America

Cleanse

The summer of 1997, when cell phones were still novel and farmers markets were still about farmers, I spent the summer in Boulder. My internship at Time Warner Telecom was in the DTC, but I didn’t mind. There were roommates to hook up with, real hippies to discover and new words to learn. Trustafarian was [...]

So Mike, Croutons or Sunflower Seeds?

Recently, when on the topic of buffets (I have no idea) with a couple friends, we learned that a friend of theirs had recently seen Mike Shanahan at Souper Salad. This news was disturbing. I’ll even call it disappointing. Why is it that I cared? Why is it that I have such disdain for the [...]

Flashback: Six Months Back in America

We’ve been back for over four months now. Before we left, we met with Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and asked them questions about readjustment back in the States. One girl said: “I don’t see what the big deal is. Everything here is easy and convenient. It’s a life you’ve known for years.” Overall, she’s right. [...]

Road Trip, Part One

I had decided to drive home for Christmas. And once I put all those images of me stranded in a cornfield and then approached and kidnapped by Asgrow O’s Gold-logo’ed-mesh-hatted trucker in a locked drawer at the back of my head, it started to sound like the perfect idea. There would be pit-stops at interstate-side [...]

Embracing Normalcy

Life is a game to be played. Do you want to play with me?  –Michael Boudreaux, December 2008 That night, we went to Cherry Creek Mall and I picked up a couple things at Z Gallerie. Boudreaux drove around while I ran my errand. When he picked me up, we called our friend, Greg, in [...]

I Quit

I’ve always been one of those annoying people who follow through. I call people back. I complete the course. I finish my taxes on time. In fact, discovering that the world was full of people who tended to flake was incredibly annoying. But as I learned in my business, it also meant I got credit, [...]

DONE

I am depleted. I don’t know how to address the next room or meal or shower or person or bus or price. I am tired. Of my hairy legs and bug bites and greasy hair. Of dust. Of crazy drivers. Of the children at the window. Of rearranging my backpack. Of conserving toothpaste and treating [...]

A Little Like Homer

Back in Turkey, many falafels ago, we learned that the Turkish word for “one” was “beer”. Nice and easy to remember. In fact, we learned the numbers 1-5 by inventing a bar conversation: 1.Beer? 2/Eke (yuck) 3.Ooch (ouch! don’t insult my drink) 4.Dirt (it tastes like dirt) 5.Besha (that’s bullshit) The word for ‘beer’ in [...]

Running Home

About nine months ago, I rediscovered the satisfaction of catching a ball. We were at the final Peace Corps retreat up in the mountains. I was playing a little catch with a couple volunteers after a glorious run up the switchbacks. My stubby fingers fit neatly inside the leather, like so many hands before me. I [...]

Israel, U.S. State #51

Without warning, we had walked through our own front door. In Tel Aviv especially, there were leashes on dogs, work out clothes on women, and bikes with clip-attached pedals. Service was suddenly worthy of a 20% tip. People were in a hurry. Shiny hard foliage and bougainvilleas wrapped streets of stucco structure like display window [...]

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