writing
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CRY BABY, CRY!
I took this picture in my doctor’s waiting room because it made me sad. Even older people sit on their phones silently scrolling. We don’t talk to each other anymore. For someone who didn’t cry much as a kid, I’ve made up for it in adulthood. These days tears spill from my eyes, often over… Read more
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EN GARDE!
These medieval fencers are a regular sight at my local park. Watching them thrust and parry reminds me of lovers quarreling. But here’s the difference: fencers wear protective gear. Lovers have no such protection. When they go at each other, they are often defenseless. And just because men have 25% thicker skin than women does not make… Read more
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LOVE LETTER TO OUTRAGE
When I see injustice around me, my blood boils. A switch flips in my head and I go ballistic. Research says that we react most strongly to the things that personally affect us. Our immediate self-interest and personal relevance are the most powerful drivers of our emotional response. The premise is that since I was mistreated as… Read more
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PJs AND BIRTHDAYS
When the first freeze of winter hit, I pulled out my flannel PJs and found only one mismatched pair, which had a long-gone, elastic waistband. They were given to me almost 20 years ago. I did the math and realized that my next pair may well outlive me. So, I purchased these, so I’ll look… Read more
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by
in
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“OPTING OUT IS NOT NEUTRAL. IT IS PERMISSION.”
–MITCH JACKSON, LAWYER, AUTHOR, SPEAKER Given the events this week, I was not going to post, but Jackson’s eloquent wisdom gnawed at me. By now, you’ve seen the videos of Renee Good, the young mother of three shot dead by ICE agent Jonathan Ross, as she attempted to leave a protest in Minneapolis. Only seconds… Read more
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YOU GO FIRST
Remember in school when the teacher asked a question and you shrank down in your seat hoping he’d call on someone else? No one wanted to go first. Years later, at my very first dance, I quickly realized that waiting for someone to ask me could take forever. Life was too short to just stand… Read more
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The Bark & The Bikini
I found hundreds of these tree bark striplings lying in the gutter, covered with mud. They had fallen from a Manzanita tree on a populated street in La Jolla. Countless people stepped on them as if they were garbage, not noticing them at all. But their paper-thin delicacy and colors captivated my eye. After rinsing… Read more
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DO YOU SEE WHAT I SEE?
I saw this painting by Jorge Santos in a Santa Monica gallery recently and was absolutely captivated. Why? I’m not sure. Three people are packed together in odd juxtapositions with upside down dogs at their feet. They look spoiled, petulant and indolent. It’s riddled with hands and feet and flat out weird and I love… Read more
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RIGHT TIME? RIGHT NOW
They looked like the same pair when I slipped them on this morning in the dark garage. However, when I arrived in California and looked down, I was startled to see they didn’t match. Such are the joys of aging. When I get to the point where I look down and they still look the same? I… Read more
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LOVE IS BLIND
I just helped my 65-year-old client set up his first, online dating profile. Sadly, he stayed long past the expiration date of his marriage and is now starting over. Meanwhile, my youngest daughter has attended more weddings this year than I’ve been to in my lifetime. Statistically, 45% of those unions will end in divorce. That’s why… Read more
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by
in
AGEFULLY AGING 