Sunday, June 7, 2026

     Bright sun early and then the fog drifts in the morning. Warm day or cold day? Just don’t know. I like to get dressed when I first get up and then go to the kitchen to put together my coffee and cereal. Birds moving around outside in the bottle bush tree.

     My old roommates from years ago visit in the late morning.  We have a lot to talk about, mostly sharing our current lives. I love hearing about their travel experiences and their medical experiences. Yep I read books and listen to friends’ life experiences. I live vicariously. And sometimes I have a lot to say.

     The nature photographer took my car for its smog check as required by DMV. My 18 year old Honda Element passed once again.

     I am reading PLAINSONG by Ken Haruf, quite different from my usual detective stories and Sci Fi novels. Good to slow down my reading. We continue to watch MINDFUL MURDERS and CLARKSON’S FARM in the evening. And we still have a dangerous government.

 

Saturday, June 6, 2026

     At the last minute I am asked to pick up a friend at the Power over Parkinson center. I am ready for an adventure. I struggle to actually find the building. Driving slowly, I check out the many RVs parked on the road. For decades this road has been a safe place to park and sleep. People without homes still struggle to live in our community. Struggle to be invisible.

     I pick up our delightful friend and return her to my house where her husband is busy helping my roommate build containers for the backyard farm.

     In the evening, I finish reading book two of ON THE CALCULATION OF VOLUME. I finally realize it is a Science Fiction book. It is so close to reality in a strange way. Book three is waiting at the library for me.

    We watch two more episodes of MINDFUL MURDERS.  I feel weird laughing at the violence in this show. And yet it is compelling. And then we watch episode one of season 5, of the delightful CLARKSON’S FARM.

 

Friday, June 5, 2026

     So I am sitting on the passenger side of my car. Another car has parked too close to my car. I can’t get into the drivers seat of the car. I feel trapped and defeated. A middle aged man comes to the car window in this crowded parking lot. I explain I can’t get into the driver’s seat.  He tries and is just barely able to squeeze in.

    He tells me he is here with his family at the park. His wife just had her kidney removed with robotic surgery at Stanford Hospital. I say, me too, but here Monterey. He pulls out his cellphone and shows me a picture of his wife’s diseased kidney in a surgery tray. I wish I had a picture of my cancerous kidney. I was never given one. We talk about kidneys and surgeries and work and life. His wife is 62 and I am 85.

     He drives the car out to the street for me.  I am able to drive home.  I am so grateful for his unexpected kindness. So very grateful. I am exhausted when I get home.

     I watch the first episode of season 5, CLARKSON’S FARM on prime. I love this show. The silly workers, the beautiful farm land, and the sheep. Later we watch a couple more episodes of MINDFUL MURDERS. A quirky , sometimes funny, German series. I am in the middle of reading ON THE CALCULATION OF VOLUME 11 a novel by Danish author Solvej Balle. A strange compelling 7 book series.