Miller Time

UNITED STATES—I used to be jealous of opinions because I was around people who were so fluent in opinions. I took it as a sign of their intelligence. They knew French fries were only good when eaten warm, or I should change my 666 phone prefix because the diabolical connotations may prevent some people from calling me. These things...

UNITED STATES—I totally get it when a friend said after attending a big wedding back east, lots of family and drink, “I’m in detox mode.” I get it. Travel this summer has taken its toll and severely tested my easygoing live-and-let-eat philosophy. I was at the mercy of roadside convenience stores in a dozen states. At one point I was trapped...

UNITED STATES—So here we were, after two days in the country. We took a depopulated bus. Hey, it was a Sunday and we would learn that Madrid is in summer mode. People leave the city. The siesta is religiously observed, in the land where the siesta was invented, due to the torrid climate. The banks close at 2 p.m....

UNITED STATES—A lot of the drug store operation and staff was inherited from Mr. Meyer when Johnson Drug changed hands, in 1962. That inheritance included Alberta Johnson. Yes, she was related to Johnson, the Johnson whose surname the store bore. Alberta was his widow. He must have died early, leaving her with a daughter to raise. So even though she had a house on Cutter Drive and drove a T-bird, here...

UNITED STATES—Samuel Johnson, the British wit and man of letters, said that he never knew a man with a toothache to be a philosopher. Well, this concept I tested now and then during my time at 1980 Estrella Avenue. I suffered periodic molar aches and would just tough it out. They seemed to come and pass like rain clouds....

UNITED STATES—We all wish each other a Happy New Year and the post modern among us cringe at the conformity of the cliche. But what do we do about increasing happiness? What can we do about it? Here are a few ideas to chew on: 1. Learn to take a step back and let things ride. People are really wound tight these...

UNITED STATES—The property owner, Jim Wylie, was a gambler in a big way, but not in the literal sense. Jerry Segal, his colleague and fellow “slumlord” (they referred to themselves facetiously) thought Wylie the smartest real estate brain he’d ever known. Wylie could conceive mind-bogglingly complex deals, dazzling in their simple genius, and see angles where nobody else could....

UNITED STATES—The old man’s last moments must have been hell: that of the embalmed soul during the first time at a nudist colony. One by one the members of the plaid clan came up and bare-handed took clumps of dust and rocks. At first Zorba did not know if it was part of a death ritual up there. Moments...

UNITED STATES—"She always says, 'How long are you staying?' And then it's, 'when are you going?' And then: 'After you're going I'm going to cry.' And then it's, 'When are you coming back?'" "She's awful needy," says Davy. "I'm there for a 10-minute visit and she says, 'Are you going to spend the night?'" "She wanted me to get the job....

UNITED STATES—There they are again with that rustling, crackling energy on the streets. They travel in packs, little islands of smugness among us old timers; there they are shielded by a sense goofy camaraderie in the implacable gulf that springs between them and us who were here first. It would be breaking an unwritten law to hail them in...