friends and family road trip reunion: day thirteen: portland: books, street art, food
Portland is as advertised: an interesting city with a lot going on. We both look forward to returning, perhaps before or after a family visit. We got only a taste…
personal
friends and family road trip reunion: day twelve: ashland to portland
On our last day in Oregon, we met my mother and sister-in-law for breakfast in Ashland, finally getting to Brothers, a favourite of mine from our 2016 trip to the…
friends and family reunion road trip: day eleven: mostly waiting to see a vet, with some family time
Yesterday Cookie woke up with what appeared to be an eye infection. I was concerned that it might be conjunctivitis, which is highly contagious. We had a full day of…
friends and family reunion road trip: day ten: berkeley to medford
Yesterday, we got a short list of car repair places in Berkeley that are open on Sunday. Allan went out to try to get the electrical issue fixed, while I…
friends and family reunion road trip: day nine: friends, dogs, and views, plus some thoughts about future travels
When we went to the BART station to pick up our friend D yesterday, there was an unexpected surprise: a market! It was the Berkeley International Flea Market. A vendor…
friends and family reunion road trip: day eight: long-distance friends meet up in san francisco
Yesterday, after we dropped the pups at daycare, Allan and I took the BART into the city, but got off at separate stops. Allan was meeting a blog-friend (someone we…
friends and family reunion road trip: day seven: dodgers vs giants!
Yesterday, family and friends from different areas of my life were brought together, through our plans — and through baseball! We dropped the dogs at the daycare place in the…
friends and family reunion road trip: a story about the digital divide
I separated out this story, because I didn’t want to give the impression that it ruined our day — and because I wanted to properly explicate it. The events were…
friends and family reunion road trip: day six: san francisco
Ah, San Francisco, how I love you. I love the energy of this city, its unique beauty, its mosaic of people and cultures and vibes. Just being here today was…
friends and family reunion road trip: day six: ashland to berkeley
This morning, after packing up the gear and the dogs, we went to my mother’s place for a short visit before leaving town. She loves seeing Cookie and Kai, and…
family and friends reunion road trip: day five: hanging out in ashland and talent
On Monday, we started the day at the Ashland Dog Park. Kai and Cookie had a great time. It was their second time there, and they were more comfortable and…
family and friends reunion road trip: day four: birthday party at a winery
This was another big family day, and a wonderful one. We took Kai and Cookie to a dogsitter who we found through Rover, the Airbnb for dogs. She has a…
family and friends reunion road trip: day three: an amazing day in southern oregon
We’ve run out of adjectives to describe the day. Amazing, incredible, awesome. A celebration. A love-fest. It would have been special and meaningful any time, but coming after the pandemic,…
family and friends reunion road trip: day two: everett, washington to talent, oregon
I am happy to report that today was far less eventful. The most important thing was to get on the road early. We know from past experience (our first trip…
family and friends reunion road trip: day one: port hardy to everett, washington
Our epic road trip has begun! Excited? I’m over the moon. This was the trip we were supposed to take last year, but… covid. This year it’s even better: a…
in which my plus-size clothing works for me one last time
I recently lost a lot of weight* and am selling all my plus-size clothing. Over the years I have donated many items and sold many others. Whether to donate or…
happy birthday to me: in which i arrive at a milestone
I have been alive on this planet for 60 years. I don’t know how that happened. It doesn’t seem even remotely possible. Yet here it is. I am 60. I…
north island life: in which we buy a generator (when in rome)
Our new friend Here on Vancouver Island, frequent power outages are a fact of life. Obviously outages happen everywhere, but when high-wind storms come ripping off the Pacific, we’re the…
the return of a gardenette, plus worms (but no scary pics)
When we moved into our house, the grounds were spectacular. Even in this area where seemingly everyone gardens, the former owners were masters. There were beautifully designed flower groupings everywhere,…
reflections on a year of piano lessons by a dedicated (and untalented) student
The covid lockdown began on March 17, 2020. On March 20, I began piano lessons. I took piano lessons from age 6-10, before switching to violin (a mistake), then quitting.…