Category: memoir

The Six Stages of Thanksgiving

Posted in California, cleaning, dancing, dusting, exercise, food, friends, holidays, humor, live music, memoir, relationships, ThanksgivingLeave a comment

(re-run) I am having Thanksgiving at my house today for nine or ten people. I say that because my brother-in-law may or may not show up. There is lots of football to be missed if he comes ninety minutes north to my house.  It will be me, my three kids, my two sisters, my niece… Continue reading The Six Stages of Thanksgiving

Cleaning for Company and a Bleach Bottle

Posted in bleach, Christmas, cleaning, handy woman, hedge, memoir, Oak, small stuff, Thanksgiving, tree hugger, trees, writingLeave a comment

Thanksgiving Day is fast approaching. I still had to clean the sewing room for my daughter, who is coming for a short visit from the East Coast. I also emptied out my office so that I could get a twin mattress in there when all three of my kids, plus one husband, are here for… Continue reading Cleaning for Company and a Bleach Bottle

Another Brush with Nature

Posted in California, cell phone, guardian angel, humor, memoir, mountain lion, nature, nine year old, ocean, outdoors, police officer, relationships, summer, worstLeave a comment

(re-run) My beach town has a state-run conference center in it, with rustic buildings designed by the architect, Julia Morgan. It’s what got me here back in the late 80s and 90s, attending a writer’s conference next to the ocean. Over the years. I’ve seen brown state-issued signs posted for mountain lion sightings. I’ve never… Continue reading Another Brush with Nature

The Robin and the Chrome Bowl

Posted in Alzheimer's, birds, brain, California, care giver, caregiver, dogs, garden, humor, memoir, nature, peace, relationships, sisterLeave a comment

(re-run) Every morning, as I sit at my kitchen table putting up my blog post and sipping on strong tea, a robin comes near the back porch to meet its reflection in an upside-down chrome dog bowl. The robin does a little dance in front of the bowl. The reflection does a dance back to… Continue reading The Robin and the Chrome Bowl

Child of Rock and Roll

Posted in 45s, 78s, Bohemian Rhapsody, Eagles, Elvis, Isley Brothers, LPs, memoir, records, rock and roll, song lyrics, songs, songwriter, stereo systemLeave a comment

Being born in the fifties, being a child in the sixties and becoming a teen-ager a year after the Summer of Love and the year before Woodstock, I straddled two decades of great music with a foot in each. As kids, we danced to Elvis records in Debbie Harvey’s basement, which was way cooler than… Continue reading Child of Rock and Roll

Porch Pirates, Poinsettias and Peaches

Posted in animal adoption, best, board and care, burglaries, California, caregiver, holiday weekend, holidays, humor, last, memoir, neighbors, pet, relationships, Thanksgiving

(re-run) The joke going around on social media is that if you want to get rid of your junk, put it in an Amazon box and leave it on your porch. It’s not that funny around my neighborhood. Porch pirates are everywhere this time of year. Neighbors are sure to tell each other when they… Continue reading Porch Pirates, Poinsettias and Peaches

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

(re-run) I read a great memoir about a woman’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… Continue reading Behind Closed Doors

Keeping Musicians Going During the Pandemic

Posted in Facebook, livestream, memoir, music, musicians, pandemic, Paypal, snail mail, VenMo, virtual happy hour, virtual tip jarLeave a comment

(re-run) I am a dancer, a singer, and a music lover. When all the summer outdoor concerts were canceled in 2020, I grieved for weeks.  Then I decided that my goal during the pandemic would be to fund the musicians, so that they wouldn’t quit playing and get a real job. Many musicians quickly learned… Continue reading Keeping Musicians Going During the Pandemic

Why Seniors Shouldn’t Multi Task

Posted in 911, beach, dogs, eggs, fire fighter, house fire, memoir, multi-tasking, neighbors, stop signs, stove, thrift storeLeave a comment

I’v been mutli-tasking my whole life. Until today. No more. And this is why. I spent the last two days working with my handy woman/gardener/housecleaner at my beach house. We cleaned and organized the garage, donated furniture and stuff with her truck and moved rocks around in the front yard.  She left this morning, and… Continue reading Why Seniors Shouldn’t Multi Task