The Twisted Ovary

By Nancy Black It sounds like a heavy metal rock band, right? The Twisted Ovary? But it’s not. It’s what I had this past week. I might as well write about it, since everyone who was in the hospital’s emergency room with me that day knows what was wrong with me, too. They didn’t find […]

Afraid of power

By Nancy Black Every time I hear that ERCOT (The Electricity Reliability Council of Texas) is asking citizens to conserve electricity, I immediately want to run to my refrigerator and stand in front of it with the doors wide open. No. Not so I can get cool. So I can force the power grid to […]

Independence Day?

By Nancy Black It’s hard to get excited for Fourth of July when you feel like your independence is at stake. To think that my children’s generation will have fewer rights than mine, well that’s just mindboggling. My journalism mentor was Vivian Castleberry. She was the first female editor at The Dallas Times Herald beginning […]

Just when I thought I was safe

By Nancy Black I knew the moment I woke up Thursday morning that something was wrong. I had no use of my nose or sinuses, and I had a dull, throbbing headache.  “Is this what COVID-19 feels like?” I thought to myself as I struggled to get out of bed. After pondering my situation all […]

Beware of the dangers

By Nancy Black They were a typical family gathered at their home to light the grill for a back yard barbeque. Four children, a mom and a dad. The dad lights the grill, it makes a huge poof of flames, and the children dance around with delight. But then a light wind blows through. Sparks […]

Many hands make for light work

By Nancy Black It was like being the first person in line at Fletcher’s Corny Dogs on the opening day of the State Fair of Texas! The grease was fresh, the smell of funnel cakes was in the air and the party was just beginning. Lake a Palooza, at the Bath House Cultural Center, was […]

It was an honor

By Nancy Black Immediate respect. That is what I saw. Forget all the divisiveness around air travel and mask mandates happening in our world today. The moment the pilot told us of the situation, we all acted accordingly — with the utmost respect. I flew to Annapolis this past weekend to visit my midshipman. After […]

Thank you, Mr. Rogers!

By Nancy Black Betty White, Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Fred Rogers. They are a few of my heroes in life. Unfortunately, they are no longer with us. But their legacies live on. They were all kind, caring, talented trailblazers who made the world a better place. Will Smith used to be one of my heroes. […]

The Big Chill

By Nancy Black My tulips are confused, and so am I. I just got through taking all my plants back outside, after moving them inside to protect them from the cold. Now I have to bring them back in? I have winter weather PTSD. Post-traumatic stress syndrome is a very serious disorder, so please don’t […]

A Red Ribbon Day!

By Nancy Black My mouth dropped open in disbelief on Tuesday as I worked at my desk while listening to the national evening news. Especially because the tone of voice of the anchor was so calm and nonchalant, like what he was reporting was no big deal. “A woman was cured of HIV, the virus […]