My former life seems like a work of fiction anymore. It was such a nightmare when the FBI showed up at my office at the state capitol and arrested me. The trial followed with all of the horrible charges of corruption. The media were on me like wolves on an injured lamb. My ever-loyal wife of eight years left me and filed for divorce while I was in prison. I...
I watched the drop of sweat slowly roll down your back, leaving a wet trail between your shoulders blades as you sat in front of me, rowing us forward. It disappeared into your white tanktop, joining countless others that had drifted over your smooth, rippling back on that warm afternoon. Indian summer was upon us and we took our chances, deciding to enjoy t...
For the first two days after they had arrived in Cold Wind's village, most of their time was spent celebrating the return of the chief's son. Vincent and his two women were treated with honor and with much respect for having rescued and helped Cold Wind in escaping. Round Stone, who was Cold Wind's father, gave to Vincent and also to both women, all sort of...
After a series of shuttles on a small plane, a crowded bus, and then a truck, they arrived at the boat launch. Another journey, this one by water, and then they would arrive at the village where they would commence their studies of sexual practices among the Manogowans. Their driver unloaded the baggage into a pile and left them. His noisy truck pulled a pl...
Two days after he had departed from Vic and Kristen, Jim was awakening beside Vic's daughter Jane. He had almost immediately strayed from the path he hoped to follow. But Jane's first words after stretching and smiling up at his tall body standing over her bed were, "So tell me about Harry." He couldn't have been happier. He called Harry, told him they were...
Twenty five years on, one can easily see the mistakes made in their youth. But, as the saying goes, hindsight is 20/20. There is little to be gained by rehashing past mistakes in your head again and again, losing sleep over it, and making yourself mental in the process. And yet this is exactly what I did on a regular basis. It's said that without closure, no...
It was an early morning on the Irrawaddy, and the sun had not yet crossed the eastern horizon. U Tha slowly paddled his old aluminum canoe down the river. It was difficult work to make a living as a fishermen on the Irrawaddy these days, or anywhere else in Burma for that matter, but somehow U Tha managed, just as his father before him had. The trick, he al...
It started out as a weekend trip up into the mountains of Tennessee. It was late in the fall and the leaves had turned to the brilliant colors of a rainbow. The cabin overlooked a small mountain stream that flowed slowly as it made it way down to the lake a mile below us. The cabin had a large living room with a kitchen off to the side and a bath in the back...
"That was fun," said Julia as she helped pull the aluminum fishing boat up onto shore. "I haven't been in a motorboat since I was little. But they're so noisy. Getting here in a canoe is slow, but it's peaceful." Of the three girls I rescued from the lake the previous weekend, Julia appreciated being in the woods the most. She was also the most mature. It t...
Ch. 07: His Lucky Star Casey knew Sol Levine from grammar school back in Southie. Sol was the best stickball player on the block. But they hadn't spoken much to each other over the years. He had seen a headline in the Entertainment section of the Globe mentioning a major Hollywood agent named Sol Levine, but he figured it could have been anybody. Then Sol...