Category: Childhood
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Late Night Thoughts on Connie Francis
Spring and summer were still weeks away, although summer seems to permanently exist here in Florida. But still… I was sitting in the lanai making notes on developing and writing and publishing a blog about music and the importance of Connie Francis. We had just been to the beach and my head was full of…
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Ghosts? Who Am I To Judge?
To me, Halloween evokes memories of walking down Front Street in Owego, NY, kicking the piles of unraked leaves while dressed up in a throw-it-all-together costume. Clutching paper bags, my friends and I would go door to door seeking treats. There was a chill in the air, mixed with the rotting leaves that produced a…
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Dear Kristin
Your betrothed, Brian has no idea that I’m sending you this note. He is probably at his computer working out his next Bitcoin move. I will be quick with this note because my furlough from Dannemora will begin soon and the mini-van will be picking me up any minute to take me to my part-time…
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The Tragedy of the Commons
But the darkest scriptures of the mountains are illumined with bright passages of love that never fail to make themselves felt when one is alone. –John Muir There is irony lurking just below the surface of this blog. Irony, youth, pleasant times and not so pleasant times. There’s quietness and beauty sublime. And, dogs. It…
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Adulthood Rising
I have a hard time learning languages. Some people have an ability to pick up German, Portuguese, Farsi or Russian with ease. High School French was the first of my stumbling blocks. I used to “get sick” in the morning to avoid Mrs. Lowe’s first period freshman French class. I tried…I really tried…to understand the…
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The Little Boy And The Big Canoe: A Memory

[Not my brothers canoe. But you get the point. Source: Google Search] Canoes were always a part of my boyhood. Our family was definitely zero-octane. It’s all very logical given the fact that our property at 420 Front St., Owego, NY, my childhood home, happened to have the Susquehanna River in our backyard. And, we…
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Shadows
Like the wallpaper sticks to the wall Like the seashore clings to the sea Like you’ll never get rid of your shadow You’ll never get rid of me –Al Jolson & Billy Rose Fast. Fast I ran, as fast as my little legs could carry me. I glanced over my shoulder. It was still behind…
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Winter
Old Nan: Oh my sweet summer child, what do you know about fear? Fear is for winter, when the snows fall one hundred feet deep. Fear is for the long night, when the sun hides for years and children are born and live and die, all in darkness. That is the time for fear, my…