journal
March 18, 2010
March 7, 2010
- It was the third brand new home from the end of the brand new street of maybe 35 houses. It was near the end of the street that was like five other parallel streets and fifteen streets beyond that, almost parallel. All the houses were built by the same builder, Ledger Starr, who, following the war, designed maybe three homes, bought up most of the town's property and started ...
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March 5, 2010
- As an adult, neighbors are always just people who live next door, and never more than that. They are not people I would call on or depend upon during times of need or anyone from whom I would borrow a cup of flour or container of milk. Typically, they are not friends. But it’s interesting how the neighbors I most clearly remember are those from my childhood. I wonder if that’s because as we ...
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February 26, 2010
- When I found, Birds in Fall, by Brad Kessler I was in a small independent bookstore, searching the shelves for titles that stood out to me, that called me into the world within the pages. I randomly chose a section of shelves and looked, picked out books, read the back, put many back. One, though, I kept pulling out. It’s no surprise how much I love birds, they find their way onto my pages, ...
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February 24, 2010
- Finally, my train stop: Downtown Berkeley BART. I make my way out of the cave into the light. As I scoot up the escalator and exit, all is a buzz of people, cars, stores. I feel slightly disoriented and then a strong scent of something sweet causes me to breathe in deeply, and I get my bearings, walk to the crosswalk, remembering there is only one direction toward campus and it’s practically in ...
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February 23, 2010
- He took his mother out for lunch at Village Pizza, ordered her a turkey club sub in the oven because she wanted something warm, and he didn't have to twist her arm on the issue of whether or not to order up a glass of white zinfandel. It was pretty clear to the patrons at adjoining tables that the old girl was pretty hard of hearing and, as a result, everyone got quite an earful about his ...
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February 23, 2010
- Yesterday started out a heavy day where I could not stop the tears that would come in bursts. Last week I had booked another ice skating lesson for yesterday morning, but part of me didn’t want to go anymore; the other part of me knew I would be glad I did. I haven’t been since my last lesson, which seems about a couple of months. I haven’t practiced one bit. I received an email from the ...
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February 21, 2010
- Craig T Nelson and I --that's right, the TV and movie famous Craig T. Nelson and I-- purchased my dreamcar last night, just before the alarm went off, just before I had to get up to pee, face another day at hard labor trying to shift my old pickup into second without stripping a gear. Not that Caig T. Nelson wanted anything out of the deal; no. He had all the cars a famous guy like him could ...
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February 21, 2010
- For some time now, I’ve been intending on making a visit to the Berkeley Art Museum. Yesterday, only moments after I woke, the thought entered my mind, and without any planning, I hopped out of bed, made coffee, and checked their website to see what time they opened. I could have driven, but I much prefer riding in on the BART train. Often I stay away from places for a time, to stay away long ...
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February 17, 2010
- He talked about his high school graduation as if it were only yesterday; as if he were the only one ever to have accomplished such an astounding feat; as if having done so automatically entitled him to all the very best things that life would ever have to offer. When he spoke, he spoke with the assertive and authoritative air he thought best befit his exalted and enlightened state, even if in ...
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