I leave for Turkey today with Fatma and Besta – pinch me, I think I am dreaming. We stay first in Istanbul and then fly to where Murat and the boys have been sailing for a few weeks already – we’ll join them for a few days before we head to Fatma’s parents tea plantation. Arlene and Loca head for their vacation of sorts to the northshore where the Bean gets to stay with the…
I went to my Class of ’77 30-year high school reunion in Atlanta this weekend. They sent a form that said describe what you have been doing in a few sentences since High School. I wrote “Are you kidding?” – but I read the entries of my classmates and there seemed to be a unanimous “married for 20 something years, raised X number of kids, love to (insert one or two – golf, hike, sail,…
My neighbors on either side and a friend both told me that they concur with my outrage towards men who hit women, and women who hit dogs, but they worry that I might be opening the door to someone crazy retaliating. Today T was by and he said, “to be present, you have to engage, the times I have bit my tongue are regrets.” But you start to wonder what begets what? Chris Rose wrote…
I visited Ava James today, all of one day old, and I told her that she is a bright light because she arrived in a storm and was able to add perspective and hope.
I spoke to a few people today who would like to make something come of the tragedy of Nia Robertson dying – that is take some action to make things better so we can create a community that doesn’t attract this type of senseless violence. Right now there is a lot of desire and not a lot of knowing what to do next, but a few of us have committed to meet and figure out…
I went to Cafe Degas last night to meet B for dinner – it had been a long sad day for both of us. The bartenders from Pal’s had all congregated under the wings of E, sobbing, mourning, hugging, trying to find meaning from a senseless act of violence. Yesterday, the news at Pal’s polarized our little community – there were the “good neighbor” people who rallied for Pal’s as a community gathering spot and…
Sadly I learned that a young woman had her throat slit at a neighborhood bar that has been attracting an out of town violent element since the storm. I quit going to Pal’s Lounge because the crowd although still mostly local was increasingly becoming more dicey and the last straw was when the two guys walked in and stole the bartender’s dog. Now it appears a retired cop from up north who had come to…