Front Porch

Ella Louise was the last voter on my list Tuesday evening, and I’d been going all day. When I called to let her know that I was on my way, she sounded ready to go. “No one’s come for us yet!” It was time to vote. A man was standing in her front yard. He […]

I recently signed up for Stitch Fix, an online styling service that delivers a monthly “fix” of clothing and accessories through the mail. You fill out a form, and a group of stylists selects several pieces to match your style. While completing the lengthy questionnaire, I pondered my fashion: Am I more a stripes or […]

There were many clues at first. The usually soft, packed down, pine needle laying nests were often a mess at the end of the day, the chickens were sometimes bunched in the corners of the coop and, the clincher, the missing eggs. On weekends I started going out to the chicken coop at odd hours […]

My daughter, Nora, has yet to turn 2, but she already knows three words for television: Elmo, Mickey and, lately, soccer. I began my fifth year as a stay-at-home dad not long ago, meaning that the FIFA World Cup has occurred twice during my domestic shift. In the summer of 2010, my son, Oliver, was […]

From the seat attached to the back of my bike, my son suddenly yelled “Whoo-hoo!” His voice echoed off the fresh concrete walls of the greenway underpass at Culbreth Road in Chapel Hill. This was our first bike trip since the tunnel opened in early June, and I had been skeptical about the need for […]

This morning, I dragged a lawn chair into my big dirt driveway, setting it under the broad canopy of oaks that filtered out the sun above. It was early May, but there were few mosquitos, no threat of rain and the air was quite cool. These were good signs, as today was going to be […]

I’ve worked in film and television for nearly a quarter-century. In doing so, I’ve met all manner of celebritiespresidents and vice presidents, CEOs of multinational corporations, politicos from the left, right, center and even under the aisle. I once stood on the edge of a dock to get an interview with Richard Roundtree; I was […]

I liked Disney World as a kid, but by my second trip, I was over it. Grunge had taken over my childhood and augmented attitude. I didn’t care about those animated characters. The film-based adventures such as Indiana Jones and Jurassic Park were interesting enough, but my mom was pregnant, it was hot and the […]

I suffer from perpetual baby face. I don’t just get carded at every bar; I have to flash my license to get into R-rated movies or buy a lotto ticket. I’ve never had a fake ID, but whenever I buy a six-pack, the cashier’s eyes trace the line from my birthday to my picture and […]