Lincoln stared past me. His etched visage looking out towards somewhere in empty space contemplating some great cone disconnected from what the artist had posted as a quote below him. “A house divided cannot stand.” It’s written in script to give it an old timey solemnity. When quoting the bard, even if it is Lincoln quoting Shakespeare,...
“We never talk anymore; you just stare at my liquor.” I shifted my gaze towards Delany standing in front of me behind the bar. “It’s not you, it’s me.” My blonde Asian barmaid chuckled and reached out with her towel to wipe off the bar where my Old Fashioned had been resting. I watched her pensively as she...
I placed my hat on the hatrack and breathed a sigh of relief. I was back in my office, my sanctuary. It had been a long afternoon, too long. But what had to be done was done. Others could deal with the ramifications of their actions now. I pulled down my tie and unbuttoned my collar....
There was a rhythmic flutter in the reflection. Water had pooled on the bar surface, a consequence of the moisture dripping off my Old Fashioned and the fact I had refused to use a coaster. A ceiling fan spun above me, reflecting light that creeped in from the shuttered windows and created a visual show in...
Last weekend, as many of you know, Sandy and I were at “America’s Game”… the annual Army-Navy football game. For those of you who don’t know… or who care to forget (Sailors and Marines, I’m talking to you!)… Army handed a smack down to Navy in double overtime… Now to be fair, both teams played well...
Barmaids can be interesting people. Typically they have deep histories and disturbing tattoos. Their presence can be both intoxicating and disquieting, depending on one’s sense of vulnerability at the time. When they don’t speak… or choose not to speak… English things become even a bit more mysterious. A few years ago I found myself on a...
This has been “a week”. A good “week”... but a “week” nonetheless. Actually, more appropriately, I should say it’s been a “two and a half years”... and technically we are not done yet, but the Sword of Damocles has been removed. (Thank God.) For those of you who are not aware, the Law Offices of Lieberman...
Today I held a One-Day CCW class. One of the students, a younger one, was attentive throughout the class. He maintained a professional air; he was poised, appeared confident, and was extremely polite when addressing the class. He performed very well while at the range, and shot as I sort of assumed he would shoot: tight...
People often ask me what inspires me to write on a certain subject. Sometimes it is pure interest on my part, sometimes it is prodding by my wife, oftentimes it is driven by current events. Occasionally I receive inspiration from a little nugget of knowledge I was not expecting. Such is the case with this one....
Professional”ism” at Arms If you have taken any classes with me, or listened to my missives, you may have heard me refer to the concept of Master-at-Skill-at-Arms. A number of people have commented on this term and the vaguely archaic nature of the way it sounds. Master-of-Skill-at-Arms is indeed an old concept, predating the invention of gunpowder...
