Slumber Party with Baby Luna

Grandma is tired tonight. Lots of fun with baby Luna this afternoon and evening. We are enjoying a sleepover with our 22-month-old granddaughter. Currently, she is snoozing beside me in our bed. Sammie, the Scottie, is asleep at the end of the bed; Cordelia, the Corgie, is on the floor; Ray, the Grandpa is yawning on…

The Movie: “A Most Violent Year”

This movie, which stars Oscar Isaaks (Inside Llewyn Davis, Ex Machina, In Secret, etc) and Jessica Chastain (The Tree of Life, The Help, etc.) chronicles the life of an immigrant and his wife who run a heating oil company in 1982 in New York City, a violent year in the city’s history. Isaacs play a…

Congrats to Rachael: Full Scholarship to Chapman Law School!

I am very pleased and proud to announce that our youngest daughter Rachael has been awarded a full scholarship to attend Chapman University’s Fowler School of Law in Orange, CA starting in the fall, 2015. I am thrilled with the news of her admission, but the addition of a full scholarship moves me almost to the…

Anthology Piece Recently Published: My Mother and Her Pain

“Please don’t share our family tragedy,” my mother whispered to me while we stood in church together in Pottsboro, Texas in 1990. I understood what she was saying to me. “Please don’t tell these people. I can’t bear to deal with this now.” Tragedy was not too strong of a word. We had just learned…

Ceramics Class, Liz and the Full Moon

I am taking a first-ever ceramics class – slab, not wheel – and tonight was our third class out of ten. The teacher showed us some examples of coiled pots and here is one that I have done inspired by what she showed us. I am proud of this pot. I love that the lines…

Congratulations, Writing Students!

I am very pleased to announce that several of my writing students have received recognition for their work in the highly competitive Scholastic Artists and Writers contest, the oldest and most prestigious writing contest for youth in the United States. My students were competing with students from all the western states: California, Colorado, Hawaii, Montana,…

Disney Hall & the Super Bowl

Ray and I went to Disney Hall today and attended the performance of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 19 in F Major and Bruckner’s 9th Symphony. We also attended the talk before the performance, which tells about the composers and their lives and also the music being played that day. We were pleased to see that…

Ray’s Return from Texas

Ray is arriving in just a few minutes after driving all the way from Texas so, needless to say, this will be short. I will be glad when he is home safely. These cross-country trips with only one driver are a bit worrisome since I know that on our cross-countries, I am usually the primary…

My First Uber Experience

I tried Uber for the first time yesterday. I had to go pick up a U-Haul truck in far east Hollywood and since Ray was out of town, I realized I had to figure out a way to get there. I hitched a ride with a friend with whom I was having coffee to Santa…

A Quick and Delicious Chinese Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe

I made this soup last night and it is something that can be whipped up in no time. The key is to have this secret ingredient available: This concentrated chicken broth takes just a few minutes to prepare and is always delicious. The recipe goes like this: Saute in 2 tablespoons of olive oil: 2 cloves…