Poet Reporter
A different kind of reporting, through the eyes of a poet.
Hostile Territory
Five Man Electrical Band wrote the song “Signs,” which was later famously covered by Tesla, and over the years various artists have borrowed individual lines from the song…
Winter's Wheat
I’m glad I ran into you. As our long winter turns to spring and pandemic restrictions are easing a bit, I’ve been hearing it said that we’ve spent the last year while the “earth stood still” pretty much standing still right along with it…
A New Journey
I’ve been considering this blog restart for a long time. In the past I would ask myself, “What do you want to say to the world?” and I’d be off and running—well, typing…
Ill Feelings
Here’s a little grammar for your Tuesday, two very common words that simply need to be used in the right direction: Nauseated and Nauseous…
Repost: Francesca and the Little Gods
By request, I'm reposting this blog. This is one of my favorite conversations from Upside Down Kingdom: “What is your thesis about?” I asked. Francesca refreshed our wine and sat down at the table…
I Like To Think of It as Charmed, Thank You…
Years ago, I handed out the pens by the dozens to the servers at the downtown restaurants. I’d had them printed with Upside Down Kingdom, my website, and my tagline: Author, Blogger, Poet, Traveler…
I Say Writer
A friend recently told me that when he first started working in a restaurant, years ago, that his life was completely changed one night by something the business owner said…
Live from Knoch High School
I’m at the annual Knoch Craft Show in Saxonburg, live and in person here with my first book. I graduated from this school many action-packed years ago, and now here I sit in the Senior High gym with more than 150 other vendors, selling what our talents have made…
The Gordon Bunch, Part III
On a wintry Friday night, I drove along our town’s short Main Street toward the big corner church. There’s not a lot of traffic in town after dark, and I didn’t encounter much, which made me a little sad to think the cold would keep people away from the benefit dinner taking place…
The Gordon Bunch, Part II
Recently, half the town and I attended a benefit for the Reverend Jim Gordon, to raise money for his treatment for Lewy Body Dementia…
The Gordon Bunch, Part I
On Friday night I attended a benefit for the Reverend Jim Gordon, a spaghetti dinner that called to everyone far and wide to trek home for family time…
Things Given
‘Tis the season, and I’m thinking about gifts. Not just about presents wrapped with bows and ribbons, but about things given, and a recent conversation…
Coming Soon: Stories from the Road
I'm on a road trip through mid-America, stopping often for obscure history lessons, local characters, breweries, and of course, candy cigarettes…
The Expense of Today
My local bank has put up signs this summer next to each teller as some kind of financial promotion. Basically, each has teller was supposed to write what she (they’re all women) is looking forward to in life. Each and every one of them, without fail, wrote “Retirement.” …