Bitsy’s Mission to Restore Order in the Valley
Jenny Page I step outside the Riverside, and the pending winter greets me. The sun is down and the wind is gusting off the river. These walks do me good. I love…
soap opera
Sliding Doors: Elyse Opens One, Then Closes Another
Gunnar Olafsson I arrive at the Hughes’ porch and I hesitate. I ring the doorbell. Elyse answers immediately. “Come in.” She smiles, but I can tell she isn’t at ease – or…
Carson’s a Caged Animal and Wants Out
I feel sick. I could throw up. I look around this home that I live in, at these people I’ve taken pains to get to know and move among –…
Mercury & Silas, a Meeting of the Minds
I am half an hour early for brunch with Silas, tense already from strolling in on Lindy and his merry band of entrepreneurs. First issue jitters, I reckon, and with…
A Quiet Night in Middle Valley: Secrets, Scandals and a Cat Named Chuckles – Part 2
Dear reader, I’ve returned. Not heat, nor the dark of night would keep your Miss Comportment from walking the five blocks to the Riverside and collecting three fresh bottles. Mission…
A Quiet Night in Middle Valley: Secrets, Scandal, and a Cat Named Chuckles Amid This Small-Town’s Turmoil – Part 1
There is something luxurious about spending an entire evening at home. It’s rare, but what’s even more rare is that I’m really happy about it. No social obligations. No hunting…
Bitsy’s Book Club is Bagging New Blood
Historically, I’m a person who loves the holiday season – the lights, the festive atmosphere. Everyone is drinking, and that’s always a good thing for the bar. It’s a wonderful…
A Fishing We Will Go (or how to make a right angle a wrong one)
Don’t tell me, dear reader, that you don’t have questions. I am present among these, well, society types here at the bar and, let me tell you, I have a…
Wanda Lights Up
Stu used to put the lights on the tree. At six-foot-three (to my five-foot-two) he was the obvious choice. I mean, what good was I? He’d be on the ladder…
Susan’s Big Break: “Small Town, Big Crime” Comes to Life … Sorta
Hair? Check. Shoes? Check … and new, by the way. Suit? Compensatory navy with white lapel, well-fitted. (Thank you Mrs. McDougal from two doors down. That woman is a genius…