"…something like the supervisor of an entire team of political agents…"
Cecil Vortex 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 not the verdant vibe I was looking for. I had a friend with me who’d … Read more
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 remember it was something dreamy and shaded in mystery. It took place in the woods. … Read more
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 bit of a rush, all followed by the reward of an extended float down the … Read more
The line that gives way over time to oxygen and new molecules, bumbling about That softens delineation with a hand that jumps That leaves smudgeframed, then unframed a thing you asked to live inside a rectangle (“hey, won’t you please live inside this awesome rectangle?”) Until that frame is zap-gone and that thing is just … Read more
as a thing that deserves extra meaning, how could we use this phrase and you’d all follow? Such as: “My head today, and your voice. My head, that rotting frame…” and you’d know we meant the lines were shaky, there was too much give and you were breaking in while I was away and drinking … Read more
throwing someone their cappuccino. the air doing its best to keep things collected, to create a charmed path. ceramic following after, or sometimes leading in a tumble heart-shaped froth fanning out toward my waiting grip.
Johnny was always starting gangs but he rarely finished them. Which explained all those half-formed gangs hanging around town looking for Johnny. Not really sure. What to do next.
This past weekend, with a cool drizzle coating my beloved Bay Area, I finally had a chance to combine my passion for songs about bringing beer to people in Georgia with my love for chamber music orchestration. Herewith, the results… time: 1:11 seconds; specs: 2.3M Press Play to play.
Today’s track is a wee rave-up version of “I Fall in Love too Easily,” by Jule Styne and Mr. Sammy Cahn. The tune was originally launched by a boyish Frank Sinatra in the film Anchors Aweigh in 1945 (herewith, a lovely clip of the thin-faced lad, at the keys). -Cecil time: 1:13 seconds; specs: 1.5M … Read more
It’s one thing when an adult calls one other adult, “Baby.” But it’s a whole other can of bean curd when an adult calls one other adult, “Babies.” “What’s happening, Babies?” he said to one other adult. And all hell broke loose.