Small Talk

Nothing important to say

Nothing of substance to discuss

Nothing that adds information or humor

Nothing that triggers a memory

Nothing that inspires or answers a question or arouses curiosity

Nothing that reflects wisdom or understanding

Nothing that adds value

Nothing but small talk

Then, why speak?

From a distance…

The ocean's waters are clear and bright.

The deserts know their limits.

Nations respect the borders of others.

The world looks peaceful.

You look like my friend.

The Polar Regions appear cold.

The fertile fields grow enough for everyone.

The skies are blue, pristine and unpolluted.

 

The rainforests look enormous.

And then I woke up!  

68

8

I remember sitting at my desk in sixth grade computing how old I would be in the year 2000.  I remember my father’s sudden death when he was 60 and wondering if I would be alive and live past that age.  I wonder if I will be invited to bless the Torah when Sammy J is called to the Torah on his Bar Mitzvah day five years from now.

One never knows for certain what a lifespan will amount to…one knows the beginning, that first date (1942), that’s all.

And I remember a good many of those 68 years of significant details, but not all.  I remember faces and a good number of names, but not all.  I remember many of the conflicts I lived thru, but not all.  I remember a multitude of images captured on film and in digital format, but not all.

Thank god for forgetfulness!  Some things are new again…

It’s time to bless the new day dawning and to praise each precious moment.

I wonder just how far I will go into the realm of “ginormous” numbers?

Surf, turf and the shores of Tripoli

Surf, turf and the shores of Tripoli

Or, from the ferry to the prairie to the Fez

It’s a sad day when…

richard avadon

It’s a sad day when you feel depressed, anxious, stressed, angry, stuck, powerless, weak, sleepless, in pain, facing illness, suffering a significant loss, grieving, questioning an outcome, impoverished, friendless, alone and not wanting to be, upset, experiencing a malaise, watching the GOP lie their faces off, watching meanness spread like the plague, sensing you inhabit a different planet, heart aching, soul blanking, mind drifting, abused, in the midst of a panic attack or a bout of post traumatic stress syndrome, job searching without results, uncared for, unprotected, reliving history’s mistakes, anachronisms and anomalies, out of touch and reach and chances and patience, realizing the limits, retreating and subjected to evil.

What a fucked up day!

It was a dark and cold and stormy night…

…and all the boys were gathered around the camp fire and one of them said to their leader: “Tell us a story.”  And so he began: “It was a dark and cold and stormy night and all the boys were gathered around the camp fire and one of them said to their leader: Tell us a story.”  And so he began:  “It was a dark and cold and stormy night and all the boys…”

Say something naughty!

Colored people

Orientals

Redskins

The President is a racist, a socialist and a commie

Unemployment insurance benefits are for scammers

YELLOW

Why you yellow…

Seeds

This economy is for the birds…