“So what’s this one supposed to represent,” Apolonia Pena asked the park ranger. “I can’t speak on behalf of the park, but I think it is a ‘shapeshifter,” the ranger said. “At least that is what Grandfather told me when I was a child.” “It’s frightening,” Apolonia said. “It is,” said the ranger. “I also…

For years, even as a child, I wondered how long or if ever the people of Virginia City, Nev., knew that Sam Clemens and Mark Twain were the same people. The short answer is that Sam Clemens walked into a saloon and came out as Mark Twain. And like those Genzu knife commercials of late-night…

My Cousin Elmo says, “If Congress really cared about ‘We the People,’ they’d resign.”

The following information I culled from the Jerusalem Post: “A new study from George Washington University noted that an aspirin regimen in more than 400 COVID-19 patients in hospitals across the United States cut the need for ventilation by 44 percent, slashed ICU admission by 43 percent, and reduced overall in-hospital mortality rates by 47…

I waited till late this evening and after finishing my work for the day to write this… It is important to tell you that I lost a friend today to death. Doc Durden was a giant of a man both in physique and in the eternal sense. Pressed to get a COVID vaccine last week,…

Maggie finished her General’s Chicken and asked for the bill. When her server came and laid it on the table, she also gave Maggie a single fortune cookie, which Maggie immediately cracked open. She ate half of the cookie as she read the slip of paper: “You will die by old age.” Maggie smiled and…

I thought of titling this “How to Take Me From Being Decent to Becoming a Would-be Murderer.” I saw a scared gosling trying to cross a busy roadway. I pulled over and made my way to where I could safely reach the bird. I motioned for traffic to be aware, and drivers reacted by slowing…

Morning arrival: Cool, high overcast A hint of fall snow Leaves are scattering over the yard But our lovely pink rose still blooms

My Cousin Elmo says, “I don’t do ‘rise and shine.’ I do ‘caffeinate and cross my fingers.’”

They met by accident on the sidewalk in front of the old folk’s home where they lived. Dark and 3:15 in the morning, neither saw the other till they each came to the walkway. “You too?” Frank asked. “Me, too,” Bill answered. They headed up the walk to the front steps. That’s where Bill stopped.…