On a beautiful summer day when the humidity gives us a break, I walk the dog through my (relatively) quiet neighborhood, craving the different quiet of the deep woods, the real soul quiet where the only noise is the muffled flutterings of little birds, the rustle of leaves in the breeze, and my solitary footsteps on the forest floor. Continue reading Morning Meditation: Quiet
What are ashes but the left-behinds, the fading static, the doppelgänger of used-to-be. Yet. Born of the earth but not earth-bound, rising light as air into the jet stream, hitching a ride to forevermore. Continue reading Tourbillion
So we’re a few days past the summer solstice and I missed seeing the strawberry moon which won’t coincide with the solstice again until 2062. I’m bummed that I missed it. July is a few days away which means we’ll be entering the hottest months of the year here, July through September. On these hot summer days I like to get my house chores and errands done in the morning so I can cool it a couple of hours in the afternoon watching a movie or a series on my Fire TV. I recently discovered Acorn TV with its ‘all … Continue reading Amalgamation: TV,Music,Poetry,& Missing the Moon
I always chop the olives by hand. I like a rough chop that says someone still cares about the preparation of food instead of settling for little identically square bits popped out by a steel thing attached to a cord that gives it life. The knife and I give new life to these olives; messy, uneven life such as it is. The earthy texture of the black and the pungency of the green will soon mix with onion, pimento and the special piquant of a home-canned Gardiniera. Aaron Neville croons “Tell It Like It Is” in my ear as I … Continue reading Live Luscious
The humidity outside has lifted, settling in my chest. I cannot take a deep breath for the grief circulating around my lungs, slowly slogging inside my body. My blood feels thick, sticky in my veins, wanting to lie still. How easy it would be to wallow in this misery, to allow the body to fade. It doesn’t feel like mine. *** Dont worry. I’m ok. Today is the fourth anniversay of my mothers death plus it’s been three days of almost constant exposure to details of the mass shooting. I was feeling overwhelmed and needed to get it out. Thanks … Continue reading Grief the Invader
I was recently nominated for a Sunshine Blogger award by Nick at Fifty Words Daily. It’s been a long time since I’ve been nominated for a blogging award. I’m really quite tickled because, for me, getting one of these tells me that at least one person likes to visit here. I’ve been blogging since 2005 but I really haven’t gotten into the WordPress community like a lot of bloggers do. Honestly, I don’t blog for “hits” or to try to increase my readership. I rarely look at my stats. I blog because I like to take pictures and I like … Continue reading Sunshine
Amalgamate: to unite (two or more things, such as two businesses) into one thing After a little thought I’ve decided to rename my occasional “Hot Reads” post to “Amalgamation”. It’s a word that I like pronouncing it. It rolls off the tongue like those little beads of candy on nonpareils, you know the ones? Plus, the definition is perfect for what Hot Reads has morphed into, which is to say, posts about more than good things to read. It’s also good things to watch, good things to eat, good things to listen to. Not all every time but enough times … Continue reading Amalgamation: June 4,2016
for awakening me with a head that feels like a block of wood, too heavy for my scrawny neck to hold. Thank you for crunchy, crusty eyes and barely functioning ears through which I hear garbled words that make no sense. Thank you for screwing with my balance, making me appear drunk at 8 a.m. I know you have an important purpose in life, sticking to little bee legs and coating the throats of beautiful flowers but my throat is scratchy and not so beautiful so please fuck off. Continue reading Thank you, pollen
There’s so much good reading and listening on the Internet it’s overwhelming. How do you choose which piece to read,which podcast to listen to, which video to watch? And I’m always wondering if I’ve missed some really fantastic thing. In just the past few days I’ve read some really good stuff and, this morning, watched a very cool Periscope post by Indian chef Kalyan Karmakar. Do you watch Periscope? I downloaded the app a while ago but have only watched a couple of Lonely Planet posts. But when I logged on today there was a notification that this was streaming … Continue reading Hot Reads, Etc.
It’s another balmy day in paradise. I push down the plunger in the French Press, inhaling the earthy aroma of the blackest of coffees called Community. The morning paper lies on the coffee table waiting for its unfolding, opening and adjusting shake. “Sneaking Sally Through The Alley” is dancing out of the Boze, WWOZ accommodating its listeners with the best music in the country, bar none. Noise from the street wafts through the open French doors: the rummmm-rummmm of the city bus, the high-pitched laughter of kids on Christmas break, the artificially cheerful greeting of “order when you’re ready!” … Continue reading Another Day in the Crescent City
