Liz Flaherty's Blog, page 37

"You Still Have Me" by Liz Flaherty

I wrote this a few years back, but I've been thinking of my mother-in-law a lot. Missing her. Thinking of perfect things and being glad I've heard them. Felt them. Thanks for reading.

"You still have me."

It was 1982, the week of my mother's funeral. I was 32 and my life was everything I wanted. I had a husband and three kids who were my world, a job I liked, a house I loved, and enough money to pay the bills if we were careful. 

And I was overwhelmed. It was a bad year in the marriage--you have th...

Wrapped Around My Heart by Heather Alexander

 

Wrapped Around My Heart
Heather Alexander
(The Kincaid Brothers, #1)
Published by: The Wild Rose Press
Publication date: August 29th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Savvy New York designer, Emma Cole, inexplicably falls through time and into the arms of the most intriguing man she’s ever met—Wyatt Kincaid, a hunky cowboy living in 19th century Montana. Their attraction is instantaneous, but the secrets they each carry may keep the two apart.

When a mysterious string of fires set off a chain ...

Theo, Last Man Standing, Book Nine by Suzanne Winslow

Theo (Last Man Standing-Book 9) started out as a whim—a chance to write a novella in a series with fourteen other romance authors. Theo is an airline pilot living in Rancho Bernardo, a suburb of San Diego. His character gave me the opportunity to explore ideas I’ve had in the back of my mind for a long time. My husband was a commercial airline pilot for twenty years. I’ve visited my parents in Southern California for twenty-five years. I could build my characters and setting around what I know. ...

Potholders and Memories by Liz Flaherty

My friend Karen had a pretty potholder at church that someone had made for her from Christmas fabric, and I thought, What a great idea! I could do that between other projects. When I was a kid, Mom had one of those looms where you used circles of fabric--usually cut from the tops of worn-out socks--to make potholders that were both ugly and indestructible. Once you gave one to your grandmother, she couldn't ever throw it away. 
While I have never been above mediocre as a cook--and sometimes medio...

My Quiet New York by Anna Taylor Sweringen

Being a native New Yorker the roar and rush that is the normal pace of the city ran in me from sunrise to sunset. I took for granted how the city never sleeps, even if I rarely took advantage of the attractions that draw most tourists there like the Chrysler Building and Radio City Music Hall.
Yet amid the famous and infamous pace attributed to NYC, the city gave me a soul-satisfying quiet that kept me anchored in what was important to me. I think that’s why my favorite song from the musical Hami...

"Rich as wine, the sunset flashes..."

Rich as wine, the sunset flashesRound the tilted world, and dashesUp the sloping west and splashesRed foam over sky and sea —Till my dream of Autumn, palingIn the splendor all-prevailing,Like a sallow leaf goes sailingDown the silence solemnly.From "A Dream of Autumn" by James Whitcomb Riley

I saw a picture of Coaches Bob Bridge and Tim DuBois on Facebook this morning, sitting on a bench at the edge of North Miami's football field. A cluster of footballs lay on the ground beneath the bench. There...

Meant to Be on BookBub by Nan Reinhardt

My friend Nan Reinhardt has a BookBub deal going on. If you haven't read her River's Edge series yet, this is a good, free way to get a start! I lifted the paragraph below from her website, which is a fun place to visit all by itself.

Meant to Be, Book 2 in the Four Irish Brothers Winery series with Tule Publishing was accepted for a BookBub Feature Deal. It started yesterday and wowzers! We’ve already hit #2 on the Amazon bestseller list and #1 in three other categories. I’m excited and happy be...

Come Rejoicing by Liz Flaherty

Sowing in the morning, sowing seeds of kindness,
Sowing in the noontide and the dewy eve;
Waiting for the harvest, and the time of reaping,
We shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheaves.

I have nothing to say today. Actually, I do. I have plenty. There are times, I admit, that I wish I wrote a political column--not one where I just get political sometimes, but a real political one.

But that's not going to happen. I don't know enough--and yes, that should be a stopper--and my skin is way too thin--...

The Power of Great Opening Lines by Randy Overbeck

Today, everything must move in a blur. Downloads can’t be fast; they need to be instantaneous. Calling friends on the cell takes too long and is so yesterday. Just text them. If they care, they’ll text back. If it can’t be squeezed into a tweet, it isn’t worth sharing. And don’t get me started on Tik-Tok. The average view is thirteen seconds! Really? Tik-tok-ers have just few seconds to catch viewers’ eyes…or else they’ll be swiping on to the next one.

I’m not sure who’s to blame but that’s the r...

Hold Fast to Dreams by Liz Flaherty

This came mostly from 2019. The past week or two, I've been buying school supplies here and there, worrying about Covid in the schools, about how kids are bullied, teachers are bullied, and pubic education is under constant fire from the same people who are holding the fire extinguishers behind their backs and saying "Gotcha!" 

Am I biased? You bet. I have kids who teach and a grandson still in middle school. I'm afraid for the students who may not get what they need in the future, whose school c...