Getting Sidetracked

Posted on by

I can honestly say I’m not excellent at doing any particular thing. I’m a decent baker, though as the saying goes, it’s nothing to write home about. I’m okay at trapping feral cats but for the last 6 months, I’ve yet to rescue the last remaining cat from a colony of 37+ we’ve moved to safety. So I can’t claim bragging rights in that category either. I write, but sadly, I’m no Anne Lamott, one of my favorite writers.

On the other hand, the list of what I definitely can’t do is painfully long. Ask me anything in the technology realm and you’ll be staring at my blank expression. For starters, computers confound me; same with Wi-Fi cameras or understanding what a modem and router actually do. My poor co-worker Leanne is all too aware of this since she’s tried explaining these things to me ad nauseam and she, too, gets the blank stare. I plead ignorance.

My tolerant co-worker
Continue reading →

Making a Difference

Posted on by

I originally wrote this post in 2014. Seems like a good time for a feel-good story again…

So often in our feral cat rescue (Marin Friends of Ferals) it feels like we’re barely making a dent in controlling breeding. You think rabbits and mice are prolific baby-makers? Well, unaltered felines are like polygamists with 5 kids per wife, or maybe the Duggar family (19 Kids and Counting). They have no Off switch.

But the difference with cats is that they can’t control their mating and subsequent reproducing. No, I’m afraid this one’s on us. People refuse to spay and neuter pets for many reasons: they believe it will make the animal lazy and fat (false); some are simply against birth control; others just can’t be bothered. You name it, I’ve heard it.

Not a result of being sterilized
Continue reading →

Grandma Petey Retires

Posted on by

Here’s one of my oldest posts, originally written in 1998

Grandma Petey

My husband and I returned recently from a visit to Missouri. Five of Jim’s six siblings came from throughout the country to celebrate his grandmother’s retirement. At age 84, she’s anxious to pursue other interests.

Mary Peterson, (Petey to friends and family) spent the last 40 years as the hostess of the well-known Kansas City restaurant, The Hereford House. Can you imagine having one job since 1958 and never once being late or even missing work?  Me neither. Continue reading →

The Way We Were

Posted on by

This year marks 50 years since my besties and I joined a softball team. When I wrote this posting in 2016, I was 61. I’m turning 70 this year and we’re still going strong — although no longer on the softball field! Through all these years our relationships have continued, creating new memories yet never forgetting the way we were way back when. What fun we’ve had, and still have. So here’s to you Sue, Sharon, Mandy, Patty, Karen, Joan, Maria, Pam and Sheila. Looking forward to what’s to come.

albert park4

Last week some friends and I attended my godson Martin’s baseball game (an independent professional team) at Albert Park in San Rafael. Being there was a trip down memory lane. Thirty-one years ago these same friends and I stepped off the adjoining field for the last time after playing fast-pitch softball for 10 years. When we formed the team in 1975, I was the old lady of the group at age 20. Little did we know then what fun times awaited.

fun ahead

Sitting there watching Martin play brought back many fond memories. Insert music here: Memories, light the corners of my mind, misty water-colored memories of the way we were. Okay, enough of that. Suffice to say those 10 years together stretched into 40 (now 50). And we’re still going strong.

blog photo2
A few of the originals
Continue reading →

Confessions of a Sugar Addict, Chapter 2

Posted on by

If you didn’t read last week’s post, you can click on it (below) before reading Chapter 2 — also originally posted in 2014. Grab a cup of coffee and a donut, and enjoy!

sugar and treats

Not a whole lot has changed since I wrote Confessions of a Sugar Addict in 2014. And that’s why, for those of you who know me, I’m about to tell you something that will have you calling me a liar. Simply put, you won’t believe me.  Drum roll please…I have not eaten sweets in 119 days (and counting).

say what

I’ll wait while you recuperate from fainting after reading that. I’m sure the shock must be overwhelming. I’m going to get an apple while I wait…be back in a few. Okay, I’m back. Hope you’re feeling better now.

shall we continue

Yes friends, I’m almost sugar free. ALMOST being the operative word. I’m not a perfect human. I have my vices and the white stuff happens to be one of them. Precisely because I’m flawed means I will again one day eat chocolate. It’s a given. Like bell bottoms making a comeback.

bell bottoms 2

Continue reading →