Today my youngest daughter Rachael, age 21, asked me if I would teach her how to make her favorite meal: stuffed shells. She wanted to ask three of her girlfriends over for dinner here at home and serve them stuffed shells, salad, French bread, and homemade strawberry frozen yogurt. “I need to learn how to…
Category: Writing
The Storm
Lightening jags in the dark sky “I never meant to,” he says. Strong winds quake the nearby oaks “So long a wait,” she says. The air swirls with sweet promise “I’m sorry,” he says. Raindrops ping on the tin porch roof “At last,” she says. Thunder booms and rattles the windows “Forgive me,” he says….
Daughter Liz and a Trip to See What Family Law is All About
Today I went with daughter Liz to one of the high-rises in Century City to talk with a family friend who is a successful divorce attorney. No, Liz is not married so that’s not the issue; she is trying to decide what area of law to pursue. Our friend showed us around his 9th floor…
The Day in the Life of a Half-Sick Person
Day Three of being sick, or rather, Day 2 ½ since I came down with that humdinger of a headache late afternoon on Sunday. Today I got up, went downstairs, talked to my middle daughter before she headed to school, checked my email, then came upstairs and went to bed. I slept until almost noon….
Headache Blues
I am sitting in the tv room, the ceiling fan whirling; Sammie, our Scottie, asleep on the couch. I have a quilt over my legs; despite the mild temperature, I have a chill. Yesterday, I came down with a splitting headache that sent me to bed, nauseated, at 8 pm. Today, I have been up…
A “Cool” Secret
I am sitting in an overly warm living room at my round glass table with a big fan aimed in my direction. I can see the bushes outside swaying in the breeze, but the cool ocean air appears to be only out there, not making its way through the windows and doors of our house,…
The Milky Way, Coyotes & the Orange Grove
Last night Ray and I drove to our orange grove in Ojai and slept in our tent under the stars. The sky was clear with just a sliver of a moon so the stars were bright and it was easy to see the Milky Way sprinkled across the sky. What a glorious sight that is….
Flash Memoir: “High-Top” Memories
When I was growing up, I had a problem buying shoes. My feet were small and wide, and in my little Texas town of 7,000 it was not always easy finding shoes that fit me in the local shoe stores. This meant at the very least traveling 25 miles over to Sherman, which had a…
Flash Fiction Prompt: He Said/She Said
Flash Fiction Prompt: The two “characters” should disagree about an issue or subject and their dialogue should have a subtext, an emotional truth that is operating on a deeper and perhaps hidden level. He said: I thought you were going to the market today. She said: Why do you say market instead of grocery store? …
Our Day in Palm Springs: Swimming, a Test-Drive & Movies
Today, I started out with a swim. The temperature of the water was perfect at 8 am. Just slightly cooler than body temperature. I swam underwater, on my back, on my side, and on my stomach (the crawl), then sank down to the bottom and popped back up, over and over. Just like when I…
