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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

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About Barbara

Barbara Falconer Newhall at her home office desk getting ready to do final edits on her book, "Wrestling with God." Photo by Barbara Newhall

I’m Barbara Falconer Newhall and I’ve got a serious case of the human condition.

I’ve done it all: career, family, house, garden, and a prize-winning book, "Wrestling with God." The result: I'm a woman of years, lots of them, who can't help seeing things from the funny side.

Tucked away on this website are hundreds of riffs on life. I hope you’ll seek them out – and keep me company as I discover the humor, if not the meaning, in what life throws my way. Learn More

THE LATEST

Widowed: Archiving My Husband and Zodiac, His Scrappy 1970s News Service

By Barbara Falconer Newhall 10 Comments

Zodiac-News-Service-Nov-11-12-1972

Can you archive a dead spouse? Can you stash them away in a temperature-controlled academic repository, to be preserved for centuries?  Read more.

BARBARA’S BOOK

★ Publishers Weekly, starred review
Any seeker of any faith will be blessed to read the words of this fine author and observer. Read more.
"Wrestling with God: Stories of Doubt and Faith" book cover with photo of author Barbara Falconer Newhall

An inveterate doubter for most of her adult life, journalist Barbara Falconer Newhall embarks upon a quest to find a way to believe in God in the twenty-first century.

The result is Wrestling with God: Stories of Doubt and Faith, which details her search for the Divine in the lives of diverse Americans – from a fundamentalist Christian to a progressive Muslim to a Buddhist monk.


Seekers of all persuasions will feel represented here, from priests, ministers, and rabbis to engineers, physicists, and avowed non-believers . . . a riverflow of a book. — Phil Cousineau, host of PBS’s Global Spirit

Click to learn more about "Wrestling with God"

Recent Riffs on Life

Happy Birthday, US of A. You Made It to 250.

By Barbara Falconer Newhall 1 Comment

happy birthday us of a. 250 American-flag-flying-against-the-sky-250

Happy birthday, US of A! You made it to 250. A little the worse for wear, but still here.  Read more.

Sixteen Years Left to Live. How Many Bowls of Froot Loops Is That?

By Barbara Falconer Newhall 2 Comments

froot-loops-at-my-grocery-store

In the sixteen years I’ve got left, how many of the gotta-do items on my to-do list will I get done?  Read more.

MORE RIFFS ON LIFE

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  • A Case of the Human Condition

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Need some levity? Push my Funny Button!

DON’T MISS!

Five Things I Like Best About My Kitchen

By Barbara Falconer Newhall

A stainless steel bar mounted over a ceramic cooktop holds a Tonala platter. Photo by BF Newhall

We remodeled our kitchen in 2000, and we made some design decisions that still make me happy. Read more.

Visions of the Baby Jesus Light Up Centuries of Art

By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Madona and child painting. The Cologne cathedral. churches. mary. madonna. Housed in the Lady Chapel, this is the Dombild by Stefan Lochner, a local painter early 15th century. Photo by Barbara Newhall

The Baby Jesus. Far away and long ago a baby was born, one who has inspired centuries of artists — and lights up the dark days of winter. Read more.

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

By Barbara Falconer Newhall

tinka falconer at Lake Michigan

My mother’s last words to me were nothing much. No parting words of love. No heartfelt messages to the grandchildren. Read more.

MORE DON'T MISS!

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ON THE FUNNY SIDE

Donald Trump Outs the Elephant in the Pro-Life Room

By Barbara Falconer Newhall Donald Trump has stepped in it again. And this time the manure comes from the elephant in the room — the pro-life room. I’m hoping against hope that Donald Trump — pro-life, pro-choice or whatever he turns out to be — never

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!

Copy of a jury duty summons and juror badge superior court of california. Photo by BF Newhall

In Judge Harbin-Forte’s Courtroom — Where Jury Duty Is an Exercise in Mindfulness

Barbara-falconer-newhall-with-fluffy-hair-2

Quarantine Hair: I’ve Got Curls All Over My Head. How Did That Happen? Sheltering at Home Week 22

violet pansy blossom with green edges. Purple Rain. Photo by Barbara Newhall

My Purple Rain Garden: Is the Universe Trying to Tell Me Something?

Barbara Falconer Newhall's left eye prior to cataract surgery. Here eyes are brown. Photo by Barbara Newhall

The Cataract Chronicles: Letting the Light Into That Other Eye

MORE DON'T MISS!

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