mornings – Letters to Rachel

Dull Docket

Dearest Rachel – This letter may be shorter than most of the ones I’ve written to you lately (although you never know; I might be able to stretch it out into a thousand words all the same). I hope that’s okay with you. The thing is, there’s not much to tell you about today thatContinue reading “Dull Docket”

Garbage Elves

Dearest Rachel – One of the more mundane challenges of dealing with life without you is that of being the one responsible for keeping the house clean. I can’t leave plates by the sink after a meal – at least, not for very long – lest the sauce and crumbs stick to the plate. IContinue reading “Garbage Elves”

Elevators Down

Dearest Rachel – I really could’ve sworn that I would have needed to set the alarm last night. Granted, I don’t have a panel to attend at nine in the morning (although there is one on the schedule that looks like it might be interesting), but I do prefer to grab breakfast before things getContinue reading “Elevators Down”

All That Matters

Dearest Rachel – One of the peculiar effects (I’m not sure if they should be considered advantages or drawbacks; I’m sure it could go either way, depending on one’s perspective) of my making a point of writing you as soon as I can on any given morning – so as to “get it out ofContinue reading “All That Matters”

The Order of the Day is Silence

Dearest Rachel – Although compared to you, almost anyone could be considered a morning person (especially if one has a nine-to-five – or rather, a seven-thirty-to-five-thirty – job to go to), I never tended to think of myself as such. I mean, it’s not as if I wanted to get up at five in theContinue reading “The Order of the Day is Silence”

Thanks For Your Help

Dearest Rachel – It’s so weird to think that, only a few years ago, I was regularly waking up at five or so in the morning in order to shower, shave, get myself something for breakfast and get a little reading in before heading off to an actual job at an actual office. You’d thinkContinue reading “Thanks For Your Help”

Never That Young

Dearest Rachel – So, this morning, I woke up to the bright sun pouring in from what seemed to be all sides of the room (you know how it is; the bedroom has windows all around it, apart from the one wall that’s attached to the laundry room). But when I grabbed my phone toContinue reading “Never That Young”

Never Quite Ready

Dearest Rachel – So, since I already told you about the problem that arose while we were over in Akita, I figured that I ought to tell you about how things got resolved, now that it more or less has been. No sense in letting these things hang over one’s head, after all. Sure, youContinue reading “Never Quite Ready”

Waking Up to Reality

Dearest Rachel – I suppose today is one more reminder that I made the right decision in going straight home, rather than negotiate a day or two extra in Tokyo. I probably should also be grateful for the fact that my body managed to hold it together until we were just about on our wayContinue reading “Waking Up to Reality”

Dreams of Netless Flight

Dearest Rachel – Well, we made it home. In fact, we landed at O’Hare only about an hour after we took off from Narita – all that time change, stuff you know. That, in fact, was one of the reasons why I’d decided to stay home today from the ‘office’: it was basically assumed byContinue reading “Dreams of Netless Flight”

Up Too Early, Up Too Late

Dearest Rachel – I don’t know where I first heard it, but I have heard that the difference between comedy and tragedy is simply a matter of timing. It’s probably a corollary axiom to the fact that comedy is tragedy plus time; where any occurrence involving the loss of life (no matter how horrific) canContinue reading “Up Too Early, Up Too Late”

Enforced Rest

Dearest Rachel – We had planned on taking a shore excursion today in Busan – a Korean cooking class, believe it or not – but when we got aboard the ship, there was already a card on what would up being my bed, informing us that regrettably, it had been cancelled due to the lackContinue reading “Enforced Rest”

Super Dry

Dearest Rachel – This might be a bizarre introductory topic, but I know you would bear with me as I get started this morning. That was the beauty of our relationship, or any such relationship (I assume): we were each more than willing to hop on each other’s train of thought, and see where itContinue reading “Super Dry”

Muddled Morning

Dearest Rachel – It’s that kind of morning today; I know I’ve said it before, but it never ceases to strike me as topsy-turvy that the one day a week I have to set my alarm is a Saturday. Sure, it’s the one day that I actually have a commitment to be somewhere earlier thanContinue reading “Muddled Morning”

Fewer Words, but More than Speech

Dearest Rachel – There’s no particular reason for it; it isn’t as if the morning sky is particularly grey today, nor can I hear the impact of raindrops on the bedroom roof. It wasn’t that I stayed up particularly late last night, either, although I did find myself finishing a third batch of laundry atContinue reading “Fewer Words, but More than Speech”

