The first person to show up for my first-ever book signing was my little brother Paul. It’s a good thing the restaurant manager didn’t throw him out. He does, after all, look like a homeless person. That’s because he is. Sure, he couch surfs from one person’s house to the next, until something or somebody nudges him to the next. Paul’s been without a couch to call home since my mother passed away six years ago and I honestly don’t know how he continues to survive, but … [Read more...]
Life in America on Route 66
October 4, 2012 By
You know you're back in Indian country when you're scanning the radio dial seeking more spin after the big debate, (I'm a masochist) and instead of pundits you come across Navajo drum music. It was so fitting that I tuned in to that familiar sound just as took I-40 east heading to Albuquerque. In a further cultural mishmosh which is the very definition of the America that I know, I pulled into a motor court here on old Route 66 in Holbrook, AZ because I was just too … [Read more...]
We Cleave to Our Dogs
September 16, 2012 By
I just left my friend Michelle’s house. We took her dogs out just before I left. It’s almost gotten to the point where Roxie, her black standard poodle, needs to be carried down the stairs. The arthritis in her hind legs makes each step treachery. I don’t mind carrying her down. I’ll carry that dog any day of the week. She’s the Roxie, the queen dog at Michelle’s castle. She is as much the heart and soul of that home as Michelle and her son, Sam are. Roxie has been a … [Read more...]
Coming Soon to a Radio Near You! U-Turn in Utah, The Sequel
August 22, 2012 By
Fate versus randomness. I don't know about you, but I still struggle with this. Although after last summer's road trip across the country, you may be saying, "are you kidding?" I mean when something wonderful happens don't we automatically gravitate toward the "meant to be" column of our lives? Whereas, if we just happen to be in a restaurant and somebody chokes on a piece of steak and we just happen to know the Heimlich Maneuver, wouldn't that justifiably fall under … [Read more...]
Keep Pedaling
July 29, 2012 By
I have been struggling with what to say about Michael. Three times in the past two days, I sat down to write his story. Couple of starts, then I’d get distracted, decide to pull a few weeds out of a few thousand out in the back yard, or take the dogs for a walk, or maybe have a muffin -- for any of you who are a) writers or b) saw the movie “ADAPTATION,” you know the culinary procrastination I’m talking about. On the third try, I got four fairly good paragraphs down, … [Read more...]
Freedom from Fear
July 17, 2012 By
We had scattered like cockroaches when someone flips on a light. Well, okay, that's a terrible way to describe what happened to all my former news colleagues at the ABC affiliate here in St. Louis when the wrecking ball swung, one round of layoffs at a time, until they finished the old girl off by imploding the local news completely. Sucks when reruns of Frazier pull higher ratings than your early news. Rats from a sinking ship then, maybe that's the best way to … [Read more...]
Too Much Time on My Hands
July 10, 2012 By
Suffice it to say a book about an eight-week sojourn across the country with nobody but a dog contains a lot of self-reflection. Was thinking about that this morning, when I was noticing how the early morning light creates interesting shadows and contrasts, something I can indulge in as a gainfully, unemployed writer. This immediately made me think of this day last year, and my pleasant stay at the EconoLodge where I went into somewhat of a significant tailspin of … [Read more...]
Chi-Town Chicken Bones
July 8, 2012 By
A year ago today, I was in Chicago. Lovely city. With it only being day three of "THE TRIP" however, we were still in shake down mode. I'm not talking about robbing someone nor being robbed, I'm talking about learning how to navigate things like pooping in public, (her, not me) going to off leash parks and how to prevent her from choking to death on same damn old chicken bone. It would be a challenging, yet pivotal, two days. I'd had one of those oh shit moments … [Read more...]
What I Didn’t Know Then
July 6, 2012 By
One year ago tonight, at this precise moment of sundown on a Midwestern prairie, Libby and I were headed eastbound on U.S. 64 near Springfield, Illinois, where I would pull in to a nondescript Red Roof Inn, ushering in the first of many nights in which the motel maid was often the first and last human I'd speak to all day. Looking back, I shudder to think of what could have gone wrong. So much could have, what with a middle-aged woman, traveling all over the country … [Read more...]
If You Don’t Stop That, You’ll Go Blind
April 29, 2012 By
The email from her Blackberry said it all. “At a funeral. Back in the office soon.” It is a telling reflection of the world in which we live when a person feels a compunction to return an email in the middle of a funeral. This is beyond the pale. I am not throwing stones however, as I live in a glass house, which you’ll understand in a minute. The person who felt an overwhelming obligation to respond to one of 9,000 emails she probably gets in a day, I’m sure, just … [Read more...]
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