Hal Dendurent, Catalyst

Mobile Version

Travel Albums

E.European Church

Eastern Europe 2019
133 items
Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Hungary

Holland Map

Holland - Belgium 2019
85 items
1/3 of Holland is below sea level

Icelandic Waterfall

Iceland/Copenhagen/Malmö 2018
85 items

Japanese Shrine

Japan/Korea 2018
58 items

Old Town Korkula

Croatia 2018
108 items
Travel Narrative

PanamaMarket

Panama - Cartagena 2017
154 items

colosseum

Rome & Florence 2016
67 items

Angkor Wat

Southeast Asia 2016
102 items
Travel Narrative

Budapest Night

Danube River and Prague
2015

94 items

Hailey Climbing

Alaska 2015
62 items
Bouchart Gardens
(Victoria, B.C.)
135 items

Palace Guards

Spain & Portugal2015
117 items
(See also this great video
by a travelling companion)


Hal Dendurent
Hal Dendurent


Rule of Thumb
Place the blame at the highest possible level
Give credit at the lowest possible level

Little Life Lesson
Learn to like the things you have to do
Or at least try not to do them in a hurry



Humans are storytelling creatures preeminently. - Stephen Jay Gould
Sustain us in belief, protect us with doubt. - Patricia Storace
Yesterday is ashes, tomorrow is wood. Only today does the fire burn brightly. - Inuit Proverb
The Now is precursor to the Future and predecessor of the Past. - Peg Hankes
Memory is about the future, not the past. - Daniel Schacter
Be well, do good work, and keep in touch. - Garrison Keillor
To let work take over our lives is folly. - Carl Honore
No matter how it looks at first, it's always a people problem. - Gerald M. Weinberg
And gladly wolde he lerne, and gladly teche. - Chaucer
We teach what we need to know about. - Buddhist Saying
Keep on Truckin' - R. Crumb

American Gothic, by Grant Wood

See the variety of parodies!


Travel Moments
Sixty examples of a fun way to present sets of photos

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So Many Books, So Little Time

Washing Dishes

I don’t much enjoy putting them away,
returning them to routine places, stored
where they can easily be found by one
who does the cooking, though reluctantly.

But washing them is pleasure. I mean by hand.

Not simply for the warm and ready suds,
but for the messy forks and spoons and knives,
smeared platters, scrubby pots and pans;
and dainty vessels, children’s plastic cups,
plates, bowls, and tea cups, glasses, mugs,
and all the detritus of vanished meals.

Who cares that I must pile them on the mat
to dry them, leaning plates together, balanced
with caution on small bowls, precariously
astride the counter, stealing space, unlike
the neatly ordered load so safely hid
inside the dishwasher?

Yes, that is more convenient, and, I own,
dishes get cleaner. But it’s soulless, boring,
everyday. Of course, I use it daily.

But even so I find it calmly pleasing
To clean the heavy mixing bowls and beaters
that spawned the cake, and the gigantic pan
which housed the turkey, and the dish that held
cheesy potatoes that my daughter brought.

For this is what it comes to, in the end:
I wash the dishes for all those who eat.

See more of my poetry


Everything - or almost everything - in the universe is part of a self-regulating system. Galaxies and star systems, following the laws of physics, organize themselves and continue to spin out their destinies. Ant colonies are well-known as self-regulating: the whole body can even been described as a single organism, and has been. Cultures evolve over generations with only minimal guidance of law codes, and sometimes with none at all. A striking example of a society which is almost entirely self-regulating is the scientific community: researchers join voluntarily together to pursue projects based on similar interests, and yet a prime motivator among them is competition to be the best. More Prose


© Hal Dendurent
Reach me by email: hal at dendurent dot com

Travel Albums

Belly Dancer

Turkey 2014
Set One 136 items
Set Two 222 items
Travel Narrative

Reunion Dog

Family Reunion 2014
33 items

 Phila Flower Show

Philadelphia Flower Show
2014
50 items

Taj Mahal

India 2014

163 items
Travel Narrative

Forbidden City

China 2013
Set One 150 items
Set Two 123 items

Denver

Denver Reunion 2013
105 items

Egypt

Egypt & Jordan 2012
Set One
214 items
Set Two 701 items


Pocatello

Pocatello 2012
63 items


Hawaii

Hawaii/Mexico 2012
115 items


Russia

Russia 2011
194 items


St. Mary's Cracow

Poland 2010
206 items