Recently, I was looking at old pictures with my friend Susan. We have been friends since college and I mentioned when looking at old photos that I looked better than I remembered. “Yes, me too,” said Susan. “I was pretty cute back then…

Have you heard of the term, “appearance investment”? My friend shared this article from Psychology Today, “Can Appearance Investment Contribute to Positive Body Image?” Appearance investment is a term used by psychologists…

What do you like about autumn? I have recently realized that autumn is one of the best seasons of the year. The weather is still warm… even as the cold begins to creep in. The leaves change color. Near my house there are spectacular…

One of the songs I have always loved is When I Go by Dave Carter and Tracy Grammar, written two years before Dave’s untimely death at age 49. We all have different beliefs about what happens after we die. We also have different ideas…

My house is on a hillside near the entrance to Wildcat Canyon Park, a beautiful regional park that stretches for miles. I love walking to the park and climbing what we call the ridges. On a clear day, you can reach what you think is the top…

Travel has been an important part of my life. I have lived and traveled in Europe, Asia, and Latin America starting in my 20s until now. Travel makes the world come alive. I love meeting people, making friends, and learning about the different cultures…

“Happiness climbs high early in adulthood but begins to slide downward in the late thirties and early forties, dipping to a low in the fifties. But we recover quickly from this slump…”

Do you want to write a memoir, but never find the time for such a big project? Or, are you not really used to writing? Do you grapple with the issue of not wanting to ruin any of your relationships, even after you are no longer alive?

Not so long ago, my husband and I both turned 64. We got cards for each other with the iconic Beatles song that said, “Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I’m sixty-four?” I could not help but reflect on how we both survived and keep surviving even to this day, a number of years later.

Do you remember a television ad that said, “You’ve come a long way, baby?” It was an ad in the 70s for Virginia Slim cigarettes, and the jingle continues, “You’ve got your own cigarette now, baby, you’ve come a long way…