Today marks the first anniversary of sheltering in place here in California. This milestone has me thinking about the last time I strolled into the pool across the street, unannounced, appointment- and mask-less. There was talk about shutting down and I wanted to swim a few laps just in case the pool closed for a couple of [...]
As you know, writing is a solitary profession. Writing groups and groups of writers can help combat the isolation and I’m lucky to have both–a weekly writing group as well as a writer’s collective to keep me company and cheer me on. The five women in my Paper Lantern Writers writer’s collective all share a [...]
A photo of my local gas station made it into the New York Times this week. It showed a bunch of cars lined up for gas as residents prepared for what’s become the deadliest month of the year. October is always warm and dry, but in the last few years things have gotten worse as [...]
Happy New Year! I launched into 2019 with a bad cold which had me couch-bound in a sea of crumpled tissues. Too bleary to act on ambitious resolutions, I watched other people achieve theirs by way of the popular Netflix series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo. Kondo is the spritely Japanese organization guru who encourages [...]
Bay Area Friends, It’s tour season and two of my favorite tours–the San Francisco Designer Showcase and the Garden Conservancy Tours happen this month. The Showcase House runs through May 28 and the Garden Conservancy Tours run in May and June in the East Bay, Marin, Santa Cruz and Mendocino. This Saturday, May 12, take [...]
The sun is hiding today. Taking a rest from all those brilliant days and exquisite sunsets we had through the holidays. I peeked outside at the mauve hellebores barely visible in the fog before scurrying back inside to pick up a new book someone thought I’d like for Christmas or an old favorite that nobody [...]
When my brother Bruce sent an email to the whole family telling us that this summer there would be a total eclipse of the sun visible from mom’s backyard, I thought “big whoop.” I mean, I’d seen a few partial lunar eclipses before and they were interesting but not life-changing. Nevertheless, a major celestial event [...]
Goodness gracious, it seems like forever since I’ve posted. Several readers have reached out to me wondering if things were all right in my world. Just letting you know that indeed they are. I’ve been traveling a lot, working on my book and best of all, welcoming a new grandchild. I’ve shared much of this [...]
This weekend I’ll be celebrating Easter with family and friends. We should have a break in the rain which means there will be a chance to point out the pink dogwood and white wisteria in bloom. Alas, the five hundred daffodils we planted in December are almost gone. I’m sorry they won’t be here to [...]
Happy Valentine’s Day! Hope you’re spending it with people you love doing things you love. MJ has a teaching commitment tonight so I made Valentine cookies for him to share with his students and we frosted them together after enjoying a pre-Valentine’s dinner out. Note that I spread the frosting to the edges. He tried [...]
