Personal Essays

The Blush of Youth

One-hundred-fifty-six years ago today, Abraham Lincoln was struck down in the blush of youth. Honest Abe was not a babe, he was 56. His presidency was in the blush of its youth. I am older now than he was when he went to the theatre. It is amazing for me to imagine...

Where Secrets go to Die

The Spa Nordic in Montréal is where secrets go to die. The woman on the porch in the snow, her bikini under her fur coat, is smoking a cigarette. She’s done the hot soak and may even plunge her wrinkled middle-aged body into the cold pool for its healthful benefits...

Julia Child

I remember watching Julia Child on television on a black-and-white set. I loved everything about her. Her height, her apron, her accent, her bubbly personality, her spunk, the way she poured wine into the sauce and into her glass. You name it, if it was Julia Child, I...

The Pursuit of Truth

If my dharma were the pursuit of truth, I’d not be here tapping these keys right now. I’d have never left welding, where everything is black and white. Well, it’s really black and silver or sometimes black and copper; there are no grey areas. A weld is either a good...