(re-run) A month ago, California hadn’t had a drop of rain in twenty-nine days. It was the driest February since 1864. Now it is “Miracle March,” and it seems to be raining every day. I’m not complaining. We need snow to build up in the Sierras to provide lots of snow pack melt-off in the… Continue reading Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head
Category: California
More Machu Picchu
(part two) Christy and I finished our breakfast at the hotel up at the top and looked into the fog. The buses wouldn’t start arriving until noon. “Let’s hike up the big mountain,” she said. “Okay,” I said. My lost and found tennis shoes were too small, but I had cut out the toes so… Continue reading More Machu Picchu
Daisy Rescue Dog, Let the Fur Fly # 6
Two steps forward, one step back. Things seem fine, and then the new Jack Russell rescue dog named Daisy attacks the raised-from-a-puppy lab/border-collie/pit bull mix named Pepper. What the fluff? What happened? Things were going so well. The advantage of having a white dog is that you can see every scratch and bite on it.… Continue reading Daisy Rescue Dog, Let the Fur Fly # 6
Daisy Rescue Dog One Year
(Re-run from 2018) Tomorrow will be Daisy’s adopt-a-versary. That’s right, the day after Christmas! I had looked at free dogs at the local SPCA, but all that was left were big dogs: pit bulls, overweight standard Dachshunds, and other large mixed breeds. I gave up on the “free dog” idea and came home to look… Continue reading Daisy Rescue Dog One Year
My First Taste of California
When I was in college, the spring of my sophomore year, I saw a poster for a summer job – “Earn $3000 in just three months.” Back in 1975, that was a lot of money. I went to the evening meeting on campus and found myself in a room with a dozen other “applicants.” After… Continue reading My First Taste of California
The Cat Lady
(re-run) She seemed normal enough. James met her on the softball diamond — he was playing, shortstop, she played second base. It was a singles club event for Labor Day. He wasn’t an actual member but showed up on the holidays. Beth was sort of cute, her body pretty good for fifty plus. He was… Continue reading The Cat Lady
The Conflict Within
I am usually quick at decisions, and I am happy with them. No, I will not jump out of an airplane. No, I will not go on that upside-down roller coaster. Yes, I will dance with you. Yes, I will come to your party. Every now and then I get myself stuck between the little… Continue reading The Conflict Within
Holiday Heartache
(re-run from 2019) As I sit here on a Sunday afternoon, I have fluffy white “Iowa” clouds (cumulus) out the windows across the back of my house. I used to look into a wall, but that baby is gone, and now I have nature. This month has been so full already, three chorus concerts with… Continue reading Holiday Heartache
Earthquake, Tsunami, Six Vehicle Accident Day
When I drive to the beach house from my regular house, it takes exactly two hours if there are no accidents, roadwork or bad weather. Today was not a two-hour-drive day. I pulled out of the driveway at 10:02, thinking I’d be there by noon. The dogs were in the back seat, Daisy on her… Continue reading Earthquake, Tsunami, Six Vehicle Accident Day
A Thanksgiving to Remember
It used to be the whole clan around the dining table, but these days, with one nephew in Texas and a daughter’s family in Boston, instead of thirteen, we are only eight this year. The table is laden with every possible combination of food, gluten filled, gluten free, spicy, not spicy, vegetarian, and meaty. The… Continue reading A Thanksgiving to Remember
FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER! 