Kate’s 2¢: “The Red Dress” by Abbie Johnson Taylor

“The Red Dress” by Abbie Johnson Taylor

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   What really amazed me about this story is that, after 25 years,  the girl can fit into the dress she wore to her high school prom.

Besides My Ideal Partner and The Red Dress, Abbie Johnson Taylor is the author of a novel and two poetry collections. Her work has appeared in Magnets and Ladders, Labyrinth, and other journals and anthologies. She is visually impaired and lives in Sheridan, Wyoming.

From NLS/BARD/LOC:

The red dress DB98282

Taylor, Abbie Johnson. Reading time: 5 hours, 38 minutes.

Read by Kristin Allison.

Human Relations

Eve wore a red dress that her mother had made for her to her prom. After her date cheats on her, she gave away the dress, causing a rift with her mother. Twenty-five years later, she is married with three children, and her high school reunion is approaching. Some strong language. 2019.

Downloaded: June 10, 2020

Download The red dress

Cornucopia: Silver Lining

Silver Lining

by Kate Chamberlin

   My mastectomy surgery and radiation therapy are behind me, although the under-lying beat of my dance with cancer continues. The silver lining of my breast cancer has burst into a bright, sunny day. As I smell the roses and Hosta Lilies; taste the fresh parsley and chive from my herb garden; and feel the galloping horse-tail clouds scud across the Franciscan azure sky, whisking down to tousle my curly locks. My days are busier than ever.

   Due to the ‘shelter in place’ restrictions posed by the insipid Covid-19 Virus pandemic, many meetings are virtual via the computer and telephone. I have virtually toured the Inside and outside of Mt. Rushmore, learned how the first American Flag was made and preserved, explored several sections of the Smithsonian Institute, attended the inter-national Continental Congress of the Daughters of the American Revolution, participated in many interesting and informational focus sessions of the American Council of the Blind’s Inter-national Convention, and met wonderful people via the Breast Cancer Coalition of Rochester at the Brown Bag Friday meetings, and Wednesday night seminars.

   These virtual meetings have been great, but, more and more venues are opening up. Soon, I’ll need to decide which meetings I want to attend or not. The hassle of what to wear, what adaptive equipment I’ll need to take to enable me to fully participate, and find a driver to take me. I’m hoping some of the meetings will continue to be virtual. It is so much easier to sit in my study and dial in to the meeting, not to mention safer for my health.

   My immune system is still compromised by the cancer and radiation, so, I’m cautiously starting face-to-face meetings slowly and with my family. On Saturday, August 15, our daughter and 8-1/2 year old grandson came over to cook dinner in honor of our 50^th Wedding Anniversary. In the early evening, another grandson brought his new puppy, Rocky Blue,  in to meet us. It wasn’t a huge party for our Golden Anniversary, but it was very meaningful in so many ways, so let the beat go on in this beautiful silver lining of life.