Sad news - Peter Falk died on Thursday, age 83, after bringing us countless joys with his performances. Columbo is a timeless character, a kind of blind-seer, a wise-idiot, or a court jester who gets away with bringing down the powerful because he allows himself to seem so harmless to them for so long. He … Continue reading “Uh, sir? Just one more thing…”
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Come on, Canucks – next year, eh?
The one thing you ask for from sports is to be taken away - to watch physically talented men and women compete fiercely and with deep respect for the game and each other - so for a while you can forget there's a whole complex and challenging world out there, and pretend there is nothing … Continue reading Come on, Canucks – next year, eh?
A Tale of Passion, Friendship, Love, and Music
In the last eighteen months I’ve seen some amazing shows put on by accomplished musicians. Three sparked a little meditation on passion, friendship, and love: Chris Rea; Eric Clapton; and the Panindias Brothers. Rea, the best blues/rock/jazz singer-songwriter and slide guitarist working today; Clapton, the guitar god, whose voice is perhaps a bit underrated by … Continue reading A Tale of Passion, Friendship, Love, and Music
Beginning of Days?
Whether you took the rumours of impending rapture and end of days seriously or not, the (apparent) fact that the world exists on May 22 pretty much the same as it did on May 21 could be a chance to take a fresh look at life. I mean, what if we all decided today to … Continue reading Beginning of Days?
Hell and god
Maybe we've all been thinking about hell a bit more this past week. Here's an excerpt from The Book that I read at Hugo House's Works in Progress last Monday night. Hell and god “Can you believe in hell if you don’t believe in God?” While she was working up her courage to call Jack, … Continue reading Hell and god
Really really short stories
Narrative Magazine now takes submissions for what they call 'iStories,' stories of 150 words or less meant for reading on an iPad, iPod, or iTouch. Here's one I'm planning to submit - tell me what you think of it! *************** Can you slow down time? he asked her. She did that thing, that tying-her-hair-into-a-knot-near-the-top-of-her-head thing. … Continue reading Really really short stories
I’m not a poet
In honor of National Poetry Month, here's a poem I wrote in a Hugo House class a little over a year ago. (I told you, I'm not a poet.) This is a forwards-backwards poem - you can pick which you like best. Her hand moves across the page, abandoning the words as she writes them. … Continue reading I’m not a poet
Ferraro-Mondale
Nineteen eighty-four. The title of the novel by George Orwell, and my sophomore year at college. That autumn's presidential election saw the first ever woman nominated on a major party ticket - Geraldine Ferraro. She was tapped by Walter Mondale to run as his vice-presidential candidate. It was the first presidential election since I was … Continue reading Ferraro-Mondale
Go read Sherman Alexie…now
Hearing Sherman Alexie (http://www.fallsapart.com/) speak about life and writing and books and read from his upcoming sequel to The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian tonight was a healing experience - he was funny, irreverent, touching, gifted, and above all generous. Alexie is one of the finest writers working today. Go find anything he's written … Continue reading Go read Sherman Alexie…now
One month from today…
One month from today, I'll start eight weeks of "vacation," and then return to work half-time. This is it: the great experiment. Investing time and money in writing like I never could while working full-time. I haven't had this much time off since I was 14 years old. July will be devoted to writing classes, … Continue reading One month from today…
Elizabeth Fountain, Author 