Thursday, September 3, 2026 

    Yesterday, up the street the water main pipe breaks.  I receive several notices. Cal Am is working on it.  Going to take 25 hours to fix.  Maybe you will not have water or maybe you will have water. Maybe your water will be brown or maybe not. Cal Am is unsure of the consequences. The city is offering us free showers at the sports center. So far my water is fine.

      We meet at my favorite public garden, Larkin house garden, surrounded by tall stone walls. The streets sounds are muted.  The garden has comfortable benches and adequate shade. A perfect place to talk with a friend.

     My friend asks me what is my problem with walking. Not my sore knee, I think it is my eyes. I have distance glasses for driving and watching TV and another set of glasses for reading.  Neither are good for walking. My brain hasn’t adjuster to walking with glasses. I am afraid of falling and use my cane to get around. Not sure how to solve this.

     I am liking the novel, THEO OF GOLDEN even if it is an unbelievable story. Lots of kindness. When I am alone, I watch Britbox’s BLUE LIGHTS series about the police in Belfast. So much pain and crime in the story. A compelling series for me.  Canada has officially renamed the San Andreas Fault to “Donald Trump’s Fault.” Geologists objected at first, but then admitted pretty much everything eventually becomes Donald Trump’s fault anyway.

 

 Wednesday, September 2, 2026

     A month ago, I call the MOW number and talked to a pleasant woman who looks up my file.  I asked to increase meals delivery to 5 days a week. I wait and nothing happens. I make up stories in my mind, about why I am still only getting 3 meals a week.  My fault, their fault, the stars’ fault. A month later I call again and make the same request.  The stars are on my side this time and I am now getting 5 meal deliveries a week.

     An old friend comes by in the morning and we discuss life and difficulties. Death and dead bodies. The usual talk between old people when young people aren’t around. Young people talk about sex and we talk about dying.

     The house cleaners come every two weeks.  The same couple have been helping me for years. It feels like magic when they leave and my house is back to a familiar order.

     I start reading a friend’s copy of the novel, THEO OF GOLDEN. At first I am not sure I am going to stick with it.  By page 80 I am committed. My favorite TV show now is the Australian series, THE AIRPORT CHAPLAIN. I like other shows but when I am alone, I return to this one. We are bombing Iran again. Europe is having a killing heat wave, floods and fires are rampant. I want to blame it all on our incompetent president.

 

Tuesday, September 1, 2026

     Late at night my bedroom skylight glows. I am half awake. What happened to the fog? At first, I think the light comes from a parked car.  It’s the moon. This morning the fog and smoke are back.

     Bowls of fresh tomatoes are on the counter.  Who ever visits gets a bag full.  And still there is more to pick. My roommate is a master gardener. And she is winning the war against gophers. There are still some tall sunflowers by the back fences.

     I finish reading ALL WE HIDE, a long detective novel.  It has one plot point that doesn’t ring true and my mind fixates on this part. It is a worthwhile book except that one plot point. I argue with myself.  Maybe it is me misunderstanding how life works.

     My old reliable friend with his antique yellow pickup truck comes by. His dental appointment is cancelled so he has time.  I had started fearing he might have died.  But no, he is alive and talkative.  I wonder if I will be the first of these friends to die. In the evening we are still watching the same TV series.  I am ready to start some new shows.