Tears in the Fabric

Dearest Rachel – The amusing thing about a title like today’s is that we both know that if I trailed off, you would expect that the next phrase would be something like “of spacetime” or “of the universe,” or some other such science-fiction-y turn of phrase. It’s the sort of realization that makes me wonderContinue reading “Tears in the Fabric”

Lonely Works of Art

Dearest Rachel – I’d relate my dreams to you from last night, but even at this relatively early hour (as I need to finish dressing and head off to the Bible study), the only image I can remember from last night was that of you, sitting across from me at some outdoor cafe, sucking onContinue reading “Lonely Works of Art”

If A Tree Falls…

Dearest Rachel – It was a little after five in the morning when it happened. I was in the middle of a dream about a young husband (not me, obviously) trying to raise a ridiculous amount of money – some $800 million or so – for his wife’s medical expenses, and succeeding to the tuneContinue reading “If A Tree Falls…”

Scraping By Without Patience

Dearest Rachel – Life is something of a whipsaw between having seemingly all the time in the world and suddenly running out, and having to transition from dawdling to running full pelt in the blink of an eye. What happened to you was an extreme example, of course, but it’s a situation we all dealContinue reading “Scraping By Without Patience”

Empty-Headed Morning

Dearest Rachel – After all but nodding off in front of the family room television last night at around ten, I did the sensible thing, and headed off to bed. So it shouldn’t come as any great surprise when I find myself awake at six, long before my routine kicks in and I prepare toContinue reading “Empty-Headed Morning”

And [We] Still Go On

They buried My body, and they thought I’d goneBut I am the Dance, and I still go on. “Lord of the Dance,” by Sydney Carter (1963) Dearest Rachel – So, apropos of absolutely nothing, this is what I woke up to this morning. No dreams (that I can remember), no philosophical musings. Just this song,Continue reading “And [We] Still Go On”

You Don’t See the Light Until It’s On

Dearest Rachel – Back when I was waking up barely after five in the morning to prepare myself for the workday, I would often shower with only the nightlight on in the bathroom – because I really wasn’t ready to turn on the ceiling light, and assumed that you, in turn, might be bothered byContinue reading “You Don’t See the Light Until It’s On”

The Non Blizzard

Dearest Rachel – I woke up to something other than pitch blackness this morning, which I take as a good sign. Lately, I haven’t been regularly getting my full eight hours, despite my best attempts, and I’m not exactly sure why. Not that you were ever concerned about getting that many hours at a timeContinue reading “The Non Blizzard”

I Still Can Be Happy

Dearest Rachel – There’s a certain unfortunate bias in my letters to you. This is in part because I generally make a point of writing to you first thing in the morning. To a certain extent, this is so I can get the task out of the way, and get on with the rest ofContinue reading “I Still Can Be Happy”

Trying Not to Break the String

Dearest Rachel – I think it was somewhere between eight and nine o’clock that Lars called me last night, in part to wish me a happy new year, and also to decide what day this week to go walking together (for the record, we’re going tomorrow, as today is apparently threatening rain). At some pointContinue reading “Trying Not to Break the String”

The Pull of Memory

Dearest Rachel – I’ve already mentioned this week about how the dark of the approaching solstice serves as a demotivating force towards getting things done during this season (which, given that it’s the beginning of the holiday season, is particularly inappropriate; there is so much more that needs to get done at this time ofContinue reading “The Pull of Memory”

The Difficulties in the Dark

Dearest Rachel – Yesterday, even as she arrived and got started on cleaning up the house, Kris commented on how much she hated the fact that things were so dark and gray that morning. And to think, she was so much more motivated than either of us would be on a day like that; howContinue reading “The Difficulties in the Dark”

When Nothing’s Happened Yet

Dearest Rachel – I have to assume that the concept of time is meaningless to you at this point. There is no night, as I understand it, since God Himself is everywhere, and lights up heaven wherever He is, so there is no differentiating between days, or even from any one point of time toContinue reading “When Nothing’s Happened Yet”

Signposts and Detours on the Road to Recovery

Dearest Rachel – I can’t say that it was as regular as clockwork, but you should remember how, more or less once a year, I would come down with a cold that was so bad (for one day, at least) that I would feel like I ought to be informing my mates that my kangarooContinue reading “Signposts and Detours on the Road to Recovery”

