As this is Things Men Carry, of which I carry death, divorce, losing my cushy job well into my 50's to name a few--well, shit, I carry the following too. Even if I don't quite remember any of it. It really is all just a big blur to me now some fifty- something years later. … Continue reading Only sorta fiction

You can't really forget certain words once they're uttered or screamed in to your ears. No matter if it happened back in the Jurassic 80s, and you bonked your head a few times since then, and thus your memory ain't as sharp--some things just kinda stick to your brain's ribs no matter what. (Word for … Continue reading Feeling bl–brown

Years ago, on this day, I was in Philadelphia doing boat stuff. Driving, cleaning, learning all the ropes associated with tug boating, no pun intended. I might also have been wondering here and there just how obese you were allowed to be before the Coast Guard stepped in and said, "Yeah no, Charlie, you're too … Continue reading Happy birthday

My lady, with everything heady that's going on right now, I should really be using my tactical prose on any online real estate that's afforded me to prosecute Gaza (it's genocidal what's taken place there) or Venezuela (I understand and don't necessarily disagree with it) Minnesota (how many shots to the head and from the … Continue reading An online profile

Young blood and I attended an NFL game recently. Prior to the kickoff, an assemblage of players kneeled in one of the end zones in unison prayer. I looked and looked, but I couldn't spot an offensive lineman who I know has Catholic roots and is furthermore a practicing one. There could be a perfect … Continue reading Happy birthday

I told young blood periodically during his first semester of college to do good in school and to do even better at rubbing elbows. I don't think it ever dawned on me when I was in college that it was all about the schmoozing and the relationships, the networking, the getting and being in the … Continue reading In the club

It was just last year at this very time that I was balls deep in unemployment. It's impossible to forget the embarrassment of filing for weekly unemployment benefits. I fortunately landed a few short-term contracts to make up the difference between what I was pulling in (unemployment-wise) and my expenses.  Ask any professional salt, though, … Continue reading In thanksgiving

It begins with a very beautiful teenaged girl. I'm at the grocery store one day. She's walking straight towards me in the parking lot. Maybe it was how she filled out her sundress, maybe her impeccable taste in sundresses, or it could have been her smile too, so genuine and caring, aimed now right at … Continue reading Epstein

Johnny Lipp was a year older than me in grade school and furthermore this kind-of male counterpart to Ms. Piggy. He was loud and influential and porky in aspect. Johnny Lipp, which of course wasn't his real last name but damn near close, was all that, plus he was the school bully. Nobody tried tackling … Continue reading Initiation

Dear __, There's a guy on the Facebook who pops up once in a while. It's an older clip, looks like, and he looks kind of like a creepy version of the old Verizon commercial guy, the can-you-hear-me-now guy. Which is why he seems like a rather unlikely guy to be asked the question, Do … Continue reading Rough draft