Published inHuman Parts·May 17Member-onlyMeditation and Me, Me, MeA funny thing happened on the way to enlightenment — I really should be enlightened by now. Some people envisioned their future with flying cars. I pictured not a car but my body flying or, more accurately, levitating. Nothing fancy, just a modest hover. Enlightenment would make me humble that way. Alas, I have failed to float so much as…Meditation3 min readMeditation3 min read
May 10Member-onlyA Murder of CrowsShort story first published in Dunes Review, republished by FreshInk app Francie had an affinity with animals. As an infant, she rarely cried when she woke but lay quietly in her crib taking in the antics of our old hound as he tracked smells, real and imagined, through the nursery…11 min read11 min read
Jan 31Member-onlyOverland 3: Seeing AngelsMemories of traveling overland from Italy to India at age eighteen Somebody saw an angel. It was slightly blurry, but still. We heard about it the next day during our break after the lunch rush. Lucy, John and I poured ourselves coffee then slid into one of the wood booths…Travel4 min readTravel4 min read
Published inTell Your Story·Jan 23Member-onlyOverland 2: On the Road and Off My RockerThe night before we left, I was too excited to sleep. I said goodbye to my parents in the driveway then Margaret’s parents drove us up to Winnipeg for a cheap direct flight. The four of us shared a hotel room near the airport. I barely slept so boarded the…Travel5 min readTravel5 min read
Published inTell Your Story·Jan 21Member-onlyOverland: 1The Journey Starts, Escape from suburbia I said goodbye to my parents in the driveway. The summer of 1974, I graduated from high school, turned eighteen and, with money earned at the mall, bought a round-trip ticket to what seemed like a shimmering fairytale across the Atlantic: Europe. I grew up in a comfortable, blue collar…Travel4 min readTravel4 min read
Jan 9Member-onlyA Loafing Couch, A Jug of Cough Syrup & ThouHow feeling sick as a dog made me a brilliant writer This was my thirty-third day of hacking and coughing. Not to worry. The computer screen doubles as a sneeze guard. When one is laying prone sick on the couch unable to participate in the corporeal joys of life, too…Humor4 min readHumor4 min read
Dec 13, 2022Member-onlyGiving Thanks and Food PoisoningWhen even tried-and-true recipes result in disaster or deliciousness I consider myself an elevator cook. I have my ups and downs. A Thanksgiving dinner guest once declared my dressing the best he’d ever tasted. He wasn’t being polite. It was flipping amazing. Another dinner guest at another Thanksgiving dinner suggested…Humor4 min readHumor4 min read
Dec 9, 2022Member-onlyDeciding to Accept My IndecisionDiscovering strength in ambivalence — I walked barefoot along the water’s edge where the sand and the sea and the sky blurred to gray. Cracked crab shells and jelly fish littered the beach. I kept my focus on my feet but sensed a slick dark figure bobbing in the breakers; a body surfer in a…Essay6 min readEssay6 min read
Dec 7, 2022Member-onlyContemplating Death on a Sunny DayOr why I am so good at pretending to be immortal I always thought that life would make sense one day. With time I was sure I’d come to see what it all meant, what I learned, and what words of wisdom I could impart to others to make easier…Essay4 min readEssay4 min read
