latest
-
Slaughterhouse-Five or The Children’s Crusade, A Duty-Dance with Death
Last week I was reading the third volume of Marcel Proust’s A La Recherche du Temps Perdu: The Guermantes Way. And it’s brilliant. I can see how people think Marcel Proust is the greatest writer who ever lived. He’s unique, and if the way he’s unique tickles your fancy, he’s your boy. But I was Read more
-
Wash All Our Cares Away – Mike’s Musical Monday
I wrote this song in 2011 but never recorded it and it’s been on my mind lately. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to wash away all our cares? One of these days I’ll break out of this cageIf I just keep on chipping awayOne of these days I’ll crawl out of this sewerAnd Read more
-
My Old Man
Happy Father’s Day from Ian Dury and the Blockheads. https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/ooPVuG8ZbNE&source=uds My old man wore three piece whistlesHe was never home for longDrove a bus for London TransportHe knew where he belongedNumber 18 down to EustonDouble decker move alongDouble decker move alongMy old man Later on he drove a RollerChauffeuring for foreign menDropped his Hs on Read more
-
Sharon’s Journal – Flash Fiction Friday
Dr. Olive thinks I should keep a journal. All her patients do it, she says. She calls us peers, though. Like, all my peers do it. That’s how she talks. Says she keeps one of her own too. Like a peer would, right? She assures me that it’s very therapeutic, and who am I to Read more
-
Aaron Sachs (1923 – 2014) "A Sweet Cat"
A man named Aaron lived on the floor above me until his death last week. He seemed like an ordinary man, but looks can be deceiving. Aaron Sachs was a protege of Benny Goodman but exceeded even that great mentor in his ability to make the transition from swing to be-bop and Latin jazz. In Read more
-
The Love of You – Mike’s Musical Monday (Anniversary Edition)
Twenty four years ago today I married my best friend. Not to be crude (OK, to be crude), as John Lennon said of Yoko Ono, “It’s just handy to fuck your best friend.” For 34 years now (including the decade we were together before we got married), this handy relationship has been the foundation of Read more
Words & Music 