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Barbara Falconer Newhall

Veteran journalist Barbara Falconer Newhall riffs on life as she knows it.

  • A CASE OF THE HUMAN CONDITION
  • MY EVER-CHANGING FAMILY
  • WRITING & READING
  • MY ROCKY SPIRITUAL JOURNEY
  • WIDOWED
  • FUNNY BUTTON

My Ever-Changing Family

Our family shrinks and grows. People die. People get born. People get mad and won't talk to you for a while. Kids grow up and find partners of their own, and pretty soon there are brand-new in-laws. And a grandchild or two.

Sibling Loyalty: My Brother Has a Sister. And I’ve Got a Brother

November 4, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

sibling-loyalty  scowling-baby

Sibling loyalty. Sometimes it means you can ignore your writing deadline and have a fun visit with your brother who just had knee surgery.  Read more.

A Name for Grandma

September 30, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

a name for grandma

What’s a good name for a grandma? No cute nicknames for me. If I was to be a grandmother, I wanted the time-honored title that goes with it.  Read more.

Grief — Love With No Place to Go

September 16, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

grief is love with no place to go preschooler-with-duckie

Grief changes from day to day. For me right now, without my husband alongside me, grief is love with no place to go.  Read more.

Father’s Day vs. Mother’s Day — And Today’s Liberated Dads

June 17, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

young-father-with -newborn

Father’s Day vs. Mother’s Day? With today’s young men doing more and more of the parenting, why not celebrate fathers as heartily as we do mothers?  Read more.

Women — Can They Have It All?

May 27, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

women -- can they have it all, like singer-songwriter-jaspar-lepakWomen — can they have it all? Can a woman have the child and her dreams of a career? I say, yes, she can. Go for it!  Read more.

‘Tears of the Kingdom’ Alert: How a 1980s Nintendo Mom Lost Her Cool

May 13, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

tears-of-the-kingdom

Attention “Tears of the Kingdom” moms: A first-generation Nintendo mom confesses to unplugging her son’s Legend of Zelda game back in 1989.  Read more.

My Husband’s Name or Mine? I Need Them Both

February 18, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

my husband's name or mine? my maiden name has its stories, including a 1960s-girl-swimmer

My husband’s name or mine? I need them both — the name I was born with and the one I took the day I married.  Read more.

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LET’S CONNECT

ON THE FUNNY SIDE

The Politics of Housework, Revisited

Men and housework and childcare. A man carries his affectionate toddler girl. Photo by Barbara Newhall

As a feminist conversant with the politics of housework, I tried not to be too preoccupied with clean. Then I learned I was allergic to the dustballs under my marital bed. Read more.

MORE "ON THE FUNNY SIDE"

CATEGORIES

  • A Case of the Human Condition
  • My Ever-Changing Family
  • On Writing & Reading
  • My Rocky Spiritual Journey

 
Need some levity? Push my Funny Button!

TO MY READERS

Please feel free to share links to my posts with one and all and to quote briefly from them in your own writing, remembering, of course, to attribute the quote to me and to provide a link back to this site.

My Oakland Tribune columns, btw, are reprinted by permission of the Trib. With the exception of review copies of books, I do not accept ads or freebies of any kind. Click on the "Contact" button if you have questions. Enjoy!

 

DON’T MISS!

At an exhibit table at the 2014 meeting of the Religion Newswriters Association are Robyn Blumner,Executive Director of the Richard Dawkins Foundation, and Todd Stiefel of Stiefel Freethought Foundation. Photo by Barbara Newhall

The Atheists Are Coming – Out of a Closet Near You

Donald Trump studies Barack Obama in a TV shot. The conversation was gracious. I'm following suit. I'm going to stop bad-mouthing Donald Trump. Photo by Barbara Newhall

I Decided to Stop Bad-Mouthing Donald Trump. But Will I?

Winter Solstice — My Mother’s Last Words to Me Before She Died

A greeting card with embossed and stamped poppies, blank inside by Emeryville, CA, printer Paula Skene Designs. Photo by BF Newhall

At the Hallmark Store — Teary-Eyed in the Sympathy Card Section

MORE DON'T MISS!

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