The Words Fall Out

We had just pulled into town, starving. The hotel clerk recommended a place, a steak house. It was after 9 and a lighter meal would have been better, but what the heck. When in Texas, and all that.

I thought the name sounded familiar. “Is that the place with all the billboards?” He didn’t think so. Entering the parking lot my suspicions were confirmed. Yep, this was the place: home of the 72-ounce steak. […]

Air travel is a miracle. Truly. That massive metal tube leaves the earth and touches down in another city–or another continent, for crying out loud. It’s amazing! And for the lucky few who experience the miracle in the First Class cabin, it’s magic. Wide seats. Complimentary beverages. Forks. For the rest of us, it’s an exhausting pain in the ass. […]

A child’s eighteenth birthday: the mythical, most-talked-about parental milestone of all. How often is that age invoked, from the moment of conception, almost as an incantation?

“You’re committed for the next 18 years . . .”

“. . . what it costs to raise a kid to age 18 . . .” […]