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…
Ojai in the Moonlight
We are spending the night in Ojai tonight. This will be quick since reception can be sketchy. The night is chilly, probably 45, and the moon is bright. Our dogs are snuggled up in bed with us. The night air smells sweet with orange blossoms and the only sound is the ribbit of a frog….
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…
With a Little Help from “TED”
I watched a Ted Talk yesterday that my daughter Rachael recommended. I realized when I was watching it that though it was entitled, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action” by Simon Sinek, the information could be applied to my approach to writing my novel. The gist of Sinek’s talk is that successful companies like Apple start…
Sweetness Amid Sorrow
Twenty-nine years ago today, I was crossing the hall from the bathroom to the bedroom at my friend Patricia Butler’s house in Austin when I heard the distressed voice of a news commentator on television as he reacted to the unexpected explosion of the space shuttle Challenger less than two minutes into its launch. I…
20 Minutes a Day 