sure enjoyed Ken...

A former colleague and friend—or so I thought—got pissed and de-friended me on Facebook because I said something she didn’t like. Aren’t...

About a year ago, I started ordering delivery from Randall's, a grocery chain in Austin affiliated with Safeway. I have a Randall's...

March 11, 2019 Wow. I googled my author name today and found some stuff I thought had been deleted. Also, I found a thing that teed...

February 22, 2019 I wasn't chosen to present at the Academy Awards, so I'm presenting The Spammer Awards instead. I got a spam letter via...

January 31, 2019 Reviews and ratings are an author's lifeblood. We try hard to write stories that rate at least a good four stars, and we...

October 20, 2018 I’ve just begun querying literary agents for my third novel Backstory. It’s literary suspense, I'm told. These days,...

September 13, 2018 In August, the Hubster and I took Amtrak from Austin to Chicago -- first time for this sort of journey. Sure, we'd...

May 3, 2018 I've not blogged since December due to a painful and annoying bout of carpal tunnel syndrome that resulted in surgery and an...

November 13, 2017 Sports writers seem to have a tough time coming up with metaphors for female athletes. The "Ava Bell" mentioned in this...

October 16, 2017 The revelation about Harvey Weinstein begs the question of why it took so many years for women to come forward to say he...

June 4, 2017 I just saw an absolutely silly post on Facebook, a video showing a dachshund getting a massage. Seriously. Wiener dog...

May 10, 2017 I live in a small community that has a "social set" of sorts. The entire bunch reminds me of the citizenry of River City,...

April 19, 2017 Admittedly, my politics swing a wee bit left of center, but that was not why I absolutely abhorred Bill O'Reilly. I've...

March 22, 2017 My oldest granddaughter texted me yesterday to tell me that she was reading To Leave a Memory and LIKED IT. What an...

March 7, 2017 As a trained journalist from the old school, I am appalled at what is going on in today's news world. We have a media...