Happy Birthday, Dad

Let’s see… 2013 minus 1928… You have to borrow from the one to make it 13 minus the 8. Okay, that’s 5. Then double borrow over to the 2 to make the second zero a 10, now minus the 2 and get 8… The 19s cancel each other out so… OMG! My father will be 85 years old...

Did I really write this?

Thirty-four years ago today, on July 12, 1979, I successfully passed the 4-hour oral examination to obtain my masters’ degree in education. I remember it like it was yesterday. In fact, I still have the unopened can of beer that was smuggled into Central Washington...

A real buzz-killer

Why would anyone knowingly put something in his/her body that could cause kidney problems, a bogged-down metabolism, obesity, more severe hangovers, cell damage, rotting teeth, and reproductive issues? That’s essentially the question my brother asked me when he told...

Time for one more good, long cry

Even as this is posted, the last group to bid Bob a fond farewell is gathering at his folks’ house. There will be a potluck, some memory sharing, and a bonfire and fireworks later tonight. Bobby was such a pyromaniac, he would love that his closest local friends will...

On being 18

My favorite nephew turned 18 today. (Okay, he’s my only nephew, but he’s a really fabulous kid, so he’d most likely be my favorite among thousands.) He graduated last month, at 17, just like his auntie did, and now the world is his oyster… That oyster phrase actually...