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Barb Dukeman
Bio
An English teacher by trade, I’ve spent 32+ years in the classroom, instilling a love of literature (and a tolerance of writing) in my students. I started reading at the age of three and started writing at 13 with a poem about green socks.
Stories (122/0)
The Nextian Universe of Jasper Fforde
If you could chat with any character you’ve ever read about, who would it be? Would you be having tea with Hermione to discuss which spell she finds the most difficult? Would you take a leisurely stroll with Samwise Gamgee and have him show you the highlights of Hobiton? Might the possibility of having an audience with Gandalf, Merlin, and Dumbledore together at the same time be of interest to you? How about hanging out with Luke Skywalker and finding out he’s always had a crush on Marianne Dashwood? This is the setting of Jasper Fforde’s series beginning with The Eyre Affair.
By Barb Dukeman3 years ago in Fiction
The Story of Bo
It’s in his haunted eyes. When I drove to the city an hour away, the anticipation of meeting our new dog was filled with wavering trepidation. There were three sweet beagles available for adoption through the Beagle Rescue: all three cute as a button. They had their stories, their photos, their details pasted on the front page of the website like a dating site. Bo’s face was turned a little to the side, and I could just make out the speckles that identify him as a beagle. His backstory is what sealed the deal for me.
By Barb Dukeman3 years ago in Petlife
Teaching is Not for the Faint of Heart. First Place in A Day in the Life Challenge.
I loved my job because I made a difference. First day back to school in 1989 Past tense is necessary because I recently retired after 32 years of teaching in Florida. Once you’ve past the 10-year mark, teaching is in your blood forever. I feel the intense need to correct spelling and apostrophes on signs, and I’ve dangerously Shhhhh’d people at the movies. Retirement doesn’t mean my job is over; it’s simply morphing into different endeavors. Educators in the United States are both respected and maligned, depending on the issue, state, or even day of the week.
By Barb Dukeman3 years ago in Education
Forever Innocent
Headmaster Percy Blackburn took his spectacles off and polished them with a white cotton handkerchief he kept in his pocket. He repeated this habit often, which signaled to the girls of the Chiller’s School for Young Women that he was agitated, upset over some trivial action or some perceived transgression from one of his charges. Euphemia Wood, his assistant, would immediately fetch him a glass of gin or absinthe in response. It was a habit that repeated itself often.
By Barb Dukeman3 years ago in Horror
The Fairies and the Money Tree
The Fairies and The Money Tree The stories begin as early as 12th century England when Gervase of Tilbury recorded one of the first mentions of enchanted places with animals possessing human characteristics along with spirits that were either good or evil. At that time, people feared these fairies and grouped them with witches who could cast curses and wreak havoc in a town. In Ireland, these creatures were called the Little People and were feared and treated with respect. Common among all stories, fairies had paths in the woods that were forbidden to be crossed and forests that were considered hallowed.
By Barb Dukeman3 years ago in Fiction
My Mom's Green Thumb
My mother’s green thumb couldn’t be surpassed by many. Oh, I’m sure there are horticulturists and botanists that study this kind of thing, but to her it was as natural as breathing. Her yard was full of shade trees, fruit trees, plants of every kind from bromeliads to kalanchoe. She knew the best ways to keep the rabbits away from her blueberries. This solution was to sit outside at night and throw rocks at the rabbits when they come for her blueberries. A couple of nights of this, and there were no more bun-buns around.
By Barb Dukeman3 years ago in Families
Pirates Ahead. Top Story - July 2021.
My grandfather was right about many things. He called the World Series winners many years in a row, how we’d put a man on the moon, Nixon – he knew things, or he was an excellent guesser. His 86 years of experience included both good things and bad, the good things being what he shared with his grandkids. Besides his love of chess, he loved making us laugh. He would take us into his lap and point to his mustache. We’d go to touch it, and he’d pretend to bite our fingers. My father did that, too, come to think of it. We’d break out into a fit of giggles.
By Barb Dukeman3 years ago in Families
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