Donna Wylie, Author

Life in a small town is anything but dull! ;-)

We moved to a wonderful small town last summer. It’s not a large town, and we’ve been here almost 9 months, but in many ways, we are still “newcomers”, trying to find our way around. The people are lovely, friendly and helpful, always willing to answer my questions about events and destinations. However… They all seem to assume we’ve lived here all our lives. Because when I ask where something…

Form letters are getting less sympathetic… “We are disappointed to hear of your recent purchase of our Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream.” They’re sorry that I purchased their product??  Hmmmm…. Customer service seems to be going downhill everywhere. When Rick goes through the self check at Safeway there’s always a group of cashiers, chatting and blocking one of the registers. Are we also expected to…

Fickle Fun is Fine!

I used to think being called “fickle” was a bad thing. I thought it meant undependable, unreliable, untrustworthy and a whole host of other “un’s”. After all, the definition of fickle is “changing frequently, especially as regards one’s loyalties, interests, or affection.” So it’s pretty easy to take that in a negative way. The dictionary doesn’t pass judgement, it just defines. We are the ones…

This year is starting out like the old one began – full of speculation about the virus, full of fear about interacting with other humans and – sadly – seemingly full of anger. People drive angrily and without regard for others. They shove and push and cut in line. They trample other people’s feelings with casual disregard. When did we become a nation of haters? There is still kindness to be…

The Blessings of Children and Pets

I’ve been going through all my articles, trying to organize them into categories for possible books on specific topics. Some topics are easy – customer service is one of the things I have the most experience with, therefore it’s something I write about frequently. Some topics logically lend themselves to being grouped, like aging and health. But one group might give people pause – “Children and…

Words….finish the phrase

Quick word association test. Finish the phrase – “Words….” Did you say “hurt”? That was the phrase that came to my mind. Maybe it’s because I’ve just been glancing at my Facebook feed. Sometimes, it feels like it should be called “ANTI-social media.” The anonymity of the internet seems to remove any filters we have in place when dealing with people face to face. The gloves are off, and some…

Wanted: Random Acts of Kindness

The past year has been a challenge, to say the least. Covid, lockdowns, protests – it seems like the whole world is angry. Stress levels have been turned to “high” and depressions seems to be a normal state. I get it. Trust me, I get it. People deal with stress in various ways. Some people meditate or do Yoga. Others practice breathing exercises or listen to their favorite music. Some people…

How Do You Spell “Psychotic”?

Those of you who know me, understand that I have a – shall we say, “unique” sense of humor. Everything and anything is fair game and fuel for jokes – a little (lot!) more difficult in this current social climate, but we’ll leave that topic for another day. As my mom would say, “if you can’t say something nice…” But I digress. We were talking about my sense of humor. One of my favorite jokes is…

Love is in the Details

My husband shows his love in so many little ways – making me coffee every morning, fixed just the way I like it; helping with meals and dishes even when he’s tired from working full time; checking the yard and slaying scorpions each night, to keep us and our small dog safe; and so many other daily acts of love. Love frequently speaks in whispers, small acts of kindness that too often go…

There’s an old saying that “rolling stones gather no moss”. So it stands to reason that the opposite is true – stationary stones Do gather moss. “Duh!”, you say. “That’s a no-brainer!” To which I respond – “exactly!” Maybe it’s time to shake off the moss and start using our brains. We’ve been in our current home almost 8 years. Amazing, when we think about the fact that this home was just a way…

Please Don’t Dress Me Up When I Die

Apologies in advance, for anyone who might be offended by my thoughts on death and the strict rules we seem to have regarding funerals. I mean no disrespect. I’m just – curious. WHY does there seem to be a dress code for death? Please don’t dress me up when I die. I don’t want to go out wearing a dress and silk stockings when my preferred daily attire was a t-shirt and sweatpants. And please –…

Today we took breakfast to a homeless lady. She has been living in her SUV, in a parking lot in Mesa, Arizona, for at least the past month. She doesn’t beg or ask for handouts; she doesn’t call attention to herself in any way. In fact, we wouldn’t have known about her at all if a regular customer of a nearby gas station hadn’t realized she was there for days and posted about her on a local…

You Just Lost a Sale – Here’s Why

To all you store owners out there – Please take note. Yesterday was National Women’s Day. In honor of the occasion, local florist was giving away 2 free bunches of daisies to every woman. Such a wonderful idea! Their ad also suggested that men could purchase flowers for the special woman (or women) in their lives. Great promotion! In order to get the flowers, women had to come to the store in…

Social Media is Eating Your Brain

Social Media is eating our brains. It’s happening so slowly and insidiously that virtually no one has noticed. Look at that opening paragraph again and imagine you just saw that on Facebook. What would you do? Maybe you would click one of the handy emojis – “like” or “LOL”. Maybe you would add a comment – perhaps one of the suggestions Facebook so thoughtfully provides, like “100%” or a cute…

Love in the Time of Covid

Making masks merry!

Thanksgiving is a bit different this year for a lot of people. Gatherings may be smaller, and distant relatives may be absent, unable or unwilling to risk travel. Others may be changing their traditional feasts in defiant ways, tired of the restrictions. They may gather together in large crowds, proclaiming their “rights”, saying how this could be their last year with older…

Welcome to My World

Someone once told me (spitefully) that I could be happy because nothing bad had ever happened to me. Which of course wasn’t true – no one goes through life unblemished.

I replied by turning her phrase around a bit. Maybe, I replied, maybe bad things hadn’t happened to me because I could be happy.

It’s all about perspective. Life either sucks and turns you into a bitter prune…or life sucks…

During times when the whole world seems to be spinning out of control, routines are not only comforting, they are necessary.

This is the latest revelation in a series of “lessons our dog taught me”.  Jack, our chihuahua, is a nervous, feisty, loving and fiercely loyal protector. His early life details are unknown, but they caused him to be wary of everyone and everything. He finds comfort and…