So this piece is being written by an extremely amateur political junkie. There are political blogs, including several posted by this newspaper, that are written by smart people who make politics their daily focus. These are people who research, who can keep track of multiple moving parts, and who have practiced the art of analysis […]
What do you do to remain professional in your dealings with someone that you really don’t want to spend any time with? How do you accurately decide whether a decision you make that was not in favor of someone, not something they wanted to hear, was in fact a decision you’d have made with […]
Sound like a good deal? Wouldn’t there be multiple winners if we could simultaneously save money currently spent on homelessness and reinvest in our neighborhoods and the community at large? I think we can do this—what do you think? Let’s start with the basic math in terms of the shelter in which I work (the […]
The call from the upper Midwest came in around 4:00 pm. “Does anyone there know a gentleman named John?” Oh, did we ever! “John” grew up in Charlestown. I don’t have to add “Mass,” do I? Charlestown doesn’t need a publicist, although Dennis Lehane has helped its notoriety with novels like Mystic River. John […]
(The author wishes to note at the onset of this little piece that it may appear to some that I am making fun of people who are challenged by gender identity issues and society’s response to them. Many of these same people clearly suffer with emotional pain and, in some cases, mental illness, frequently resulting […]
The morning news was playing on the shelter’s Day Room television when I arrived at work at 7:45. I got organized in my office and then went back into the bigger room to connect with overnight staff and observe the general scene. I watched as “Eddy” took in the news and then grabbed his backpack […]
And so it happened that the 1974 classic by Robert Pirsig was sitting right there on the library shelf, the green and black binding catching my eye when I didn’t know I was looking for it. But that’s how some of the most striking moments in life happen, isn’t it? It took me three weeks’ […]
Mack Rawhide was of a dying breed. He may in fact be dead now—I do not know. I do know the following: Mack was about 5’4” He had a speech impediment (but he could communicate real well!) He had a great mustache When he walked, he looked like he’d just dismounted He didn’t miss much […]
It took me more than 65 years to bother to check out some reference to the phrase “red herring” (in other words, I just now looked). One source cited the possible practice of using a kipper (smoked fish) to try to divert hounds from staying on the trail of a rabbit. My own history with […]
Where Have You Gone, Joe Dimaggio? (Credit for and apologies to Simon and Garfunkel) Where have you gone, Devon Dominar? We hope you’re safe, wherever you are. Imagine growing up having to come to terms with the facts that you have a major mental illness called schizophrenia and finding out that your parents adopted you. […]
