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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."

My Mother’s Writing Desk Is Not My Writing Desk. Here’s Why

February 22, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 1 Comment

ink-stain-in-an-old-desk-drawer

Being in the same room with my mother’s writing desk is like being in the same room with my mother, which is why her desk isn’t in my writing room.  Read more.

Widowed: Did My Husband Know I Loved Him?

February 15, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 1 Comment

Widowed: Did My Husband Know I Loved Him? Zodiac-News-Service-Nov-11-12-1972

We were not gushy, Jon and I, and that was fine with me. Widowed now, I’ve been wondering, was I too stingy with my affections? Did my husband know I loved him?  Read more.

The Human Need to Name Things — While Standing in a Patch of Weeds

February 8, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

The Human Need to Name Things

We can’t help ourselves. We like to name things. We have a human need to name things, including the colors of the weeds in a weed patch.  Read more.

Kids Leave Home. They Just Do

February 1, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

kids leave home Scottville-michigan-house

Kids leave home. That’s how it often is in our oversized, mobile nation. We pack up and move across the country with impunity, leaving our families and origins behind.  Read more.

My Son Is in the Hospital With Appendicitis 2,000 Miles Away. How Do I Mother Him From Here?

January 25, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 4 Comments

my son in hospital with appendicitis 2000 miles away

My son Is in the hospital with appendicitis 2,000 miles away. He’s 28 years old and living on his own. How do I mother him from here?

Happily Retired? Take the Quiz

January 25, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

happily-retired-doing-crossword

Retired, I’ve decided, is an attitude. It’s a state of mind, a state of equanimity. You can have that attitude whether you’re still working or you’ve clocked your last forty-hour work-week.  Read more.

Am I an Artist? Or Am I a Brand?

January 18, 2025 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

am i an artist or am i a brand barbara-falconer-newhall-writer-FB-page

What kind of writer am I anyway? When I sit down to the keyboard, is it to write something beautiful — or something that will sell?  Am I an artist? Or am I a brand?  Read more.

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LET’S CONNECT

ON THE FUNNY SIDE

The Weekend I Talked — And the Kids Listened

A traditional house in an snowy, tree lined neighborhood in southwest Minneapolis offered by Edina Realty. Photo by BF Newhall

You know your kids have turned into grown-ups when they listen to your advice. I don’t mean take your advice. I mean listen – gently and kindly – as you talk away . . . 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

 
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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!

religion-bookshelf

Our Globalized, Multi-Faith World

memorial-candle-on-the-altar

Pete Holmes, Stephen Colbert (and God) on Life and Death

author Barbara Falconer Newehall has stopped coloring and dying her hair so that the white hair now shows. Photo by Barbara Newhall

My Brand-New White Hair. It’s Real. It’s Scary. But I Kinda Like It

a mural of guadalupe is painted on the wall of a check cashing establishment in east Austin TX. photo by bf newall

American Hispanics: They Like the Pope, but the Church — Not So Much

MORE DON'T MISS!

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