Category Archives: Just Thinking

I was reminded this evening that the measure of a person can be taken from his or her response to the opportunity to pull rank, as it were.  The older I get, the better I understand that the most talented actors … Continue reading →

I am sitting at the desk in our hotel, the room pitch dark except for the ghostly white glow of the notebook computer’s screen. Unwelcome thoughts and the frequent sound of the air conditioner fan switching on and off interrupted my sleep, … Continue reading →

Two years ago, I learned tonight, I was in a strange mood. Facebook told me. Facebook also revealed that I watched snow fall in Dallas six years ago today.  Why does that matter? Well, it matters because Facebook has a … Continue reading →

Properly cooked, hard-boiled eggs provide a surprising and joyous sensory experience; not just the sense of taste, but the senses of touch and accomplishment. Few experiences parallel the sheer joy of cracking and peeling a perfectly cooked hard-boiled egg. A sharp … Continue reading →

As I sit to write whatever it is that will follow, I look at the clock. The time is three-thirty and I’ve been up for almost an hour. It’s not as bad as it might seem, though, as I went to bed … Continue reading →

Today’s massive dose of excitement will include: Cleaning up a database for an organization to which I belong; Visiting my doctor again to give him the opportunity to try again to determine the cause of, and recommend a solution to, … Continue reading →

The thing that distinguishes you from the ground on which you walk is irrelevant. You are that ground and it is you. Just like the ants you cannot see unless you focus intently on that infinitesimal space beneath their tiny legs, … Continue reading →

Skimming old stories I wrote, and even ones I started and abandoned, is a little like sorting through old photos. Photos are two dimensional triggers that may, if given enough attention, draw memories out of the tangled gauze of dim recollections. But … Continue reading →

The lyrics of Leonard Cohen’s poem/song, Sisters of Mercy, are among the most powerful I have ever heard uttered. This morning, some of them are on my mind. Yes, you who must leave everything that you cannot control. It begins … Continue reading →

I read this morning of the death of Edgar Mitchell, the Apollo 14 astronaut who was one of only twelve humans to have walked on the moon. Apollo 14 launched on January 31, 1971; the lunar landing took place on … Continue reading →

It’s not that I can’t write. It’s not writer’s block. Nothing like that at all. No, it’s that I’m simply not in a frame of mind suitable for writing the sort of material I usually enjoy writing. Until recently, when … Continue reading →

In recent months, I have become fascinated with (or, perhaps, fixated on) what I wrote years ago on my first blog. I’m sure I’ve recently mentioned, here, my obsession with my earlier writings. Reading what I wrote reveals to me the … Continue reading →

Mistakes become larger than life, taking on more power and greater significance than they deserve. It’s as if a person assumes a single mistake is part of a lengthy pattern of blunders firmly nestled in a concrete case, even before the cement has time to set. He … Continue reading →

I dropped off a pair of my jeans with a local embroidery/sewing/alterations shop yesterday. The jeans need a repair; my predilection for pulling on a belt loop to hike up my jeans before they slip over my hips and fall to the … Continue reading →

Yesterday, as I mindlessly wandered through postings on Facebook, I came across a notice telling me that an acquaintance had made a comment on the Facebook page of another person, a person I do not know and had never heard of. … Continue reading →

A few weeks ago, I spent three minutes in a hardware store seeking an air-conditioner air filter that was unavailable in nearby grocery stores and big-box hardware stores. I found it, but could not bring myself to simply pay and leave … Continue reading →

Last night’s snow left the ground covered with a heavy dusting, perhaps three-quarters of an inch of white powder. The contrast between the brilliant white snow and the dark browns and greens of the trees and ground and the rocks … Continue reading →

Last night was excellent! My writing colleagues and I had a nice dinner, as all of our dinners here have been, and then we spent several hours chatting among ourselves and reading our work aloud. An addition at and after dinner … Continue reading →

I guess I’m in the mood for reminiscence. Again this morning, I slipped into an old blog and started reading about some of the road trips my wife and I used to take. One such trip involved a stop in … Continue reading →

A lot rides on the validity and reliability of introspection. For starters, one’s self-image and self-respect depend on the view from inside-in, not to mention the view from inside out. And it goes on from there. Knowing who’s speaking when it’s … Continue reading →