Sick Day

Dearest Rachel – The only bit of good news when I woke up this morning at 4:30 (yeah, I guess I still haven’t gotten used to the time difference yet) was that my temperature was only 97.2°, so at least I know there’s no fever. That’s not even taking into account the fact that lastContinue reading “Sick Day”

Not Wee Enough Yet

Dearest Rachel – I’ve heard it said that, when you travel long distances, it takes a day to recover for every hour in time change that you make. I personally think that’s overstating things, as that would mean that by the time we were adjusting to the time in Israel, we would be pretty muchContinue reading “Not Wee Enough Yet”

The Satisfaction of Dreams

It’s often the little things in life that can be the most satisfying, particularly after a relatively long absence. For instance, after a week of irregular sleep, the fact that I woke up from a dream lets me know that I’ve finally gotten a good night’s sleep. It wasn’t anything fancy, to be honest. TheContinue reading “The Satisfaction of Dreams”

Too Tired to Wash?

Dearest Rachel – I’m not gonna lie, honey; when I heard that we would need to be on the bus as early as we would this morning, I considered taking a shower last night, instead. The trouble is that, by the time I was finished telling you about all the things that we had seenContinue reading “Too Tired to Wash?”

Confusingly Early

Dearest Rachel – Morning at the Royal Dead Sea hotel, and we get our wake-up call at 6 o’clock. That’s half an hour earlier than we’ve ever had a wake-up call, and actually earlier than I’ve set my alarm for today. It makes me wonder if we have enough time to get ourselves put together, outContinue reading “Confusingly Early”

Gobble, Gulp and Go

Dearest Rachel – A week or so ago, I finished transcribing my notes from our first trip here back in 2014. I had meant to use them to compare what we’d seen and heard then versus now, but also as filler, under the assumption that I wouldn’t be likely to be able to write fullContinue reading “Gobble, Gulp and Go”

The Difference in Mornings

Dearest Rachel – It says something good about a hotel bed when you wake up in it thinking year at home in your own – although I think it may have had more to do with the ambient traffic noise that I’m so used to back there. It’s less complementary when you check the alarm,Continue reading “The Difference in Mornings”

The New Saturday Routine

Dearest Rachel – I think you might remember me telling you back in the day how odd it was that, once I was able to retire, I only ever had to set my alarm on Sunday mornings. Of course, that’s to be understood; when we volunteer to work at all three services on a givenContinue reading “The New Saturday Routine”

Cringe

Dearest Rachel – I woke up rather a bit too early this morning; while I wanted to get an earlier start on the day because of various errands I need to take care of, five a.m. is a bit too much. But upon attaining consciousness, my mind started rifling through various topics to write youContinue reading “Cringe”

Barely Even Half

Dearest Rachel – On the mornings you would wake up without having had a dream to relate, you would often have a song stuck in your head. Now, you and I had different methods for expelling earworms; if mine was annoying enough, I would usually try to conjure something else up in my head toContinue reading “Barely Even Half”

Cold Open

You know how it goes; you remember how the episodes began when the revival fired up. It’s the top of the hour, and what you’re watching is too good, too professionally produced to be a commercial. The visuals are stunning, and the action has you already hooked on what’s going on. But there’s been noContinue reading “Cold Open”

In No Mood to Get Up

Dearest Rachel – It’s six in the morning, and for whatever reason, I’m awake. It’s not quite pitch black, but it’s pretty thoroughly dark out yet. Several muscles surrounding my Achilles’ tendon are still screaming at me, despite my attempts to stretch them ex post facto. And I’ve just woken from a dream in whichContinue reading “In No Mood to Get Up”

Too Soon Awake, With Too Strange Thoughts

Dearest Rachel – It’s another morning, and I don’t dare emerge from the bedroom, lest I run the risk of running it to somebody else. So, I might as well spend some time trying to talk to you. However, the most likely topic of discussion –my dreams – is somewhat out of the question, becauseContinue reading “Too Soon Awake, With Too Strange Thoughts”

#NoFilter No More

Dearest Rachel – You may not believe this, but I do have some rules that I try to adhere to with these letters I write to you. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I try to aim for about a thousand words with each letter (give or take a few hundred); enough to giveContinue reading “#NoFilter No More”

