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Posts published in “Essays”

The Time Was Then

White’s Field, 1927 — Somebody must have been over to Willits last night, because the news spread: the circus is coming and they have an elephant in a van. I myself got to town as…

1984 Revisited

"Establishment" is now a meaningless word, with one faction of the establishment accusing another of being "establishment." Another co-opted term. In the 60's we knew all of it was the establishment - politics, business, military.…

A New Kind of Country Market

Earlier this year, when the Yorkville Market took a short hiatus, I sat down with Lisa Walsh to talk about her adventure with local food. This was the first opportunity for us to sit for…

Did Shannon Do It?

Every few years, desperate for attention, Darryl Cherney, or one of his surrogates pops up with a new suspect in the 1990 car bombing of him and the late Judi Bari. Both managed to parlay…

Mount Tam Quandary

Sometime you can make a discovery of a wonderful getaway - someplace full of visual beauty and fascinating history - a place you could love EXCEPT for one thing that tries to spoil the whole…

Brown Eggs & Donald Trump

Spring seems to have successfully encroached upon winter's territory this time around. Our grass is thriving dark green thanks to all the chicken manure, and I doubt we'll have to mow much this season thanks…

Box Car Diaries

Met Chuck at Klamath Falls airport per plan. We walked to Denny’s, had dinner, then went over to the yards. Arrived about midnight. Slept there for a few hours and then got 173 out at daybreak. We had the only open boxcar on the train. Each of us slept for several hours as we headed toward Bend. The train stopped for only a minute in Bend then headed toward Maupin and the Deschutes river valley. Nice ride – beautiful day. Saw a coyote and a number of deer along the way. Arrived at the Columbia River about 6 PM. We walked through a long dark tunnel and then to the bridge. As we crossed there was a strong wind blowing up river. We had dinner in the Wishram Lunch room; four beers in the bar then slept that night along the tracks.

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