The View from a Drawbridge

Tag: memories

  • Are We the Stories We Tell Ourselves?

    It’s always rather disconcerting when someone else has a different version of a memory that I’ve been invested in my whole life long. Which version is correct? And if my version is wrong, how did it change over time? This is particularly unsettling when I’ve told a story time and time again to explain why…

  • Your Stool is Worth HOW Much?

    My doctor was running late. (Aren’t they always?) So I found myself sitting in a waiting room with nothing good to read. Out of pure desperation, I began flipping through a fashion and style magazine. I figured that would be good for a laugh, and I was right. It never ceases to amaze me how…

  • Xantolo

    One of my biggest regrets is not taking advantage of the opportunity to celebrate the Day of the Dead when I was living in Mexico. I didn’t understand what a cultural and spiritual treasure this celebration is, so I skipped it. Ever since then, I’ve been meaning to go back to have this experience, but…

  • Anniversaries

    It was my boyfriend’s 61st birthday this past week. Or it would have been, if he had lived to see it. Needless to say, this caused me to think about him quite a bit. I wonder what my life would be like now if he were still in it. Without a doubt it would have…

  • A Romantic Vacation for One

    This is a story I told at a recent gathering here in Seattle called Fresh Ground Stories. The theme this time was, “You can’t always get what you want.” Normally, when I tell a story at this event, I am able to attach a recording of it here. Sadly the recorder crapped out, so I…

  • Helping People with Dementia Purely by Accident

    When I wrote my book, A Bridgetender’s View: Notes on Gratitude, I had hoped that it would be uplifting, and that it would help people to look at situations from a different angle and appreciate various aspects of their lives. I want to be a positive force in the world. I want to have left…

  • Funny Memories

    If you’re like me, you have some memories that consistently crack you up. I like to trot these memories out when I’m feeling bored or sad. I’m very grateful that memories of levity are so vivid that they can almost bring you right back to that place, whereas memories of excruciating pain are mere shadows…

  • Time Capsules

    Just before I moved to Seattle, I drove over to the house I used to own in Florida to say goodbye to it. I almost drove past it without recognizing it, such were the number of improvements the current owner had made. That was kind of disconcerting. One of the things that he changed was…

  • A Monopoly on Memories

    Okay, I’m horrified. I just learned that the Iron token in the Monopoly board game was retired in 2013. You don’t understand. I LOVED the iron! The iron was my favorite! Well, I liked the boot, too. And the race car. And the top hat, because it fit on the tip of my finger as…

  • Pop Tarts

    There are some things I consider to be “kid food”. For example, I used to drink Hawaiian Punch by the 50 gallon drum when I was a child. I can’t stand it now. Many things fall into that category. Cheese Whiz. Tang. Cap’n Crunch. Perhaps the most iconic food from my childhood is Pop Tarts.…