More Like The Painting

Dearest Rachel – After two or three hours of rinsing off pots and pans to be put through the sanitizer (using nothing but cold water, since otherwise it wouldn’t be enough hot for the sanitizer, so… that was fun), I joined the rest of the guys in setting up the dining hall for some kindContinue reading “More Like The Painting”

Even Magic Can Only Do So Much

Dearest Rachel – I already had a topic to write you about today – in fact, it was already a day behind, about yesterday’s events – but when one wakes up with a certain song in one’s head, and fragments of a dream lingering in one’s mind, one needs to get that written down beforeContinue reading “Even Magic Can Only Do So Much”

September Morn

Dearest Rachel – You would think that, of a holiday weekend, there would be more children playing in their lawns, more people out and about working around the house or walking their pets. It’s not as if I’m out and about at an obscenely early hour in the morning, after all; yes, I woke upContinue reading “September Morn”

Night Has Fallen (and it Can’t Get Up)

Dearest Rachel – You wouldn’t know much about this, but back in the days when I was still working for a living, I would set the alarm to go off shortly after five. It was early enough for me to wash and dry myself, get dressed, and sit around doing my morning reading while IContinue reading “Night Has Fallen (and it Can’t Get Up)”

A Wish to Return

Dearest Rachel – Last night, I found myself dreaming about our trip to San Antonio, and wishing we could go back there. I’m not entirely sure why. Oh, don’t get me wrong; there are plenty of good reasons to want to. The place we stayed at was really quite something, with its expansive room andContinue reading “A Wish to Return”

Way Too Soon

Dearest Rachel – I know I deliberately retired to the bedroom early last night in order to get up with enough time to get ready and be at church by seven, but I meant to wake up at five. Two a.m. is way too soon. And yet, that’s when I found myself awake, mulling overContinue reading “Way Too Soon”

Wobbly Wake-up

Dearest Rachel – I think it must be a symptom of old age – or at least, of the aging process itself. I either wake up hours before the sun does, or I find myself sleeping in past what I would consider to be a reasonable hour. And some days, like this morning, I manageContinue reading “Wobbly Wake-up”

No Plot, No Point… No Problem?

Dearest Rachel – There are times when I don’t know why I’m filling this space with the scenes I see at night. Most of them don’t have a story to them, and the ones that do leave me wondering if they were supposed to mean anything, and being unable to come up with any reasonableContinue reading “No Plot, No Point… No Problem?”

Silent and Sleeping

Dearest Rachel – Mornings are the best times I’m given to compose something for you; Daniel is still asleep (so I don’t feel compelled to hang out with him, wasting time – although to call spending time with him ‘wasting’ time is more than a little uncharitable. Still, I feel I could be more productiveContinue reading “Silent and Sleeping”

Cartoon Brigadoon

Dearest Rachel – I know that true otaku tend to take offense at their precious anime being referred to as ‘cartoons’; it’s the mark of an uncultured philistine to not recognize the distinction between the two very different art forms (or, more to the point, their styles). Only someone who didn’t ‘get it’ would callContinue reading “Cartoon Brigadoon”

Ten Thousand Days

Dearest Rachel – Last Thursday, after dinner with the folks, Daniel and I retired to the family room with them as we always do. Mom finished up the washing (yes, that’s her system; it helps that the kitchen counter overlooks the family room, so she’s part of the conversation as she works), and eventually joinedContinue reading “Ten Thousand Days”

Primary Concerns

Just remember when you step into your voting boothHe’ll never lie, he’ll just ‘embellish the truth’ Steve Taylor, “Whatever Happened to Sin?” from I Want to Be a Clone (1982) Dearest Rachel – It’s that time again. No, it’s time to spin the Wheel of Amorality, otherwise known as ‘our civic duty,’ or, more toContinue reading “Primary Concerns”

Let’s Try This Again…

Dearest Rachel – I’m fully aware of the fact that most of the things that are happening to me these days that I keep informing you of are fairly little things, when looked at dispassionately. A swollen thumb is as nothing compared to the loss of a limb, say, or (more to the point) theContinue reading “Let’s Try This Again…”

Between Comedy and Tragedy

Dearest Rachel – It’s been years since I’ve been here at Walker Brothers’ pancake house. I’m pretty sure that the last time we were here (and yes, it was definitely ‘we’ at the time), it was for a similar reason; we had taken my car in to have it looked at. That’s what happens whenContinue reading “Between Comedy and Tragedy”

Nowhere Near “In Control”

