A Tribute to Tim Mackie

FREEDON--The quality or state of being free.  2. The absence of necessity, cohesion, or constraint in choice or action.  3.  Liberation from slavery or restraint of from power from another (independence).  4. The quality of being exempt or released from something onerous. LICENSE—Permission to act, freedom of action.   2. Permission granted by competent authority to engage in a business or occupation or in an activity otherwise unlawful.   3.   A document, plate or tag evidencing a license granted.   4.   Excessive liberty, abuse of freedom, disregard of law or property.      Freedom and license both have a number of reasons as we can see from the definitions above.   Using the definition above for license we see that the word freedom appears in it twice in two different ways.   Both of these ways shows us the difference between these two words.   As compared to freedom license can either be a pe...

     “Four fifteen already,, fucken great, that's just fucken great”.  A lousy fucken bank, I can't believe these asshole's don't prepare for Friday's when everybody is cashing their pay checks.  Look at all these shitheads on line in front of me too.  I can't believe this, don't these people have anything else to do.  Three, five, seven, ten.  Ten people on line in front of me.  I might as well just bring a bed in here and get some sleep, cause Lord knows it's gonna take this brain child teller a couple days to get to me.      How in the hell did anyone so stupid get a job handling money.   Oh never mind I see it, look at the size of the melons on her.   I suppose if I were her boss and dogging her like he surely is, than I would have given her a job too.   It looks to me like she's one wild ride.      Great, thanks you fat fucken slob, thanks for blocking my view.   Ted...

     “When you die, no one will come to your funeral” screamed Sal.      “Oh, don't you worry about it!   I'm going to be cremated so you won”t have a funeral to go to!”       One big happy family.   We used to be, not anymore.   No one would ever believe my two brothers and I were once very close.   All that changed when we married, but became more obvious when my father died.   Our family bond weakened.      I could very well be dead and my brothers would never know it.   I's so tired of picking up the phone to see how they're doing.   I'm tired of hearing,”Oh that's boys for you.”   My own mother says, “My sons don't even call me on a daily basis.   I only hear from you.”       My brothers only call me when they need something.   In most cases, they call because they're having what I call a fund raiser, an event to collect mon...

     You know, if I could have spoken at the moment I was born, I think I would have told the world to shut-up and leave me alone.  No, no I wouldn't, I'm not that cynical.  Yet I know there are some people who wouldn't agree with that.  People say I come across mean and intimidating.  But So What.  What do those people know about me anyway?  It's not like I was born this way.  At one time I was very trusting and idealistic.  But, of course all that changes over time.  How'd it happen?  I don't know, little things adding up I guess.      I blame it on my time spent in the service now.   But, that's not where it started.   No, it began years ago.   You see I'm dyslexic.   Not like everyone else today, but a real one.   I'm only saying this because it seems to be the learning disability of choice today.   Dyslexia the disability for the masses.   Everybody has to...

          I have selected three pieces for my portfolio.  All three were completed during my time at Ithaca College.  The first, “What the Monkey Said' is a semi-autobiographical stream of consciousness monologue.  It is generally considered my best work to date, and won honorable mention at an Ithaca College personal essay contest.  The second, “In Vino Veritas” is a series of lightened the mode a little.  The last piece, “Forgive Us Our Debts”, is a straight satiric monologue, and although closely resembles the first piece; I think Debts is a much more humorous and self-mocking piece.  I hope you enjoy them, and thank you for this opportunity.

Necessity is the father of all alcoholic's From the gutter I hear what words are often muttered. Should I decide to leave I'm afraid I wouldn't know what to say. If I weren't a drunk then I'd only be a bum and I prefer to specialize. If all we have to fear is fear itself then let's all have a drink of bourbon and hail ourselves the conquering hero's. Should liquor be spilled and the mouse take hold let the cat run away and the dog be bold. Though the long battle hours many a bar maid has fled the whiskey's been spilled and you've turned sour. The end is near fate has spoken all those who've made it this far must leave It's closing time. In empty bottles there are empty lives. In full bottles there are hopes and dreams. From a sip of the nectar of the Gods to a drink from the stock of man, ending with Nightrain in an alley, was money turned a drunk from man. From...

     A friend of mine is having some marriage problems.  His wife admitted to having an affair a few months ago.   I suppose I should change their names to protect their identities.   Let me call him John and her Christina.   It's not a big surprise that this happened, in fact it was predicted from the very beginning.   So why am I going to write about it?   I don't know, perhaps simply because it's on my mind.   One thing I do find interesting about the situation is the way that everyone involved and everyone around the situation has perceived and reacted to it.   In my own case, I have been a close friend with John for over 25 years.   So, I cannot say that my own perceptions are not biased.   However, they are quite different fro John's.   Before I become involved in this that John and Christina have two young daughters.   This of course complicated the matter severely.      Just ...