I have spent the last decade or longer helping people learn how to use this bizarre form of communication we call English. We take our language for granted  — we just say the things we’ve said for years without a thought to what the words mean.

This is a report on the past six months of columns. I have to report because it’s only appropriate to respond to people who have responded to my columns.

I love a mystery. A good mystery is where the imagination can run wild — the who-done-it, where, and when scenario keeps me turning the page of the novel or sitting up way after the hour that I should be in bed.

It’s really difficult to keep a house project secret when you live on Main Street USA. That’s what living on Main Street in Toms Brook is like — the whole world knows what we are doing before we are doing it.

Don’t you just love stuff? Well, I do — even have been accused of being a hoarder. I have an attic full of keepsake stuff…like newspapers. No, not ones I wrote it. These are newspapers with headlines for perpetuity: Queen Elizabeth’s coronation, Elvis’s last performance, 9-11, Walter Peyton’…

The year-long pandemic of 2020 brought unexpected changes to everyone’s calendar. Sporting events were canceled. Stores closed. Weddings were postponed or venues changed; guest lists pared down to immediate wedding parties. Graduations were conducted within computer screens or on rotating sc…

Oh no! They are back…the noisy, flying, molting, eating, red bug-eyed beasts that come out of the ground every 17 years to terrorize people who live quiet lives on roads that hum with incessant noises. I think I would rather have Arnold Schwarzenegger at my door telling me “I’ll be back.”

Route 11, the Old Valley Pike, is one of the oldest roads in the United States; from Slidell, Louisiana, to Rouses Point, New York, stopping at the edge of Lake Champlain, the road was a path Native Americans cut along the eastern part of the Western Hemisphere. Traveling from New Market to …

I love a clothesline – you know….those two or three lines stretched between two poles in the back yard. I love the feel of the towels – crisp and rough – right off the line. I only want my sheets fresh from the clothesline – especially in the early spring when the wind whips that clean smell…

Adding delicious, new flavors to your home-cooked meals this spring may be easier than you think. A secret ingredient like cooking wine is a simple way to add a boost of flavor to all kinds of recipes.

Some of the best memories throughout life stick with you forever as you play them over and over in your head and smile, thinking fondly of those times.

Time available to cook, your family's preferred dishes, ingredients you have in the pantry - there are plenty of considerations that may limit your options for an at-home menu. Add in a gluten allergy, or simply a desire to avoid it, and it may feel impossible to appease everyone.

LAKE FREDERICK — An encyclopedia entry on hemophilia gave a young George Stone a bleak picture of what he could expect from life.

WINCHESTER — Today we journey to the summer of 2004, when we watched the final episode of “Friends” and slowly lost our minds due to the incessant drone of billions of Brood X cicadas.

TIMBERVILLE — Taxidermy is not a profession for the faint of heart. But for Mark Poirot, it’s no different than any other type of art.

So, the decision has been made: the world will return to the office. Oh hooray! I look forward to wearing my clothes, seeing my friends in the flesh, talking with colleagues within the same geographic latitude, and being among humans overall.

Like many other women I know, I am one of those people who has a spring/summer wardrobe and a winter/fall wardrobe. I have work clothes and play clothes – clothes for the office and clothes for the weekend.

Those looking for some gardening inspiration this year might want to check out the Northern Shenandoah Valley Master Gardener Association’s first-ever Gardening in the Valley Tour this June.

Surprise your family with a dessert fit for the season. This Carrot Cake recipe is a traditional take on the timeless treat and created using everyday ingredients.

One of Sustainability Matters’ flagship initiatives this past year has been its pilot program, Making Trash Bloom, a pollinator habitat the organization has planted at the Shenandoah County Landfill in Edinburg.