Dearest Rachel – After drifting through a dream in which I could control the flow of events much like the art director from “Duck Amuck” (although rather more violently, as one of the individuals in this dream Twitter video was chucking grenades at whoever was filming it, and I was simply pausing the video toContinue reading “Nowhere Near “In Control””

Wearing Down the Grindstone

Dearest Rachel – I think that, as long as I continue to write you every day, I’m not going to be able to let the 23rd of the month pass without comment. Much as I’d like to get over it, I don’t think it’s possible for me to do so for the foreseeable future, unlessContinue reading “Wearing Down the Grindstone”

Up Too Soon

Dearest Rachel – After two days of mostly threatening – or outright raining – the sun is what comes pouring into our room… at 6:30 in the morning. Much as I’d like to sleep in that much longer, that’s just not going to be in the cards. You’d have probably gotten up this early yourselfContinue reading “Up Too Soon”

Under the Weather

Dearest Rachel – It would seem that, somewhere along the way, Daniel has caught a cold. Neither of us knows from where, but it’s not an altogether unexpected situation; for all our love for the milder climate of spring and fall in comparison to the more extreme summer and winter May and November have neverContinue reading “Under the Weather”

A Chance to Sleep In

Dearest Rachel – I don’t know about you, since we rarely ever used the phrase, but I always thought the expression ‘thank God it’s Friday’ was just a little shy of blasphemous. Maybe it was just profane. Sure, it could appropriately be applied to Good Friday, but an ordinary Friday? Not so much. And yet,Continue reading “A Chance to Sleep In”

Suddenly Summer

Dearest Rachel – It’s a commonly-held truism here in the Chicago area (and, now that I think about it, throughout the Midwest – so you’d be just as familiar with it as I) that “if you don’t like the weather around here, just wait five minutes.” It’s an exaggeration to make a humorous point, ofContinue reading “Suddenly Summer”

Why Are We Messing With This?

Dearest Rachel – I suppose I really should’ve seen this day coming. Not so much the dream, however. Let me start with it, as it’s the first thing that I wake up to. I warn you, however, but it’s not a subject matter that really interests you – not to mention, neither you nor IContinue reading “Why Are We Messing With This?”

An Approach to Stress

Dearest Rachel – After a dream in which I’d had a near screaming match provoked by Mohinder for – as far as I could tell – absolutely no reason (which, as bad as he could be, never happened in real life, thankfully), I woke up glad to be where I was, but knowing this wasContinue reading “An Approach to Stress”

Hard Reboot

Dearest Rachel – I know you would consider me as such, but I would deny that I’m really a ‘morning person,’ except by default. That is, I’m clearly not a night owl – I would rarely stay up past midnight, even back in college, and would usually be in bed by 10:30. But that wasContinue reading “Hard Reboot”

A Strange Slow Morning

Dearest Rachel – Well, it so happened that my concerns about the end of silence were a little bit premature. I’ve been slow-walking the day, since I’ve nowhere to go, and nothing to do until my doctor’s appointment just before noon. Daniel’s been asleep the whole time, despite my rattling about in the kitchen, polishingContinue reading “A Strange Slow Morning”

Messages in the Morning

Dearest Rachel – It’s six-thirty in the morning; I need to get up and prepare myself for the day. It’s ironic that it’s the weekend in which I have to wake up and be somewhere, while during the week, there’s never any rush (although I always feel the need to let the folks know whenContinue reading “Messages in the Morning”

Birdsong and Burglar Lights

Dearest Rachel – It’s still quite dark when I’m woken up by the sound of the birds in our backyard yelling at each other to stay out of their territory. It’s a welcome sign of spring, to be sure, but there are sometimes when I wish it wouldn’t be so loud so early. Don’t knowContinue reading “Birdsong and Burglar Lights”

The Darkness of the Morning

Dearest Rachel – For all that I claim to like it as dark as possible when I’m trying to sleep, this is really something else. When I take the key card out of the little slot by the room door, all the lights go out – and I do mean all the lights. Were atContinue reading “The Darkness of the Morning”

Arrant Nonsense

Dearest Rachel – Of all the earworms to have going through my head, this is the one I wake up hearing? I’ve been Norman Mailered, Maxwell Taylored.I’ve been John O’Hara’d, McNamara’d.I’ve been Rolling Stoned and Beatled ’til I’m blind!I’ve been Ayn Randed, nearly brandedA Communist, ’cause I’m left-handedThat’s the hand they use… well… never mind.Continue reading “Arrant Nonsense”

