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Here's a pithy summation of this site. I hope it whets your appetite!

I was born in Murray, Kentucky, a small town with a square and a college. It was my mother's home town.

When I was in sixth grade, we left family behind and moved to Carbondale, Illinois.

I went off to college at Madison, Wisconsin but burned out after two years and returned to move in with Jim, the man I later married.

I got back in school, but nothing much came of it. I've spent most of my adult life in retail, culminating in the purchase of Hillside Nursery, the business that I'd most enjoyed working for.

Hillside went bust in a long, grueling, but sometimes spectacular process, about the same time my father suffered two debilitating strokes and died in a long, grueling illness brightened by the kindness of his friends.

When I wrote this for the first Tuesdays, I was clawing my way back to what passes for normal with me, anchored by my renewing a piece of my childhood and adolescence by taking horseback riding lessons. But I had some health problems, and got discouraged over the time it takes to "build back up." Will I start up again this Fall? Stay tuned and see!

I'm using this webpage to remind myself of all I have to be thankful for.

I wish I could say I were weaving the web of my life, but it's more like figuring out the fiber content of the skein of the weft.

Follow the links to join me in the enterprise!

It will take me some time to recreate all the pages of the old site, over here. I will list the entries here and activate links as I transfer them.

Here's an album of my childhood...

My Uncle Orin The Jamestown Ferry "P" is for (Black) Powder Intestinal Fortitude, in gradeschool and college.

Highlights My Uncle Orin Memories of Butter

The Ice House. My Insect Pets Memories of Butter

Worm in Murray, cocoon in Carbondale, itching to spread my glorious wings.

My Big Sister, and a shrivelled apple. The Magic Lunch Time The Poetry Workshop The Walk to Makanda

Highlights The Poetry Workshop The Magic Lunch Time

Authors - the card game Other card games I have played, or tried to! My Sixth Grade Cafeteria My Introduction to classical music, in "An Old Friend Found Again"

I spent two winters at the University of Wisconsin, in Madison,

Snow, then and now.

the only place I've ever been homesick for.

Sneaky, my parakeet Intestinal Fortitude, in gradeschool and college.

Then I returned to Carbondale - and Jim

Southern Illinois University The Poetry Workshop where I met Patrick The Grapefruit Incident "P" is for Black Powder The Lake Project Critters "D" is for Ducklings My Cat Cunning The Possum and the Piano Poke It!

It's a nice place to visit, and I've wound up living here.

Of course, I had a life besides school and work... Deceiving Appearances Christmas Trees I have Trimmed "B" is for Boris Gudonov Memories of Greer Spring Important Safety Tip... And how I found out about it! First Steps in Bread Making Washcloths of London Catawba wine One of my favorite Radio Shows, in An Old Friend Found Again Ray and Lori's Wedding It's all in How You Look At It He Remained an Englishman! Cooking With and Without Recipes

Hillside was a way of life. Everything else was a job.

Hillside Snow, then and now. Hillside Christmas Trees Offsite for now, Our Killdeer in the WHTC Archive has text and Killdeer photos "A" is for Artichoke "F" is for Frog "G" is for Groundhogs Wrong Numbers

Everything Else My stint at Bookland

Hillside "N" is for The Nursery Revisited My Rainbow Scarf Groundhogs and German Tomatos

"The end is all that's ever true?" No, but sometimes it seems that way.

My father Daddy's Funeral

What passed for Normalcy Buggy Whips Snow, then and now Every Day an Adventure Seven Steps to Heaven War and Peace Reinventing the Hammock Now, Voyageur An Old Friend Found Again Jack and Shakespeare Ruby's Tuesdays Disclaimer- no relation to any restaurant whatsoever! The Monk Parrots of Chicago My Wyoming Vacation, in several parts

Highlights Now, Voyageur Jack and Shakespeare

The Move The Move Across Town

Jim's Passing

Highlights Uncle Jim, by Emily Grace

The New Direction Mischief, the English Springer Spaniel

Highlights The New Direction

First Impressions of Henry, IL

By Ruby Jung. Background by www.starshinesoftware.com. All rights reserved.