Eighty percent of the phone calls I receive on my “land line,” as opposed to my “outer-space line,” are for no good reason. Here’s a general rule of thumb: If I need something, I must deal with a recording: If you have a billing inquiry, press 1. If you have a service issue, press …
If the Good Lord’s Willing, Part Two
This is the second installment of a short story derived loosely from a song I wrote. Red Hawthorn’s relationship with his won was not the best, but his former wife was, quite possibly, the worst. She thankfully wasn’t home, which he knew because, after he pulled in the driveway, and waited five minutes or …
Where Masters Walk the Earth
The Masters always has its Blixts. It’s international, full of Olazabals, Jimenezes and de Vicenzos. Augusta National was always slow on African Americans and women. Even Americans have names like Spieth and Kuchar, but America is a land of great diversity. Augusta National has just historically limited it a bit. So do I have profoundly …
If the Good Lord’s Willing, Part One
Here’s the beginning of another short story. There wasn’t anything wrong with Red Hawthorn that a couple eggs couldn’t fix, or, at the very least, help. He got up Friday morning the same way he got up most mornings, which was stooped over and hurting. Coffee got his juices flowing, but thankfully, a blood-pressure …
Life by the Numbers
I’m 56. What does the number mean to me? It was the number associated with the race-car driver Jim Hurtubise, who, in addition to his occasional brilliance, was the Don Quixote of the Indianapolis 500 because, for a number of years, “Herk” tried to qualify a front-engined roadster after low-slung, rear-engined designs had come to …
No One Learns from the Learned
When did we stop believing people who know a lot? It’s everywhere. People are not dissuaded in the least to learn that 97 percent of scientists believe climate change is a major crisis. Person at the grocery store (or on Facebook): “They don’t know what they’re talking about.” Me: “How much do you know about …
Furlough Blues
In case you missed the installments, here's the whole story. Nothing ever worked anymore for Jerry Lowndes. He was on a bad run. When Lowndes checked his email, he found more evidence that his book on the heroes of the Atlantic Coast Conference wasn’t a blockbuster. He had hoped it would provide some aid …
Furlough Blues, Part Five
This short story begins with a song and ends with a surprise. Months passed and the dirty feelings subsided in Jerry Lowndes. It was just another job, just errands he had to run, like going to the post office or shopping for groceries. It paid the bills. The packages had no smell. They were …
Furlough Blues, Part Four
The expansion of a song into a short story – by the end, one will have little to do with the other – continues with its penultimate part. As clueless as he had felt at any time in his life, Jerry Lowndes knocked on the door of Room 227 of the Nocono Lodge, where …
Furlough Blues, Part Three
This is a short story whose creative basis is a song of mine. It never seemed as if Jerry Lowndes slept. The jail cell wasn’t exactly the Hilton, though neither had been the motel room where he and Laurie had been cavorting. His mind had been alive, considering the depth of the hole and paucity …
Nightrider's Lament 