As I've said before, It's a tangled neuromuscular web we weave…so if you drop the occasional stitch, no big deal. The weave pleasantly opened this very morning when my massage guy failed to find any significant muscle strain in my neck or shoulders. So there, body. Take that, age. Still, it was good to have a massage. Relaxing. We need all we can get. We also need all the political economics we can get. And I count myself very lucky to be attending another autumn course taught by David Peritz, Read more [...]

A few days in California's Carson Pass are not renowned for inducing strain. This is where people go to stare at the wonders of igneous rock and the miracle of running water…while taking in a few trees and the odd marmot. The state park ranger at Grover Hot Springs will tell you that, yes, the browning trees are showing the effects of California's persistent drought, but it could be worse. The Carson Pass actually had normal rainfall last year. Of course it wasn't enough to make up for the four Read more [...]

These days are bitter with anticipation. Things are not quite falling apart…but their disintegration is imminent. And, of course, the simplest things are fraught. Time to change the oil in my car? Time, indeed. Note that the Dodge Grand Caravan does not have much grandeur by way of mileage. We're talking 9600 miles, or slightly less. And, if you want to know, the oil has been changed once already. Why a second time? Why, if the oil-change cycle is 10,000 miles? Because paranoia, wanting a better Read more [...]

Oh, it is a tangled neuromuscular web we weave…this one having lost key stitches at an uncertain point earlier this year. Never mind, for the story really gets interesting this very morning. The crux of the matter involving what might be termed the seat of power. Power being something of an issue in the life of any disabled person. But let's get to the fun part. Being the devil-may-care sort of quadriplegic I am, damned if it didn't dawn on me as I set out on my Sunday morning light-traffic Read more [...]

Stephen and I were in the Punjab…no, not the subcontinent, the restaurant in the Tenderloin…at the precise moment Donald Trump was making his latest announcement regarding immigrants. I like the Punjab. As Indian restaurants go, it's not in the major leagues. But it's fine for San Francisco which doesn't know from Indian food. And it's family-run. And the people are wonderful. And you can have a reliable go at sagh, chicken tikka and bindhi without much worry. Not knowing the immigration status Read more [...]

Fear is a funny thing. It is what has been driving me up and down the hills of San Francisco for months. The fear being multifaceted…fear of loss of body and physical control…fear of loss of driving and the independence that goes with it. The real issue being how to react. After all, some fears are well grounded. Some are less so, being oblique manifestations of something else. So, how to chart a course through all this? The answer in part has to do with the body. I have had to tune into mine Read more [...]