January is a confirming time for me but not without discomfort. I feel exposed and bare. The sun is harsh with fewer leaves to shade, protect, and hide but the month beckons a resolute beginning while appearing fallow. As I dust the bookshelf that held an abundance of votives this past holiday, I hold the last photo we took as a family just days before my mom suddenly left us on a New Year’s Day. I… [Read More]
The Rose Parade And Me
1975. Miss MyHomeTown, USA and our city float. My Rose Parade day began New Year’s Eve at 7 PM for preliminary judging. I arrived at the float building tent in full costume that had been rented from The Western Costume Co. in Hollywood. I took my place on top of the float and depicted the scene of the artist’s rendering. On Dec. 26th the float decorating had begun. For the past 4 years I had been a volunteer with my… [Read More]
…And On The Seventh Day…
Today is my crash day. Yesterday would have been but an English breakfast with kippers awaited us in Pasadena with my brother’s family and their new in-law additions from the marital acquisitions this past summer. It is nice having 2 permanent additions to the Mac clan. A lovely sight for our family. The day after Christmas was delightful, the kippers, even the water retention from the sodium overload and the riveting game of Cranium. Nothing like seeing my eldest very… [Read More]
The Mourning After
I made it. Last night was the anniversary of my dad’s sudden passing. I was 18 and a freshman in college like my youngest son. Eventhough my dad was much older than I, the thought of an ironic fate had crossed my mind over the last couple of months. I think that is natural when a mortal benchmark is present. I wasn’t concerned but nevertheless a part of me was glad to get past the remembrance of the night and… [Read More]
Life Over The Last Week
3 big dinners two of which I hosted. The Mad About Plaid Family Lowland Games Day After Thanksgiving Extravaganza were a smashing success.Why didn’t I take pictures?? Hearing from son2 before he left yesterday to go back to school… “Thanks mom for making my first trip back home so wonderful. The food was so good and you made the house look so cozy with all the decorations. It makes it hard to leave.” I sent with him 4 sandwiches and… [Read More]
Thoughts On Blogging
When I began blogging late one night last January my heart raced. I had no idea where I was going. I just knew I had to begin the journey. That is one thing I believe we share, the excitement of creation in our own journalistic world. People often express quite eloquently what blogging has meant to them and I easily follow the template laid before me. Perhaps because I am trying to find a new place in my life… [Read More]
Sugar Daddy Ken
The Real Mattel Deal. Part of the Palm Beach Barbie in~crowd. West Highland Terrier included. The official name of the doll is Sugar’s Daddy Ken. Sugar, being the terrier but people are calling him “Sugar Daddy Ken.”There is also another controversy.Some think Ken is clearly a Palm Springs Ken.I concur. Naturally, Ken would not be seen without seasonal accoutrements ~ swim trucks, non-glare broad spectrum UV blocking shades, sandals, SPF 30 sunscreen and designer bottled artesian water. Surprisingly, there is… [Read More]
What I Learned At SCP Yesterday…
I was at South Coast Plaza yesterday. It is an outing. This is what I learned: The sales staff at Tiffany’s are courteous, friendly and professional. She gave me a blue bag to take home although I shipped my gifts. The sales staff at Ralph Lauren’s are snobby, cold and aloof. I wanted to tell the sales girl, “Honey, you may be 5’11”, thin as a whippet and twenty-something, but you’re the one working on a beautiful Saturday for minimum… [Read More]
Our Honeymoon in New England.
Three weeks of total abandoned bliss. Leaf peepers extraordinaire. Covered bridge hunters. Newlyweds. Need I say more? The Arlington Inn ~ VermontWe have very few pics of us taken together since we were mostly out driving around seeing the sites and not many people could focus my real deal camera.I had a cold here. Hence the red nose. You say ‘antihistamines with an alcohol chaser’ like it’s a bad thing. I used my wiley womanly ways to force him to… [Read More]
Our Wedding .
Twenty six years ago today I became your bride and you,my husband. What was a beautiful friendship for nine years became a walk down the aisle on this day. With the dawn of October 8, 1983 came a soft rain and grey skies. I thought of the saying, “Happy is the bride the sun shines upon.” I was worried there was no sun to shine on me and this was an inauspicious omen. At 4 o’clock the stained glassed windows… [Read More]