Category: Diana Belchase

Museum Mondays: Kobell’s Siege of Cosel, a study in breaths of gray

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The Siege of Cosel, which was painted around 1808 is like a woman covered in veils. Gossamer layers of gray, recede ever fainter as he paints the foggy battle scene. Textbooks do not show this well. Even though the painting is massive — larger than a wall in most homes — these figures are sometimes as small as the head of a pin, only visible less than a foot away from the canvas. Seeing them makes the average museum guard nervous as you move scant inches from the canvas.

Museum Mondays: The Smithsonian is Closed

Museum Mondays: The Smithsonian is Closed

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Most of us in D.C. take the Smithsonian for granted. It’s just there. Like air. Like food from high class eateries and overpriced food trucks. Living in a city where the Smithsonian is generally open every day of the year (except for December 25th), and where the world’s greatest museum is free, means we pop in and out of exhibits like teenagers popping in and out of friends’ homes (and refrigerators). Join me for a virtual visit to the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum during the government shutdown.

83,000 Americans Still Missing as Rolling Thunder Calls it Quits

83,000 Americans Still Missing as Rolling Thunder Calls it Quits

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Missing in action. What horrible words for loved ones to hear. The acronyms “POW” and “MIA” strike fear in the heart of the most stalwart military family. It is hard to believe that as 2018 draws to a close there are still approximately 83,000 Americans who are unaccounted for. The vast majority of these soldiers, sailors, and air force personnel are listed as prisoners of war (POW), missing in combat (MIA), or lost at sea, during WWII, Vietnam and other U.S. military actions. Now, the most powerful organization bringing awareness to MIAs, POWs, and to other veteran’s issues, Rolling Thunder, has announced it’s calling it quits in D.C. because of untenable logistical problems. Seeing Rolling Thunder come to an end is heartbreaking.

Award News!

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Diana Belchase was named a finalist for the Linda Howard Award of Excellence for her spy thriller, The Spy in the Harem. The Award is given by the Southern Magic writers group from Birmingham.

A Spy at the Ball

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       I’ve always dreamt of being at a grand ball and waltzing.      The image of tall, mysterious men circling a floor to the strains of Strauss, while their partners’ dresses billow behind them, is incredibly romantic – like a music box springing to life. […]

The Old Barn

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There is something about an old barn. Weathered and worn, sagging beam, missing board, each defect adding to its charm. Gorgeous in its decrepitude. Why don’t we see people this way? The area around Washington, D.C. is filled with many picturesque scenes — Civil War structures one step from falling down, […]