Social Correspondence -

A Family Vacation

A long-time friend, dating back many decades, once quipped that “family vacation” is an oxymoron. Whether one agrees with this assessment or not, managing hours of travel with young children can be a challenge. A long-planned visit with family in Washington, D.C. had the fortuitous timing to include a road trip to view the total solar eclipse. It was, for me and millions of others, an awe-inspiring event, one that will not happen again in the continental U.S. for another 20 years. Fallingwater, PA This was the right kind of family vacation and road trip, the…

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April 15, 2024

books / novels

The Book Club

The secular book club, or reading discussion group, is a long-standing American tradition, dating back to the late 18th century. Earlier versions of reading groups were generally religious oriented. Today, 88% of participants in private book clubs are women, almost two thirds of whom have advanced degrees. Women today account for 80% of all fiction sales. There are many forms of book clubs. Publishers of popular books sometimes will include a discussion guide, printed in the book itself. There are national reading groups, touting specific books recommended by celebrities, such as Oprah or Reese Witherspoon. There…

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April 1, 2024

email / Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail / Post cards

Postcards in the Mail

Sending picture postcards in the mail is a tradition of somewhat recent vintage. And now, even as the practice fades, who does not enjoy receiving a postcard in the mail? Postcards and notes in the mail The development of postal cards dates back to the late 19th century in Austria/Hungary and shortly after, in Britain. Such cards were standardized in format and did not feature images. Postcards, on the other hand, in which the design features a picture or image on one side, with space for the recipient’s name, address, and a message, on the other,…

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March 17, 2024

Uncategorized

A Winter Drive Along the Coast

Winter has arrived in California with a vengeance, not a good time for a drive along the coast. Lashing rains, heavy winds, and floods make this an unlikely time to undertake a road trip. The arrival of a dear cousin, weeks earlier than anticipated, changed everything. My cousin Laurene, despite having lived in Switzerland all of her adult life, is the closest relative I have to being a sister. We are long-term correspondents, friends from childhood on, and my good fortune to spend a week with her was due to her recent grievous loss of her…

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March 4, 2024

books / novels / Uncategorized

Love Story

A good love story can fill one’s heart, and such was the experience of Saturday’s performance of Marguerite and Armand, a San Francisco Ballet premiere. First created by choreographer Sir Frederick Ashton for the Royal Ballet, Marguerite and Armand is a classic piece first danced by Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev. The iconic pair danced this love story for the San Francisco Ballet in 1964, one year after it was created. What a performance that must have been! This year’s performance by the SF Ballet, however, did not disappoint, performed by Missa Kuranaga and Joseph Walsh,…

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February 14, 2024

city living / Volunteer

Refuse Refuse: Building Community One Piece of Trash at a Time

Refuse Refuse is a volunteer community effort to keep the city clean, founded by San Francisco resident Vincent Yuen in 2021. In the first two years, the organization removed 526,110 gallons of trash from our neighborhoods. With a background in sales and marketing, Yuen became a stay-at-home Dad to two young children during the pandemic. Recognizing the need to get them out of the house, he took them for daily walks for exercise and fresh air. After spending time on the streets in his own neighborhood, he realized that refuse was a problem. Yuen believes that…

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February 7, 2024

books / mystery / newspapers / nonfiction / novels

Books and Reading

Books and reading are a lifelong habit for me. While not every book I read (mostly novels but some non-fiction as well) has lasting literary value, reading is a wonderful source of entertainment and pleasure. Toward the end of the calendar year, critics, writers, readers, and review publications select their top books of the year. I took a quick look at some of these lists and selected a few of the titles I had read and enjoyed over the past year. The Washington Post 2023 “Best” list included a category for mysteries and thrillers. And sure…

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January 31, 2024

books / city living / Politics / Voting

Censorship and Book Banning

Libraries across the country are under threat, with a significant rise in censorship and book banning. Library directors, individual librarians, and community leaders have all been under attack, including calls for resignation, and even bomb threats and other acts of violence. Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Eureka Valley/Harvey Milk Memorial Branch Library, San Francisco 2010 Two of the principal reasons for banning books are titles with LGBTQI content, or books deemed to include sexual content, especially those written for children and youth. Books written by women of color are also a frequent target. During the school year…

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January 18, 2024

city living / Grandparenting / Travel

Celebrating a New Year

Twenty twenty-four has a certain ring to it, one that rolls easily off the tongue as we enter a new year. It sounds like a promise of a good, solid year. But life can be volatile and unpredictable. Let us hope for continued economic prosperity and democracy, a healthy planet, and a more just and peaceful world. To celebrate the New Year, I hung out last week with family in our national Capitol, Washington, DC. My grandson, 19-months old, woke up each morning in the next room, chattering to himself. A sleeping cat occasionally shared the…

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January 5, 2024

Uncategorized

It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

In homage to the late Fred Rogers, it’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood. The sun is shining, the air is crisp, and there is not a rain cloud in sight. The temperature reads in the high 50s, but thanks to the lack of wind, it feels more like 70. Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood was an extraordinary television program for children that aired on public television 1968 -2001. He spoke not only to children in his ever-calming voice, but to parents and people of all ages as well. Without being preachy, he shared lessons about how to…

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December 29, 2023