“The wind is never for the sailor who knows not to which port he is bound.”- Og Mandino My feet are so small. I have to run fast all the way down the hall. I have to find Dad. I have to hurry. I have to be fast. I know…

Spin two records and rate which you like best — As I often do, I woke in a cheerful mood this morning. The sun was already sending its warmth from a clear blue sky, and the girls were still asleep. Grabbing a freshly brewed coffee, I headed back upstairs to my writing room. Instead of jumping back into one of…

A short list of sound values passed from father to son — Born in Hungary in 1938, my father’s arrival in the world came at a tumultuous time. Hitler had made his presence known, and a year later, the Nazi leader’s march into Czechoslovakia set the world’s great nations on a collision course against chaos and evil. With the Germans and the…

Strange Truths told in Stranger Things — Epiphany: Capitalizing on popular culture for parenting. This past weekend my daughter celebrated her 13th birthday. It was fun with a Friday afternoon viewing of the new Jurassic Park movie, followed by Mario Cart on the big screen. My sister and niece made the trip and stayed through the weekend, and my daughter introduced her cousin and…

Bad commercials are annoying, but stupid ones make me Blow My Stack — I’ve never been responsible for producing a commercial, and I don’t want to be. But I would like to be the person who looks at the finished product and gives the thumbs up or a boot in the hindquarters for wasting my time and insulting my intelligence. I can’t speak…

An immersion into the insights and lessons from one of America’s Greatest Authors — I daren’t have the nerve to call this a review. Instead, it is time joyously spent sitting in the chair, a smile on my face while hearing the voice come from the words read. An Amazon driver dropped a small box onto my porch a few days ago. At the time, I was upstairs, sitting at my desk, plunking words…

The Hungarian Sour Cherry Tree was our one-of-a-kind Summer secret We had a summer secret in the backyard; our Pink Lady of Summer. Standing all by herself with a ribbon of raspberry bushes behind her was our Meggy [meh-edge] Hungarian Sour Cherry Tree. During the spring, she amazed us with…

A “late to the party” book review — Coming into “The Scarpetta Factor” is a little like stepping into a party when you’re the new kid in town. You meet many characters rather quickly, and all of them have a lengthy and intertwining backstory. Then, you grab a drink, step back and watch the room trying to sort…

A family trip to the big screen for Top Gun: Maverick was like letting the animals out of the Zoo — Friday was going to be a big deal with Top Gun: Maverick as the ticket, and we were set to go. Adding to the event was the arrival of my wife’s best friend, Pammie, with her seventeen-year-old son in tow. …