Author Archives: Gavin Stevens

About Gavin Stevens

Humptulips County is the wholly fictional on-line residence of Stephen Ellis, a would-be writer, an avid fan of William Faulkner and his Yoknapatawpha County, and a retired lawyer.

Rearview Mirrors

Posted on June 26, 2021 by Gavin Stevens

“The things that matter are those that lie ahead – rocks, hurricanes, pirates. Behind there is only a wake which rapidly becomes indistinguishable from the rest of the limitless sea.” Mark Haddon, The Porpoise “He dislikes all reunions and is … Continue reading →

Posted in 'Tis a Puzzlement, Friendship | Leave a comment

A Beacon in the Mists of Time

Posted on April 21, 2021 by Gavin Stevens

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past. F Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby “We all make stupid, critical mistakes – some of them real corkers.  But none of us ever thinks there’s an … Continue reading →

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The Immensity of Shrinking Horizons

Posted on May 7, 2020 by Gavin Stevens

When I was a boy growing up in an isolated valley in eastern Washington in the days before the Internet, I was restless despite the vastness of the sky I lived under. Even though the horizons were far away, I … Continue reading →

Posted in 'Tis a Puzzlement, Our Place in the Firmament, Ponderings on the Meaning of Things | Leave a comment

Legitimate Thoughts and Prayers

Posted on August 7, 2019 by Gavin Stevens

In light of the onslaught of thoughts and prayers from people who do nothing whatever to halt gun violence, it occurred to me to consider who, if anyone, has a legitimate right to send them to victims and families killed, … Continue reading →

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Our Brother, Mike

Posted on April 16, 2019 by Gavin Stevens

We have considered writing this piece every single day since our brother, Michael Donald Ellis, died on January 24, 2019. It wasn’t the dread of a chore which kept us from it; it was the magnitude and complexity of describing … Continue reading →

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Burl Dreams

Posted on August 14, 2018 by Gavin Stevens

Due to a recent stroke, I’ve had to relearn how to sit, stand, and walk.  I have sitting and standing down pat, but staying upright is still a challenge so my walking remains wobbly.  Around the house, I walk without aids of … Continue reading →

Posted in Friendship, Our Place in the Firmament | 1 Comment

Musings On A Domestic War

Posted on June 23, 2018 by Gavin Stevens

Perhaps it is right or even necessary to forget accidents, and wars are surely accidents to which our species seems prone.  If we could learn from our accidents it might be well to keep the memories alive, but we do not … Continue reading →

Posted in Civics, Politicians and Other Lower Life Forms, Words and Music | Leave a comment

Missing SMB

Posted on June 20, 2018 by Gavin Stevens

First, a confession: I am a book collector and assess bookshops with a jaundiced eye. I’ve been in every variety of bookstore from the well-heeled, inefficiently designed rare book shop that is a book shy designer’s idea of a library, … Continue reading →

Posted in Books and Stuff Like That | Leave a comment

The Accidental President

Posted on March 2, 2018 by Gavin Stevens

In the final analysis, the long term success of all organizations depends upon the quality of its employees and agents and how well they are managed.  This is true whether the organization manufactures the latest and hottest new gadget for … Continue reading →

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It’s Late October And All Is Well

Posted on October 29, 2017 by Gavin Stevens

It’s late October, 2017.  I have nearly completed my seventy-second October, twenty-six of which have been spent here on the Farm amid our fields.  All Octobers are watercolor landscapes, but no two are alike.  As with any watercolor of a similar view painted from a … Continue reading →

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