(re-run) The state is on fire, again. It seems that three of the last four years have been off the charts for wild fires. 2017 – Napa and Santa Rosa burned. Santa Barbara County, too. 2018 – Paradise, the town, was wiped off the map. 2019 – Because of heavier winter rainfall, the fires weren’t… Continue reading Laugh More, Worry Less
Category: memoir
Rainy Sunday Morning Surprise
(re-run) I am too cheap to pay $3.00 for a newspaper carrier to deliver the San Francisco Sunday Chronicle. Yes, I am a dinosaur. I still read physical newspapers, eight per week. When I discovered that I was being charged $6.00 for a $3.00 paper, I stopped my Sunday subscription and started picking it up… Continue reading Rainy Sunday Morning Surprise
Rescue Dog Month # 7
(re-run from 2018) Daisy’s purple collar is missing. She had it on when she got up, but an hour later it is gone, along with her license and I.D. tag with my phone number on it. Where could it be? And how did it come off? I’ve walked the entire back yard and haven’t found… Continue reading Rescue Dog Month # 7
Lovely Rita, Meter Maid
(re-run) Yesterday I spent most of the day in overly-metered Walnut Creek. The town of walnut orchards has turned into a buzzing destination for shoppers. It boasts a Nordstrom’s, Neiman Marcus (Needless Mark-up), Tiffany, Apple, Macy’s, Gap, Coach, Tesla, Pottery Barn, and every high-end store and chain store one can think of. People come from… Continue reading Lovely Rita, Meter Maid
The Hill That Would Not Hold
(re-run from 2024) My neighbors’ hill collapsed fifteen months ago in the crazy January rains of 2023. For months nothing was happening, and I concluded that a lot of guys had looked at the hill and had either refused to bid the job or had bid it way too high. A bulldozer appeared in November,… Continue reading The Hill That Would Not Hold
Three Stools Down
Tonight, driving home from my third Halloween party, the huge moon shining through wispy clouds, I realized that the bad feelings I used to have about some of the spots along the freeway are gone. My ex has moved out of state. I no longer have to fight for time at Christmas, and my out-of-town… Continue reading Three Stools Down
Butterflies in the Park
re-run from 2020 It’s the day before Halloween. I was able to walk my dog for the first time in two weeks since the stitches in my lower leg (melanoma) were removed yesterday. Pepper was happy to get out of the house but went back inside with the lure of a beefy treat. That meant… Continue reading Butterflies in the Park
Street Couch
In 2021, after bad Pandemic roommates in Boston, my youngest came back to California with a research contract job. She moved to San Rafael, into a dinky little place that was closer to the job in Novato than her hometown was. Her dad saw his Walnut Creek neighbor put a couch on the street, so… Continue reading Street Couch
Daisy Rescue Dog Month # 11
Just when you think the dogs have overcome the hurdle of who’s the boss, they have a brawl. Over a ball. Pepper set Daisy straight once regarding balls. Pepper weighs 55+ pounds. Daisy weighs 18 pounds. Daisy went for the same ball Pepper went for. There was fight. Pepper won. Daisy had to have Neosporin… Continue reading Daisy Rescue Dog Month # 11
Grandfather Clock
I am waiting for my grandfather clock to be delivered. It’s from my friend’s aunt’s estate. She didn’t want it. Her brother didn’t want it. It reminds me of my aunt and uncle’s clock in their house in Iowa. As a child, I’d spend the night with my cousin and listen to the clock chime… Continue reading Grandfather Clock
