My former advisor and good friend, Lewis Buzbee, who authored a much acclaimed book of essays about bookstores, called The Yellow Lighted Bookshop, likes to tell the story of a lunch he had with Ray Bradbury, back when Lewis was a college freshman. A few interested students were invited to dine with Mr. Bradbury after a reading he gave at UCSB, Buzbee among them. After they were finished, the rest of the students scampered off, leaving Buzbee alone with the author.
It turned out that Mr. Bradbury didn’t drive, and that his train didn’t leave for several hours, so he invited Buzbee to join him on the lawn. After a lengthy conversation, Buzbee asked Mr. Bradbury the secret of his success. Mr. Bradbury hesitated for a moment, looking over the lagoon, and then gave his answer:
Sandwiches.
You see, you can eat a sandwich with one hand, and read with the other, so you never lose the story. Bradbury might have a screw loose, but you can’t argue with an author that prolific. Since hearing Buzbee’s story, I’ve taken to turkey, swiss, mayo, and a well-salted tomato.
You’re posting again! O frabjous day!
I don’t know about that sandwich, James … seems slippage-prone, to me. I’ve had good luck with cheese and onion on sourdough rye. It doesn’t do wonders for my social life, but it does stay pretty stable.
Yeah, that tomato slides right off the mayo. I’m thinking of grilling it, but that takes time away from reading. I guess I should ask Ray.
You need a panini press, I think. You can just stuff that thing in there and forget about it until your smoke alarm goes off. Don’t ask how I know this.
One more kitchen appliance. Exactly what I need…