(re-run) I heard Christmas music today at Costco while I watched people putting pumpkins into their shopping carts. Ah, it must be fall. In California, the leaves don’t change into beautiful reds and oranges until November. It doesn’t get cold enough until then. We have Halloween first, then fall color, sometimes coinciding with Thanksgiving, but… Continue reading The Holidays in October and Angry Stalker Dude
Month: September 2025
Don’t Judge a Book
(re-run) Of all the pick-up lines I’ve ever heard, the best one came yesterday at the Walnut Creek Octoberfest. “Now those are some sensible shoes.” Yes, I had on one-inch-heel black booties because I was dressed as a German beer garden maid, and they were the best shoes with white knee socks. “They’re good for… Continue reading Don’t Judge a Book
The Racist, the Ficus Tree, and my Garage Sale
(re-run) When I was six, the one black boy in my elementary school was in my class. His name was Teddy. This was white-white-white Iowa in the 60s. My first grade teacher, Mrs. Van Cura, got angry at the class one day for misbehaving and said, “Whoever doesn’t behave will have to play with Teddy… Continue reading The Racist, the Ficus Tree, and my Garage Sale
Bucket by Bucket
When you wait for the termite guys to come fix the dry rot, and they don’t come for 2.5 hours, you get a lot of yard work done as you wait. Since I’m old and can’t move a heavy 66-gallon can full of yard waste, I park it on the street and then fill it… Continue reading Bucket by Bucket
Day 2 at the Beach
Normally, on Day 2, I spend the whole day thrifting and doing yard work. But today I wrote in the morning, had a nice chat with a college friend now in Georgia about her son’s wedding, took Pepper for a walk, played ball with Daisy, and then talked on the phone with a friend going… Continue reading Day 2 at the Beach
First Dog, Lost Dog
(re-run) After moving to farm country to teach high school Spanish, I watched my roommate Kristy come home one day with a German Shephard puppy. “Meet Shane!” she said. She hadn’t asked me. She hadn’t asked the landlord. When she did ask him, his response was, “Not in the house.” Kristy made Shane a bed… Continue reading First Dog, Lost Dog
You Know It’s Fall when . . .
(re-run from 2020) The summer concerts have ended, except for one. The sleeveless cotton dresses are packed away, along with pairs of shorts and sandals. It’s jeans and long sleeves now, with the occasional hot afternoon where I strip down to my undershirt. Fall has arrived, not so much with leaves changing colors. We don’t… Continue reading You Know It’s Fall when . . .
Grizzly Bear!
(re-run) An Amazon robot punctured a can of Bear Mace, sending 80 employees to the hospital before Christmas. It reminded me of this true account as told to me at a holiday party by a friend’s daughter’s boyfriend’s father figure. His name is Bob. In 2008 you take your wife, Liza, and your teen-aged kids… Continue reading Grizzly Bear!
State Fair Memory
The Iowa State Fair is the biggest in the country, with 165 food items on a stick! and the butter cow. But the fair was expensive for a family of seven, plus Dad had had polio as a late teen and walked with a limp. The fairgrounds covered a lot of acreage, so we seldom… Continue reading State Fair Memory
My Sunday Book Sale Surprise
(re-run) Today was scheduled from beginning to end with a few hours free in mid-afternoon. I did my due diligence and walked the dogs early, since it was already a stinker at 9:00 a.m. The weather people had predicted a cooler day than yesterday, but yesterday’s dog walk had actually been enjoyable. Today it was… Continue reading My Sunday Book Sale Surprise
FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER! 