The Orchid Series
A collection of interviews featuring inspiring women over 75 years young. Curious, engaged, active, interesting. The sort of woman I want to be when I grow up!
Decades ago—when Marda Stoliar was much younger—women wore heels and dresses. Everywhere. As hard as it is to imagine now, women’s sneakers did not exist.
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Last November, Katie and Greg grew restless and bored. With colder days, a raging pandemic, early darkness, and a one-year-old, each day mimicked the one before. They’d fallen into a rut.
Four years ago, we sold our big house in Texas and moved 800 miles away to a small home in Nashville. As we sorted through our belongings, and packed up our life in Houston, we donated, purged, consigned, and sold. I got rid of the dishes and linens and cookware and clothing I didn’t use or wear. All the stuff I didn’t like. But I saved—and transported to our new city— a
When was the last time you took a walk without trying to accomplish something else at the same time? No stopping off at the market. No listening to a podcast or returning a phone call. No counting steps or miles. For me, it’s been awhile. Erika Owen “needed more quiet in her life.” The rat race of her New York City media career left her with little unscheduled time. Seeking
Who remembers Family Ties and Back to the Future? Last week, I read a couple of articles about Michael J. Fox and his enduring optimism. I am a big fan and was heartbroken for Fox when, at age 29, he received a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis. Sure, he had money and success and resources most of us don’t. But, it’s still devastating news and the progressive nervous disorder took a toll
I dread this weekend. Sunday morning, after we turn our clocks back, I will sink into my annual semi-funk. Next week, with darkness arriving before the workday ends, I’ll be ready for dinner at 5 and bed at 7:30. Not long ago, I read an article about the folks in Tromso, Norway. The sun in this urban area, 217 miles north of the Arctic Circle, doesn’t rise—at all—for two months.
Ashley Campbell is a stickler for thank you notes. “When I was growing up, if a relative sent a gift and didn’t receive a written thank you, everyone in the family heard about it,” laughs Ashley. She watched her perfectionist daughter struggle with the cute kids’ stationery Ashley had on hand at home. Dear Grandma and Grandpa ran off the page with the traditional note cards. “Kids in kindergarten and
A few years ago, while conducting research for his first book, RJ Jacobs reached out to a virologist at Vanderbilt University. She and her lab colleagues studied viruses and the diseases they caused. “We’re currently investigating a strain of the coronavirus,” she said during their interview. RJ, and most of the rest of the world, had never heard of it. And Then You Were Gone arrived in bookstores last March,
In a world with disturbing news coming at us from every angle, Evelyn Henson’s art makes me smile. And don’t we all need a little happy these days? Loaded with bright colors, delightful animals, and spirited landscapes, her colorful art is “meant to brighten your day and bring sunshine to your home for years to come.” Mission accomplished. As I browse the splashy paintings and mugs and beach towels and
When I seldom leave the house and yearn to see my adult kids, a routine comforts me. During quarantine, my husband and I wrap up our days and meet on the couch for a drink and the evening news. A little after 5 pm, Reed Clapp comes into our living room with his inventive bag of ideas for kids and parents and grandparents. Reed, or Mr. Clapp as he’s known
