Category: Spain

The Best Ten Dollars Ever

Posted in allowance, babysitting, beer, biking, Campfire Girls, car, dad, memoir, newspaper, siblings, Spain, want adsLeave a comment

When I was a kid, I walked everywhere. I went to a Bluebird or Campfire Girls meeting a few blocks away from home, and one day, on the way back, I saw a pale green leaf fluttering on the street. I picked it up, un-wadded it and discovered it was money. A ten-dollar bill. When… Continue reading The Best Ten Dollars Ever

Peace Corps Fail

Posted in dogs, memoir, Midwestern, Peace Corps, postal service, relationships, Spain, teaching, travel, Venezuela2 Comments

(re-run) It was in the spring of my first year of teaching when the call came. I was at Greenwood Elementary in Greenwood, Nebraska. I had applied to the Peace Corps the year before. They had just seen my application. They wanted to fly me to Chicago for an interview that weekend. They gave me… Continue reading Peace Corps Fail

How God Figures into the Pandemic (Coronavirus)

Posted in China, church, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Europe, Facebook, God, Italy, lockdown, media, memoir, news, pandemic, shelter in place, Spain, virus, Walter CronkiteLeave a comment

(re-run) While scrolling through Facebook this morning and consuming my simple breakfast of a packet of Belvita cinnamon breakfast biscuits and a cup of fake coffee, I saw a post from a high school friend back in Iowa, who said that the media is out of control. I am here to say that without the… Continue reading How God Figures into the Pandemic (Coronavirus)

If Only I’d Known

Posted in 2020, brain, college, flirting, hindsight, hindsight is 2020, medications, memoir, Monica on Friends, Monk, OCD, risk, risk averse, Spain, VenezuelaLeave a comment

As they say, hindsight is 2020, which is referring to your vision, not what year it is. As in, your vision about what happened in the past is pretty good, now that you’ve had time to look at all the angles and analyze it. Looking back over my OCD life, I now understand that it… Continue reading If Only I’d Known

Car Shows, Men, and Elvis

Posted in beer, Carmel, cars, dogs, Elvis, exercise, humor, memoir, Monterey Bay, Pebble Beach, relationships, Spain, Study abroad, wineLeave a comment

(re-run) It’s funny how memories of one thing lead to memories of other things happening in the same time period. Like the Twin Towers falling, or JFK getting assassinated. Or Elvis dying. Today is the anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death. Forty-two years ago, I was stepping off an airplane from Spain (by way of Morocco).… Continue reading Car Shows, Men, and Elvis

How God Figures into the Pandemic (Coronavirus)

Posted in China, church, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Europe, Facebook, God, Italy, lockdown, media, memoir, news, pandemic, shelter in place, Spain, virus3 Comments

While scrolling through Facebook this morning and consuming my simple breakfast of a packet of Belvita cinnamon breakfast biscuits and a cup of fake coffee, I saw a post from a high school friend back in Iowa, who said that the media is out of control. I am here to say that without the media,… Continue reading How God Figures into the Pandemic (Coronavirus)

Peace Corps Fail

Posted in dogs, memoir, Midwestern, Peace Corps, postal service, relationships, Spain, teaching, travel, VenezuelaLeave a comment

(re-run) It was in the spring of my first year of teaching when the call came. I was at Greenwood Elementary in Greenwood, Nebraska. I had applied to the Peace Corps the year before. They had just seen my application. They wanted to fly me to Chicago for an interview that weekend. They gave me… Continue reading Peace Corps Fail

Car Shows, Men, and Elvis

Posted in beer, Carmel, cars, dogs, Elvis, exercise, humor, memoir, Monterey Bay, Pebble Beach, relationships, Spain, Study abroad, wineLeave a comment

It’s funny how memories of one thing lead to memories of other things happening in the same time period. Like the Twin Towers falling, or JFK getting assassinated. Or Elvis dying. Today is the anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death. Forty-two years ago, I was stepping off an airplane from Spain (by way of Morocco). I… Continue reading Car Shows, Men, and Elvis

Loneliest Study Abroad Ever

Posted in church, college, friends, humor, Iowa State University, memoir, relationships, restaurant, Spain, travel, vacation1 Comment

After three months in South America and six weeks of student teaching Catholic high school girls, I headed to Burgos, Spain, with 30 students and a handful of professors from Iowa State and the University of Iowa. It would be my way of earning the final credits of my dual degree. Linda, a high school… Continue reading Loneliest Study Abroad Ever

My Autumn Travels

Posted in Africa, beach, best, British Colombia, California, care giver, Colombia, Dachau, Denmark, Ecuador, Facebook, France, Germany, Hawaii, humor, India, internet, Italy, Machu Picchu, memoir, Mexico, Monterey Bay, Norway, Peru, Spain, Sweden, travel, vacation, VenezuelaLeave a comment

I am in India, then Hawaii, then Europe, then Mexico.  I have seen monkeys and camels, but no tigers. I have seen the Taj Mahal.  I am having the dead skin on my feet bitten by little fishes. Then I am touring a castle in Germany or visiting a beach town in Italy.  I can… Continue reading My Autumn Travels