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What Was Now Is Not

by Joyce Kohl

September 11, 2001, 6:55 am I punched the on button of my kitchen television. The channel? I don’t remember. It was part of my morning ritual as I sat at my kitchen bar drinking coffee. At first I was aware of only words “airplane” and “crashed” and then realized I was watching breaking news. At 6:45 am MST [8:45 am EST], American Airlines Flight 11 had crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. As I sat mesmerized by horrifying scenes and nightmarish thoughts I couldn’t organize or assimilate, I watched another big jet heading for the towers. My God! It hit the South Tower of the World Trade Center. It was now 7:03 am MST [9:03 am EST]. The plane was United Airlines Flight 175. Both towers were in flames; smoke billowing from them. What was going on?

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Barnes and Noble: Plagiarists

by Joyce Kohl

Have you ever wondered where all those book reviews come from on the Barnes and Noble Website? Being somewhat naive, I thought a staff member actually read a book, then wrote a thumbnail review. Now I have my doubts. Why? When I went to the Barnes and Noble site to check the availability of one of my favorite books, I froze in shock! Barnes and Noble gets the material for the reviews any way they can – even plagiarism!

This time they had taken paragraphs from a review I wrote here in GO INSIDE Magazine on Yorkie Doodle Dandy on January 30, 1998. The theft of intellectual property owned and copyrighted is not limited to the unwary Website builder; it extends to the mammoth companies as well.

Barnes and Noble is, without a doubt, guilty of plagiarism.

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Brown Thumbs

by Joyce Kohl

Martha what’s-her-name is on my dislike list along with The Happy Gardener and anyone else who has lovely green plants in and around their homes. The only places I’ve ever seen an abundance of house plants, rose bushes, or beautiful flowers fit to cut for indoor arrangements is in other people’s homes, in magazines, and in seed catalogs.

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Eggplant Italian Spaghetti

by Joyce Kohl

Are you a pasta freak like I am? Chances are you’ve been told you cannot eat pasta if you want to lose weight. Nonsense! Pasta isn’t the cause of weight gain, it’s the sauces and cheese and meats used. Or the crust of a pizza. Try my low-cal, 408-413 calorie recipe. It tastes marvelous and it will fill your plate as well as your cravings. Serves one.

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Boxes are Better than Bytes

by Joyce Kohl

Over the last three years I have been the “victim” of electronic downloads more than once. Why do I continue to download a registered commercial or shareware program? There are several reasons: Instant delivery; save a few dollars; downloading was the only choice. Why are electronic downloads unacceptable alternatives to full package shipments? Why are more and more companies using downloading as a method of distribution for their software?

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Incognito Queen

by Joyce Kohl

They bowed and bended their knees to her, proclaiming her to be the Queen of Scotland. With tears rolling down their cheeks, they assured her the royal crown was safely hidden and when the revolt was ended, she must be ready to take the throne.

When a story is handed down for generations and believed to have a historical basis, but no proof exists, it becomes a legend. The original source for this story came from a journal written by the great-great grandson of the subject of this article. Because of its possible connection to royalty, all the descendants keeping and researching family records have entered this into their own published genealogical records. Whether it’s truth or the imagination of a young man as he listened to stories at the knees of his grandmother, the story he told his descendants is still being related generation to generation.

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My Son, My Son

by Joyce Kohl

“I don’t know any of you people. . . ” was the heart-wrenching start of a speech from my son to his immediate family near the end of an old-fashioned Christmas party in 1997. We had all gathered at my son’s request. He wanted all of us to give him some memories. He needed authentic memories, not related stories, to share with siblings and his parents.

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