INTRODUCTION

Visions of a Blind Writer  (VOBW)

Happy President’s Day weekend!

VOBW will be my new BLOG.  Some of you may remember my original BLOG, which intermixed posts of my writing with political statements.  This BLOG will be limited to things literary.

First, an introduction.  After completing three years of medical school at the University of Maryland College of Medicine for my Ph.D. , I resolved to spend my life in medical academia. My first position was as Instructor at the new medical school at the University of Florida. After four exciting years, I became an Assistant Professor at the medical school of the University of Vermont.  Three years later, I accepted an offer at Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons where I spent the next twenty-six years moving up the ladder to become Professor of Microbiology and Pathology. I was successful in my lectures to medical and graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. On four occasions, the medical students voted me “Teacher of the Year” and “Outstanding Lecturer”. At the same time, I was the Director of the Clinical Microbiology Service at the Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital. In 1992, I received the prestigious Sonnenwirth Award for Leadership in Clinical Microbiology in the U.S.

Shortly after receiving my doctorate, I accepted a commission as a reserve officer in the U.S. Public Health Service, where I eventually rose to the naval rank of Captain. I was tasked to establish Disaster Medical Assistance Teams in New York and New Jersey. I also lectured on biological weapons to U.S. Navy personnel. Several times, I was called for periods of temporary active duty.

When I retired from Columbia, I worked as a legal consultant in infectious disease testifying as an expert witness in many cases.

Fifteen years ago, I became blind due to age-related macular degeneration, but before losing my vision, I had qualified as a commercial instrument rated pilot and flew search and rescue missions for the Civil Air Patrol.  

My last two non-fiction books are Understanding Infectious Disease and The Biomedical Scientist As Expert Witness. Late in life and always a writer, I began to use my imagination and turned to writing fiction.

More about this soon.