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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Ashland gardeners help make Spring Garden Fair an iconic event Free film fest celebrates OSF 'raconteur' Ashland Firewise hosts free yard debris dropoff Saturday Police Reports 10 things to know for Wednesday Education Students at Walker Elementary School in Ashland get hands dirty for Earth Day From AHS to paradise: Ashland High alum Wolf runs successful snorkel tours in Maui Official hopeful whooping cough case at John Muir contained Bracing for Common Core Ashland Kiwanis recognize Lillian Huang Environment Students at Walker Elementary School in Ashland get hands dirty for Earth Day Ashland Fire & Rescue Alarm Box: There are good fires and there are bad fires Lots to celebrate at SOU Arbor Day rites Business Lithia Motors reports second-best quarter ever Owner of Mix and Amuse to bring Flip burger joint to Ashland Ride & Drive: 2015.5 Volvo V60 Cross Country From AHS to paradise: Ashland High alum Wolf runs successful snorkel tours in Maui Ride & Drive: 2015 Ford F-150 Politics and elections Arthur I. Cyr: Cuba’s enduring challenge to American foreign policy – and American politics Kent Bush: Clinton 2.0 is neither new nor improved Arthur I. Cyr: Britain’s earthquake election Council wants changes to agreement with ODOT for I-5 welcome center Arthur I. Cyr: Afghanistan progress is uneven but undeniable State News Oregon lawmakers begin minimum wage debate Runners to follow historic salmon migration path Nation - World Tsarnaev convicted on all charges in Boston Marathon bombing Obituaries Death Notices Deborah Joan Note Norma Lee Nicholas Cheryl Ann Orr Cecil L. (Mike) Michael Shareable Sports Latest Stories Brent St. Germain: It’s risky to draft QBs early Ashland drops eight-inning pitchers' duel Playing through the pain SOU's Maguin pockets fourth CCC honor Fantasy Sports: Injury bug still biting Toronto’s Reyes High school Ashland drops eight-inning pitchers' duel SOU swept, but gets help in playoff race Grizz softball team keeps rolling AHS girls edge Roseburg Raiders remain No. 1 in spring poll Southern Oregon University SOU's Maguin pockets fourth CCC honor SOU swept, but gets help in playoff race For Raiders, a homecoming Raiders remain No. 1 in spring poll Grizzlies blow away Eagles Voices Latest Stories Our View: Raises raise eyebrows Letter at Length, April 22 Granlund cartoon: Minnesota ISIS Our View: Close gun-sale loophole City looking for ways to create a healthy Ashland for all ages Editorial Our View: Raises raise eyebrows Our View: Close gun-sale loophole Our View: Help fill empty bowls in Ashland Our View: Jackson County should say yes to Circle of Teran rehab request Our View: New cat on the block in Ashland Letters Letter at Length, April 22 Letters to the Editor, April 20 Letters to the Editor, April 14 Letters to the Editor, April 13 Letters to the Editor, April 11 Guest opinions Guest Opinion: Allegations unfair to Dr. Tomashefsky Guest Opinion: Fremont cottonwood is not a hazard Guest Opinion: Ashland council vote on travelers accommodations was less than transparent Columns City looking for ways to create a healthy Ashland for all ages Chris Honoré: Faith-based rejection of vaccines Guest Opinion: Allegations unfair to Dr. Tomashefsky Herb Rothschild Jr.: Spreading the risk of vaccination Matthew T. Mangino: Mass incarceration enters the national consciousness Chris Honore Council Corner Editor's Notes Jeffrey Gillespie Herb Rothschild Revels Latest Stories Community blog: Poetry events and calls for submission Community blog: Go to the poetry reading at the library on Sunday Community blog: Poems for parenting A tale of two plays at OSF Joanne Rand at the Unitarian Fellowship Theater Ticket Availability Free film fest celebrates OSF 'raconteur' Do you go to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival shows? Ticket Availability Ticket Availability Music On TV: Your guide to the Academy of Country Music Awards The Farr Side: Intriguing time on the Hot 100 Joanne Rand at the Unitarian Fellowship The Farr Side: Is Kelly Clarkson’s weight truly news?  Rhythm is on tap at the Northwest Percussion Festival Visual Art More films, excitement than ever for AIFF Ashland's First Friday Art Walk Movies Free film fest celebrates OSF 'raconteur' Movie review: Based-on-fact ‘True Story’ asks, ‘Who’s fooling who?’ Movie review: Lots of monkey business in ‘Monkey Kingdom’ Russell Crowe discusses WWI and being a first-time director 'Cinderella' revisited is stunning, magical Food and Drink Business profile: Couple opens second Pita Pit in Ashland Tot owners buy Playwright, hire Amuse chef Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories Ashland gardeners help make Spring Garden Fair an iconic event Tammy Kelly: The South’s favorite side dish — slaw David Murdock: Toward a modern mythology Page H. Onorato: Did you really eat that? Lost in Suburbia: Ashes, ashes, we all fall down Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Rogues: Tales from the Valley Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs Business Business Services NEWS NOW Ashland gardeners help make Spring Garden Fair an iconic event ... Ticket Availability ... Free film fest celebrates OSF 'raconteur' ... Ashland