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Author Archives: John Swinburn
Ice
The guy began to climb into the tree, using the ladder his partner had leaned against the trunk. He stepped up the rungs of the aluminum extension ladder until he reached the point at which the massive trunk split into … Continue reading
Posted in Weather
5 Comments
Whispers
Whispers. That’s what we hear when we watch television news or listen to ourselves reading from the New York Times or Chicago Tribune or skim messages from Facebook or Twitter. These are not proclamations of truth or emphatic pronouncements of fact. They’re … Continue reading
Posted in Philosophy
6 Comments
The Dream
Several weeks ago, I had a very vivid dream. When I awoke from it, about 4:30 in the morning, I recorded what I remembered of it, which was quite a lot. Here are my recollections. The Dream I was riding … Continue reading
Posted in Dreams
4 Comments
Ice Crunch
The streets and sidewalks did not look as slick as they were. They were white, streaked in places with grey. I knew enough that the grey places were probably sleet that had melted to form a sheet of ice, but … Continue reading
Posted in Nature, Walking, Weather
6 Comments
Stir-crazy
stir-cra·zy [stur-krey-zee] adjective Slang. Informal. restless or frantic because of confinement, routine, etc.: I was stir-crazy after just two months of keeping house. mentally ill because of long imprisonment. I’d like to think the first definition is most appropriate to my situation. This brief period (it’s been just 24 hours or so) of being house-bound due to ice and broken tree limbs and … Continue reading
Posted in Nature, Weather
4 Comments
Nature
The ice storm we are facing today began last night, shortly before nightfall. Forecasts call for issue with ice to continue for a while yet, though the sleet and freezing rain apparently are behind us. But the slightly rising temperatures … Continue reading
Posted in Nature
2 Comments
Dropping In
In a post yesterday morning, I included a link to a review of a book entitled The Lonely American. Some of the content of that review has stayed on my mind. Specifically, this comment has been on my mind: “neighbors are afraid … Continue reading
Posted in Communication, Friendship
10 Comments
Sunday Assembly
If you’ve read my blog, or my Facebook comments, you know I’ve spoken well of “the church” with respect to “doing good,” and have lamented the lack of a church-like organization for non believers who desire the social benefits of … Continue reading
Posted in Religion, Secular morality
5 Comments
Revelations
Last night I read a number of posts I’ve written but have not posted. There are reasons. Most of the time, I write and immediately post; complete with grammar and spelling errors. But sometimes, I write and say to myself, … Continue reading
Roots of Religion
A few months ago, I watched The Buddha on PBS for the third or fourth time. Almost every time I see that it’s on, I watch it. That’s not my usual practice with television; generally, I don’t watch it much … Continue reading
Posted in Philosophy, Religion, Secular morality
6 Comments
Borrowing Art
Libraries are extraordinary. You want a book, they’ll lend you a book. They don’t have the book? They’ll get it for you. The cost? Usually, nothing. Even if the book you want is not available in the library system, they … Continue reading
On the Margins
I stand at the edge, on the margins, watching the flood, so close to the torrent, yet apart from the flow. There, where I’ve always stood on the margins, the rush beckons me, urges me to lunge. I could fall … Continue reading
Posted in Poetry
9 Comments
Is Money an Appropriate Gift?
I was only half-listening to a radio or television program—I don’t know, it may have been news, maybe a documentary, I was distracted—when I half-heard a remark that struck me later, when it surfaced in memory. Only later did my … Continue reading
Posted in Cash Gifts
15 Comments
About Thanksgiving…
Very probably, the majority of those who celebrate Thanksgiving Day in the United States identify it as a day to reflect on and give thanks or express appreciation for all the goodness and bounty in their lives, from their family … Continue reading
Posted in Thanksgiving
8 Comments
Hallucination
The only time I can recall having a hallucination was ten years ago. That memory surfaced recently over lunch with a couple we’ve known for years. He said he had hallucinated while in the hospital a few years ago, explaining … Continue reading
Posted in Health
7 Comments
Jalapeños
My wife decided she wanted to go out to lunch today. After a bit of back and forth about where, we opted to go to Cuquita’s, a Mexican restaurant adjacent to one of the grocery stores we frequent, Fiesta. The … Continue reading
Posted in Food
3 Comments
Looking for a New Neighborhood
It’s rare, but it happens: the advice offered in a “free e-newsletter” turns out to be valuable, thought-provoking advice. In the instance to which I am referring, it was nothing earth-shattering, but decent, well-conceived advice. I will give credit where … Continue reading
Posted in Housiing, Philosophy, Population, Third Place
6 Comments
Kitchen Travel
My experiment in doing without has evolved from the original plan. I started and ended my absence from social media (except this blog) early and curtailed my month of meatlessness after three weeks or so. I am returning to my … Continue reading
Posted in Doing Without, Food
3 Comments
Taking Up Space
There are times I feel like I have a dependency, as if I have no control over things my brain craves in an almost physical sense. Facebook. Yes, Facebook. I swore it off for a while and it was not … Continue reading
Posted in Depression
6 Comments
The Darkest Storm
A monstrous storm is approaching. It is too big to avoid; no matter where or how fast you go, you cannot hope to escape. Your home cannot possibly survive the coming storm, nor can public shelters hope to do better. … Continue reading
Posted in Fiction, Philosophy
4 Comments
A Part of the Main
There is no wider world. We are it. We are all we have. Our friends, our families, our communities, the people we see each day. We pretend to pledge allegiance to states or countries, even causes, but the reality is … Continue reading
Posted in Philosophy
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House Surgery
The guys came Tuesday to resurface the tops of the vanities in the guest bath and the half bath, as well as the counter of the wet bar. I had arranged with them to come Tuesday morning, thinking I would … Continue reading
Posted in Aging, Housiing, Moving
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Melancholia
I wonder why melancholy sometimes overtakes us without warning? No precipitating event, just a rush of sadness that paints everything with a wash of tears. Vague regrets, unknown losses, and unspoken yet unmet hopes and dreams combine to fill the … Continue reading
Posted in Depression
2 Comments
Amethyst
This morning, I read a post on a National Public Radio (NPR) blog, entitled “Why We (Should) All Love The Stars.” The text was interesting, but not stunning. The photograph above, though, was moving in ways words probably cannot express. … Continue reading
Posted in Nature
6 Comments
Incomprehensible Beauty
A field of flowers may be lovely, but a single bloom can be incomprehensively beautiful. When I look closely at just one blossom, ignoring everything around it, I am utterly awestruck. The subtle variations in color, the complexity of elaborate … Continue reading
Posted in Nature
3 Comments