Oh, look, it's 1956 & we are adorable, even with the geeky bangs.  I've got the dark hair,, you're the blonde.  I'm the oldest, but you're already taller than me.  There are only two of us & Mom & Dad are still married so they blow the big bucks… Read full post »

My ex-mother-in-law taught me how to make soup beans.

Evelyn was the Queen-of-feeding-a-large-group-of-hungry-men-on-the-cheap.  My father-in-law, Clell, the kindest most uncomplaining man in the entire world, was a farm laborer.  In 1970 he made $1.65 an hour, & he worked long hard hou… Read full post »

Yeah, it's looking like Spring here.  And I have plans today.  I'm going to get to all that crap in the garage that needs to be tossed.  I'm going to vacuum the old cat's room & hang that "Texas" movie poster in the living room & clean up the… Read full post »

My mom died on November 28th, peacefully.  My brother & I, at her side,  had moments earlier shared a philosophical discussion regarding the decline of country music, which then segued into how much he loves guitars & classical music.

In other words, we bored my mother to death.

And… Read full post »

AAAGGGHHH!  I just spent two freaking hours writing this heartfelt edited flowing piece about my MOTHER DYING! & when I hit Save Draft & Preview the whole freaking thing disappeared & the asshole Salon whatEVER made me LOG IN AGAIN & type dumbass crooked words so that they could… Read full post »

Mom is still hanging in there.  Miserable & pissed, she alternates between proclaiming there IS no God to begging God to kill her.  She swears like the construction workers she used to work with, & threatens to call the police whenever anyone tries to wash her.

Last night every half… Read full post »

So Mom is still waiting.  No death yet.  She LOOKS terrible.  One of her eyelids sticks  shut & she gazes at me with her one rheumy blue eye like some ancient Cyclops.  For the first week & a half she was mostly silent & sleeping & breathing four deep breaths,… Read full post »

I am sitting in the world's most uncomfortable recliner waiting for my mother to die.  She's snoring.  I keep waiting to hear the famous death rattle I've always heard so much about, but so far, nothing.

I'm not so sure she's really going to die.  The doctors all swear it's going… Read full post »

 I was hanging out with Mom at the Care Home yesterday.  We sat on the patio looking out over the streets & the hills & the pines & the cemetery.  Mom doesn't actually see any of this;  she only sees what her mind imagines which is usually cats,… Read full post »

This is a photo of myself & my siblings.  I'm the one in the back.  It was taken in 1965, probably the summer.  I have no idea why we are all -- including our dog, Laddie -- adorned with aluminum foil.  I posted this photo on Facebook, hoping that… Read full post »

Okay, this is too much fun.  I want to play!

First Prom Date:  I got asked to the prom by this boy named Ray who lived down the street but I had to turn him down because we didn't have the money for a prom dress.  Later I heard that Ray… Read full post »

Oh, not this again...another blog about flouncing away from Open Salon to work on the crap in my garage.  Except I am not even going to pretend that I'm going to clean the garage this time.  For one thing, it's like 110 degrees in the garage.  I'm not going… Read full post »

When my daughter was in Junior High she had to create an art project.  I think the theme was Women In History.  This pulled her an "A" -- Barbie as Joan of Arc.  (Although to be completely honest, I think this might be Barbie's younger sister, Skipper.)

I… Read full post »

This is my favorite memory of my dad:

We are riding down a two-lane highway in a Ford pickup.  I am sitting next to him & maybe I'm five.  Dad is smoking a Pall Mall & the speedometer is edging towards 100.  We are driving past the rice fields into… Read full post »

(this is a post in honor of my friend (of a million years) Robin's (aka bazz) birthday!)

Purple flowers in honor of your birthday, remembering how when I turned 50 you brought me purple-themed gifts -- a blouse, a wine cork, a small purse, candles, an oversized cotton bag,… Read full post »

Soooo...in my last post I wrote that I was taking a break from OS because I was behind in everything & needed to work on my novel & emptying the boxes of junk & memories in the garage.  I mentioned how I needed to clean out the overstuffed closets & pay… Read full post »

...because yesterday I saw a bumpersticker that said: 

Chaos.  Panic.  Disorder.  My work here is done.  

...and I totally identified with it.   I am behind in everything & my life is abrupt & messy & wonderful but slightly out of control.  … Read full post »

So it's Friday & there are six zillion things I need to be doing.  The garage is so packed with dusty boxes that there's no room for guest cars.  The closets are stuffed.  The house is full of cat hair & the carpets are filthy & I can't… Read full post »

Check this out.  Yesterday's temperature on the deck.

It is now unofficially Summer!  And I hate summer.  

 Okay, I should qualify that -- I hate summer DAYS.  I love summer nights.  Summer nights are good for sitting on the deck & watching for shooting star… Read full post »

I turned 58 last week.  Geo asked me what I wanted to do.  "Let's go to Yosemite," I said.  I have been "going to Yosemite" for 40 years now.  The first time was in September 1969 in a blue Ford van with my friend Kini.  I had long brown hair… Read full post »

In a quest for ratings -- any ratings! -- I've decided to pull out the big guns:  Cute kids, cats, Harleys, politics and trolls.  Enough! with the personal essays, the meaningful-to-me lists.  I'm selling out!  I can download an adorable photo with the best of them.  

 … Read full post »

...named Honey.  She was one of our babysitters.  She wasn't fun, like Rose-the-cowgirl who chain-smoked Marlboros and had a pet monkey.  She wasn't a big-boned red-haired poodle owner like Dot.  She didn't clean house like sweet Aunt Sally, or live in a tiny trailer, like plump d… Read full post »

I'm sad that Natasha Richardson died at 45 and I'm sad about the two people killed last week up on Highway 108 and the teenagers killed two weeks ago over in Mountain Ranch.   I hate that whole sudden death thing.  The driving-along-and-someone-drifts-into-your-lane sudden death, or th… Read full post »

So I really want to write a nice piece about climbing Table Mountain and gazing at the wildflowers, or last week's visit to Melvin Belli's grave.  But it's been one of those weeks. 

Our friends came up for three days, so we had to do a lot of eating and… Read full post »