‘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.
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."
Blood and Guts in My Backyard. Or, Nature Tidies Up
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
Betty Rollin: A light has gone out. And so have many others — Rosalynn Carter, Harry Belafonte, Dianne Feinstein, Cormac McCarthy, Daniel Ellsberg … Read more.
TV or Not TV: The Week We Turned Off Our 1980s Go-To Screen
TV or Not TV? In 1987 the go-to screen for exasperated moms looking for a way to distract rambunctious kids was — the television set. Read more.
Change Happens. It Just Does
I’m Old. And Here’s What I Like About That
I’m old. And what I like most about that is — I’m not in the thick of things anymore. I don’t have to be. I’ve got other things to do. Read more.
Is Hamas Evil? Is Anybody Evil? Am I? Are You?
Is anybody truly evil? Is Hamas? Am I? Are you? Or are we humans evolved — created? — to be sometimes kind, sometimes cruel? Read more.