A Thousand Words
"You're a jerk." "No, you're a jerk." Daniel brushed Diamond's tail with the coarse brush until it felt...
Sea Worthy
Isobell was sick of wearing black. Her beloved Frank had passed some time ago; exactly how long, she could no longer recall. It simultaneously felt like yesterday and years ago. But she did know she was tired of somber clothing and the sadness it wrapped around...
Soft Serve
My father orders black raspberry ice cream. The soft serve sits on the cone in a beautiful dark purple twist. Ick, my 7-year-old self says, greedily taking my own sprinkle-covered chocolate delight. Try it, my father says, putting the cone to my lips. I take a small...
Maternal Cow Moxie
Dusk was warm even by Southern Mississippi standards. The bugs were out with reckless abandon, and our after-work beers were drank at the back of the house, in the shade of the large water oaks. Larry grilled burgers on our little gas grill. The cats milled...
Netflix’s Godless – Cowgirls Large and In Charge
I recently finished binge watching Godless, the Netflix Western set in the fictional New Mexico town of LaBelle, which is comprised almost entirely of women, with the exception of the stray oldster and youngster, due to all the men folk being killed in one fell swoop...
Snow in the Land of Crawfish
I owe the fine people of Mississippi an apology. Our first winter of 2015-2016 here was a piece of cake. We started a fire in the woodstove once or twice. Folks said it was a mild winter. I said yeah, okay, right, and rolled my eyes. Our second winter was...
Let’s Get This Rodeo Started
Welcome to my corner of the internet! I'm Beti Spangel, a freelancer and late blooming author who started out wanting to be a cowgirl when I grew up. Or at least someone would could clean a mean stall. My childhood was filled with the Frontier Town, Gaslight...