The Judge

“Well hi Val,” was the typical greeting from Sam as he would wander up the stairs from watching baseball to find me sitting with his daughter. “Hi Sam.  How are you?”  “Just fine, Val,” was also the typical response.  He never complained about his health. 84-year-old-tie-dye-shirt-wearing judges are probably pretty rare, but for me, this [...]

We are the world.

Michael Jackson isn’t really my cup of tea.  And the circus surrounding his death puts me off.  Yet Michael Jackson remains an important historical figure for my generation and I cannot simply dismiss him with a ‘good riddance’ and be done with it.  Like it or not, Michael Jackson influenced the music of my time [...]

Without my Dad

Some days I don’t remember Dad is gone.  I laugh, play, work, complain, sleep, eat and dream all without remembering.  Then out of nowhere, the dad-shaped hole in my being opens up and swallows my breath.  It knocks me back, pushing tears into my eyes and dizzying uncertainty into my heart.  I don’t much like it. [...]

So much to say

My head is full of stuff.   The firing of Mike’s mom’s caregiver.  The failed bill that would send $700B to Wall Street.  The dedication of Alice Paul and Lucy Burns.  The betrayal of woman by Woodrow Wilson.  The last few days of summer.  And the upcoming Presidential Election.  We won’t talk about my stock [...]

Feeling crazy.

This year needs to be over.  I plan to celebrate Rosh Hashanah and see if I can trick my life into thinking it’s in a new year and we can just get over 2008. I don’t want to be depressed.  I don’t want to focus on the negative. I don’t want to be in drama and [...]