|
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Archives
of Bud Grossmann’s
Words of the Week
© 2023 by Bud Grossmann.
All Rights Reserved.
|
|
|
|
Clarke Avenue (Blue), 1969
© 1969 by Bud Grossmann
|
If a piece catches your interest, CLICK ON ITS TITLE.
- October 22, 2023
Epigram
- Not I.
... your favorite month ...
- October 15, 2023
Obituary
- Obituary.
... In 2014, Carol married Gordon “Bud” Grossmann, Jr., an immensely fortunate fellow....
- October 8, 2023
A Visit to a Wisconsin Cemetery Called Ohio
- Family History. Bud makes a painful journey.
... I am ... looking up ... at clouds losing the last of the day’s sun ...
- October 1, 2023
Carol
- Epitaph.
... Oh, what a life! ...
- September 3, 2023
That Old Familial Feeling
- An Inquiry. Bud invites his readers to discriminate on the basis of good looks.
... I would not be sure as to whether they were twins ...
- August 27, 2023
Took a Tumble
- Fiction. A woman from Hawaii stays cool in Wisconsin’s summer heat.
... Another day among the elderly ...
- August 20, 2023
Ernie’s Birthday, Part Two
- Fiction and Family History by Bud Grossmann and Ernest S. Reinhold. Ernie receives a gift on his birthday and imagines himself granting a gift as well.
... I wish that I were Jesus ...
- July 30, 2023
To Make a Long Story Shorter
- Family History. A man repeats himself. A man repeats himself.
... Hauling hard upon his reins, Stanley hollered “Whoa!” ...
- July 23, 2023
Let’s Do It Now
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man makes an easy choice.
... But there’s supposed to be a newer version in the fall....
- July 16, 2023
Some Things Are Better Left
- Literary Criticism. A man remarks upon the obituary genre.
... the man’s obituary ran 2,279 words ...
- July 9, 2023
Escalation
- Political Commentary.
... the Times displayed headlines about other American weapons of war ...
- July 2, 2023
Well, Well, Well!
- Epigram.
... Those ... in the hospital say, ...
- June 11, 2023
With Dirt Beneath My Nails
- Horticultural Report. © 1993 by Katharine English & Bud Grossmann
... Thyme and peppermint were creeping everywhere ...
- June 4, 2023
A Work in Progress
- Family History. Young parents work together on a birth announcement.
... I have seen a draft, two drafts, we should say, of what they seem to have proposed to report ...
- May 28, 2023
Above-Ground Pool
- Family History. A boy receives useful advice from someone older.
... they invited me to their home once, on a sunny day in June....
- May 21, 2023
In the Moment
- Epigram.
... wouldn’t you agree ...
- May 14, 2023
What’s the Buzz?
- Doggerel.
... a huge fly on the wall ...
- May 7, 2023
In That Vein
- Fiction. Two friends compare hospital plans.
... We ordered off a menu....
- April 30, 2023
Away With Words
- Family History. A barn contains small mysteries.
... someone’s rank-and-name is embossed on the typewriter’s case ...
- April 23, 2023
Fishers of Men
- Limerick.
... I had hoped to become a seminarian ...
- April 16, 2023
Would-Be Tax Day
- Fiction. A Monona resident compares notes with someone from farther north.
... 4 am bird wake up calls. Gave up on sleep....
- April 9, 2023
Witnesses
- Theological Commentary.
... Oh, there is a lot to contemplate, in Matthew 28! ...
- April 2, 2023
What to Believe
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man wakes too early on the first day of April.
... Please gently correct me if my characterization is in any way unfair. ...
- March 26, 2023
Almost an Allegory
- Family History. An old man experiences an instance of déjà vu.
... Clumsy, uninsulated, stiff-in-the-cold hunters’ waders....
- March 19, 2023
Historian
- Epitaph.
... As fine a friend as / I could ever wish for, ...
- March 12, 2023
Religious Inquiry
- Family History. A man asks a brief but weighty question.
... It seemed an odd thing for a Lutheran to ask another Lutheran ...
- March 5, 2023
An Artistic Commission
- Limerick.
... asked for a rhyme, so I scribbled / a line ...
- February 26, 2023
Super Bowl VII (Bill’s Story Continues)
- Sports Report by Bill West. Bud’s friend, biker Bill West, reminisces about beating the traffic in 1973.
... it was now 14-7, with plenty of time left ...
- February 19, 2023
Super Bowl VII
- Sports Commentary. A reporter proposes a crowdsourcing project.
... What questions would YOU want to ask ...
- February 12, 2023
Super Bowl XX
- Sports Commentary. A Wisconsin man reminisces, sort of, about football.
... Don’t get me started....
- February 5, 2023
Two Cold Days in a Row
- Fiction. In the first week of February, a Wisconsin woman announces weather data.
... I would ... like to go outside to throw hot coffee into the cold air ...
- January 29, 2023
How Goes Your Friendship
- Cartoon. College guys discuss romance.
... We were just starting to discover ...
- January 22, 2023
St. Mary’s Roast Beef Dinner
- Restaurant Review.
... Candied Carrots / Waldorf Salad ...
- January 15, 2023
Big Bird
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man makes a foggy pronouncement on a foggy winter morning.
... I cried out for Celeste to come have a look: “An eagle!” ...
- January 8, 2023
Get Swell Gifts
- Epigram.
... The stick seems a little smaller ...
- January 1, 2023
First Day of January
- Doggerel.
... I think I find the idiom clear ...
- December 25, 2022
Christmas Wonder
- Christmas Meditation.
... and I whispered again, Oh, my! ...
- December 18, 2022
A Walk Around the Block
- Fiction. A small-town resident goes the distance.
... I was glad I’d brought it, thump, thump, thump ...
- December 11, 2022
Tired!
- Family History An old man does some heavy lifting at his father’s farm.
,,, I was perspiring enough to take my jacket off and toss it aside ...
- December 4, 2022
A Few Words to Live By
- Family History. A man recalls a few things his father said.
... they knew what things in life are more valuable than gold....
- November 27, 2022
A Woman Who Said No
- Fiction. A man and a woman met twice in a small town.
... It was a long line, a slow-moving line ...
- November 20, 2022
Rio, Wisc., Nov. 18 • 20° F. and Dropping
- Diary Entry.
... [I] suffered no special shame ...
- November 13, 2022
A Letter From Grandpa G.
- Family History (by Earl F. Grossmann). At the end of January, 1962, Grandpa reported on cold-weather challenges at the Wisconsin farm.
... Got a load of wood yesterday and was almost an hour getting out of the woods with the tractor....
- November 6, 2022
Signed, Sealed, Delivered
- Political Commentary.
... I voted early by mail, ...
- October 30, 2022
After a Reformation Service
- Ecclesiastical Commentary published on a college opinion board in 1973 and in Leave Us Grass in 1974.
... The only thing wrong with the service was / they used a setting that nobody knew....
- October 23, 2022
Schoolboy
- Teacher’s Log. A schoolteacher makes a record of challenges in and out of a classroom.
... During math test, talked, walked around, & made strange loud noises....
- October 16, 2022
A Provocative Blouse
- Political Comment. A man, by chance, meets an old pen pal and attempts to read between the lines.
... I very much wanted to ask, but didn’t think I dared ...
- October 9, 2022
We’re Getting Closer!
- Political Commentary. A young man thinks he knows more than he knows.
... “That’s where things are headed.” ...
- October 2, 2022
KISS
- An Attempted Aphorism.
... The design principle known as “KISS” has wide applicability....
- September 25, 2022
Non-Perishables
- Family History. A man makes an unplanned purchase in a grocery store.
... I stand five foot six, or used to, and my left leg is shorter than my right....
- September 18, 2022
An Evening With Gramma
- Family History. A Hawaii man visits his grandmother in Wisconsin; they ask questions of one another.
... “Can we come back down here after supper?” ...
- September 11, 2022
Solemnities on a September Sunday
- A Lamentation.
... Still, I am sad to see her go, and I shall miss her....
- September 4, 2022
I Don’t Mean to Be
- Social Commentary.
... I don’t like to be judgmental ...
- August 28, 2022
I Am Not a Crook
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man purchases women’s shoes and feels remorse.
... Leaving the store, Dave felt a little larcenous ...
- August 21, 2022
Reasons Why
- Family History. A man almost annotates a portrait.
... I edited out a large eagle-in-flight fake tattoo ...
- August 14, 2022
Entertainment, Weakly
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man reports his experience of bringing a reality TV program into his home.
... she had, the previous Monday, missed an episode of “The Bachelorettes” ...
- August 7, 2022
We Meet Again
- Family History. Boy meets girl; boy meets girl again; boy meets woman.
... the Hawaii guy suggested that we should drop in at a certain house ...
- July 31, 2022
Rough Ride
- Family History. A California student sustains an injury while traveling via motorcycle.
... I didn’t get it examined or x-rayed, but ...
- July 24, 2022
Presidential Advisor
- Political Commentary.
... If only they / would listen ...
- July 17, 2022
Shampoo
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man recalls pleasant experiences in Hawaii.
... her shampooing style is oh so relaxing ...
- July 10, 2022
Friday Report
- Family History. Buying eggs, having a drink with friends.
... we stopped and sat a spell on their patio ...
- July 3, 2022
Something To The Effect Of
- Political Commentary. Strangers speak to a Wisconsin woman who passes their stories along as best she can recall.
... Celeste answered, “Oh, that’s so kind of you,” or words to that effect ...
- June 26, 2022
A Woman’s Right
- Political Comment.
... I am not very good / at math ...
- June 19, 2022
End of the Line
- Family History.
... The guy ... became a dad when he was thirty-two ...
- June 12, 2022
A Fine Fellow, I Have Been Told
- Eulogy, of Sorts.
... we resided concurrently for six years in the same small Wisconsin village ...
- June 5, 2022
A Man of a Certain Age
- Family History. A man gets older with time.
... my husband ... is ... wet behind the ears ...
- May 29, 2022
If You Will Kindly
- Hopeful Invitation.
... we can attempt a reasonable discussion ...
- May 22, 2022
A Bump in the Night
- Family History. A small adventure in auto repair.
... Soon as I did see the scuffs, I reported them to Steve ...
- May 15, 2022
Listen to the Rhythm
- Family History. A summer shower in the Midwest carries a man back in time.
... “Listen to the rhythm of the falling rain / telling me ...”
- May 8, 2022
Premature Gesticulation
- Political Comment.
... I have known birth moms, adoptive moms, and women who wish they had been moms....
- May 1, 2022
Warmth & Nourishment
- Movie Review. While an Iowa farmer goes out-of-state with his teenaged son and daughter, his wife stays home and provides hospitality to a photographer who shoots on Kodachrome.
... and, further, I once reviewed an essay that Robert James Waller submitted ...
- April 24, 2022
Two Months
- Political Commentary.
... Hurts my heart ...
- April 17, 2022
Power of Prayer
- Family History. A patient describes his incomplete satisfaction with socialized medicine.
... He carefully pried the window open and scissored through the stockinette material ...
- April 10, 2022
Elusive Good Taste
- Light Verse.
... I suggest you open / your browser ...
- April 3, 2022
Pals
- Family History. A man describes a long friendship.
... we ... managed, with schoolmates, to get into mischief from time to time ...
- March 27, 2022
I’ve Been Told
- Gossip. Too men discuss fiction.
... I am pretty sure no one ... would object to my telling you ...
- March 20, 2022
Nothing Much to Prove
- Family History. A man shows off his friends and his vehicles.
... It was a 1929 pickup, all orig, nearly complete, and demonstrably driveable ...
- March 13, 2022
Luck of the Irish
- Fiction. A tale of two corned beef meals.
... Celeste had ... the last name O’Dell ...
- March 6, 2022
Old Joke
- Political Comment. A Wisconsin man goes to Boston.
... The cabbie shakes his head in amazement ...
- February 27, 2022
Putin on the Fritz
- Political Comment.
... and he meant what he said ...
- February 20, 2022
Rich as Trump
- Fiction. An achy old man imagines an easier life.
... Butler #2 reads me the New York Times ...
- February 13, 2022
Tell Me More
- Literary Commentary. A man contemplates a report about an author.
... I don’t recall ever meeting novelist J.M. Coetzee ...
- February 6, 2022
Not My Rosebud
- Family History. A man finds a birthday present from sixty-five years ago.
... The take-up spool was empty....
- January 30, 2022
Good Shot
- Family History. Boys go bird hunting.
... I no longer remember if it was the goose or the mallard ...
- January 23, 2022
Exegesis
- Family History. An elderly man examines a note his mother wrote long ago.
... Why the quotation marks? ...
- January 16, 2022
Season’s Greetings
- Fiction. A procrastinator and his spouse work on their Christmas cards.
... Just add a little note and a stamp! ...
- January 9, 2022
Siriusly?
- Family History. An elderly man sounds off about a sound system.
... I have not yet mustered the courage to read any part of the ... owner’s manuals ...
- January 2, 2022
Oh One Oh One Two Two
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man, beneath a down comforter, edits a letter on a cold winter morning.
... its autocomplete is wickedly independent, and its camera, I feel I must say, is unbelievably touchy, complicated, and uncooperative....
- December 26, 2021
Silent Night
- Fiction. A Wisconsin family receives a puzzling Christmas card.
... Looking forward to hearing the sheep music....
- December 19, 2021
Star in the East
- Family History.
... There is so very much that I do not know ...
- December 12, 2021
So’s Christmas
- Theological Commentary.
... you have a book about Heaven that I should perhaps borrow....
- December 5, 2021
Words of Comfort
- Family History.
... Bruce died, suddenly and surprisingly, at age sixty-eight ...
- November 28, 2021
Better Wed Than Dead
- Fiction. A man and a woman share a forgettable acquaintance.
... I realized that the long-haired, skinny-assed woman ... looked familiar....
- November 21, 2021
Things For Which a Person Might Be Grateful
- Family History.
... Now, did I say “no catastrophes”? ...
- November 14, 2021
Ask Me No Questions
- Gramma Letter. A property manager inspects a little apartment for the first time.
... “Bud? Door’s open! Keep your shoes on!” ...
- November 7, 2021
With Appreciation For Miss Kathleen McCarthy of Western Union
- Family History. Aunt Jeanne turns ninety-four today.
... It’s a beautiful thing, a miracle that I can’t take for granted ...
- October 31, 2021
Skull and Candles
- Personal History. A man travels across the country and encounters an empty-headed stranger.
... I ... placed that skull indecorously against a brick hearth ...
- October 24, 2021
Down to Earth
- Light Verse.
... I doubt that I shall ever see ...
- October 17, 2021
In the Driver’s Seat
- Personal History. A taxi driver encounters a police officer.
... Things could be worse, he told me....
- October 10, 2021
Tomato, Tomahto
- Personal History. An elderly, gruff man reminisces about a gruff, elderly professor.
... We juniors chuckled cheerfully ...
- October 3, 2021
Forty Years a Father
- Family History.
... became a father again, as the saying somewhat oddly goes ...
- September 26, 2021
Knock, and it shall be ...
- Gramma Letter & Children’s Sermon. A family goes to church on a weekday.
... “Here is ... the finest Wisconsin Synod Lutheran I ever ...”
- September 19, 2021
Morning Greeting
- Fiction. A man expresses an unspecified dissatisfaction with a labor-saving device.
... I will at least get to ... celebrate Trash Day ...
- September 12, 2021
Wake-up Calls
- Family History. A man in Hawaii shares the notes he made on 9/11/01.
... if we had to flee from our home ..., what was so precious that I’d want to bring it along? ...
- September 5, 2021
Draft Obituary
- Fiction. An updated death notice is offered in an effort to disturb the silence of the universe.
... Fischer ... died on such and such a date....
- August 29, 2021
Dark Days
- Family History. A rainy day in Wisconsin washes out some old regrets.
