Author Archives: Kathy

Roxie Treats

Posted on February 20, 2023 by Kathy

It all started with a Sam’s Club dog biscuit mix, a Christmas gift from my sister Betsey. She knows that I like my dog and I like baking. Because February 17th is the anniversary of Roxie having been blown into … Continue reading →

Posted in Monday Meals | Tagged | 4 Comments

Cast Down in Hadestown

Posted on February 18, 2023 by Kathy

Should I care how Anäis Mitchell, creator of the musical Hadestown, adapts Greek myths to suit her purposes? I shouldn’t. Myths provide us with archetypal stories and characters, constantly shaped and reinterpreted over the centuries. For example, beautiful Helen, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Uncategorized, Weekend Editions | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

February, St. Valentine, and Goat Skins

Posted on February 15, 2023 by Kathy

The Roman priests called Luperci celebrated the Lupercalia, a fertility and purification festival on February 15 by striking women with goatskin strips called februa. This word gives us the name of our shortest month, as well as its odd spelling … Continue reading →

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Sumpsimus, Mumpsimus

Posted on February 12, 2023 by Kathy

Another book bites the dust. I check out Reading the OED: One Man, One Year, 21,730 Pages by Ammon Shea with high hopes. It seems to have everything. It is about words (I like words), and it is funny (I … Continue reading →

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Nickname History

Posted on February 8, 2023 by Kathy

What does the word tawdry have in common with the name Ned? Care to hazard a guess? Ned is, in a way, a misunderstanding. According to folk etymology, the name derives from the common usage of Mine Edward as an … Continue reading →

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Only Connect

Posted on February 5, 2023 by Kathy

Governor Ron DeSantis’s website includes a page devoted to his proposed Stop the Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees (W.O.K.E.) Act. Florida’s tax dollars are paying for courses that make kids hate America, he says. Critical race theory has invaded … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Teaching, Uncategorized, Weekend Editions | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

A Casual Post

Posted on February 1, 2023 by Kathy

Gum-chewing drives some people to distraction, while split infinitives irritate others. One idiosyncratic bee in my own bonnet is the meaning of casualties. I’ve even taken a stand on the issue. Some years ago, I wrote a letter to National … Continue reading →

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Art out of Trauma

Posted on January 29, 2023 by Kathy

A disadvantage of book groups is that sometimes you have to read books that you never would have picked up on your own and that you don’t enjoy. The upside is that sometimes you have to read books that you … Continue reading →

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Winter and Beginnings

Posted on January 26, 2023 by Kathy

On this last Wednesday of the month, we’re finally getting around to January, whose root is Janus, the Roman god of doorways, beginnings and endings, and transitions. His face appeared on either side of a door, so that he could … Continue reading →

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That Is Poetry

Posted on January 22, 2023 by Kathy

My husband is reading one of my favorite books, The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1831). He’s been tackling classics in recent years. I thought that was the reason for this choice, but just discovered he’s showing the 1939 Charles Laughton … Continue reading →

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