We have just returned from spending the day in Ojai and Santa Barbara where we continue to help a woman sell her Western art collection and other antiques. To say I am pooped would be a serious understatement. That is at least a 2 hour trip one-way depending on traffic (which was heavy today). I…
Year: 2014
House of Cards = Addiction
I am going to post a quickie tonight since I must admit that Ray and I have swallowed the kool-aid called “House of Cards” and we have been watching the first two seasons over the past few days. Tonight we’re watching the finale for season two and since it’s almost midnight, the truth is I…
Smattering of Favorite Music: 1960 – 1969
I was thinking about the music that I associate with growing up. There is a lot that comes to mind, but I thought I might just put together a few songs that bring back big memories from my childhood and adolescence. This will be far from definitive, but it a spattering of what life sounded…
Robin Williams and a Few Thoughts on Major Depression
I was very sorry to read the news of Robin William’s death yesterday. What a sad ending for a man who has brought such joy into people’s lives through laughter. How ironic that such a “funny” man could end his life by his own hand, communicating to the world that his private world had become…
Wonderful Homemade Pizza Evening
We had dinner tonight at Liz’s boyfriend’s parent’s house in Hollywood. Ron made a homemade pizza dough from a Bobby Flay recipe, and cooked it on the grill. Cindy, Ron’s mom, made a homemade tomato sauce. Then there were loads of toppings to choose from including smoked gouda and mozzarella cheese, red onions, red peppers,…
May Light Perpetual Shine Upon You, My Friend
Today we had Peter Kempson’s requiem mass at St. Thomas the Apostle, Hollywood. He planned the whole thing with Father Davies after receiving his terminal diagnosis, and Peter told me that he was pleased with the readings and hymns that he had picked. He was right; it was quite lovely. I served as one of…
A Few Facts about My Favorite Fruit: Watermelon
Watermelon is my favorite fruit. In fact, I just consumed about a fourth of a watermelon a few minutes ago and I am currently staring at its rind. I am also very tired today after a long round trip to Ojai and Santa Barbara. I thought sharing a few facts on watermelons might be edifying…
Birth Order: How Has It Affected Me?
I am the fifth out of six children; technically, the fifth out of seven since my little brother, Robert, died just a few hours after his birth. I was 18 months old at the time of his death. From my perspective, there were two sets of kids in our family: the older kids: Leslie, John…
Childhood Best Friend
My best friend growing up was Patricia Butler. I met her when I was three and she was four, when her family moved to my little town and began attending our tiny Episcopal mission there. Patricia was the polar opposite of me in appearance: she had big blue eyes, snow-blonde hair and was skinny as…
An Unexpected Ending
The other day, I was headed out to Pasadena to see Sarah, Gregorio and baby Luna. Ray was already there so I was driving our old but trusty Jaguar, vintage 2003. I love this car. We bought it secondhand in 2006, and besides having low mileage, we were even able to talk to the mechanic…
20 Minutes a Day 