I am a chopper of wood and carrier of water, a keeper of bees, digger of soil, and washer of dishes, but when people ask me "what do you do" I usually satisfy them with "I'm in information technology." If they really want to know, I'll tell them about the decade as a wilderness guide. Some jobs are vocations, some are avocations, but that one was an evocation. I also wrangle pixels and try to herd them into representations of coherent thoughts, which is a provocation. :-)
There is a lot to be said for the virtual world. The pixel universe gives us a place where ideas can achieve their full flower, grow and grapple with and bump up against other ideas to prevail, or diminish, or merge into something new, and all without having any real skin in the game. But this cannot happen when the gatekeepers of this universe keep their virtual thumbs on the virtual scales. … More A Eulogy For Piedmont
My favorite home movie stars my wife sliding down our snow covered hill on a sled, pursued by our two big-giant puppies. The big yellow one steals the hat from her head at the end of the run and plays keep away, bouncing around in the snow and snorting canine amusement. It reinforces my determined … More The Passing Winds of Change
This column usually appears online a few days before it gets published in the newspaper. Online readers have the advantage of participating in a discussion about an event before it happens (which is somewhat of a national obsession). However, pixels tend to go in one eye and out the other and what we read online … More Better Luck Next Time
Sometimes on a Saturday evening in the winter months, when it was too cold to play outside or perform dangerous experiments in my secret underground laboratory disguised as our basement, the television would be left on and Hee Haw would catch my attention. I wasn’t old or wise enough to appreciate the music, but the … More Cousin Eddie
My father used the expression, “on the square” to indicate something that was open and honest. It’s an old expression, rooted in freemasonry. It was one of the guiding principles of his life, and in fact it was a hallmark of his generation. That generation, however, did not live their lives in the two dimensional … More Dancing Around the Square
No, this isn’t an homage to a lost Dr. Seuss story. Let me explain. When I was a child (the first time around), I didn’t understand why my grandmother disdained opening Christmas presents. She preferred to arrange them around the house as decorations, and if we did convince her to open one, she did it … More The Farctated Philodox
In September of 1945, a farmer in Fruita, Colorado missed out on a chicken dinner when his axe went slightly off target. The blade removed most of the chicken’s head but missed the jugular vein and part of the brain stem. “Mike The Headless Chicken” lived another 18 months and became a celebrity and a … More Outside the…Coop
It’s been a rough year for many people, and we won’t revisit here what the pixel lords never allow us to forget .For me the best way to resist the pixel pushers is to practice gratitude, and in this simple and unremarkable photo I snapped this morning, attempting to capture the morning sun coming through … More A Moment Of Gratitude
“You shouldn’t make light of a thing like that,” said a friend in response to my title for this week’s edition. Why would anyone joke about something which has stolen life, ruined and complicated lives, frightened and divided a nation? Because humor is one pathway outside the box, and humor is sorely needed after eight … More Outside the Box – Pandemic Edition
It’s a beautiful day for an epiphany. Bright sunshine beaming through a crystal blue sky illuminates glowing patches of color against the graying background of our mountain. We begin the day in gratitude. Gratitude, we believe, is the best life preserver for the spirit. For a number of years that I don’t desire to count, … More Outside The Box
Outside The Box 