Monthly Archives: May 2012
Pumice
Every time I sand a piece of wood, I think of Alan Carmichael. As the scoutmaster of my Boy Scout troop (122), he surely imparted many important life lessons to me, but all I remember is pumice. It came about during a discussion of neckerchief slides. The slide was a place in the Boy Scout […]
The Prince
The Queen Mother and I acknowledge your power but decline your overtures See us in red and black hues of alarm and fear trim, buttoned, buckled We hold still My cold smile tells you I am a prince in exile from his future
Polo Cookies
August 2002 About midway through the second chukker, one of the tournament organizers gave us each a chocolate chip cookie. He had made 200 the night before, for the players and their families after the match was over. I asked him if this meant there were now 198 cookies, and he said, “No, there has […]
Kitchen Green
April 16, 2004 “I know exactly the shade of green you’re talking about,” she said. “I call it kitchen green.” It was a comfort to be talking with someone who understood my passion for a green, wood-handled bottle opener I had recently purchased for 25 cents at an estate sale. And she understood my excitement […]
Pierre Celis Visits
This piece was written for the Syracuse New Times in June of 1997. * * * On a recent sultry summer evening in Armory Square, the city’s malterati gathered at the Blue Tusk to welcome Pierre Celis, the Belgian brewer who saved the Witbier style and whose Celis Brewery in Austin, Texas, brews Celis White, […]
The Land of Oz
November 1999 For me, the phrase “high school play” does not call up images of reserved seats and $9 tickets. But that’s the way it is in Skaneateles, and after you’ve paid your $18 per couple, you can see why. The recent Wizard of Oz was swell, two acts, 27 scenes, amazing backdrops and sets […]
Other People’s Stories
These are stories friends have shared with me, and they are too good to lose. * * * Ken’s in-laws treated him to a vacation in Jamaica, and after dinner one evening, Ken treated himself to a long walk and a vacation from his in-laws. He had floated through the afternoon on a river of […]
Opportunity
“And this is my solemn pledge: I will work to build a single nation of justice and opportunity.” — George W. Bush, Inaugural Address, January 20, 2001 August 5, 2005 When George Bush promised to create opportunity for all, I had no idea what doors he would open for me. Right on the heels of […]
Notes on the Dead
June 25, 2000 I spent Friday afternoon at the Creamery, home of the Skaneateles Historical Society, and it was like Aladdin’s Cave. They kept bringing me new treasures. The first suggested a solution to this mystery: Out at the end of the jetty, on calm mornings, when the surface of the water is smooth and […]
Napping
This first ran in The Syracuse New Times in March of 1978, and was thought by many to be the peak of my early career. I was writing about something I knew and loved. * * * “Hey, wanna get high?” You’ve heard that before. But it always cost you money, and you woke up […]
Faithful Readers 