The last spin for Quadzilla Spins3! I get it, you need a break from spinning and listening to awesome music. Welcome to Spinning Tales. Here you will find a collection of (look for new additions as the muse moves me) personal stories, book/movie reviews, musings, rants, and even some comedy; well, I think they’re funny. Sit back, put your jammies on, and enjoy. For your convenience, each entry has a letter in brackets next to its title to indicate the type of writing: (H) – Humor; (E) – Essay; (S) – Story; (F) – Fiction; (R) – Review
HOME-LESS-NEST (E)
A couple of years ago, a photographer friend of mine asked me to write something for an issue of a photography magazine that he publishes. I asked him what he wanted the piece to be about, how long it should be, what format, etc., etc., and his reply was: “Whatever you want it to be…
It Happened One Night…A Fairy Tale in Two Acts! F/s
ACT 1 – Laughter is the Best Medicine Once upon a time in the not too distant future… Cue to audible sounds of tickertape, frantic keyboard noises, and shouting: “Tick, tick, tickety-tick, click, click, clickety-click, yack, yack, yackety-yack: “HEY, BRUCE!” “YEAH, WHAT DOYA NEED JIMBO?” “I SAID TO THE LEFT, YOURE OTHER LEFT!” “AH, OKAY!”…
A Complicated Word (E)
A few weeks ago, I rewatched a movie that I had not seen since it was released in 2015, The Big Short. It is about a group of investors in 2006/07 that bet against the United States mortgage market. That is the “short” explanation; it is about so much more, but that is not really…
“I’ll Be There For You” (S)
If you recognize my title, you were most likely one of the approximately 52.5 million people who tuned in regularly to watch the hit show, Friends (1994-2004). Or, you might have been a fan of The Rembrandts, who performed the song for the show, and then went on to expand and record the song for…
Father and Son(s) (S)
A few years ago, while vacationing/working in Napa, California, I needed the services of a tailor and, as luck would have it, I found one conveniently located in downtown Napa, called Cervone & Son. I remember thinking at the time that signs like the one above, and the one hanging over the tailor shop, were…
Just Another Sports Trophy…Or Is It? (S)
The other night, Tuesday June 13th, to be exact, I turned on the TV to watch the last period of the Stanley Cup finals between the Florida Panthers and the Las Vegas Golden Nights. The score at the beginning of the 3rd period was 6-1 in favor of the Golden Nights, and since they only…
A Teachable Moment (S)
My career in teaching (1991-2018) did not follow what some might call a “normal path.” Firstly, it started at 41 years old. Secondly, it began at a University in Canada and ended at a private school in Southern California. I went from lecturing in three different departments – Communications, Canadian Studies, and Geography – to…
Hockey Arenas: Canada’s Secular Shrines (E)
The importance of the hockey arena to Canadian society is best summed up by a statistical curiosity published in Harper’s Magazine (circa 1998): The ratio of ice rinks to hospitals in Canada – 3:1. Now, this may have said more about the state of health care in this country at that time than it did…
To Write or Not To Write… (E/S)
There is no other way to say this, to sugar coat it, or to soften the blow. So, I will just get it off my chest right now: “If you recognize the picture above from the early 70s, you are old!” If it helps, I remember it quite vividly. I am referring here to Memorex…
“What A Long Strange ‘Drive’ It’s Been!” (E/S)
To say that North American, especially the US, has a long-entrenched history with the automobile may seem like a “duh” statement, but it is a bit more complicated than that, as these things usually are. There have been countless words written about “America’s love affair with the automobile,” and yet countless more that have debunked…
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