I know bears. Not the kind one goes to Alaska for to watch catching salmon. The quiet bears. The friendly bears. The stuffed, plush bears. I never set out to collect bears but somehow, over the past twenty-plus years, the bear population in my home has demonstrated a steady upward incline. Many are a popular […]
How the Non-Career Started Out I moved from New York to Northern California mere six months after I returned from a year in Japan followed by a month or two in Hawaii. My high school friend had gotten a fellowship to UC Berkeley, and wanted to move out of the grad dorm where even in […]
Nin Jiom Pei Pa Koa is The Best Cough Syrup. It’s herbal and contains minty honey and actually tastes good. I’ve been using this since the 80s, when I was given some from an acquaintance from Hong Kong who heard my relentless bronchitis coughing. But then when I lived in Israel I ran out. My […]
Kiki used to love eating shoe laces. Just ask a few friends and family members who have visited only to leave minus a length of shoelace. I’ve learned to put laced shoes where she won’t have easy access. Even though I still do this, I thought she was, for the most part, over this habit. […]
At approximately 9:00 in the morning of October 19, 1994, a suicide bomber blew himself up on a crowded No. 5 bus during rush hour as it pulled up to a stop just north of Dizengoff Square, less than a block from my apartment. I had been getting ready for work when I heard the […]
Once, on a Friday evening walk, I found a magical place. What it actually is I do not know. (Maybe a neighbor can fill me in one day.) But I imagine all sorts of fascinating things and stories inside… Sepia photos of people dressed in outfits that look like they’re from the old J Peterman […]
