Rebecca M. Douglass, Author

Photo credit: KL Caley I am writing this for the weekly #WritePhoto challenge by KL Caley at New2Writing.com. Read all about it and join in if you'd like!   This week's offering is a quick read at 415 words.   Woodland Crossing   “Oh, look! A stream neither of us has fallen into yet!” My sister gives me a dirty look. “Hush! That’s just tempting fate.” She puts her hands over her mouth, then her ears, like the speak-no-evil monkey. We both laugh as we approached the stream. “I’m sure we’ve nothing to worry about with a little trickle like this. It’s barely two inches deep.” “It’s too wide to step over, though.” Sis studies the damp-looking rocks sticking up out of the middle, trying to decide if she can cross it without getting her feet wet. Me, I’m thinking about some of the streams I’ve fallen into. They were mostly big, fast, full of snowmelt or glacial run-off. Go big or stay home, as they say. I don’t intend to fall into this dinky thing.

Read the complete TMB series :  Part 1    Part 2     Part 3    Part 4   Part 5   Part 6   TMB Day 3: Les Chapieux to Rifugio Elisabetta We enjoyed our hostel-style breakfast (i.e., communal rather than separate restaurant tables), again with our new British friends, before heading out. (A note on that: to do this trip at all required a certain level of denial about the risks of COVID. There was just no way to avoid a fair amount of contact with others, especially in dining environments.) Our way led up the valley, at first on road then on a trail that paralleled the road but across the river. The guidebook said that this was a good part to skip by taking a taxi or shuttle, but I thought the hike up the valley was very pretty. Despite having somewhat heavier packs than usual, as we would not have our luggage that night at the rifugio, we didn't mind walking. Looking back the way we'd come. The end of the road is in Ville Des Glaciers, which appears to be named for the glacier

  Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting! Let’s rock the neurotic writing world! Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG. The awesome co-hosts for the October 5 posting of the IWSG are Tonja Drecker, Victoria Marie Lees, Mary Aalgaard, and Sandra Cox! Be sure you drop in on them and see what they have

 Photo Credit K.L. Caley I am writing this for the weekly #WritePhoto challenge by KL Caley at New2Writing.com. Read all about it and join in if you'd like! Kind of a fun challenge this time. It's exactly 1000 words. Past the Tower Tommy and Beth stood and gazed up at the tower-topped entrance to the castle grounds, their mouths slightly open. It looked just like they would expect a castle gate to look.    “You think we’re supposed to just walk in?” Tommy tried not to sound scared, but he wasn’t sure he’d managed. Bethy could always tell, anyway. His older sister put her arm around him.   “The letter said this is where we come, and we’ll be starting our new lives.” If Beth worried that the letter was all a fakement, she kept it to herself. Were there such a things as princes and princess these days? They didn’t have anywhere else to go, unless they stayed at the orphanage. The letter said they belonged here. What was the worst that could happen if they

Title: Sweet Home Alaska Author: Carole Estby Dagg Publication Info: Nancy Paulson Books, 2016. 298 pages, Kindle edition Source: Library digital resources (Overdrive) Publisher's Blurb: Terpsichore can’t wait to follow in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s footsteps . . . now she just has to convince her mom. It’s 1934, and times are tough for their family. To make a fresh start, Terpsichore’s father signs up for President Roosevelt’s Palmer Colony project, uprooting them from Wisconsin to become pioneers in Alaska. Their new home is a bit of a shock—it’s a town still under construction in the middle of the wilderness, where the residents live in tents and share a community outhouse. But Terpsichore’s not about to let first impressions get in the way of this grand adventure. Tackling its many unique challenges with her can-do attitude, she starts making things happen to make Alaska seem more like home. Soon, she and her family are able to start settling in and enjoying their new su

Read the complete TMB series :  Part 1    Part 2     Part 3    Part 4   Part 5   Part 6   TMB Day 1: Les Houches to Les Contamines This is it! July 3, the first day of the official TMB!  We began by taking the bus to Les Hoches, cutting out a bit of the actual trail that we'd hoped to do as a dayhike but skipped due to me feeling ill. We then did what we always did when possible: took a cable car up to start the hike at Bellevue. Happy hikers, ready to begin! I'm on the right.   The walk was a fairly easy and pleasant descending traverse until we dropped steeply to cross a glacial river. That marked the beginning of the climb to Col de Tricot. Only after the crossing did we see the sign about one hiker at a time on the bridge. We were having mixed sun and clouds, but still got good views of the glaciers coming off the south end of the Mt. Blanc massif. The climb to the pass proved to be easy, and we topped out shortly after 11, despite a relatively late start, unprepared for