Chapter 59: Summer 1949 • Sonora, California ~ Coming out of the Sonora Library (the library and the church tied for first place as Claudia’s second home), one of the nuns recognized Claudia and stopped her and to pat her seven-year-old head. “What a pious child... Continue
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As per usual, we’re rushing into adopting new technologies without considering the true costs or ramifications. The explicit order, that which is intended and achieved, masks the presence of the implicit order, that which is unintended and remains hidden for a while. In the case... Continue
It’s not easy to maneuver relationships, let’s face it. It’s scary to talk about what’s bugging us, even embarrassing sometimes. Whether family, friendships or partnerships, we are re-learning how we “attach” or “disengage.” At least some of us are. Relationships are delicate, “a thing,” an... Continue
The recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm that a web designer is entitled to refuse to create a website for a same-sex couple’s marriage on religious grounds is problematic. Not only were there no actual clients who requested the web designer’s services,... Continue
Were you one of those special children who knew exactly what you wanted to do for a living? Many of us didn’t know what we wanted to be when we grew up. For me, the problem was the question. A more engaging one is “How... Continue
Is today’s anti-woke movement just a continuation of the anti-hippie movement that began in the 1960s? At that time, the collision between Flower Power and Pentagon Power split America into two cultural camps that have been at odds with each other ever since. The divisions... Continue
The Board of Supervisors approved a $2.3 billion budget for the 2023/2024 Fiscal Year. I am incredibly grateful for the hard work of our budget staff in the County Administrator’s office, and our CAO Christina Rivera, for guiding us through the process. Some highlights from... Continue
Chapter 58: Summer 1949 • Sonora, California ~ As Sonora was a backwater with no Catholic school, five Franciscan nuns in black habits and white wimples were imported every summer to bring the local schoolchildren a proper religious education, and for five weeks the nuns... Continue
On the evening of the Summer Solstice, after walking my dog and watching the sunset, I spotted a coyote trotting along the fence line between the Montini property and open space. To watch, I pulled over next to the pasture where cows were settling down... Continue
And now we celebrate – with booze, barbecued dead animal parts, & high explosives – the birth of the most Powerful Country On Earth, created by a document painstakingly handwritten on parchment with a sharpened quill dipped in the best homemade ink in a time... Continue