... they’d say cruel, smart-ass things in exaggerated ... accents ...
- August 22, 2021
A Beginning of an End
- Historical Commentary.
... Please explain it once more, ... a ‘war’? ...
- August 15, 2021
In a W.C. Fields Voice
- Fiction. An amateur comedian offers a lesson in joke telling.
... Why didn’t W.C. Fields ...
- August 8, 2021
I Believe
- Theological Commentary.
... A man’s got to believe in something ...
- August 1, 2021
Hollering Till I Am Hoarse
- Political Commentary.
... latching the corral gate after one’s horse has wandered out ...
- July 25, 2021
Sunday, Sunday
- Photo Caption.
... Wondering if ..., I looked it up....
- July 18, 2021
Eminent Homemaker
- Family History. Grampa G. watched TV.
... he slapped his own thigh and laughed especially hard when ...
- July 11, 2021
Flossing Faithfully
- Family History. A boy and his dad go to the beach.
... my son remarked upon their brightly colored bikinis ...
- July 4, 2021
American Exceptionalism
- A Declaration.
... Today is the Fourth of July ...
- June 27, 2021
Things That Go Bump in the Daytime
- Fiction. A do-it-yourselfer sustains a self-inflicted injury.
... a spray of white paint chips ... exploded all over my black T-shirt ...
- June 20, 2021
Few Will Ask
- An aphorism from my father’s funeral bulletin.
... Seldom will anyone ask / about the storms along the way ...
- June 13, 2021
With Thanks to Calvin N. Keeney
- Gramma Letter. A boy trips over a figure of speech.
... I imagined green beans heaped high as a barn ...
- June 6, 2021
Just a Sec
- Family History. A photographer finds that making satisfactory self-portraits does not get easier with time.
... you are welcome to tell me, so long as you are gentle ...
- May 30, 2021
Bird Watcher
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man stares out a window.
... Does she have something she would like to say to me? ...
- May 23, 2021
Schools
- Family History. Bud lists most of the schools he attended.
... Most days, all year, as I walked to school, I appreciated a glorious view of Mount Fuji....
- May 16, 2021
Big Book
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man receives good news but isn’t able to believe it.
... Big smiling face, color photo of a bald-headed rich guy, and a one-word title ...
- May 9, 2021
Nam Myōhō Renge Kyō
- Family History. A man is introduced to a chant.
... “Farrr out!” said the lady....
- May 2, 2021
Your Spring Photos
- Fiction. A man on a long trip complains of a poor night’s sleep.
... Ev and I ... first met in minister school in Indiana....
- April 25, 2021
Thump
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man gets out of bed but doesn’t say why.
... I ... enjoyed the crisp, fragrant air of springtime ...
- April 18, 2021
Seasoned Elm
- Fiction. Woodcutters take a break on a warm spring afternoon.
... I inspected the stove and judged it to be unsuitable for our hoped-for purpose....
- April 11, 2021
One of Many Postscripts
- Family History.
... In China Lake, ... Keith and I met with Paul’s mother and his step-dad ...
- April 4, 2021
He Is Risen!
- Theological Commentary.
.. questions rose up ...
- March 28, 2021
Wreck of a Forty-Year-Old Ford
- Family History.
... We were, all four of us, sophomores at a little Lutheran college in Oakland....
- March 21, 2021
Fifth Grade Class Trip
- Family History. Buddy writes to his grandparents.
... We will see the volcano in action but will not fly over it at night or probably not any other time....
- March 14, 2021
Celeste Said Yes
- Fiction. Fischer and Teale cautiously remove their masks in a public place.
... “One slice of cake, please,” said Dave. “And two forks, please.” ...
- March 7, 2021
I Hear Voices
- Family History. A grandfather writes to a grandson.
... my boat is up side down where we tied it at Wyocena so no fish....
- February 28, 2021
A Word About Punishment
- Personal History. Bud recalls a speech he once heard, by an advocate for prison reform.
... I accepted it as plausible and probably in large part true ...
- February 21, 2021
Getting Your Kicks for the Lord
- Children’s Sermon. Bud reflects upon several verses of Mark 6.
... I’ll tell you about one time when I thought I needed a miracle....
- February 14, 2021
A Valentine Verse
- Political Commentary.
... surely you know / in your ♥♥ ...
- February 7, 2021
A Dogged Pursuit of Art
- Photo Essay. On a brief layover in a foreign city, a Hawaii man, traveling by bus, photographs colorful citizens as he finds them.
... People in windows were looking at ...
- January 31, 2021
An Unornamented Mitten
- Fiction. A man recalls a woman’s disappointment.
... It’s like a song stuck in my head, that woman’s imagined voice ...
- January 24, 2021
An Author Asks
- Political Commentary.
... What do you bet ...
- January 17, 2021
Non-Recyclable Item
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man discards something decorative.
... Fischer rolled his trash cart to the street ...
- January 10, 2021
Beyond Disappointment
- Political Commentary.
... I shall therefore trust my readers ...
- January 3, 2021
Two Zero, Two ONE!
- Family History. A man begins a daunting task.
... I realize, and I apologize, that I am late....
- December 27, 2020
Happy 2021
- New Year’s Wishes.
... please / enjoy the view we’re sending you, ...
- December 20, 2020
Yes, Virginia
- Gramma Letter first published December 24, 1996. A schoolgirl requests a reality check.
... “Is Santa Claus really a for-real person?” ...
- December 13, 2020
Obituary
- Obituary. Bud’s dad, born in 1926, died on December 5, 2020.
... he seldom scolded or lectured his four sometimes incorrigible children ...
- December 6, 2020
The Fellow Who Made Me
- Epitaph.
... a man of few words ...
- November 29, 2020
Where Does the Time Go?
- Philosophical Inquiry.
... But I did not find it. Did find a big, white pill ...
- November 22, 2020
Two Words
- Political Commentary.
... Ask not ...
- November 15, 2020
Partial Inventory
- Words in Progress first published October 16, 2001. A year after his grandparents departed from their Wisconsin farmhouse, a man looked it over again, from flood-damp cellar to the attic door.
... Upstairs smells the same, Dave says....
- November 8, 2020
Anticipation
- Political Satire.
... baked, broiled, or fried ...
- November 1, 2020
A Rhyme in Time
- Political Commentary.
... I surely hope / I can avoid a ...
- October 25, 2020
I Have Voted
- Political Commentary.
... For whom? Well, you / might have guessed ...
- October 18, 2020
Blotted
- Historical Perspective.
... Just celebrating Indigenous Peoples’ Day a little late....
- October 11, 2020
Voices in the Cellar
- Gramma Letter first published October 11, 1994. An elderly farmer interprets poetry differently than two of the men in her family.
... And then, in the next moment, Grampa suffered a serious lapse of good judgment ...
- October 4, 2020
What’s Good for the Goose
- Family history. A man speaks gratefully of affordable healthcare in America.
... stony little heart, clever little mind ...
- September 27, 2020
Six of One
- Epigram.
... Ask me again, though, ...
- September 20, 2020
Eulogy
- Eulogy by Benjamin T. Grossmann.
... Bruce lived a life of service....
- September 13, 2020
The Alaska Brother
- Epitaph.
... playful, / pious, sometimes serious ...
- September 6, 2020
Methinks Thou Dost
- Family History. An old lady in Wisconsin recalls an army veteran seeking affirmation.
... an interview with President Truman and his wife, Bess ...
- August 30, 2020
Dangers of Smoking
- Gramma Letter first published August 22, 1995. A young boy gets a lesson in an Army clinic.
... “Speak up if I hurt you,” he said....
- August 23, 2020
Big, Beautiful Wall
- Political Commentary. A man speaks in support of a business associate.
... I believe in a presumption of innocence....
- August 16, 2020
Monday Report
- Fiction. A nonagenarian encounters a problem and solves it on his own.
... Did I ever tell you why “News of the Day from Fjord, Wisc.” is pronounced just that way, “Ford Whisk”? ...
- August 9, 2020
Twenty Years!
- Family History. A father takes note of an anniversary.
... Click on the picture above ...
- August 2, 2020
Cast Iron Fry Pans
- Fiction. A man contemplates mortality and obsolescence.
... Fischer said, “Thank you. I think not.” ...
- July 26, 2020
A Sense of Scale
- Fiction. An elderly couple in Wisconsin go parking on a dark summer’s night.
... the orange crescent slipped out of sight, leaving only the star-speckled sky ...
- July 19, 2020
One El!
- Gramma Letter. Two men have a bit of a misunderstanding at the bottom of the cellar steps.
... He stepped over my grandfather’s limp body, found the crates of eggs, and carried them back up the stairs and out to his truck....
- July 12, 2020
Words on a Wall
- Family history. A photographer puzzles over a four-word imperative sentence.
... anyone could have gotten essentially the same shot ...
- July 5, 2020
Missed My Chance!
- Political Commentary.
... I’d have enjoyed / being at Mount Rushmore ...
- June 28, 2020
Hold the Phone!
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man conjures up a Dodge sedan, possibly out of thick air.
... But is the Burkely’s ’56 Dodge still on the farm? ... When was it I took that picture of my brother Gary slouched against the hood? ...
- June 21, 2020
Yesterday
- Family History. A present-day rom-com transports an old man back in time.
... 50,000 watts were not quite sufficient ... to push its signal through the clouds ... in a more or less static-free form ...
- June 14, 2020
Without Exaggeration
- Epitaph.
... beyond wonderful ...
- June 7, 2020
The Only Way
- Family History. A father encourages his children in their pursuit of knowledge.
... I hadn’t hoisted a car battery in seems like years ...
- May 31, 2020
All the Best
- Historical Perspective.
... It was a white guy asking that question ...
- May 24, 2020
Dedication
- Family History. A man finds something long forgotten.
... One of the world’s most complete collections of Gramma Letters is archived right here in Rio, Wisconsin, in the Rio Community Library ...
- May 17, 2020
Gold
- Political Commentary. A Wisconsin man exercises his constitutional rights by passing up a chance to exercise.
... I sincerely intended to mow today ...
- May 10, 2020
Tommy Smothers Used to Say
- Family History. A Wisconsin woman keeps in touch with a son in the Sunshine State.
... I would switch the telephone to speakerphone, bring it to our mother, and ...
- May 3, 2020
Self-Awareness
- Fiction. A not-so-new movie causes an old man in Wisconsin to revisit other places and times.
... Imagine a Southern sheriff voice, if you can....
- April 26, 2020
Bud’s First Official “Gramma Letter”
- Gramma Letter first published April 26, 1994. A grandson makes a promise.
... this journey to the mailbox is a duty as much as it’s a pleasure ...
- April 19, 2020
Liberators
- Political Commentary.
... I speak out in praise of the brave and barefaced Americans ...
- April 12, 2020
One Can Only Wish
- Theological Commentary. Two religious leaders engage in a discussion.
... Do you know that with one little wave of my hand ...
- April 5, 2020
Uncle Phil
- Epitaph.
... industrious, generous, witty, ...
- March 29, 2020
Add the Same as Always
- Family history revisited. A hospitalized soldier, seemingly on the mend, writes home.
... 514 W. Washington Ave. / Madison, / Wisconsin ...
- March 22, 2020
Lucky Me!
- Epigram.
... if you seek to comfort me ...
- March 15, 2020
COVID-19
- Philosophical Musing.
... I sleepily decided upon an answer to one of the great recurring questions of my life....
- March 8, 2020
Birthday
- Epigram.
... Sometimes I ask people, “Who looks / older ...”
- March 1, 2020
Oddly Enough
- Epigram.
... I sometimes find / that ...
- February 23, 2020
Postscript, Sunday.
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man reports charitable giving.
... Celeste and I welcomed a surprise visitor ...
- February 16, 2020
Where There’s Smoke
- Fiction. Two reasonably Good Samaritans push people away from a fire alarm.
... Celeste had made a Valentine’s card ...
- February 9, 2020
Love Taps
- Poem first published in 1980. Valentine’s Day in 1972 fell on a Monday.
... “Put. It in. Your pocket, Jack,” the woman slowly said....
- February 2, 2020
No Witnesses
- Political comment. A Wisconsin woman provides too much information; fifty-one U.S. Senators request too little.
... Senators renounced the oath they had days before sworn ...
- January 26, 2020
Photo Assignment
- Family history. A Hawaii man has an encounter with federal agents, among others.
... It was with my camera, so I’m claiming credit for it....
- January 19, 2020
Tenor More for a Minyan
- Anecdote. A professor suggests a name for a musical group.
... And an interesting thing is, the whole quartet, they’re all ...
- January 12, 2020
Something Left Behind
- Fiction. A well-liked teacher causes laughter in a classroom.
... the giggling occurred again, but this time it was less suppressed ...
- January 5, 2020
Mammal Identification
- Fiction. A father plays charades with his son.
... They came up from the crick, three of them, bounding through the grass across the north pasture....
- December 29, 2019
A Lack of Specificity
- Fiction. A man who has hit bottom lifts a woman’s spirits.
... “You have beautiful hair,” he quietly said....
- December 22, 2019
How Would Jesus Vote?
- Christmas meditation.
... I am seeking light and wisdom ...
- December 15, 2019
Rebate & Switch
- Fiction. A Wisconsin couple races to beat a June 30 expiration date.
... Went to Costco late this afternoon to pick up Christmas cards Celeste and I had ordered....
- December 8, 2019
Smart & Loyal!
- Political comment.
“... I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue ...”
- December 1, 2019
Two Reviews
- Reviews. One of a radio broadcast, one of a sandwich shop.
... for reasons I cannot two days later recall, I finally got around to searching the Internet one more time....
- November 24, 2019
Goose Bumps
- Fiction. A man wearing a coat and tie takes too literally a report a woman makes about her own attire.
... Send a photo! ...
- November 17, 2019
Postponement
- Epitaph.
... His teasing never sharply stung ...
- November 10, 2019
An Elephant in the Room
- Fiction. An old man contemplates the consequences of memory loss.
... “Please forgive my having to ask, but are you —?” And yes, she was....
- November 3, 2019
If It Ain’t Broke
- Family History. A mailbox in Wisconsin receives an Alaska man’s stamp of approval.
... My little brother Bruce was right....
- October 27, 2019
Wash Day Lament
- Fiction. A Wisconsin woman brings multiple charges against a neighbor.
... I don’t do it and get irked when someone else does....
- October 20, 2019
A Letter & A Reply
- Gramma Letter & Reply. A mother and son collaborate on a reminiscence.
... Years ago there weren’t any storm warnings other than arthritic knees and one’s own knowledge of what the weather might do....
- October 13, 2019
Three True Stories About Texas
- Family History.
... “Do you ladies know whyyy us Texuns is alwus smilin?” ...
- October 6, 2019
Snow Time
- Epigram.
... Think about this proverb ...
- September 29, 2019
A Presidential Joke
- Cartoon.
... Let me make one thing perfectly clear. ...
- September 22, 2019
Into the Earth
- Family history. A man describes a close encounter with a white-tailed deer.
... the deer ... did not run but just stepped daintily into the locusts north of the barn ...
- September 15, 2019
Tea in Monona
- Fiction. A Wisconsin woman welcomes friends for a visit.
... we did not ... cry out “O, Lord have mercy!,” ...
- September 8, 2019
Who, What, When, Where, ...?
- Previously unpublished family history. A man describes three occasions on which he was required to write witness statements.
... Had I honked, I would have had to blame myself ...
- September 1, 2019
Unbinged
- Review of TV Series. A man invites discussion of Six Feet Under.
... I couldn’t bear to watch any faster....
- August 25, 2019
At Home in God’s House
- Children’s Sermon. A Lutheran man feels welcome in one church, but not so much in another.
... I ... put my jacket over me like a blanket, and I snuggled down....
