My family moved to Geneva, OH, when I was seven years old. The first night in the new house, I remember waking in the middle of the night to the sound of a train, seemingly clacking and moaning in the vicinity of the house next door. It was loud enough to jar me awake from a sound sleep, sitting up abruptly in my bed near … Continue reading Trains and boats

Is there any such thing as a truly new recipe? I kind of doubt it! So with no apologies, here is the best recipe for macaroons that you’re likely to find anywhere, and it’s become such a merging of various recipes, I’m going to take credit for this particular version: Killer Macaroons 21 ozs. sweetened, shredded coconut (bags come in 7- or 14-oz. sizes) about … Continue reading Killer macaroons and a great book

I’m trying to decide where to go with my friend Ann in April. Ann has lived all over the world and visited more places than I can even dream of seeing in my lifetime. She has graciously offered to accompany me wherever I want to go – so far, anyway. I haven’t suggested anything she’s turned down, at any rate. When I think of all … Continue reading ABC travel plan

I’m working (well, sort of) and waiting for my contractor, Doug, to come back. He was looking at the roof, then got in his truck and left. I take that as bad news because he is most likely off at the hardware store buying whatever he needs to repair said roof. The only thing worse than Doug repairing the roof, however, would have been if … Continue reading Marry me, Bob Vila

Remember in “Bridget Jones’ Diary” (book or movie, doesn’t matter) when Bridget talked about taking mini-breaks with boyfriends? She was specifically referring to her wish to escape for a romantic weekend with her very sexy, but lecherous AND faithless boss (Hugh Grant -sigh). She did get her wish, though with a number of near fiascos and embarassing moments I can’t recall right now. Thank God … Continue reading A Spider Mini-Break

I don’t dare look at the date of my last posting. Not that I think anyone’s looking, but this isn’t exactly “dear diary” and I’m not about to write every day about every random thought I may have. And as I write this, there’s something goofy about the screen and as I type, the words disappear behind the column to the right, for instance right after … Continue reading Oh, dear!

I was feeling practically perky the last time I wrote. I was ready to “get cracking” and was feeling “almost normal.” By the way – I promise not to make the use of quotation marks a habit. How “annoying.” Anyway. I just realized I’ve been referring to the September calendar all week. It’s bad enough that I haven’t been completely sure what DAY of the … Continue reading Not cracking, and not normal

Dad’s funeral was Saturday. I understand now why people say they gain “closure” (a serviceable word that has been so over- and misused, it’s now annoying) by having a viewing, or calling hours, and funeral, wake, etc. It actually was very comforting to be hugged at least a hundred times and to hear great stories about Dad. My brother Bob and our friend and Dad’s law … Continue reading Back to normal?

I think – think – I have completed the first step with Network Solutions to direct my domain, katemahar.com, to this blog. It will take 24 to 36 hours for it to take effect, and then I can try to get WordPress to recognize the domain at this end. We’ll see what happens tomorrow. In the meantime, I’m conflicted. Do I use this as a … Continue reading Making progress

I attended a travel writing seminar in Denver recently and was told there was no excuse for a writer to NOT have a blog. So here’s a blog. With my name on it. Now I need to find out how to actually create a blog that makes sense and serves my purpose which is – primarily – to have a home for my writing samples. … Continue reading Kate writes . . .