Miller Time

UNITED STATES—They are a breed apart. Certainly the classical DJ cannot be made but is born, the mixture of low-key charm and effortless erudition. No wonder bad-boy actor Alec Baldwin said he wished to be reincarnated as a classical DJ. The classical DJ has an inexhaustible store of good cheer and a steady supply of musical anecdotes. Most admirable...

UNITED STATES—"Hello," she called out. She was in front of another body shop not 30 yards away from the first, with its yard of wounded cars. They were wounded, but they were the best makes, and their owners demanded perfection. In contrast stood what had been a payphone on the corner. Danielle was old enough to remember, but for the...

UNITED STATES—Finally, just after nine in the hot clear morning, the bus curled around the overpass to the housing development 50 kilometers north of Madrid, where I'd spent two wondrous days. It left Fernando free to go back to his chores and Carmen and I were off to the city, passing through a number of smaller cities and developments....

UNITED STATES—Dogs can be our best friend because they can't talk. Nevertheless, I entertain the notion that dogs really do think and feel like Snoopy in "Peanuts." The thought bubbles are always riding up, unheard. DeVille has been moping around a lot lately, but he got a visit from some old friends, a poodle named Woolly, and a little yorkie,...

UNITED STATES—The fingers of the bearded guy in the driver's seat fondled the gold chain. Mary Reno's heart clenched. She stood, knees trembling in the gutter. Mary blurted out, "The chain means a lot to me. My dog found that." The guy's nervous hands and eyes kept probing the gold chain. He let out a sigh. "And I lost my dog,"...

UNITED STATES—In the jungle pervaded a smell of coconut oil. There were plenty of morenos, many black as starless night. The train, followed by a plume of black smoke. Sometimes there’d be like raindrops from the sky or a hot cinder thrown off from the train’s forward advance. Antonio had seen a man blinded that way. He still had...

UNITED STATES—I wouldn’t make a very good politician. I leave shambles, wars and broken hearts wherever I go. It must be my big mouth. Anyhow, nothing bugs me as much as people who are time vampires. There may be somebody I really like but if they get off track on the phone and tell me about the wart on their...

UNITED STATES—"Are you going to stay the night?" says the mother. Hers is the last bed in the room that has a light on over the headboard of the hospital bed. "Don't go changing the subject," says the son. "I didn't know there was a subject," the mother groans. "Can you do something about my head, so it can get comfortable?" "The...

UNITED STATES—In this last little corner of Bunker Hill two tenants jumped ship when they learned the Monroy's were going to sell to a couple of East Side real estate sharks. The Monroy's were not your average owners. The charmingly dilapidated bungalow that crept up the steep slope was not just another of Mr. and Mrs. Monroys' many properties;...

UNITED STATES—The case ended successfully for Detective Zorba. A trash collector in the magnetic train stations had emptied the contents of a trash can and turned up a wallet tossed out and a vodka bottle, it turned out to belong to the manager of the smoke/payday establishment, so he got his identity and got his cards back. The culprit...