In Defense of Bridges.
I don’t think I really knew what a bridge was until I was learning the guitar and my friend Mike would give me the lyrics to songs he was teaching me in long hand with his very neatly written “Verse” and “Chorus” and “Bridge.” In a song, a bridge is usually a section that provides […]
Robert Frost – and 7 things that make decisions feel harder.
I have more than once in this space told you of my love for the book (and movie — and now musical!) The Outsiders. And part of what I love about it is the poem Nothing Gold Can Stay by Robert Frost. When I read it in the ’80s, it was my first introduction to […]
Asking for the Can — and Other Reasonable Things
I’m sure there are so many examples of this, but both of mine have to do with Diet Coke.(Insert your own questioning hands emoji here. I don’t mean for Diet Coke to show up in so many of my stories — but here we are.) First example:If you’ve been on a plane anytime in the […]
Driving on autopilot.
I don’t know if you’ve ever done this, but the other day I was driving to see my sweet mom, who lives a few towns away from me. I was listening to an album I know well. Traffic wasn’t horrible. The weather was good. And when I got to her house, I realized I didn’t […]
The Deck We Don’t Use.
The deck we don’t use. Last year we redid our deck. It had been built with basic builder’s grade wood – nothing fancy, and never meant to last. It didn’t hold paint well, it needed constant maintenance, and no matter how many times we power-washed or re-stained, it still looked tired. So we made a […]
Black and White Cookies. Right Here. Right Now.
One of the things Darren and I enjoy most about traveling (I would actually say THE thing Darren and I enjoy most about traveling…) is the food. On our first visit together to New York, I introduced him to one of my favorite spots on the Upper West Side: the legendary delicatessen called Zabar’s. […]
The Gathering – and creative possibility.
During my last year of college, I was fortunate enough to meet a red-headed spit fire of a friend named Meranda. She was from the rough and tumble town of Elko, Nevada, and she introduced me to one of the loves of my life: Cowboy Poetry. More specifically, to The Annual Cowboy Poetry Gathering that […]
Contemplative Practice.
Like I mentioned in the previous post, my voice disappeared last week. It’s back now, mostly, but having absolutely no voice for almost 10 days gave me a lot of time for silence. Ironically – or not – and as uncomfortable as it is, silence is sometimes exactly what my personality needs. It’s the contemplative […]
Precarious pumpkins – and managing our overwhelm.
Precarious Pumpkins and managing our overwhelm. I drove behind a pick-up truck on the freeway today that had its bed CHOCK FULL of pumpkins. Like really, really full. Those pumpkins were not tied down or secured and I found myself wanting to pass quickly by. One bump would have sent one – or many […]
Korean Stairs – and embracing your ‘uneven.’
My sister-in-law, who spent time in Korea during the 1990s doing church service, recently told me something fascinating about how traditional Korean stairs were built. Apparently, construction focused more on function and adaptability than precision. Builders had to work with local materials and uneven ground, often without using standardized tools or measurements. As a result, […]
