• 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."

Small Boys: Reading, Writing — And Yucky

April 24, 2010 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

A 7-year-old boy makes a yucky  face by stretching his mouth wide. Photo by Barbara Newhall

Let’s face it. Kids, some kids, naturally love raunchy jokes and faces. There’s one living at my house who loves everything yucky. Read more.

Wait for Me! (Keeping up With the Twenty-Somethings)

April 17, 2010 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

wait for me, I cried out to the speedy young woman dressed in pink and gray running clothes as she sped ahead of me. Photo by Barbara Newhall

 I was a tiny preschooler, pumping away on my tricycle, near tears because the big kids were leaving me behind. Today, I was a lot older — and left in the dust again. Read more. 

The Trouble With Daffodils — and My Writing

April 11, 2010 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Solo yellow and white daffodil. Photo by BF Newhall

The trouble with daffodils is they have no subtext. They are all cheer and sparkle and optimism. They are avatars of perky. They get on my nerves. Read more.

A Case of the Human Condition: When a Six-Year-Old Flies Solo

April 3, 2010 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

6-year-old boy dressed as cowboy. photo by barbara newhall

My mother-in-law was on the phone. Could my 6-year-old son Peter come to Southern California for a week’s visit with her? “A week?” I thought. Could I get along without my little son for a whole week? Read more.

A Case of the Human Condition: Four-Year-Old Girls — The Last Bastion of Pretty

March 27, 2010 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

four pretty preschool girls in tutus at the ballet barre. Photo by Barbara Newhall

Pink dresses. Powder blue dresses. Dresses with nosegays, kitty cats and sunbursts. Are little girls the last hold-outs for pretty these days? Read more.

Guest Post From Jon: Does “Under God” Belong in the Pledge of Allegiance?

March 13, 2010 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Does under God belong in the pledge? Downtown Pentwater Michigan village on 4th of July with people sitting on curb waiting for the parade. Photo by BF Newhall

Jon was shocked when a Federal Appeals Court ruled that including “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance did not violate the Constitution’s Establishment Clause. Read more.

When a Grown Daughter Doesn’t Call — Or, How to Overmother a Twenty-Something

March 6, 2010 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Christina Newhall with cell phone. Photo by BF Newhall

Christina hadn’t called. We had dropped her at the airport hours ago. The flight to Burbank takes only seventy minutes. She should be home by now. But Jon and I still hadn’t gotten the, “I’m home. The plane didn’t crash. My roommate remembered to pick me up, and we didn’t get mugged in the garage,” phone call. Read more.

  • « Go to Previous Page
  • Page 1
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 77
  • Page 78
  • Page 79
  • Page 80
  • Page 81
  • 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

For Wetter, For Drier — I’m Married to California

The slopes along the Grapevine in Southern California are dry and grey during February 2014 drought. Photo by BF Newhall

Basically, there are two kinds of Californian. Those who are delighted by a sunny February day. And those who are dismayed. Jon is one of the latter. You can chart the weather by Jon’s moods. 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!

california-native-erigeron-daisies

Widowed: He’s Pushing Up a Daisy

Barbara Falconer Newhall at age 75, one year after publication of Wrestling with God. the Big Seven-Five. Photo by Barbara Newhall

The Shame of Aging: The Big Seven-Five Has Finally Arrived

jon-newhall-with-american-flag

Widowed: Some Thoughts Before Election Day — From Jon

Tinka Falconer on the exercise bike after broken hip.

The Writing Room: Write About My Aging Mother? I Don’t Think So . . .

MORE DON'T MISS!

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