- August 18, 2019
Wednesday, 9:15PM
- Fiction. Residents of a Wisconsin town took a drive in the country.
... One girl briefly cried; no one died....
- August 11, 2019
Bees
- Family History. A Wisconsin man speculates about matters entomological.
... far fewer bees than used to be ...
- August 4, 2019
On the Cover of Time
- Fiction. A work of art, clearly inscribed with its owner’s name and address, disappears in daylight from the public place in which it was displayed.
... he may have sought to spare others the anguish ...
- July 28, 2019
Till Death Do Us Part
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man seeks to make sure his promise of a gift has been received.
... I am in good health at this time, but ...
- July 21, 2019
We Got to the Moon
- Poem & photograph.
... It wasn’t all that / easy to get to the / moon ...
- July 14, 2019
Our Daily Bread
- Political commentary. A Wisconsin man contemplates the necessities of life.
... I, on my 1966 Harley-Davidson Sprint, cruised into the parking lot ...
- July 7, 2019
Days Are Getting Shorter
- Epigrammatical Musing.
... each year is half empty when ...
- June 30, 2019
Making Hay While the Sun Shines
- Family History. An elderly Wisconsin couple demonstrate they are not too old to enjoy adolescent humor.
... on the fourth of June ... I turned seventy ...
- June 23, 2019
Full Moon, Full Tummy
- Family History. A man describes the startlingly inflated price of a flavoring.
... strawberries and pound cake lavishly adorned with whipped cream ...
- June 16, 2019
Yet Another Ecclesiastical Mystery
- Family History. A Wisconsin man, with his son and daughter-in-law, explores the concept of a free lunch.
... Dad and I put on our Smile-At-the-Camera faces ...
- June 9, 2019
Old Joke
- Old Joke.
.. The Lone Ranger and Tonto ... find themselves surrounded ...
- June 2, 2019
Near Rhymes
- Family History. A man born in the 1940’s admires a couple of lyrical stories.
... I imagine S&G would now agree ...
- May 26, 2019
Someday
- Epigram..
... sooner than / I might suppose ...
- May 19, 2019
Saturday Report
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man tells about yard sales and an attempted improvement of a lawn.
... my dad recently showed me two photographs taken in 1942 of him and his father with a big buck deer, deceased, roped to the fender of the Fischer family’s 1925 Dodge....
- May 12, 2019
Origins of One Man’s Skepticism
- Family History. A man reports threats he found less than entirely credible.
... I Googled “mean things mother used to say.” ...
- May 5, 2019
Cold Morning in Winter
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man ponders a home improvement task while his wife recalls her youthful beauty.
... I was probably a hundred and twenty pounds, maybe not even that....
- April 28, 2019
A Riddle Gray With Age
- Riddle.
... Why did the mother put her baby ...
- April 21, 2019
Easter Mystery
- Religious Inquiry.
... Americans have ... assembled in stadiums ...
- April 14, 2019
Noisy Fish
- Political commentary.
... The crime show distracted Fischer....
- April 7, 2019
Peace, Peas
- Family history. A photographer explains the limited availability of a much-admired photograph.
... Grampa puffed on his pipe and looked out the big window ...
- March 31, 2019
Calendar Girl
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man breaks glass despite an absence of any emergency.
... three [framed items of artwork] featured attractive ladies ...
- March 24, 2019
What If and If Only
- Family history. Bud Grossmann supplies a 194-word description of a photograph that perhaps deserves novel-length illumination.
... I encourage you to share your recollections ...
- March 17, 2019
So Close!
- Fiction. A famous Wisconsin resident ignores an e-mail.
... if a stopper stopped stopping and went on to perform an act of Googling, ...
- March 10, 2019
What Are the Chances?
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man reports coincidences among family events.
... Dave ... noticed a woman he thought he recognized standing there alone ...
- March 3, 2019
A Question of Time
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man contemplates the virtue of punctuality.
... Aunt Betty doesn’t hear so good anymore ...
- February 24, 2019
Don’t Worry (John Callahan)
- Movie review.
... I would award one star more, six on a scale of five, ...
- February 17, 2019
Benefit of the Doubt
- Philosophical musing.
... Let us err on the side of generosity....
- February 10, 2019
Mud Lake
- Valentine.
... The snow ... was brittle, sparkly, squeaky....
- February 3, 2019
Feeling Somewhat Better Now
- Limerick. Carol E. Twilt and Bud Grossmann collaborate on a report on healthcare matters.
... She sought relief from a chiropractor, ...
- January 27, 2019
A Subcontracted Good Deed
- Fiction. An old guy passes the buck, and a younger guy accepts it.
... Someone speculated that the truck might belong to someone obtaining refreshment in a nearby tavern....
- January 20, 2019
A Little Prayer
- Parodical prayer probably first published in the Fishmonger in 1968.
... Now I lay me down to nap ...
- January 13, 2019
Kejserens nye klæder
- Cultural Commentary.
... I have counted two kinds of people ...
- January 6, 2019
Let Your Lights So Shine
- Gramma Letter first published January 9, 1996. A Hawaii man finds warmth in Wisconsin in winter.
... Nobody around here’s gonna say nothin’ like that! ...
- December 30, 2018
There’s No Time.
- New Year’s Meditation.
... ? ...
- December 23, 2018
In a Season of Hope
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man lists traditional carols whose titles may seem related to current events in American life.
... astonishment and pleasure ...
- December 16, 2018
Christmas Card
- Christmas card.
... May your holidays include ...
- December 9, 2018
Christmas Card
- Christmas card.
... This month marks the fiftieth anniversary ...
- December 2, 2018
The Lord’s Name
- Fiction. David Fischer’s wife surprises him twice.
... “What the hell?!” I shouted in return....
- November 25, 2018
Aspiration
- Gramma Letter first published November 26, 1996. A man claims to be content.
... She was leaning forward slightly; her clasped hands were pressed somewhat tensely against one of her knees....
- November 18, 2018
Where Were You?
- Family History. A writer invites readers to remember something fifty-five years in the past.
... I ... was here in Wisconsin, a freshman at Rio High School, a brick building constructed in 1911....
- November 11, 2018
Centenary, Sentimentally Noted
- Family History.
... you might possibly find something that does matter in Uncle Ralph’s message to Gramma ...
- November 4, 2018
Vote!*
- Political Comment.
... *Some Restrictions May Apply.
- October 28, 2018
The Foreseeable Future
- Family History.
... the menace and merits of marijuana were mentioned ...
- October 21, 2018
Leaf Peepers
- Fiction.
... The wife remembered the punch line to the old joke....
- October 14, 2018
Autumn in Fjord, Wisconsin
- Fiction.
... The preceding paragraph was not written by a Russian bot....
- October 7, 2018
Hops, Skips, and Jumps
- Political Comment.
... David C. Fischer / [awaited ] news updates and analyses ...
- September 30, 2018
Wuzn Me!
- Political Comment.
... wise, principled, and truthful ...
- Month of September 2018
Notice to Readers
- Notice. A prolific writer announces a period of suspended prolificacy.
... If you would like to receive occasional messages and photographs from ...
- August 26, 2018
No Harm Done
- Political Comment. An American man sustains a small injury and responds with superior force before fully appreciating the risk of an escalation of aggression.
... I reconsidered my / assertion of “no harm done.” ...
- August 19, 2018
The Speed of Sound
- Fiction. Two musicians have left the stage.
... Fischer, age twenty-eight, gripped an overhead bar with his one free hand ...
- August 12, 2018
Medical Miracle
- Gramma Letter first published July 15, 1997. A man reports on a successful outcome in a medical procedure.
“... How would you price such a miracle?”
- August 5, 2018
Piano
- Epigram.
... a peril-filled sport! ...
- July 29, 2018
A Biting Remark
- Family History. A young boy compares and contrasts physical features of family members.
... The boy ... quietly stood at the open bathroom door one evening at bedtime ...
- July 22, 2018
How Could This Be True?
- Political Satire. A president takes “incredible” to new heights and depths.
... President Trump suggested “Fire the s.o.b.’s!”
- July 15, 2018
Cherry Pie
- Parody. A man who bakes sometimes boasts.
... Oh, I can bake a cherry pie, so succulent you will sigh ...
- July 8, 2018
This Rose Rocks the Neighborhood
- Gramma Letter first published July 9, 1996. A memoirist shares quotes from another memoirist, in the hope of inspiring others to put onto the page memories of their lives.
... Social dancing was absolutely my life in high school and college....
- July 1, 2018
Circus!
- Political Satire. A Wisconsin family finds deep meaning in contemporary entertainment.
... Clowns, clowns, clowns! Approximately two of them....
- June 24, 2018
Risk Assessment
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man clicks with someone on a day trip.
... the ocean, romance, alcohol and weed ...
- June 17, 2018
The Stupidest Thing
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man creates fiction about fiction.
... the marginaliaist cautioned himself ...
- June 10, 2018
A Murmur in the Night
- Gramma Letter first published June 11, 1996. A Wisconsin woman helps two young grandsons get a good night’s rest.
... the house car was flat-topped and coffin-shaped—narrower at the hitch end than at the rear....
- June 3, 2018
Wed., May 30, 2018
- Diary Entry.
... I resisted the temptation ...
- May 27, 2018
A Man of Many Words
- Literary Comment. A writer laments the loth of Roth.
... listen to what Fresh Air shared ...
- May 20, 2018
We Can All Sleep Easy Tonight
- Political Commentary.
... President Trump ... would ... keep guns away from those who should not have them ...
- May 13, 2018
In Uncertain Terms
- Political Question or Ethical Question. A journalist contemplates the use of a debated method of obtaining information.
... where such nominee has neither convincingly nor definitively condemned ...
- May 6, 2018
Vaya Con Dios
- Political Commentary.
... Speak well ... of the dead or the dying ...
- April 29, 2018
End-of-Life Planning
- Eschatological Reflection.
... If you know when ...
- April 22, 2018
Où est la bibliothèque?
- Epitaph.
... Mme. Nelson ... so successfully taught a high school French class ...
- April 15, 2018
Spring Thaw & a Disinterment
- Cultural comment. A writer writes about The Writer’s Almanac
... I may someday comment on the ethical complexities ...
- April 8, 2018
Sixth Grade
- Family History.
... On Saturdays the boy was allowed to bring along one friend ...
- April 1, 2018
The First Day of April
- Theological Reflection.
... Now, however, he is not so sure. ...
- March 25, 2018
A Somewhat Salty Story
- Religious Humor.
... Make sure, before you get to the punch line, you have told your audience everything they need to know. ...
- March 18, 2018
He Gave
- Epitaph.
... Dale ... gave lavishly ...
- March 11, 2018
Flight
- Gramma letter first published March 11, 1997. An old man peacefully departs this life.
... Carl, I regret to say, will no longer lead my kids astray....
- March 4, 2018
March Forth!
- Political commentary.
... and driving a crimson, corpulent Cadillac convertible ...
- February 25, 2018
Reach for the Sky!
- Political commentary. A voter calls upon legislators to display courage and good sense.
... Don’t be shy. / Please defy ...
- February 18, 2018
Tourist Picture
- Gramma Letter first published February 18, 1997. A man fondly recalls when his grandfather thanked him.
... I prefer "informal" portraiture. From time to time, though ...
- February 11, 2018
The Whole Truth
- Political Commentary.
... you will tell the truth ...
- February 4, 2018
The Ideas Network
- Fiction. A radio listener seeks a radio listener.
... I was going to make a note of the name ...
- January 28, 2018
Fact Checker
- Fiction. A young shopper at ShopKo leaves the store empty handed.
... “I don't drive,” said the boy. ...
- January 21, 2018
Asking the Right Questions
- Political Comment.
... He didn’t seem to be trying to mislead anyone ...
- January 14, 2018
Quick Hellos
- Fiction. Old folks in Fjord, Wisconsin, greet old folks in Fjord, Wisconsin.
... He jumped up from his chair and offered me the good recliner ...
- January 7, 2018
Stalagmite
- Political Commentary.
... its / base held fast ...
- December 31, 2017
A Meditation Upon Certain Events of 2017
- Commentary.
... It’s no use ...
- December 24, 2017
Christmas Letters
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man reports the unexpected inclusion of a poultry dish on a menu.
... we also caught their Barred Rock rooster ...
- December 17, 2017
Fifteen Degrees in Fjord, Wisc.
- Fiction. A Wisconsin smartphone takes dictation with nearly 98% accuracy.
... the spell correct offered me six funny choices ...
- December 10, 2017
Book Burial
- Epitaph. An author publishes an expression of depression concerning the suppression of certain writings.
... I believe in ... the resurrection of the body, ...
- December 3, 2017
Poor Man’s Roomba
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man stumblingly invents a household cleaning device.
... Fischer ... installed ... a pair of tennis balls that had lost their bounce but not their fur....
- November 26, 2017
Please Don’t Take My Plate Away!
- Verse.
... “Save room for pie” ...
- November 19, 2017
Giving Thanks
- Political Commentary.
... God, I thank thee, that I am not as ...
- November 12, 2017
Quiz
- Social Commentary.
... Sail away from / the safe harbor....
- November 5, 2017
An Open Book
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man has questions about a woman who reportedly died in an automobile.
... perhaps / you will join me in seeking to discover a little more ...
- October 29, 2017
But for the Grace of God
- Theological Commentary.
... Martin Luther ... might have posted ... a nice, round Hundred Theses ...
- October 22, 2017
Rules
- Social Commentary.
... Rules are made to be ...
- October 15, 2017
A Report Possibly of Interest To a Friend Who Owns a Prius
- Fiction. A photographer passes up a chance to make a statistically significant work of art.
... a misty drizzle of rain presented a risk to my camera ...
- October 8, 2017
Silencers
- Political Comment.
... Okay, fine....
- October 1, 2017
Informal Portrait
- Poem.
... Look pleasant....
- September 24, 2017
Through a Glass Darkly
- Poem. A photographer looks at a sky with his naked eye.
... It made / Fischer gasp as he stepped down from a / Greyhound bus ...
- September 17, 2017
Summer, 1963
- Poem.
... Three bikes / Two boys / One bell ...
- September 10, 2017
Starts and Stops
- Fiction. A man tells a story that he may have told before.
... Be the labor great or small, ...
- September 3, 2017
A Perception of Perspicacity
- Fiction. Wisconsinites attempt to use television intelligently.
... He pressed once, swiped once, tapped once, ...
- August 27, 2017
Today I Am Not Laughing
- Epitaph.
... Mr. Lewis brightened / many a brief life ...
- August 20, 2017
Eclipse
- Verse.
... even so I remain ...
- August 13, 2017
Salaam
- Political Commentary.
... Our president remains calm ...
- August 6, 2017
Hard Sell
- Poem. One man invites another to enjoy a movie.
... Free sample? / Sure, I'll take a free sample....
- July 30, 2017
I Do Good Deeds
- Epigram.
... I do good deeds ... when I cannot ...
- July 23, 2017
Jacques Derrida (Misquoted and Annotated)
- Epigram. An amateur philosopher encourages the use of Wikipedia and YouTube.
... NOTHING ...
- July 16, 2017
B, B, B, U, Z
- Fiction. A Wisconsin couple has difficulty following a checklist to the letter.
... boogers, belt loops, billfold ...
- July 9, 2017
Married in Las Vegas
- Family History. A man repeats a story about multiple coincidences.
... The wedding took place at City Hall ...
- July 2, 2017
More Than a Little Buzzed
- Poem. A man seeking employment uses a razor to cut a deal.
... even then some stubble / stubbornly remained....
- June 25, 2017
Autoconnect
- Fiction. A registered nurse receives an unexpected early morning prescription.
... Celeste ... began telling someone, “Coffee almost gone, ... ”
- June 18, 2017
My Father
- Verse.
