Opinion

We’ve been planning this road trip for a very long time. Too long. So long I thought it would never happen. I had every stop marked on my extra-large map of the country; never mind we were only going to be seeing a slice...

Because yesterday, Tuesday, March 19, was the Equinox, that happily makes this morning the first day of Spring and a long-established ritual assigned to this time of year is Spring Cleaning. In keeping with this What-Stays-What-Goes protocol, I have scrapped all my scraps. There...

“Darling, darling, we have to stop! This is my cousin’s house!” Car comes to a screeching halt, dust flying. We unload, remove our shoes at the door. Everyone sits in the family room. Boiling hot chai tea is produced in tiny glass cups with...

I cannot recall the first time I learned about The Great Depression of my parent’s generation, but I do remember their stories of that time in American history. As early as elementary school we watched period newsreels depicting unemployed workers in soup kitchen lines,...

One time a long time ago I asked my mom for a quarter. She said she was sorry, but she didn’t have any money that day. I can’t remember why I needed a quarter, but I bet it was for candy. I always wanted...

The other day I received a phone call from a very nice lady from the Eden Valley Care Center facility. Her name is Pam Hernandez, she is the social services officer at Eden Valley. She mentioned that she was putting on an affair at...

What a week in the Salinas Valley! First, I want to mention the service for Francis Rubbo held last week at Eden Valley in Soledad. I bring this up first as it was a very sweet and solemn ceremony. As Commander of the American...

The other day Lorraine and I were talking with a family friend about my column. The friend said she particularly liked the articles about the military, not because she served but because she had loved ones that had served in that little skirmish 10,000...

Some 30-plus years ago I was employed by what was then known as the Greenfield News, we now know it as one of the triune Salinas Valley Tribune editions, which include the once Gonzales Tribune and Soledad Bee. The title Editor included citywide reportorial...

OK, so I’m 21 years old and I’m driving this flatbed dooley along the horseshoe canal and two guys come running toward me frantically waving their arms, and because I know these young men, I stop the vehicle. Good opening sentence, huh? Let me...