I started reading the newspaper when I was 5 years old. I read the Morning Call at breakfast with my Aunt Essie and I read the evening Times with Uncle Bob. Later, when we moved to Pittsburgh, we got the Pittsburgh Press every evening. I’d read it after dinner and with breakfast the next day….
Author: Steve Ainslie
Unmarked Graves
My wife does not have tombstone. She never wanted one. Having a funeral, being buried or being memorialized in any way was not important to her. In our 29 years together, she sat shiva, attended funerals and tombstone unveilings for deceased loved ones but I suspect she did this out of tradition and to comfort…
With A Smile
Yesterday, I fell in love with a girl who works at REI. I dropped into the store to try on some gloves (as part of my never-ending quest to prevent my fingers from freezing). The girl saw me wandering around and came over with a big smile asking if I needed any help. I usually…
I Don’t Care If You Don’t Like It
What I love most about being retired and single is that I can do what I want, when I want, and how I want. With rare exceptions, I am not subject to other’s whims, rules, schedules or preferences. This, for me, is true freedom. An even deeper degree of freedom comes from not caring what…
Like A Wounded Animal
When I am sick or injured, I want to left alone. My natural instinct is to curl up in a dark corner until I feel better. I don’t want to be nurtured, cared for or pitied by anyone. There have been only 3 exceptions to this in my life: Aunt Essie always knew what to…
3 Car Monte
Two different neighbors across the street have 3 cars. Each of them only has two people living in their homes. Both also have garages that are packed with stuff, so they have to park their cars in their driveways and on the street. Another neighbor lives alone and has 3 cars that mostly sit parked…
Grief Brain
In the year after my wife died, I did some crazy things. I knew I wasn’t thinking clearly. I remember driving home one day and missing my turn. I remember waking every day overwhelmed with the thought that she was gone. I did the purge, sold my house and tried to live in the wilderness….
The Long Shadow Of Covid
Since I suspect I will need a root canal after my dentist appointment this week, I’ve been avoiding people and indoor spaces even more than usual because I don’t want to catch the “highly transmissible” BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants that are currently circulating in my area. It took 3 weeks to get my dentist appointment…
Four Degrees Of Separation
The heater in my pool hasn’t been working right for several weeks. Fortunately, it’s been warm outside and the heater functions enough to keep the water temperature around 79 degrees which is freezing to me, but bearable. I gasp when I get into the water. My first few laps I can feel my arms and…
Short Sheeting Myself
After my road trip ended I made a conscious decision to only buy what I absolutely needed. Having done my big death cleaning and purge earlier that year, I knew I could live with much less stuff. Plus, it irked me to no end when I had to buy something I had so recently given…