(re-run) I took social security two years ago. Don’t buy into the hype that it’s better to wait. I won’t start losing money on my decision until I turn eighty. By then I’ll have Medicare and won’t be paying $22,500 a year for health insurance. “How’s retirement?” you ask. I am busier now than ever… Continue reading So This is Retirement?
Category: friends
Almost Toast
(re-run) Marlene and her friend Beth came out to California from New Hampshire after college to work for Bank of America. They each made a new friend, and each new friend brought another friend to the party (plus one more) until they were a group of seven recent college graduates, living in the city of… Continue reading Almost Toast
DUI Date
(re-run) Lesley was a college freshman at UOP in Stockton when a big football player type guy asked her on a date. Lesley had already met his roommate, so she thought she was safe with Chad and said yes. Chad took Lesley to a party, but when his roommate came up to say hi to… Continue reading DUI Date
Ruthie Ann’s Designing Man
Ruthie Ann worked as a graphic designer in Cortez, Colorado. She met an architect named Edmond through her position on the design review board. He was about twenty years older but smart and distinguished looking with his gray hair and eyes. She liked the work he’d done around the Durango train station. Edmond asked Ruthie… Continue reading Ruthie Ann’s Designing Man
Prince Not So Charming
(re-run) He was dressed as Prince Charming. I was dressed as a 1930’s nurse from Samuel Merritt Nursing School in Oakland, admittedly a weird Halloween costume, but the woman at the estate sale had practically given it to me after I bought $200 worth of antiques for my vintage shop. My friend, Nancy, her niece,… Continue reading Prince Not So Charming
Snow Day
(re-run) Many of my Medicare friends are moving or contemplating moving to retirement communities. A big one close to my town is called Rossmoor. It’s a huge gated community built back in the sixties and contains 6700 residential units surrounded by open space. At least one resident in each unit must be at least fifty-five… Continue reading Snow Day
It’s a Jungle Out There
(re-run) I saw a coyote yesterday during my strength and training class at the senior center. There are so many people in the drop-in class that I have to stand right in front of the glass doors, with a view of the hills filled with wild turkeys, birds, and now Wiley Coyote. My back hurts… Continue reading It’s a Jungle Out There
The Chicken Church and Other Tableside Travels
(re-run) I used to travel, back in my twenties before marriage, before kids. Now I stay home with an older sister (who would otherwise be in a nursing home), one normal dog, and one little weirdo dog. But I still get to travel. My friends are in Austria, Indonesia, Hawaii, Tahoe, and Guatemala, as we… Continue reading The Chicken Church and Other Tableside Travels
The Way to a Man’s Heart is Salad?
(re-run) Bruce was a lieutenant in the navy, and he lived with four bachelor roommates. They’d been out to sea for six months and were back for six months. A guy could save up a lot of money in six months, so Bruce was able to buy a silver Jaguar XKE convertible. He nicknamed it… Continue reading The Way to a Man’s Heart is Salad?
Parking Lot Pick-up
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 the… Continue reading Parking Lot Pick-up
FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER! 