The morning sun peeked over the pink mountains illuminating the entire valley. It was going to be another scorcher. The Yuki Valley could get that way for about six weeks out of the year, and it was eight days into it. One hundred degrees is hot anyway, but throw in seventy-five percent humidity,Continue reading “Obedience”
Category Archives: Japan
Feet
I have recounted my first brush with death where my heart stopped beating and I had to be brought back in the ambulance. It pales in significance, but I also had four mangled toes which seemed to point in all directions after I recovered. When I was five I lived in Japan and I keptContinue reading “Feet”
Boo-Hoo
Crying is one of my favorite emotions. I find it to be at once cathartic and cleansing. Laughing until you cry is the best. I’m trying to think of the last time I laughed so hard I cried, but it has been awhile. It seems like when I was a young man I did itContinue reading “Boo-Hoo”
The Gift
I have been sitting here with a lovely buzz going and I started thinking of all the gifts passed down to me from my parents. (Spoiler alert: None of us do this early or often enough). To reduce all the love, advice, lessons, I mean the totality of what your parents ever said or didContinue reading “The Gift”
Paper
Why are we still using so much paper? It has been estimated that worldwide we cut down 15 billion trees per year. What’s wrong with other sources such as hemp, cotton, or bamboo? The education industry in which I toiled for the better part of two decades is the biggest user of paper, but IContinue reading “Paper”
Military Brat
For most of my early life on this planet, I was the step-son of a good military man, my stepfather Vern McConnell. Vern was the consummate father and he was the head of three households when all was said and done. He was a good man who did things the right way. My first memoriesContinue reading “Military Brat”
I Thought I’d Seen it All
But evidently not. For those of you who have checked out a few of my blogs and know I have had (to put it very mildly) a pretty harrowing couple of months since leaving Arizona. Massive heart attack. Trouble closing on our house. Caring for our two Cocker Spaniels Bruiser and Murphy whilst staying atContinue reading “I Thought I’d Seen it All”
Flowers
I love flowers. Always have. Growing up I absorbed many cultures but seemed to gravitate to Eastern philosophies in regard to man and his role on Earth, including stewardship of the planet and her resources. I was a serious young student of ikebana, the art and philosophies entailed in flower arranging. It is much moreContinue reading “Flowers”
Bubble Gum
Remember the big row of bubble gum machines that used to make one last money grab from kids as they would depart the market? For a quarter you could get anything from sour cherry gum balls, mini super balls, and Boston Baked Beans to SweetTarts. The toys in the little plastic balls was cheap, butContinue reading “Bubble Gum”
Noodles
We call different things noodles: An adolescent kid’s under-developed arms. The human head. Brains. Top Ramen. I grew up eating bowls of them chocked full of God-knows-what. Osoba and Yakisoba were staples growing up in Japan and when I say God-knew-what, only he (or she) knew what found their ways into our bowls. Seriously. VariouslyContinue reading “Noodles”
