October 1, 2019 I met my late husband on a blind date in 1952, the year Adlai Stevenson (Democrat)  (some of you are saying “Who?”)  was running for President against General Dwight D. Eisenhower. (Republican)   We were both political junkies  – Democrats -and since he was still in Dental School,  I had to be a […]

“Hello, Emily. This is Billie. (as if I didn’t know) Are you sitting down?  I just did something monumental, and you’re the only person I can talk to about it.” “Yes, I’m sitting down.” I respond, hesitant to tell her that I had just been studying all the artifacts in my living room, wondering  how […]

 I worship Steve Jobs for his brilliance and creativity and the Smartphone. (about his persona, another time) However, for all the ways in which  he changed the world — not so much. He did indeed change it both for the better and the worse. And the totality of that Ying and Yang has often been explored but I […]

I was always a big fan of “reality.” My relationship with Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy didn’t last very long. Myths, magical realism, religious stories based on fantasy were fun but always overruled by my skepticism and to some extent — distrust. Having adults tell me lies made me feel like my intellect was […]

June 6, 1944 –“D-Day” – 75 years ago. Allied troupes invaded the Normandy beachhead in France. — who remembers? We had been officially “at war” since December 11, 1941 — and the victory we all prayed for seemed deadly far into the future. I was 17, and on that day, I was walking down the […]