Published in Vantage Points·Jul 24My Own Green ZoneLearning to Leverage the Normal and the Good When Back Among the Denizens of D.C. “Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.” -Dorothy, The Wizard of Oz. What’s it like to live in the Washington, DC, area? I don’t mean to visit. Indeed, everyone should visit the nation’s…Washington DC10 min read
Published in Vantage Points·Jul 1The Lords of the WaterThe Second Chapter An ode of sorts to an area and the friends we have there. As my time out here is almost complete, I feel like I need to say something memorable to mark it. Whether I have it in me or not is another matter. After all, when…Outdoors14 min read
Published in Vantage Points·Jun 30The Road Less TraveledObservations on Taking a Different Path For Patty. “Much have I travell’d in the realms of gold, And many goodly states and kingdoms seen; Round many western islands have I been Which bards in fealty to Apollo hold. Oft of one wide expanse had I been told That deep-browed Homer ruled as his demesne; Yet did…Perspective8 min read
Published in Quick Fiction·May 25Fortress of SolitudeJack Armstrong had always been fascinated by that place Superman went to think and be alone. But he had always wondered why the Man of Steel had built it in the arctic cold. That just didn’t square. After all, Superman seemed the smart, logical type. Why was his escape house…Fiction12 min read
Published in Quick Fiction·May 1Off the Grid in KailuaChapter One Jack Armstrong awakened. The first rays of dawn’s light were filtering through the blinds, giving the room that new brightness, washing away the night’s dreams. He loved the moment. He’d lay there unmoving, only the eyes working, taking in the new day’s first minutes of light. The rest…Fiction8 min read
Published in Welcome to the Machine·Mar 27The Longest Drive“I’ve been first and last, Look at how the time goes past. But I’m all alone at last, Rolling home to you.” -Neil Young, Old Man The call I thought I would always dread came on a brilliant, late January, Friday afternoon. I was about three months into a year-long…NFL18 min read
Published in Quick Fiction·Feb 27Thunder in the HillsA story come down from the hills, told by the town sage, in the dialect he would deliver it. There was a storm brewin’ up in the hills. The whole deal started when the town sheriff, Seth Jenkins, had his name come up in a fedral investigation into racketeerin’ and…Fiction8 min read
Published in Vantage Points·Jan 30The DistanceSome might think this is a strange existence — Living in different places and moving around, it seems. I never planned on going back to any of the old places. I’m not made to stay in one location — Not yet. Sure, I thought we’d be fully settled by now. …Poetry2 min read
Published in Vantage Points·Dec 27, 2021Breaking AwayBecome a Renegade from the Current Cults In modern English, a cult is a social group, defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs, or its common interest in a particular personality, object or goal. …Culture10 min read
Published in Welcome to the Machine·Dec 1, 2021How a Pandemic Unmasked the Hypocrisy of Football CultureThe Welcome to the Machine Podcast — Episode 16 In early 2020, when it became increasingly clear that organized sports was going to have to pay attention to the Covid-19 outbreak, the first sport to be impacted was the NBA, when it suspended the 2020 season indefinitely on March 11…NFL10 min read