Preparing for Takeoff

Dearest Rachel – Were this any other morning, I would probably be making a big deal out of the fact that this is the four hundredth day in a row that I’ve written to you. That’s right; I’ve been letting you know what’s been going on with me, and what’s been happening on the planetContinue reading “Preparing for Takeoff”

Distance and Silence

Dearest Rachel – Sunday mornings are a challenge for me these days. Well, every morning is a bit of a challenge, but the weekend is particularly difficult. While I think I’m starting to get accustomed to the fact that the bed – and the room – are empty apart from myself, and you’re not goingContinue reading “Distance and Silence”

Shades of Morning

Dearest Rachel – I’ve begun to acclimatize myself to the fact that Daniel is awake and in his rocking chair by the time I’ve showered and gotten dressed in the morning (especially since, these days, I’ve taken to writing to you as I dry off from said shower). I’ve convinced myself that it’s partly dueContinue reading “Shades of Morning”

It Takes More Than Just Me

Dearest Rachel – I mentioned last night about how I needed to get this written down in some way. For whatever reason, I can’t seem to find the book in which this recipe is written, and it is one of those few responsibilities I have with regards to cooking as part of our family traditions.Continue reading “It Takes More Than Just Me”

The Wind Has No Answer

Dearest Rachel – I wonder if you ever bother to look down on the earth from wherever you may be. How fast is it moving, from your perspective? They say that the spin is a thousand miles an hour at the equator, but what is that on a sphere of 24,000 miles in circumference? CanContinue reading “The Wind Has No Answer”

In Need of a Jump Start

Dearest Rachel – You’d think, that after nodding off in the recliner sometime between nine and ten last night (I don’t remember exactly when; after all, I was asleep), I wouldn’t have any problem getting up early this morning. you think I wouldn’t have the need to slap the snooze button three times in aContinue reading “In Need of a Jump Start”

Staring at the Ceiling

Dearest Rachel – Even now, it’s almost too early to get up, but I’ve been awake for almost three hours, just staring up at the ceiling that we woke up to for the past twenty-five years. The sun has begun to show its face and shine its light after I’ve been lying in these hoursContinue reading “Staring at the Ceiling”

Too Early on a Saturday

Dearest Rachel – I don’t know if it’s that I haven’t acclimatized myself to the time zone, or just that I fell asleep too early while Daniel and Logan were in the family room watching this or that. Maybe it’s just the wind, whipping around outside the bedroom; since there are windows on three sidesContinue reading “Too Early on a Saturday”

In Darkest Night

Dearest Rachel – It’s almost funny. I finished my dinner in darkness, returned to the hotel in darkness, settled my bill and went to bed in that same darkness. All fairly normal. But in that self same darkness, I’m waking up, taking a taxi, flying to Amsterdam, and will land there in that same darkness.Continue reading “In Darkest Night”

As Lazy as the Sun

Dearest Rachel – There is a disadvantage to untethering ourselves from the likes of alarm clocks and whatnot, relying solely on our own circadian rhythms to determine when to wake up. As the days grow shorter, and the sun gets up that much later every day, so we find ourselves sleeping in as well, becomingContinue reading “As Lazy as the Sun”

A Saturday Off

Dearest Rachel – There’s about two hundred guys up at camp this weekend. Neither Daniel nor I are among them. Needless to say, this Saturday seems… off. Normally, at this hour, I’d be returning from the Bible study, probably after running an errand or two in the process. I won’t say that I’ve been thereContinue reading “A Saturday Off”

A New Theme Song

Dearest Rachel – I think I’ve mentioned the joke before in these letters, and when we were all watching certain meme channels, we were familiar with it, but it bears repeating: if you think of your life as a television series, your alarm clock is basically your theme music, since it’s what starts each episode.Continue reading “A New Theme Song”

The Point of Deception

Dearest Rachel – I had originally planned on writing you about how nice it was to have conversations first thing in the morning… but then, things took a bit of a turn. And I’m afraid this isn’t really a trip down memory lane. More often than not, while I would make a point of kissingContinue reading “The Point of Deception”

