—HELLO, LONE RANGER    

 

 

…Got lost again, and almost wrote back.

 

…One question is where to put 100+ pounds of blueberries.

 

…After a very big scare, it looks like my niece is out of the woods for now. She’s incredibly skinny and has lost all of her hair due to the chemo treatments, but she’s walking again, albeit gingerly.

 

…When someone says, “Can I ask you a question?” you know it’s not going to be your run-of-the-mill question.

 

…Shouldn’t we all be so fortunate that we think to ourselves, I’m the luckiest person alive?

 

…I’ve got a lot to tell you the next time we talk.

 

…Falling over you is the news of the day.

 

…I could use a reliable filter to take away the creases and the gray.

 

…A man in my shoes might be tempted to run, if only he could.

 

…“And all the papers lied tonight.”

 

…My son once said, “You can never hear, ‘I’m proud of you’ enough,” so I’m working on it.

 

…What hurts the most in us can be anybody’s business.

 

…Had a staring contest with the moon last night. Guess who won?

 

…If ever there was one, now is not the time to fall apart.

 

…I wouldn’t call myself a pessimist. I wouldn’t call myself anything.

 

…“If you drift too far, I’ll leave a light on for you.”

 

…If you want to get someone’s attention, try listening, or else whisper.

 

…It took me forever to write Wednesday’s piece, of which there are half a dozen versions.  What was once merely the same as breathing for me has now turned into something akin to an asthma attack. 

 

…Sometimes I throw a game or two, just to give the algorithms false hope.

 

…In a couple of hours, I’ll be on a train heading south. It’s a beautiful ride, hugging the ocean coast most of the way. Unlike air travel, no one looks you in the eye on a train, and if anyone speaks at all, they do so in hushed tones.

If you’re the type, say a prayer for me. I’ll need it/them.

 

…I’ll leave you with these two things to think about on the weekend…

 

…Anthony Bourdain (sexiest thing you can do on a date)...

“...you learn a lot about someone when you share a meal together. If your date makes the experience uptight and restrictive, well, the sex is going to be horrible too. ...I don't have much patience for people who are self-conscious about the act of eating, and it irritates me when someone denies themselves the pleasure of a bloody hunk of steak or a pungent French cheese because of some outdated nonsense about what's appropriate or attractive. Stop worrying about how your breath's going to smell, whether there's beurre blanc on your face, or whether ordering the braised pork belly will make you look fat. Eating with abandon couldn't be more of a turn-on: it shows that you're comfortable with yourself.

A perfect date is with a person who eats without fear, prejudice, or concerns about his or her appearance. I remember one of my first dates with my wife (Ottavia): She ordered a six-pound lobster. I sat there, enraptured, watching her suck every bit of meat from it—she got a standing ovation from the floor staff. She's the kind of woman who will order filet mignon as an appetizer followed by a T-bone steak. Her fearless, open-minded approach to food is completely alluring. For a dinner date, I eat light all day to save room, then I go all in: I choose this meal and this order, and I choose you, the person across from me, to share it with. There's a beautiful intimacy in a meal like that. It's about exploration and taste. And kissing after dinner. And maybe there's a little wine and curry on your breath...and that's nice.”

 

…"I'm inspired by everybody, I don't tend to be a negative person towards anyone, because for any kind of success there has to be a certain amount of discipline and hard work that goes into being successful. So even if you're not liking what they're making, you gotta respect what they did to get there. That's been my ethic, I think one of my favorite quotes is from Michael Jackson, and he said 'a great artist shouldn't have to put another artist down,' I think that always stuck in my head. You can't think the same way every day, but you can have a new approach to things, and a clean approach to new ideas." Harif Guzman