I was deprived of turkey on Thanksgiving, because for the first time since infancy, I don’t have any teeth. Well, strictly speaking, I still have twelve in front—six on top and six on the bottom, but they don’t meet in anything resembling a normal bite. In the past couple of weeks, I’ve been gumming my… [Read More]
How a Near-Death Experience Jump Started My Memoir
There’s nothing like a near-death experience to bring home the realization that it’s high time to get to work on that memoir you’ve been procrastinating about for ages. My own epiphany came about when I emerged from emergency brain surgery the day before Halloween. I’d been laid low by a subdural hematoma on October 29th—ironically,… [Read More]
Sunny and 75: a poem about my cheery outlook on life
I wrote this poem nearly two months ago on the day before my 76th birthday, and I hadn’t read it again till last Wednesday night, when I performed it at the Troy Poetry Mission, a monthly open mic at O’Brien’s restaurant in Troy. In mid-reading, I thought Jeez, this is pretty good, so I decided… [Read More]
A new year, a new book project
At yesterday’s New Year’s service at church, we sat in a circle, passed around a talking stick, and shared our goals and resolutions for the year ahead. I announced two: Work on creating a serene, organized home environment Complete the presentation for my new book project on creativity, then find an agent and publisher The… [Read More]
Eldercide available now on Kindle
At long last, my novel Eldercide is available on Kindle, and you’ll soon be able to buy a printed copy and other e-pub versions as well. I first published the novel in 2008, but it’s as timely as ever. Here’s what I wrote for the 4000-character description that people will see when they bring up… [Read More]
The Luxury of Late Summer Lassitude
For the past few days, I’ve had every intention of writing something meaningful about Labor Day, but I was too busy being lazy. I told myself I had every right to wallow in sloth over the holiday weekend, but it’s three days later and I’m still wallowing. As a long-retired senior citizen, I’ve earned the… [Read More]