Are you ready to switch off your screens and ponder or discuss another writing/conversation prompt from my friend Tyrean Martinson’s book? Here’s my take on it. What a fun prompt today – or not, depending on where you parse the compound noun. To me, it holds a lot of memories of an auditorium-style classroom, back […]
To Ponder
Letter: Why the Health Insurance System is Making America Great Again (And Again, And Again, And Again)
Submitted by Greg Alderete. Good evening, America! You’ve tuned into a very special edition of “The Daily Show,” because tonight, we’re diving deep into the most American institution of them all — healthcare. That’s right, folks. If you’ve ever thought the words, “I’m feeling sick, let’s call my insurance company and see if they can […]
Across the Fence: O Tannenbaum
Of course, with so many German immigrants in the U.S. population almost from the very beginning, quite a few cultural items have been adopted into American traditions that are undoubtedly German. Among them is the carol O Tannenbaum (pronounce: O ‘tunnen-bowm, meaning o fir tree). Next to Silent Night, it might be one of the […]
Letter: It’s The Hap-Happiest Time of The Year
The older couple parked and strolled and sat and watched for a couple of hours or so. Snow was falling, shepherds were approaching, Frosty was waving, the band was playing, and the mayor was speaking. It was The Annual Christmas Parade, the official start to the hap-happiest time of the year. Not so happy, more […]
Damning Disgusting Evidence
I grew up with Mary Anne. I knew her forwards and backwards. I never heard her say a mean word to anyone and in our neighborhood there were lots of mean words describing almost everyone from blocks around. I also knew she didn’t lie. I heard her father beating her one evening when he didn’t […]
In the Book Nook with … T.J. Fier
Author T.J. Fier from Fargo, North Dakota, works as an Associate Professor of Set Design at NDSU. Her first book, The Bright One, was initially published through Three Little Sisters. She recently regained the rights and re-released the book herself. There will be more books coming out in 2025. T.J. credits Moorhead Friends Writing Group […]
Little Girl Lost
If you are a parent and have young children around, you know how easy it is for a small child to wander away and disappear from sight. Sometimes it’s for minutes or hours depending of a number of things. My wife and I experienced the pain of loss several years ago. Our daughter, Judith, then […]
A New Hope: Lakewood City Council shows restraint on the rush to apartments and condos
Years ago, the original Star Wars movie was renamed “A New Hope” when George Lucas decided to place it in the middle of a 9-episode saga. I wanted to share a small sign of new hope for Lakewood and development that balances community, small business and housing. The saga began last spring when the city […]
An Oklahoma Dream
I was tired and felt out of place. Just the night before I had been sipping a bottle of beer and talking about Native Americans. I was trying like the devil to remember where my grandmother had been born – someplace in Oklahoma was basically all I knew. A tall American Indian named Sidney sat […]