Category Archives: Zero to Sixty in One Year

You learn a few things over the years

 So, at 40, how much life knowledge had I accumulated? Some.  Taking a break from the aftermath of the fire to reflect on things I wish I’d known sooner. (Inspired by Nora Ephron, who did it first and better)                                                                                                                                                                                                       Curly hair will always be curly, no matter what. Using sunscreen all theContinue Reading

When the Going Gets Tough…

Yes, the tough get going–but in my case, the tough also have a big party. My fortieth birthday came barely a month after the fire that destroyed my house and my neighborhood. My husband had planned a big party for me (not a surprise party–we’d already had enough surprises), and people managed to track himContinue Reading

The Fire Next Time

I guess I’ve been writing about the fire that destroyed our home and our neighborhood in the Oakland Hills for almost twenty years now. I just spent a year writing about it for my master’s thesis.That’s a lot of words. Sometimes pictures do a better job of telling the story, so there will be pictures… I’veContinue Reading

Madam President: The Storm Before the Storm

I imagine the smoke-filled room: a group of fat cats sit around a table. Their shirt sleeves are rolled up, they puff on stumpy cigars, their foreheads are slick with sweat. It’s getting late; the hours tick by while the discussion gets heated. Voices get louder and the shouted comments are laced with profanity. FistsContinue Reading

Mommies, Part 2

The Moms in the Mountains, continued. Captured at the kitchen table: (front) Lisa, Cindy, Chris; (back) Jo, Sara, me. 1998             In my imagination, I can take the trip with my friends to the cabin in the Sierra foothills any time I want. A group of women on the lam, families left behind for aContinue Reading

For Dearest Mommies, Part 1

No, not Mommy Dearest– it’s Dearest Mommies: A tribute to some special women who came into my life when I was in my mid-thirties. I don’t really remember the first time we met.  You know how it is with long-time friends– you feel as though you’ve always known each other.But there had to be thatContinue Reading

1+1 does not equal 2

Why is this woman smiling? She has a secret… (Apparently, I wrote but did not publish this particular post, just saved it as a draft for some reason. So time travel back with me to 1980…)  One plus one does not equal two?Well, that’s what my pediatrician said when I told him I was pregnantContinue Reading

Time to Move On…

…and I’m already a little behind. (Cue the wisecracks from my kids.) I’m supposed to flip to the next half-decade on the 14th of the month. But, hey–my rules, so I can break them again. Before I move on to the next five-year stretch, when things get really interesting, I need to get a fewContinue Reading

What Goes Up Must Come Down

Gravity: it’s the law! And it works on a lot of levels…but the summer after James was born, I decided to challenge the law on my own terms. Be careful what you wish for The T-shirt says “Go Wild,” but the face says, “I’m bored.”We were on vacation at Donner Lake and I was feeling,Continue Reading

Reese’s Pieces

 My shirt was a gag gift from a friend, received sometime after Myles was born in 1980. It was orange, like the candy wrapper, and had “Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups – Two Great Tastes!” in big brown letters across the front. This was back when I might actually wear a T-shirt with something written onContinue Reading