Grizzly Bear!

(re-run) An Amazon robot punctured a can of Bear Mace, sending 80 employees to the hospital before Christmas. It reminded me of this true account told to me at a holiday party. In 2008 you take your wife, Liza, and your teen-aged kids to Alaska. You stay near the Princess Lodge in a fishing cabin… Continue reading Grizzly Bear!

Fleet Week and the $10,000,000 Lot

(re-run) 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 in formation flown by some amazing pilots. They fly over the city of San Francisco for… Continue reading Fleet Week and the $10,000,000 Lot

Parking Lot Pick-up

(re-run) Edith and her friend, Laura, were bored. It was Saturday night, and they’d been at their all-girls’ school, Holy Names, for a whole week. It was time to find some guys, to find a party. They pulled into Berkeley and headed for Fraternity Row. Laura spotted someone she had dated before and rolled down… Continue reading Parking Lot Pick-up

Spinach Salad, Fog and Smoke

A change-up in the routine is not always a good thing. I bravely ventured away from my regular meals and went to lunch during the pandemic with a friend the day after Labor Day. My Android phone couldn’t scan the bar code to get to the online menu, so my friend read my choices to… Continue reading Spinach Salad, Fog and Smoke

Shop Till You Drop

(re-run) We had already hit two thrift stores and were heading for a third. Then I remembered that Vickie wanted to go to the ones in Carmel. I turned onto Forest Avenue and took the winding highway 68 through the Monterey pines. It would lead to the new roundabout that would send the traffic north… Continue reading Shop Till You Drop

Do Nerds Laugh?

(re-run) Yesterday, at my bi-monthly massage at the chiropractor’s, Curtis the masseur asked me lots of questions to help the 55 minute session go by. I was chatting away as he rubbed the kinks out of my neck, shoulder and lower back, telling him this and that, until he came around to the big question,… Continue reading Do Nerds Laugh?

Crocodile Rock

(re-run) Friday evening there was an Elton John tribute band in the plaza. Since Yellow Brick Road is one of my all-time favorite albums, I thought, why not?  My youngest, visiting from Boston, had plans to see her friends in Berkeley. It had finally cooled off a bit, and the smoke from the wildfires wasn’t… Continue reading Crocodile Rock

Pandemic Friday

My friends are going out. They are eating at restaurants with no masks on, and they are sitting shoulder to shoulder at the table – not all from one household! I am chicken to do that.  I watch too much news and read too many newspapers. Yes, everything we do in life is a risk.… Continue reading Pandemic Friday

Romance Coast to Coast

Nicky went back to Connecticut to see his mother. “You’ve got to meet this cute Italian girl working in my office,” a friend said. “I’m only here for a week,” Nicky said. “My wife is in night class with a cute Italian girl,” another friend said. “You two should meet.” “I’m only here for a… Continue reading Romance Coast to Coast