Rochester

Fleeing the War - O Canada!

5 min read

Whatever happened to the lost art of hitchhiking? As a teen, I hitched throughout New York, New England and even coast to coast using only the power of my right thumb. People were decent and generous. Also, I suppose I didn’t look too scary to the salesmen, couples, hippies and missionaries who stopped for me, each with their own story to tell. This worked well as I’m a good listener. They gave me their miles in exchange for my undivided attention. With me, they knew they had someone who listened, especially that one driver who was fleeing the country.

Abu Tommy And The Hubbly Bubbly

4 min read

Ever feel outnumbered? I don’t mean to sound like too much of a Western chauvinist, but on my Royal Jordanian flight to Amman I was definitely the outsider. My clothes, fair hair and blue eyes clearly set me apart from a sea of dark complexions and darker beards. Not that anyone else seemed to give a damn. They weren’t alarmed about my copy of Chicken Soup for the Soul.  Or even when I started humming, “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head”. No one looked at me funny or reported me to the flight crew for being too white. Although they probably should have.