Saturday 11 July 2026 Today’s blog is the transcript of the email I sent to my war class Students of Spring 2025. Last week, I wrote about this Spring 2025 war class, my heart surgery, and the dilemma I faced during that semester. On the second to last day of class, I told them about […]
The Spring 2025 War Class Email Read More »
Friday 03 July 2026 There will be a day when the “last day of class” indeed will be the last day of class. Eventually I will retire from teaching. I will give my final, concluding remarks to students. What will I say? What should I say? How will I say it? What will I
When The Day Comes Read More »
Saturday 27 June 2026 “Are you crazy!” Steve hollered. Standing in the cereal aisle of my local supermarket, and gripping my cell phone, I resisted the urge to say: “Yes, Steve! I AM crazy. Thanks for telling me. I didn’t know.” Yes, I was a madman for getting a doctorate. I sacrificed. I lost some
From Chasing Whales to Pursuing War Criminals Read More »
Friday 12 June 2026 The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children’s Crusade: A Duty-Dance with Death The Devil Wears Prada. Catch-22. The Year of Magical Thinking. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.
The Revision Diaries: Does My Manuscript Title Need Changing? Read More »
Friday 29 May 2026 For thirty years—nearly 11,000 days—I had been dreaming and talking about visiting Barcelona, Spain simply for Antoni Gaudí. He is one of my most beloved artists. Why did I postpone going? Why would I substitute Barcelona with other international destinations, deluding myself by saying: “Next time.” So finally; I went!
At last! Danny Went to Gaudí’s Barcelona Read More »
Friday 22 May 2015 When I first embraced my post-surgery, heart-shaped therapeutic pillow, I wondered: “Did I have a teddy bear when I was a child? —probably not—I can’t remember!” Why? That question was the first one I thought of while hugging it. Without it, coughing would have been more painful. One of the worst
My Tell-Tale Heart, Part 02 Read More »
15 May 2026 Today marks my one-year anniversary of a life-changing experience. Since this morning, I have been reminiscing about what I was doing this time last year. During the lead-up to 15 May 2025, I didn’t have “blank page syndrome.” I wasn’t struck by another case of “writer’s block.” I wasn’t experiencing a “mid-life
My Tell-Tale Heart, Part 01 Read More »
Friday 08 May 2026 Why didn’t I say: “Goodbye. I’ll return when I can”? Why didn’t I say: “I need to pause writing my weekly blogs because….” I didn’t anticipate my hiatus from this blog site lasting a full year; I thought no longer than four months. Looking through my Spring 2025 blogs, I realize
“You Don’t Call; You Don’t Write! What Happened?” Read More »
Tuesday 01 April 2025 Just Go! This mantra has become my rallying cry; even my wife has begun to declare this shibboleth. And why not? If you can go, stop waiting. If you can’t go, go anyway. The etymology of “to wait” reveals: c. 1200, waiten, “to watch with hostile intent, lie in wait for,
My Life List: My Zen Couple’s Retreat to Sedona, Arizona Read More »
Tuesday 11 March 2025 Bucket Lists sound so morbid, exuding fumes of death; after all, the two characters in Rob Reiner’s 2007 film, The Bucket List, written by Justin Zackham and based on his own “List of Things to do Before I Kick the Bucket”, which he shortened to “Justin’s Bucket List,” die before being
My Life List: An Introduction Read More »