Category Archives: life in the big city

Christmas with Hendrix and the Beats

Posted on December 25, 2018 by oddmanout215

From an odd little Christmas story, well told: I took a seat on one of the pews several rows back from the front. They began playing a tape Allen Ginsberg had sent from somewhere upstate for the occasion, reading his … Continue reading →

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Going to church despite the priests

Posted on September 5, 2018 by oddmanout215

… The Arabian energy that had pushed them into Africa had died down at its source, and that power was like the light of a star that travels on after the star itself has become dead. — V.S. Naipaul, A … Continue reading →

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OK, you’re in love, but can you sell my novel?

Posted on June 20, 2018 by oddmanout215

An editor friend just called to apologize, he hasn’t had time to read my new manuscript because he’s having his roof replaced and can’t hear himself think. I said hey, no hurry, it will still be there when you find … Continue reading →

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Running out of gas with Steppenwolf

Posted on June 18, 2018 by oddmanout215

So I was on the highway, on my way to a sales job near Allentown with my stomach in a knot because I knew the job would suck. It was Throwback Thursday on the college radio station and the DJ … Continue reading →

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The outsider who made friends everywhere

Posted on June 12, 2018 by oddmanout215

Anthony Bourdain, who was 61, wrote Kitchen Confidential, the definitive book about working on the wild side in the restaurant business. He created several acclaimed TV series, using food as a device for exploring foreign cultures and making friends with … Continue reading →

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‘Disinvited’ Eagles weren’t going anyway

Posted on June 8, 2018 by oddmanout215

Swamp Rabbit was getting on my case for not being a football fan. I’m a fan of the players,” I said. “It’s the NFL I hate — the overpaid commissioner and the spoiled rotten billionaires who own the teams. I … Continue reading →

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A caffeinated confession

Posted on June 1, 2018 by oddmanout215

I’ve never been a Starbucks fan. Its stores are more like over-priced ice cream parlors than coffeehouses, and there’s something spooky about customers sitting by themselves, staring at their laptop screens. That said, I’m glad the “anti-bias” training went well … Continue reading →

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Emotional weather report for April

Posted on May 6, 2018 by oddmanout215

…High tonight, low tomorrow, precipitation is expected. – Tom Waits Nature was at war with itself last month – solitary balmy days sandwiched by cold snaps with gusty winds, the sky still bright at 7:30 pm, but with temps in … Continue reading →

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Starbucks helps widen the great divide

Posted on April 22, 2018 by oddmanout215

Headline from an opinion piece by a lifelong black resident of Philadelphia: “Starbucks wasn’t created for black folks, it was made to push us out.” The piece appeared this week in response to the widely reported arrest of two young … Continue reading →

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Killing dissent softly at the DNC

Posted on July 30, 2016 by oddmanout215

I like to run the streets to calm the demons in my head before bedtime. It’s like meditation or prayer, except you need good shoes and plenty of water, especially during heat waves like the one we endured while the … Continue reading →

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