I don’t understand the allure of tattoos. Why desecrate one’s body? Our bodies are a miracle held together by the largest organ, skin. Best to stay natural. But tattoos are common now, so I try to keep an open mind. Except when someone posts a picture of a guy with all sorts of lines tattooed … Continue reading Inked
Category: My Life: Retired in Silicon Valley
Taking the Train
The southbound 12:07 eased out from the San Francisco station, and I slowly relaxed in sync with the turning wheels. The station had been nervous-making, hectic and crowded except for the one corner that a homeless soul had commandeered while he methodically scratched up one side and then down the other side of his abdomen. … Continue reading Taking the Train
I Remember One Week in a June
I forgot––when I picked up that flat box, the last one on the Farmers’ Market table barely filled with green grape-like gooseberries, remembering all the times my mother had mentioned gooseberries and trying to remember what she said about them and then excitedly telling my husband that I definitely wanted to buy it so he … Continue reading I Remember One Week in a June
Stones Not Collected
Stones, my favorite keepsakes. When my suitcase is not at the weight limit, stones make a nice little travel remembrance to bring home. Not from a National Park, mind you. And I'll never take a piece of lava home from Hawaii. Here is why. When I read my Stones story (link) at the Wednesday afternoon … Continue reading Stones Not Collected
Stones
Home from Greece, jet-lagged, I move like a robot. I empty my suitcase, filling the laundry basket. From a corner of my luggage, I pull out a small plastic bag that I had stuck there and then forgotten. Stones: a pure white one, a couple striated with the gray-blue of a cloudy sky, and another, … Continue reading Stones
A Bar Not As Good
The Clark Bar looked so inviting on the shelf, until I took a bite. Not as good: childhood sweets don’t taste the same sixty-five years later. The candy bar at $1.29 was the cheapest thing I could find in the Bass Pro Shop, a store so huge that even 14-foot rowboats stacked outside look small. … Continue reading A Bar Not As Good
Toilets
It happened just last month, in the ladies’ room at SFO: I had no more than sat down on my paper-shielded seat when I heard a waterfall in the adjacent stall. I looked under the partition to see a gusher of urine flowing freely and loudly onto the tile floor. No feet or legs visible. … Continue reading Toilets
I Hate to Shop
I walk all around Macy’s. Nothing is worth taking the time to try on. I need a casual outfit that can be dressed up a bit, something that looks “with it” as we used to say. We will be in Ohio in another few weeks for Irv’s 50th medical school reunion, and I can’t wear … Continue reading I Hate to Shop