How do you raise the son, when your father is in prison for murder? Do you even want to have a son? Crime is committed in the operating room, and they blame the surgeon for it. Fatherhood is the most challenging job, and also the most rewarding. Watercolor by Kathy Flood
I see this everywhere. The commentators. Political, economic, sports, social, scientific. They all make a living of someone else’s ideas, work and sweat. Someone else’s years of work, preparations, and risk-taking. Austerities. And then exposing his or her creations to the world. The commentators can make or break your career. There are always more critics
The first condition to become a writer is to have something to say. It reminds me of the anecdote from the stormy life of Napoleon. Each time the Frenchman conquered the town, he expected a 21-gun salute. One time the expectation was not met, and the town was silent. No sounds of celebration. He called
I’m writing this a few hours into 2021. And what a year it was. Turmoil. Conflicts. I don’t remember such a consequential year during my lifetime. The monumental presidential election. A huge dynamic in national and world economy and politics. Unprecedented deception in the media. Everything topped by a monstrous pandemic. The coming changes in
Dla moich polskich czytelników. Koncert w Piwnicy pod Baranami. A teraz sam autor, Jan Pietrzak. Tekst oryginalny. Jest takie miejsce u zbiegu dróg, Gdzie się spotyka z zachodem wschód… Nasz pępek świata, Nasz biedny raj… Jest takie miejsce, Taki kraj. Nad pastwiskami ciągnący dym, Wierzby jak mary, w welonach mgły… Tu krzyż przydrożny, Tam święty
Teaching kids how to cook mother’s favorite dishes. Showing them the places your ancestors are from. Telling stories about how parents met and what they’ve done before you’ve arrived. Traditions. Most of the kids don’t think about what’d happened before they’ve been born. And if they do––it happens late in their lives. Often too late.
Human brain is a marvelous creation. The function of our brains fascinates me. But more I study, longer I live, fuller I realize how little we know. And this pertains not only to us but even more to the professionals. How is the memory stored? Short-term memory? Long-term? When you read the psychiatric literature, you’ll
We look at sky at night and see chaos. We drive on 405 through Los Angeles during the rush hours and see disarray. We walk into the forest, look at the trees and see discoordinated growth around seemingly unregulated river. Scientists study the environment trying to find out reason why the thing are the way
A disclaimer, frequently found at the beginning of many works of fiction, always puzzled me. “Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental” That’s the fallacy propagated, I
They were the largest group of the people participating in the Warsaw Uprising. And the only one not involved in decision to rise. Before war, Warsaw had population of 1,300,000, and the city was the seventh largest of Europe. In March 1945, after the Germans evacuated, only 310,000 were left. From the vibrant city the
They were young, desperate, and had seen enough of German savagery. They wanted to be free and wanted to avenge unspeakable brutality of the invaders. They knew they could die, but also knew there are worse things than death. But the youths of Warsaw weren’t the only players in this crucial moment of the Polish
Museum of Warsaw Uprising is a chilling evidence of the atrocity of dying Nazi experiment. Being beaten on both fronts, the Germans unloaded their rage on essentially defenseless population of the Polish capital. Their destruction of Warsaw was symbolic and reminds me of the epic razing of Carthage by the Romans after the Third