Monthly Archives: May 2020

Bear With Me

Bear With Me

A neighbor stopped by and made an unexpected house call. Didn’t knock. Wasn’t wearing a mask. Just to let us know he was doing okay and helping himself to some of our food. Actually, it was the bird food he helped himself to. And while he wasn’t wearing any PPE he certainly did have a lot of protective fur, so we figured he was safe from whatever he needs to be safe from. The fact that it was 9:30 in the morning and he didn’t even feel the need to sleuth by night told us a lot about how secure he felt Black bears are amazing creatures, both for their mass and their ability to slip furtively in and out of modestly settled areas and disappear into the adjoining woods. We live in the forested outer edge of suburbia, where wooded home lots border state forest and park lands. The bear population of Connecticut is estimated by naturalists at 800, which makes for just over six square miles per bear. Given the state’s high population density – ranked fourth in the country, exceeded only by New Jersey, Rhode Island and Massachusetts – it’s no surprise these creatures “congregate” (if that’s...Read more
Strange Light

Strange Light

I’ve been noticing things lately. Unusual, strange imagery. Aural lights. Reverse sunsets. Different birds. Snow in May. Nothing is the same, anymore. Well, not “nothing.” But so much is different, new, unaccustomed. Have seen the grandkids a lot but have not hugged them in months.  My hair is too long and there’s nothing I can do about it. The standard rule about clothing, that you wear 20 percent of your wardrobe 80 percent of the time, doesn’t come close. More like 10/90. Or worse. And nobody seems to mind. We used to have a bird feeder up in the back but this year I moved it in closer to the kitchen so we can watch it from there or the dining room where I’m starting to work a lot. The feeder occupies a perfect viewing area, but because the canister hangs from a little bracket I have to take it in each evening and put it out each morning. Otherwise it will get taken down by the bear – yes, there is a real “bear” in the near woods who visits us occasionally. With the diversity of the bird feed we provide – sunflower seeds, safflower seeds, millet, plus cracked...Read more

Risk Assessment

I’ve been writing criticism and reviews for five decades. It started with rock music in my college days, moved on to an academic stint on international politics and then morphed these last 25 years into a freelance career covering everything from raw book manuscripts to sports media and golf courses. Maybe I’m just a grump, but I’ve found my initial judgments to be pretty reliable. Or at least I’ve found that subsequent considerations and editorial refinement just muddy up what was, for me, initial clarity. It might be a case of it being more important to be certain than to be true. None of what follows should be mistaken for my complaining. I am well aware of the inherent class bias of these concerns. Many people – most people – are suffering extreme stress from unemployment, money woes, threat of virus exposure in the work place, or health worries about family. What’s so frustrating about the situation we are now in is that all of the normal daily complexities of life have been compounded to an extreme degree.  Everyday life has changed completely, in big ways and in little ways. Here are some of the little ways. Eight weeks now,...Read more
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