• 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."

Widowed: We Were Two People — And a Marriage

June 29, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 4 Comments

jon-barbara-newhall-wedding

Jon and I were two people — and the marriage we’d created over the years.  Read more.

‘The Lifespan of a Fact’ — Fun Words, Now Playing in Berkeley

June 22, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 6 Comments

the-lifespan-of-a-fact

Good natured but dead serious, “The Lifespan of a Fact,” raises questions that writers of nonfiction are constantly asking themselves.  Read more.

That Old Tub-Shower Has Got to Go

June 15, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 6 Comments

tile-choices-for-bath-renovation

That old tub-shower has got to go. A stall shower will be much safer. No quartz for me, though. I’m going for colorful tile and a 1950s vibe.  Read more.

Widowed: Are Tears Recyclable?

June 8, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 4 Comments

widowed are tears recyclable  budapest-market

A tear-drenched tissue — do I put it in the trash? Or into the recycle bin? I wondered, I’m widowed: are my tears recyclable?  Read more.

Writing Retreat Report — I Got Some Work Done. Thanks for Holding Me Accountable

June 1, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 4 Comments

Oakland-Tribune-column-Barbara-Falconer-Newhall

On my retreat I discovered that those columns I wrote as a young mom back in the 20th century have a lot to say to the 21st century.  Read more.

Clarence Thomas, Anita Hill, Jon and Me

May 25, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment

Clarence Thomas, Anita Hill, Jon and me.

Clarence Thomas, Anita Hill, Jon and me — contemplating the perils and pleasures of office romance in the era of #metoo.  Read more.

Kids Who Cheat. And Those Who Don’t

May 18, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 2 Comments

Peter Newhall makes the catch during Piedmont, CA, rec department baseball game. Photo 1991 by BF Newhall

Kids who cheat and those who don’t: My husband was disturbed by what he saw — some kids playing touch football at the park, cheating.  Read more.

  • « Go to Previous Page
  • Page 1
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 4
  • Page 5
  • Page 6
  • Page 7
  • Page 8
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 80
  • 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

The Somethingists — They Don’t Believe in God, but They Do Believe in . . . Something

[caption id="attachment_1163" align="aligncenter" width="427"]The Helix Nebula. NASA Photo. The Helix Nebula. NASA Photo.[/caption]

Good news for those of us – count me in – who aren’t at all sure of what God is like. It’s called Somethingism. 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

 
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!

Artichokes stacked for sale at Whole Foods, Berkeley, CA. Photo by BF Newhall

I’m a Meat-Eating Loser – I Didn’t Win the New York Times Ethicist Contest

A six-year-old boy dressed as a cowboy for halloween. Photo by Barbara Newhall

A Case of the Human Condition: When Your Six-Year-Old Wants to Talk Money

sunny-cheerful-airbnb-house

Widowed: I Don’t Like My Life

The Ghost of 300 Million Drought-Killed Trees Hovers Over a Lake in Texas

MORE DON'T MISS!

© 2009–2025 Barbara Falconer Newhall All rights reserved. · Log in