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Moon Over Lafayette

Posted in California, dating, firsts, flirting, humor, Lafayette, relationships, restaurant, worstLeave a comment

Trudy worked at an engineering firm. Joe was the visiting copy machine repair man, or as her office mates called him, the Xerox guy. One day Trudy had to make copies. Joe was at the machine, repairing away. “Oh,” she said. “No copies for me!” “Hey there,” Joe said. “We should catch dinner sometime.” “Okay.”… Continue reading Moon Over Lafayette

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The Blond-tourage

Posted in aging, blondes, California, cocktail waitress, girlfriends, hairdresser, humor, memoir, relationships, waitressing7 Comments

(re-run) Every woman over fifty gets the same advice from her hairdresser — to lighten up her hair. As our skin fades and our looks do, too, we need brighter lipstick, sparkly-er clothing and blonder locks to stay looking as young as we can. My apologies to women of color; this may not apply to… Continue reading The Blond-tourage

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Virtual Tip Jar Fail

Posted in Beatles, Facebook, live music, livestream, memoir, pandemic, Paypal, technology, tip jar, Zoom, ZumbaLeave a comment

I love live music, and the pandemic has made it harder to find. Some of the local bands have gone online, putting out their virtual tip jar while they play for an hour or two. Sometimes they are sponsored by a business, sometimes they do it from their apartments. I love the Beatles, so when… Continue reading Virtual Tip Jar Fail

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The Uses for a Nine Year Old

Posted in California, children, dogs, humor, Lafayette, math, memoir, relationshipsLeave a comment

My Girl Friday (who works for me on Mondays) has a daughter, who sometimes comes along with her to work. Now that her daughter is nine, she is useful in many ways. 1. She entertains my dogs. 2. She entertains my sister, giving her someone to watch. 3. She brings music into the house, since… Continue reading The Uses for a Nine Year Old

Surprise in the Porch Stove

Posted in beach, dog training, dog whisperer, dogs, glue traps, Jack Russell terrier, memoir, poison, porch, rats1 Comment

I just got home from the beach with temps up to 70 degrees. “Why am I coming back?” I asked myself as the car’s outside temp rose to 82, then 88 then 92 as I pulled off the freeway in San Ramon. When I got home, the dogs went ballistic as they always do. We’re… Continue reading Surprise in the Porch Stove

Sneaking into the Pool

Posted in airport, Angel Falls, beach, Canaima, dysentery, hotel pool, humor, Iowa State University, memoir, microbes, relationships, teaching, travel, Venezuela, worstLeave a comment

(re-run) While student teaching in Venezuela, my roommate and partner in crime learned how to have fun with not much money. One of the American teachers had stolen a couple of striped beach towels from an upscale hotel, and she had been sneaking into the hotel pool for years. “Just carry the towel and act… Continue reading Sneaking into the Pool

The Third Date Rule?

Posted in aging, California, clueless, dating, dinner, escape, firsts, hoarder, humor, last, online dating, relationships, restaurant, romance, waiter, worstLeave a comment

After Sue became a widow, her adult children were protective of her dating online. They had her send them a profile photo, an address, and phone number for each guy she dated. One of them was an anesthesiologist named Don. Sue’s son’s friend knew Don since he was in the medical field. Sue felt safe… Continue reading The Third Date Rule?

The Princeton Ploy

Posted in cars, college, crush, dating, laundry, marriage, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, pick-up lines, relationships, roommate, travelLeave a comment

(re-run) It was Sue’s third day as a freshman at Temple University in Philadelphia. She was riding the elevator with her friends between Hardwick and Johnson Hall when he got on. He had all of his stuff. He was moving in. “School started already,” one of her friends said. “I was in San Diego,” he… Continue reading The Princeton Ploy

Two Birdbaths, One Fountain

Posted in bees, butterflies, cats, compost, fountain, garden, pesticide, recycle, retirement community, skunk, yard1 Comment

I love my yard. When I first bought my fixer house on a fixer third acre, the yard was full of rocks and rose bushes.  Now it has trees, plants, roses, wisteria, a privet hedge, flag stone, one fountain and two bird baths. The fountain is an advertisement to creatures near and far to come… Continue reading Two Birdbaths, One Fountain