Oct. 2, day before her 80th birthday, G. on her way to York Gallery to pick up newly framed paintings for Santa Cruz' annual Open Studio event, gets slammed into by a truck, which demolishes, totally demolishes! entire front portion of our Honda Accord. All plans for Open Studio get put aside to take on what is, in fact, a full time job: working with State Farm, our insurance company, the CHP, seeing doctors, chiropractor, massage therapist, looking for a replacement car, G.'s sleeplessness, anxiety, fear of getting behind a wheel...

Goes forward with Open Studio, but even with streams of people coming through, only one buys anything ($400.). Others gaze blankly at the paintings… “How did you happen to stop by,” I ask an older couple. “Oh, we were just walking by…” Other years people come by because they know G. and her work, because they've bought her work in the past, want to see NOW what she's up to... then she has one day when virtually no one comes by. Then a more "normal" day... Meanwhile, some stop to look at the 8 x 10 photo (see attached) of the wrecked Honda, which they take to be a sample of Gloria’s abstract acrylic painting.

On the plus side is the insurance company. We call the “Total Loss Department,” which helpfully sends papers left behind in the car. State Farm, they’ve been prompt, accessible, useful advice… right after an accident, black and blue, mentally dazed and vision glazed, hurting, one looks around, now what? Friends, family and the insurance company.  Well, anyway, she survived, and... well, no complaints…