Password Insecurity Technology tricked us. The evolution of the internet and all the ease it offered to our lives came with a wickedly insidious condition. The internet became a crime-filled zone which required ever increasing vigilance. I remember a time when I had two codes I had to remember. One code, four digits long, was …
It’s In The Cards My first memories of Valentine’s Day are way back in kindergarten. There was a frisson of excitement as we heard about this holiday from the nuns at my Catholic school. Of course, there was a saint involved in this celebration, as in most other celebrations we were to have. In the …
It’s In Your Mind Yesterday had been uneventful. Daylight was fading to dark gray, and I was preparing to have a glass of wine when my husband’s phone rang. I could vaguely hear a mumbled male voice on the call, and there was a bit of gravity in both the tone and the dragging pace …
Death, Continued My cellphone rings and I hear a very low, urgent whispering. “You won’t believe where I am. Forest Lawn Cemetery! I’ll call you when we finish this appointment.” My friend Athena calls me later to fill me in on her cemetery visit. “We are making plans for our (her and her husband’s) burial. …
Intrusions A long time ago, in the 1970s, people did not have cellphones. A very few people had boxy “mobile” phones, but those were rare. Most people had one telephone number, and never knew who was calling. If one was single, as I was then, the phone was essential to one’s social life, as dates …
Sign Language My sisters still jockey for position in the caregiving of my mother. The situation has deteriorated into a category which could be deemed “unhealthy communication.” They no longer have positive conversations about daily issues. For instance, preparation was underway for a hand-off so that the main caregiver sister could resume her role after …
Changes People who agonize over the smallest decisions come to Lakeside on Lake Chapala and become mesmerized, and before you know it, they buy a house within days. It happens all the time. That was us. Twenty-one years flew by like a sweet dream, in snippets of blurry photographs. There are my husband and I, …
Abundant Joy We have had our hillside home here overlooking Lake Chapala for twenty-one magical years. It is hard to explain to someone how special it is here, unless you can show them in person. I once had a visitor who exclaimed upon first seeing the view of the lake from the mountain, “Tina Turner …
Politics, Religion, Toilet Tissue Visits to my mother in Louisiana are full of surprises. Two of my sisters take turns staying with her, and both are colorful personalities. I think my mother enjoys the minidramas that ensue as my sisters pursue their various interests. When we are with people outside of family, we have always …
Post-Pandemic Blues We’ve heard from Dr. Fauci that the “pandemic” phase is behind us, yet COVID cases are still occurring and one more surge could come this summer. I notice I’m still a tad jumpy around large crowds, where I grab my security mask, just to feel more protected. This reentry is not what I …
