May 31, 2021The Tangled TruthDraft Pages 6.1 These are draft pages from a novel in progress written during my last semester at Long Beach City College. The events depicted take place in the seventies and early eighties in Washington, D.C. As always, the names have been changed to protect the guilty. …Washington DC9 min read
May 24, 2021What’s Going on?Celebrating the 50th-anniversary release of Marvin Gaye’s Album What’s Going On “Oh, what’s going on (What’s going on)/Yeah, what’s going on (What’s going on)/Tell me what’s going on (What’s going on)/I’ll tell you what’s going on.” Written By Marvin Gaye, Renaldo Benson & Al Cleveland What’s Going on? I’m celebrating…Marvin Gaye6 min read
May 17, 2021Napalm GirlOn June 8, 1972, a South Vietnamese plane accidentally dropped flaming napalm on South Vietnamese troops and civilians. The result was an iconic picture of children, including one young naked girl (Phan Thị Kim Phúc) fleeing the napalm. na·palm/ˈnāˌpä(l)m/ noun a highly flammable sticky jelly used in incendiary bombs and…War2 min read
May 10, 2021Ax Handle SaturdayRemembering a day in American History: August 27, 1960 An Ax Handle is also called a haft. It has five parts, the Eye, the Shoulder, the Belly, the Throat, and the Knob. All we wanted was to be served lunch. At the Whites-only lunch counter inside an F.W. Woolworth five-and-dime…Black History3 min read
May 3, 2021Graduation Is but One StepA tribute to five years of Community College Five years ago, in 2016, I made one of those life-changing decisions that you never thought would be life-changing at the time. I attended a workshop at the old Downtown Long Beach Public Library. It was on a whim; could I imagine…Community College6 min read
Apr 26, 2021Take Care of Yourself… As No One Else CanA prescription for better self-care At this moment, I’m at peace. I’ve received some good news in the past several weeks that has buoyed my spirits. This has been a brutal past six months (it feels like more than a year). As I’ve reported before, I’ve been dealing with some…Self Help4 min read
Apr 19, 2021That Purse Snatch in 1968The Science of Writing Lab: Where We Create Stories of New Worlds. The following story is a work of fiction (Maybe). There are scenes of criminal passion and profanity (Get over it). It seemed simple enough. I would be a lookout at the corner of 142nd and Willis Avenue. Hector’s…Crime Fiction7 min read
Apr 11, 2021Writing Until I Drop DeadThe Science of Writing Lab: Where We Create Stories of New Worlds. …A work in progress There is something about writing that frees one’s soul. There is something about shouting from your mind through your fingers, tapping a keyboard, and letters miraculously appearing on the screen in front of you…Writing2 min read
Apr 9, 2021Here’s to My HealthThe Science of Writing Lab: Where We Create Stories of New Worlds. I was one of those who listened early on to the experts about this pandemic. I was 71 years old at the time, and yes, I was scared. While the POTUS of that time shuffled his feet and…Health7 min read
Apr 6, 2021The Tangled TruthThis is an edited work of fiction. The names and events have been changed to protect the guilty. Writer’s Note: I am enrolled in Novel Writing 52A at Long Beach City College in Long Beach, California. The following is part of the opening of my proposed novel. Over the next…Washington DC6 min read
