Charlene Wakefield
Cute? In what way?
I hate the groundhog.
I don't care what anyone says, and others do have some things to say. But I have a mind of my own when it comes to groundhogs.
A new pen for the box
A long-forgotten cache of writing implements opens up a whole world of options — if they don’t go missing
When I retired recently, my former employers gave me a pen. I hope I don't lose it. I really love pens, yet I'm an expert at losing them. Lately, I've been writing with an old Cross pen that still works after having been stored in a box for 20...
A holiday card ritual
‘I sit with the pile of cards next to me and pick them up, one by one. I hold the card in my hands, read the name and think about that person, my friend.’
I love sending holiday cards, even though a lot of the task is rote - a bit like assembly-line work. I could do that rote part more efficiently if I'd just get organized. My problem is that I have multiple lists. I have my address book - that one...
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‘Uh-oh’
I've been walking along my dirt dead-end road every day, watching the plant life as it progresses. Lately, I've had my eye on the Queen Anne's lace and got to wondering if any of it was actually yarrow. I know Queen Anne's lace has that tiny little purple spot in the middle, but I began to look more closely and realized that not all of them have that spot - or at least don't have it yet. But how else...
Sharing a passion for Beto
I had not been following the Democratic primary race. There are too many candidates for me to sort through, so I've just been waiting until the field narrows down. But then my daughter called from California. “Mom, Beto is going to be at Keene State tomorrow. Will you go? I hope you will,” Asia said. “I've been reading all his policies, and even though I like most of the Democratic candidates, he's the only one that I agree with completely,”
Power to the people
Several years ago, as I sat in the dark, huddled in a sleeping bag next to the wood stove in the middle of the night in the middle of a blizzard, power long gone, I was once more contemplating giving in and spending a fortune on a generator. I was arguing with myself about whether it would be worth the expense and bother. The cold and dark had drained any energy and motivation I would have needed to even make...
Holding doors
Lately, people have been holding doors for me. In just one day, three did so: a woman who works in the same building as I do; a man at the bank who even instructed his young son to “be polite” and hold the second door; and even an elderly gentleman at the library. What's up with that? I'm still two months from the age where I might expect such courtesy. Have I suddenly acquired an aura of senior citizenship? Do...
Questioning authority vs. toeing the line
1. Never did I mean to imply that my being ejected from the Retreat grounds during Strolling of the Heifers was “unjust” - only overkill. Nor did I put anyone but myself in any remote situation of “danger,” and I do that every time I walk into my own woodshed, mow my lawn, or walk down Main Street. 2. My actions had nothing to do with my association with Write Action. Being associated with a group of people does not...