Francis Flowers & Herbs Farm
I have held off writing until I finished my summer European travel log, but am no closer to starting that. So I will instead tell you about Mark, who together […]
Hungary to Slovenia
June 18, 2018. I awoke in the outskirts of Amstetten, Austria, within a stone’s throw of a sign indicating that this was a biologically sensitive area. On my way to […]
Austria
June 12, 2018. I had to repack the tiny Citroen, which took two hours. It’s amazing how much longer it takes when you have a small space. Everything has to […]
Budapest and Bratislava
June 4, 2018. I arrived in Budapest the day of my dental appointment with Dr. Windisch, an implant specialist whom I’d found several years earlier when I was in Greece […]
Six Days in Oahu
Thursday May 13, 2021 – I’d been jonesing to be anywhere but home for over a year. COVID had been particularly hard on me, as I am migratory. I had […]
My Misadventures
I’d been dreading my dental visit to Loveland, Colorado for weeks. Not the dental part, but getting there and back. Being a penny pincher, I planned to drive, but after […]
Reflecting on the Civil Rights Struggle
I haven’t written a proper piece for years. I told myself I had to finish my travel blog from the summer of 2018 when, in the beginning of my travels, […]
Portugal
May 25, 2018. Having driven across the Minho River to Valença, I headed back to Tui, a charming village with narrow cobbled streets only a stone’s throw away across the […]
Basque Country to Galicia
May 18, 2018. I woke to the chill sea air of Donostia-San Sebastián (aka San Sebastián), and broke camp quickly so I wouldn’t be discovered. As I drove into town, […]
Pyrenees
May 14, 2018. I woke on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees in Bielsa after a cold night. I had stayed in a nice place and took my first shower […]
Haute-Garonne
May 3, 2018. It was a crazy day. I was behind in packing, even though I’d started weeks before, and was glad Shawn was giving me a ride. He helped […]
Choice of Charities
The following is a list of charities to whom I hope to contribute at some point: No More DeathsHaiti Action CommitteeKPFANever Ending FoodAristide foundation for democracyHaiti Emergency Relief FundZavala’s Political […]
Baby Egret
So sad. I rode my bike to Shorebird Way for the second time, this time in hopes of seeing baby egrets and herons fledge. What I got was probably what […]
Goodbye, McBlack
I bought my 2008 Mazda 3 new. It was special. My first new car. Its name suggested itself when I went to the dealer to buy Mica Black touch up […]
Baby rat
Full of self recrimination and guilt, I look at your tiny carcass, moved by your small soft ears, paws fragile and clasped as if in prayer, soft gray fur. I […]
Losing Gina
In 1993, I made the acquaintance of a vivacious, bubbly young woman barely 20 years old. Gina had already lived several lives. She had been forced to give up her […]
Lost and Found on Deception Creek
I met George Gooding in 1997 just after starting my new career on the Inside Mac team at Apple. It was a big stretch for me. I’d never worked on […]
The Sawyer
Walking down Pacific Ave in Santa Cruz last Friday, I was lucky enough to stumble someone playing musical saw in front of a bronze sculpture of Tom Jefferson Scribner. During the […]
Ereshkigal
Some weeks ago I confided in my acupuncturist about the deep grief and loneliness I’d been trying not to feel of late. My usual pattern is to stay so […]
La Vie Boheme
Last night I had the opportunity to see the 20th anniversary of the Broadway musical RENT. Tears ran down my cheeks as I watched the character Angel die of AIDS. […]
Writing a Book
I wrote my last post to explain why I haven’t been writing of late. I had hoped upon coming back to the states to begin the arduous project of turning […]
Insult to Injury
When I arrived back from Europe on October 24, I was exhausted and sleep-deprived. But I’m pretty compulsive about cleaning when I first get back from a long trip, and […]
Conflicted
I was asked recently at a grief counseling session whether missing people who have died might be tied to other events in my life. Thinking aloud, I mused that I […]
Back to France
October 14. I took advantage of being in my friends’ warm cozy apartment in Munich. I slept in, had a nice chat with Jennifer, and headed to Schloss Nymphenburg and the […]
Austria
October 10. I awoke at Marek and Zuzana’s flat in Bratislava, feeling grateful for having a place to stay. I took the chance to thank Zuzana for letting me stay […]
Southwest Romania and Hungary
October 6, 2017.??? I awoke in the strange partly built suburb of Szeged, trying to be as quiet as possible. I didn’t want to wake someone’s dog or the ire […]
Spending Time in Zebegeny – 2017
October 3. I didn’t want to leave but had another dental appointment in Budapest the next day, so around 10:30am I bid Paul and Stasia farewell and headed to Babiogorski […]
Visiting Relatives in Wadowice
Sept 28 – I awoke and went to the Kismaros library to use the internet. I’d planned on driving to Poland but wanted to work on my blog for a […]
From Brussels to Budapest – 2017
Sept 25, 2017 – I awoke and headed to Brussels, parking near the central park aptly titled Parc de Brussels. After a brief stroll through the greenery, I headed past […]
Amsterdam, then on to southern Netherlands
September 19. After Harlingen, I headed to Amsterdam. It was dark, and I was shocked at the sheer number of people on the streets. On bikes, on foot, on skateboards. […]
Friesland
September 18. I decided to finish the editing of Roel’s presentation of his months-long pilgrimage from Eibergen to Santiago de Compostella before heading north. I bid my friends goodbye around […]
Eastern Holland
September 14. I woke in my comfy attic room complete with skylight and basked in the rain hitting the windows. Today was errand day. Coosje needed to pick up her […]
The Middle Rhine Valley, UNESCO World Heritage Site
Sept 10. I was awoken by the sound of cyclists. Apparently the forest where I’d camped was on the main cycle path up the mountain leaving the Rhine. I drove […]
Heidelberg
Sept 7 – I was still in a rush to get to Eibergen, Netherlands, and wanted to see Strassbourg, the section of the Rhine north of Bingen, Bonn, Cologne, and […]
The Beautiful Romantische Strasse in Germany
I was in a rush to get to Eibergen, Netherlands by September 13. I had nine days to explore the Romantische Strasse (a scenic route through quaint towns beginning in […]
In and Around Landsberg Am Lech
August 31 I had the next four days to recuperate and get the basics accomplished. Things that I couldn’t do on the road like taking a shower, washing my clothes, […]
On to Munich and Tegernsee
August 26. Morning came too early. I jumped out of bed, stressed, and packed everything into as few bags as possible. I had to fit my things into the back […]
Czech Republic
August 22. I still had 4 days before picking up a replacement for the Citroen C3 in Munich on August 26, and decided to spend 3 days exploring the southern […]
On Hold in Bratislava – 2017
August 16. I woke up late after a very long night and was barely functional responding to Citroen Europass’ requests for information about the accident yesterday. I had wrecked my […]
Serbia
August 14. I was dismayed at the fog that had settled in. It was damp and cold and I couldn’t see more than a few feet in any direction,. I […]
Lisa Karpinski 