... though inclined toward / taciturnity ...
- June 11, 2017
Class of ’67? Oh, My!
- Political Commentary.
... Emily ... suggested he ... put some flowers ... on the ... table ...
- June 4, 2017
My Days Are Numbered
- Theological Commentary. A Wisconsin man celebrates an odd number.
... Fischer ... has lived exactly 24,837 days ...
- May 28, 2017
Two Sunny Days
- Gramma Letter. A Hawaii man recalls visiting graves with his Wisconsin grandmother.
... “I don't much care to have my picture taken, you know. Particularly in a graveyard.” ...
- May 21, 2017
T & A
- Gramma Letter. A family watches cartoons; a man attempts to interview his grandmother about motion pictures.
... Did you ever disapprove of movies your children wanted to see? ...
- May 14, 2017
On Mother’s Day
- Epigram. An author of epigrams encourages repetition.
... let’s keep on saying it ...
- May 7, 2017
The Less Said
- Literary Commentary.
... I have a / complicated / attitude ...
- April 30, 2017
A Pillar of Our Family
- Epitaph.
... and faithfully persistent ...
- April 23, 2017
The Bees’ Sneeze
- Wordplay. An American writer, seemingly unsuccessful at expressing himself in the Spanish language, makes a second attempt to amuse an audience.
... a photograph of a tattered-and-torn bees nest ...
- April 16, 2017
Holy Week! Holy Smokes!
- Theological Commentary. A once almost seminarian muses about matters of God and country.
... I might have humbly wondered, / Why don’t they hold their fire ...
- April 9, 2017
Doubt & Taxes
- Political Commentary.
... the author ... extends ... good wishes ...
- April 2, 2017
Fool Me Once
- Political Commentary.
... your school caught fire last night ...
- March 26, 2017
Sorrow in Springtime
- Epitaph.
... In ... a village where superlatives / are carefully considered and conserved ...
- March 19, 2017
You Choose, You Lose
- Verse.
... I’m not tempted to compare / An apple with an orange or pear ...
- March 12, 2017
Resistence Is Fu-Tile
- Fiction. A prosecutor seeks a clarification in court.
... But then, instead of using a different word, he said just about the same thing again ...
- March 5, 2017
Reserving Judgment
- Epigram.
... [People] complain / about a man who / toots his own horn ...
- February 26, 2017
Rider’s Block
- Family History. A Wisconsin writer contemplates the wisdom of his muse.
... The book features a handsome padded cover ...
- February 19, 2017
Point of Fact, a Point in Time
- Political Commentary. A non-journalist remarks upon a hyperbolic remark about journalists.
... I was ... momentarily heartened when I noticed that the New York Times ... corrected a misstatement of fact ...
- February 12, 2017
A Whisper in the Forest
- Valentine.
... from the heart ...
- February 5, 2017
Lost & Found
- Fiction. A Wisconsin woman goes to great lengths to recover a misplaced length of fabric.
... she checked mousetraps on behalf of the homeowner ...
- January 29, 2017
It Only Seems
- Political Commentary.
... there’s only / ONE ...
- January 22, 2017
Four Corinthians
- Political Commentary.
... I will today confess I had / some doubts ...
- January 15, 2017
Absence of Evidence to Prove an Absence
- Fiction. A man in Fjord, Wisconsin, watches television without closed captioning.
... “Why, it sounds just like you, Harry!” ...
- January 8, 2017
Scent on a Scouting Assignment
- Gramma Letter. A Honolulu man reports on an olfactory sensation that transported him during a nap.
... Fresh-baked bread, a kerosene lamp, the damp wool of a stranger’s overcoat ...
- January 1, 2017
Too Soon to Declare Defeat
- Poem. A potted plant makes a defiant gesture.
... a translucent tongue, / moist and tender, / a pale and perfect parabola...
- December 25, 2016
A Christmas Story
- Fiction. A teacher scolds a high school student.
... freshman David C. Fischer ... was clowning around with some classmates ...
- December 18, 2016
Historian
- Epitaph.
... and there was one thing more ...
- December 11, 2016
Crumbs
- Gustatorial Comment.
... When I’ve eaten the last / slice of pie, I try ...
- December 4, 2016
A Word of Advice
- Fiction. In an e-mail to a Hawaii friend, a Wisconsin man comments upon weather.
... I spent a while this afternoon—in zori, jeans, and flannel shirt—in our chilly garage ...
- November 27, 2016
Thank You for Asking
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man, upon request, reports the first two times he met the woman with whom he is now married.
... we mark the time of our knowing each other from November the twenty-eighth, two thousand twelve ...
- November 20, 2016
Thank God for Horses
- Gramma Letter. A dad furnishes an update on his young daughter’s volunteer work.
... The ranch reposes below a grand, green-garbed wall of mountain whose top is almost always bedecked with clouds....
- November 13, 2016
Science
- Political Commentary.
... The night is always darkest...
- November 6, 2016
My Hopes
- Political Commentary.
... 2. I hope she makes America great....
- October 30, 2016
With Thanks to the Late Drenka Balich
- Political Commentary.
... Don’t put all your deplorables into one basket....
- October 23, 2016
Big League
- Political Commentary.
... I do not know much ...
- October 16, 2016
Vanity
- Family History. Something about a Ford catches the eye of a man from Fjord.
... You go on ahead, honey. I need / to take a picture ...
- October 9, 2016
Community Service
- Gramma Letter. A ten-year-old girl lends a hand in a retirement facility.
... Candy, like a lot of other retirement home administrators, depends heavily on help from unpaid staff....
- October 2, 2016
A Terrible Place
- Political Commentary. A man from Mirror Lake holds an enduring unpleasant memory of a small Wisconsin town.
... the posted speed limit ... dropped ... from fifty-five miles per hour to “something like twenty-five.” ...
- September 25, 2016
Advice
- Epigram.
... Keep your advice brief ...
- September 18, 2016
My Fine Friend
- Epitaph.
... so good / and so humble ...
- September 11, 2016
September 11
- Political Commentary.
... Some things / go ...
- September 4, 2016
The Bombs Bursting in Air
- Fiction. Two soldiers and a civilian hold back pedestrian traffic at a car show.
... the Pardeeville noon whistle began to wail ...
- August 28, 2016
Yet Another Small-World Story
- Fiction. A man tells friends that he met one of their neighbors.
... a friendly-looking man ... said, “ Oh! Are you going to have breakfast with me?” ...
- August 14 & 21, 2016
Sleeping Tonight in a Familiar Bed
- Fiction.
... They could tell a few stories if you asked ...
- August 7, 2016
Today I Woke With No Doubt of the Date
- Family History.
... Can you, too, think of days ... rich with reminiscence ...?
- July 31, 2016
Along the Chisholm Trail
- Cartoon.
... Would you believe ...
- July 24, 2016
Eminently Qualified
- Political Comment.
... a fine man for the job / as leader of a ...
- July 17, 2016
Comedians Rehearsing
- Fiction. A man and his wife prepare for a visit to a surgeon.
... “— will I be able to play the violin?”...
- July 10, 2016
Whoa!
- Movie Review.
... I will try to remember the name ...
- July 3, 2016
You Sure Are a Swell Guy
- Fiction. A ride in a classic Chevrolet reminds a man of a short ride in a similar car many years before.
... He takes the padlock off an Army footlocker that once belonged to his dad. Inside there is a pistol and a box of ammunition ...
- June 26, 2016
Saturday Report
- Fiction.
... Dave ... felt he#146;d gained / a fresh perspective ...
- June 19, 2016
Drip
- Poem (of sorts).
... drip drip drip ...
- June 12, 2016
Principles of Fine Photography
- Photo Lesson.
... It never hurts ...
- June 5, 2016
Cold Comfort
- Gramma Letter. A young girl offers to share an after-school snack with her father.
... I heard a whisper of disapproval, as if someone named Conscience had placed her lips against my ear....
- May 29, 2016
Colonel McCrae Has Had His Say
- Epigram.
... The poppies blow ...
- May 22, 2016
On the Eve of Trinity Sunday
- Fiction.
... [pending as of June 5, 2016] ...
- May 15, 2016
“What hath God wrought?”
- Poem. A man reflects upon advances in modes of communication.
... Fischer has been smarting ...
- May 8, 2016
Close, But No Cigar
- Poem.
... An underdressed / non-Austrian RN, ...
- May 1, 2016
Less Is
- Verse
... But probably / you didn’t hear / me say it ...
- April 24, 2016
Three Buzzards
- Verse
... Three buzzards ... took a break ...
- April 17, 2016
Photographer
- Art Review.
... Look her up. / Tell me what you think....
- April 10, 2016
Remembrance of Things Passed
- Poem. A little-read author pays homage to an author he has never read.
... Mrs. Gilbert turned ...
- April 3, 2016
The Mango Doesn’t Fall Far From the Tree
- Gramma Letter. A father discovers something he didn’t know about his daughter.
... I composed a little safety lecture with sub-themes about not wasting fruit and about putting things back the way they were....
- March 27, 2016
How Would Jesus Vote?
- Theological Commentary.
... Empty cross, / empty tomb ...
- March 20, 2016
Must You
- Epigram.
... Must you constantly / contradict me? ...
- March 13, 2016
A Word
- Epigram.
... A word to the wives ...
- March 6, 2016
Durability
- Gramma Letter. Shortly before a birthday, a man speaks in praise of the celebrant.
... He chuckled. “Every day!” he said. “Every day. But I’m still here.” ...
- February 28, 2016
Many a Fine Photograph
- Photography Lesson.
... “Please look / at me...”
- February 21, 2016
Judging a Boy By His Cover
- Gramma Letter. A Hawaii family encounters racial profiling in the Continental United States.
... The question jarred me, puzzled me, and pleased me....
- February 14, 2016
On Valentine’s, On Valentines
- Verse.
... cross your t’s ... / ... if you fail to see ...
- February 7, 2016
Obituary
- Fiction. A report of a man’s death is offered for literary and historical commentary.
... no memorial services or celebrations are planned....
- January 31, 2016
Draft Obituary
- Fiction. A death notice destined for a Wisconsin newspaper appears in draft form.
... Meadows Funeral Service of Fjord is serving the family....
- January 24, 2016
Casting My Lot
- Art Criticism.
... I don’t know a lot about art, / but ...
- January 17, 2016
Candy Could Come In Handy
- Light Verse.
... Try a taste / of a wit man’s sampler....
- January 10, 2016
Basement Bargain
- Family History. A man welcomes commentary on a beloved painting.
... “Um, actually, that’s an original....”
- January 3, 2016
Two Oh One Six
- Epigram.
... Let’s not leap ...
- December 27, 2015
Sweets
- Fiction. A famous pastry chef supplies sugary prose.
... Peanut is a vegetable; I’m good....
- December 20, 2015
On Earth Peace*
- Theological Commentary.
... Some Restrictions ...
- December 13, 2015
Italics
- Epigram.
... such / emphasis is seldom / necessary....
- December 6, 2015
A Report You’re Sure to Find Riveting
- Fiction. An elderly man contemplates music lessons.
... Ever hear of Scott Houston’s Play Piano in a Flash? ...
- November 29, 2015
But Who’s Counting?
- Fiction. A contemplative Wisconsin man looks within himself for insight and comfort.
“... How, Dave, do you think that makes me feel?” ...
- November 22, 2015
Ask Not
- Political Comment.
... Ask Not ...
- November 15, 2015
It’s Beginning to Look
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man encounters temptation in a department store.
... “How the hell would I know? I can’t predict the future!...”
- November 8, 2015
Not Skating On Ice
- Fiction. A father brings some friends up to date about a death in the family.
... Evelyn’s eyes opened wide. “Matthew died?” she said. “When?” ...
- November 1, 2015
Two Views of a Boy
- Fiction. A man looks beneath the surface of a work of art.
... One of my high school buddies died just before school began on the morning of Monday, November 2, 1964....
- October 25, 2015
No Choke, No Prime
- Fiction. A homeowner reports on his first day’s use of a Briggs & Stratton-powered lawn mower.
... I bought a self-propelled, walk-behind mower to save me from heat stroke next summer ...
- October 18, 2015
Marking Time
- Family History.
... In Memoriam ...
- October 11, 2015
A Short Pencil
- Epigram.
... “A short pencil / is better than a long memory.” ...
- October 4, 2015
Third-Grade Joke
- Political Commentary.
... When I was a little kid, in the late 1950’s, ...
- September 27, 2015
Scent of a September Morn
- Gramma Letter. An elderly fellow recalls his brother’s first birthday.
... This is one of my earliest memories, and it’s as clear in my mind as if it happened last week....
- September 20, 2015
Still Life
- Literary Review. A writer encourages a writer to read what a writer wrote about writing.
... would you please read ... Omission ...
- September 13, 2015
Deep Joke
- Fiction. A man in Fjord, Wisc., shamelessly “borrows” a joke from Lake Wobegon, Minn.
... few modes of time travel / are quite so efficient ...
- September 6, 2015
Point B to Point A
- Epigram
... few modes of time travel / are quite so efficient ...
- August 30, 2015
Bat Timing
- Family History. A Wisconsin couple wake a brown bat at the start of its work day.
... bared its teeth, and hissed at us, and, guess what ...
- August 23, 2015
Double Negative
- Fiction.
... Must you always ...? ...
- August 16, 2015
True Story
- Family History. A family has lunch at a crowded Costco.
... an Asian-looking woman, maybe around thirty years old, was sitting alone at the adjacent table-for-four ...
- August 9, 2015
Kingfish & Satire
- Epitaph.
... we would have no / necessity ...
- August 2, 2015
Flower Power
- Family History.
... I don’t suppose I should blame any single passage of Scripture ...
- July 26, 2015
Goodness Gracious
- Theological Commentary.
... I scribbled in my Day-Timer calendar only a single quotation from the foodie’s review ...
- July 19, 2015
Once Burned
- Remark.
... Sometimes I think it would be wonderful ...
- July 12, 2015
Beavers and Bunnies
- Family History. A city fella offers a lesson in mammalian identification.
... she thought she saw a beaver swimming toward her ...
- July 5, 2015
Recalling 1962 & 1963 in Kentucky
- Family History.
... I might compose a lament ...
- June 28, 2015
Toy Boat
- Fiction. A Wisconsin writer wonders why j is treated, in some locales, as a vowel.
... Rioans ... challenge one another to say “sesquicentennial” thrice in swift succession....
- June 21, 2015
What are you gonna say?
- Family History. An elderly fellow recalls getting his first driver’s license.
... What are you gonna say when / you hand over the keys ...
- June 14, 2015
On the Doctrine of Inerrancy
- Theological Commentary.
... I invite / you to examine carefully what / I have presented here as truth....
- June 7, 2015
Seeking Clarity & Guidance
- Editorial Comment. A Wisconsin man expresses an interest in a non-elective office.
... Fischer has been ... shaking his head in dismay and muttering, sputtering, and cursing....
- May 31, 2015
Grasping At Straws
- Epigram.
... Who could hate ...
- May 24, 2015
Legal Advice
- Epigram.
... The less one says the ...
- May 17, 2015
Friday at the Garage Sale
- Poem.
I began to sort the twenties, / tens, the fives, the ones....
- May 10, 2015
Straight Shooter
- Epitaph.
... chances are good ...
- May 3, 2015
A Disturbing Sound
- Family History.
... Yes, over and over, that beat comes and goes....
- April 26, 2015
Going Out on a Date
- Fiction. A man tells rambly stories about automobiles.
... Celeste observed that our odometer was displaying the number 1937....
- April 19, 2015
There Is Something To Be Said
- Epigram.
... There is something to be said / for self-censorship....
- April 12, 2015
No Use Crying
- Fiction. Confronting a great flood, a man seeks out Noah Webster.
... I cooked it for an hour beneath a bright table lamp ...
