Notes From A Bear's Journey

      With all that is happening, I am reminded of a frustrated Jesus in the Broadway play, Jesus Christ Superstar , a scene where he becomes so inundated with people wanting to be healed or helped that he finally yells out, "heal yourselves."   And quite honestly, we seem to be nearing that point as school lunches and food stamps are bulldozed over like settlers being forced off of the West Bank.  People are generous to a fault, and generally helpful by nature; but what happens as we start to leave our view of "things will work out" to a point of "we'd better start planning because who knows?"  Who knows indeed?  Several things brought this to mind, everything from an article on apathy to yes, that play, Jesus Christ Superstar .         If you've never seen the play or listened to the album (the movie was forgettable so perhaps skip that format), the music and lyrics were quite controversial at the time, and perhaps contr...

     As soon as I lifted the post hole digger, I knew.  My neighbor had just gotten bids from different fence companies for his fence, and had settled on one he liked.  And here's what I saw on the section of fence which we shared: the old fence was down and removed, the post holes dug, the new posts put in and the concrete poured, all in a day.  One day!  Hmm, maybe I should call that same fence company, which I did, and before long, I also had a new fence (the owner did tell me that I had done a good job of maintaining our nearly 40-year old fence).      When you think of a fence, you tend to think of something meant to keep things out (or perhaps in, as with prisoners and cows).  A fence also hides things, maybe you sunbathing in the back, or people peeking at your kids or animals (or, nefarious characters planning to break into your home via the backyard).  But as long as we're talking about hiding, let's peek a...

      My wife returned to her childhood home in Cornwall, a place we typically returned to each year together.  But things came up with the dog and alas, it was decided that I should remain at the house to ensure there were no hiccups ( our dog, because of his legs , can no longer be boarded, and it's been difficult to find a sitter willing to take on a protective and partially disabled 93-lb. German Shepherd).  But shed no tears for me since a few weeks alone often finds me doing things I normally wouldn't do...watching a few Pixar or kung fu movies (the animated feature UP proved especially timely for me as it showed the passage of time and one suddenly becoming alone in later life), power-washing a few outdoor items, eating some of the foods my wife doesn't really care for, all enjoyable pursuits, at least until the loneliness kicks in (my wife, back in her coastal home of tidal beaches and cheery pubs, will undoubtedly be feeling the same at a later point)....