Imagine a white woman from Iowa teaching Spanish in a town that was one fourth Latino. Imagine coming into the classroom mid-year after a string of substitutes. On my first day, a student said, “You’re our 12th sub. How long are you going to last?” It was a brand new middle school in Ramona in… Continue reading I Wish You Would’ve Died
Build Me Up, Buttercup
(re-run) There’s a Geico commercial for motorcycle insurance that starts out with the introduction to one of my favorite songs – Build Me Up, Buttercup. Of course, I have to sing along. Buh, buh-duh, buh buh buh-duh, buh, buh-duh, buh buh buh-duh . . . Why do you . . . build me up, buttercup… Continue reading Build Me Up, Buttercup
Teaching in Nowhere-Nebraska Memories
After student-teaching in Caracas, Venezuela, and Des Moines, Iowa, at the local all-girls Catholic high school, I went to Spain for the summer to finish up my Spanish credits for my double Spanish-Elementary Ed degree, with a minor in teaching K-12. Then I was off to my job in Ashland, Nebraska, population 2000. The principal… Continue reading Teaching in Nowhere-Nebraska Memories
Weed Whacker Workout
(re-run) I’ve never owned or used a Weed Whacker. I’m an Iowa girl who pulls weeds by hand so they don’t come back. But this year is the exception. With record rainfall, the weeds are on steroids this spring. See photo. I ordered an electric weed whacker from my local hardware store since I didn’t… Continue reading Weed Whacker Workout
The Dog Who Thought He Was a Squirrel
When my middle kid went to college, I kept his Dachshund named Wiener. I asked him if he’d miss his dog at UCLA, and he said, “They have squirrels there, Mom.” As it turned out, Wiener thought he was a squirrel. Maybe not so much in the big marriage house, but when he got to… Continue reading The Dog Who Thought He Was a Squirrel
Philosopher at Ace Hardware
I was buying wood glue, potting soil and spray paint primer. The clerk asked how it was going and I said fine. I asked him how it was going for him, and he said he was over it, a weird response. Then I flipped over my bag of potting soil which had landed upside down… Continue reading Philosopher at Ace Hardware
Brain Fog, Dementia, or Something Else?
(re-run) I lay on the physical therapist’s table, running names of L countries from the cubby hole in my brain that held them. Laos, Lichtenstein, Latvia . . . Why couldn’t I think of the name of the country where my youngest had sneaked off to see, the summer after her four months in Jordan?… Continue reading Brain Fog, Dementia, or Something Else?
Leopard in a Tree and OCD
My girlfriend and her husband went on safari in Kenya. “You should do it!” she said. “It’s amazing! Just try it!” I have to admit that her photos were amazing – lions, lionesses, giraffes, elephants, some taken at very close range. When I saw the leopard in the tree photo, I had to ask how… Continue reading Leopard in a Tree and OCD
Another Dog Story
My water bill for the beach house arrived. It was $2500. Someone had left the hose running in the front yard. It could’ve been me. It could’ve been my neighbor. At any rate, I finally got the adjusted bill with $1900 taken off. Yes, I still have to pay $600, but that is much more… Continue reading Another Dog Story
Take It Away, With My Blessing
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
