Solo, Page 49

I can’t remember being shy even though my Mom swore up and down that I was.  I usually sat in the front of the class, didn’t mind speaking up, raised my hand often and volunteered when needed.  As an English Lit major, it was not uncommon for me to recite Byron, Shakespeare or a give […]

Goodbye Melet

  I’ve done plenty of tough things in my life and being a Dad is definitely the hardest; the job description changes almost daily.  As both parents and children grow and evolve so do the challenges of parenting.   Yet I’ve known folks that have made it look easy and Melet Antonakos was one of those […]

“You’re gonna love my stove!”

  Our friend was leaning into our car window, grinning from ear to ear.  Just a week earlier he was the winning bidder for a dinner that my wife and I donated as a fundraiser for our church.  His mind was racing with the expectation of a memorable meal and Amy and I were excited […]

Operation #Cronut

By now the entire food world has heard of and salivated over a Cronut.  It’s a doughnut made from croissant dough, says Chef Dominique Ansel, owner of Dominique Ansel Bakery in New York’s SoHo district.  Now Chef Ansel is no flash in the pan; for many years he was Daniel Boulud’s pastry chef and if […]

Goodbye Pip

It was just another late Spring afternoon, the warm May breeze had our neighborhood’s flowers dancing and our minds on thoughts of a summer filled with a lot of nothing.  The four of us were walking home from the pool when Holly said we were being followed.  We looked back and saw an obviously lost, […]

Flours for Amy

I love the aroma of butter and flour, eggs and sugar, gently mixed together then properly baked.  These four simple ingredients offer so much possibility, especially in the hands of my wife.  Breads and biscuits, cookies and cakes, scented with vanilla bean or cinnamon, orange or chocolate.  As a young culinary student she tempted me […]

The Ice Pick

As my body vibrated with pain, Amy gripped my hand.   I was so racked and twisted by pain that it must have looked like a scene out of The Exorcist. The one where Linda Blair levitates off the table as the evil spirit practically tears her apart.  Amy later told me she was certain […]

Sex and Chocolate

2:45 AM.  Damnit.  I lie still and listen to Amy’s gentle breathing, and wonder if I can get out of bed without waking her.  This medicine has me getting up at least once a night and I’ve succeeded in waking her in the middle of the last 12 nights.  Maybe if I get out of […]

“Stop Licking That!”

  The house is quiet now.  Too quiet.  Amy and the kids have been gone for almost two hours, I’ve had my breakfast and now I’m back in bed trying to write.  And that’s when the licking starts.  Sometimes she licks her front paws, other times her bottom and sometimes it’s whatever piece of furniture […]

Random Facts

As requested by my friend and fellow author, KJ Waters.   I’ve had one ambulance ride and they didn’t even turn on the lights or sirens. I can remember pulling a chair up to the kitchen counter to help Mom cook. If there’s nasty weather (tornado watch/warning) in the evening’s forecast, I’ll go to bed […]