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

Neighborhood Pack Rat

(re-run) You know our kind. We save everything, just in case. I might need that someday. I’m going to wear that size again. That thing on the side of the road still has use left in it, and it’s free. That has a good memory for me. Who keeps stuff that evokes bad memories? No… Continue reading Neighborhood Pack Rat

Poop on the Patio

(re-run) It’s been raining ever since 2023 started, pretty much nonstop. We aren’t used to this in sunny California. We’ve been in a twenty-year drought for well, twenty years. Usually Seattle gets this weather, not us. I can’t walk the dogs. I can’t work in the yard. But I can feed the critters and watch… Continue reading Poop on the Patio

The Absurdity of It All

(re-run) The world is spinning out of control. 2. Senator Ted Cruz asked a federal judge to rate picture books as to whether or not they are racist. 3. Angry local vandals are slapping Fuck Biden bumper stickers on the Priuses of liberal-leaning senior citizens (me). 4.  Medicare is sending checks for twelve cents. 5.… Continue reading The Absurdity of It All

The Universe Is Laughing, and the Joke’s On Me

Down in my little beach town, I used to share a property line with an old lady. Six years ago, I asked her to split the cost of a solid fence between properties. She refused, saying she didn’t need a fence. I had an escape dog, so I needed it and paid for it. A… Continue reading The Universe Is Laughing, and the Joke’s On Me

Daydreaming on a Dog Walk

(re-run) I get some of my best writing ideas while walking my dogs. My brain is free to think while my body is exercising. I am not listening to music or staring into my phone. I am enjoying the view. Today I walked Pepper, my almost four-year-old lab, while Daisy stayed home where she feels… Continue reading Daydreaming on a Dog Walk

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

Daydreaming on a Dog Walk

(re-run) I get some of my best writing ideas while walking my dogs. My brain is free to think while my body is exercising. I am not listening to music or staring into my phone. I am enjoying the view. Today I walked Pepper, my almost four-year-old lab, while Daisy stayed home where she feels… Continue reading Daydreaming on a Dog Walk