Cathy Wolfe-Heberle, executive director of Blue Ridge Opportunities in Front Royal, paused for a moment when asked how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted her agency. “Boy, is that complicated,” she replied before delving into the finer details of what has been a turbulent year from the persp…

Cena Hubbell, executive director of Shen-Paco Industries, acknowledged recently that the “new normal” brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic means the end of business as usual for the nonprofit agency, which serves individuals with disabilities in Shenandoah and Page counties.

Area nonprofits that help cats, dogs and other animals kept busy over the past year despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

Navigating local health care needs during the COVID-19 pandemic has been a learning process, said Vicki Davies, executive director at St. Luke Community Clinic, at 316 N. Royal Ave., Front Royal.

Many businesses have been hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially nonprofit organizations. However, many of the museums in the area are holding strong despite the tough times.

See this little happy dance I am doing? It’s 7:30 pm and still light outside.

DAYTON — It’s been a tough year for much of the family of Sherrie Holloway of Grottoes.

WINCHESTER — Jim Metzner, producer of the “Pulse of the Planet” radio series and podcasts, will be at Winchester Book Gallery at 2 p.m. April 18 to read and sign copies of his debut novel “Sacred Mounds.”

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. – Lea Craigie-Marshall knows she was born with creativity and inspiration coursing through her veins. From a young age, she knew art had her heart, and her art has played a large part of life throughout the years.

James Madison University Swing Dance Club Vice President TJ Oxbrough began teaching himself swing dancing in high school, and by junior year he was choreographing school productions. But he said being self-taught meant his form and technique were never quite on par with his expectations.

Shenandoah County is known for its six little towns strung along the Valley Pike’s dotted white line like little diamonds in the rough. Each little town from Strasburg to New Market has its own personality – its own history and legends.

Sweets with enhanced fruit flavors are often among the best of the best when it comes to family treats. Fruit can add levels of sweet, tart or even citrus flavor to all kinds of recipes.

From tasty small bites to a filling feast and even dessert for breakfast, brunch options are nearly endless. Take your spring brunch to the next level with recipes that appease appetites of all kinds.

WINCHESTER — As more people get vaccinated against COVID-19 and the number of cases drops, it may be time to think about scheduling the self-care appointments you put off.

It’s true – I really do not automatically know my left from my right. Actually, this is a problem that is not unfamiliar to many people – it can happen without any real reason under various circumstances and conditions. Some think it is caused by pressure. Others think it can be caused by fo…

The same old brunch menu week after week can become tiresome and dull. It’s bland, boring and your tastebuds get used to the same flavors repeatedly.

BERRYVILLE — Shortly after 6 p.m. several nights a week a line of cars appears in front of what must be the most popular house on Mosby Boulevard.

Yes, I am the woman who people have seen for more than 30 years running up and down Route 11 between Strasburg and Toms Brook. I have been a runner since I was in high school – a means to burn off some of this boundless energy that seems to bubble from my body from the time my feet hit the f…

It’s that time of year again when nearly everyone wants to be outside all day, every day. These are the times kids have been waiting for all year long.

From hearty stews to minty pies, St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are all about enjoying the flavors of the holiday. Whether you’re cooking up a full meal or simply serving appetizers, this Irish Potato Bread makes for a simple, tasty snack to feed your crowd.

It’s your lucky day because you don’t have to search for the pot of gold under the rainbow for this winning recipe. Throw out the old Irish classics and sweeten things up this year with some mint chocolate chip fun.

WINCHESTER — When the COVID-19 pandemic hit a year ago, Mark and Dani Canoles decided they weren’t going to let it shut down their Back to the Media shop on the Loudoun Street Mall.

The thundering engines of bombers and fighter planes began to die out in 1945 as the Second World War came to a close.

MOUNT JACKSON – With a little inspiration from his students, Jonathan Middleton decided to write a book. A little less than a year after he started it, his paperback book “Adulthood: The hardest test you will ever take” is available on Amazon and Kindle.

Whether slouching over your laptop for eight-hours of Zoom meetings or craning your neck through another season of Netflix binging, working from home and living in isolation has proven an adversary of good posture.