Forty Good Years

Forty years ago, I waited in Friendly Plaza - right near the old Monterey City Hall - while my young husband went into the Monterey Herald for a job interview. It had been a busy few years for Kevin: drafted out of college; time at Ft. Ord, Ft. Devens, and in Vietnam; finishing college while working at the Whittier Daily News; getting married to me. Now he was about to find out if his new job would be in Monterey or in Modesto.

Kevin was born to write. He had been kicked out of seminary for starting an underground newspaper. Then he was elevated from lowly copy boy to full fledged reporter when a fast-breaking story found the Daily News without any reporters. "Howe, can you write?" the city editor had shouted. "Yes, sir!" he replied, and he got his big break.

It has always been a real trip to watch him compose a story. Head thrown back, eyes closed, the words stream out of his prodigious mind, down his arms and out through his fingertips. I still marvel at his speed of thinking and typing and his ability to cut through the petty details to the central facts of any story. But sitting in Friendly Plaza, I wondered whether the man who was interviewing him would appreciate just how accomplished he was

Out he came - awfully soon - and said, "He asked me what I would work for and I said $160 a week." There were no benefits, but we thought that was quite a coup, as we had been getting $110 at the Daily News. The next day we drove around Pacific Grove and found a little cottage on Mermaid Avenue with a view of the Monterey Bay. "Kevin," I said, "If you can stand to work the same place forever, I'd love to stay here."

Yesterday, my dear husband celebrated 40 years at what is now the Monterey County Herald. It long ago ceased to be owned by its founder, Col. Allen Griffin. We've had health care for years and the plant moved out of downtown Monterey over 20 years ago. There are just a couple other people left from when Kevin started.

We've had three kids - all now grown. I still think this small town is the best place in the world to live. It amuses me that Kevin - who seems like he was just hired for his brand new job - is the granddaddy of the paper. The young reporters ask him who to call for what. He know where every body is buried. He still throws back his head and closes his eyes when he writes. I'm more convinced than ever that he's the best and fastest reporter around.

Thanks Kevin, for this wonderful life you made possible for us! I love you!

Many Diverse Surprises

Walking into the north wing, eighth floor, of the vast UCSF Medical Center, a person passes through a huge kind of portal above which is written, "Brain Tumor Center." At UCSF, everything is called exactly what it is. Earlier, for example, we had seen a sign for something like "Fetal Intervention." That kind of took my breath away.

As we passed through the portal, we could see that the whole outer wall of our department was glass - a long corridor looking out over the Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park, the tops of houses in the foreground and the hills of Marin Headlands in the distance. That took my breath away, too.

We sat there waiting, my son Walt and I, admiring the view and from time to time checking out the cordoned-off streets directly below. It wasn't filming, we surmised, because there was a television truck there. Maybe it was some kind of race. . . but on a Tuesday? Suddenly we heard an enormous explosion. Racing to the window, we could see smoke pouring out of the television truck. Finally we realized that it was filming, and that the explosion was all part of the plan. My goodness, this was not what we had expected while waiting to see the head of Neurosurgery for what I hope would be the final word on these two tumors of mine - my benign meningiomas.
It all made my prognosis seem slightly anti-climatic. No, said the very knowledgeable Dr. Berger. No, the vibrating is not being caused by the tumors. Keep on with the physical therapy which is reducing those symptoms.

But - here was the surprise - in people "as young as you," meningiomas are likely to grow fast, and if mine do, they will have to be surgically removed. What this means for now is frequent MRIs, and maybe someday I'll get to wear those hats Sarah gave me for after surgery. And maybe not. I'm obviously rooting for not.

After that, we went out into the sunshine of a beautiful day in a beautiful city and had fabulous salads for lunch at La Boulange. Final surprise of the day - at La Boulange, macaroons come in many flavors. Both the caramel and the pistachio are delicious!

Dream Cruising

I fell back asleep for 15 minutes this morning and awoke having had an awesome bike ride. I started out with Sarah - riding down city streets. Stop lights, cars, lots of people and confusion. No problem. Just riding a black bike with both handle brakes and pedal brakes. It felt normal, good, and free.

I woke up happy.

I don't think that will ever happen except in my dreams, but I am full of hope for the future. Who knows what will happen next. I'm ready!