The Life in My Years

An anthology of life

“As with many traumatic experiences, they were anguished by their memories and haunted by shame for something that wasn’t their fault. Shame is a cruel thing. It should rest on the perpetrators but they don’t carry it the way victims do.” ― George Takei, They Called Us Enemy I pass them frequently on the recreation …

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This year, after a 2020 COVID cancellation the NCAA Basketball Tournament, aka March Madness, has returned and is winding down towards crowning a winner. This year, America has been enduring another version of madness in March. Don’t order a pizza or dip into the nachos for this madness, because this is all about a month …

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Indulge me for a few moments while I waste my time. There was another mass shooting in America yesterday. It was the seventh one in seven days. Hell, mass shootings have become so ho hum that I only knew about two of them; the shootings at the Atlanta spas last week and the shooting in …

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“I’ve got some bad news and I’ve got some good news. Nothing lasts forever.” ~ Kate McGahan, author. The “where were you when” conversations. You know the ones. Somebody asks, “So where were you when…? The when is always one those consequential events, usually an unpleasant one. Life’s moments that leave stains that won’t wash …

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Rush Limbaugh died last week. No prayers and very few thoughts (at least not positive ones) or as my favorite blogger Eden Baylee noted to me “tots and pears.” Not so sure about pears but I’m always up for some Tater Tots – with a splash of ketchup of course. It’s said that we aren’t …

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“You play to win the game. Hello? You play to win the game. You don’t play to just play it.” ~ Herman Edwards. I’ve been watching the second Trump impeachment trial, nearly gavel to gavel. I did bail out on some Friday’s session and the arguments being laid out by Trump’s attorney Michael van der …

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“There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch.” Everything has a price. I’m not giving away anything really tangible here. The “free” in the title of this piece refers to “free-flowing.” Random thoughts; aimless; catch as catch can; spitballing. Even remnants o’stuff that never made it into posts. But bear in mind that everything …

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The atmospheric river was flowing earlier this week. Atmospheric river; that’s weather reporter speak for a gully washer that slams in from the Pacific. Before the storm hit I put whatever I could in a shed or in the garage. Whatever was left I covered with tarps. The storm crashed in and the tarps flapped …

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Today, for only the second time that I can remember I watched a Presidential Inauguration. That wasn’t necessarily by design. This is the first inauguration held since I went into retirement. The other inauguration that I watched was in 2008, the inauguration of Barack Obama, America’s first Black president. I was working that day but …

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Now what indeed. The January 6th uprising was quelled but America has forever still before it. Where to? How do we get there? In my previous posts about that dark day (one written as events were unfolding) I declared that I was never afraid for American democracy, as fragile as that democracy now seems after …

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Mumblypeg ~ A playground game where boys stand with their feet shoulder width apart whilst throwing a pocket knife point down between their own feet. The boy who gets closest wins. Getting the knife in your foot is an automatic win. It’s over, but it’s not. It won’t take days or weeks or months for …

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I was ready to publish a light post to start the New Year. An attempted coup in America has compelled a more serious post. Today started out as a civics lesson; both houses of Congress convene and officially count the Electoral College ballots, a ceremonial final act in America’s drawn out electoral play. In normal …

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Some holiday traditions are forever. Take for instance, the big blue recycle bin; it’s overflowing with cardboard and there’s a pile of cardboard that won’t be binned until the trashman comes and empties the bin. There’s one prime rib bone left in the fridge, the tree is molting and is no longer being watered and …

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Most of California is back on lockdown and, with the exception of take out or delivery, restaurants are once again shut down. Months ago, when the pandemic was still a novelty I applauded the complete restaurant closure and criticized the torch and pitchfork rabble that was protesting the closures. With the resumption of the restaurant …

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bologna noun bo·​lo·​gna | \ bə-ˈlō-nē also -nyə, -nə \ : a large smoked sausage of beef, veal, and pork Point Pinole Regional Shoreline is 2400 acres of scenic liberation located on the San Pablo Bay shoreline just north of the City of Richmond. The park’s web of trails leads you through meadows, past wildflowers, …

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The signs at the beaches here in Central California, caution people to be aware of sneaker waves; “Never turn your back on the water,” they warn, lest a rogue wave wash over you and carry you out to sea.  Here in the Bay Area we know all about sneaker waves, those rare large waves that …

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It’s taken 232 years but America is on the very brink of losing the boasting rights of being a true Democratic Republic. We may have been the first, back in 1788 when the Constitutional ratification was completed. Even with some built in flaws it was historic; a landmark in world history. We’re in danger now …

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It’s been ten days since the election saga began and at times it seems that we’re worse off than we were when this all started on November 3rd, election day 2020. I’ve been away from this blog since the 6th. In fact, I’ve been physically away having been on a short road trip to Lake …

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It was 3:30 A.M-ish when I peeked at my phone, shielding the light from Cora in order to avoid an elbow in the ribs. Joe Biden had taken the lead in Georgia. Well, that was like the wee hours of Christmas morning when you hear the rustling of wrapping paper downstairs and sleep becomes the …

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I woke up this morning at 5:30 with the expectation that we would know the election results. I let Lexi out, looked down at the tuner and asked myself, “Do you really wanna know?” A quick glance revealed no real change from last night. “What the hell,” I whispered at John Berman. (The family was …

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