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Posts published by “Louis Bedrock”

Epiphany

Elizabeth is an unattractive city in the armpit of northern New Jersey. Some important neighboring cities are Newark, with which it shares a seaport; Linden, with which it shares a refinery; Bayonne, with which it…

Terrible Jobs, Part 1: Washing Oxygen Tents

In 1962, I needed an after-school job. I had turned 17 and wanted my own car, something my family could not afford to buy for me. Alas, I had few marketable skills and no experience…

The Existentialism Of Bicycling

The 15th Edition of The Encyclopedia Britannica informs us that according to existentialism, “… man is not a detached observer of the world, but ‘in the world.’ He exists in a special sense in which…

Samantha

On Thursday, February 14th— Valentine’s Day, about three weeks after my article, “El Úndecimo Mandamiento” appeared in The Anderson Valley Advertiser, Samantha called. It was the first time I’d spoken to her in 18 years.…

O Five Charlie

We were surrounded by southerners at Fort Gordon. I disliked them. I resented their diabolical ability to exploit my chauvinistic northern prejudices about them and shuck me repeatedly.

Adventures In Morocco

The two young Americans were very lucky to have met David on the ferry between Algeciras and Tangiers. Things might have turned out much worse. David was a tall, elegant, cosmopolitan, multi-lingual Brit who befriended…

Resilient Warriors of The Rustic Ranch

Inverness is a picturesque little town on the west coast of Florida about 50 miles south of Gainesville and 25 miles of Ocala. It’s a short drive from the Gulf of Mexico and within a…

El Undécimo Mandamiento

All six girls at the place were young and attractive, but Samantha was my favorite. She was lanky, but not homely; she was long-legged, had long dark blonde hair and beautiful greenish brown eyes. Although her English was very good, we spoke in Spanish and I understood every word she said.

Adventures In Salamanca

1977 and 1978 were good years to be living in Spain. El Caudillo, Francisco Franco, had died in November of 1975, and the country was intoxicated with its newly acquired freedoms. A new newspaper, El…

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