The American ethic is that if you work hard and play by the rules, you will succeed. In the large picture that may be generally true, but each of us lives in our own small picture where life can be more variable. Raul is the first in his family to go to college, struggling with working while struggling with courses. But he is a good student and goes to graduate school. He is on the cusp of his PhD and has his first job secured and his future all laid out. Then his life falls apart. More struggle lies ahead for him just to stay even. How does that fit into the American ethic? His story (On The Edge) is under the Life and Love section.

The picture above is a jackass penguin (Spheniscus demersus). It inhabits the environs around South Africa and is the subject of Raul’s last research effort before he finishes his PhD. Raul’s life and a penguin’s share some similarities. Suzanne Baird did the drawing.

This website is about my published stories. As you can see, I have sorted them into three groups: Stories About Friends, Stories Just for Fun, and Stories of Life and Love. These stories are the building blocks of the site. So I guess that means that right now this site is under construction. Ideally, it will always be under construction, because I will be adding stories from time to time. So come back to visit every so often and check out my building skills.