new blog • Beth Underwood, Author

Things I've been thinking

How personal notes can change the world

I don’t consider myself to be a whiner. But society’s lack of decorum has become one of my biggest irritations in life. For a few billion people who are more technologically connected than ever, we sure are emotionally and socially disconnected. Don't believe me? Take a trip to the grocery […]

How to host your own painting party!

Some of you may be familiar with my friend Michelle, who owns Two Fillies Studio here in Lexington, KY. She paints large wooden door hangers in a host of designs. From cat’s paws to pineapples, monograms and jockey silks, and cut-outs for every holiday and season, her door hangers are […]

The case of the missing earbuds

If you’ve ever lost or misplaced anything, you know all too well the feeling that accompanies such an event. Panic. Disorientation. A general sense of woe-is-me. No matter what else is going on around you — you could be leaving for a Hawaiian vacation, heading out to take a Calculus […]

Childhood memories, music, and The Monkees

I was having lunch with Mom and one of my brothers a couple of weeks ago, when Mom kicked off the conversation on a rather low note. “Did you hear that Peter Tork from The Monkees died?” I hadn’t heard. The Monkees provided an undeniable and lasting influence on my […]

Eye exams aren't always a walk in the park

“Take a look at these lines,” the optometric assistant said, holding out a small sheet of paper on a clipboard. “Stare at the dot in the center, cover your left eye and tell me if the lines look straight, crooked, or wavy.” Such were the first directives at my recent […]

Store returns: learning the difference between “can” and “should”

There’s a WalMart bag in the back seat of my SUV. Inside the bag, there’s a brand new pair of warm and fuzzy slipper socks, reminding me of what happens when I prematurely toss a receipt. At this point, the socks have been rendered useless. I couldn’t exchange them because […]

All's fair in King Cakes and plastic baby Jesus figures

I recently made an interesting observation about our family. On the whole, we’re sticklers for the rules. We hold fast to long established traditions, routines, and other forms of convention. Except for when we don’t. There are times when we can be real rabble-rousers and rule breakers — real outliers […]

Grandparenting 101: The arrival of Squishy Face

We all experience times in our lives that leave us changed — defining moments that alter who we are, instantly and forcefully — whether it’s a marriage or new job, going off to college or retirement. After all, change is the only constant in the world. As you may have […]

Unspoken rules for internet dating

Believe it or not, I’ve been known to toy with the notion of internet dating from time to time. Frankly, I’m not sure how people meet these days, otherwise. Oh, sure, there’s always bar hopping, bumping into Mr Wonderful while walking the dog, or running into Prince Charming in the […]