I married a West Virginia dairy farmer in 1981.  Until then, my only contact with beef was the meat section of the grocery store. After 30 years of marriage and 2 children later, I still don’t know a Guernsey from a Hereford.  I can’t operate a tractor.  I don’t wear muslin. At the County Fair one summer, the Extension Service was offering free chances for canning equipment.  The woman urged me to take a chance, I might win.  “That’s what I am afraid of,”  I responded and kept walking.

For 28 years I commuted by train to my job as park planner in a nearby county in a nearby state.  Thanks to my husband and Miss Jo, our day care provider, my two children have turned out okay.  I did fine as a mother until the kids became teenagers.  All the nurturing and hovering I was so good at quickly became a real drawback during the teen years.  This was the era my daughter started referring to my husband as “the  good parent.”

Immediately after retiring in 2008 I was elected to the Jefferson County Commission.  The campaign was grueling and I was stunned by my opponents’ personal attacks.  I thought that only happened at the state or national level.   I got the best revenge:  I won.

Through the years, I have written columns for different newspapers about farm and family life.  I have compiled my favorites  on this site.  For those with more of a political bent, I have also included a political page that chronicles the happenings at the Jefferson County Commission.

Enjoy.