Would my books be published by now if I dedicated as much time to my pseudo-writing career as I do cleaning my apartment? Modern life is an interminable series of distractions. In my last moments, I can imagine thinking: God, I can’t die yet! I haven’t done the dishes! In Tales of Ordinary Madness, Charles … Continue reading What About, Robert?
The Body
One morning I ran through the tunnel at the north end of Lake Calhoun. A crowd had gathered around the Isles lagoon. I could see the flashing lights of a police boat by the trees on the opposite shore. I asked a man beside me what was going on. He told me a girl had … Continue reading The Body
Cat Shadow
This cat shadow on the wall is not a cat at all, but rather a silhouette created by the afternoon sun and a decorative plate my maternal grandparents owned. They are dead now and the plate belongs to me. People love their pets more than their pets love them, and they are better for it. … Continue reading Cat Shadow
John Lennon’s Tuba, Jury Duty and the Minneapolis Skyline
John Lennon famously said, “I’m an artist, and if you give me a tuba, I’ll bring you something out of it.” If you listen to this interview in its entirety, John was actually expressing insecurity about his guitar playing. He admits that he can’t play nearly as well as Chuck Berry. Still, he could make … Continue reading John Lennon’s Tuba, Jury Duty and the Minneapolis Skyline
Cockroaches
My best friend, Dan Wiggins, and I rode our bikes aimlessly around the trailer park. It was a blank, do-nothing summer day. The sky was blue with just a trace of clouds. The occasional airplane streaked by high overhead. Neither of us had ever flown anywhere or seen the ocean except on television. We encountered … Continue reading Cockroaches
Abstract Expressionism Along the River
I recently purchased an acrylic landscape painting at the Minnehaha Falls Art Fair for $1200. It’s an impressionistic rendering of a mountain and stream in Denali National Park by A.D. Hogan. I have yet to visit Alaska but it’s a destination high on my bucket list. Minnesota is long on lily pads and lacking in … Continue reading Abstract Expressionism Along the River
Land of Paul Bunyan
Here are some photos from a recent camping trip to Lake Bemidji, the land of Paul Bunyan, with my sons. I always enjoy seeing my older boy swing the ax. I haven’t started a fire in years. I wonder if I still know how. We saw several loons while canoeing. Some had chicks that rode … Continue reading Land of Paul Bunyan
Hinky Dinky: Adventures in Grocery Shopping
My mother used to take me grocery shopping with her when I was a little boy in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Our favorite store was Hinky Dinky. It was an independent store, not part of any chain, located near the Big Sioux River on West 12th Street. The service was fantastic. The store was always … Continue reading Hinky Dinky: Adventures in Grocery Shopping
Clandestine
This isn’t much of a story and people can draw their own conclusions. It all happened many years ago when my first son was still in elementary school. My wife and I met this new couple at the open house before classes got underway. They had this boy, let’s just say his name was Finn. … Continue reading Clandestine
A Simple Thing
For several months this gray orb of wood pulp and wasp spit hung perilously over a quiet Minneapolis street. High overhead, I must have passed under it for weeks before noticing. Then one February afternoon, this simple thing was gone, vanished from the Earth--either run over by the brutal weight of a car or taken … Continue reading A Simple Thing
Crow City 