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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
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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."

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.

Tudor Bungalows in the Twin Cities—Little Houses With a Big Sense of Humor

September 4, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

tudor roof with round arch above the window in Minneapolis. Photo by Barbara Newhall

Can a house have a sense of humor? I never gave it thought until I visited Minneapolis and was treated to street after street of droll Tudor bungalows. Read more.

Point-and-Shoot Heaven: Photographing a Flower Garden Just Before Dusk

August 28, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Rudbeckia and echinacea in a flourishing Minnesota flower garden. Photo by Barbara Newhall

A little rain, a little dirt, a little sun, some red wiggler worms, and a few kitchen scraps and you’ve got yourself a flower garden. My Minnesota gardener friend makes it look that easy. Read more and see some photos.

Writers Need Editors – And Mine Wants My Manuscript Turned In, Now

August 21, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Barbara Falconer Newhall frowns and frets as she gets started on editing the manuscript for her book, "Wrestling with God." Photo by Barbara Newhall

It’s time to put the final tweaks and edits on my book manuscript so that my editor can send it off to be formatted – and published. It’s been years since I started work on “Wrestling with God.” I’ve written draft after draft and tried format after format. I’ve been wrestling with that manuscript and what I want this book to be as fiercely as I’ve been wrestling with God and who that might be. Read more.

At the Hallmark Store — Teary-Eyed in the Sympathy Card Section

August 14, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

condolence cards in a Hallmark Store rack. Photo by Barbara Newhall

I keep a stash of greeting cards in my desk — birthday and anniversary cards to send to sisters-in-law, brothers, nephews and nieces as the dates come up. But that’s not what I needed on a recent afternoon. I needed sympathy cards. Two of them. Read more.

Shopping at the Berkeley Potters Guild — Three Artists, Three Visions

August 7, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

By Itsuko Zenitani, two round, fine porcelain ceramic bowls with ceramic lids-\that appear to be straw. At the Berkeley Potters Guild. Photo by BF Newhall

Lots of wonderful stuff to see at the Berkeley Potters Guild the other day. The work of three potters in particular, each with a distinctive vision, caused me to pull out my trusty point-and-shoot and click away. Read more.

 

Judy Seidel: Click Here for an Eyeful of Her Life-Affirming Paintings

July 24, 2014 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

"Diptych," by Berkeley, CA, Painter, Judy Seidel is two jig-sawed pieces of wook painted abstractly with red, green and yellow shapes. Photo by BF Newhall

Some artists seem to be able transfer the way their minds work onto paper or canvas. And of those artists, every once in a while, it’s a mind that you’d like to spend more time with. I’m thinking of abstract painter Judy Seidel. Read more.

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LET’S CONNECT

ON THE FUNNY SIDE

The Sad State of the Supermarket Strawberry

Large, red strawberries on a blue and white plate. Photo by BF Newhall

I’m worried about the strawberry. It’s too late for the tomato. Its innards were transformed into colorless, flavorless – but easily shippable – pulp decades ago. Which is why I’m concerned about the strawberry. Is it going the way of the tomato? Read more.

MORE "ON THE FUNNY SIDE"

CATEGORIES

  • A Case of the Human Condition
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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!

Rich, meticulous design from Josephine Glassworks, Silesia, circa 1898-1905. Photo by Barbara Newhal

Cheap Thrills at the Glasmuseum Passau — Outrageous, Over-the-Top Decorative Glass.

A photo taken probably 1962, when Barbara returned from summer in Europe with souvenirs for family. Barbara Newhall photo

My Big Brother Loves Me — The Cataract Chronicles Continued

antler-bar

Widowed: Where’s My Lead Pony?

tilting-Christmas-tree

My Little Old Lady Christmas Tree — Showing It Who’s Boss

MORE DON'T MISS!

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