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Author Archives: John Swinburn
Seductive Spices
“What the hell are we going to do with three pounds of goat shoulder?” Geneva’s tone revealed her doubts about the gift from Jacob’s friend, Katrina. Jacob flashed a conciliatory grin at her. “You needn’t worry about it, darling. I’ll … Continue reading
Distrustful Sky
The sky remained almost dark, distrustful that my appearance on the deck was a good sign. As I hung hummingbird feeders in their assigned places, replenished with fresh nectar, the sky brightened a bit, satisfied that my presence was not … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
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Fresh Joys and Unending Tears
I love sitting outside on the screen porch at the intersection of dusk and darkness. I sit listening to the frogs and toads and insects and who-knows-what make a cacophonous racket in the trees and hillside just beyond the deck. … Continue reading
Posted in Stream of Consciousness
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Lost Among Serpents and other Reptiles
A bizarre merger of odd dreams into a nightmare A young woman from Australia, who worked for my company years ago, was visiting. We were in someone else’s house. I remember windows looking down on a street below. And I … Continue reading
Posted in Dreams
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Mi Escritura Estraña
When I took the hummingbird feeders out this morning, I was surprised at how cool it felt to walk outside. The indoor/outdoor thermometer read 67 degrees, a much more civilized morning temperature than recent morning lows of 76 or more. … Continue reading
Posted in Stream of Consciousness
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Lion
I do not follow film. I do not wait with anticipation for announcements of Oscar nominations, nor do I track predictions about which new films will be the latest and greatest contributions to filmdom. I guess that’s the reason I’d … Continue reading
Posted in Film
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The Last Cold Front
“Man, the weather is changing a hell of a lot faster than the models predicted. Two years ago, I was among those saying we wouldn’t see a sea level increase by three feet until 2100.” Angus McCutcheon’s leathery face was … Continue reading
Posted in Fiction, Uncategorized, Writing
4 Comments
Envision
Constraints exist only in one’s imagination. Possibilities have limits only in the mind. If a person can conceive of time travel, he can travel forward in time, carrying a notebook in which to record his reality. Circumstances impose boundaries only … Continue reading
Posted in Poetry
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Venezuelans and Their Food
Earlier today, an article on the National Public Radio website about a food common in Venezuela, called arepas, launched my exploration of the dish. Several recipes later, my interest grew beyond food as I became increasingly intrigued about the current state of … Continue reading
Posted in Compassion, Food, Justice, Politics
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An Artificial Benchmark
This is post number 2400. And ninety-one more await as drafts, though most of them will eventually be erased without ever realizing the potential of being seen by human eyes other than my own. If each of my published posts … Continue reading
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Distant Broden
Lina waited for Broden to continue. “Oh, he was just so totally in love with life. Why would a man buy a two million dollar car and then kill himself a week later? I mean, it just doesn’t make sense.” … Continue reading
Posted in Fiction, Writing
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Ophira
“If you look long enough and hard enough, you can find things to dislike about almost anyone. But you’d be looking for the wrong things. Instead, you ought to be looking for those shreds of likability hidden among the overgrowth … Continue reading
Posted in Fiction, Writing
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Damn the Grills, and All They Stand For!
The intense loathing I feel for the man who sold me my cheap grill is intensifying. It is morphing into abject hatred, coupled with hatred steeped in molten rock and liquid steel so thin that it could be sprayed from … Continue reading
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A Short Treatise on Reconstructive Transplantation
The first experiments with what was once called “teleportation” involved enormous machinery into which a person’s body was inserted. This occurred long after the whimsical “teleportation” of characters in Star Trek brought the idea into the popular consciousness. Unlike the … Continue reading
Posted in Writing
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Shielded from the Real World
A word of warning: This is macabre and unsettling. Maybe quite advanced on the madness scale. It’s just me, practicing for something yet to be written, I suppose. “Mrs. Griffin, may I go to the bathroom?” “No.” “But I need … Continue reading
Posted in Writing
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Citizenshifting
For reasons beyond my capacity to understand and explain as I begin to write this, I crave fish this morning. I’d like a filet of fresh cod, heavily salted, grilled over some smoky mesquite shavings and drizzled with lemon juice. … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized, Writing
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Time in Motion
I woke up tomorrow, refreshed. And I will wake up yesterday, equally as spent as the day after tomorrow. Time is cylindrical most days, spherical in others. Its texture mimics the odor of bravery or the taste of sullen defeat. … Continue reading
Posted in Writing
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Skeptic
When people you value ignore things important to you, you begin to wonder how important you are to the people you think matter. You start to withdraw into your shell and you question the depth of others’ investment in your … Continue reading
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Famine is to Family as Murder is to Mother
Allen Sherman loved his mother. Her maiden name was Achtung. She was of Prussian ancestry, though she was loathe to admit it. She preferred to tell lies, claiming Scottish lineage on her mother’s side, with a direct line to nobility … Continue reading
Posted in Fiction, Writing
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More World of Wine
Tonight was the fifth (I think…France, Italy, Portugal, Germany, Australia…were there more?) “World of Wine” dinner and wine tasting we’ve attended at Coronado Center. Tonight’s meal and wine assortment were Australian. Upon entering, we were given a glass of Andove … Continue reading
Posted in Food, Wine
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In Favor of Cheese
We have the very good fortune to have some very generous neighbors. A woman with whom Janine plays cards one night a week most weeks gave us three cheeses earlier this week. Because I want to remember them for future … Continue reading
In Twenty-Five Years, Give or Take a Year, I’ll Be Canadian
Twenty-five years ago, I had no assurances I would live to reach sixty-three years of age. Nor did I have such assurances five years ago or even one year ago. The absence of assurances notwithstanding, I had expectations. And they’ve … Continue reading
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Echoes
Another vignette that may find its way into something I write. Surely you remember those kisses. Those hundreds upon hundreds of kisses. We were shy, at least I was, but we shattered that obstacle somehow. We broke every rule. Yet … Continue reading
Posted in Writing
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The Way to Riches
The switch that controls the left rear burner on our KitchenAid Architect Series II electric range costs $131.69. I know this because I managed to break said switch last night. I carelessly grabbed for a heavy wood cutting board, swinging … Continue reading
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Wabi-sabi
Two years ago today, I read an article entitled The Art of the Mistake, by Alice Driver. The article moved me to tears. I doubt others would be moved to tears the way I was. But the ideas offered in … Continue reading
Posted in Philosophy, Wabi sabi
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