Selected Writings
My Three Pandemics
When I was five, I learned the words Asian Flu. On July 19, 1957, my mother gave birth to her fourth child, my youngest sister. While she was still in the hospital, my mother was visited by a woman…
Stuff: An Alphabetical Account of Accumulation
We all have stuff. Most of us are attached to our stuff. Precious objects, family treasures, collectibles, clutter, junk, essentials, excess, stuff from A to Z.
Eight Days with Dave
Is a homeless man homeless if he builds a treehouse, if he is your neighbor? Dave Csaky AKA Squirrel Man (named for his animal rescue habits) was a good—though not legal—neighbor. When the City of Seattle nailed an eviction notice to his treehouse, Dave’s world came apart.
Sensing Radiation
My world is mapped by Hanford, mapped by radiation, the thing we cannot sense even as we sense it.
The Dinner Platter
We follow an entire life—in all the food groups—as we eat through the courses of the dinner platter.