I was a sensitive six-year-old. My feelings were easily hurt. One winter night, a family member said something that bruised. Sullen and angry, I decided to run away. I took a 12-pack of wieners from the fridge. This, I believed, was an excess of wieners. The plan was to walk to the park across the […]
The Story Behind the Story of Bennett the Runaway Duck Read More »
Well, after a longer than expected gestation, Bennett the Runaway Duck has hatched! We love this little guy. He’s full of energy, innocence and impulsiveness. He plows full speed ahead with his ideas, believing nothing bad could possibly happen. In other words, he’s destined to learn the hard way. In this book, Bennett’s older sisters
Is This Thing On? #4 Bennett the Runaway Duck! Read More »
Dear Editor, Re: Is This Thing On? Nov. 4th, 2019. We at the Real World Institute take issue with the suggestion that well-being is fostered by turning off our televisions, radios and phones. Your writer wrote his piece prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Does he maintain his point of view today? If so, this is
Is This Thing On? #2 Read More »
Val and I were kids growing up under the frightening shadow of the Cuban Missile Crisis in the early 1960’s. The air raid siren atop our elementary school blared on an almost daily basis as it prepared for the real thing (nuclear war!). We, like many other children, saw fear in our parents’ faces. Our
Appreciation Day! Some personal history. Read More »
Is This Thing On? #1 A speaker begins addressing an audience, but no one can hear him. He leans into the microphone and asks, “Is this thing on?” The question can be applied to anything that doesn’t function as it should. My brain fits into that category. Now and then, it makes me bump my
Is This Thing On? #1 Read More »
