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4 or 5 Crazee Guys*
I’ve resisted. Oh, how I’ve resisted. Really — it’s been, like, Thou shalt not… and Stay thy hand… and all the rest of those Biblical-sounding injunctions. I’ve been strong. I’ve cared. Ultimately, alas, although I wrestled with the angel, s/he has overcome me. It was never easy. And in the end, it was not even [...]
A Hrooom of One’s Own
I know a fellow I’ll call Guy, although that’s not his real name. (He’s no longer a Boy, but not yet — not consistently– a Man, either, except in the most literal and least important sense.) Guy recently took a weekend trip with his wife. It was a long six-hour drive in a rented car, [...]
Pay No Attention to the People in Front of the Curtain
Dear Turner Classic Movies (TCM): I fell in love with you years ago. Who wouldn’t love a cable channel that broadcasts (and re-broadcasts (and, all right, re-re-broadcasts)) timeless movies, often in black-and-white, that otherwise would have faded into obscurity years ago? True, I had moments of doubt (they happen in the best of relationships). Mostly, [...]
Thankful for the War Chant
Despite having spent 40 years of my life in one area of New Jersey or another, and despite having gone into New York City many times, I’ve never seen the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade live. Oh, it’s been tempting, all right. I do like going to parades — something about them, their not-quite-cheesy sentimentality, their [...]
Ear Job (3): Tinnitus
[This is the next installment in what appears to be a series of ongoing posts about my experiences with ears, hearing aids, and hearing in general. If you missed the earlier bits, feel free to backtrack to Part 2 (on hearing aids); there's a link there to the first part.] While preparing to write this [...]
The Eloquent Silence of Two Hands Flapping
Yesterday’s post about languages which lack one or more tenses brought a couple of interesting comments from Jules (of the Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast blog). Among the other talents and skills and enthusiasms on ample display at the “7 Imp” site, Jules has worked as what she sometimes refers to in terms like a [...]
The Bathroom Talker
This is almost, but not quite, a tale for the Ear Job series of posts. But no, this is a tale of… let’s call it social maladjustment. Someone else’s. Or mine. Or both. The first words exchanged between this guy at work and me were simple, even innocent: “I said, where d’ya get your hair [...]
A Silence, Serving It Up
The scene: an elegant restaurant. A waiter crosses the floor, headed your way. His dress is formal, his manner both imperious and humble. As he approaches, you can’t help admiring the grace with which he avoids other diners, other staff, furniture placed apparently where he’s most likely to collide with it. You wonder — you [...]
Ear Job (2): Hearing Aids
[This continues the post from a few weeks ago, when I first got into the issue of my hearing.] The school year 1963-64 (7th grade for me) was notable for a bunch of reasons. Certainly there was the JFK assassination, which I didn’t really “get” at the time. It was the year when I first [...]
Ear Job
Running After My Hat passed one milestone this week: the hundredth post. (I’m not sure which surprises me more — that it’s (a) that many, or (b) that few.) Yesterday I realized I’d passed another milestone, of sorts. After uploading the wonder-of-waterfalls entry, I was getting ready for work. I’d already showered and was now [...]
