Recent June Lemen Columns

Fighting writer’s block

June Lemen | Tuesday, May 8, 2012

The only problem with being a writer is that you measure your progress by words on paper – either actual or virtual. (The paper, that …

Worry over weather on hold

June Lemen | Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Man, it’s hot. I am a native New Englander, and though I grew up slightly south of here, in the People’s Republic of Massachusetts, I …

Black cat’sblues

June Lemen | Tuesday, April 10, 2012

The jinx is over. Finally. It only took 22 years of marriage, but I have finally shaken off my UK Final Four jinx. For those …

Help helps people get by

June Lemen | Tuesday, March 27, 2012

My husband’s father, James Broyles, grew up during the Great Depression. My parents did, as well, but since James is a couple of years older …

Fix-up for play area is needed

June Lemen | Tuesday, March 13, 2012

As I was writing a series of articles last summer about the parks in the city of Nashua, I often took my daughter Lucy along. …

Feline friends fit in family

June Lemen | Tuesday, February 28, 2012

The hierarchy of cats in the Lemen/Broyles family went from oldest to youngest in terms of power. Ninja, the first cat we ever got, was …

For some, caffeine is a morning necessity

June Lemen | Tuesday, February 14, 2012

I love coffee. I love tea, too, and I drink both, but I tend to forget that they are caffeinated beverages. This is probably because …

She’s ripped at the reps

June Lemen | Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Last week, as I was standing next to the crosswalk, holding an umbrella in the snow and the rain, I felt a lot like Mr. …

2012 may usher in a peaceful era but not end of world

June Lemen | Tuesday, January 10, 2012

It is 2012 at last – the year that the world is supposed to end. According to the Mayans, at least. Not really. The fact …

Who turned up the heat?

June Lemen | Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Our house is always cold at this time of year. If we were millionaires, we could keep it at a comfortably high 60-something, but we …

Santa lived nearby

June Lemen | Tuesday, December 13, 2011

I’m seeing a lot of good behavior from children lately – the children that I cross in the crosswalk, their siblings and my daughter, Lucy. …

Stories within stories

June Lemen | Tuesday, November 22, 2011

As I sat in on the “A Terror in Every Plot” panel discussion at Crime Bake (subtitled “Using fear to propel your story forward”), I …

Cheer in dark places

June Lemen | Tuesday, November 8, 2011

I was prepared for a heck of a storm, but I had no idea how much of a heck it would be. I was reading …

Heart raced again

June Lemen | Tuesday, October 25, 2011

I remember running as a child through the fields near my parents’ house. It felt wonderful – racing down paths that other kids’ feet had …

Photos open doors

June Lemen | Tuesday, October 11, 2011

I was standing in the rain one morning last week (as I seem to spend so many of my mornings lately), trying to juggle a …

Crazy stocks are full

June Lemen | Tuesday, September 27, 2011

I was in Starbucks in Lexington, Mass., last week, having a cup of coffee before attending the calling hours for a friend’s ex-husband. He had …

Good year in works

June Lemen | Tuesday, September 13, 2011

I had planned, this year, to be absolutely ready for the first day of school. Lucy and her friend Keziah had decided at their sleepover …

The joys and trials of an older home

June Lemen | Tuesday, August 23, 2011

One of the joys of having an older home (most of the time) is that you have little fear in big storms, even when the …

Photos turn back the clock

June Lemen | Tuesday, August 9, 2011

My dear friend Annie sent me a Facebook message asking about some old shower and wedding photographs that she had discovered while she was weeding …

Dog days aren’t over

June Lemen | Tuesday, July 26, 2011

The dog days of summer are upon us, which means my house gets messier and messier as I go in search of coolness. I like …

PC lets her go to war

June Lemen | Tuesday, July 12, 2011

When it gets hot in the summer, and I have not been to the library to get my dose of mystery, and I cannot bear …

Once upon a quilt

June Lemen | Tuesday, June 28, 2011

School’s out. Finally. My daughter Lucy is thrilled. Even though Lucy loves school, when it gets to be June 1, she starts asking when it’s …

Lots of caring missed

June Lemen | Tuesday, June 14, 2011

“Come on in, cupcake. What’s the problem?” This is how you’re greeted if you’ve got a tummy ache, a sore throat, a skinned knee, an …

Ask or not, I’ll help

June Lemen | Tuesday, May 24, 2011

I have a magnet on my refrigerator that my friend Meg gave me for Christmas last year. It features a perfect Fifties woman wearing a …