It was another example of truth being stranger than fiction: rain, in Austin, in July. As I looked out the window, I had a double-take. I had to pause to realize that no, Chicken Little, the sky was not falling, and yes, it was actually real, honest-to-goodness rain. And buckets of it.

While the northeastern part of the country bakes, we have actually experienced the wet stuff and a (fingers crossed) only-modestly-blazing summer thus far. I am not sure what you call all of these strange weather patterns, although some might actually call it "global warming" - but I digress.

So while the sky is falling, grab an umbrella, enjoy the rain, and dive right in to the next episode of the Rhubarb Report.

Read more...

Life is all about balance. It revolves around the principle of homeostasis: the regulation of variables so that internal conditions remain stable.

Writing is but a subset of my world, but homeostasis certainly applies.

Some background is probably hugely valuable right now - otherwise you might think I have well and truly lost my mind in my extended absence from the pages of this blog.

Read more...

Our lives are chock full of beautiful memories. Some of the simplest things can trigger them off. Add some live blues music last week to some photos I found while rummaging around, and voila - an incredible trip down memory lane.

In those fleeting moments, I went back to places I haven't seen in decades. But it was more than just memories. These were some epic moments of growth and discovery.

Those were the times when life was really as simple as an open mic, a blues jam, a guitar, a glass slide on my finger, and, yes, some barbeque chicken.

Read more...

Silence. It’s one of the most beautiful things we experience in life. It’s also one of the most painful.

It might be difficult to imagine how one word can run the gamut across what appears to be the continuum of our lives. It spans the great divide between pleasure and pain, between beauty and agony, between love and loss.

Silence can be succulent and sensational. It can also be painful and power-hungry.

It’s time for all of us to break the silence on silence itself.

Read more...