It started with the dead begonia plant. Sis and I called our mother who lives with our younger sister ninety miles away. “How is your begonia doing?” Mom asked Sis. I looked over to the college-sized fridge. The begonia plant was gone. As Sis talked with Mom, I went down the hallway and asked the… Continue reading Dead Begonias and Other Stuff
Category: California
The Contractor and the Jet Setter
It was Tom the contractor’s umpteenth date on Match.com. The woman was from the same affluent town, was the same height as he was (he was being optimistic and not counting the two inches he’d lost by aging), and was ready to meet him at Bridges, the hot spot downtown with the best happy hour. … Continue reading The Contractor and the Jet Setter
Date with a Cad
Against her better judgment Svetlana met up with a man from Match and….drum roll….he met her expectations of the Cad. A cad is a man who is aware of the codes of conduct, which separate a gentleman from a ruffian, but finds himself unable to live up to them. Cads are capable of disguising themselves as good… Continue reading Date with a Cad
The White Album
(re-run) The last time I saw the Beatles cover band in the Santa Cruz mountains hippie town of Felton, I noticed that most of the crowd was coupled off, and most of the couples didn’t dance. They were too old, having been die-hard Beatles fans for fifty years. It was a shame. The floor is… Continue reading The White Album
A Good Dog Neighbor
(re-run) Yesterday my son and I had lunch together at the local sandwich shop. He brought his little dog — half Chihuahua, half terrier. I fed Violet scraps of lettuce under the table while we ate. She thinks she’s a vegetarian. Afterward, we followed the usual routine and came back to my house, where Violet… Continue reading A Good Dog Neighbor
First Date Red Flags
Okay, you said yes to the guy who asked you out two years ago and you turned him down. Now he has shown up at a dancing venue in Concord on the same day you wondered whatever happened to him. You see, he lives in San Francisco and you live in Suburbia. Then you agree… Continue reading First Date Red Flags
The Story of my Rescue Puppy, Pepper
I laughed out loud. I had joked about a getting a pit bull, and the universe had dropped two of them in my path.
Butt Dials and Other My-Bads
(re-run) I had lunch with my son today. We were trying to figure out why I’d used up all my storage on my cell phone. He took a look, handed back my phone, and watched me put it in my pocket. “You need to hit the button on the side and turn off your screen,”… Continue reading Butt Dials and Other My-Bads
Why Not to Date your Neighbor
Julie got divorced and moved into her new townhouse with her six-year-old son. One day, when she was out walking her dog, a guy mowing his lawn turned off the mower and said hello. They chatted about her dog, and Julie mentioned that she had just moved in. Doug rode his bike a lot while… Continue reading Why Not to Date your Neighbor
Secrets to a Successful Shop
It’s true — people shop online more and more each year. So how does a brick and mortar shop make it in today’s world? I was downtown in my town of 40,000 people (in a commuter corridor of the Bay Area) the other day, and parked on the main street in front of a little… Continue reading Secrets to a Successful Shop
FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER! 