- April 5, 2015
Which Came First?
- Theological Commentary.
... Thomas doubted ...
- March 29, 2015
If You Call Me Prudish
- Movie Review.
... The video I saw is “Hello Kitty Flanagan (2014).” ...
- March 22, 2015
Comment on a Photograph
- Art Criticism.
... Google gave me gold....
- March 15, 2015
Beware the Ideas of March!
- Epigram.
... Do it today ...
- March 8, 2015
Yard-Sale Purchase
- Pun.
... “You’re asking, what species?” I / replied....
- March 1, 2015
How Do I Forget Thee?
- Family History. A man remarks upon memory impairment.
... I try to resist the urge to joke ...
- February 22, 2015
Recalling With Admiration the Young George Washington
- Fiction. A skeptic discovers someone he could believe in.
... the entire day they talk, talk, talked non-stop ...
- February 15, 2015
Flowers and Forebodings
- Gramma Letter. A man smells something fishy when he notices a name change.
... Maybe you folks in the new “90’s Club” are just too glum to be called gay....
- February 8, 2015
Heat & Light
- Family History. An elderly man’s memory is proven faulty yet again.
... they have mysteriously been transubstantiated into black-and-white! ...
- February 1, 2015
Our Excursion
- Poem. A fifth-grader puts a summary of a school trip into rhyme.
... And what lay ahead was lots of fun....
- January 25, 2015
Clarke Avenue Nairobi Blues
- Poem. A young man, disappointed in love, complains.
... And who am I to say ...
- January 18, 2015
Flowery Prose
- Epigram
... by any other name / would be ...
- January 11, 2015
A Two Thousand-Dollar Cigarette
- Fiction. After only a few puffs on a Marlboro Light cigarette, a non-smoker feels despondent.
... we will cut you a check for two thousand dollars the day you finish....
- January 4, 2015
New Year’s Good Intentions
- Epigram.
... give me a couple of months, please ...
- December 28, 2014
Luke 2:9
- Theological Commentary.
... No one had worn shoes in this room....
- December 21, 2014
Up on the Housetop, Click, Click, Click!
- Fiction. An old friend visits Dave Fischer on a cold day.
... He looked like Elmer Fudd, Celeste said, and she meant it in a nice way....
- December 14, 2014
A Dirty Little Story
- Fiction. A man boasts about his new car.
... The fourth flap proved uncooperative ...
- December 7, 2014
Oro y Plata
- Epitaph.
... John’s heart was as big ...
- November 30, 2014
For Immediate Release
- Family History.
... they were married ...
- November 23, 2014
Wild Turkey in the Freezer
- Fiction. Two non-vegetarians in Fjord, Wisconsin, decide to postpone a turkey dinner.
... They ... ordered ... cake, with butter-cream frosting and sweet pink roses ...
- November 16, 2014
Nuts About You
- Epigram.
... David Fischer heard a crack ...
- November 9, 2014
Day In and Day Out
- Fiction. A man helps a friend recognize an out-of-season cinematological reference.
... the name of a movie in which ... do I have to say more? ...
- November 2, 2014
Speculative Lingerie
- Fiction. Two old friends discuss the advance of time.
... All day I thought this was Thursday ...
- October 26, 2014
I Had Confidence in My Confidante
- Epigram.
... she has punished me ...
- October 19, 2014
Sunday, October 19, 2014
- Poem.
... his ashes / in a koa box now rest ...
- October 12, 2014
With a Twist of Lyme
- Fiction. An innocent man gets bitten on the butt.
... Fischer sought the assistance of a friendly female nurse ...
- October 5, 2014
Illuminatus
- Cartoon.
... great paradoxes / of human psychology ...
- September 28, 2014
Please. Give me a minute!
- Epigram.
... Got a light?...
- September 21, 2014
Matters Over Which We May Have Some Control
- Poem.
... Could you profitably spend an hour ...
- September 14, 2014
Bifurcation, Trifurcation
- Epigram.
... don’t you understand? ...
- September 7, 2014
Nonstarter
- Epigram.
... now the joke would / just about drive you crazy ...
- August 31, 2014
Paradoxical Patron of Planet Earth
- Epitaph.
... If the link doesn’t work for you, please let me know.
- August 24, 2014
It’s No Use
- Epigram.
... It’s no use crying ...
- August 17, 2014
Words & Pictures
- Epigram.
... I hope you can imagine ...
- August 10, 2014
If Such Things Can Be Measured
- Epigram.
... That’s a good question! ...
- August 3, 2014
Simple Pleasures
- Gramma Letter. A man drinks beer and eats nuts, all by his lonesome, and he rather seems to enjoy it.
... Through that vee-shaped crack I can see the dark flake of skin that covers the firm, green nutmeat within....
- July 27, 2014
Packing Heat in a Land of Ice and Snow
- Family History. An Alaska man gives instructions to a visitor from Hawaii.
... The hunk of iron holstered on my leather belt ... gave me a sense of warmth and well-being....
- July 20, 2014
An Unframed Photograph
- Family History. A photographer examines another photographer’s work.
... The groom’s grin is as full and fearless as his bride’s....
- July 13, 2014
Fw: This Week: There is a Winding Road
- Fiction. A pie maker makes misleading remarks about a recipe.
... “Why would I want to watch a radio show?” ...
- July 6, 2014
Early Departure
- Verse.
... If my mom / had had her way ...
- June 29, 2014
A Fine Distinction
- Political Message.
... Ropes don’t kill people, either....
- June 22, 2014
Saturday!
- Fiction. One hundred ten years and six days after Leopold Bloom famously traversed the streets of Dublin, an American author who has never so much as opened Joyce’s 265,000-word novel, hopes he has imitated it in 700 words.
... I’m late with my howdy rounds because my Uncle Arthur got misplaced....
- June 15, 2014
Proverbs 22:6
- Epigram.
... to what verse may a / father cling for comfort ...
- June 8, 2014
On Your Marks, Get Set, Go!
- Fiction. An aging man demonstrates his denial of his diminished cognitive ability.
... I found in my china closet two books of matches in an antique glass ashtray....
- June 1, 2014
Medical Consultation
- Fiction. An elderly fellow complains about the cost of health care but receives scant sympathy.
... taking the doctor’s left hand, palm down in both of his own, the man found no bracelet upon her wrist, no wedding band or other ring on any finger....
- May 25, 2014
To God Belongs the Glory
- Fiction. A humble woman whispers in church.
... it’s probably a good idea for over-achievers to relax ...
- May 18, 2014
Concerning Omissions From a Paul Thomas Anderson Film
- Fiction. Two artists discuss censorship; one of them commits it.
... Mmmm, lady at the piano! ...
- May 11, 2014
A Letter From Mother
- Epigram.
... brought joy like ...
- May 4, 2014
Anti-Climaxes for Lovers of Classic Films
- Fiction. A man slaps his forehead outside an attorney’s office.
... I give her two seconds, then, to look it over and to raise her eyes again to mine ...
- April 27, 2014
Fortieth Anniversary!
- Puffery.
... Its sixty-four pages contain some spelling errors, ...
- April 20, 2014
Enduring Faith
- Epigram.
... Such a comfort....
- April 13, 2014
At Rest in a Bed Made of Oak
- Epitaph.
... woman of many roles ...
- April 6, 2014
How Can Anyone Accuse This Author of Narcissism?
- Family History. A man recites the essential statistics of his parents’ wedding day.
... Sixty-seven years ago today ...
- March 30, 2014
A Story With a Moral
- Fiction. A man, seeing his own reflection in the window of his microwave, begins singing, “Hey, good lookin, whatcha got cookin ...,” oh, wait, no, sorry, this is about something else. Well, maybe that almost happened as well. You never know, with fiction.
... Fischer ... discovered a bowl containing 3T melted butter....
- March 23, 2014
One Thing Leads to A Brother
- Fiction. A man gives non-specific high praise to a movie about a man making music.
... I decided to count the keys on Celeste’s long-dormant Wurlitzer upright piano....
- March 16, 2014
Seeking the High Road
- Epigram. A man contemplates the possibility of shaming the shameless.
... I watch Fox News ...
- March 9, 2014
An Illuminating Experience
- Gramma Letter. A man reflects upon a long-ago error.
... Far down the driveway of the farm was a yard light, nearly as dim as the stars in the inkiness that surrounded us....
- March 2, 2014
An Excess of Caution
- Fiction. A woman worries that a man shoveling snow might suffer a spell.
... If I overdue it, I’ll truly be the late Mr. Fischer....
- February 23, 2014
Oh, Baby!
- Epigram.
... better to light a candle ...
- February 16, 2014
Man in Mittens
- Poem.
... a modest moon ... soon pushed immodestly ...
- February 9, 2014
Stopped & Frisked
- Fiction. A mother and son, side-by-side, present their opinions of an authority figure.
... a handsome, tall, trim, straight-backed, gray-haired, blue-eyed, uniformed lieutenant ...
- February 2, 2014
You Talkin’ to Me?
- Fiction. A man encounters cold words on a cold winter’s evening.
... Too cold to take a photo ...
- January 26, 2014
Working Man
- Epitaph.
... Stub was loved for his / good cheer ...
- January 19, 2014
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
- Parody. With miles to go, this poet makes no promises.
... I heard only a diminishing grind and cough ...
- January 12, 2014
Midweek Journey
- Fiction. An elderly gent reflects on the passage of time.
... Please disregard my qualifying phrase....
- January 5, 2014
A Clean, Crisp Sheet
- Family History. A man describes a New Year’s drive around much of the perimeter of Oahu.
... The harnessed pairs of people remind me of the motorcyclists’ intimate embrace....
- December 29, 2013
We Have, I Would Say,
- Fiction.
... I end up doing a lot of shoveling ...
- December 22, 2013
Born in a Barn
- Epigram.
... Dogmatists may disagree / with me, ...
- December 15, 2013
Please Stop Your Whining
- Epigram.
... it is difficult (but not impossible) ...
- December 8, 2013
A Sweeping Generalization
- Epigram.
... This assertion, if confirmed, / could go a long way ...
- December 1, 2013
Good Shot, Bad Shot
- Photography Lesson. In reply to a request for his opinion, a photographer comments on two pictures of a dead bird.
... The first photograph is, I must say, superior to the turkey-smack-in-the-center snapshot.....
- November 24, 2013
Where Were You?
- Family History. A father draws associations between dates of profound loss and sorrow.
... She said nothing more until I turned my face from the / Kennedy reminiscence to look into her unblinking eyes. ...
- November 17, 2013
Asking for a Date
- Fiction. A well-meaning visitor argues with a dying man.
... I left a message ... wishing the old man a happy hundredth birthday...
- November 10, 2013
Seriously In Trouble
- Fiction. Approaching his deadline, a columnist draws upon the wit of Robert Browning, among others, while contemplating the ethics of derivative expression.
... Harrison Harmeyer ... sits at his desk ... and stares at a blank page ...
- November 3, 2013
David Fischer’s Grammar Letter
- Epigram.
... Fischer ... must immediately sit down in the nearest chair ...
- October 27, 2013
Public Appearance
- Fiction. Two residents of a Wisconsin county with an official population of 56,539, never having conversed or exchanged names before, encounter each other twice in three days in pleasant circumstances in the next county to the south and still manage not to identify themselves by name.
... Rick brought out his iPhone and showed her the PoD ...
- October 20, 2013
Alias
- Fiction. Slyly suggesting his audience is clueless, an author offers a clue.
... David C. Fischer ... seems not to wonder ...
- October 13, 2013
Condescension
- Epigram.
... do I have to tell you ...
- October 6, 2013
It Takes a Village
- Epigram.
... It takes a village ..., I agree, ...
- September 29, 2013
Sweet & Generous Auntie
- Epitaph.
... Oh, Lord, oh, golly, ...
- September 22, 2013
WoW Postponed
- Announcement.
... Who ...?
- September 15, 2013
With Thanks to Calvin Keeney
- Gramma Letter. A boy trips over a figure of speech.
... I imagined green beans heaped high as a barn ...
- September 8, 2013
Permission
- Gramma Letter. A grandson grants his grandma permission to rest.
... you don’t have to be a rock of strength at all times....
- September 1, 2013
Classic Car Show, 2013
- Poem. A man born in 1949 expresses curiosity about automotive matters.
... please let me hear you say / what a hot rod would bring to mind ...
- August 25, 2013
Tsk, Tsk! (On the Subject of Risk)
- Fiction. Friends discuss hazards of rural life.
... Jeff dislocated the shoulder he just had surgery on....
- August 18, 2013
Fishing for Compliments
- Epigram.
... luscious peaches and apricots, plums / pears, persimmons, et cetera....
- August 11, 2013
Little Boxes
- Literary Annotations. A writer reacts to feedback from a fan.
... I possess ... no wish to be mouthed by mothquitoes....
- August 4, 2013
Hindsight
- Epigram.
... Objects in mirror ...
- July 28, 2013
Second-Prize Quilter
- Fiction. A man remembers three women.
... Fischer ... briefly observed a certain woman ...
- July 21, 2013
Never Hurts
- Epigram.
... Would you like me to ...
- July 14, 2013
I Know It When I See It
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man grants two persons the benefit of his doubts.
... the man on the bicycle had participated in a successful search for a dog ...
- July 7, 2013
Saturday, July 6, 2013
- Family History. A man ponders changes in a cemetery.
... three small U.S. flags had bloomed ...
- June 30, 2013
Man Without a Helmet
- Fiction. A Wisconsin man makes his mark, using a bicycle.
... “Just a scratch,” Tom told me, when I first saw his bindi ...
- June 23, 2013
When You Have Nothing to Say
- Epigram.
... please try ...
- June 16, 2013
A Call From Mom and Dad
- Fiction. A man, after receiving tragic news, dreams a horrible and wonderful dream.
... It was blindingly bright, like the prismatic patch of color that sometimes streaks out of a fishtank in a sunny room ...
- June 9, 2013
You Are Too Kind!
- Aphorism.
... There are two kinds of people in this world....
- June 2, 2013
Seriously
- Fiction. A man confuses irony with ironing.
... I do not in fact love the shirt ...
- May 26, 2013
Give Me Roses While I Am Living
- Fiction. A man attempts to spare himself the punishment of a eulogy.
... A sweet scent of lilacs drifted on the breeze....
- May 19, 2013
Planting Season
- Fiction. A photographer flatters a fan.
... I got locked out ... with ... the next nearest spare key one hundred forty-eight miles away....
- May 12, 2013
Labor of Love
- Epigram.
... A mother’s work ...
- April 21 & 28 and May 5, 2013
Self-Published
- Epigram.
... I’m so vaaaaaain I bet you think ...
- April 14, 2013
Who, What, When, Why, Where?
- Epigram.
... The key to my riddle ...
- April 7, 2013
Traversing Treacherous Terrain
- Poem. A father remarks upon watching children grow up.
... our host happened to be / operating a video camera at the moment of impact....
- March 31, 2013
Bright-Faced Herald
- Annotated biblical quotation.
... His countenance was ...
- March 24, 2013
Two Things Are Certain
- Fiction. A taxpayer furnishes an update on his progress.
... no new documents from the chaos of my guestroom bed have been added today ...
- March 17, 2013
All Food Groups Represented
- Fiction. A baker takes cheap shots at a vulnerable ethnic group.
... I ... learned something helpful about Asian geography....
- March 10, 2013
Please Don’t Ask Me to Say This Twice.
- Epigram.
... I would like to experience ...
- March 3, 2013
Global Warning
- Poem. In late winter a Wisconsin man waits for spring.
... sheets / of accumulated snow, thick as a fluffed / feather comforter, ... slide slowly down / the shingled roof ...
- February 24, 2013
Elle n’a pas des bras!
- Poem. A man philosophizes about absences set in stone.
