Clean shaven in summer. Bearded in winter. Prickly year round.
One week ago I tore into my first box of books, and immediately began delivering them by bike to individual readers across the city and countryside. This here was one of my last deliveries that evening, after seven hours of haphazardly criss-crossing the area. I reached home just before it became too dark. Close call! … More Tales From the Pedaling Book Peddler, Part 2
The weather was intensely RAW during my bike delivery today, like the emotions depicted in my book. I rode up the North Shore of Lake Superior, out of town, to deliver a single copy of the book to a former co-worker this morning. It was wet, 33 degrees, I rode straight into a 15 mph … More Tales from the Pedaling Book Peddler, Part 1
The mathematical odds of this remarkable coincidence must be somewhere on the order of 10,000,00: 1. Never in my life have I been more excited to receive packages. Contained within this stack of boxes is the very first shipment of my new book, The Emancipation of a Buried Man. After receiving this shipment I immediately … More How, you ask, is My Mother Handling the Publishing of a Memoir that Plumbs the Depths of Squalor and Emerges With Hope and Freedom?
As a child I had over 100 animals in my bedroom. That’s right, one hundred. Half of these were birds that flew freely throughout the room while leaving poop and seed hulls everywhere. My bed seemed to be the primary target for their marksmanship, whilst on the fly. My sheets were never soft, clean, and … More Former Animal Hoarder Delights in Daughter’s Manageable Quantity of Pets
Cabin life is enjoyed by nearly everyone. This is due to its stripped-down minimalism that emphasizes the things that really matter to one’s self. Possessions, clutter, busyness, and a frenetic lifestyle are all left behind. Being in tune and in touch with the natural world promotes true reflection that can lead to positive and lasting … More Joy, Nakedness, and Tolstoy.
When you spend the first 18 years of life in and among random belongings like this, your relationship with stuff is going to be somewhat “divergent” from the norm… I have come to accept this for what it is, and actually am grateful for my utter “differentness.” At the time, however, I was the one … More A “Divergent” Speaks Out on Love and Reverence for Possessions
I’ve completed my book! This has been a real LABOR of love that wouldn’t have been possible if I hadn’t so painfully lost my corporate job last year. Becoming suddenly unlatched from the corporate teat was the impetus I needed to finally pursue my dream. The opportunity given through this horrible event was not primarily … More Upcoming Book Release!
To everything there is a season, a reason, and a purpose (under heaven). Punches to the gut like unemployment, head lice, a scabies-like mite that once bored deeply into my flesh, and thousands of biting flies, all fit snugly into this category. Amazingly, I find myself loving each and every one of these occurrences in … More Learning from Parasites, Blood-Suckers, and Grinding Adversity
Each and every day, I wait expectantly for the mailman. I am fortunate to receive my mail as early as 8:30 am, and still this often doesn’t feel early enough. Anticipation builds and builds. Inevitably, I’m crestfallen to discover nearly useless junk mail. Day after day the scene plays itself out in the same way. Not … More The Power of Writing Letters
One final breath. Then, with a subtle exhalation of release, nothing. She was gone. Her body remained, but grandma was no longer there. Born a century ago in 1915, this dreaded moment loomed for years. It seemed she had been around forever, and would go on indefinitely. Indeed, another lifetime like her’s takes you back … More Grandma Lights the Way
Ed's Big Adventure 