How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. That's what I keep telling myself as I slowly, slowly, slowly, dejunkify the basement. Yes, even though we'd cleaned out and restored the basement to a lovely, pristine state, it devolved once again into a state of utter disarray. Boxes of books, silverplate, dishes, linens, books, and memorabilia from Mom's house; broken small appliances; piles of paper and magazines; even the goddamn bannister from... Read more →
Okay, so it's not exactly Pull Up Your Goddamn Pants, but please. Racer-back bras exist. Or am I hopelessly behind the fashion times? I mean, I've only just recently accepted the multiple-bra-straps and untucked-blouse-under-sweater-vest looks, so it's a distinct possibility that I am simply fashion backward. Still. Really? Really?? Location: Bethesda, Maryland Read more →
Joe and I tied the knot 31 years ago today! Here are ten things about that day. 1. It was an absolutely beautiful June day -- warm, sunny, and dry, just like my mom ordered. 2. The same priest who baptized me performed our wedding Mass. 3. We got married in this church. 4. The Silo Inn, where we had our wedding reception, was once called Martin's Dairy. My Pop would drive us out there... Read more →
Sometimes, when you least expect it... opportunity knocks. Who am I to leave the door unanswered? I was on the bus when I realized that the fellow sitting right in front of me was sitting on the waistband of his pants. I just knew that when he stood up to get off the bus, those pants would be my Sag Factor 10. Alas, someone stood right behind him and I unable to get the shot.... Read more →
Jim started it, LA continued it, and I'll jump on to the "Do You Remember...?" bandwagon. As a baby boomer born smack dab in the middle of that generation, I do remember stuff that my younger friends don't. For example, I do remember when milk came in glass bottles! I don't remember the bottles with the cream on top, though; by the time I was a kid, milk was homogenized. We got our milk delivered... Read more →
Honestly, I do not know how these kids manage to walk without full-on waddling. The crotch of this young man's jeans was almost at his knees, yet he managed to walk pretty normally. So I have to give him credit for that! Oh, and it may look like the jeans are higher than they really are. That small strip of white between the t-shirt and jeans? Why, underwear of course. Location: Van Ness Metro Sag... Read more →
Today is my mom's birthday -- she would have been 100 years old. There was a time when I thought she would easily make it to this birthday. What a celebration we would have had! Believe me, Mom would have made sure of that. For the last decade or more, her birthday celebration has consisted of a big meal out on the town with as many relatives as could make it. For several years she... Read more →
My mom used to wax nostalgic for her past, usually when confronted with some form of technology that she didn't understand or some behavior that she didn't agree with. "My world is gone," she'd sigh. At one point I asked her when she thought her "world" existed. She told me "Oh, the time around World War II." I was born in 1952 -- which means her world was gone by the time she had me.... Read more →
The first season of The Borgias is over, the first season of Camelot ends next week, and the first season of Game of Thrones is barreling towards its finale. I've watched every episode of each, some more than once because of my nasty tendency to fall sound asleep as soon as I go horizontal on the sofa. My whole damn family has this tendency, by the way. If the four of us were to gather... Read more →