Category: Facebook

Fleet Week and the $10,000,000 Lot

Posted in Alcatraz, barbecue, Bay Area, Blue Angels, Facebook, Fleet Week, fog, friends, hiking, Marin County, memoir, military, relationships, San Francisco, SausalitoLeave a comment

When I moved to the Bay Area, no one explained what Fleet Week was. But after many years, I finally figured it out — big ships, military stuff, the Blue Angels. The Blue Angels are six military jets that fly in formation by some amazing pilots. They fly over the city of San Francisco for… Continue reading Fleet Week and the $10,000,000 Lot

Making Time to Write

Posted in agent, author, contractor, dogs, empty nester, Facebook, writers, writingLeave a comment

(re-run) I used to write every day. That was back when I had sleeping babies and pre-schoolers that went to school on a regular schedule. Now that I’m an empty nester I think I am going to write every day, but then stuff happens. Like exercise classes and long hikes. Dog walks. Contractors. A sister… Continue reading Making Time to Write

My Fake-Coffee Half Hour

Posted in blog, blog posts, coffee, Diet Coke, Facebook, GERD, humor, memoir, names, relationships, Spanish, Spanish class, stomach, stomach issues, wineLeave a comment

(re-run) It’s funny how a person’s perception of what is good changes with the circumstances. I used to look forward to my can of Diet Coke every day until I reached my mid-forties. Then the stuff was too hard on my stomach, and I gave it up. I used to look forward to my cup… Continue reading My Fake-Coffee Half Hour

Just for the Halibut

Posted in back ache, California, cancer, Christmas, Facebook, father, Father's Day, funeral, hospital, Iowa, memoir, punster, Spain, Spanish, student teaching, teaching, VenezuelaLeave a comment

Father’s Day has come and gone. I saw many black and white photos of men on Facebook, people my age honoring their deceased dads. I didn’t have a good photo of Dad to post, just silly ones or childhood ones. It never occurred to me 34 years ago that I would someday want a good… Continue reading Just for the Halibut

Off the Power Grid

Posted in Beatles, chorus, dancing, Facebook, Father's Day, girl friends, memoir, power, power company, power outage, retirement, socializing, widowers, wineryLeave a comment

The power is out.  I was in the middle of a movie when everything shut off.  Soon my neighbors were texting me, asking me to report the outage to PG& E. The more the better, they said. A few minutes after that, I received a robocall. The outage was affecting 5000 customers. The power also… Continue reading Off the Power Grid

Mornings Are for Blogging

Posted in blogging, Facebook, first draft, ideas, imagination, letter carrier, memoir, memory, morning person, night owl, photographs, revise, USPS, writingLeave a comment

When you’re mostly retired, like I am, you find that you think best in the morning. I’ve written and published 29 children’s books, and each one was born in the a.m., and not after midnight. At night I am pretty worthless. I can usually read until 7:00 or 8:00. Then it’s Snoozeville after that, which… Continue reading Mornings Are for Blogging

Behind Closed Doors

Posted in abuse, attitude, basement, brother, Catholic, childhood, Facebook, gender roles, high school, Iowa, junior high school, memoir, physical abuse, relationships, worstLeave a comment

I read a great memoir about a girl’s tough childhood, with violence, danger, and an abusive older brother. I recommended it to Facebook friends online. A friend said she didn’t like it because she didn’t think the book rang true. “The Mormon part or the survivalist part?” I asked her. “Neither.” She didn’t think anyone… Continue reading Behind Closed Doors