Daily Blues & Views

I'm staring straight into the face of it again.  It seems to come around every few years during this very different time of life. This time with no full-time employment. Self-reinvention.  One of the benefits of living in the US of A is that we enjoy this luxury.  It often can be stimulating and risky. Som who will I be when I am no longer the person that did these things for so many years.  Who will I be when I haven't a clue what I'll be doing.  Or do I? Every time I ask the question, the answer is always the same.  Wait and see. When we lose the structure and routine we've complained about for so long we feel compelled to create a substitute.  For good reason.  Do you know how easy it is to waste a day?  Days?  even a year? Define waste. OK, waste, as in accomplishing nothing. I belong to the melting ice school of thought.  As Arthur Miller once noted, we are all trying to "write our name on a cake of ice on a hot July day...

The boys were very well-behaved despite the constant rain and sticky mud.  When the 2018 version of the Preakness was over, there were no real surprises, but a glimmer of what is yet to come.  Justify continued his perfect streak and set himself up perfectly for a Triple Crown attempt, but whether or not his performance was impressive, or at least as impressive as the previous ones, remains in doubt. That will set up the Belmont perfectly with an air of doubt and the chance to pull an upset.  It's possible that Justify could fall short because of the distance of the race and because the Triple Crown trail is paved with thorns and remains a grueling ordeal. I'm reminded how easily names and places fall in and out of history.  Some wither on the brink and some enter cemented in place.  Even a 1200 pound thoroughbred who consistently displays all the speed and stamina of a true champion can appear vulnerable in the eyes of the knowing. The fragility of someth...

Every time a Kentucky Derby winner runs in the Preakness, which is almost every year, we have the potential for a Triple Crown winner.  So it will be on Saturday as Justify continues to carve his name into the tree of history at Pimlico. Being the oldest racetrack in the nation, save Saratoga, Pimlico will dust off its ancient grounds, polish the silver, and once again host the eye of the nation and the best 3-year olds currently in training. Once again, too, the naysayers and East/West bias holders will spit out their theories and reinforce the mythology about the tight turns Pimlico seems to have.  They'll take a stand against Justify, the favorite, and pontificate till their ears turn red.  Probably, Justify will romp easily and prove that the Belmont is the true test of a 3-year-old champion.  We've seen this so many times that it's predictable. Still, with the strong undercard, the buzz in the air and the thousands all decked out for a special day, it'll b...

I saw her by chance      after 30 years the SoCal dream glinting in their eyes, the perspective of the photo had the best interpretation      the best reminder two palm trees growing      out of their heads  

April 2018 Ashland, Oregon On this warm, windy Spring day I wondered a mile or so from the downtown section of Ashland, Oregon and found myself on the campus of Southern Oregon University. Finding the Student Union was simple and here I sit with a fresh cup of coffee in a space where I am easily, save one, the oldest person.  I found a bathroom, a bookstore, and an internet connection with little or no effort as well. I feel safe in this space even though I'm just passing through.  College campuses seem particularly interested in the concept of safe spaces these days and in the wake of a recent incident at Starbucks in Philadelphia some folks are unabashedly conscious of how they are being perceived by others and worry about whether to buy something or if it's even OK to wait for someone you are meeting if you don't seem busy and like you belong. Do we want a culture of coffee shops where it's acceptable to spend a few hours taking your time?  I think so.  Peop...

April is National Poetry Month Down a worn path, Years etch my moveable roots, Decades pinch the ripe, white, poison you call home. We have seated ourselves, Sipped the same deep-alley blues, Seen them take lives.

We're waiting for Spring.  Some signs have appeared, but they have been quickly erased by the rain and the cold winds.  As if we needed another reminder, the white blossom fall has added to the appearance of snowfall. But there are subtle signs.  The morning I opt for a lightweight shirt instead of a fleece or sweatshirt tells me I'm aware of the higher temperature that punctuates the days with promise. The clocks have been reset and the days catch as much light as they can.  But, again, when the rain comes it turns out lights and makes us want to curl up somewhere.  So, we do. And in a similar fashion, our lives evaporate with days becoming years and the changes just as subtle as the winter/spring two-step. The hair lightens from gray to white, the skin becomes even more supple, and the senses struggle with sound and vision.  There is joy in the mornings because we begin anew daily. With the subtlety comes release. We no longer care what ...