... Join with me, please, / in imagining the arms and / hands ...
- February 17, 2013
In Re La Gioconda
- Poem.
... One picture is worth ...
- February 10, 2013
P.D.A.
- Epigram.
... On the bumper of a VW Bug ...
- February 3, 2013
Farmer Inter Alia
- Epitaph.
... A man marvelously munificent ...
- January 27, 2013
“Not on my watch!”
- Epigram.
... on my ...
- January 20, 2013
A Glass of Water
- Epigram.
... If I could choose, ...
- January 13, 2013
A Dark Winter’s Day
- Fiction. A man reports, in a few written words, what he might have said with less brevity if a friend had answered the phone.
... Tried to call. Many rings....
- January 6, 2013
Ma’s Going to Be Okay
- Gramma Letter. A celebratory sip of an alcoholic beverage fails to bring good cheer.
... A damp napkin on your forehead began to bring you back to consciousness ...
- December 30, 2012
Good Intentions
- Epigram.
... I resolve ...
- December 23, 2012
A Catholic Upbraiding
- Fiction. A teacher in a public school draws upon religion to make a point.
... she leaned into his face and softly sneered ...
- December 16, 2012
Son of a Gun!
- Political Commentary.
... I’m still having trouble with that bumper sticker ...
- December 9, 2012
Cold Days Ahead
- Fiction. Friends swap remarks about head coverings.
... Still like but seldom wear a certain black cap that I call my FHP cap ...
- December 2, 2012
Please Do Not Pester the Jester
- Fiction. A man refers to someone by a seven-letter term of derision.
... It is such a lovely word, though, ...
- November 25, 2012
Sins Happen
- Fiction. Two old friends explore theology and irony.
... You’re a lucky guy, my friend. ...
- November 18, 2012
A Band of Bothers
- Epigram. A man declares his privacy policy.
... my sweet granny on a / cloud in Heaven ...
- November 11, 2012
To a Different Drum
- Poem. A taunt is followed by détente.
... my mom marched many a mile ...
- November 4, 2012
Morality Play
- Fiction. An ethicist renders an opinion on a complex matter of grave significance.
... “Heyyyyy! She’s thinking about sex!” ...
- October 28, 2012
I Approve This Message
- Fiction. A man with liberal leanings mocks his more conservative friends.
... I am immediately forwarding this e-mail to numerous friends ...
- October 21, 2012
One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
- Fiction. A Fjord man tries out two wheels.
... Fischer hopes to tell the entire story before he dies....
- October 14, 2012
Maple Leaves, Why Can’t You Be True?
- Fiction. A cartoonist draws fire from a fellow writer.
... Fischer ... wondered whether this wincing Winston woman would punish him for punning....
- October 7, 2012
A Vocational Aspiration
- Poem. A cab driver proceeds along a bumpy boulevard with his poet license displayed on his dashboard.
... I might choose to be a lyricist ...
- September 30, 2012
Pride Goeth
- Epigram.
... before ...
- September 23, 2012
Just Kidding
- Fiction. A man takes seriously a proffer of irony.
... you can chew on the kernel of truth ...
- September 16, 2012
A Flicker of Fear
- Gramma Letter. A boy on a farm contemplates a confrontation.
... I figured it must most likely be a man, not a woman, walking about, up to no good in the night ...
- September 9, 2012
He Ain’t Heavy
- Fiction. Transmission troubles bring two brothers together unexpectedly.
... David asked him, "They giving you something for your pain?" ...
- September 2, 2012
The Final Friday of August 2012
- Fiction. An astronomical event cannot be reversed.
... superstitious dyslexics feel whatsome uneasy....
- August 26, 2012
Book of Life
- Poem. A cemetery visitor contemplates the substance of granite.
... David Fischer visits / the grave of a high school friend ...
- August 19, 2012
A Canine and the Div-ine
- Fiction. A Craigslist hobbyist (as usual) misinterprets an earnest request.
... I ... felt tempted to offer a shoulder rub ...
- August 12, 2012
I Have No Idea
- Epigram. A writer comments on the oldest topic in the book.
... I pray my readers / will not squawk ...
- August 5, 2012
Negative Thoughts
- Epigram. A photographer philosophizes.
... So many frames, / so little to show....
- July 29, 2012
Singing in the Cellar
- Gramma Letter. In the cellar of a farm house, two men hear voices.
... And then you ... left Gramp and me and the singing egg machine to finish our work without you....
- July 22, 2012
An Oft-Irreverent Reverend
- Epitaph.
... A saintly man whose goodness might...
- July 15, 2012
Hot Enough for You?
- Family History.
... Minnesota was like an oven....
- July 8, 2012
No Matter What I Say
- Epigram.
... That’s true ...
- July 1, 2012
Me!
- Fiction. A writer finds temptation in a short and sweet invitation on Craigslist.
... would like to find someone cool to go to the bar with!! :) ...
- June 24, 2012
67890
- Fiction. Despite trauma sustained in a vehicular incident, a widely read author bravely continues to provide prosaic verse to his faithful readers.
... you hop / no plop ...
- June 17, 2012
Daisy, Daisy
- Poem.
... father’s hand upon my back ...
- June 10, 2012
A Father’s Wish
- Epigram.
... if only / could persuade my daughter ...
- June 3, 2012
Favorable Movie Review
- Fiction. A man offers his opinion of a motion picture.
... I’m giving it five stars....
- May 27, 2012
My Mind Wanders
- Epigram.
... I’m going to tell you ...
- May 20, 2012
Give Us This Rye, Our Daily Bread
- Fiction. A baker tests the adage “Haste Makes Waste.”
... I needed to ... persuade the loaf to release its grip on the pan ...
- May 13, 2012
I Was Once a Perfect Child
- Epigram.
... I suggest we pause ...
- May 6, 2012
One Hundred & Forty Characters
- Poem.
... i know a man who does not text ...
- April 29, 2012
Unmentionables
- Fiction. A man finds a lost item and does not report it.
... I don’t know what I did with the underwear....
- April 22, 2012
A Robin Will Build
- Gramma Letter. A man reminisces about an old car and its inhabitants.
...As we approached the Ford, a robin flew from one of the headlights....
- April 15, 2012
Unthinkable
- Epigram.
... I say today ...
- April 8, 2012
Three Days
- Aphorism.
... [no blurb]...
- April 1, 2012
A Sweet Release
- Fiction. At nearly midnight on a Tuesday in the spring, a woman in her thirties sends a message to an older man.
... I love the rhythm. I find it mesmerizing ...
- March 25, 2012
Missing the Boat
- Fiction. A man rolls up his sleeves in a dairy barn.
... He got good and drunk the night before ...
- March 18, 2012
Trouble in Paradise
- Gramma Letter. One thing goes wrong, and then another.
... Amy held out her left hand ... and said, “But look. No ring. ...”
- March 11, 2012
Power of the Flower Press
- Fiction. Abandoning brevity, a man remarks upon a book, a movie, and a political vendetta.
... “Blurb,” I say! Oh, isn’t English wonderful! ...
- March 4, 2012
Spider Man
- Gramma Letter. A dad confronts an intruder.
... A sugar cane spider, brown-bodied and bristle-legged and wide as the palm of a person’s hand, was on the wall beside Elizabeth’s pillow. ...
- February 26, 2012
Persuading My Brother
- Epigram. A man grumbles about a sibling.
Persuading my brother / ... is not easy ...
- February 19, 2012
Negative Commentary
- Movie Review. In ninety-nine words, a photographer philosophizes upon a film philosophizing upon photography.
... Kind of beautiful ... but ...
- February 12, 2012
A Thirst Incompletely Satisfied
- Fiction. A man comments appreciatively on a half-minute sales pitch.
... I ... tried to catch ... the penultimate shot ...
- February 5, 2012
One More Time Around
- Gramma Letter. A man long married describes a wedding.
... my wife ... would be officiating at a small wedding at our own residence ... .
- January 29, 2012
High Finance
- Fiction. A woman visits an elderly man and gives him a relatively costly gift.
... She presented him with a hug, a six-pack of Stella Artois, and a check for four hundred dollars....
- January 22, 2012
Boys at Play
- Gramma Letter. Ocean fishing presents unexpected hazards.
... The fish hit the deck in such a frenzy that the hook flew from its mouth, took one bounce, and in an instant did its damage....
- January 15, 2012
Posing for Mary Cassatt
- Fiction. A man causes women’s faces to brighten.
... I carried Rose Anne in my arms ...
- January 8, 2012
Visitors Stopping By
- Fiction. A man discovers an exception to the rule of the one-tract mind.
Booted, stockinged, and long-skirted, woolen-hatted, woolen-coated, neck-scarfed and wide-eyed, she offered to discuss the Bible at my door.
- January 1, 2012
Offering an Opinion
- Fiction. A sometime church-goer hears and ignores a plaintive cry.
Anything else? Ya want me to jump up and down on your chest ... ?
- December 25, 2011
Secret Santa
- Fiction. A man receives a Christmas gift and has difficulty figuring it out.
Some names in this religious allegory have been changed.
- December 18, 2011
A Visit to Santa
- Cartoon.
Heard any good Polish jokes lately?
- December 11, 2011
’Tis the Season
- Theological Commentary. A writer sits in judgment of an e-mail forwarder who sits in judgment.
Do you know her size? She can’t have much of a chest, I wouldn’t suppose ...
- December 4, 2011
Back-Fence Discussions
- Gramma Letter. Neighbors discuss various sorts of killing.
... “Cannot!” Mr. Rojas said again, chuckling at my naiveté....
- November 27, 2011
An Unexamined Thought
- Fiction. An online author clarifies the meaning of his previous week’s posting.
... I will try to Demosthenate how hard it is to philosophize with marbles in my mouth....
- November 20, 2011
A Thanksgiving Meditation
- Epigram.
... life is not worth ...
- November 13, 2011
Did You Call Me?
- Fiction. A phone call leaves something to the imagination.
You may recognize that shriek ...
- November 6, 2011
Not Marking a Book of Poems
- Poem. A woman writes in a hardback book and gives it to a man who does not.
... I was tempted to / take a pencil and put a / star beside the title....
- October 30, 2011
Caterwauling
- Fiction. A famous author steals the words of a prosaic personals poster who denies she ever said what he stole.
... there must be only one woman who references being a cat lady....
- October 23, 2011
Shirttail Relative
- Fiction. A casually dressed man encounters a counter clerk.
... The volume, the body language, little things, ambiguous. ...
- October 16, 2011
This I Have Observed
- Epigram.
Time...
- October 9, 2011
Identity Crisis
- Cartoon. Two college men discuss romance.
... It started off great—bells and fireworks and all that....
- October 2, 2011
Whatever
- Epigram.
... a man doesn’t / even care ...
- September 25, 2011
A Story With Nudity & Graphic Depictions of Violence
- Gramma Letter. A home handyman performs a repair outside of normal working hours.
...wearing nothing but a clear plastic shower cap, (she) woke me from sleep...
- September 18, 2011
Shortest Distance Between Two Points
- Fiction. A lesson in elementary mathematics sends a man out along several tangents.
...I attended the old man’s visitation and spoke privately with the girl whose letters I hold....
- September 11, 2011
Wake-Up Calls
- Family History. A man reports his activities on Tuesday, September 11, 2001.
... Perhaps America had gone to war. (A preposterous possibility!)...
- September 4, 2011
In Pursuit of a Paycheck
- Gramma Letter. A man shamelessly recalls some of the things he has done for money.
... Round and round I went, in ever-shrinking circles on the park-like expanses surrounding the institution’s boxy, brick buildings....
- August 28, 2011
A Request for Assistance
- Fiction. A man suggests a bar exam or confirmation class discussion topic.
... i,m so sick of men who abuse women....
- August 21, 2011
A Seemingly Senseless Shooting in a Bar
- Art Commentary. A photographer defends a photo that failed to please one of his fans.
... I’ve “zoomed in” on ... a man with a smirk that some might consider kissable ...
- August 14, 2011
A Dessert Deferred
- Fiction. A busy baker begs a babe to bite a bit of baked goods.
... I don’t know if wolves eat pies....
- August 7, 2011
Hey, Kid, Let’s Lighten Up!
- Gramma Letter. A dad describes a disease.
Each day brings a lot of Nothing New ...
- July 31, 2011
Bon Voyage
- Fiction. A man wakes from dreams, spills words in the direction of a friend who has gone away.
... I was snacking on ... cylinders of toasted tangled tiny noodles, sweetened and cheesy ....
- July 24, 2011
What Might Have Been
- Fiction. A man once married does not stay still.
... The vow ... left Fischer with a fair amount of wiggle room....
- July 17, 2011
It Would Be So Easy to Shoot Him!
- Fiction. In a letter to a friend, a man summarizes stories told by a Montana rancher.
... He has a cheerful Montana rancher’s manner of expression, like a man in an Annie Proulx story....
- July 10, 2011
Men in High Places
- Family History. An obituary reminds a man of a long-ago brush with death.
... It was a high barn, Dad said, with a rock pile below....
- July 3, 2011
This Week Sat. the Sheep Lose There Wool
- Gramma Letter. A grandson expresses gratitude for handwritten letters.
... Well your questions first. A drag is like a fine comb to level and smoth the ground....
- May 29 through June 26, 2011
(No postings—WoWs were suspended for several weeks.)
- May 22, 2011
Hazardous Road Conditions
- Poem.
Did I ever tell you / about the ride a man gave me ...
- May 15, 2011
Popularity Contests
- Fiction. A man knows what he likes.
... I wonder what the appeal is, of a wren....
- May 8, 2011
Oh, Mama,
- Exclamation.
Oh ...
- May 1, 2011
Long-Distance Romance
- Fiction.
... it put me in mind of a high school classmate ...
- April 24, 2011
Traversing the Straight and Narrow
- Fiction. A man married to a female physician consults a doctor who is not.
... "Christina, I bet the furnace man was embarrassed!" ...
- April 17, 2011
Perfectly Pleased
- Fiction. Film lovers discuss filmmakers.
... And my favorite - Tootsie....
- April 10, 2011
No Fur, No Antlers, Not Much Brains at All
- Fiction. A man passes along small-town news to a friend.
... This morning’s loaf of occidental rye rose nicely....
- April 3, 2011
A Bloody Glove Near the Train Tracks
- Fiction. A railroad employee contemplates the complexities of health care in America.
... I bought a Lotto ticket on the Mega and ... I won ten bucks....
- March 27, 2011
Showitus Interruptus
- Fiction. A man not licensed as an attorney contemplates a potential breach of contract claim against a large corporation.
... I documented the amount of time I was inconvenienced last night ...
- March 20, 2011
My Pleasure
- Poem.
... I am ... resentfully aware ...
- March 13, 2011
I Can’t Wait
- Epigram.
I can’t wait / for you ...
- March 6, 2011
Weight, Weight, Don’t Tell Me
- Poem.
... David Fischer felt tempted ...
- February 27, 2011
Cooking Class
- Recipe.
... beat it with a fork ...
- February 20, 2011
Perfect Clarity on a Foggy Winter’s Day
- Fiction.
... by the dim lone light of the parking lot, (Frank) picked small stones from his palms and the undersides of his bloodied forearms ...
- February 13, 2011
Man Without a Clue
- Poem.
Roses, candy, / promises, wine ...
- February 6, 2011
Lateral Pass
- Fiction.
... “Have you decided, Dave, whether you’re gonna watch the Super Bowl?” ...
- January 30, 2011
Named and Numbered
- Fiction.
... submit them to his attorney for final preparation and proper execution ...
- January 23, 2011
Off-Color Joke
- Joke.
... why did the babes in bikinis drink Primo Beer on Waikiki Beach? ...
- January 16, 2011
In Praise of Labeling
- Fiction. A woman indicates a bias in favor of the non-colorblind.
