Thoughts about whatever is rattling around in my brain.
As I sit down this morning I am reminded of how long it has been since I last put something up on my blog. It has been nearly two months but it feels like it has been longer. I have been keeping myself busy and life has a way of filling the spaces that we … More Back to Blogging
I have been working on a second novel lately. Well, to be honest I have been letting my subconscious work on a second novel. I don’t know if I have a creative process or if I just have delusions, but I thought it would be helpful for me to remind myself how I think this … More Another Novel
Now dressing as an author or literary character is probably not something many people consider because most people will not know who you are and you will spend most of the evening explaining to people who don’t read books who you are. Instead of looking at the negative side of the evening think about how … More Top Ten Literary Halloween Outfits
Here is the danger in telling your kids that carrying them in Europe is illegal: they might want to attack you. We had been on longer walks, but those walks were disguised by twists and turns (to be completely honest, many of the twist and turns were because we were lost.) This walk was supposed … More When You Lie to Your Kids
Traveling with young kids can be a challenge. They are grumpy little people with short attention spans and not much interest in history or art. So when my wife and I decided to take our kids to Europe for the first time there were many challenges we had to overcome: How do you keep your … More A Good Lie to Tell Your Kids
This morning I read an article in the NYTimes by Charles Blow, In Honor of Teachers about a teacher who inspired him. I am glad I read the article but I made the mistake of reading the comments other readers had about the article. Now I realize that many people have some strong opinions about teachers and … More Why I Teach
For about three years my wife has wanted chickens. She has been reading chicken books, visiting chickens, thinking about chickens and talking about someday having chickens. We have enough property for chickens, but I haven’t wanted them for one reason: I don’t want chickens. Sure I would like some fresh eggs but I can get … More My $400 Chickens
Tonight it was a breeze that passed over the dining room table pushing some loose papers onto the floor. Maybe the dampness of the evening air triggered it, but suddenly I was transported to Paris a few years ago. I had traveled to Paris alone in 2007 to continue working on my novel. The breeze … More Abroad Thoughts From Home
In 1948, when George Orwell was writing 1984, he modeled his Big Brother government after Joseph Stalin’s regime in Russia. The oppressive Big Brother was always watching, always at war and always controlling the flow of information to the people of Oceania (England and the Americas). Does this sound familiar to anyone out there? Well … More Would Orwell Love the Bush Administration?: 4/2/2004
I grew up in a small community in central California. The two major industries (if you can call them that) were farming and the Navy. It might seem odd to people that there would be a Navy base far from the water, but the San Joaquin Valley provided the Navy with clear skies for the … More My Memorial Day: 5/28/2004
South of the Strait 