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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."

Widowed: He Knew How to Show a Girl a Good Time

April 13, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 6 Comments

he knew how to show a girl a good time jon-and-barbara-newhall

I was in the right place at the right time for the 2017 solar eclipse because my husband, Jon Newhall, knew how to show a girl a good time.  Read more.

Spotted: Red Mary Janes at the Easter Vigil

April 6, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 8 Comments

red-mary-janes-at-the-easter-vigil mary-jane-flats-eitheror

When I spotted a pair of red Mary Janes at the Easter Vigil, my meditations flitted from shopping to death and resurrection and back to shopping.  Read more.

Not Dead Yet. That Feral Plum Tree Lives On

March 30, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 4 Comments

feral-plum-tree-blossoms

The old plum tree lying on its side was a messy scramble of black and useless branches. But it was not dead yet.  Read more.

Widowed: He’s Pushing Up a Daisy

March 23, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 4 Comments

widowed: he's pushing up a daisy california-native-erigeron-daisies

I checked in on Jon the other day and I found him right where we’d buried him. He was pushing up a daisy. Just one.  Read more.

Sheltering at Home Revisited: The Virus Arrives

March 16, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 2 Comments

covid-19-warning

Sheltering at home revisited: The virus arrives, the shutdowns go into effect, and we find out how much our “mere” acquaintances mean to us.  Read more.

Widowed: The One Good Thing About Grief

March 9, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 1 Comment


the one good thing about grief damaged-mandala

The one good thing about grief  is — there’s not a darned thing you can do about it. Someone has died, and that’s that.  Read more.

A Leap Year Leap: She Asked. He Said Yes.

February 29, 2024 By Barbara Falconer Newhall 14 Comments

jon-newhall-1976

Widowed: Jon and I had been dating for several years. No marriage proposal was coming my way. But a Leap Day was. Read more.

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LET’S CONNECT

ON THE FUNNY SIDE

Christmas Is Big. Bigger Than Christianity — And Donald Trump

The Parrocchia church spires in San Miguel de Allende, where Christmas is big. Photo by Barbara Newhall

Christmas is big. Christianity’s biggest holiday is leaving the religion in the dust with 15 times the Internet mentions of Christianity. 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!

two pinkish white star magnolia blossoms. photo by BF Newhall

Writing the Personal Essay — Forget the Good, Go for the Bad and the Ugly

A live Christmas tree with lights, garlands and presents stacked underneath. Photo by BF Newhall

We’re Having a — Merry — Christmas Without the Kids This Year

I was important at the cast party for "The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin, San Francisco, June 15, 2017. Barbara Falconer Newhall and Jonathan Groff of TV show "Looking." Photo by Jon Newhall

For One Night I Was Important Again. Thank You Armistead Maupin

Flu virus -- the real thing -- photographed by the CDC.

A (Contagious) Case of the Human Condition: How a Mother of Preschool Kids Outsmarts the Mighty Microbe

MORE DON'T MISS!

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