General
The best Christmas present in the history of best things
The cough is on the mend and my mind can turn to different, less germy ideas. Though we had agreed not to get one another Christmas presents this year, Gene and I both cheated. Using one of Hope’s connections, he got me tickets to the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of Hamlet, starring Patrick Stewart as … Continue reading
Wheezy Joe
Three weeks in Europe and not a blog entry to show for it. And you’re not getting one now. It was wonderful. Don’t mistake me. But I caught a cold abroad, and that’s pretty much what I’m thinking about these days. Because the cold soon passed into a dry cough, which then passed into a … Continue reading
Out the Milk
Leaving for the airport soon. It will be a 10.5 hour flight, nonstop, which is actually great because I am way behind on my annual goal of playing one hundred consecutive games of solitaire while listening to Rihanna and The Muppets. (Different artists, not a weird new cover band. Though I would pay good money … Continue reading
Yi cin reads
People like to ask how my writing is going. It’s polite and supportive, a nod to my chosen profession rather than an embrace of the totally valid other opinion (that I am a dilettante with no chosen profession who can’t get it together). Still, it’s a hard question for me to answer. I think it’s … Continue reading
What to do when you lose your passport before a trip
Eight days before we were scheduled to fly to Europe, I realized my passport was missing. Three days before we fly out, I have a new passport in hand. How did this miracle occur? For those in a similar position, or for the merely curious, I’m posting my experience. WHAT TO DO IF YOU -LOSE … Continue reading
Rumi at the Palace
Last night Katy and I went to hear Coleman Barks read some of his Rumi translations at the Palace of Fine Arts. I acquired one of Barks’ Rumi books the last time I was in Europe and it stabbed me in the heart a few times, as books occasionally do. Rumi was a thirteenth century … Continue reading
Things to do in London when you are on vacation and have purchased the perfect pair of comfortable boots to walk around in (you hope)
Now is the time of the impending trip when we realize just how many articles we foolishly signed up to write, to edit, and to assign before we go and we panic a little and start frantically setting up our phone interviews and then we give up and blog instead. Let’s stop focusing on the … Continue reading
The good, the bad, the Bebe
I recently bought a trench coat from Bebe.com. Online it was a gorgeous, pearlescent turquoise, but in person it was a matte green. It looked like the uniform of a policeman in the Emerald City. I elected to return it to the downtown store rather than paying shipping fees to return it by mail. According … Continue reading
Arabian Nights
I’ve always loved the story of Scheherazade, who told stories to save her own life. (I guess every writer loves this story.) So I was delighted when Michele agreed to go see The Arabian Nights at the Berkeley Rep with me last night. Part of my fascination with these stories is the florid way the … Continue reading
Greatest
Kris: [Walks into living room.] Whatcha doin’? Gene: Nothing. [Googles “kristen larson is the greatest.”] Kris: [Grins soppily at him. Glances back at screen.] Wha — !?