LOUD VOICES

antonio pedro ruiz

  • Inspiration Redux

    It’s Finals Week, and all my inspiration is tuned into making it over the hill. So, I grabbed this from the vault. The following was inspired by “On Keeping a Notebook” by Joan Didion for my English 404 Creative Nonfiction… Continue reading

  • Finals Redux

    It’s that time of the semester again, Finals Week (It’s two weeks for me, this and next week). I thought I would revive this essay from two years ago. The emotions are the same: stress, excitement, anxiety. When this semester… Continue reading

  • Betrayed

    I wrote the following short fiction piece early in one of my Creative Writing classes at California State University, Long Beach. The call from Herman B. (not his real name) came at one-thirty in the morning on Thursday, less than… Continue reading

  • What the Hell Happened, Joe?

    I dug this up from a year ago. Given today’s announcement of President Joe Biden’s run for a second term, I thought this commentary would be appropriate. I’ll have more to say about his decision soon enough. The news doesn’t… Continue reading

  • Stuff

    Do you ever have so much stuff rolling around inside your head that it (your head) begins to pulsate with throbbing rhythms? Here I am, five weeks or so out from the end of the semester and all I’m thinking… Continue reading

  • Living to 75

    “Every day you’re alive is a special occasion…The challenge is to remember, day in, day out, the specialness found in the ordinariness of our lives.” pp. 247, Everyday Serenity, David Kundtz I recently discovered that a former colleague, friend, and… Continue reading

  • Spring Break

    Partying in Palm Springs. Galivanting through Cabo. Rolling the waves off Waikiki. Yep, that’s me on Spring Break…yeah, that’s not happening. I’ve always been intrigued by the college ritual of Spring Break. Any excuse for falling down drunk, orgies, drug-tainted… Continue reading

  • golden tequila hangovers

    The following poem was originally written in 1994 when Tequila was my poison of choice. It was edited on August 3, 2022. I have been sober for twelve years this coming September 11. wake up/if you can rolling over/from one… Continue reading

  • Meditations

    I recently wrote about my morning ritual. Listening to new age music, consulting several books: Everyday Serenity by David Kundtz and 365 Tao Daily Meditations by Deng Ming-Dao, among others. During those sixty minutes, my world is focused on words… Continue reading