Author Archives: chick

Pest Control

A conversation from a few weeks ago— Me: I found three millipedes in the house this morning. I couldn’t bear to kill them, so I threw them outside. Hubby: Don’t do that! Me: Why not? Hubby: Because those ones already … Continue reading

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Tools of the Trade

Here, perhaps, the reason why I get so little writing done. “It is certainly necessary for a writer to have ideas in his head,” agreed Poirot. from Death in the Air

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A Rainbow of Reading

I have decided that August will be Rainbow of Reading Month. That is, for the entire month of August, I will only read books that have colors in their titles. I will count words like “plum” and “chocolate” as colors, … Continue reading

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Portuguese-By-Marriage

Growing up, I always thought I would marry an Italian. I lived in Connecticut, just north of New Haven, and there, as my friend once put it, you are either Italian or married to an Italian. But I moved to … Continue reading

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Obstacles

Is it any wonder that I don’t play my piano often? There are so many obstacles in my way. First, the situation has to be just right. The children must be either out of the house or soundly asleep, and … Continue reading

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Marshall, Music, and Mommy

Dear Marshall, Of the many things I hope for you, a love of music is one of the most important. I don’t necessarily want to turn you into a Juilliard-trained instrumentalist. Not that it would be a bad thing, but … Continue reading

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Saying It Like It Is

Poirot was typically kind, but he wasn’t afraid to speak his mind. I wish I had the chutzpah to say this to someone’s face, as he did in Murder on the Orient Express. If you will forgive me for being … Continue reading

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Reading Roundup

I don’t have much time to talk about the books I’ve read this year, but I don’t want to leave them completely unmentioned, so here are a few words about the ones I haven’t covered yet. Murder on the Orient … Continue reading

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Old Letters, Old Age

Poirot says, “Oh, la la, never does a woman destroy a letter if she can avoid it! Not even if it would be more prudent to do so!” from “The Adventure of ‘The Western Star’” After reading this quote, I … Continue reading

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Sugar High

Dear Marshall, At your birthday party, you ate cake. You’re not used to so much sugar, and later you were acting crazy. You even kicked your sister a couple of times and we said, “He usually doesn’t act like that!” … Continue reading

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