Susan Mary Malone

Okay, the holidays are still a ways away. But don’t tell Walmart! Christmas stuff lines the shelves. Yikes! And every year, the same problem arises. And, well, this is some sort of cosmic joke—requiring men to actually shop for presents. There are those rare beasts who actually like and are good at it. They do […]

Men. We love ‘em, no? They make us dizzy, drive us crazy, they baffle and irritate us and yet, we can’t live with or without them. But what’s driving the train here? Your head, your heart, or are hormones running amok? In my life anyway, the latter has often ruled. Although so many reasons exist […]

Confidence. Tough to define, easy to spot. We all can see a confident person in any arena, be it on the sporting field, in the boardroom, in the bake-off competition, or in any social situation. It’s that ‘it’ factor that sets one apart. But how to be a confident woman? Easier said than done!   […]

Of course we all know the 5 stages of grief: shock, denial, anger, depression, acceptance. We all have that t-shirt, no? You don’t get very far in life without the opportunity to face this, although I know of people my age who haven’t. Always surprises the socks off of me. A dear friend who’s sixty […]

Along with the rest of the world, I too watched in horror the video of Ray Rice dragging his unconscious then fiancée from an elevator. And now, the video of him punching her in the face, knocking her out cold. Spousal abuse is dramatic, horrifying, and as the video being repeated over and over shows, […]

So in the middle of all the rest of life’s insanity (writing, editing, working with writers!), I bred Siren Call. Funny thing about breeding and babies, you don’t get to decide when they come into season. Oh, there’s actually a method for this, but not one I trust with long-range repercussions, so we let that […]

Sitting with a glass of luscious Syrah/Merlot from Red Caboose Winery, savoring the rich taste of ripe berries with hints of oak and soft tannins, brings back images of a beautifully pristine July morning at their vineyard, happily harvesting wine grapes as if we had a clue! Luckily it’s a quickly acquired skill. We picked […]