I can hear the neighbors above me. Well, one neighbor and someone who I assume is her guest. They’re talking, but I can’t make out what they’re saying – just muffled voices. I was trying to read when they walked in to her apartment. I don’t think I’ve ever heard the neighbor below me. How…
Temporary Gratitude
New Year’s Day was a good day. I opened the blinds to beautiful colors in the sky. After breakfast I sat on the sofa with a cup of coffee and read/wrote. I talked and caught up with my parents. I texted a former colleague to wish her a happy New Year. I bought a book…
A Hell of a Good Year…
Another flaw in the human character is that everybody wants to build and nobody wants to do maintenance. Kurt Vonnegut – Hocus Pocus Patches of light and dark gray marble the morning sky. So begins the last day of 2023. How will tomorrow be different? How will next year be different? What dreams might we…
My Fading Interest in Football
Yesterday morning I went to a bar where I half-ass watched the Penn State football team lose in the Peach Bowl. I used to be an avid Penn State football fan. I was born in State College, and I’ve been going to the games ever since I could walk. The rituals and routines around Penn…
Powering Down
Over the Christmas holiday, I downloaded and played the game Civilization (Civ for short). It’s a turn-based, strategy video game. You play as the ruler of an empire/civilization. You have to discover technologies like the wheel and iron working and space flight. You found cities and build monuments (Stonehenge, the Oracle, Sydney Opera House). The…
Ethical Monogamy
ENM. I’m not sure what it might stand for in other circles and contexts, but in the context of dating and relationships, it stands for ethically non-monogamous. It’s an umbrella term that describes several non-traditional relationship lifestyles (polyamory, swinging, open relationships, casual sex). There’s some debate over using the word ethical (and probably the word…
Test Run
Last night, a little bored and scrolling through social media, I came across an ad for the San Francisco Half Marathon. Scenic course routes in Golden Gate Park and along the Pacific Ocean. Hmmmm. It’s on February 4. That’s not much time. The next thing I googled was can I train for a half marathon…
Why I keep Looking in the Fridge
There are a lot of reasons I chose to move to San Francisco. I wanted better weather – I was really beginning to hate winters in State College. I wanted better job opportunities – there are only a handful of cities with a lot of nonprofit jobs (New York, DC, Philadelphia, Portland, Seattle, San Francisco,…
Now What?
It’s 5:30am on Friday. I’ve already been up for an hour and I have nothing to show for it. I’m about to start my second cup of coffee. The weather app says first light isn’t for another hour. I’m fighting the urge to make lists: grocery, to-do, other things to buy that would make the…
My Morning at the DMV
As was predicted, yesterday’s trip to the DMV had its bureaucratic hiccups and cast of interesting characters. I ventured out in the morning with my little blue folder in hand. In it, I had a state-issued birth certificate, my car registration, the bill of sale for my car, along with a few other papers related…
Finding Joy in Settling In
Sunday morning 12/10/23 With the blinds open, morning sun floods my apartment. The place is a mess and it’s gonna take some time to get it sorted, organized, and in comfortable, livable shape. Yesterday, after the movers were done, I spent a lot of time walking around the place, opening boxes, and trying to figure…
Officially a Californian
Yesterday, I passed the driver’s license knowledge test (online, proctored, multiple choice) for the state of California. I wasn’t expecting to have to take an exam in order to switch my license from PA to CA. In theory, it’s not a bad idea to re-test people. In practice, some of the questions (knowing what the…