One of the highlights of last month’s visit to Ireland was a Sunday afternoon gathering of family in Dublin. If you’ve been around here for any length of time, you know the story of my making contact with my father’s family for the first time in 1989 when I was 22 years old. If you … Continue reading Descended from a king, traveling with a prince
Category: relationships
Tea with my Dad
When I travel to Dublin I do my best to get in a visit with my father at his place of residence since 1984, Deansgrange Cemetery. Last year’s trip to Ireland left me no opportunity to get there, so I made certain I would manage it this year. Last Friday was the day. I made … Continue reading Tea with my Dad
QPL XXI
Yesterday was my youngest son’s 21st birthday, a milestone that came with no small sense of satisfaction. Parenting this kid, the family baby, had not been without its challenges. There had been numerous early miscarriages, (something I’ll forever attribute to the aggressively high radioactive iodine dose I received and my managed state of hyperthyroidism), before … Continue reading QPL XXI
Death comes in threes
Tuesday was the 5th anniversary of Insurrection day. I understand that this occasion was marked by the current regime as a day to unleash a new stream of lies about the occasion, but I know what I witnessed sitting at my desk crying - I had been watching the attempt of Donald Trump’s minions to … Continue reading Death comes in threes
Dinner at home in Firenze
Almost 24 hours later, I think I’m finally able to attempt to share the finest moments of my time in Florence. This was my fourth visit to Florence, if you count the single day I spent there taking in David and having a shitty meal in a place that even we knew, was a tourist … Continue reading Dinner at home in Firenze
Quelle surprise!
The time I spent recently in Montreal was fundamentally sans agenda. Yes, there were a couple of jazz shows for which I had tickets, but we didn’t have as much as a single reservation for dining or specific plans for the majority of the roughly 72 hours we were in Canada. Being wide open leaves … Continue reading Quelle surprise!
Gatekeeping
Last weekend’s social media and news timeout served me really well - I slept better than I have in weeks, if not months. Removing myself temporarily from platforms gave me time and mental energy to devote to other things and I started the week refreshed and well rested. Since dipping back into the online cesspool, … Continue reading Gatekeeping






