Fluorescent Man at the Wine Festival

(re-run) Today the town up one freeway (and over another freeway) had a wine festival.  My art friend was showing her work, so we agreed to meet for lunch when she was done.  A guy friend wanted to dance at 5:00 to the Spazmatics. I got the dogs done early, visited my sis, and then… Continue reading Fluorescent Man at the Wine Festival

Reflections on a Retired Thursday

You’d think retired people have seven days a week to reflect on their past lives. Not so, Smokey Joe.  There was chorus, plus a COVID booster shot on Tuesday which produced a huge headache. “Take Tylenol,” my adult child who lives down the hall said. “No, you’re supposed to let the vaccine do its thing,”… Continue reading Reflections on a Retired Thursday

Three Strikes, You’re Out

(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 Fingernails Post

When I was a senior in college, I went to Venezuela to student teach, then taught six weeks of high school Spanish, then studied abroad for two months in the summer. I needed fifteen credits to graduate with a double major in Elementary Education and Spanish with a minor in secondary education. I was thrilled… Continue reading The Fingernails Post

The Crack in my Face

(re-run) Because my adult child moved in, I changed bathrooms. They get the new one at the other end of the house, and I get the hallway one with the skylight and window (the master bathroom is a cave). I was putting on my make-up the other day with daylight coming in. There it was,… Continue reading The Crack in my Face

Bomb Shelter Blues

(re-run) My childhood house on 69th Street in a suburb of Des Moines, Iowa, had a big bump in the backyard. It’s where my grandfather built a fall-out shelter that connected to our basement. It was during the Cold War, and thoughts of atomic bombs being dropped on us was enough to motivate him to… Continue reading Bomb Shelter Blues

The Blond-tourage

(re-run) Every woman over fifty gets the same advice from her hairdresser — lighten up your 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 you.… Continue reading The Blond-tourage

Dieting, Body Image, and Stay Out of my Business

(re-run) “Are you going to eat all of that?” I was sitting at a table in the teachers’ lounge, my lunch spread out before me. There was a sandwich, a red apple, carrot sticks and a glass of juice, maybe a chocolate or two. Why was the teacher I barely knew commenting on my lunch?… Continue reading Dieting, Body Image, and Stay Out of my Business