Category Archives: family

FREEBIRD INDEED by Peter Nolan Smith

Throughout 1994 the doctors at Boston’s Beth Israel spoke about turning the corner on AIDS and in January my youngest brother had made enough of a comeback for me to contemplate taking a West Coast job offer. “We’re opening a Milk Bar in Beverly Hills.” The original club in New York had been a success […]

Halfway Around the World

The first recorded circumnavigation of the world was completed by Magellan’s fleet in 1522. The Portuguese explorer’s trip ended in a bloody beach battle in the Philippines. Of the five ships and 237 men only 18 survived this epic journey thank to the captaincy of Juan Sebastián Elcano. His name is forgotten by the masses, […]

THE RAT TRICK by Peter Nolan Smith

Hockey was bred into the blood of many New England boys. Frozen ponds and backyard rinks were our winter playground. My dreams of playing for the Boston Bruins ended with my father giving my older brother and me a lesson in how to skate backwards. We were standing the wind-swept surface of Watchic Pond. My […]

JAI YEN MAI by Peter Nolan Smith

Several years ago on Boxing Day my daughter was playing on our soi in Pattaya. A pick-up roared down the street like the driver had murdered his wife and was bell-bent for the border. From my perspective the bumper came too close to my little precious daughter and I jumped on my scooter to chase […]

Fi Suay

Several years ago I nailed Xmas lights to the roof of my house in Pattaya. Ours was the only one on Moo 9 celebrating the winter holiday on Pearl Harbor Day. The rest of the farangs were too mean-hearted to pursue any happiness other than the emptiness of sex, drugs, and golf. I spoke to […]