by Ann Lee Miller | Jan 27, 2017 | Blog, Just The Facts Fridays, New Smyrna Beach FL
I glanced at Jackie’s kitchen clock shaped like a frying pan. Twenty minutes till I had to exit the warmth—literal and figurative—for my unheated house. I wanted to soak up every second. Jackie’s Uncle Louie Kistner, only a few years older than we were, shuffled the... by Ann Lee Miller | Jan 20, 2017 | Blog, Just The Facts Fridays, New Smyrna Beach FL
The screen door clanged shut on our icy house and I lifted my cheeks for New Smyrna Beach’s kiss of warmth. I rubbed my biceps through my bulky sweater and headed toward Riverside Drive, careful to keep to the sun-heated stretches of pavement. Last night I could see... by Ann Lee Miller | Jan 13, 2017 | Blog, Just The Facts Fridays, New Smyrna Beach FL
Mom pulled our green Plymouth Duster in front of New Smyrna Beach High School smack at the front walkway teeming with football players and cheerleaders. I could tell by the “cool” wafting off them in waves. “No! Not here! Drive up further.” The crutches tossed across... by Ann Lee Miller | Jan 6, 2017 | Blog, Just The Facts Fridays, New Smyrna Beach FL
Cold and grumpy, I walked faster down Murray Street. I gritted my teeth and headed for the Indian River and sunshine. Our tree dappled house, riddled with windows, made summer without air conditioning bearable, but in the winter it morphed into a mausoleum. I dug my... by Ann Lee Miller | Dec 30, 2016 | Blog, Just The Facts Fridays, New Smyrna Beach FL
The smallest bridge in New Smyrna Beach, rising less than six feet from Washington Street, might as well have been the Sunshine Skyway over Tampa Bay. My shoulders bunched with tension and my knuckles whitened on the stick shift as I eyed the first “hill” in my... by Ann Lee Miller | Dec 23, 2016 | Blog, Just The Facts Fridays, New Smyrna Beach FL
R.J. and I stared at the wreckage of our family’s holiday cheer. Between us lay a flapped open cardboard box labeled Christmas Decorations. Mom poked her head into my bedroom. “I’m sorry, kids, but we can only afford one gift for each of you this year. And money is...