Above the Rain – A Wandering Minstrel

Non Sequitur

“Non sequitur” is a Latin phrase that means, “It does not follow.” In formal logic, “non sequitur” describes a logical fallacy where the conclusion doesn’t follow from the premise. A simple example might be, “All cats have claws, therefore, all cats scratch furniture.” Logically, you can’t prove that all cats scratch furniture just because theyContinueContinue reading “Non Sequitur”

The Singularity

My son, Evan, has a birthday this week. He’s a long, lean, lanky teen with a keen interest in Sun Tzu, astrophysics, and….junk food. Like many teenagers, his appetite is, well, cosmic 😆 To commemorate this stage of his life, I wrote a poem for Evan that describes his appetite in terms of astrophysics. “TheContinueContinue reading “The Singularity”

Pythagoreans

Bust of Pythagoras It’s no secret that humans are unique. Shakespeare (through Hamlet) called people “the paragon of animals.” Don’t get me wrong: animals can do some amazing things. I once saw a crow drop out of the sky onto a stroller handle, plunge its head into an unzipped backpack, pull out a bag ofContinueContinue reading “Pythagoreans”

The Cat’s Meow

Lily is our 18 year old cat (which is pretty dang old for a cat). While she won’t live forever, we think there’s still a chance she might outlive all of us 😸 Most, if not all, of my books have cat poems. My future book, Above the Rain will be no exception, and willContinueContinue reading “The Cat’s Meow”

Remember?

My birthday is this month. I’ve never been one to dwell on (or act) my age, but since hitting my 50s there are ways my age is unavoidable: chronic aches (physically and emotionally), new (and unpleasant) routine medical procedures, and an awareness of how much is behind me (versus in front of me). Last weekContinueContinue reading “Remember?”

Emptiest

In my last post, I talked about a poem I was working on that ended up being two poems. One poem was a tanka, a Japanese poetic form; the other is a poem I entitled “Emptiest”, whose form took shape as I wrote it. First, a couple stanzas naturally ended with “empty breast” and “emptyContinueContinue reading “Emptiest”

Silent Film

The writing process is a source of mystery. I’m constantly surprised by how inspiration comes, how ideas develop, and by the interplay of various elements: intuition, reason, structure, prayer, and serendipity. After years of trying my hand at creative pursuits, I feel more participant than master. To be sure, learning craft and improving skills areContinueContinue reading “Silent Film”