Loss.

 Most of you, if not all of you, know by now that my daughter (aka The Brine Queen) died unexpectedly on September 14th of this year.  These last several weeks have been painful and chaotic. We've all been devastated both emotionally and financially by this, and I've been struggling here financially and hosting my son-in-law …

A Political Sampler of the Far Right.

 This trip to Florida and back has been an eye opener.  From the people who lived in a trailer (not a mobile home, a trailer) and had a dozen Trump flags in their yard, to the sign that suggested we vote for Trump, Pence and Jesus in 2020, to the number of people with huge …

My Thoughts on the Upcoming Election:

Last night my daughter and I had a long discussion about the upcoming election. She didn't understand why I was so strongly supporting Biden, when she knows that Biden does not stand for the things I find most important.Just to be clear, I still consider myself a Warren Democrat, although I more often describe myself …

Backposting: a study in time dilation during the pandemic.

I have no idea how the time got away from me.  It's come to the point where Thursdays, for some unknown reason, no longer exist for me.  I'm always surprised on Friday to see it's Friday again.  The photos of Cabrillo Aquarium and the beach are photos I took July 7th.  I would have thought …

That’s no moon!

 This morning, around 7:30 I was walking the dog and admiring the soft salmon colored moon above the buildings of my apartment complex.  I wish I'd had my camera then, because now it's a lot brighter, but still... and here it is, around 8:30am, in San Clemente, CA, miles from the fires.  The air quality …

Only G-d and Bernie Sanders

 The pre-election cannibalism and pouting has begun among the Democratic populace.   Now that Kamala Harris has become the VP pick the knives hurled at Joe Biden for being racist, rapist, and not progressive enough are being hurled toward Kamala Harris for her criminal justice background, which highlights her as anti-Black and anti-trans.And while I don't …

5 Things to Remember This Election Cycle

 If your vote didn't count, they wouldn't be trying so hard to suppress it.  We're facing tampering with the postal service, shut downs of polling places, and unprecedented voter registration purges.  We need to fight back and claim our democracy, and bring out ever single possible vote to steer this nation away from the shoals …

The Cost

When  was about 11 years old, I worked at the Woolworth's at the plaza after school and weekends.  At the end of the week, I got my little envelope with cash in it, and on the front it showed the hours worked, the rate of pay, and the taxes I'd paid. I hated taxes.  I was …

The Oxalate Nightmare

So recently I got a new list of things I shouldn't eat for my kidney health.  The list came through suggestions from my previous urologist's office's department head at the hospital.  I took it pretty seriously, and got a little upset, because it does not match the list I got from my doctor last year.The …

COVID Coping.

I sometimes envy Cinnamon's ability to do absolutely nothing most days.  She really seems totally unperturbed by what's going on in the world around her: Politics, Pandemic, Protests.  She seems totally content to sit on the couch with me, snooze, and go for quick walks three times a day.These days I feel like I'm just …