This long-talked-about trip, for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, was supposed to bring closure. I spent two summers in Europe – mostly in London – back in the 1970s. Charlie and I went back there five years ago. And then there was July’s blissful trip. I’m done. But I’m not. I turned on the Olympics coverage [...]

Two weeks from today my sister and I will step inside Buckingham Palace to tour the State Rooms and view a special exhibit of the Queen’s personal jewelry. No one who knows me well is even slightly surprised that I’m making the trip to England this summer – the United Kingdom is celebrating the Diamond [...]

Last night’s dream was different, and that’s encouraging. For a long time I’ve had dreams about walking somewhere late at night and running out of time before I got there. (Not a bad image for aging and death, when you think about it.) So this morning I was surprised to wake up from a dream [...]

Some years ago Charlie and I were house hunting. There was one particular house that I knew we were going to buy as soon as I looked through the kitchen window. It had a huge backyard that had obviously once belonged to a passionate gardener–perfect for Charlie. But I really knew we were going to buy [...]

Last night’s dreams featured a variation on a theme I’ve had for years: A visit with the Queen of England. The dreams are always vivid, exciting, and intimate. In this latest one, the Queen was sitting on an unmade bed in my family home while my family scurried around with preparations for her visit, not [...]

The dollhouse, empty and expectant, sits on a little table in our bedroom. I will not be keeping my promise to have a dollhouse Christmas this year. A friend who’s a woodworker has promised to cut the wood so that I can make the furnishings I’ve dreamed of for lo these 34 years. (Woman’s Day [...]

Last week I congratulated myself on finally getting into a daily routine that I really enjoy. I write in the morning, we go to the donut shop at around eleven, I vacuum on Mondays, in the evenings I do dance practice…you get the idea. Only it all fell apart this week. I’ve been doing much [...]

Yesterday I noticed that, for a change, I wasn’t tempted to blog about all the stuff I had accomplished during the day. Maybe I really am starting to break away from thinking that life is all about managing a to-do list. Two dreams last night got got me thinking. In one I twice found a [...]

Hitherto-unavailable pictures of the British royal family can now be seen by the public.

Last night I dreamt that the college used a firing squad to dispatch a friend of mine. I was sorry about it and stuck my fingers in my ears to block out the gunshots–but I was also surprisingly philosophical. My attitude in the dream was that the execution was necessary, and they might as well [...]