Retired Navy after 23 years. I retired at the age of 40 years old. I've been out longer than I was in. All of the ships I served on have been made into razor blades. I had fun and I lived my life the best I could. Most of my shipmates are gone and I try to stay in touch with the remainder. It continues. Substance abuse counselor, builder of wooden boats, furniture maker, prison non-violence workshop facilitator, life observer, activist, reader, writer, geriatric subject of interest, generous tipper. I stay involved.
REVERIE Is there a string to run out? I’m listening to Van Cliburn play the piano; one of my favorite composers and pieces. It takes me far away and long ago, as they say. The music transports whole decades and continents as my body releases the recordings of injury and insult. This has been a … More Reverie
I found this poem in a stack in a file on my laptop. Fancy that! This one was unfinished, I thought. I reread it just now. (I’ve been searching for a story short enough to share at a writers group in Santa Fe tomorrow night.) After reading it again and then again I deem it … More Results of Staring Out My Window
I think this is a repeat posting of this poem however I am feeling more than usual homesick today and that alone validates a repeat. Six days after writing this poem, which describes the view from my living space of the cove across the road, I slipped into the Beastie II and headed for Pennsylvania … More Potato Patch
The eleventh of April and the mountainous communities of Northern New Mexico are being drenched in a wet snow that melts as it hits the ground. It’s a frozen drizzle if you ask me. Go ahead. I pulled up the Boothbay Register page a few minutes ago and the second thing I turn to are … More Incongruence and Coincidence Meet
Here we are on the ninth of April in Northern New Mexico. What a glorious day it is weather-wise. At six thousand six hundred feet elevation the air is clear so the sky looks closer and brighter and all the colors of the evergreens, the tree blossoms, the earth tones are popping! I’m going to … More Good Things Come to Those Who are Fortunate
I’ve been overwhelmed with good fortune and new experiences beyond words. I am still processing my trip over the past month that I have been quiet on this page. Please forgive my absence and enjoy this short story that I just completed today. The story is true to the last detail. I hope you enjoy … More El Padrino
OF IMPORTANCE Today I was mistaken for a librarian. I’m not of course. I’m simply a patron. A woman was looking for the place to donate a few books. She had been directed to another desk and found me instead. I can understand why she would be confused or deceived. I was sitting alone by … More Santa Fe Public Library
I know it’s been awhile since I last wrote. I’ve had starts and stops and a few moments of hilarity thinking about what to write about. I just haven’t done it. Period. I have listed the things that should be written though and I will get to it. As I drive I have at hand two … More Long Rides, Crumbly Snacks, and Sea Monkeys
THAT WHICH EXCITES US I got lost trying to find the Chinese food restaurant last night. I stopped in at a garage near where I thought the restaurant ought to be and asked the mechanic on duty for help. In the process I shared a moment with him that we could only grin about. We … More That Which Excites Us…
Playing Fair and Being Kind 