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GREEN CHAIN DANCER TELLS SISTER STORY

March 18, 2020 by

The green chain in the local plywood mill called for me after freshman year in college. I had a college loan and the job was the best for paying it off and putting money away for sophomore year. I was the new guy on the swing shift crew in 1974 with men who enjoyed a […]

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MINDHUNTER + TALKING TO STRANGERS = YIKES

March 17, 2020 by

I started watching Mindhunter halfway through reading Malcolm Gladwell’s recent book, Talking To Strangers. It’s a strange combination ranging from creepy to creepier. Mindhunter tells about the FBI effort to understand what motivates serial killers. If that’s not creepy enough, the killers they interview had attacked women.

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SOCIAL DISTANCE: AN EXERCISE IN LISTENING

March 16, 2020 by

Social distance is different in an apartment house. Shared walls and floors work the same, but the sound travels. Keeping out of circulation is the rule of the day, but the sound in apartments is constant. Sometimes I miss my old apartment, but then remember how it was.

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VIRUS IN THE AIR = AIR POLLUTION?

March 13, 2020 by

The coronavirus virus asks for a social distance of six feet, which seems short considering how far a grown man can spit after a lifetime of practice. From Little League sunflower seeds to high school Beechnut, many men have learned how to cut loose closer to ten feet. A strong hack could take it out […]

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WHAT READERS DO? READERS GONNA READ, READ, READ

March 12, 2020 by

Real readers handle books different than than rest of us. Who is that real reader? I watched a librarian friend pick up a book and go through the process. From contents to index, then everything in between, he handled the book like a pro. He was a pro, but what about the rest of us?

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FOOTBALL SOCIAL DISTANCING THEME SONG BY STING

March 11, 2020 by

Don’t stand, don’t stand soDon’t stand so close to meDon’t stand, don’t stand soDon’t stand so close to me

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PORTLAND WAY ON A CLEAR SUNDAY: WHAT DID YOUR TOWN LOOK LIKE

March 10, 2020 by

The Portland way means something different to everyone who crosses the city line. But the Portland way is the same thing for everyone who lived here and left. People miss Portland more than they thought they would. Why is that? Please proceed.

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EARLY SCHOOL RIVALRIES FUEL LIFETIME OF CONTENTION

March 6, 2020 by

Early school rivalries explain so much about how we interact with one another. I started school at sea level; the rivalry schools were on higher ground. That’s where kids from the fancy part of town learned how important they were and why they were better. At least that was the theory in first grade. Sports […]

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MEDICAL SCIENCE vs “I’VE GOT A HUNCH”

March 5, 2020 by

Medical science is not the same as a horse race; you can have a hunch about Big Red in the fifth, but a hunch about medical science? I don’t remember the last time I heard about a medical hunch, if I ever have. But if this hidden memory pops up, I hope the medical hunch […]

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LOVE RULES ON PORTLAND PARK BLOCKS AND BLACK HEARTS

March 4, 2020 by

It was a dark and stormy night for love rules? No, not stormy, but dark, and I was in a certain space somewhere between regret and remorse. So maybe it was stormy after all, my own little shower of despair. It started with a conversation inside a Willamette Writers meeting, which is always a challenge. […]

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