Posts Tagged ‘Traskland’

so far away

Posted: September 25, 2021 in Humorous Bits, Traskland
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I walked around the local market and bumped into an old neighbor. He and his wife moved about two years ago, staying in town but upgrading to a single-family house to accommodate their ever-expanding brood. Despite his snug mask, I immediately recognized him.

“Hey! How are you?” I asked with genuine sincerity. He was a good neighbor, familiar without being intrusive, interested without being nosy, caring without being phony.

“Hi, John! It’s so nice to see you,” he replied, eyes smiling.

I tend to handle these types of chance encounters pretty well. I can effortlessly make a few minutes of small talk. It is a minor skill which hopefully helps (more…)

philadelphia freedom

Posted: September 14, 2021 in Traskland, Travel
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Early Saturday afternoon I was suddenly consumed with a burst of restlessness, an urgent need to get out of the house and do something that did not involve staying in the house. It was a gorgeous day – high clouds, crystal blue skies, mild temperatures with low humidity. There were plenty of local options to burn off the jumpiness. We could shoot down the road into Princeton and wander among the ivy, day trippers, and shops. A short drive in any direction would take us to hiking trails and parks. We could stroll around our familiar streets and blithely comment on minor changes to our neighbor’s outdoor décor. We could do any of these things, things we’ve done 1,000 times before. But on this particular Saturday I wanted more than the usual distractions. I quickly concocted an impromptu plan.

I slipped downstairs. With the subtlety of a diplomat I asked Caryn if there was anything she hoped to get done before the end of the day. She mentioned a few things, but they all had a self-imposed deadline of Sunday night. Seeing an opening, I shot my plan at her. (Figuratively.) “Let’s go spend the night in Philly!” Within minutes we were headed south to the city where Ben Franklin fathered an illegitimate son, where Angelo Bruno was rubbed out Mafia-style in front of his home, and where (more…)

dream a little dream

Posted: August 3, 2021 in Observations and Commentary, Traskland
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As a child I had a troubling, recurring dream. I was probably 4 the first time I dreamt it and it would regularly return until I was 8 or 9. I hesitate calling it a nightmare since it never reached the point where I felt helpless and doomed. I would end the threat before it got that far, but I am jumping ahead.

In the dream it was the middle of the night. The drawn curtains blocked out the street lights. I was alone on the floor lying on my stomach watching television. My arms were propped up and my head rested in my hands. The television was in my father’s living room. It was a large, very old black and white Zenith, the kind that took a moment to warm up when first turned on. A small dot would appear in the center of the screen and gradually grow larger until the full picture appeared. When it was turned off, the dot (more…)

lost

Posted: June 28, 2017 in Observations and Commentary, Traskland
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Many years ago, I was traveling from Dallas, Texas to Norman, Oklahoma. It was the familiar interstate route, a straight shot north. It was also dull and repetitive, so I decided to hop onto the local roads and find my way across the state border at a new unknown spot, a pioneer in a Plymouth Fury. The Texas blacktop led me through small cow towns where experience told me my New Jersey accent would not be an asset. I double-checked my fuel gauge to ensure I could make it into Oklahoma without (more…)

dear taco bell

Posted: August 7, 2016 in Traskland
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Yesterday I thought about how much I still enjoy Taco Bell, then remembered I wrote something about this almost exactly seven years ago. It remains accurate.

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Dear Taco Bell,

Thirty years. Can you believe thirty years have passed since I first noticed your bright, bold colors and your exotic, intoxicating fragrance? Can you believe three decades slipped by since I first experienced that taste sensation which is so uniquely you? Can you believe all that has come and gone since our first casual late night encounter, fueled by a desire (more…)

finding yourself on edison street

Posted: June 28, 2016 in Travel
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Salt Lake City – where people find themselves

Salt Lake City is not a place a person expects to find oneself, especially if that person is a male who makes a daily conscious decision not to wear starched white button down shirts with well-knotted neckties. Yet that is exactly what happened last Friday. In this bright city nestled (more…)

venezuela and the burden of fame

Posted: April 13, 2013 in Travel
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Venezuela 1

My folks, though far from wealthy, believed in family vacations. They tried to take my sister and me on some sort of trip every year, a week away from the mean streets of northern New Jersey. Usually it was a jaunt to the shore or a few hours by car to the wilds of Pennsylvania or New York. But occasionally they would pop a real surprise on us and scrape together enough scratch to go exotic. 1973 was one (more…)

it fell off the truck

Posted: April 26, 2012 in Traskland
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I grew up in a decidedly middle class family of decidedly modest means. Like many children I never understood or thought about my family’s financial situation. We always had enough food. I can never recall running out of Hawaiian Punch, ice cream or day-glow French dressing. Our beds were warm and our clothes wholly adequate, although I wasn’t allowed to buy dungarees (yep, dungarees) until high school. Occasionally we would go on a short (more…)

discovering doonesbury

Posted: March 13, 2012 in Traskland
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I believe the comic strip Doonesbury is one of the great achievements in the history of American humor and satire. The fact Garry Trudeau has been able to sustain this franchise while continuing to maintain high quality and relevance for 40+ years is nothing short of astounding. I don’t read it religiously as I once did, but thanks to (more…)