Crank Marty II was crying as she talked on the phone when I wandered out into the heat and across the concrete of the pool deck. Loren was listening impassively to the news, which had just arrived via a distinctive ring-tone from a residence in New Jersey about a death in Texas . The sun […]

Gang of Four I’m not superstitious and I do not talk to the dead, even if they do seem a bit restive. This is the season of the ending of a great horror a long time ago, and there are those who do talk to those that died, and their voices still rise, strident for […]

LBFMs The Perseid Meteor Shower made the top of the list in my little black notebook, clouds permitting. I wanted to get up early and watch them streak across the Arlington sky. The dry-cleaning made the list, and the arrangements for the trips I need to make for new Jersey and the place out west. […]

Cotton is High A third of the way through the last, best month of summer. If we grew cotton here, it would be high. It isn’t some places. The draught is on some of the land and down south the wet is stripping the soil away. These are crazy times, and sometimes I feel I […]

Night Trippers Dr. John was laid to rest under a star in Juba this morning. The city is the capital of South Sudan , and the good Doctor’s troops never quite managed to capture it in his 21 year struggle. But now it seems as though he has, in a way, lying under the star […]

Kokura’s Luck The earth is turning across the dateline and the anniversary of the day has already happened in Hiroshima . It is another round number, sixty this time, since the sleek B-29 named after the pilot’s mother arrived in the morning sky. The mayor of the city called for the nuclear powers to abandon […]

Grapevine The President made his announcement on Prince Spaghetti Day down in a place called Grapevine, Texas . I assume that is near Crawford, where the ranch is. He is starting his five-week vacation, and I am pleased he has found a little time to get away from the stress here in town. August is […]

Convenient Crashes They are going to bury King Fahd of Saudi Arabia in an unmarked grave in the Kingdom today. It will be a humble rite in keeping with his fierce faith. Ronald Reagan traveled about in grand style after his passing, but the other People of the Book seem to place more emphasis on getting […]

Recess I opened up my copy of The Hill newspaper this morning to see what events were going to shape my week. I am very reactive in my planning, since there are so many things going on I have to cherry-pick activities. I am still reeling a bit from the amount of legislation that was […]

Rangers My Uncle was in the prime of life when one of his projects hit the news. It was 1964, at the end of July, when the press conference was held. He must have been in his late 50’s, not much different than I am now. Only smarter, of course, and still at the zenith […]