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Once a week I visit my neighbor Charlie. Several years ago he fell on some steps and compressed his spinal cord. The accident left his legs weak and immobile. Until this past October I visited him in his home. Now he’s in a long-term care facility.  Charlie and I have...

Run, Run Rudolph

My big frustration this week has been my outdoor Christmas lights. I am into my third day of what should have been a 30-minute project. I decided to string only one set of lights this year, and I assumed that at least one of the three strings stored in my basement...

Oak Leaves in the Snow

It snowed last week. It was not the first snow of the year, but it was the first snow that felt like winter. Only a few inches fell, but I sense those few inches will be here until March. I look out my window and see fallen oak leaves poking out of the white. I wish...

Out of Milk

Manyu took a four-day trip to Chicago and left me without a car. She also left me without milk. There was a half carton of soy (I won’t even call it milk) in the refrigerator, but that’s a different food group from dairy and has no place on my Cheerios. I’d made sure...

Another Autumn of Swans

The most memorable animal sightings are the unexpected ones. The first whale I ever saw breached not fifty yards from where I stood on the steps of the Point Reyes lighthouse. Not as spectacular, but just as surprising, I once stared into an evening campfire on an...
Steven Simpson