The day is over, and not a second too soon. It was a nonstop assault from beginning to end. I made a lot of decisions today, based on the behavior of my fellow humans. These changes won’t be made public. Call them new rules of engagement. First, thanks are in order to Tim, Ashley, Tony,…
Wictors and airplanes don’t mix
April 23, 2014
I don’t know why, but Wictors and airplanes don’t mix. Chapter Three of Hallucinabulia: the Dream Diary of an Unintended Solitarian is devoted to my experiences with the Old Hag and my nightmares of being in airplane crashes. Dad hated flying as much as I do. It’s my final unconquerable fear. Though I’m not afraid…
Hurricane House, the Tin Man, and free e-books.
April 19, 2014
During our time in Venezuela, we spent three summers on Sanibel Island, Florida, in a little resort called Hurricane House. As best as Tim and I can remember, the years were 1969, 1970, and 1971. Tim took these photos in 1970; our brother Paul shot the picture of Tim. It was on one of these…
Have we turned a corner?
April 12, 2014
My father was a complex man. He had an astonishing intellect, a streak of brutality, great artistic skill, indestructible narcissism, bursts of amazing compassion, the total inability to admit when he was wrong, an urge to do the right thing, an adamant refusal to do the right thing, and secrets buried so deeply inside that…
The men behind the masks
April 12, 2014
The band Kiss was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 10, 2014. Here are the men behind the masks, holding their awards. From the left, they are Paul Stanley (guitar, vocals), Ace Frehley (guitar), Peter Criss (drums), and Gene Simmons (bass, vocals). This was the first time the original lineup…
Why there’s no Website memorial to my mother
April 9, 2014
Someone asked me why there’s no Website memorial to my mother. The answer is that it’s too soon. Mom and Dad were both diagnosed with cancer on January 16, 2013. Dad’s death was a blitz attack that ended on February 23, 2013. Mom’s death was a siege that lasted six months. For more than five…
The customer is never right
April 6, 2014
Everywhere you look you see the new way of governing and doing business: “The customer is never right.” This is what happens when decision makers become rigid, power mad, and self-deluding. It’s also a terrible time to adopt such short-term thinking, because capital is more mobile than ever. Consumers have more choices than ever. In…
A choice I never had to make
March 28, 2014
As Mom and Dad got more enfeebled, I became obsessed with a scenario that haunted me day and night. First I bought guns to protect my parents, since they were the victims of a home invasion, Mom could barely walk, and Dad kept getting into fights with strangers. But the guns wouldn’t have prevented what…
I will not submit
March 21, 2014
The death of my father changed me in fundamental ways. Probably the most significant consequence of Dad’s passing was that it made me aware of how much of my life I’d given over to him. He got what he wanted, regardless of the cost to others. Now that he’s no longer here, you need to…
Online outrage porn
March 19, 2014
I just read a piece titled “Why We’re Addicted to Online Outrage,” by Michael Brendan Dougherty. In his essay Dougherty links to “Outrage Porn: How the Need for ‘Perpetual Indignation’ Manufactures Phony Offense,” by Ryan Holiday. According to Holiday all the online outrage is fake, just a way for Websites to get publicity. He doesn’t…