So much to be thankful for
11/25/2008

So much to be thankful for

Here in Santa Barbara, in the United States of America, it's easy to forget how good we have it.  Ten days ago, more than 200 Santa Barbara families lost their homes in a carelessly set fire.  Yesterday, my husband lost a job that would have carried us through the recession.

I bombed my friend's birthday
11/23/2008

I bombed my friend's birthday

My friend Laura asked me and several other aspiring songstresses to sing at her 50th birthday party.  "Sure!  I'd love to!" I told her.  Nevermind that I hadn't been singing regularly for several months, nor that I've only sung publicly on a handful of occasions.  Since no one is going to pay me to sing professionally, I--like Laura--am thrilled to be ALLOWED to sing in public.

The quads are five
11/10/2008

The quads are five 

My sister's quadruplets are five years old today.  They're going to preschool, playing soccer, swimming, studying dance and taekwando.  Laila lost her first tooth, and they've had their first visit from the Tooth Fairy.  Together, they are a nonstop tag-team of hilarity and chaos.  I can't imagine life without them.  And yet five years and a day ago, I was afraid my pregnant sister was on a train destined for derailment.  I couldn't see how she, a single mother without a trust fund, could survive their arrival.  How wrong I was.

Breaking down the wall
11/03/2008

"Breaking down the wall..."

My son Hudson is a handsome, hunky 20-something with a young man's skepticism and aversion to authority.  His transition from childhood has taught him there's no Santa Claus, no Easter Bunny, and even the people you most count on can let you down and the country you want to believe is always right is sometimes, often, too often? wrong.