A simple place for essays, experiments, and useful ideas.
A simple place for essays, experiments, and useful ideas.
Latest article
The line went out badly near Echo Lake, and there was no way to pretend otherwise. Fishing has a way of making impatience visible. The water does not care how clean the cast looked in a person's head. I watched the weather, checked the knot, and tried again. Most of the work was…
Read articlePrevious articles
May 7, 2026
The thing that stayed with me was not a headline but a kitchen detail: rationing, blackout cloth, a careful hand with what was left. World War II can become too clean in memory if it is only told through victories. The…
May 2, 2026
The late hour started with wet pavement outside the door and no great feeling of readiness. I said the short prayer anyway. Not because the room changed, and not because I suddenly understood what to do next. Prayer is…
April 28, 2026
The shoes were by the door before I felt like walking. That is usually how health works for me. The useful thing has to be started before the mood agrees to it. Sleep, food, walking, lifting, water, less noise. None of…
April 28, 2026
Stopped near the Rahway River long enough to check the water and make one bad cast. No fish. No tragedy. The wind had better timing than I did.
April 23, 2026
Passed through Hillside and caught one small thing: a sign, a doorway, somebody carrying coffee too carefully. That was the whole note. Some towns are mostly made of things you only see while stopped at a light.
April 21, 2026
I had William Blake open with a church bulletin nearby and the room getting a little darker. The poem did not explain itself all at once. The better lines rarely do. They stay put while the reader shifts around in the c…
April 21, 2026
I had Walt Whitman open with a library receipt nearby and the room getting a little darker. The poem did not explain itself all at once. The better lines rarely do. They stay put while the reader shifts around in the ch…
April 18, 2026
The page of Byron was sitting beside cold coffee, which was probably the right amount of drama for the room. Byron is easy to admire for the wrong reasons. The speed, the pose, the beautiful wound, the refusal to sit st…
April 15, 2026
Said a short prayer in the late hour before walking into the next thing. Nothing dramatic happened. It still helped to stop arguing with the day for a minute.
April 6, 2026
The thing that stayed with me was not a headline but a kitchen detail: rationing, blackout cloth, a careful hand with what was left. World War II can become too clean in memory if it is only told through victories. The…
April 4, 2026
A goldfinch held still near the road longer than I expected. Traffic kept moving. A door shut somewhere. The bird or animal did not seem interested in becoming a lesson. That is probably why I noticed it. Suburban New J…
March 31, 2026
The evening started with a folded napkin by the plate and no great feeling of readiness. I said the short prayer anyway. Not because the room changed, and not because I suddenly understood what to do next. Prayer is oft…
March 22, 2026
Matthew 6 showed up again today, this time with cold coffee on the counter in view. No big lesson. I just noticed that the line had more patience than I did.
March 17, 2026
James 1 was the page I opened to, and I almost closed it too quickly. Some days a familiar line only needs a second chance.
March 11, 2026
An old pen on the kitchen table caught my attention and then the day kept moving. Not much to say beyond that. I wrote it down because small things disappear fast.
March 6, 2026
The page of Byron was sitting beside gas-station coffee, which was probably the right amount of drama for the room. Byron is easy to admire for the wrong reasons. The speed, the pose, the beautiful wound, the refusal to…
March 2, 2026
A cardinal held still near the road longer than I expected. Traffic kept moving. A door shut somewhere. The bird or animal did not seem interested in becoming a lesson. That is probably why I noticed it. Suburban New Je…
February 14, 2026
The old war notes I was reading made me think less about speeches and more about boots, mud, and mail. World War I becomes too large to hold if it stays only on maps. The smaller details bring it back down to human size…
January 31, 2026
The thing that stayed with me was not a headline but a kitchen detail: rationing, blackout cloth, a careful hand with what was left. World War II can become too clean in memory if it is only told through victories. The…
January 30, 2026
The old war notes I was reading made me think less about speeches and more about boots, mud, and mail. World War I becomes too large to hold if it stays only on maps. The smaller details bring it back down to human size…
January 29, 2026
The table in New Providence had a paper napkin under one leg and coffee that had been sitting too long. That is not a complaint. Some meals are remembered because the room makes room for a tired person. Neighborhood foo…
January 10, 2026
I walked a little through Westfield with gray light moving across the street. The older blocks had that New Jersey mix of pride and wear. A good front step, a tired sign, a small business opening its door. Nothing drama…
January 8, 2026
One open stool at the counter, one cup of coffee, one guy talking like the whole room had subscribed. I miss places where nobody had to turn the moment into a brand.