Lyfting Me Up

We had a formerly unhomed couple set up housekeeping at our home. They did not ask permission, and now it appears they are here to stay. About a week ago I noticed that a Mourning Dove was trying to put some nesting material on a speaker on our north patio. I thought “That will never… Continue reading

I was listening on Friday morning to my favorite sports talk show on the car radio. “The guys” were talking about the end of school and all of the rituals that they remembered. The topic shifted to what we called Field Day—basically a time of relay races, frisbee throws, bean bag tosses and whatever kind… Continue reading

I just finished my first Long Covid Cohort with my Kaiser health care team. In September of 2021, I spent an 18–day stint in the hospital with a very severe Covid infection. In early December, after a pretty successful comeback from the battle, in which I got amazing medical care, I could barely get out… Continue reading

In the Spring of 1976 I made an impulse buy. In the week or so before Easter you could buy baby chicks that were dyed pink or blue. I am not sure where I was on a Saturday morning, but the store I was in was selling ducklings. I remember bringing the box home to… Continue reading

This past Monday I went to the orthopedic department of Kaiser for my bi-monthly meeting with the foot care nurse. It has been a nice benefit of follow-up after my stint in the hospital last year. Waiting rooms have their own vibe. There I sat, along with a number of folks who were all trying… Continue reading

On May 24th 1981, I loaded up my Toyota Tercel in Enid, Oklahoma to move back to my parents’ basement, where I would restart my life. In the previous two and a half years my marriage had ended and my brother Don had been killed. I was a mess. I walked away from what was… Continue reading

Sometimes my kids surprise me in ways that make my heart smile. My son Mateo is spending the week in Mexico City. He has joined a long time friend there to just play. A couple of weeks ago he shared with me about this upcoming journey. This opened up conversation about the six weeks I… Continue reading

My soul has finally caught up with my body. There is nothing like a 3000 mile, 13 day road trip,to test a 75 year old body. I got to see a number of sites that I had only heard about. The Salton Sea in California should not be there… but it is—all 30 miles of… Continue reading

In 1964 I became an indentured servant at the family business—Cleaver Carpet. I became the “assistant” to both the cleaning crew and the installers. Being the owner’s kid gave me very little perks, other than that I got to learn a whole lot about how people live—for $1.15 and hour. When we were working at… Continue reading

In 1958 my parents loaded up their 1957 Buick station wagon and pulled a 14–ft. Aljo travel trailer on the first of many road trip adventures with our family. The destination was the great Northwest. My dad, who was born in Bellingham, Washington, was like a salmon who had to migrate to the place of… Continue reading