Geoff Ruaine
Posted on June 11, 2013 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer Boom! What is that loud sound? “Are we under attack?” I ask my charming friend, Geoff Ruaine. This is my first time to The Lord of the Rings land. We’ve just stepped onto the street, having toured the newly built Auckland Art Gallery, an architectural achievement in Albert Park, when [...]
Steve Bloom
Posted on May 23, 2013 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer “G’day, me mate!” declares an ever-so-affable voice as I enter Cambridge Hotel in the Surry Hills section of Sydney, Australia. It’s Raj Patel, guest relations officer, and he pleasantly grabs the suitcase out of my hands. Whew, the older I get the more makeup I need—thus my bags get heavier [...]
Paul Gauthier
Posted on April 30, 2013 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer Hello mates. I…love…cruising! The seafaring kind, not the flirtation kind, though that can be stimulating as well. I’m presently in the South Pacific aboard Holland-America’s Volendam sailing from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia. Today we are at sea and I’m sitting on deck reading Sachi Parker’s juicy “Mommie Dearest” tome, [...]
Christine Dunn
Posted on March 28, 2013 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer My stocking feet are propped up on an ottoman as cracklin’ wood blazes in the fireplace. Frigid winds swoosh outside my frost-covered windows. It’s a lazy afternoon, I’ve got a glass of red wine by my custard tarts, and I’m marathon-ing episodes from the box set of the favorite Brit [...]
Guillermo Fornillo
Posted on February 20, 2013 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer VD again. No, no…I mean Valentine’s Day! And who else would I rather be with and where else would I rather be? Well, with a red hot Latin lover at a delightful hideaway, Davanti Enoteca restaurant in the Little Italy section of San Diego. Opened just about a year ago, [...]
Michael Beck
Posted on January 16, 2013 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer History has always been a favorite subject of mine. A noteworthy dig that I recently discovered, which is now on my “Top Ten” sites to visit, is Sunnylands, the former Annenberg Estate in Rancho Mirage, California. These sumptuous two hundred acres, complete with golf course, was known as the West [...]
Ken Stabins & Tim Phillips
Posted on December 22, 2012 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer Though it may be December, a chilly month for many, my thoughts turn toward memories of warmer weather—say, like 112 degrees in the shade? That temperature is enough to ward off many a traveler…but not this desert rat. Just a few months ago the thermometer was bubbling over in Palm [...]
Leif Rogers, MD
Posted on December 5, 2012 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer Holy bedpan, the holidays are upon us once again. Every year, though, I do look forward to a non-traditional meal: organic turkey with gluten-free stuffing, fresh veggies from my garden, and a dollop of tapioca-based whipped cream atop homemade pumpkin pie. No, no, I don’t cook—blessedly, my fiancé Rudy does. [...]
Betty Holston Smith
Posted on October 30, 2012 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer This girl makes me feel like SuperWeenie! Where does she get such strength and endurance? Technically she’s older than me, but certainly not in mind, body, or spirit. At seventy-one, Dr. Betty Holston Smith is proud of her age and has every right to be. Among other things, she’s a [...]
Quinn Cummings
Posted on October 3, 2012 by A&U in Columns, Ruby's Rap
Ruby’s Rap by Ruby Comer Who would have thunk it.…?! That cute, irascible kid in the classic film, The Goodbye Girl, would eventually work on an AIDS hotline. Just eight years after the film, when Quinn Cummings was eighteen she was fielding calls from desperate, worried callers. She was the youngest volunteer at the hotline. [...]
