Mutton-head was supremely happy to see us again upon our arrival home Tuesday. She could not stop wagging her tail and wanting to be petted and have the ball thrown for her and be given treat after treat after treat. She acted as if she'd not seen us in...hours. It is the typical reception we get whenever we've gone out for the day. It was not something special, like we'd been gone five weeks. To her, it was as if we'd never really left. I've always been led to believe that dogs don't really... Read Full Story

While on vacation, a friend whom I sometimes do research work for was frantically trying to reach me. The problem? She had been awarded a project which she had not anticipated getting. How's that a problem? The client wanted me to meet with them. And I was not around, was I? No, I was about to go to Wales, to a little village on the northern side of the Llyn Peninsula, staying in a "chalet" which had been temporarily put on the site on which Pete's aunt and uncle were building a house. There... Read Full Story

After an eternity of traveling, we've returned to the land of super-sized homes, vehicles, sodas and credit card debt. Speaking of the latter, while the vacation is over, we'll be "enjoying" it in the weeks to come as the charges roll in. As Pete said to me the last night of our vacation, when he was safely home and I was with the kids in a small room near Heathrow, better that we're spending the money making memories rather than having it sitting in the bank. [Let's see how we find that... Read Full Story

1. It's been nearly five weeks since I read a "proper" newspaper. I'm thinking nothing has really happened in the world. 2. Reading the two newspapers Uncle Ken takes delivery of, I only know the goings-on of "Madge," AKA Madonna. 3. Oh, and I know that Angelina gave birth to a boy and a girl. 4. I'm starting to believe that my regular reading of my own two newspapers -- the Marin Independent Journal and the San Francisco Chronicle -- is what causes world crises. I'm thinking it's time... Read Full Story

We've been on our European vacation since mid-June. We won't be home again until toward the end of July. In that time, we've enjoyed loads of sun in France and mostly sun in southern England. We've been in northern England for about 10 days now. We usually see the sun in the early morning and then we rarely get another glimpse at it until later in the evening. In between those times, it rains. And rains. And rains. On a good day, it's cloudy. We have lowered our standards on what a good day... Read Full Story

My kids have never seen American Idol. I have never seen an entire episode. It's nothing personal, mind you. It's just that the show doesn't attract our attention. Daughter adores Kelly Clarkson, and she's aware that Kelly won American Idol, but that's still not enough an impetus to propel her to watch it. What the kids have watched repeatedly is the Shrek DVD, which has an extra where the Shrek characters perform on American Idol. That extra has been watched more often than the movie itself... Read Full Story

[Do look through the windows of the One Single Impression's poets' minds this week.] I have a "nasty" habit of poking around my neighborhood and looking through uncurtained windows. I've done this for much of my life, under the guise of walking many different mutts throughout the years. From those wanderings, then, come these 'ku. Glimpsing gone-by yearsas neighbors welcome babyhome amid balloons. * * * Passing old couplesitting quietly at night:is that my future... Read Full Story

There's a coastal town in Northern California which is drop-dead gorgeous. Few people live there, but many people want to visit. The residents, though, aren't too keen on having visitors. This reticence to be a tourist attraction is clearly evidenced by the stealing of the sign indicating where to turn off the Pacific Highway to find the town. CalTrans gets around to replacing the sign, and someone steals it rather promptly. We're in England, the kids and I, along with my mother. Pete has... Read Full Story

[My apologies to those sick of reading of my adoration of Bruce Springsteen, but when I saw the prompt for Sunday Scribblings this week, I knew there could be no other tale to write save this one. Do make sure you read of other chance encounters at Sunday Scribblings this week.] Before there were children, there was just me and another. We had the funds to do whatever we wanted, with little attention needing to be paid to any other people in our orbit. So when I heard Bruce Springsteen was... Read Full Story

1. When I left San Francisco for vacation, I weighed the exact amount I had weighed before I got pregnant with Daughter. Now? I'm not stepping on any scale, but I've surely put on 10 pounds. In France, it was cheese and cheese and more cheese. In England, it's chocolate and chocolate and chocolate. 2. I always thought vacation calories didn't count. 3. Having made it to Europe, I've picked up the lingo to some degree. At a restaurant in France, Youngest was complaining about having dirty... Read Full Story