I am Not a Gay Man

I was having coffee with a couple of close friends a month or so ago. I forget the context, but one, a very close friend, said, “I am not a gay man. I am a man who is gay.” I thought about it at the time, and have been thinking even more about it lately. […]

One More Day in Laos

Ah, jeez. Chicken feet. I hate chicken feet. They are worse than eating dog. We were on our way to look at some land in Laos to lease for project I am working on. Let’s just say that it is a bit of land, and unbelievably cheap. Thanks to the Communists, I guess. Before we […]

A Working Life Chapter 1

Life was easy back then. It wasn’t simple, but it was easy. I am in my mid-60’s now, and grateful. I worked through one of the most interesting and transformational periods in the history of the United States. I think there were two periods, and they ran sequentially, without a break. My father lived through […]

English or Metric?

I live on my sailboat in the Caribbean. Now I am in Panama. I asked the local maintenance guy to change the zincs (sacrificial anodes) on my boat, a task for a diver. There are zincs on the end of the prop, the rudder support, the prop shaft and the bow thruster. The diver was […]

Nicknames

It was dusk. I was walking through Bocas town with Toni wearing short pants and a t-shirt, a ball cap, and my backpack with chancleta on my feet. Willie stopped his rusty old bicycle next to me and said, “Weed, Weed?” I find it a bit odd that he even asks me, a man in […]

I Hate the Yankees

Baseball rivalries and history have lots of lessons.

If a Picture is Worth 1000 Words…What Do You Do When You Need 100?

A sketch is a powerful way to get started on every technical project for a lot of reasons.

Last Night in Shanghai

David, Tobias and I finished a two-week d-TACTICS workshop in China yesterday. Together we took the subway and the maglev train to the airport. The train was fun. We reached 300kph while looking out the window at the cars stuck in traffic, blowing horns like the Chinese like to do. It took 7 minutes to get […]

Virginia Mary Allen August 18, 1920 – November 11, 2007

When Mom passed away on Sunday morning, one of the many kind nurses at the hospital said, “I am sorry for your loss.” I was sad, but in those very spiritual moments after Mom was just getting to heaven, I felt more at peace than sad. I also felt an over powering feeling of gratitude. […]

Now That I’ve Lost Everything to You

It was raining when I took the water taxi to town. My clothes were damp from the rain, but it wasn’t cold enough to be annoying. I walked through town and got even wetter, not caring, and found the things I needed; bananas, a plantain, fruits and vegetables, a piece of snapper, and a bottle […]