... Never mind who gets to the door first, I smile at women if they meet my eyes....
- January 9, 2011
Gunshots
- Lament.
Gunshots shriek louder ...
- January 2, 2011
Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot
- Aphorism.
Should old acquaintance ...?
- December 26, 2010
Full Plate
- Rhyme.
’Twas the night after Christmas, when under the moon / ...
- December 19, 2010
Foggy Weather Friends
- Aphorism.
Don’t you sometimes wonder / if Rudolph’s ... / colleagues have continued ...?
- December 12, 2010
Up and Down Through the Gears
- Poem.
... on a summer’s day in 1967 / driving to the beach with a girl / and she comments on how / smoothly ...
- December 5, 2010
1968
- Poem.
... San Francisco Bay ...
- November 28, 2010
A Still Life Set in Motion
- Fiction. Friends discuss e-mail as a medium of friendly conversation.
... you personally are the only person in the whole wide world to whom I personally sent the Georgia O’Keeffe item ...
- November 21, 2010
A Miss As Good As a Mile
- Fiction. A man reading classified ads for motorcycles is briefly distracted by a lonely woman.
... Fischer had arrived three decades too late too soon....
- November 14, 2010
A Well-Loved Story
- Fiction. A man buys a book but doesn’t read it.
... without opening the book again, Fischer set it aside. He would someday find out how close he had come ...
- November 7, 2010
I Haven’t Heard
- Invitation. A man invites a phone call.
... In my opinion, Ma Bell got it right when she suggested Reach Out and Touch Someone. Call, call, pick up your phone and call....
- October 31, 2010
A New Day’s Resolution
- Fiction.
... I can resolve to err in fresher, more interesting ways ...
- October 24, 2010
Mommy Is Gone
- Epitaph.
Loving daughter, sister, friend ...
- October 17, 2010
Life Goes On
- Aphorism.
Life goes on.
- October 10, 2010
Life Is Short
- Aphorism.
... but sometimes longer / at one end ...
- October 3, 2010
Life Is Short
- Aphorism.
... no matter how long ...
- September 26, 2010
Live Each Day
- Aphorism.
... as if it were your ...
- September 19, 2010
An Incontestable Award
- Sibling Rivalry. A philosopher writes in support of Professor Jim Nixon’s assertion "Everything makes sense."
... First one, Donna or Bruce, to solve the emu riddle wins a prize....
- September 12, 2010
Begrudging the Beguine
- Fiction. A man contemplates some of the missteps of his youth.
... I wonder if “not liking” to dance is perhaps more complex than, say, not liking the taste of beer....
- September 5, 2010
What Does a Man Have?
- Art History. Available information fails to support speculation that two loose women with little to lose hoped eventually to bid à tout à l’heure to two men down by the riverside.
... What does a man have to loose? ...
- August 29, 2010
Picnic Rock Revisited
- Fiction. A caregiver to the elderly carries an unholstered pistol on a cool summer day.
... I lay on Picnic Rock for a while, not long enough to fall asleep, but almost, with the pistol on my chest and (I realized later) my extra ammo clip in my hip pocket....
- August 22, 2010
Auntie Extraordinaire
- Epitaph.
... Her voluminous variety of virtues ...
- August 15, 2010
Clinging to Truth
- Poem. A man remarks upon a situation that sensibly calls for silence.
... can a lie be a lie / if you know the liar is lying? ...
- August 8, 2010
The Less Said, the Butter
- Poem. A man holds his tongue when he has no one else to hold it.
... beyond a sigh and a groan and a tormented moan, I have little to say....
- August 1, 2010
Barefoot in the Dark
- Poem.
Zis leetle peegie / go to market ...
- July 25, 2010
A Man Whose Days Were Numbered
- Fiction. A man wonders if three times thirteen represents a lucky number or not.
... Fischer, at age sixty-one, awoke and realized a trivial truth, namely that he had lived more than half his life as a legally married man....
- July 18, 2010
Second Tuesday in July—Worship Service for the Hard-of-Traveling
- Fiction. A convenient coincidence allows a man to pat himself on the back.
... in the church parking lot, in blazing heat and sunlight, I helped a church lady ...
- July 11, 2010
Wilting at Windmills
- Fiction. A photographer gives away his secrets.
... You recall Capt. Ahab’s prosthesis? ...
- July 4, 2010
Don’t Tread On Me
- Aphorism.
Wasn’t it Jesus of Nazareth who said ...
- June 27, 2010
Well, I See Our Time Is Almost Up
- Aphorism.
But, trust me, I could say a whole lot more ...
- June 20, 2010
A Gentle Admonition
- Poem. A son recalls the counsel of his father.
When I was a boy, / my dad was glad / to talk about the weather. / Nonetheless, he sometimes said ...
- June 13, 2010
The Work of Thy Fingers
- Children’s Sermon. Commentary on Psalm 8 and the life of Earl F. Grossmann.
... When I think of the work of fingers, I often think of my grandfather’s hands, the big, strong, rough-palmed hands of Earl Grossmann, the farmer and carpenter. I think of those hands holding my son and my daughter when they were tiny babies. I think of Grampa’s hands folded in prayer....
- June 6, 2010
Astonishing Occurrences
- Fiction.
... I can remember a time, back in the days of ‘The Twilight Zone,’ when phones would reliably stop ringing as soon as they were off the hook....
- May 30, 2010
Voiceless
- Poem.
I once had the gift / Of poetry. / Words flowed ...
- May 23, 2010
Making Something Reasonably Clare
- Fiction.
Henry Luce told me there is very little ambiguity in life. / I’m not sure what ...
- May 16, 2010
Putting Descartes Before the Horse
- Aphorism.
What do you mean / when you say I / stole your idea? / ...
- May 9, 2010
Lists
- Fiction. A male person and a female person attempt to improve their communication skills.
... The cane sugar didn’t slip my mind; it slipped my list. I find that shopping lists and other lists work best when I remember to look at them....
- May 2, 2010
Bad Taste
- Aphorism.
Bad taste / is in the ...
- April 25, 2010
True Dichotomies Come in Sets of Three
- Babble.
There are two kinds of people in the world: those who would say that Robert Benchley beat me ...
- April 18, 2010
Different Kinds of Harley Guys
- Fiction. Strangers make small talk at a truck stop.
... To Fischer’s eye, the Harley was low and sleek, a hog in no way hoggish. Without a speck of road dirt or so much as a mashed mosquito, every inch of paint and chrome gleamed....
- April 11, 2010
Day One, Summer Vacation Trip
- Family History.
... She asked for a codeine pill and fussed like a three-yr-old when I opened one of her three full bottles of water and poured half the bottle into my own jug of ice....
- April 4, 2010
The Good News, In an Egg Shell
- Theological Declaration.
Rolling stone / empty tomb ...
- March 28, 2010
This I Take For Granite
- Aphorism.
Every body / must get ...
- March 21, 2010
One Single Cigarette
- Fiction. A non-smoker finds tobacco stimulating.
... “Amazing,” he said. “Three hits and I’m dizzy. Sick. Ready to fall on my face. This stuff is good as grass!” ...
- March 14, 2010
Lunch Hours I Have Loved
- Fiction. A middle-class, white, American man discusses what he does for a living.
... someone I’d met for the first time that day—a woman in the same line of work as my wife—sweetly asked, “So, David. What is it you do? For a living.” ...
- March 7, 2010
Please Give Me a Break
- Aphorism.
I am sick and tired / of your calling me ...
- February 28, 2010
Honest Truth
- Aphorism.
If there’s one thing I’m / proud of, it’s the ...
- February 21, 2010
Identity Uncertain
- Fiction. By means of an anonymous letter, a victim of a civil wrong addresses the suspected perpetrator.
... James, I seldom send anonymous mail. Please excuse me for not speaking directly to you....
- February 14, 2010
Valentine
- Poem.
On this day of St. Valentine, / I would urge thee, dear, to "Be Mine." ...
- February 7, 2010
There is Nothing New Under the Sun
- Aphorism.
God! Wouldn’t / you love to be / the one who ...
- January 31, 2010
Magic on the Farm
- Gramma Letter. A man recalls parental controls enforced in the 1960’s.
... Occasionally during the summers that my brothers and sister and I spent on your Wisconsin farm, one or another of our belongings would fall victim to “the Disappearing Act.” ...
- January 24, 2010
Too Much on One Man’s Plate
- Fiction. A man commits an important matter to memory.
In 1977, Hawaii residents David C. Fischer and his wife, Vivian Lum, purchased a new white Honda Civic hatchback automobile in Las Vegas, Nevada, and drove it as far east as Galloway County, Wisconsin....
- January 17, 2010
A Woman’s Work
- Fiction. A defender of feminism fails to take seriously a would-be inspirational e-mail.
... I am flattered that my reputation as a defender of feminist principles has won me a place on your Phenomenal Women mailing list....
- January 10, 2010
Postponed
- Fiction.
Won’t you please forgive me: my publication of this page will be delayed on account of cold weather....
- January 3, 2010
Let’s Leave Good Enough Alone
- December 27, 2009
Go, Shichi, Go!
- Haiku.
A picture is worth / a thousand words, a haiku / ...
- December 20, 2009
And On Earth Peace
- Poem.
... I have seen / many a noble declaration / damaged or diminished ...
- December 13, 2009
But That Could Change
- Aphorism.
Vicissitudes / is among the words / I seldom write ...
- December 6, 2009
Do What I Say
- Poem.
Do what I say, and I shall / promise you pleasure....
- November 29, 2009
Voice Mail Message (No. 2. of 2)
- Fiction.
... sorry you got kind of ... dragged into ... the family dynamics and ...
- November 22, 2009
Free Association
- Aphorism (or nearly one).
Free association / cannot be ...
- November 15, 2009
The Saddest Sadist
- Poem.
The saddest sadist / I ever met / made me ...
- November 8, 2009
Murmurings of a Man at Age 60
- Borrowed lyrics. A man comments on corporeal calamity.
My body lies over the ocean / My body lies over the sea ...
- November 1, 2009
An Appealing Offer
- Fiction. Past-its-prime produce is put to good use.
... "What days do you work?" I asked the cute cashier....
- October 25, 2009
I Object!
- Poem.
When I recognize injustice, / I whisper a protest ...
- October 18, 2009
Spousal Exchange
- Poem.
“Baby?” ...
- October 11, 2009
Productivity Report
- Literary Criticism. A writer comments on a cartoonist’s caption.
... Today, while catching up on a week’s worth of Dilberts, I detected what I believe is a misplaced comma ...
- October 4, 2009
Into Each Life
- Epigram.
some leaves must ...
- September 27, 2009
Why?
- Riddle.
TEXT
- September 20, 2009
The Good Shepherd and the Pretty-Good Shepherd
- Children’s Sermon. A preacher comments on differences between his grandfather and the Lord Jesus Christ.
- September 13, 2009
Non-Pharmaceutical Attempts to Alleviate Anxiety
- Fiction. A pet owner expresses concern about crab-like perambulation by a feline.
- September 6, 2009
Flicker of Inspiration
- Dialogue.
- August 30, 2009
I Am Trying
- Poem.
- August 23, 2009
Barking Up the Wong Tree
- Gramma Letter. A photographer, presented with an unappealing assignment, gives in to a sedulous client.
- August 16, 2009
Thrift Store Purchase
- Fiction. An old magazine makes a man think of many things.
- August 9, 2009
Explanation Point
- Aphorism.
- August 2, 2009
Concrete Thinking
- Philosophical Statement.
- July 26, 2009
The Less Said
- Poem.
- July 19, 2009
A Complaint of a Man of the Cloth
- Poem. A man misunderstands a woman yet again.
- July 12, 2009
Breakfast With Nick
- Fiction. A man on a motorcycle stops in the village of Fjord but does not stay.
- July 5, 2009
Reasonable Question
- Poem.
- June 28, 2009
Modesty
- Poem. A photographer estimates his success.
- June 21, 2009
No Choice in the Matter
- Poem.
- June 14, 2009
Notes of a Flour Child
- Poem.
- June 7, 2009
Last in Translation
- Cartoon.
- May 31, 2009
Cereal Monotony
- Poem. A man faithfully eats his breakfast until he chooses another.
- May 24, 2009
Mastering Futility
- Dialogue.
- May 17, 2009
Unwired
- Gramma Letter. A man comments on his relationship with his optometrist.
- May 10, 2009
What We’ve Got Here
- Fiction. A man from Mars converses with women from elsewhere.
- May 3, 2009
The End of Friendly Correspondence
- Poem.
- April 26, 2009
Bono Fide Ski Stories
- Fiction. A man comments on the sheltered life he leads.
- April 19, 2009
We Sometimes Called Her Gracie
- Poem.
- April 12, 2009
One Way Out
- Theological Comment.
- April 5, 2009
How Are My Folks, You Asked
- Fiction.
- March 29, 2009
Round Numbers
- Poem.
- March 22, 2009
Literality
- Aphorism.
- March 15, 2009
I Could Use Some Help Here
- Poem.
- March 8, 2009
Writer’s Block
- Fiction.
- March 1, 2009
Intestinal Ineptitude
- Poem.
- February 22, 2009
When I Have Nothing to Say,
- Aphorism.
- February 15, 2009
An Arrow Escape
- Poem.
- February 8, 2009
Silent Prayer
- Prayer Request.
- February 1, 2009
An Expression of Personal Loss
- In Memoriam. An author alludes to an author.
- January 25, 2009
For English, Please Press "1"
- Social Commentary.
- January 18, 2009
Matchless Marvel
- Fiction. A married man’s mind wanders in his kitchen.
- January 11, 2009
Death of An Insect
- Poem. A man writes with a pen on paper after he eats his breakfast.
- January 4, 2009
Resolving a Misunderstanding With a Tough Guy
- Fiction. While a student contemplates violence, a sailor stays steady.
- December 28, 2008
Wringing Out the Old
- Poem.
- December 21, 2008
Christmas Greetings of Sorts
- List. A man goes through his mail.
- December 14, 2008
Rosebud Rediscovered
- Gramma Letter. On a quiet winter evening in a small Wisconsin town a father and his son raise Kane.
- December 7, 2008
Gambling and Gamboling
- Poem. A dog leads a man on a slippery slope.
- November 30, 2008
Playing It Safe
- Fiction. A man defends a habit.
- November 23, 2008
Simply Put
- Fiction. A writer takes the brevity out of aphorisms.
- November 16, 2008
Here’s Lookin’ at Me!
- Fiction. A man reflects on mirrors.
- November 9, 2008
Apolitical Message
- Fiction. Two men discuss the weather.
- November 2, 2008
A Modest Plan
- Poem
- October 26, 2008
Mistakes Have Been Made
- Fiction
- October 19, 2008
[Not Titled]
- Photo Title
- October 12, 2008
Insomnia
- Aphorism.
- October 5, 2008
Essentials of Shooting
- Gramma Letter. A photographer recalls some head shots.
- September 28, 2008
Two T’s in Repetition
- Poem.
- September 21, 2008
Change of Heart
- Poem.
- September 14, 2008
Higher Mathematics
- Political Commentary.
- September 7, 2008
My Shirts
- Poem.
- August 31, 2008
Astonishment
- Poem.
- August 24, 2008
Praying for Wisdom
- Fiction. A small-town man passes judgment and passes on gossip.
- August 17, 2008
Living a Fictional Life With a Presumably Real Insomnia
- Fiction. A man attempts to comfort a friend who could not sleep.
- August 10, 2008
Olympic Event
- Poem.
- August 3, 2008
Cutting Back
- Poem. Two friends practice restraint.
- July 27, 2008
From Jerusalem to Jericho
- Fiction. A man confesses to plotting to commit a good deed.
- July 20, 2008
An Entirely Unfair Riddle
- Fiction.
