Category Archives: Uncategorized

temporary rejection

i have to find a way out of my current funk. Unemployment is not sexy but people who urge me to “take advantage of the time” are surfing in shark infested water looking decidedly like baby seals. It isn’t because … Continue reading

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the absence of louisiana

For more than a year the state of Louisiana has been trying to tell me i owe and undisclosed amount of back tax money to them for a year i never lived in Louisiana. I’ve been out of the country … Continue reading

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prodigal child

Growing up I never understood the story of the prodigal son. I mean, I knew the story, but I always identified more with the son who never strayed. Far from the perfect child, i was – however – the contrast … Continue reading

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my best friend’s back

Some people, more than place, are home. The smell of them. The slight laugh, a truncated chuckle with some irony thrown in. the feel and look of them – even though time adds pounds and grays hair. The voice reverberating … Continue reading

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not right but better…

It wasn’t a happy conversation. My family gathered in the kitchen – a rare occurrence now that my sister and I are grown and gone from the house, her married with a family of her own. But there we were, … Continue reading

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Multitudes

Reconciling my own feelings about working overseas in development is difficult enough. Is there harm done? To what extent? Is there good? Does it make up for the bad? I don’t believe good intentions are enough, that something is always … Continue reading

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different kind of black folks

I wrote this back in 2003 and it still feels true to me now. The Black Experience. It sounds like a thrill ride at an amusement park. Strap yourself in and prepare to be amazed or dismayed, amused or abused. … Continue reading

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#6 Fear*

The back cab of an 18-wheeler was not the transportation I’d imagined for the evening; but i hadn’t foreseen an armed driver chasing me down the street either. Shannon and I were supposed to be heading to a gathering of … Continue reading

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#3 Music*

At the time I didn’t realize it was a race. In my mind the canoe was simply a lazy way to enjoy the beaming sun as we waited for the border between South Africa and Botswana to open. And so … Continue reading

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texist

I’m not a texist. Honestly, some of my best friends –hell, family – are Texans. Some would classify me as Texan given my middle and high school residencies, but that leaves room for debate. Besides, being a Texan doesn’t preclude … Continue reading

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