Author Archives: jaurquhart

About jaurquhart

Jack Andrew Urquhart was born in the American South. Following undergraduate work at the University of Florida, Gainesville, he taught in Florida's public schools. He earned a Master of Arts degree in English, Creative Writing, from the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he was the winner of the Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Award for Fiction (1991). His work has appeared online at Clapboard House Literary Journal, Crazyhorse Literary Journal, and Standards: The International Journal of Multicultural Studies. He is the author of So They Say, a collection of self-contained, inter-connected stories and the short story, They Say You Can Stop Yourself Breathing. Formerly a writing instructor at the University of Colorado’s Writing Program, Mr. Urquhart was, until 2010, a senior analyst for the Judicial Branch of California. He resides in Washington State.

My Florida … ambivalence (in words and pictures) by @JackAUrquhart

Posted on March 15, 2013 by jaurquhart

© 2013 (670 words) It’s three years this month (March) since my partner Raymond and I moved to Florida from our former home in the San Francisco Bay Area. It wasn’t a move either of us sought, but, rather, one … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Apopka Florida, Florida, Florida Photos, Florida Pros-Cons, Florida Stories, Florida weather, mid-life-changes, Mount Dora Florida | 4 Comments

Book Review, George Saunders’ TENTH OF DECEMBER: In search of the deepest, dearest thing

Posted on February 20, 2013 by jaurquhart

By Jack A. Urquhart, ©2013 (1800 words) “We left home, married, had children of our own, found the seeds of meanness blooming also within us.” The foregoing line from “Sticks,” one of the dark (and darkly funny) morality tales in … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Every Man Jack, George-Saunders-Book-Review, Morality-Tales, Neologism, Semplica-Girl, Tenth-of-December | 2 Comments

My Forty-eight, by @JackAUrquhart

Posted on February 6, 2013 by jaurquhart

©2013 by Jack A. Urquhart (1354 words) Lately I have followed with interest, and no small regard, the various “When I was…” posts (also known as “My [insert number]” posts) that have been showing up on social media sites. For those … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Coming out, gay father, gay marriage, gay memoir, gay mid-life, gay self-esteem, mid-life-changes, Middle age change | 6 Comments

Ready, Aim, Fire! Gun Facts Pop Quiz, by @JackAUrquhart

Posted on January 31, 2013 by jaurquhart

1. The total number of nonmilitary firearms in the United States as of 2009 was: a. 100 million b. 150 million c. 310 million d. 500 million 2. True/False: The U.S. ranks number 1 in the world in per capita … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Firearm statistics, gun control, gun facts, gun quiz, gun statistics, gun violence, guns in america, guns international, National Rifle Association, NRA | 3 Comments

Picayune Pop Quiz for Literature Lovers, by @JackAUrquhart

Posted on January 10, 2013 by jaurquhart

This author was the first Arabic-language writer to win the Nobel Prize for literature. Gibran Khalil Gibran Ahlam (or Ahlem) Mosteghanemi Tawfiq al-Hakim Naguib Mahfouz This American writer became U.S. Consul to Liverpool because of his connection to President Franklin … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

My Life in a Box, post by Jack A. Urquhart

Posted on January 3, 2013 by jaurquhart

©2013 (864 words) On July 23, 2009, I lost my job as a California civil servant. Like many life-changing events, my ‘separation from service’ was sudden; I arrived at my agency’s San Francisco offices at 7:30 a.m. and by 9:00 … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged foreclosure story, gay mid-life crisis, job loss, materialism, mid-life memoir, mid-life-changes, personal possessions, recession stories, self-esteem, starting over, storage industry | 13 Comments

A Letter I Wrote Long Ago, by Jack Andrew Urquhart

Posted on December 27, 2012 by jaurquhart

©2012 by Jack Andrew Urquhart (712 words) 9.29.2003 Dear Mom, I guess insomnia, like so many other things, runs in our family, because here I am—early on the last day of my visit—wide awake and thinking how wonderful it has … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Jack A. Urquhart’s Quickie Book Review: Tiny Beautiful Things, by Cheryl Strayed

Posted on December 7, 2012 by jaurquhart

©2012 by Jack A. Urquhart (320 words) I received Cheryl Strayed’s engaging, and often moving, Tiny Beautiful Things as a gift—one that (I’ll admit) I took my time in opening. That is because normally an entire book devoted to real-life … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Book review, Cheryl Strayed, Every Man Jack, Jack Andrew Urquhart, Tiny Beautiful Things | 1 Comment

Jack Urquhart’s Quickie Book Review: The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green

Posted on December 5, 2012 by jaurquhart

©2012 By Jack A. Urquhart (170 words) Who would’ve thought a story about star-crossed teens battling terminal cancer could be such an engaging, not to mention uplifting read? But that is what John Green manages in his lovely novel, The … Continue reading →

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Jack Urquhart’s Quickie Book Review: Bring Up the Bodies, by Hilary Mantel

Posted on December 5, 2012 by jaurquhart

©2012 By Jack A. Urquhart (132 words) Mantel is more than gifted—she’s an outright genius. If you read her Man Booker prize-winning Wolf Hall, you’ll know what I mean. Bring Up The Bodies (also a Man Booker winner) continues the … Continue reading →