Long Hollow

Where seeds of thought have room to grow

recent posts

about

Realtor, writer, blogger in Austin, TX

Category: Odd Jobs

  • Grateful for #53

    Tom turned 53 today. If you've read much of my blog, you know I never take birthdays for granted, but I'm especially grateful for each one of his we get to celebrate. I've spent too many hours sitting in hospital waiting rooms praying for him … come too close to losing him too many times.…

  • Author. Who, Me?

    She treats me like a celebrity, this woman. No…scratch that. She makes me feel like a celebrity. Every year, for the past nine or ten years, she has invited me into her classroom to talk to her juniors, her AP English Language students, about writing. If for some reason our schedules don't mesh, she has…

  • Just hanging out with a Friend

    Candles flicker, casting shadows. The lights are dimmed and I sit near the back, watching the flames. It's quiet – so quiet I hear the ringing in my ears over the distant sounds of cars passing the church.  I almost talked myself into just staying home. I feel so tired … what if I fall…

  • too much, too much, just too dang much…

    I'm whooped. Overwhelmed. Plumb tuckered out, chopped up, and stir-fried. Kids, dog, future dog, bird, house, land, job(s), writing, projects, money, me, husband, parents, siblings and kids, cousins, friends, etc….plus the maintenance and upkeep of every single one (this includes phone calls, emails, prayers, and just plain remembering…) It's all spinning, spinning, spinning in my…

  • A Typical Evening in the Empty Nest

    By the time I get home from work, after a quick stop by the grocery store for bananas (for tomorrow) and the makings of a salad (for tonight), my husband Tom has the steaks on the grill. The scent drifts around the corner of the house to greet me as I come down the walk…

  • A Meet the Neighbors, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Peking Duck Weekend

    I refuse to complain about how tired I am. I could already be in bed if I really wanted to be, but instead, I chose to upload and edit the pictures from this past weekend and then tell you all about it. It was a fabulous weekend…but an exhausting one, as well. Husband Tom and…

  • View from a Catwalk Revisited

    My first thought was to write a murder mystery set in a chemical plant on the Houston ship channel, with a back story about a teenage-girl college-dropout who becomes a hard-hat-wearing fire-fighting chemical plant worker. "Write what you know" and all of that. (Not the murder part – just the "teenage-girl college-dropout chemical plant worker" bit.)…

  • I’d Like to Thank…

    I'm kind of an award-aholic, as anyone who knew me in high school will tell you. Unfortunately, I don't think I've won any awards since "Miss Deer Park High School 1977"…until this week, that is! Now I'm the proud recipient of the Kreativ Blogger Award, thanks to Jill at Elemental, my dear. Thank you, Jill! I…

  • Discovering Temple Grandin

    I've discovered a whole new world that I didn't even realize existed. Until about a year ago, I knew nothing about autism. I was aware of it…I personally knew children with it…but I didn't have a clue how complex it could be until I became involved with Jobs4Autism, the nonprofit website my employers sponsor. Since then I've read…

  • Shakin’ Things Up

    I headed off for my walk before the sun even kissed the tops of the trees in the hollow today. The full moon started the magic of the morning…when I emerged from the bedroom, I was greeted with moonlight that splashed across the back deck and reached into the house through the French doors.  I hurried to…