“With the pride of the artist, you must blow against the walls of every power that exists the small trumpet of your defiance.” Norman Mailer Click on any photo to reveal a full sized gallery. Recently, I flew to Oakland, CA to visit my oldest son. He lives downtown near the 19th Street BART station. … More Oakland
The Towhee Needles of sleet fell all throughout the night And the towhee pecks at the hardened crust, Seeking the moist carpet of leaves below. But it is too deep. Only the memory Of his … More The Towhee
I saunter along Hood River’s waterfront, raising my hand to greet other codgers and dog walkers. Silently, we share the companionship of fortitude. They, like me, are determined to exercise. It’s a commitment undeterred by dreary weather as Oregon transitions from autumn to winter. I do dreary quite well. My recovery from cancer related pneumonia motivates … More Pictures At An Exhibition
In Oregon, the year’s most reliably pleasant weather occurs during Indian Summer. Today, on the eve of my 70th birthday, I strolled along the waterfront of the Columbia. The prevailing westerlies have lost their enthusiasm. This morning, the river laid flat. Paddle boarders cruised the smooth surface under a cloudless blue sky. Elsewhere, the convergence … More Indian Summer
Recently, my wife and I visited a U-pick blueberry farm in the upper Hood River Valley. Our son and granddaughter joined us to help with the harvest. Upon arrival, mourning doves crooned in the surrounding forest. A smear of clouds waltzed across the summer sky. An acre of mature bushes, loaded with ripe fruit, beckoned. … More Picking Blueberries
I enjoyed two full months of recovery from the latest attempt to control my cancer, multiple myeloma. At first, that drug worked well. The harsh side effects, however, made me question whether it was worthwhile. Soon, its effectiveness waned. The setback left me wondering about my future. So, I took a break to reassess things. … More Back to the Future
I tried to get ahead of spring in late January. I prepped my flower beds with bags of topsoil. I stirred the mucky surface saturated with winter rain. Then, I got sick. One acute upper respiratory infection after another slowed me down. These, paired with a harsh treatment regimen for my cancer, made yard work difficult. Spring … More The University of Cancer, Part 3
Recently, I walked along Hood River’s waterfront. The path I take is 3.5 miles out and back. The fresh air acts as an antidote to the cabin fever that persists during Oregon’s winter months. The Port Commission has patiently developed this resource over the last three decades. Another decade of fine tuning should bring the … More Cabin Fever
In the mid-summer of 2015 when all of Oregon seemed to be on fire, the view from our home of the mountains was to the north in Washington, beyond the border of the rolling Columbia River. There, above the peaks of the barren foothills, a plume of smoke from a wildfire in the Indian Heaven … More Wildfire
We were late before we started. The pecking of my wife’s hiking poles on gravel tick-tocked away the time in Silver Falls State Park. We’d chosen to rent a cabin there for a mid-summer’s getaway. Our creaky bodies appreciate day hikes as opposed to backpacking, an activity for which our future is behind us. So, … More Silver Falls
Good Blood, Bad Blood 