There is a very particular smell that catches the evening breeze on a late summer afternoon. It is the distinct, heavy aroma of hickory wood burning down to soft, glowing coals. When you smell that sweet smoke in the air, you know your neighbors are gathering. You know that lawn chairs are being unfolded, iced […]
The Dawn of the Rest Day The light hits the front porch differently on a Saturday morning. I have sat on this same porch for decades, watching the neighborhood wake up. There is a distinct quiet, a brief pause between the frantic rush of Friday evening and the lawnmowers of Saturday afternoon. The air smells […]
The Rhythm of the Highway I remember the steady hum of tires on cracked concrete. It was a rhythm that settled deep into your bones. You would roll your windows down to let in the hot summer air. The smell of sagebrush mixed pleasantly with exhaust fumes. We were not just driving from one place […]
The Great Divide of the Mind and Map I remember the first time I drove across this great country of ours. I was just a young man then, with a full tank of gas and an endless stretch of two-lane highway ahead of me. The journey started in the dense, green embrace of the eastern […]
The Magic of the Modern Aisle Let me tell you a story about a quiet revolution. It did not happen on a battlefield or in a grand political hall. It happened in a grocery store. Before the world moved quite as fast as it does today, shopping was an entirely different affair. You would walk […]
I remember the smell of gasoline and hot vinyl seats like it was just yesterday. The windows were rolled all the way down, the wind was roaring through the cabin of our old station wagon, and the AM radio was crackling with static as a distant, sweet tune drifted in from a local station. The […]
The Iron Veins of a Growing Nation Whenever I take a walk down by the old rail yards near Sacramento, I like to stop and just listen. If you stand quiet enough, past the hum of the modern diesel engines and the chatter of folks waiting on the platform, you can almost hear the ghosts […]
The Scent of Summer and the Pull of Tradition The late afternoon air changes when July rolls around. You can step out onto your front porch, take a deep breath, and instantly smell it. It is the unmistakable scent of hickory wood and charcoal catching fire. Down the block, a car door slams, followed by […]
The Magic of Sunday Morning I close my eyes and I can still smell it. It is early morning, and the sun is barely up over the city. The scent of garlic sizzling gently in olive oil drifts down the narrow hallway of our apartment. It wakes me up better than any alarm clock ever […]
The Spark of the Outdoors The crisp morning air holds a scent you can never quite capture in a photograph. It is a rich, earthy blend of damp pine needles, morning dew, and the faint, lingering woodsmoke from the night before. I have walked under these towering green canopies for more decades than I care […]