Can’t Get Too Comfortable

Dearest Rachel – I swear, honey, I have got to learn – or perhaps, rather unlearn – about falling asleep in the rocking chair. Namely, that I really shouldn’t do that. It messes up my sleep schedule, breaking the night in half. The trouble is, it’s too comfortable in that chair. I watch videos withContinue reading “Can’t Get Too Comfortable”

A Still, Dark Night

Dearest Rachel – I haven’t taken everything down, now that Chompers is with you. There is a lot to wash and pack up that belonged to him that we’ll never use again, and I’m in no mood to go through it all right away. But one thing that I did remove almost immediate is theContinue reading “A Still, Dark Night”

American Royalty

Good morning, honey – I woke up this morning with the – not realization, exactly, as it was a dream and cannot be relied on – that Tom Wopat and John Schneider might well have just been heavily into stock cars during their days at Hollywood High School, and lucked into a television series fromContinue reading “American Royalty”

Overpacked

Dearest Rachel – Yes, I know it’s only for four days – including today. But I really have no idea what I’ll need out there In Colorado, so… I’m packing a little bit of everything. Two T-shirts, two long sleeve T-shirts, two rugby shirts, two sweatshirts… and this is just for the remaining three days,Continue reading “Overpacked”

Sunday Rush

Dearest Rachel – After a couple of days of relative quiet upon enrolling on this dating app, starting this morning, things went somewhat crazy. I’m not complaining, exactly, but the ‘feast or famine’ situation – if this is what the typical experience is like – is a bit disorienting. As I mentioned previously, for theContinue reading “Sunday Rush”

Getting Started When You Can’t

Dearest Rachel – My morning starts at ten ‘til six; that’s when I find myself waking up organically. Some wag on the Internet has made the assertion that one’s alarm clock represents one’s theme song, because that’s how you begin most every episode of your life. If that’s the case, then it would seem thatContinue reading “Getting Started When You Can’t”

from Rachel: Made to Last Forever

“4/23: I should stop staying up past midnight, so that I may be able to start getting up earlier to have some quality time with my Lord. Thus, I should also start reading from the Bible every day and praying diligently and earnestly for family, friends, church, neighbors, etc.” Dearest Rachel – It’s a fairlyContinue reading “from Rachel: Made to Last Forever”

Morning in an Empty Hotel Room

Dearest Rachel – It’s Friday morning, just a little after seven (which means I’ve actually slept in after last night, to be honest). I’m awake, and it’s long before anything is supposed to start here at the convention. And there’s only so long I can convince myself that you’re downstairs, taking a dip in theContinue reading “Morning in an Empty Hotel Room”

Leftoverture

Dearest Rachel – You know full well that I’ve never been a fan of leftovers. Although it’s not the food per se – give me a half-full pizza box from Lou Malnati’s, and I’ll be happy for days – it’s more a question of the obligation to eat it within a certain amount of time;Continue reading “Leftoverture”

Passing in His Sleep

Dearest Rachel – The other day, I got tired of waiting for Chompers to fall back asleep so that I could leave for the ‘office,’ so I just left him lying on the blanket in the sunroom, in the hopes that he would eventually find a comfortable position and go to sleep without disturbing DanielContinue reading “Passing in His Sleep”

Waking Up Is Hard To Do

Dearest Rachel – There are still some mornings when I wake up, bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready to take on the world and everything in it. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, God’s in his heaven and all’s well with the world. I can’t remember when the last time was that IContinue reading “Waking Up Is Hard To Do”

Fugue State Vignettes

Dearest Rachel – A quick word of warning: this particular letter is not going to make any sense, it’s going to hop between one image or moment and another. That’s because everything listed here happens in my sleep, or just as I’m yanked out of it. So, the other night, I was in in theContinue reading “Fugue State Vignettes”

The Brokenness of Morning

Dearest Rachel – Morning has broken like the first morningBlackbird has spoken like the first bird Eleanor Farjeon, “Morning Has Broken,” 1931 You and I are both familiar with the concept of the mondegreen, that weird phenomenon where you hear music lyrics – or more to the point, mishear them. Perhaps the most famous exampleContinue reading “The Brokenness of Morning”

Halfway Through the Woods

Dearest Rachel – Sometimes people leave youHalfway through the wood.Others may deceive you.You decide what’s good.You decide alone.But no one is alone. “No One Is Alone” from Into The Woods The song sprang to my head early this morning, as I tried to figure out what Chompers wanted at what even I would consider toContinue reading “Halfway Through the Woods”