Has someone ever confronted you with something you said which made you realize the unintended effect of your words? Bear with me. I will get to my point. There is a startling scene in an episode of the television series Breaking Bad in which scores of men of various ages are shown crawling on their […]
Tag: Johnny Moon and the Black Dog Queen
55. Do Thoughts Attract Misfortune?
This post is admittedly a bit off the wall, full of speculation. Have you ever noticed that some people seem capable of causing others misfortune or even harm just by their thoughts? Are they unintentional witches, necromancers, or what? My father’s sole surviving sister back in Southern Italy was one of those people, or so […]
54. The Nun and the Motown Song
When my wife was in the eighth grade in Brooklyn, NY, she attended a Catholic school. That year, she was in the classroom of “Sister Bertrand,” who was a math wiz with a sharp mind, a hidden sense of humor, and a reputation for being strict. To an eighth grader, Sister Bertrand would have seemed […]
53. Reasons to Run Away
The holidays in the last two months of the year – namely, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. – are often times for sharing hearty meals and catching up with relatives and friends we may not have seen for a while. These can be happy occasions, awkward encounters, or even stormy confrontations. Sometimes, these get-togethers lead to sad […]
52. The Voice of Longing
Back in Italy I had an uncle I’ll call “Pietro.” Even as a little kid, I understood how selfish, ungrateful, and boorish he was. Uncle Pietro, from what I saw, was not highly motivated. Whatever he managed to accomplish and obtain in life, it was thanks mostly to his brother, my father, who was generous […]
51. Stormy Times for ‘Black Sails, White Seas’
Many times when a film – particularly those by high profile film makers or from major studios – comes out, we read articles about individuals who claim that their ideas were stolen. These folks are often dismissed as crackpots, opportunists, and frauds. The problem, of course, is that ideas have no legal protection under copyright […]
50. Pirates Sail the Wide-Open Mind
Recently, I cruised the Caribbean, my first time there. For my wife, who hails from a Caribbean country, it was her first trip back to the region in 40 years. Although hurricane season had officially started, it was early enough that we had beautiful, sunny weather the entire week. I really needed the break from […]
49. The Greater Good
I have been thinking a lot about duty lately. In a few hours it will be Memorial Day here in the U.S. It is a day for commemorating those who died while serving in the armed forces. People who join the military know about duty and about serving the greater good. And they often carry […]
48. Health Scare: Selfishness and Duty
Like many people, I detest going to the doctor. Growing up in Italy, where medical care is a right and affordable, I would run into our local doctor at a grocery store or on the street, and he would say “Why don’t you grace my office with your presence sometime.” I saw no need to […]
47. Starry Eyed
Hey, there, everybody. I was telling my husband Anton about some fun things from my past when he said that I should include them in a post. So, here goes. What follows is shameless name-dropping. A few months ago, I was sad to learn that Dame Diana Rigg had passed away. She became one of […]
ANTON CIRCLES HIS WORLD 