Monthly Archives: May 2012
The Panting Hart
June 17, 1998 When I was a boy, my older brother used to get knife catalogs. I oogled the pirate cutlass with the “knuckle duster” grip for close work on deck. My sibling, on the other hand, craved the switchblades because he was in a James Dean phase. But one knife from that catalog keeps […]
The Free Piano
November 26, 2008 The other evening I was walking home from work, and my friend Greta, who I had not seen in years, was entering Johnny Angel’s restaurant with a beau. After an exchange of mutual surprise and hugs, I told her that her piano was well. Greta’s piano lives in our dining room, having […]
A Visit with Firesign Theatre
This piece was written for The Syracuse New Times and editor Mike Greenstein, who in his patience and mercy first gave my writing a public home. At the time, it was entitled “The Day the Ethernauts Descended on Syracuse.” * * * October 27, 1974 Last February, I received a call from the turkey who […]
Exact Change
May 18, 2004 “From the expressway,” the instructions read, “take the Canal Street exit.” How often the romance and mystery of travel spring from what is not at first revealed. Had we known in advance that this was an “exact change” exit, we might have had the appropriate coins on hand; we might have rehearsed […]
Charles Dickens in New York
Famed English author Charles Dickens was a nineteenth century rock star, packing houses everywhere he went, reading aloud from his works to adoring audiences. Such tours were Dickens’ only way to make money in the United States as publishers here pirated his work, paid him no royalties, and there was no law with which he […]
Gus Stories
:: My Granddog :: June 1, 2003 While Abbie was on medical leave from college, languishing in Ohio with mono and a side order of other debilitating ailments, she felt a puppy would be the perfect tonic, something small, cute and therapeutic. And so, when she came home to Skaneateles, she was accompanied by Gus. […]
Labs
I was walking to work two weeks ago when a large golden lab came up from a side street and challenged me with a “Woof!” I said, “Hey, Bud,” and he pressed his face against my leg so I could scratch behind his ears. His eyes closed, his tail swayed, and I got a lot […]
Clete Stories
:: How Smart I Am :: It was Clete, my first dog, who revealed just how smart I am. It was back in the early 1970’s. I was living in a one-room apartment where the bed was tucked into an alcove, and I had made it very clear to Clete that he was not allowed […]
Stories from Dr. M.
I am going to have to start telling Dr. M. stories. I cannot tell you the good doctor’s full name, nor where I knew him, but please trust me on this one. There was a time in my life when I knew a veterinarian, and all of his stories are true, and I cannot keep […]
Death Pools in History
“The game had no name and is probably as old as creation itself.” — Jean Shepherd, In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash (1966) You need three things for a death pool: 1) celebrities, 2) news media, and 3) people who differ in their opinions. Even if we insist that celebrities and media require […]
Faithful Readers 