When Armand and Abigail made it back to their tree at dawn, Armand poked his head into their nest. Elsie’s little red head popped up from the circle of her tail, her tassled ears bobbing comically. Armand chuckled in spite of his exhaustion and the night’s tensions. “What happened?” Elsie chirped. “What did you findContinue reading “Advent Calendar Story (Owl in Winter): Day Five”
Category Archives: raven
Advent Calendar Story (Owl in Winter): Day Four
The owls had spoken too soon because when they finally flew back to their wood, their bellies not as full as they would like but full enough all considering, they heard a fair ruckus of snarling and yelping and spitting and found Eustace the Badger squared off against two foxes at the mouth of theContinue reading “Advent Calendar Story (Owl in Winter): Day Four”
Advent Calendar Story (Owl in Winter): Day Three
“Come, I’ll show you,” said Abigail to Armand over her wing, then she veered off toward the place where she had seen the men digging what looked like a road but what Gustav had called “the train.” When the ram had made the word, it clanked like a cowbell or a shovel hitting a stoneContinue reading “Advent Calendar Story (Owl in Winter): Day Three”
Advent Calendar Story (Owl in Winter): Day Two
When the men had limbed their haul of timber and lumped it into pyramids on their sledges and dragged it creaking over the snow back to the village, when the sun had broken and run on the horizon like a watery egg, when the night had bled in enough from the east that you couldContinue reading “Advent Calendar Story (Owl in Winter): Day Two”
Advent Calendar Story (Owl in Winter): Day 1
I had so much fun doing my advent calendar story a couple years ago that I thought I’d do one again this year. My Christmas theme this year is Enchanted Forest, and the advent calendar in my collection that fits the theme best is a beautiful one my friend Steph gave me several years agoContinue reading “Advent Calendar Story (Owl in Winter): Day 1”
The United States of Tali and the Ballad of Rye
In the past I’ve waited until my dogs are gone to create tributes to them: I do angel-dog cartoons, and sometimes I name cocktails after them (if you want to try the Jasper, it’s 1.5 oz apple brandy, .5 oz Luxardo or other cherry liqueur, .5 oz Cynar or other Amaro, 1/8 t red chileContinue reading “The United States of Tali and the Ballad of Rye”
Wright’s Beach: Watercolors and Haiku
I usually take my watercolors along and try to knock out a few postcards while I’m sitting on the beach–it’s a good way to pass the time, and salt water creates some neat effects with the pigments. Also, in lieu of writing a journal-style blog post about my week on the coast, I wrote aContinue reading “Wright’s Beach: Watercolors and Haiku”
Advent Calendar Story: Day 25 (Epilogue)
“Verbum caro factum est….” Ursula had always thought of the Christmas hymn as far too glum for the happy news it bore: The Word has become flesh and dwelt among us. But today to her ears the music sounded joyful. It was funny how that worked, she thought with a smile: if you were sad,Continue reading “Advent Calendar Story: Day 25 (Epilogue)”
Advent Calendar Story: Day 24
Mother and Child Leo. Wake up! Leopold sat bolt upright in his bed with a gasp. He looked out the window. Snow was falling; he could see it in the light from the castle bonfires, lit for Christmas. It was sometime in the night before the first day of the holiday. For a moment heContinue reading “Advent Calendar Story: Day 24”
Advent Calendar Story: Day 23
The Birdcage It happened so fast: Sidonie’s feet slipped out from under her, and she went down in a flurry of skirts. The gilded birdcage she had been carrying flew out of her gloved hand, bounced, rolled on the icy cobblestones in the square. The door popped open. Two of the finches stayed where theyContinue reading “Advent Calendar Story: Day 23”
The Rookery 