I like to make fried eggs — I like the experience, putting a little chilli on them, putting the cover on to cook them top down. I like flipping them and I like not flipping them. I find the whole…
Category: Essays and such
Sheltering in Place…
The Bay Area went to shelter in place last night at midnight. In case it comes to your area too, I thought I’d share what “shelter in place” is like around these parts. And granted, it’s super early, and I…
The Haircut
Some times it felt like he was collecting hair. He had a place to store it, all that hair. On top of and around his head. A mass. Spilling up and out and over until, as his grandfather would say:…
Tales of a Fourth Grade Brahman
In 1976 I was in Mr Rehmeyer’s fourth grade class. I guess he was around 35 then, so born sometime around 1940. It’s something to think about, all those teachers from that time who are likely 70, 80, 90 years…
My Own Private Stanley Idaho
This is a story about a pair of roadtrips. One from a year ago, one a few decades back. The one from last year started on a Friday. Work calls kicked off that morning at 7am. We were getting ready…
Playing Backgammon with My Dad
There was a time when I was serious about backgammon. Not great, but serious. At the serious-but-not-great level, backgammon is played with the reptile brain. For every situation, you learn and lock in a specific right response. Roll, move. Roll,…
Three Paths Less Travelled
The first time I went to Muir Woods, the forest floor was flooded with people. It was like midday at Disneyland, only with Douglas Firs and Coastal Redwoods instead of Winnie the Pooh and pals. I was discouraged. This was…
What I Learned from the Writing Class I Never Took
Junior year in college, my girlfriend Laura and I both applied to get into the Big Writing Class. There were always more applicants than seats in the BWC. I don’t remember exactly what I wrote as my sample, but I…
Into the Vortex…
There were ten of us perched around the edge of the raft: me, my wife, her family, our river guide. We’d all signed up for an afternoon adventure in the form of whitewater rafting down the American River—some exercise, a…