Category: #books

  • ODDS and ENDS: Lest we Forget, Frederick Douglass, and…

    (Many miles away…)

    Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

    Frederick Douglass had a some thoughts on free speech.

    Now the darkness only stays at night time
    In the morning it will fade away 
    Daylight is good 
    At arriving at the right time 
    But it’s not always going 
    To be this grey

  • My Review of Gabe Montesanti’s “The Signs” in Split Lip Magazine

    Today, Split Lip Magazine published my review of Gabe Montesanti’s prose poetry piece “The Signs.”

    If you have a moment, please check out my review, but if you REALLY have a moment, please read Gabe Montesanti’s very unique poem, which Okay Donkey published back in April of this year.

    Also, I would like to thank everyone over at Split Lip for their help and support, especially Daniel, who guided and edited my piece. It was a lotta fun, and enjoyed the experience.

  • Reality of Homework

    So, the kid has started middle school, and new things have been thrown at her from her school, and on the whole, she has handled all of these changes admirably.

    With the exception of homework.

    Now, I am NOT here to say that her school has given her too much work, or any of that stuff. No, I believe that her school is rolling out homework at a respectable pace.

    It’s just that the kid doesn’t like doing homework, because she’d rather be talking to her friends, or playing online games. You know…

    And this isn’t like the first time that the kid has had homework. Even in her elementary school, she was required to read for thirty minutes a night, and do a page of math problems. If things were very hectic, she might also have a little science homework as well. Tops, all of this work would take her an hour. Most nights, she was done in forty minutes, and with only a minor amount of grumbling. Middle school homework takes about an hour.

    As we have been dealing with this new found disgust of homework, it reminded me of when she first got “homework” back in second grade. It was like five math problems that she could do at home, and she was excited to take care of it first thing after school. I get, because I remember doing the same thing at her age.

    For me, not that I 100% remember what my “homework” was, let’s say math, but it was the fact that I felt like I was older, doing ready studying, really learning. Home work was that thing my older brothers had to do, and it must be a good thing because they were smarter than me, so homework made you smarter. And I wanted to be smarter. What I do remember concretely was the feeling of accomplishment for completing whatever that homework was, and also how my brothers told me I shouldn’t be excited to get homework because it was like a punishment.

    Clearly things changed, and I also remember the awful years in junior high, with so much homework, and feeling like it was looming over my life. I don’t remember that feeling in high school, though I know there was an enormous amount of homework. College was college, and studying and homework was just part of the deal – no point in complaining about it, but, again, it never felt soul crushing like junior high.

    Either way, life has come full circle, and the kid hates the amount of homework she has; no matter the size of work. I guess this is a lesson she has to learn – get your work done so you can do the stuff you want to do.

    Something like that.

  • Bad Movie Bible – Borrowing Blockbusters: Maxploitation

    Rob Hill is back with another installment of his “Borrowing Blockbuster” series from Bad Movie Bible. This time around he is tackling the Mad Max movies. If you are like me, then you love a wonderful good-bad movie to unwind with, and Hill find plenty fodder in the Mad Max world of rip-offs and imitation. This is just part one, so I suspect that part two might only be a week or month away.

  • ODDS and ENDS: Start of the Season, Growing Up, and Getting Older

    (It’s always some other guy…)

    Yup, Saturday is the start of Tottenham Hotspur’s 2025/26 Season! Am I excited? Yes! Will they do well? I doubt it. Will I watch every match. You bet! Seriously, what’s the point of being a supporter of a team if you don’t support the team all the time! I don’t know much about the team for this season other than new manager (Thomas Frank,) Son isn’t with the team (moved on to LAFC where I hope he kills it,) and that the team will play in the Champions League this year. I feel ignorance might be bliss going into Saturday and hope to be pleasantly surprised. Let’s see what happens.

    Can’t stop the kid from growing up and I don’t want to, either. Just a week into middle school and I can already feel the change in her. There’s a bit of more confidence, but I am seeing the first specks of anxiety. I’m happy about the first, and feel bad for the second. But as she gets older I can see now that I will be taking on a more supportive role, and not leading anymore. I’m trying not to mourn what is in the past, but celebrate the possibilities of her future. I can feel a wild ride is coming.

    Which means I’m getting older. And I know that I am old because my daughter did the math, and figured out, that if you use The Simpson’s pilot date of 12/17/1989, then Bart was born in 1979, and Lisa was born in 1981. “They’re Gen-X, just like you!” she yelled at me.