(re-run) . . . .you planned on driving an hour to hear live music for two hours, but now you’d rather sit home and watch the news and the PBS country music special. . . . you decided to sort out all of your framing supplies and halfway through, you thought to yourself, what have… Continue reading You Know You’re Getting Old when . . .
Month: February 2023
The Bad-date Picnic
(re-run) Laurie graduated college and had boomeranged back home to Seattle. She met a cute guy with horn-rimmed glasses. He invited her on a picnic at the beach. She said yes. “Have fun,” her mom said when Greg came to the house. Greg drove to a sandy spot with a view of the city. They… Continue reading The Bad-date Picnic
The Gun at Grandma’s House
The thing was cold, black, and heavy. Even though I was just a kid, maybe nine or ten, I knew a gun when I saw it. I’d been jumping on Grandma Nellie’s bed. The pillow had fallen on the floor. The gun was under the pillow. I put everything back the way I found it… Continue reading The Gun at Grandma’s House
Buffalo Bill Meets Annie Oakley
(re-run) Aaron met Katie on Plenty of Fish. She didn’t message him back for months. For their first date, he took her duck hunting. She brought her own gun. He brought a boat and the friend who owned it. The trio didn’t’ talk much because they had to be quiet to get a duck. It… Continue reading Buffalo Bill Meets Annie Oakley
Don’t Get a Sun Burn
(re-run) You think you know someone. You’ve sat across from your brother-in-law at countless holiday meals. You raised your kids together, although far enough away that you only saw them four or five times a year. You know George loves Monterey, but you didn’t know the whole story. You knew he’d been in the military,… Continue reading Don’t Get a Sun Burn
Best Friends of Days Gone by
On another day of reflection, I’m wondering how I lost track of two dear friends, one from high school, the other from college. I was maid of honor in the bridesmaid line-up at each of their weddings. I’m still wondering how that ever could’ve happened, looking back over the past forty years. I got married,… Continue reading Best Friends of Days Gone by
Flat Feet
(re-run) I turned on my laptop the other day, and the ever-changing screen showed a photo of waterfalls, big wide ones somewhere in Brazil. I’ve never been to Brazil, but I have been to Venezuela, where there are seven wide falls and a resort below them called Canaima. I was student-teaching with another Iowa Stater.… Continue reading Flat Feet
Hitchhiking Story
( re-run) When I was 20, I sold books door to door that summer in Ohio for Southwestern Company. The regional boss told me at our Sunday meeting to spend a day working with one of his ace sellers. The problem was, I didn’t have a car to get to the town where he worked.… Continue reading Hitchhiking Story
The People I Meet When Thrifting
I have a deep need to thrift. I do it at least once a week, even on vacations. I’m not talking consignment stores where people bring in items, hoping to get some money back. I’m talking about stores that take donations and sell things on the cheap because they got them for free. Last week… Continue reading The People I Meet When Thrifting
Spring Cleaning in February
(re-run) It started with a koala bear. A bunch of them. Some musicians were having a fundraiser for Australia, the fires, and the koalas. It was donation at the door. Two and a half hours of music, and I knew three of the performers. We got there early and sat in the third row. Two… Continue reading Spring Cleaning in February
FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER! 