- July 13, 2008
A Question Concerning Rhetoric
- Aphorism.
- July 6, 2008
A True Statement, As Far As It Goes
- Family History.
- June 29, 2008
An Unorthodox Hospitality
- Gramma Letter. A visitor receives an unexpected welcome.
- June 22, 2008
Loss of Averages
- Fiction. A man thanks a friend for permitting him to speak frankly.
- June 15, 2008
Checklists
- Aphorism.
- June 8, 2008
A June Day
- Fiction. A man reports on storm damage.
- June 1, 2008
Comparatively Speaking
- Chart. A communicator lists pros and cons of various media of personal communication.
- May 25, 2008
Spilling Beans
- Fiction. A man delivers news to a hometown friend who has moved away.
- May 18, 2008
Trivia Report
- Fiction. An aging man writes of people more aged.
- May 11, 2008
A Mother’s Small Request
- Poem.
- May 4, 2008
Easy as Pie? Who Would Know?
- Fiction. A baker critiques his own strawberry pie.
- April 27, 2008
About My Reticence
- Aphorism.
- April 20, 2008
Let Sleepy Dogs Lie
- Fiction. A deliriously sick writer wanders throughout the countryside.
- April 13, 2008
Proceeding Slowly
- Poem. A man is so sick he can barely move.
- April 6, 2008
Words
- Commentary.
- March 30, 2008
Recommendation
- Poem.
- March 23, 2008
The Resurrection
- Theological statement.
- March 16, 2008
Exchange of Greetings
- Conversational fragment. A man receives a phone call from a friend.
- March 9, 2008
Two Men the Same Age
- Poem.
- March 2, 2008
Feeling Low
- Comment.
- February 24, 2008
Bank Service Charge
- Fiction. A man falls asleep, wakes to find his pockets picked.
- February 17, 2008
An Instant of Recognition
- Poem. A man makes something big of something very small.
- February 10, 2008
Some Restrictions May Apply
- Fiction. A woman turns up the heat on a baker in his kitchen.
- February 3, 2008
Public Record
- Poem.
- January 27, 2008
A Happy-Enough Woman
- Limerick.
- January 20, 2008
Hazardous Duty
- Poem. The poet recalls a favorite class in school.
- January 13, 2008
I Get No Response When I Harangue the Meringue
- Poem.
- January 6, 2008
Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth
- Fiction. A writer raises questions of authorship; a tipper tips her hand.
- December 30, 2007
Many Words About Fewer Words
- Fiction. A writer comments on editing.
- December 23, 2007
Where Do We Go From Here?
- Poem.
- December 16, 2007
Spirits of the Season
- Poem.
- December 9, 2007
Slow Thinker
- Poem.
- December 2, 2007
Seriously
- Epigram.
- November 25, 2007
Relatively Speaking
- Fiction. A man and his mom greet relatives on Thanksgiving Day.
- November 18, 2007
Contemplating the Miller High Life
- Art Commentary.
- November 11, 2007
Winds of War
- Poem.
- November 4, 2007
It’s Good
- Poem.
- October 28, 2007
Legal Observation
- Poem.
- October 21, 2007
A Public Appearance
- Fiction. A Jack Daniel’s label gives rise to bottled up emotions.
- October 14, 2007
Pretty in Pink
- Poem. An autumn evening has the potential for ending with a bang.
- October 7, 2007
Autumn Leaves
- Epigram.
- September 30, 2007
A Roast is a Roast is a Roast
- Poem.
- September 16 & 23, 2007
Thoracic Park
- Poem.
- September 9, 2007
Antidepressants
- Poem.
- September 2, 2007
I Am Glum
- Poem.
- August 26, 2007
Over-the-Counter Medicine
- Poem.
- August 19, 2007
Favorite Subject
- Poem. A man with a camera recalls when he first took a shine to photography.
- August 12, 2007
A Mother’s Touch
- Poem.
- August 5, 2007
Health Care Reform
- Fiction. The usual moaning and groaning about high cost of American medicine.
- July 29, 2007
Went to Bed and Slept
- Poem.
- July 22, 2007
Missed Kisses
- Fiction. A man alone has a poor night’s rest.
- July 15, 2007
Hung Out to Dry
- Poem.
- July 8, 2007
Double Entendre
- Declaration.
- July 1, 2007
Territorial Disputes
- Family History. A mother and others protect their young.
- June 24, 2007
Dealbreaker
- Fiction. A shy man reaches out with both hands.
- June 17, 2007
A Question of Paternity
- Gramma Letter. Bud boasts that he has known a Hollywood celebrity for thirty years.
- June 10, 2007
Having A Nervous Break-In
- Fiction. A lawyer recalls a trespass.
- June 3, 2007
A Missed Chance
- Fiction. A man regrets interfering with a friend’s generosity.
- May 27, 2007
Lethal to Love
- Remark.
- May 20, 2007
Kids Today
- Remark.
- May 13, 2007
A Familiar Resemblance
- Family History. The author’s memorable countenance is found in many places.
- May 6, 2007
Hesitation
- Poem.
- April 29, 2007
Lutherans Learning Latin
- Poem. Family History. A boy guesses at meaning in a universal language.
- April 22, 2007
Mass Misbehavior
- Poem.
- April 15, 2007
In Praise of Flannery O’Connor
- Fiction. A writer comments on a writer.
- April 8, 2007
Seeds on Stony Soil
- Gramma Letter. After Sunday School, something surprising pops up at home.
- April 1, 2007
City Boy’s Lament
- Fiction. A small-town resident addresses questions to candidates for public office.
- March 25, 2007
Foggy Morning in May
- Poem. A man loses something costly regardless of its worth.
- March 18, 2007
Wisconsin Stone-House Window Light
- Poem.
- March 11, 2007
The Endless Silence of the Sky
- Poem. A man looks up, and his feet leave the ground.
- March 4, 2007
Circumflexible Circumlocution
- Poem. An English-speaking man who once studied Koine Greek helplessly flails about.
- February 25, 2007
Perils of an Ice-Cream Parlor
- Poem. An insufficiency of solemnity costs a soldier her dignity.
- February 18, 2007
One Good Way to Write a Family History
- How-To.
- February 11, 2007
I ♥ Valentine’s Day
- Poem.
- February 4, 2007
An Unsportsmanlike Attitude
- Poem. An American father commits blasphemy on Super Bowl Sunday.
- January 28, 2007
Kelly Girl
- Family History. A secretary ascends through the glass ceiling. Fortunately he is not wearing a skirt.
- January 21, 2007
Mom Came Home
- Fiction. On a Wisconsin winter evening a man with no companion fails to roast chestnuts by an open fire.
- January 14, 2007
On Gossip
- Proverb.
- January 7, 2007
Getting Ready for a Journey
- Planning Form. A two-page form that can help a person "get things in order" for when he or she leaves this earthly life.
- December 31, 2006
Ski Sticks
- Gramma Letter. Two friends look back over one year and many, many decades.
- December 24, 2006
Ticketless Travel
- Gramma Letter. A young man and young woman reach out to receive the kindness of strangers.
- December 17, 2006
And One Tree More
- Gramma Letter. A family man recalls some trees of Christmases past.
- December 10, 2006
Wide Margins
- Book Review: The Wit and Wisdom of Abraham Lincoln
- December 3, 2006
Wisconsin Welcome
- Fiction. A man, not very tall, finds a woman he can look up to in a small town.
- November 26, 2006
Farm Chores
- Poem.
- November 19, 2006
Old Dogs & Sunday School Teachers
- Children’s Sermon. A man discusses the harsh realities of teacher recruitment.
- November 12, 2006
Pulling the Pins
- Fiction. A hard rain carries a man into a stream of consciousness.
- November 5, 2006
Taxi Driver
- Family History. An accident investigator performs with alacrity and efficiency.
- October 29, 2006
A Limited Number of Slams
- Family History. A boy contemplates the principle of the Conservation of Matter.
- October 22, 2006
What Helps?
- A father, a year after his teen-aged son’s death, offers a “Report of Emotional Health.”
- October 15, 2006
Awaiting the Aftershocks
- Poem.
- October 8, 2006
It Never Rains But It Pours
- Poem. Two women encounter a road hazard in inclement weather.
- October 1, 2006
Two Fires in a Farm House
- Family History.
- September 24, 2006
A Woman Without Clothes
- Poem.
- July 16, 2006
Burger King Limerick
-
- July 9, 2006
Does Not Meet Our Present Needs
- Fiction. One author grows impatient with another.
- July 2, 2006
Father-Daughter Look-Alikes
- Gramma Letter.
- June 25, 2006
Cost of Eggs
- Journal Entry. A gentleman farmer makes a bookkeeping entry in narrative form.
- June 18, 2006
Chester Joins the Family
- Gramma Letter. A father casts his vote against a dog.
- June 11, 2006
If You Can’t Beat ’Em, ...
- Gramma Letter. A father fails to reprimand his daughter.
- June 4, 2006
Dress Code Violator
- Gramma Letter. A former divinity student is misidentified by a law enforcement official.
- May 28, 2006
Bob Can’t Believe the Kids Have Grown
- Family History. Cousins-in-law recall the winter of ’87.
- May 21, 2006
Cars Colliding With Living Things
- Gramma Letter. The author contemplates the fragility of life.
- May 14, 2006
A Mother’s Work
- Epigram.
- May 7, 2006
Smooth-Soled, Borrowed Boots
- Poem. Two non-cowboys ride off into the sunset.
- April 30, 2006
Photographic Technical Data
- Philosophy. Two friends discuss the absence of a photograph.
- April 23, 2006
About the Photographer
- Portfolio Blurb.
- April 16, 2006
Did You Toss Anything Into the Water?
- Fiction. A man asks a woman friend to expand her journal entry.
- April 9, 2006
One Epigram
- Epigram.
- April 2, 2006
Old Joke
- Joke.
- March 26, 2006
Folding Laundry
- Fiction. A father contemplates his happiness and his heartache.
- March 19, 2006
I Promise I Will Write
- Quotation from a Gramma Letter dated April 26, 1994.
- March 12, 2006
Please Stay a While
- Poem.
- March 5, 2006
A Mostly True Adventure
- Cartoon. A nurse rehearses for duty at Guantanamo.
- February 26, 2006
With No Other Churchwork ...
- Poem.
- February 19, 2006
I Remember ... Hair
(Available only on paper. Write to Bud.)
- Poem.
- February 12, 2006
Not Marking a Book of Poems
- Poem. Yet another self-explanatory, self-obfuscatory title, such as poets sometimes produce.
- February 5, 2006
Warming a Woman in Winter, Part 2
- Fiction. On a cold day in February, a furnace man receives a kiss from a client.
- January 29, 2006
Warming a Woman in Winter, Part 1
- Fiction. Before dawn on a cold day in February, a furnace man receives a request for service.
- January 22, 2006
A Valentine Wish for a Philospher
- Poem.
- January 15, 2006
Now I Lay Me
- Prayer.
- January 8, 2006
But Did You Like the Picture?
- Family History. Bud gives his friend directions to a little house.
Document redacted.
- January 1, 2006
The Second Day of the New Year
- Poem. A confession, not entirely unambiguous.
- December 25, 2005
(Journal Entry: December 25, 1969)
- Poem.
- December 18, 2005
Ten zillion Chrismas lights aglow ...
- Poem.
- December 11, 2005
One Good Way to Write Letters ...
- How-To.
- December 4, 2005
The Start of a Long Drive
- Fiction. A forty-year-old Impala reminds a man of a long-ago Bel-Air.
(Part one of a two-part story)
- November 27, 2005
Yes, I Do Believe I Know
- Poem. Observations on the power of words.
- November 20, 2005
An Excused Absence
- Family History. A freshman at Rio High School finds his father was right (again): It Never Hurts to Ask.
- November 13, 2005
Snip
- Poem. A young man faces romantic loss.
- November 6, 2005
It Followed Me Home
- Fiction. A Baltimore man travels a great distance in an old car.
- October 30, 2005
Spañada
- Poem.
- October 23, 2005
An Enduring Truth, or Two
- Poem.
- October 17, 2005
A Drive Out West
- Family History. A father gives his opinion.
- October 10, 2005
Precious Cargo
- Fiction. A father takes inventory of his possessions.
- October 3, 2005
A Man With a Messy Van
- Family History. A father finds he has what he needs to help a boy in trouble.
- September 25, 2005
Trout Stream (of Consciousness)
- Family History. The author remarks upon three fine fish.
- September 18, 2005
A Short History of My Hair Styles
- Political Comment. The author makes an erroneous or clever prediction about the consequences of the U.S. presidential election of 2000.
- September 11, 2005
Wake-Up Calls
- Family History. A diary entry for a big day in American history.
- September 4, 2005
Spoken in Car #84
- Poetry. Conversations and comments in a taxicab.
- August 28, 2005
Name-Dropping
- Family History. The writer describes "brushes and near brushes with celebrity."
- August 21, 2005
Beg Your Pardon
- Poem. An artist seeks to put a model at ease.
- August 14, 2005
Carrot Cake
- Recipe. Writing that requests a response.
- August 7, 2005
Firstborn Child
- Family History. The stork delivers David to Bud and Fran.
- July 31, 2005
Lunch Sometime Soon
- Poem. The narrator declares his good intentions.
- July 24, 2005
Communicating With a Kiss
- Family History. A child brings clarity to a radio broadcast.
- July 17, 2005
Calling a Spade a Spade
- Poem. The author speaks fondly of an aging pet dog.
- July 10, 2005
Bird Shot, Bird Bumped
- Poem. The author recalls some pheasant stories.
- July 3, 2005
An Unidentified Body
- Poem. The author finds a surprise in his kitchen.
- June 26, 2005
A Can With A Hole in It
- Family History. A cup of coffee causes a man to think of guns.
- June 19, 2005
A Story of Sons & Fathers
- Family History. A father compares his own "parenting skills" with those of his dad and his grandpa.
- June 12, 2005
A Cat and a Rose
- Family History. A pet departs; a rose rises (more or less).
- June 5, 2005
A Hard Place to Be In
- Poem. The author recalls a "picnic rock," beloved by children on a Wisconsin farm.
- May 29, 2005
Shooting Photographs
- Family History. The author wonders about a wristwatch his uncle sent home from a war zone.
- May 22, 2005
Be Seated Please
- Poem. Simply a silly poem.
- May 15, 2005
“A Scent So Sweet”
- Family History. A reflection on grief.
- May 8, 2005
Twice-Found Love
- Fiction. A man discovers a love letter, and then discovers it again.
- May 1, 2005
Some of What I Try to Avoid in My Writing
- Literary instruction. A list, exactly as the title suggests.
- April 24, 2005
Second Chances
- Children’s Sermon. A story of God’s grace.
- April 17, 2005
Saltwater Daffy
- Poem. A man at the beach watches women in the water.
- April 10, 2005
The Caliente Sisters & Other Angels
- Family History. A man recalls some women he has known.
- April 3, 2005
Comrades in Arms
- Family History. A story of two soldiers and their enduring alliance.
- March 27, 2005
Our David Has Died
- Family History.
- March 20, 2005
Domestic Dangers
- Fiction. A family man fondly recalls a friend.
- March 13, 2005
Good-as-New on Monday
- Poem. A long life, all on one page.
- March 6, 2005
Marbles Coach
- Family History. The author recalls his boyhood in Japan.
- February 27, 2005
Snug and Safe, Wrapped in the U.S. Flag
- Political Comment. The author attempts to display restraint, while urging his country’s leaders to display restraint.
- February 20, 2005
Uncle Al Leads a Scout Astray
- Family History. A lad and his dad set out for Boy Scout camp but they never arrive.
|
This page was updated Sun, Oct 22, 2023, 6:30AM CDT.
|
© 2023 by Bud Grossmann
|
|
|
|
 |
