Author: Tony Farrell

You would think, after so many years in this business of raising a family, that we would have it all down to a science. Or at least a well-greased, satisfactorily…

Just look at you now. Thirteen years old and well over five feet tall. At ninety pounds, you weigh far more than I did when I was your age, and…

Now don’t you go laughing. I picked these out myself. And I think I look pretty good in them, too. The casual fit, the no-nonsense cut, the dapper shade of…

I have my glazed doughnut, my coffee, and a few sections of the Sunday paper to keep me occupied for the next hour or so. And I see it’s starting…

You like to do your homework here, and sometimes I come in and sit and pretend to work on something of my own. I don’t have much help to give…

I remember that first morning when we stood in this doorway and took in all the cabinets, counters, and ceramic tile that finally belonged to us. We had no groceries…

Look at our curb and you might see the Leaning Tower of Pizza Boxes. Or maybe the Great Wall of Chinette. Or even the gluttonous domain of Mocha Picchu,…

I suppose all that’s left for me to do now is whip out the credit card. Because according to my lovely daughter, the plans have all been made. She’s picked…

I have my #2 pencil. Here is the calculator with the enormous number pad. All my forms, receipts, and financial statements are neatly stacked in front of me. Time now…

I guess I might as well laugh. You’re next in line behind me here in the checkout line. By your clothes, your haircut, and that just-happy-to-be-here look on your face,…

What I remember most is the rain. All day, all night, pounding down on the two-man Army-style canvas tent, leaking through the floor, running like a cold river from the…

It starts innocently enough. You forgot to charge the electric razor. Or you’re fresh out of disposable blades. Or maybe you just got lazy one Saturday and ended up missing…