"…something like the supervisor of an entire team of political agents…"
I like to make fried eggs — I like the experience, putting a little chilli on them, putting the cover on to cook them top down. I like flipping them and I like not flipping them. I find the whole thing much more pleasing than scrambling eggs, but don’t get me wrong. I also like … Read more
The Bay Area went to shelter in place last night at midnight. In case it comes to your area too, I thought I’d share what “shelter in place” is like around these parts. And granted, it’s super early, and I know I’m a lucky fella in a million ways, so please read this with that … Read more
Some times it felt like he was collecting hair. He had a place to store it, all that hair. On top of and around his head. A mass. Spilling up and out and over until, as his grandfather would say: enough was sufficient. The next Saturday morning he’d bike down to the barbershop and trade … Read more
In 1976 I was in Mr Rehmeyer’s fourth grade class. I guess he was around 35 then, so born sometime around 1940. It’s something to think about, all those teachers from that time who are likely 70, 80, 90 years old now if they are still with us. Mrs. Brown had been my excellent 3rd … Read more
This is a story about a pair of roadtrips. One from a year ago, one a few decades back. The one from last year started on a Friday. Work calls kicked off that morning at 7am. We were getting ready for a big launch, bashing ideas around, picking up the pieces, turning them into emails. … Read more
There was a time when I was serious about backgammon. Not great, but serious. At the serious-but-not-great level, backgammon is played with the reptile brain. For every situation, you learn and lock in a specific right response. Roll, move. Roll, move. Fast. Confident. You parry when you should parry, zip when you should zip. I … Read more
The first time I went to Muir Woods, the forest floor was flooded with people. It was like midday at Disneyland, only with Douglas Firs and Coastal Redwoods instead of Winnie the Pooh and pals. I was discouraged. This was not the verdant vibe I was looking for. I had a friend with me who’d … Read more
Junior year in college, my girlfriend Laura and I both applied to get into the Big Writing Class. There were always more applicants than seats in the BWC. I don’t remember exactly what I wrote as my sample, but I remember it was something dreamy and shaded in mystery. It took place in the woods. … Read more
There were ten of us perched around the edge of the raft: me, my wife, her family, our river guide. We’d all signed up for an afternoon adventure in the form of whitewater rafting down the American River—some exercise, a bit of a rush, all followed by the reward of an extended float down the … Read more