M. Michael
Bio
Stories (9/0)
Traditions Linking Cultures
My grandparent’s kitchen was the hub of their small house. Taking up a whole house end, it had an amazing-to-a-child trap door that led to a musty dirt-walled basement lined with shelves of canned peaches, and pears, dill pickles, apricot preserves and other assorted jellies and jams. The kitchen’s window looked out on a full city lot sized garden from which my Grandfather would emerge with corn to be husked, shiny fat pea pods to be shelled and other fresh food like my Grandmother’s favorite-turnip greens. By the time I was old enough to store memories, the wood and coal stove had given way to electric and the icebox was now a refrigerator, but my Grandmother still had eggs and cream delivered by a local farmer.
By M. Michael2 years ago in Families
Enrich Your Life by Sharing Your Passion
Sharon’s life was busy. She was married with a challenging technical career but felt something was missing. Like many people, she felt the urge to do something more creative and that more directly touched people’s lives in positive ways. Some steps in her quest to find a creative outlet might help anyone who is searching for opportunities to enrich the lives of others while nurturing an inner passion.
By M. Michael2 years ago in Motivation
Why Would I Go to an Estate Sale?
I've never felt the need for ever-changing visual surroundings and I’m not a collector of anything. In fact, I live in a small space without room for collecting. Yet, discovering estate sales changed my life. "Estate sales," the uninitiated may ask, "how could someone with limited space and uninspired by decorating or collecting find them useful or interesting?"
By M. Michael2 years ago in Lifehack
The Problem with Goal Setting
There are times in all of our lives when we can relate to our lives almost descending into that now iconic image presented by the movie, Ground Hog Day. Each day becomes a repetition of the last, filled with activities that just get us by; by activities that aren’t moving us forward, changing how we feel or fueling our souls. A heavy emphasis on goal setting to jumpstart a stalled life or to tackle new and challenging projects, though, is not necessarily the place to start.
By M. Michael2 years ago in Lifehack
Too Many Tiger-Strewn Pathways
You’ve felt down at times; sometimes for very little reason. There have been times in your life when stomach-upsetting feelings of fear have surprised you. Maybe more commonly, you know the feelings of frustration or impatience. You’ve had these feelings because that is part of how your brain and body react to life. You are aware of having those emotions because they are electrical and chemical eruptions throughout your brain and body. They are the same reactions, though less intense, that happened to the caveman faced with a Sabertooth tiger.
By M. Michael2 years ago in Psyche
Why Penguins Don’t Divorce
By M. Michael “Penguins mate for life, they are different from humans, they are better than humans.” This line from a show I was watching caught my attention. I was married twice, once for three years and once for forty years and I don’t know many people who haven’t gone through a divorce or the end of a serious relationship. In response to the quote above, wildlife, like penguins, are certainly governed more intensely by instincts. They also live in a challenging and a very prescribed environment.
By M. Michael2 years ago in Motivation
My Life with Makeup
I’m from the Dippity Doo generation. Yes I glopped that clear gooey stuff through the strands of my ‘determined to be straight' hair trying to force it into some kind of poofiness worthy of the 1960’s. And, yes, I admit to ratting. Makeup, too, has been a daily part of my morning ritual since those days. Though a little conflicting at the time, the practice even survived my radical Feminist days in the 1970’s.
By M. Michael2 years ago in Blush
You Can Sew Again
Home Ec. was a mandatory high school class for girls in earlier eras of American life and I had the epitome of all Home Ec teachers. A cross between Ms. Manners and Attila the Hun, Mrs. King was her name and sewing was her game. She taught her particular home art well, though, and I enjoyed it until a couple decades ago when lack of time, other passions and less expensive readymade clothes caused me to abandon my trusty machine. Just like song lyrics, though, I can still chant strings of obscure sewing terms; ease plussing, fusible interfacing and darts come to mind.
By M. Michael3 years ago in Families
