Tete-a-tete Archives
An eclectic sampling of my award-winning humor columns. New columns can be read online at www.nashuatelegraph.com. Tete-a-tete is published one Sunday a month.
Tete-a-tete: How Mom and Dad saved Christmas (and a hamster)
Teresa’s note: I realize this topic is a bit unseasonal, but sometimes strange things happen to my family and I simply can’t wait 12 months to share them. Thank you for bearing with me, and please enjoy. Everyone is called … Continue reading
Tete-a-tete: Having trouble keeping your New Year’s resolutions? It could be “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” Syndrome
A formidable foe lies in wait to derail your New Year’s resolutions. It’s not a lack of willpower, a lack of self-discipline or your warm, snuggly bed. It is “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” Syndrome. “If You Give … Continue reading
Tete-a-tete: When Christmas starts before Thanksgiving (a reflection on temporal discombobulation)
Since mid-November, I’ve felt unusually off-kilter. I feel awkwardly situated, as though I’m in the right place but at the wrong time or vice versa. This is, I’m afraid, the direct result of having gone to the mall two weeks … Continue reading
Tete-a-tete: Sizing up a new family pet, or the difference between a cat and a hamster
Welcoming a new pet into the family is always an adjustment. Every animal is accompanied by its own particular routines, needs, and idiosyncrasies, and it takes time to acclimate. Following the conclusion of 18 years of cat ownership, we’ve brought … Continue reading
Tete-a-tete: When your worst fear comes true
It has been said that 90 percent of the things we’re afraid of will never happen. This is comforting until you realize this means that 10 percent of the things we fear actually will happen. And this 10 percent isn’t … Continue reading
Tete-a-tete: Family game night can leave you drawing a blank
Whenever people gather to play a group game, there’s always one person who is, for lack of a more affectionate term, a liability. The game will progress smoothly up until this person’s turn, at which point things hit a snag … Continue reading
Tete-a-tete: When you have a really good reason to skip class
Though it seems impossible that this much time has passed this quickly, it has now been ten years since I graduated from college. I attended my reunion and they had a nametag for me, so it appears this is an … Continue reading
Tete-a-tete: Say it with flowers – just don’t say where you got them
Recycling is a way of life here in New England, and it goes beyond separating out your paper and plastic. We pick up used CDs and DVDs at the flea market, buy dishes and furniture from secondhand shops and antique … Continue reading
Tete-a-tete: Shockingly true tales of my Herculean, heroic great-grandpa
There’s a nigh-mythic quality to the stories that family members tell of days gone by. Whether it’s a clever prank a relative pulled on one of their professors that went down in college history or the tired tale of walking … Continue reading
Tete-a-tete: For goodness ‘sakes – generational namesakes can confuse
In many families, it is traditional to pass down names from one generation to the next. Among other things, this practice perpetuates the memory of those who have passed away by preserving their names for the future. Unfortunately, this practice … Continue reading