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Peaceful surrender
I invested a lot of time and effort (and a few dollars) into trees and shrubs for our personal landscape last year. I planted in the spring, summer, and into the fall, right up until I could no longer dig holes in the frozen ground. Almost everything planted outside of our chain-link fence was a victim of deer browsing during the long, harsh winter ( Read more... ) -
Life or something like it
I know where the grumpy people hang out. They are all waiting in line at the U.S. Post Office. Last Saturday, I was waiting patiently in line to buy some nicer stamps when the lady in front of me walked away in a tizzy. "I'm going to miss my appointment!" she huffed. I would have mailed her package for her. See, this is just one example of how ( Read more... ) -
Sign of the times
I don't understand the theory behind political signage. Names of candidates everywhere all over town. Neighbors defiantly posting the opponents' signs mere inches from the other guy. But what is the impulse at work here? If the conflicting advertisements reach over-saturation, isn't it all just background noise? I will gladly read your theories ( Read more... ) -
Inspired by the train station
brown, beige, blue, off-white
vending machine out of order
Amtrak, dead-of-night -
It's good to see you again, my old friend
Yesterday, birds and squirrels converged in the backyard. There were chickadees at the feeder (they prefer sunflowers to peanuts), blue jays at the bird bath, gray squirrels burying acorns in my tree mulch, and robins everywhere. Even though some of the robins and geese spend their winters in town, they all continue to gather in September to talk ( Read more... ) -
The Shootist does Shakespeare
I stopped at a local flower shop/greenhouse this morning. Early perennials are in bloom, and they are a real bargain right now. But who am I kidding? I just like to look at plants. Anyway, the guy behind the counter said I looked like a young John Wayne. I thought he was joking. I laughed. Then he said:
"No, really. You should learn to do ( Read more... ) -
Writer's Block: Human Nature
Compassion and Cruelty.
Many evolutionary biologists make compelling cases for how the "altruism gene" developed (beautiful as it is), but I have yet to hear any adequate explanation for the origin of cruelty. Cruelty seems to go way beyond the basic selfish instinct, or the complete lack of empathy; it is the active, deliberate abuse of other ( Read more... )
