Two rows below sat a man who once was my boss. Two seats to my right was a sportswriter I didn’t know who was familiar with me. “Excuse me. You’re not Monte Dutton, are you?” “Sadly, yes. Nice to meet you.” Next to me was an old friend, one I’ve known since college. It was …
Tag: writing
Lest the Brightness Fade …
It’s a world of opportunity. Unfortunately, it’s also a world of rationalization. I write best in the mornings. Most days I awaken brimming with ideas. Complications arise and slowly accumulate as the day makes its lonely way to sunset. By mid-afternoon, I’m bailing complications with a straw cowboy hat from a sinking rowboat. Also, time …
Gone Back There
I’m still not sure. It seemed real, as real as anything ever. It’s impossible to discuss. I’ve got close friends, sure, but none who would believe this. Among the reasons is I wouldn’t, and I’m more gullible than most. That this happened is inconceivable. It was real. It had to be. Either that or …
The Way I Do
When I was young / I went off to college / But I flunked out ‘cause I could not pass no test / My old man barely made it past fifty / And I reckon that I’ll follow his footsteps / But it ain’t gon’ be bad health that’s gonna kill me / It won’t …
The Way I Do, Part Six (Final)
Sure enough, when three o’clock rolled around, so did several high school kids. In deference to Mud Galvin’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” philosophy, he and Abel got provisionally high before they got there, and the kids apparently did the same. Abel was glad Victoria was back. She had been Mud’s significant other for at …
The Way I Do, Part Five
A stranger asked me if I knew the Devil / I told him, well, in fact, he looks like you / He told me he was no more than a lawyer / Who merely wanted someone else to sue / Or screw. Mud Galvin called at eleven, and Abel tried in vain to sound …
The Way I Do, Part Four
It took about a year to get my head straight / I drank my share and crashed into the ground / It seemed as if my voice got so damn lonely / My friends all dreaded having me around. Abel and Siri had their differences on the proper course to Cain Caldwell’s house. She …
The Way I Do, Part Three
I don’t know what I’m gonna tell ‘em / Don’t know what I’m gonna do / I might walk out that door and never come back / Open the window, jump off the roof / But it ain’t gon’ be bad health that’s gonna kill me / Won’t be red meat and pecan pie / …
What I Ain’t Got, Part Five (Final)
I’m too old now to make it / So I spend all my time / Telling kids not to make mistakes I made / If I’d known what I know now / And conjured up a plan / I’d be made in a different kind of shade. On the way back home, Sam …
What I Ain’t Got, Part 4
I don’t give a damn / ‘Cause it don’t make no difference / What happens is gonna happen anyway / I’m a ship without a rudder / Adrift with no sails / And the water’s still choppy on the bay / So I’ll paddle around / Either drown or run aground / So far …
Nightrider's Lament 