Several years ago I attended the "Beyond Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience" in downtown San Jose with my family. I remember feeling so moved at one point that I got all verklempt thinking, "That poor, tortured man could never have imagined that his art would be seen throughout the entire world. He could not have imagined how beloved and revered he would also become and remembered as an artistic genius." In that moment, the enduring power of art brought me to tears. I love Va

‘Nuff said

Nothing beats laughing for two solid hours in an auditorium full of strangers to rekindle my faith in humanity. It makes me feel that we’re gonna be alright.

Today was not a bad day, but also nothing extraordinary happened. Laundry, housecleaning, etc. So, this is basically it. . . But, hey - I will never turn down a beautiful sunset. Oh yeah, and tonight we begin watching the new season of The Pitt! Tomorrow,however! I have another audiobook recording session AND a date with hubby to see stand-up comedian, Anjelah Johnson-Reyes!

I was in the grocery store today, contemplating the jars of marinated artichokes on the top shelf, and trying to decide what size I need for a future pasta salad when I heard a voice ask, "Can I reach something for you?" I looked to my left and there stood an older gentleman with twinkly eyes and a friendly smile. I have no problem asking for help reaching something on a top shelf and have often solicited the assistance of other shoppers when I can't reach an item. However, t

One of my favorite activities is getting together with friends, and nothing is better than sharing laughter with buddies. It's no surprise that studies show that the number one predictor of well-being is social connections. Today I had lunch with the group I call my Yoga Peeps, which includes Heather, my yoga instructor, and two ladies I met in her class several years ago, Debbie and Susan. Susan's husband, Jim, had also been in Heather's class and when he passed away unexpec

This piece of paper is taped to the inside of my bathroom sink cabinet so that I will be sure to see it everyday, several times a day, and be reminded of this promise I made to myself. I don't remember when I typed out these affirmations, but I know it's been YEARS. And as a result, it has become like wallpaper, which I've neglected to notice anymore. Then, just a couple of days ago it grabbed my attention for some reason. I'm gonna chalk it up to the fact that I had signed u

Last night I woke up around 3am in terrible pain. “Oh no,” I thought. “I think I have an infection.” Ugggh. The horrible discomfort kept me awake until I finally took something for the pain and eventually fell back to sleep around 5am and didn’t wake up until almost 10:00. Whoa. I felt so fatigued and lousy that I didn’t dare go out for my usual morning run as much as it pained me not to. But I had to listen to my body. I called Kaiser first thing, and to my great delight the

We were in Sevilla during the annual Feria, a week-long festival that celebrates Andalusian culture with Flamenco, traditional costumes, and horse parades. This stunning couple passed by me on their way to the Feria and just as I was about to take this photo, they reached for each other and held hands. When I visited Spain for the first time back in 2019 and saw my first Flamenco show inside a Gypsy cave tucked into the hillside facing the majestic Alhambra in the magical and

What can I say? I love natural wonders. Spectacularly colorful clouds in a beautiful sunset sky. Here in California, clear, cloudless, blue skies are the norm. Clouds appear with rain and unusual weather patterns. So, I never take these kinds of sunsets for granted.

Ever since I began my New Year's practice, I've waited until the end of that day to decide what to add to my Jar of Goodness. But not today. Right after I finished my morning coffee and unplugged my phone from the where it had been charging, I saw an email notification pop up with the name Kelly Corrigan. "Oh, my God," I thought. "No way!" Kelly Corrigan is a New York Times bestselling author, journalist, and podcaster who has written four memoirs and two children's books. Sh

Usually I make my own from scratch, but I haven't in a long time and today I had a craving. So, when I saw this at the store I thought I'd try it out and see just how "authentic" it is. I gotta say it's pretty good and it immediately made me feel nostalgic because this was a staple from my childhood as it is for so many Latin American kids. It also made me think of one of my best friends and the first friend I made shortly after I arrived in the U.S. from El Salvador when I w

“The more uncomfortable something is to write, the more important it is to write.” “My experience of life has so often been - why is nobody saying this? Whether it’s sitting in a Zoom or sitting at a dinner table or sharing a holiday with a bunch of people, it’s like, why are we not talking about anything? It just feels like I’m gonna fucking explode! And writing is the place where I cannot explode in that way.” ~ Jeannette McCurdy “2026 is the year of saying whatever the fuc

When my son was little he became attached to his bunnies, Hokus and Pokus. By the way, he still has them. They are barely holding together. Literally threadbare and no longer resembling anything close to the color yellow. (Since I know he will probably never read this, I will share a little secret - I have a pristine, brand new one that I am saving to give to his first born someday. Good grief, hopefully that’s a looong way off because he’s only twenty-five.) Today I saw a sw

After yesterday's awe-catching contribution to my Jar of Goodness involved another observation of nature, I was beginning to wonder when I would switch from the natural world to the messiness of human interactions and relationships. Well, once again, it was like the universe read my mind and said, "Here ya go!" and BOOM, it happened this morning. I do not want to write this story and even though it has been living inside me for almost SIX years, I never planned to tell it out

This morning was the first in several days where there was a significant break in the rain and I was finally able to get out for my morning run. And with the miracle of what precipitation and sunshine can produce, I saw the first appearance of wildflowers along the trail where I run. We've been in our current house for a little over twenty years and back when we were looking to move into this area, we spent about TEN months looking for just the right house because we had very

First night of rehearsals for My Fair Lady at The Pear theatre in Mountain View, CA, where I will be working as assistant choreographer for what will be a very unique, creative, and fun production of this iconic piece of American musical theatre. Upon entering the rehearsal space, I was immediately greeted by my two favorite girls (KitKat and otherwise) with squeals of delight and, "Pattyyyy! We love you!" Followed by more warm smiles and hugs from so many familiar faces. Aw

Another rainy, gloomy, day. Did I mention that I get S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder)? I have been in a grumpy mood ALL DAY. And as if the Universe/God was messin' with me, I saw SEVEN rainbows today. Six of them were in the same spot and visible from our living room window. It's like I was receiving the message to CALM DOWN and chillax! Everything will be fine. The rain is good. We need it. And hopefully, we're also getting a lot of snow in the Sierras so we won't have a

During the pandemic when nature and wildlife were throwing a party because humans had to remain inside their homes and not venture outside much, we had a family of foxes den on the neighbor's side of the fence we share. While the mom nursed and looked after the three kits, the dad took up residence on the deck of our treehouse. He would escape to nap their while mom looked after the kits. Typical. As the kits grew, they would occasionally venture into our backyard and cavort

First day of 2026 and I didn't even have to wait until the end of the day to think of what I would add to my Jar of Goodness. As I pulled out of my garage this morning to head over to my first dance class of the new year, what do I see? A rainbow!   What started out as another gloomy, raining day, quickly turned into a promise. I always take rainbows as good omens and delight in them whenever I see one. It probably has a lot to do with the fact that I get S.A.D. (Seasonal Aff