Our Great Country is in Trouble. But Who in the World Can Save Us?

This is a longer than my usual blast.  Read the whole thing if you can. The good guy gets the girl at the end. (sorry for the spoiler). I just watched a great Super Bowl game and loved the entertainment and the momentary relief from the stress of what’s happening around us.  While many were partying and getting ready for the game, our military was shooting down spy aircraft and “unidentified objec Read More

Inspired by Frank the Giant Fig Tree

I am not much of a horticulturist at all, and most of the living things I plant in the dirt die prematurely, primarily because I forget to water them, however, as time has passed, I may have developed a bit of a green thumb, at least when it comes to Fig trees.  One of them is in my medical office, in front of the window, soaking up sun and everything else that comes its way including other staff and physicia Read More

Centenarian Heroes I Know

Well, of course, they’re not that loose anymore and arthritis has taken its toll on their well-worn joints, and osteoporosis has dropped their height significantly causing a stoop when walking, but their brains are a wealth of information and historical warehouses of valuable legacy information. The first one I met in my practice was Colonel Ollie Cellini, now deceased, but when I met him, he was 105 and Read More

Beauty And the Hunters

Somehow, I found myself separated from my five-man crew, and it happened overnight, because when I woke up from my hiding place in the thick brush, covered with scratches and bug bites, my comrades did not return to our pre-determined rendezvous point.   I do remember hearing those voices with a foreign accent muttering sardonically, “stoopeed ahneemals.”  So, I figured my buddies were captured Read More

Sui Generis

There was a knock at my front door, and it was a strong pound with six strong beats, as if it was a fist.  Of course, I did not come to the door, at least not right away, because I never do anymore, for quite a few reasons.  However, he was persistent, and damn, then, a few seconds later my cell phone received a text from an unknown phone number that read, “open the door please.”  Who t Read More

Christmas in Music City: Where is the Old Man?

I arrived in Nashville, took an Uber and arrived at my hotel.   I was pretty sure my interpretation of Ollie’s clues from the beach bar letter were correct.  He had to be in Nashville.  Now, if he wasn’t, then, it won’t be a complete waste of my time, because there’s sure a lot to do around here, places to see and music to enjoy.  I looked on the map provided to me by the staff Read More

Eat it or wear it

I saw a kid with a dirty shirt the other day—probably he dripped Ice cream on it or something, because I could see a few of the partially melted chocolate chips clinging on the yellow-smeared material and the chips bounced as he walked with his mom.  Interestingly, my keenly trained peripheral vision couldn’t help but notice his mom was bouncing too—a little differently than the chocolate chips. Read More

She Loves Red Wine and the Wine Loves her

Occasionally she will drink a beer if she feels the urge, but this is rare.  For example, at a baseball game when the vendor yells, “cold beer here”, or when she goes to a movie theater and absolutely must eat messy buttered popcorn, which of course, is mandatory.  On rare occasions, she will succumb to a martini, but this is even more rare than beer, because she doesn’t like to feel like she i Read More

When does a Richard Become a Dick?

The two proud parents are in the nursery, smiling with joy due to the birth of their son, and the nurse comes to them to fill out the birth certificate papers, and he or she asks, “What is the full name of your baby son?”  They say, “Dick Bill Johnson.”  The nurse then looks at them quizzically and asks again, “are you sure that is the um, correct name for the certificate?” “Nah, we Read More