How Thrifting Improved my Day

(re-run) Okay, I admit it. I’m a thrift store junkie. When I go to my fave beach town, I make sure to stop at every thrift store at least once. That makes for six stops, nine if I venture down to Carmel. This trip I stayed in my town. I wandered into Second Chance and… Continue reading How Thrifting Improved my Day

Challenger Explosion and Subbing in San Diego

It was a Tuesday, my third week of substitute teaching in Ramona, California.  The Middle School Spanish teacher before me had left in October after a former student told her counselor that he had sexually molested her while on his high school track team. The teacher was terminated, and the string of substitute teachers began.… Continue reading Challenger Explosion and Subbing in San Diego

The Tennis Shoe and the Broken Window

(re-run) It was senior year in high school. I was on my last semester of PE, my least favorite class. I maintained a straight-A average in all other classes. Not PE. It alternated between a B and a C. I was feeling good. We were in our next-to last unit, the physical fitness award. I… Continue reading The Tennis Shoe and the Broken Window

It’s a Small World

(re-run) Today was a meet-up hike, my third time with Randy as our fearless leader. It was sunny with little to no mud and lots of cows.  About twenty of us, plus four small dogs, walked five miles in two and a half hours. The great part is that the meet-up hikers go to places… Continue reading It’s a Small World

Typical Tuesday

Today’s entire front page is about the two mass shootings over the past three days, one in Southern California, and the other one fifty miles from my house.  We can continue to believe that it won’t affect any of us, that mass shootings happen to other people.  It’s getting to the point where we can… Continue reading Typical Tuesday

The Day Grandma Got Woke

(re-run) My mom loved to watch Ellen. It’s usually fun and games, with hunky guys and Ellen playing tricks on her guests and staff. She rounded out the hour with lesbian jokes, a musical performance by some obscure band, and Ellen surprising some needy but giving person with $10,000 in cash. Then the death of… Continue reading The Day Grandma Got Woke

Another Brush with Nature

(re-run) My beach town has a state-run conference center in it, with rustic buildings designed by the architect, Julia Morgan. It’s what got me here back in the late 80s and 90s, attending a writer’s conference next to the ocean at Asilomar. Over the years. I’ve seen brown state-issued signs posted for mountain lion sightings.… Continue reading Another Brush with Nature