Newark, Maryland and the Queponco Railway Station

Tucked away on Maryland's eastern shore, located between Berlin and Snow Hill, you will find the town of Newark. Most people assume, when you mention it, that you are mistaken and of course referring to it's namesake in northern Delaware - but no, there is indeed a Newark in Worcester County, MD. Turn off of Route 113 and go perhaps a mile or two and there you are.

A Collection of Vintage Christmas Cat Greeting Cards

What started out as a wish to cheer a friend who is down because of the pending holidays turned into my sort of fascination with these greetings of yesteryear. The wishes for Christmas range from ornate and stylish, such as well-dressed caroling cats and images depicting a number of felines outfitted in hats and clothing, to very simple faces and a few sprigs of holly (as shown below).

Maybe I should look up more often....

The parking lot of the local grocery store is a zoo when I arrive on the Wednesday before Turkey Day. I knew it would be crowded and that they would probably be out of many items, but that's what you get when you're running back and forth to another state trying to take care of an elderly parent. Everything becomes a blur; time gets away from you, and suddenly the holiday is here.

the First Annual Delmarva Toy Run | "Thoughts on Community"

In a couple of hours I'm scheduled to be at a local radio station to talk about an upcoming event. This project grew out of a discussion held at a fish fry a few months ago where the gist of the conversation centered around "we could all come together and make a difference". And thus was born the idea for the First Annual Delmarva Community Toy Run. A suggestion for a radio contact landed me this opportunity to talk publicly about what, when and why - and it's also the reason for me being up before 5AM. I'm a little nervous, making notes and writing myself reminders of what to say in case I'm tongue-tied, and then it occurred to me that perhaps I should just speak from the heart.

Police Officer Lesley Zerebny | Police Officer Jose Gilbert Vega

Just hours after participating in a community gathering I saw the news....

I'd been at a gathering where people had come out to tell area law enforcement officers they are appreciated; that we care; that their lives matter. As with so many events I attend, it was emotional to see the love from local citizens, watch little interactions between individuals, and stand together with others who support our cops.