• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • BLOG
  • WRESTLING WITH GOD BOOK
  • CONTACT

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."

The Olympic Sculpture Park — An Artful Stroll on Seattle’s Waterfront

October 23, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

By Barbara Falconer Newhall Photographing Seattle’s Olympic Sculpture Park was fun. Even more fun was downloading all my wannabe works of photo art and poring over over them for hours on end.  Especially the photos I took of Teresita Fernandez’s magical, elusive glass wall, “Seattle Cloud Cover.” And Mark di Suvero’s steely “Schubert Sonata.” Which […]

Atheist to Catholic–Two Brainy Women Get Religion

October 16, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Outdoor photo of Holly Ordway, author of "Not God's Type: An Atheist Academic Lays Down Her Arms"

Two memoirists, both very smart, move from atheism toward God, and from there smack, dab into full-fledged Catholicism. Read more.

James Dobson: Bully Your Pet, Hit Your Kid, Make Them Obey You–And God

October 9, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Recent photo of Focus on the Family founder James Dobson at a podium, talking.

In his 1978 parenting book, “The Strong-Willed Child,” James Dobson says disobedient childen, like dogs, must be spanked into submission to parents and God. Read more.

Where Author Richard Rodriguez Sees the Face of God

October 2, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Author Richard Rodriguez spoke at Faith Presbyterian Church, Oakland, CA. Photo by Barbara Newhall

When asked why he believed in God, Richard Rodriguez, author of Darling: A Spiritual Autobiography, answered the question with a story about Mother Teresa. Read more.

Dale Chihuly’s Glass: Fine Art? Kitsch? Or Both?

September 25, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Dale Chihuly's early 1970s "Glass Forest" glass sculpture at Chihuly Garden and Glass museum in Seattle. Photo by Barbara NewhallI can’t make up my mind about Dale Chihuly. He’s a glassblower, which makes him a craftsman. But is he also an artist? He’s prolific and his work is popular; does that mean he’s pandering to a mass audience? Is his work fine art—or shameless kitsch? Read more.

Journalists Killed in the Line of Duty: Foley, Sotloff Joined by Dozens Each Year

September 18, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Memorial to journalists killed in the line of duty at the Newseum in Washington, D.C, bears the names of thousands of journalists. Photo by Sam Kittner/Newseum

James Foley and Steven Sotloff are just two of the 50 journalists killed world-wide in the line of duty so far this year. Read more.

A Footwear Meditation–Chic Feet and Stylish Legs on the Go at SFO

September 11, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Mother and daughter wait for airplane at SFO. The girl wears pink socks, her mother wears camouflage pants. PHoto by Barbara Newhall

A parade of fashionable traveling feet transformed itself into a meditation on the passage of time as I waited for a flight out of SFO last month. Read more.

  • « Go to Previous Page
  • Page 1
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 57
  • Page 58
  • Page 59
  • Page 60
  • Page 61
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 85
  • Go to Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

GET MY Riffs on Life BY EMAIL

True stories often told through a humorous lens–because you just can't make them up!

We respect your privacy and do not share your email with anyone.

 

LET’S CONNECT

ON THE FUNNY SIDE

Travel Adventures: The Poop on China – And the Pee

In Suchow, this little boy was set out on the doorstep of his house to pee, To expedite things, his pants were open at the crotch. I have preserved his dignity by retouching the photo to close up his fly. Photo by BF Newhall

I’ve been contemplating writing this little photo essay on the toilets of China ever since I traveled there last September. It’s taken me all this time to overcome my mid-century Midwestern upbringing, where nice people didn’t talk about poop and pee in public. My nose for news finally prevailed, however when a Mainland Chinese couple allowed their toddler to urinate publicly on the streets of Hong Kong.

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!

American-flag-detail

The Fourth of July — With Liberty and Justice for All

Poster with dark red background with figure of god Ganesh announcing the 2014 Himalayan Fair Berkeley.

To the Himalayas and Back — In a Day and Duty Free

asphalt crew at work filling in gutter in front of my house. Photo by Barbara Newhall

The Writing Room: Am I Stuck? Or Am I Just Taking a Little Housekeeping Break?

"South Beach Gizzy," $300, by Cordelia De Vere, who worked in glass until cancer struck in 2009. Photo by Barbara Newhall

Holiday Gifts: Fun, Funky Fiber Art — Woolly Scarves, and Down and Dirty Angels

MORE DON'T MISS!

© 2009–2026 Barbara Falconer Newhall All rights reserved. · Log in