Author Archives: thewritingprofessor55

Hello from South America. New Year’s Eve in Nicaragua can be characterized by three things: family, fireworks, and food. Certainly there are other elements for some, the usual celebratory “necessities,” but fireworks are a central part of it all. Everyone has some and they are exuberant in their using pyrotechnics to celebrate a new year.Continue reading “What is home and why?”

Hello from my table . . . It is my last day in Nicaragua, and it has been a learning experience. That seems to be the way most experiences go for me, and more an more, the learning has created an increased sense of fragility. I am glad for more reasons than not I thatContinue reading “When Fragility becomes a Companion”

Good morning from my corner table at La Casa de la Pradera, While I worked on another blog extensively yesterday, this morning brought new information that has changed my focus. It seems that is how life works. I have lived it to a degree not recently experienced this past week. My reality of age isContinue reading “The Loss of a Lutheran Giant”

Hello from a little room in the Cathedral District, Sometimes we want to believe in possibilities; we hope that what we have is reasonable or valuable, but it is hard to determine if that is true. Perhaps it is the reality that a good part of my life is coming to a close, and thereContinue reading “Do You Believe In . . .”

Hello from my front seat of Bruce, The Beetle, I am waiting for my friends and colleagues at our appointed place for dinner. My brain is whirling for a variety of reasons, and that is when I find it most necessary to write. It is a way to clear my thoughts, to structure the chaos,Continue reading “Keep Pushin’”

Good morning from Rio Segundo, It is a mixed bag morning as I am looking out at beauty, appreciating the remoteness on the one hand, but struggling with our technological dependence on the other because I cannot communicate adequately with a host of people. These are all issues to ponder in managing a move andContinue reading “Father Fred”

Hello on a somewhat mixed bag morning, Much like the sky this morning, I am not sure what to expect from the day. Eleven years ago today, the small town (and it is the only location in Pennsylvania that uses the word town as its official designation) where I live had a flood, which wouldContinue reading “Wishing I Knew, then again, Perhaps Not”

Hello from my back patio on the mini-acre, It is astounding to me that I am staring straight into the face of another semester, another academic year, and the reality of completing my career in academe, at least in a formal manner. As noted in another post, my more-than-wise father once noted how time willContinue reading “Small Events with Large Implications”

Hello from the AC of a coffee shop, It is going to be above 90 again today and in spite of semester-low humidity, it is still quite warm. This is not a complaint because other places are worse (Europe for instance)..I have been on the Harley more than in the big, which improves my mood,Continue reading “Wondering how and Imagining what Happens Next”