Author Archives: Charlie

To the Camp

Posted on August 3, 2014 by Charlie

The trail gets very rocky closer to the camp. At one point the entire trail was covered in a moving stream of water, which was a little confusing because the snow cap on the mountain top was already melted. Nature, you’ve got to love it. Even closer to the camp you start to see white stones in the trail and there’s also a fence. Lots of little rock steps and then you see the framed out wood bridge over a little creek leading to the camp bunkhouse. I checked my watch as I crossed the bridge for the first time in years. Continue reading →

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Kandinsky and More Kandinsky

Posted on July 28, 2014 by Charlie

ShareTweet The Thing I’m Doing This Year #26 Over eight days in late July I took in two beach events in Long Beach and Milwaukee. Nice and warm in California, an event featuring all the superstars of beach volleyball. I … Continue reading →

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Niles Crane

Posted on July 20, 2014 by Charlie

Right from the get-go his right leg is violating my internationally-recognized leg space. Heat is building between us and the closer-than-close proximity. Do I tell him to move his fucking leg? No. I do one better. I shoot him several perturbed glances both at him and his offending leg. Continue reading →

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I Got Nowhere Else to Go

Posted on July 19, 2014 by Charlie

The next Monday it was a different story. No thunderstorm warnings, but rain was a distinct possibility. I threw caution to the wind, winds?, and took off for home. No weather is going to slow me down. About halfway home I get caught with my pants down … I mean, not literally … I wasn’t even wearing pants so to speak … I was wearing shorts. I proceeded to get pounded by a torrential downpour, because that’s the only kind of downpour there is … torrential. Just completely hammered and not in a good way. Continue reading →

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Invisible Man

Posted on July 18, 2014 by Charlie

Then I went into the bookstore and find a book off my nerdy books-to-buy-next list, “Invisible Cities” by Italo Calvino. People who are in the know consider this book a post-modern masterpiece. In a conversation with Kublai Khan, Marco Polo describes cities from Khan’s empire and/or cities Polo visited on his worldwide travels. A couple of things got me off track, first the “Khan” described here is not the same Khan I found wildly entertaining in a couple Star Trek feature films. No, totally different guy. Continue reading →

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Good Job, Old Man

Posted on July 3, 2014 by Charlie

But then I lost it. No mojo. No energy. Did I give too much too early? I don’t know, but in no time flat, I’m trudging up the trail like an extra on the Walking Dead. I’m beat. Feel like dogshit. When I stopped to catch my breath, I put my hands on my knees and suck air. On one of these proud rest breaks, I see these two little feet approach me. It’s a nice, little old lady, about 89, with a big smile, a giant backpack, and two of those fucking walking sticks. Continue reading →

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Sam Joined the Team

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Charlie

I’ve been biking to work a few times a week. One day as I stepped out of my office, I was hit with a serious gale force, Wizard-of-Oz-in-black-and-white wind and pelts of rain, before I even got on my bike. On the ride home, it was stormy, cloudy, ugly, windy and rainy. I even saw some lightning strikes. For a while there I was worried about seeing some flash flooding … in my pants. Continue reading →

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