Susan

It’s a Small World

July 10, 2022July 10, 2022 Posted in Asperger's, Bay Area, California, cancer, COVID, cows, dogs, grief group, hiking, Meet-up, memoir, photographs, pollenLeave a comment

(re-run) Today was a meet-up hike, my third time with Remi as our fearless leader. It was sunny with little to no mud (no rain) 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… Continue reading It’s a Small World

He Met Her at Work

July 7, 2022July 7, 2022 Posted in California, camera, cheater, dating, divorce, drinking, DUI, flashing, misdemeanor, Monster Truck show, Oakland, park, relationships, wife, work, work-alternative programLeave a comment

(re-run) Troy had the best job for meeting women. He was a parks worker for the city of Clayton, which contracted with the county for a workforce from the Work Alternative Program. In other words, drunk drivers and those with misdemeanors could work off their time instead of paying fines. He was their supervisor. Katie,… Continue reading He Met Her at Work

Letting Go

July 5, 2022July 5, 2022 Posted in best, California, cleaning, Craigslist, humor, memoir, online sales, relationshipsLeave a comment

(re-run) My cars sit out every summer. There’s no way they can go into the garage. Fires are burning north of here and have been for weeks. The Bay Area air is smoky. I look at the blue plastic tubs of flammable clothing and think, “It would take days for all of this to burn.”… Continue reading Letting Go

Peace Corps Fail

July 3, 2022July 3, 2022 Posted in dogs, memoir, Midwestern, Peace Corps, postal service, relationships, Spain, teaching, travel, VenezuelaLeave a comment

(re-run) It was in the spring of my first year of teaching when the call came. I was at Greenwood Elementary in Greenwood, Nebraska. I had applied to the Peace Corps the year before. They had just seen my application. They wanted to fly me to Chicago for an interview that weekend. They gave me… Continue reading Peace Corps Fail

Three Strikes, You’re Out

June 30, 2022June 30, 2022 Posted in California, dating, firsts, humor, military, online dating, relationships, Tahoe, VietnamLeave a comment

(re-run) He didn’t seem her usual type. He was a few pounds overweight, but not bad looking, and he wore a nice suit in his online photo. He was an architect. He pursued her with photo-likes over a few weeks and text messages, too. Kate agreed to a phone chat. At least he seems intelligent.… Continue reading Three Strikes, You’re Out

The Double Dump

June 29, 2022June 29, 2022 Posted in dating, firsts, getting dumped, relationships, worstsLeave a comment

(re-run) They met on Match. Larry’s name was Ready for Adventure. He chose a classy woman who turned out to be several weeks older than he was. “How does it feel to be a cougar?” he teased her. Julie liked nice things. She liked to dress up. She liked to stay home and cook. Larry… Continue reading The Double Dump

Daisy’s Night Run, a Skunk, and an Anniversary

June 27, 2022June 28, 2022 Posted in beach, California, dogs, foxtails, memoir, Monterey county, raccoons, runaway, skunkLeave a comment

With hot, hot weather in the Bay Area, it seemed like a good time to run down to the beach, plus the handy woman was available to come at the same time with her daughter. We had trees to plant, foxtails to pull, and a flat roof filled with pine needles to clean. The dogs… Continue reading Daisy’s Night Run, a Skunk, and an Anniversary

Shopping Maskless!

June 27, 2022June 27, 2022 Posted in beach, chorus, COVID, dentist, humor, mask, memoir, noses, shopping, singing, thrift storeLeave a comment

I managed to avoid COVID for more than two years, but it got me during a weekend of chorus performances. The director wanted us to sing maskless and asked each of us to do a COVID test the morning of our first performance so that we would all feel comfortable about it. A few older… Continue reading Shopping Maskless!

Why Do We Hide Mental Issues in America?

June 26, 2022June 26, 2022 Posted in Asperger's, autism, Depression, epilepsy, exercise, memoir, mental disorder, mental health, mental illness, movie, Netflix, OCD, schizophrenia, weight-bearing exerciseLeave a comment

(re-run) It has come to my attention that if a person tells you that he has Asperger’s* and you tell another person that the guy has Asperger’s, that is a bad thing. We all know that If the guy had a broken leg or a bad heart, and you tell others of those things, it’s… Continue reading Why Do We Hide Mental Issues in America?

Get Some Facetime

June 24, 2022 Posted in California, cell phones, high school, humor, memoir, Millennials, relationships, school, school shooting, student march, vote, waiting roomLeave a comment

(re-run) As I stepped into the waiting room of my chiropractor’s office, three women and one guy were looking down at their cell phones, sitting in a symmetrical pattern amongst the u-shaped chairs. Feeling giddy from my fifty-five minute massage I said,” Well, this looks like a blog post to me! You’re all on your… Continue reading Get Some Facetime