“Damn the vernal equinox! Full speed ahead!” is all that Cootie Murphy would ever say when he sat on the last stool at the end of the bar in The Stag & Doe Inn. He wouldn’t say it very ...

The question isn’t why your little world is suddenly going to hell. The question is what can you do about

Niagara Falls her silver hair so long it bounces off the swan

If the greatest of these is charit… then tell me again why it’s gauche if this young man in a booth at a bar

Far from the city way out in the country a hot afternoon in high summer as we drive down a bumpy road bouncing one mail box past

This morning I woke up early feelin’ good, feelin’ the way I felt 50 years ago, no aches, no pains, can’t wait to shower, hop on the El, go back to work,

Unlike his peers his office holds no photo of a wife no indication that he has fathered five

Let’s not worry about it, Dearie, life gets better, life gets worse. We’re no different than the seasons of the year except we’re luckier than most having

He lives at the edge of a forest and loves all the different trees. He comes to the city for food and basic necessities. He hates the long drive

First time seeing this doctor, a specialist. Took a month to get an appointment. The waiting room’s packed. I grab the last seat

That my parents were Irish immigrants is probably the most significant factor in my writing life. The English expelled my father from Ireland around 1920 at age 18 or so for running gun...

You had to have a Schwinn to lead this pack of boys riding bikes full speed baking under the Chicago sun laughing after senior year

Jesus, can we talk? Some folks say you’re coming back any day now but many of them have been saying that for years. They say it could happen tomorrow, or maybe next week, and they’ve al...

It will be a while before Fred’s hometown has its annual food drive, he told me. That’s an important event because it helps stock the pantry at the small charity where he volunteers. Ri...