It’s been several years since I last caught a bird’s eye view from the library at the Sylvia Beach Hotel in Newport, Oregon. Eye level with seagulls floating in the wind and seeking momentary respite on the balcony rail, the building stands boldly at the end of 3rd Street on the edge of a cliff, …
*Written on 10/2/21 I’m in a coffee shop a few blocks from my house in West Seattle, trying to get inspired to move my next novel forward. Only, there are so many ideas, so many connections, so many implausibilities, that it can often feel like a maze of dead ends. When I was a kid, …
People really hate this year. I’ve had worse. There is no mark greater for 2020 than the pandemic. It changed people’s lives, took people’s lives, exposed people’s priorities, tested our longevity and relationships. I challenge anyone to find me a person who didn’t do at least a little pandemic soul searching. Yes, it has moved …
*Note: This was written in June of 2020. I stopped blogging at the time. Now, three years later, I’m hitting the publish button. The deceptive sun of the northwest burrows through my hoodie and sweatpants, seeking approval, at least in my eyes. I want to love it because I remember that feeling in May – …
It means leap. Leaping is not an easy thing. For most of my life, I’ve been a one-step-at-a-time guy, and for most areas of my life, I still am. But every so often, a lele is necessary to propel one’s life into an unpredictable trajectory, to test oneself and answer some of the bigger questions. …
You’d think lockdown a good time for a writer. Bloggers are producing insightful material, that dude from the UK wrote that lovely poem, freelancers are no doubt cashing in on their experiences and perspectives. I have had little interest in writing over the last two months. At least not the physical act of putting words …
I was one of those people who said not to panic. About two months ago, one of my boarding students anxiously asked me, “Do you think Coronavirus is going to come here? Do you think it’s going to kill us all?” To him, I said, “No – I’ve lived through a number of these outbreaks. …
I don’t cook often for my boarders, but occasionally, a perfect storm of sentimentality and hunger will strike, and I take over the kitchen. Filipino breakfasts with longanisa and garlic fried rice, bread pudding, glass noodles, and tonight, my mom’s enchilada casserole. I started preparing yesterday, going to Safeway to pick up the necessaries, then …
In the last month, much has transpired. One of my sixth graders tragically died. In fact, three other people I know have passed on in the last month. November is also the month of my Lola’s death anniversary. I spent my birthday almost alone, I worked all Thanksgiving weekend, and the week after, I had …
Thirty-seven was the year I took a rock in my hand, a rather large rock, chucked it up as high as I could, and let it plummet into the still waters of my life. Up until this year, every decision I had made for my life had favorable conditions. They were calculated, productive, but most …