Monthly Archives: August 2010

     When I was 60, I got the idea to google “he grabbed me by my slender neck.” And there they were: the words of the verse I’d heard in fifth grade with such delight that I’d pushed them into … Continue reading →

When I was around 9 years old, I learned to whistle pretty well. And when I was 59, I learned I lost it. Really. My father was an excellent whistler. By the time my younger brother was 5 he was … Continue reading →

     When I was around 56, I encountered an alien. She looked human. She drove a big old American car like a human. But she revealed an out-of-world perspective that was as different from mine as silicon is from carbon. … Continue reading →

When I was maybe 5 or 6, my mother caught me playing with myself. I was sitting on the floor in the livingroom, behind a plush maroon easy chair, pants down and fingers busy. She told me not to do … Continue reading →

     When I was 15, I learned the value of a plan. We had just moved to Marin Country. We lived in an oblong-shaped house, which design included a long narrow hallway along one side and the back of our … Continue reading →

     When I was 6 years old I had my first political shock. It was the fall of 1956. The incumbent president, Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower, was running against a Democrat named Adlai Stevenson. We were paying a Sunday visit … Continue reading →