Category: neighbors

The Sunday After

Posted in #MeToo, aging, best, California, Christine Blasey Ford, daughter, girlfriends, mass shootings, memoir, neighbors, parents, party, rape, relationships, sexual assault, sleepover, worstLeave a comment

(re=run) No dogs were walked, no outside balls were thrown, and no outdoor chores got done, including painting my new white locking mailbox gray to blend in the neighbors’ 45 year old boxes, and cleaning up the hedge and pine needles strewn across the greenbelt next to my property. Yes, it seems silly to have… Continue reading The Sunday After

Neighborhood Pack Rat

Posted in Amazon, antique store, Coronavirus, Costco, Covid 19, Depression, elastic, fabric, face masks, garage, grandma, memoir, neighborhood, neighbors, pack rat, recycle, scavenger, sewing, sewing room, shelter in place, social distancing, thrift storeLeave a comment

(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

The Turquoise Trailer and the Homeless Couple

Posted in camper trailer, camping, dogs, easement, flower bed, homeless, January, land survey, lawyer, Monterey Bay, neighbors, property line, railroad, shared driveway, storms, USPS, winterLeave a comment

(re-run) My little beach house sits on land bought back in 1929 from the railroad company.  The old deed shows the purchase price of $25.00. For some reason, the original owner didn’t want to buy the land up to the railroad tracks. Now, 95 years later, the land between my back fence and the old… Continue reading The Turquoise Trailer and the Homeless Couple

Take It Away, With My Blessing

Posted in Africa, beach, Dress A Girl, dresses, Eiffel Tower, fabric, French, hoarder, memoir, neighbors, non-profit, Philippines, seamstresses, serendipity, tea cups, thriftingLeave a comment

My neighbor at the beach is a hoarder, but people who live in glass houses . . . We had a talk one day about it on our shared driveway. She was an only child, and her single mom would move around a lot, throwing away her daughter’s toys every time. She lost all her… Continue reading Take It Away, With My Blessing

What to Do instead of Going Online

Posted in animal rescue, architecture, beach, books, cookies, dogs, ghosts, going online, ice cream, internet, memoir, neighbors, painting, thrift store, VictorianLeave a comment

(re-run) It’s amazing once a person takes the internet out of the daily equation, just how much she can get done. And how she doesn’t miss it all that much. And how she has time to write about not missing it. As technology goes, I could take it or leave it. I still shop at… Continue reading What to Do instead of Going Online

New Guy in Town

Posted in beach, Brad Pitt, Carmel, celebrities, famous people, Hollywood, JK Rowling, memoir, movie, neighbors, Pebble Beach, Sully, thrift storesLeave a comment

(re-run from 2022) I fell in love when he played the cowboy thief in Thelma and Louise. He’s still a heart throb, only eight years younger than I am.  And now he’s bought a mansion in a town down the road from my little beach house.  I read it in Carmel magazine this week. His… Continue reading New Guy in Town

Things That Go Flash in the Night

Posted in 911, burglaries, car, dogs, flashlight, memoir, neighbors, yard workLeave a comment

I was so tired from all the yardwork that I didn’t sleep well. I had tried to heat up the cold beach house, first by opening the windows and letting in the warmer air, and then in the evening, by turning on the heat. The thermostat wasn’t working and indicated I needed to replace the… Continue reading Things That Go Flash in the Night