(re-run) “I like the way you dance,” he said that Saturday afternoon. Margo and I had gone to Vino Godfather, a cool little winery in an old Victorian house on Mare Island in Vallejo. The island used to be a naval base, judging from the abandoned barracks on the way to the winery. A good… Continue reading Cut Loose on a Saturday Afternoon
Category: California
Frostbite Memories
(re-run) Today the sun was shining, the ocean was royal blue and the wind was bitter cold. I had the dog on a choke chain since I couldn’t squeeze the prong collar back together (I’d taken it apart in the wrong place). I headed down my street past a tree- trimmer truck that has just… Continue reading Frostbite Memories
Belly-up Beetle
(re-run) Curtis drove a 1969 vintage Volkswagen Beetle. George, his wing man, brought the weed. They’d met their dates at a party. Stacy and Camille went to San Leandro High. Curtis and George went to Castro Valley. Curtis liked Camille. George got Stacy. They all partied at a friend of a friend’s house in Oakland… Continue reading Belly-up Beetle
Pyracantha and the Path to School
(re-run) When my kids were 14, 11 and 6, we moved into a huge house that bordered the school district’s property. The middle school sat to the right of our backyard, and the high school sat to the left. Only a chain-length fence and a hedge of Photinia separated its property from ours. I called… Continue reading Pyracantha and the Path to School
Fix Your Past Mistakes, or Get a Million Dollars?
(re-run) A Facebook post asks if you’d rather go back in time and fix all of your mistakes or don’t do that and get $1,000,000 instead. That’s easy. People will take the money. What if the choice were, go back in time and fix all your mistakes or don’t (no money)? I’d say no to… Continue reading Fix Your Past Mistakes, or Get a Million Dollars?
Return to the Scene of the Crime
(re-run) Two weeks ago, I tried to burn my house down. I came home in time to turn off the burner under the hard-boiled eggs. Eight of them had become missiles and hung in pieces from every surface in the kitchen. Four of them turned black in the Teflon pan. When I put the key… Continue reading Return to the Scene of the Crime
Poop on the Patio
It’s been raining ever since 2023 started, pretty much nonstop. We aren’t used to this in sunny California. We’ve been in a twenty-year drought for well, twenty years. Usually Seattle gets this weather, not us. I can’t walk the dogs. I can’t work in the yard. But I can feed the critters and watch them… Continue reading Poop on the Patio
Queen Victoria, the Cat
(re-run) Renee already had three cats. She wasn’t looking for another. So when her daughter-in-law called and said, “Mom, you need to adopt this cat,” Renee was thinking, No way, Renee. But then she heard the kitty’s story, and she had to reconsider. Renee’s son Brian and his wife were moving to Tennessee from California… Continue reading Queen Victoria, the Cat
To Dye or Not to Dye
(re-run) Driving to Monterey today, looking at the velvety green hills and the occasional sprinkles of white on the tallest ones, my mind started composing this blog post. I thought about how everyone in California dyes their hair – menopausal women (no surprise there), old guys, young women, teen-aged boys. Everyone, at least it seems… Continue reading To Dye or Not to Dye
Long-playing Ski Buddies
(re-run) Ellen was in charge of the ski cabin for the In Skiers of San Mateo. Mark joined the Powder Hounds even though he was just a beginner. Mark called Ellen to arrange for a room in the InSkiers cabin. Ellen had a cold and sounded like Lauren Bacall when she answered. Mark liked that.… Continue reading Long-playing Ski Buddies
FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER! 