It was a lovely Christmas weekend with family and rest and recharging, and as I contemplated going back to work, a sort of melancholy settled over me. I found myself thinking of the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem that was reworked into a Christmas carol, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” Longfellow wrote the poemContinue reading “I Heard the Bells”
Category Archives: tyranny
10 reasons to celebrate freedom
Digging into the archives again; I first posted this Dec. 15, 20217, five years ago today … stay tuned for a postscript. A long time ago in a land of hope and plenty, a perfect union was formed. But after a few years people got together to try again, declaring the new arrangement was “aContinue reading “10 reasons to celebrate freedom”
Still not quite a novelist
The 12 print-on-demand books of which I currently claim authorship include only two novels, The Imaginary Bomb and The Imaginary Revolution. Friday, Dec. 15, Bill of Rights Day 2022, will be the 10th anniversary of the latter’s publication. The Imaginary Revolution (Here’s the ebook)(Here’s the paperback) is told in the first person by Raymond DouglasContinue reading “Still not quite a novelist”
The things they will search for again
I felt dry as a brown pile of fallen leaves, unable to muster an image or a passage of serviceable words for my humble service for the day, so I do what I sometimes do to lubricate my imagination: I pulled a book of Bradbury short stories off the shelf. The Machineries of Joy, firstContinue reading “The things they will search for again”
Truth and consequences
What do I have to say next? What should I say? “What should I say?” Now, there’s an interesting question fraught with assumptions. It suggests that, when I consider what to say next, I may have things that I “should” say as well as things that I “should not” say, and the trick is toContinue reading “Truth and consequences”
The Eye of Sauron
Just for fun, let’s say you find yourself in possession of a vast cache of documentation showing the depths of evil being perpetrated in the world. People need to know about this, you think, for the good of humanity. You realize that the truth is not pulling back the curtain to reveal the wizard isContinue reading “The Eye of Sauron”
Indivisible
It caught me off guard, and I have no idea if anyone else even noticed. But it was an interesting omission. I was at one of those events where they decided to start by reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. Everyone dutifully put their hands over their hearts, and the leader led the way. “I pledgeContinue reading “Indivisible”