gardeners help make Spring Garden Fair an iconic event ... Ticket Availability ... Free film fest celebrates OSF 'raconteur' ... Barbara Presnell: What wife does when husband is away By Barbara Presnell More Content Now DailyTidings.com By Barbara Presnell More Content Now Posted Apr. 21, 2015 @ 7:50 am By Barbara Presnell More Content Now Posted Apr. 21, 2015 @ 7:50 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2324,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> Kate Chopin, the tortured and socially restricted author of “The Awakening,” also wrote a short story in the late 1900s that is considered a frontrunner in feminist literature. It’s called “The Story of an Hour.” In its opening paragraphs, a young woman named Louise Mallard receives the terrible news that a train wreck has killed everyone aboard. Her husband, Brently Mallard, was on that train. While her friends and neighbors gather downstairs, wondering how they will console her and how she will live through this terrible tragedy, Louise goes upstairs to her bedroom, throws open the windows and says, “Free! Free! Body and soul free!” The world outside her window is all sunshine and blue sky, and she’s invigorated by the life she’s about to live. But then comes another knock on the front door. It’s her husband, Brently. It seems he missed the train, and he is home safe. When Louise sees him, she collapses and dies. Doctors proclaim that she died “of heart disease — of the joy that kills.” Indeed. Now, it’s not the late 1900s, and my name is not Louise Mallard, but I have to admit that, when my husband climbed in the car and headed south for a week away, something in me was saying, “Free! Free!” I admit this because I know I’m not the only one who feels this way when suddenly the house is empty and my time is wonderfully my own. I can do what I want, eat what I want, fill my time outside of work with my own quirky idiosyncrasies. Understand that I am not unhappily married, nor do I feel confined at all by my long relationship with my husband. In fact, I love him deeply and completely. We have a good time together almost always, support and care for each other with devotion. Unlike Louise Mallard, I am not restricted by societal expectations to behave a certain way. And if anyone tries to so restrict me, they get a piece of my mind. Still, there is a gasp of fresh, clean air when suddenly the house is mine. That very day after he left, I headed straight to the grocery and bought a pint of chicken livers. I love chicken livers. I love the rich, livery flavor. I love them baked, with bread crumbs and a side of Brussels sprouts. He doesn’t like them. That was my first night. Day 2, I started watching “Jeopardy.” He thinks it’s a waste of time, and I think his televised stock reports are major sleepers, so the compromise is we don’t watch TV when we eat together. But when I’m alone in the house, Alex Trebek calls and I answer. It feels like a deviance. Day 3, it occurred to me I was talking non-stop to Arty, my emotionally challenged dog who follows me around the house like he’s connected with a string. I can tell him everything, and he listens to each word, his ears perked up, his face assuring me he understands and loves me no matter what. Day 4, I realized I was singing pretty much all the time. I like to sing. I get tunes in my head and mindlessly sing them over and over and over. I sing while I cook. I sing while I shower. I sing while I brush my teeth, tuning to the pitch of the electric toothbrush. Day 5, my friend Malcolm sent me an email. He’d been on a ski trip to Montana with his wife and three boys, but he’d come home ahead of them to teach his classes. “I’m alone in the house,” he said. “Two days of NOT MAKING THE BED.” He spelled it in all caps, just like that. “Not making the bed?” I emailed back. “This is what you do when she’s gone? Is this a gender thing?” When I’m alone, I make the bed obsessively, neatly, corners turned, wrinkles smoothed. “Must be,” he responded. Malcolm confessed he was also obsessively talking to the dogs, except they followed him only twice a day, in the morning and again at night, and they stopped following him as soon as he filled their bowls. It was Day 6 before I realized the most amazing thing about my week alone: There was no basketball. No 24-7 tournament or March Madness games that tend to rattle my brain and make me madder than a hatter. I came home in the afternoons to a blissfully quiet house. Malcolm and I acknowledged what goes unsaid here: that we wouldn’t trade our noisy, family-filled houses for anything. A few days is heaven. But a week is enough. Anyway, I’d filled up on chicken livers, “Jeopardy” had been preempted by basketball games, and even Arty was starting to ignore me. I think if only poor Louise Mallard could have had a week completely to herself now and then, chances are her heart would be still be ticking. Barbara Presnell is a poet and teacher of writing who lives in Lexington, North Carolina. Contact her at barbarapresnell.com. By Barbara Presnell More Content Now DailyTidings.com By Barbara Presnell More Content Now Posted Apr. 21, 2015 @ 7:50 am » Comment or view comments /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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