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On:

I recently read that Elaine Kaufman, who ran "Elaine’s" in Manhattan, died, causing the restaurant to close. Since the décor was doubtful and the food was terrible, it couldn’t go on without her. Kaufman ran it like a private club, letting in only interesting talkers, mostly writers. You had to "be somebody" or "know somebody" in order to get in. Whitley and I never even tried, although we knew a few people who went there. Whitley was too unknown to get in BEFORE he wrote "Communion" and too infamous afterwards.read more

On:

There’s an old saying, "Those who can, do–those who can’t, teach." As an ex-teacher, I’ve always resented this statement, but after coming from a recent conference where Whitley and I were the only non-academics, I’m beginning to see the truth in it. This conference was held at one of the world’s most wonderful places: Esalen in Big Sur, a place by which its very nature (or BECAUSE of the beauty of nature surrounding it on every side), invites contemplation and as much wisdom as one can muster up. There’s gold to be found there–sometimes shining through the grass like a gold coin, just waiting to be noticed and picked up.
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On:

I’m now home recuperating from yet another kidney stone operation, but even though I followed all the "rules" and drank lots more water after my kidney stone operation 3 years ago. It turns out that some of us are "stone makers," who will simply have to get this sort of thing done every once in a while. This stone was even bigger than the last ones, which were "gravel," and had to be removed surgically.
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On:

When I hear the right wing attacks on Planned Parenthood–which are really attacks on abortion–I remember something I used to say to the conservative ladies I knew in Texas: You can’t have it both ways. Actually, the whole controversy should be moot because Federal tax dollars are not allowed to pay for abortions, no matter who facilitates them–and I think this is the right thing to do, when it comes to such a controversial topic. But here’s what I used to say to the ladies: You can’t be against both the problem (in this case, abortion) and the solution–which is contraception and sex education.
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