by Clifford Mae Henderson | Apr 17, 2019 | Musings
The first time I cried on stage was in college. It was a big deal for me. I was in an Acting Shakespeare class and was performing a monologue from Cymbeline. The character I’d chosen was Imogen, daughter of Cymbeline, the king. In the monologue, she is responding to...
by Clifford Mae Henderson | Mar 20, 2019 | Musings, Travel log
One thing I never have to worry about is getting too full of myself. See, I have this built-in behavior pattern that kicks in any time I might be tempted to even think I’m “all that.” An example: Recently, my wife Dixie and I had the privilege of teaching a five-day...
by Clifford Mae Henderson | Feb 23, 2019 | Musings
Lately, I’ve had ants on the brain. And in my house. Not the trails that many Californians complain of. Not yet. So far, all we’ve had are lone scout ants, those extraordinary individuals who have the courage, the compulsion, the drive to seek out new horizons...
by Clifford Mae Henderson | Jan 18, 2019 | fiction, Musings
I am sitting in my dining room, eating a bowl of oatmeal with raisins and apples. It is morning. I am perusing my latest issue of the New Yorker and come across a review (by Jerome Groopman) of Rose George’s book Nine Pints. The first...
by Clifford Mae Henderson | Nov 21, 2018 | Musings
I wrote this yesterday. Today, mercifully, it’s begun to rain! Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! May you feel safe, loved, healthy, and full of good nutritious food! But let us not forget those who must rise up from the fires and begin again. *** I was standing...
by Clifford Mae Henderson | Oct 21, 2018 | Musings, Uncategorized
I’m riding my bike along West Cliff, a beautiful bluff overlooking the Monterey Bay. I do this pretty regularly. I love my bike. I love the bay. You never know what you’re going to see. Whales? Otters? Dolphins? Lately, there have been tons of shore birds. They...
by Clifford Mae Henderson | Sep 19, 2018 | Dear Reader, Musings
The day started out proactively—and very much not in the spirit of improv theater, an art form I have chosen to dedicate a good portion of my life to. See, Dixie and I, aka The Fun Institute, had to plan out next year’s schedule. Much as it goes against our nature to...
by Clifford Mae Henderson | Jul 26, 2018 | Musings, Travel log
Posted previously on Women and Words. “Were you ever scared?” “Did you ever feel as if you weren’t safe?” Dixie and I get asked these two questions a lot since returning from our cross-country van trip. Mostly by women. It really sucks that women have to ask. But I...
by Clifford Mae Henderson | Jul 9, 2018 | Travel log
So the cat’s out of the bag. At least it is if you came to Saturday Morning Live improv this past Saturday, where Dixie and I got to be students for a change (way fun!) or if you were lucky enough to get tickets to see Improv Playhouse in Santa Cruz on Friday night....
by Clifford Mae Henderson | Jun 26, 2018 | Travel log
Earlier this month we had the privilege of hanging out at the Pine Ridge Lakota Reservation. A friend who really knows the place (you know who you are), has family and friends there, and very kindly took us on a historical tour, stopping by the mass grave at Wounded...
