Inga Tells All by Inga (2014)

With a title like, Inga Tells All, A saga of single parenthood, second marriage, surly fauna, an being mistaken for  Swedish porn star, I had to open the cover and jump in, right? Right!

But in the spirit of full disclosure, I was also intrigued by the similarities the author and I share. We’re both middle-aged women from San Diego, both columnists who, at times, offer up our families for public consumption. (We even won the same California Newspaper Publishers Association award for our columns. Weird!) We both like to laugh … a lot. It seems we can both be irreverent and yes, we have opinions. That said, we tend to stay away from writing about politics. (I don’t know about Inga but too many people feel compelled to share their political opinions.)

Jumping into this collection of clever, witty, and thought provoking essays was a joy ride. Trust me, if you’re like so many of us who have a ton of life experience under our belts and you’re looking for a laugh-out-loud read Inga is your gal!

She covers life in fourteen sections which is, in and of itself, admirable. Her first section, “12 Years a Single Mom”  is something too many women will relate to. (Getting a dead possum out of her yard? It wasn’t easy, nor very pretty but she did it!) She ends with “Getting Old But the Alternative is Worse” and addresses many of those irritating things those of us in the second half confront on a daily basis. (I especially enjoyed reading her essay, “Bad Apple”. In it, Inga shares experiences upgrading her iPhone. Let me know if you could relate to her frustration. I know, I sure did!)

Oh, and about the Swedish porn star? It’s a story you don’t want to miss!

Inga Tells All … a book to read and a book to share!

Life After Fifty

One by one, her nest emptied and Tracey discovered that life after fifty was wonderful … even if it wasn’t always easy. Since her last child flew the nest she’s been very busy! In the last ten years she has: transitioned her psychotherapy practice to life coaching; written her debut novel, Duck Pond Epiphany; launched a new blog and print column, The Second Half; written, produced and starred in a one act musical, The Second Half … A Lively Look at Life After Fifty; appeared in Portland, Oregon’s national production of Listen To Your Mother; produced and hosted Wisdom in the Spotlight, a live performance that featured people between 54 and 93 sharing their personal essays on wisdom.