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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

DON'T MISS!

I've written hundreds and hundreds of posts over the years. To help you find your way to the best of the best, I've tagged my favorites "Don't Miss!" Scroll down here to find them.

Another way to locate Riffs on Life that you might enjoy is to click above on your favorite category – "My Ever-Changing Family," perhaps, or "Funny Button." You can also use the search box located way up top to hunt for stories by topic. There's fun reading at "garden," "aging," "kids" and, of course, "Jon."

Nature Giveth and Nature Taketh Away

January 27, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

nature giveth. nature taketh away. flowering-tree

Against all odds, a flowering fruit tree took root in the wild canyon below our house, but not for long. Nature giveth, nature taketh away.  Read more.

Widowed: Am I Grieving? Or Am I Just Lonely?

January 13, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

empty-home-office

Am I grieving, or am I just lonely? When I spotted my husband’s empty office chair, I was overcome by — what? Sorrow? Or simple loneliness?   Read more.

Here Comes Another Year!

December 30, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Here comes another year. Some of us have accumulated a lot of them. My glamorous Aunt Grace had racked up 98 years by the time she left the planet.  Read more.

Widowed: The Perfect Husband. The Perfect Christmas Tree

December 15, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

widowed-the-perfect-husband-the-perfect-christmas-tree/

Widowed: The perfect husband? The perfect Christmas tree? I started a list of all the things that annoyed me about Jon. But I lost the list.  Read more.

‘Tis the Season to Declutter. Or Is It?

December 9, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

1960s-peace-flag

‘Tis the season to declutter — to ditch the 1960s peace flag and make room for the garlic roaster and the pickleball paddles. Or is it?  Read More.

Blood and Guts in My Backyard. Or, Nature Tidies Up

December 2, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

blood and guts in my backyard raven-california

Blood and guts in my backyard: A half-eaten deer lay sprawled under my cypress tree. Ravens croaked the news from the tree above.  Read more.

Betty Rollin: A Light Has Gone Out. And So Have Many Others

November 30, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

betty rollin a light has gone out rosalynn-carter-casket

Betty Rollin: A light has gone out. And so have many others — Rosalynn Carter, Harry Belafonte, Dianne Feinstein, Cormac McCarthy, Daniel Ellsberg …  Read more.

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LET’S CONNECT

ON THE FUNNY SIDE

“Wrestling with God” Got a Starred Review From Publishers Weekly — And I’m Doing the Happy Dance

Author Barbara Falconer Newhall opens her copy of Publishers Weekly magazine, which had just arrived in the mail, to find that her book, Wrestling with God, got a starred review in the January 21, 2015, issue. PHoto by Jon Newhall

I’ve got some news. Huge news. “Wrestling with God“ got a starred review from Publishers Weekly this week. They reviewed my book, and they gave it one of their big, fat red stars. Read more.

MORE "ON THE FUNNY SIDE"

CATEGORIES

  • A Case of the Human Condition
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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!

light-from-window

I’m Thankful for a Window. It’s Small, but It Opens Onto . . . Everything

empty-office-chair

Widowed: Her Stolen Car Came Back, but My Husband Didn’t . . . And All Shall Be Well?

Solo yellow and white daffodil. Photo by BF Newhall

The Trouble With Daffodils — and My Writing

TINKA-FALCONER

The Darkening Days — And My Mother’s Last Hours

MORE DON'T MISS!

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