Posts :: Writing, All Kinds

Be Ready, Or Not

Posted by Brett Westbrook

· October 15, 2020

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by Judith Quinney Gerald was so good he never volunteered to be It. But he hadn’t been in quite a while. Everyone, from director to teachers to staff, acknowledged his turn in silence. Their heads dipped slightly as they met his gaze and then looked away quickly. The cook made only half as much food as needed for lunch…

Pillow Talk

Posted by Brett Westbrook

· September 18, 2020

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by Judith Quinney “Time. Time….time. What was that song from the ‘60s? The one with that ginger-headed singer with the pretty voice? Oh yes. ‘Who Knows Where the Time Goes.’ Who, indeed. What time is it now? Eight? Eight-fifteen. Carrie and Frank will be here at ten.” Maura rolled painfully onto her back, the song fading from her mind as…

Tacoma

Posted by Brett Westbrook

· April 9, 2019

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During a late May (2018) trip to Tacoma, Washington, Mt. Rainier kept popping into view. Wherever it loomed into sight, all I could do was stare at it, thinking, “That’s a live volcano.” (Brain processing) A LIVE VOLCANO! The thought of living in the shadow, no matter how gobsmackingly beautiful, of an active stratovolacano gives me the fantods. Me: How…

Would I Lye to You?

Posted by Brett Westbrook

· August 10, 2017

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While it is possible to make bagels at home, to get that brown, crunchy crust like store-bought bagels, you need lye. Yes, that corrosive poison used to clean ovens and open clogged drains. Don’t forget the hazmat suit! Or, you can bake some baking soda at 250 -300 degrees for about an hour. The change in chemical composition gets you…

We’re On Our 3rd Dam

Posted by Brett Westbrook

· August 10, 2017

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The Tom Miller Dam in Austin, Texas spans the Colorado River generating hydroelectric power for the city. It’s 100 feet tall and just under 1600 feet long, with 9 floodgates. It’s the third dam on this site. The original dam gave way during torrential rains late in the morning of 7 April 1900, killing several people, including two children. The…

The Lightning Calculator

Posted by Brett Westbrook

· August 10, 2017

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In the days before adding machines and graphing calculators, Hoy D. Orton (1842-1877) was himself a lightning calculator. He gave demonstrations and lectures, dazzling all with his ability to add long columns of numbers and compute interest – simple and compounded – quickly, accurately, and in his head. The Times-Picayune proclaimed that Orton’s free lecture should be “attended by all…

The Cunard Line

Posted by Brett Westbrook

· July 11, 2017

· 2 Comments

In my household, quiet was the norm. No loud voices at any time. The volume on the “idiot box,” my mother’s word for the TV, was always on low. The first ever, brand new car my parents bought was ordered specially from the factory without a radio. A metal plate about ¼ inch thick was soldered over the void on…

Be Ready, Or Not

Pillow Talk

Tacoma

Would I Lye to You?

We’re On Our 3rd Dam

The Lightning Calculator

The Cunard Line

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