My Portfolio

On the road…again!Afghanistan to ZambiaChronicles of a Footloose ForesterBy Dick Pellek   Hurricane Sandy   Many tragedies of Hurricane Sandy during the latter days of October 2012 have already been told, one at a time.  Most stories, however, may never be told.  Those that have been most affected may feel so...

Classic horror movie plot:  Couple on a date, hoping to make out and there is an "intruder" inside the house! For a while I was dating a great guy named Ron. My boys were really small and they liked him.  Evan must have been maybe 2 and Cody 4 years old. ...

Ghost Stories.... Almost 3 months ago I moved to small town in Texas and into a home that was built in 1920.  It is quirky to say the least. There is plenty of work to do to restore this home and I imagine it will keep me busy for years and...

 I happily left my job in corporate America on Friday, September 23, 2011. Being “free at last,” I decided to take a trip to the wild side of life (you must understand that the greatest risk I normally take in my life is cooking without a recipe ).Anyway, I decided that a...

On the road… again!Afghanistan to ZambiaChronicles of a Footloose ForesterBy Dick Pellek   C for Costa Rica The Switzerland of Central America is known as the country that has the most stable democracy in Latin America. Costa Rica is also a magnet for studies in tropical ecology, whether one is interested...

An example of an '88 VW Jetta.  Ours was dark navy blue.   Another close call... When I was 16 I got my driver’s license.  At sixteen and 2 two weeks I had my first ticket  for speeding!  I just couldn’t keep my foot out of the gas.  It was just...

This is an example of a jacknifed trailer. Yeah, well it seems like I have this...pun intended....fatal attraction with semi trucks.  See, back in 2004-5 my brother and I were on I-40 westbound headed toward Nashville, TN.  We were going to pick up some off-road tires for his Tacoma.  We were...

DRIVING ALONG INTERSTATE 495 IN THE BOSTON AREA IT WAS RAINING PRETTY HARD.  I WAS TRAVELLING IN THE HIGH SPEED LANE WHEN I NOTICED SOMEONE AHEAD OF ME COMPLETELY STOPPED IN THE SAME HIGH SPEED LANE. I WAS ABLE TO SEE THE CAR IN TIME TO QUICKLY PULL OVER INTO THE...

Generally, this is the car I was driving at the time...But Dark Navy Blue.  1998 or so Mazda Miata. Close calls eh?  I’ll give you a close call! Back in 2001 my cousin Heather came to visit me at my home in West Knoxville, TN.  She was staying about 20 miles...

As my body bounced against the rocks, my thoughts raced!  "Is this the way I will meet my demise?"

In the “dark ages” of mid-twentieth century life was pretty much an “assume your own risk” proposition whether at work, at home, or at play. There was no OSHA, no safety requirements for toys, games, child seats, helmets and so on, and very few rules or laws dealing with personal behavior...

As the van with it's nearly bald tires reached the crest of the deep snow-covered mountain pass we were exhausted after pushing it up the last 100 feet or so. It was desolate and we all asked ourselves why in the world we would ever try to do this. In airplane...

  On the road… again!Afghanistan to ZambiaChronicles of a Footloose ForesterBy Dick Pellek Horses and Mules   Once in a while making a trip by horseback was preferable to walking, but not always.  The Footloose Forester was only a sometimes rider, so never got comfortable enough around horses and mules to...

Lea’s Dream   The moon was shining brightly and I was on my way home.  Suddenly something went wrong.  Everything became dark and I was caught in a pair of strong arms.  It was useless for me to try to wrench myself free.  I was not in pain, but I was...

Cops and Robbers               The evening sun had hidden its face behind the mountains, casting a beautiful sunset across the sky.  Darkness was appearing fast, and another day had almost passed.             Our daily farm chores had been completed for this day.  I had just finished mine and was making...

n Normal 0 falsefalse false EN-AU n X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 ; &l t;style> & lt;![endif] --> Afraid She came up behind me, silently, stealthily and full of mad malice. I was 21 years old, full of brisk, confident starched efficiency, my attention focussed on the ward dinner box which had just...

One day, when I was a young mother of two small children, I went to visit my sister who lived nearby. On the way, I stopped to pick up doughnuts for all of us. While exiting the doughnut shop I stared, frozen with disbelief while watching my car, with my children...

September, 1967. The Viet Nam War is in full swing. I was 18 with the maturity of a 12 year old, more interested in the Beatles and psychedelics than watching the news. A disappointment to my parents, I spent the summer bumming on Cape Cod with my friend, Nicky Russo until...