Author Archives: Paul

About Paul

Just an old retired guy trying to finish out my last years on this planet. I lost my best friend and wife in early 2020. I was blessed again by reconnecting with Dr. Mary Côté, a long-time friend. Mary and I got married July 28th, 2021, and are enjoying life together and plan to spend the rest of our lives being a blessing to our friends and family.

I Remember It Well!

Posted on Thursday, December 25, 2025 by Paul

It is now December 2020, and Sue has been gone for almost ten months.  Christmas would have been sad except that Dr. Mary entered my life, and my kids readily welcomed her into the family with open arms.  I introduced … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Friends, Memories, Movies, Working Around House | Leave a comment

Christmas Eve 1987

Posted on Wednesday, December 24, 2025 by Paul

In 1987, I left home and was in the process of getting a divorce.  I moved into an apartment near work in mid-summer.  I missed the kids, and they were pretty much mad at me for leaving.  I understood, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Food and Wine, Friends, Holidays, Working Around House | Leave a comment

Getting My Picture Taken At Christmas!

Posted on Tuesday, December 23, 2025 by Paul

Every year from the time I was one until my mid-teens, Mom insisted that we go to a photo studio and get my picture taken.  Yearly pictures at Christmas made sense, as my birthday was mid-December and Christmas was a … Continue reading →

Posted in Friends, Memories | Leave a comment

The Milkman Got A Surprise; So Did Mom

Posted on Monday, December 22, 2025 by Paul

In the olden days, we had a milkman who came by the house every day.  They used a system to avoid going back and forth to the door.  The system was a set of brightly colored cards fastened together at … Continue reading →

Posted in Dining Out, Doctor | Leave a comment

Mary Got A Bike!!!

Posted on Sunday, December 21, 2025 by Paul

I asked Mary to share one of her Christmas memories: I lived in a small town called Medford, Oregon, with a population of 15,000.  As you know, I was born into a low-middle-income family, and my foster parents tried to … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Friends, Theater | Leave a comment

The INTERCOMM

Posted on Saturday, December 20, 2025 by Paul

When I was in Junior High School, I took “Electric Shop,” where we learned Ohm’s law, how to use meters, and the proper way to run power plugs.  For the last project, we built an Intercom from a five-vacuum-tube radio. … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Friends | Leave a comment

Christmas Eve Flood Of 1955

Posted on Friday, December 19, 2025 by Paul

This day was going normally at Christmas 1955 until that call came from Stockton.   My Aunt Kaye called Mom and said Stockton had flooded, and her home was sitting in 7 feet of water from the overflow of the levee … Continue reading →

Posted in Dining Out, Family, Fun, Holidays, Walking | Leave a comment

I Was At Work Christmas Eve In 1968!

Posted on Thursday, December 18, 2025 by Paul

I was lucky enough to work on the Apollo Program and knew these folks (at least to talk to and work with while they were in Downey).  I worked on their space machine (Apollo Command and Service Modules).  I was … Continue reading →

Posted in Dining Out, Elks, Family, Friends, Holidays, Memories | Leave a comment

Talk To Me!

Posted on Wednesday, December 17, 2025 by Paul

As I had mentioned previously, Ralph Lebowitz, my Dad’s boss, was an amazingly generous man.  He was aware that I loved American Flyer trains and came to see the layout at our home.  One Christmas Eve, our family went to … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Us, Memories | Leave a comment

Happy Birthday Paul, 81 Today!

Posted on Tuesday, December 16, 2025 by Paul

As I grew older and was given more responsibilities, I learned to love the incinerator, especially at Christmas.  Feeding this beast with Christmas boxes and wrapping paper was fun, but the real thrill was cutting off branches from a “dead” … Continue reading →

Posted in Dining Out, Memories, Theater | Leave a comment