Author Archives: journeysofabentmind

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About journeysofabentmind

Gordon is a Nisei, a second generation American of Japanese descent born in 1938 whose family owned a farm outside of Atwater, California in the San Joaquin Valley. His world was abruptly changed when on December 7, 1941 Japan’s Imperial Navy launched an early morning attack on Pearl Harbor. Thus began a chain of events that resulted in his family’s forced evacuation and internment in a “relocation center” in Colorado during the war. After the war Gordon spent his teenage years in school and working on the family farm. He attended U.C. Berkeley and graduated in 1960 and went on to the Graduate School of Social Welfare at Berkeley earning a Masters in Social Welfare in 1963. He worked in a number of social service settings and last worked as a case manager for developmentally challenged clients in San Mateo, San Francisco, and Marin Counties until he retired in 2000. When his wife Barbara retired in 2007 they moved to Eugene, Oregon following their children and grandchildren. Gordon lives with his wife of 55 years and close to the four grandchildren and life is just good.

The Evolution of a Bent Mind

Posted on February 8, 2022 by journeysofabentmind

I love photography. Anyone who knows me knows that about me. I started out as a complete novice, knowing only that if I pointed the box and pushed the switch I got some results. I had nothing to compare the … Continue reading →

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Journeys of a Bent Mind

Posted on January 28, 2022 by journeysofabentmind

I once said that I have always had a rich inner life, and by that I meant that I have spent much of my life in contemplation and preoccupation with my thoughts. To be clear, I am an introvert with … Continue reading →

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Photography is all about seeing

Posted on January 20, 2022 by journeysofabentmind

I ‘m going to tell you about this photograph, but first I’m going take a slight sidebar. Learning the use of shutter speeds and aperture settings, the weight of highlights and shadows, or placing your primary subject composed aesthetically, are … Continue reading →

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Magnetic Fields Are the Devil’s Doing

Posted on January 19, 2022 by journeysofabentmind

It is a little-known fact that toilets are magnetized and attract and swallow up iPhones. This is confirmed by scientific evidence compiled by this researcher in his own home. This has been colleague reviewed and scientifically confirmed by research conducted … Continue reading →

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Author’s Note

Posted on September 21, 2021 by journeysofabentmind

This story had its origins in an email in 2013 sent by Nina to Gordon with an idea for a writing project she had in mind. Nina is a retired teacher having spent years teaching dependents of U.S. military personnel … Continue reading →

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The World’s 101 Even Worse Puns ~ Vol. IV.

Posted on September 18, 2021 by journeysofabentmind

Humor: sudden, inexplicable whim or notion. The quality of being laughable or comical; drollery; farcicality; jocularity; ludicrousness; ridiculousness; wittiness; zaniness.

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StoryWorth: What is the best job you’ve ever had?

Posted on August 18, 2021 by journeysofabentmind

When I initially thought of this question, two jobs came to mind, my first job ever which was working for the family from age eight on, and my last employment from which I retired. I was eight when I first … Continue reading →

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Two Faces: Letters During WWII

Posted on August 7, 2021 by journeysofabentmind

My dear friend from high school, Celia Nina Wolpe, and I are working on a joint writing project about our lives during WWII. It is a memoir-infused novel about our two families and what in particular our mothers did to … Continue reading →

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StoryWorth: How did your parents pick your name?

Posted on June 19, 2021 by journeysofabentmind

I was born on January 25th, 1938 to Yoriko Ann Nagai and Ben Noriaki Nagai. My birth certificate was formally filed on the 10th of February, 1938 listing my name as Gordon Noriaki Nagai. A subsequent addendum to my birth … Continue reading →

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Tell me about a great moment you had while playing sports…

Posted on June 13, 2021 by journeysofabentmind

In high school I participated in two team sports, football and track and field, and did well in both. Because of my size, in football I was on the junior varsity team, what we called the B team. At age … Continue reading →

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