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Posts published in “Essays”

School Days

When the Newman family first came to Anderson Valley in the late 1950s, it was as part-timers; most weekends during autumn, winter and spring, and all summer when my parent’s summer camp near Philo, El…

Traveling

We were down on Big River Beach a few days ago, the weather Hawaiian, naked babies frolicking in the sand, the air scented with barbecued lamb and chicken, the river sparkling, the breezes gentle. And joining us in paradise were a dozen or so unleashed dogs gadding about making everything much less enjoyable by depositing piles of steaming dog poop in our midst and trampling our picnics while chasing each other and vying for scraps of food.

Not In Kansas Anymore

Can you imagine your young kids setting off to see the world, with no real plans, little money, and no phone or internet access? “See you in a few months or years, I dunno"? Today's…

Medical Cannabis Law Still Alive

A comprehensive system for regulating the production, distribution, sale and taxation of medical marijuana in California could pass the State Assembly this week. AB 1894, written by Assemblymember Tom Ammiano (D-SF), was voted out of…

Pot Party vs. Pee-Pee Parade

San Francisco has been oft-referred to as “49 square miles, surrounded by reality.” And the fabled Haight-Ashbury district is oft-noted as the most unreal square mile therein. Every April 20th — “4/20” — it becomes…

Trailers

One of my hobbies in these days of societal collapse—most of us in denial about how far the fungus of cultural disintegration has progressed—is watching trailers for recently made movies, American and foreign, and from…

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