Writer and Friendly Neighbourhood Philosopher
Just Thinking…
For My Students, Past and Present
No matter how well the semester or year goes, students don’t just filter in and out of classrooms without leaving a mark on the folks who are educating them. They sneak into conversations, challenge us to do things differently, maybe better, and occasionally, they spark worry. Whether you love your teaching job, or can’t stand it, whether the year goes swimmingly, or is a hot mess, your students wedge themselves into your brain.
Bentham Under Glass: A Poem
Beautiful People, You Can Do Hard Things.
Difficult, annoying, inconvenient, and frightening are not the same as impossible, and it’s time we started expecting excellence from ourselves.
I Do Know Why I Wrote “Idunno”
Not knowing, and being open about it, seeking others who are also a little bit in the dark, isn’t the end of our reputation, our pride, or our sense of self-worth. It’s the beginning of an adventure, and maybe even a way to heal.
A Playlist For Those Who Just Don’t Know Anymore
Throw your hands in the air, give a couple of healthy shrugs, and wave the white flag on feeling like you need to have it all figured out. You don’t. None of us do, especially at a time like this.
Making It Through With Metaphor
It’s allowed a lot of us to understand how a virus works, and how we keep a society going through stress and isolation. It’s been our comfort, popping up in the movies, tv shows, books and music we’ve consumed while we waited for the world to open up again. I’d wager it’s been part of how we see each other, and how we see ourselves in the emerging “new normal”.
Still Geeky, After All These Years
My friends, you don’t grow out of geek. In fact, it gets much, much worse…and much, much, much better.
Knitting: A Poem
For Those Who’ve Lost Their Curiosity
I’m scared that what we’ve gone through recently has squeezed curiosity out of us, that we’re just trying to get by, and we’ve ceased to notice that there’s a universe worth of hidden ideas tucked away in it. I’m scared that we’re now too tired to search. Perhaps we’ve seen so much unthinkable awful that we just don’t want to tip over any more rocks, for fear that there will be more awful. Curiosity often yields the unexpected, and we’ve been given huge doses of the unexpected.
An Ode To Stubbornness (And Why It Isn’t Stupid)
I’ll willingly admit that we are selfish, crude, arrogant and that we have the collective sense of humour of an overtired toddler. But we aren’t stupid. Not even close.
A Playlist For This Strange New World
Henry Rollins once said “My optimism is loud and wears heavy boots.” Lace yours up and venture out with a bunch of good tunes in your head.
The Storymaker And The Elves: A Fairy Tale
The next morning, the writer awoke to find that same manuscript arranged neatly, his pen and ink looking alert and ready to work again. It wasn’t like thieves to tidy up after breaking in, he thought as he tiptoed over for a closer look.
Dodging The Meteorite: Why Writers Aren’t Going Anywhere
I’m going to have to ditch a few vestigial organs in order to adapt, maybe grow an extra set of legs or a pair of wings, but I’m excited about this brave new world into which I’m stepping.
Addicted To Asides: Why I’m Like Deadpool
If I’m awake (and maybe when I’m asleep), I’m in a heated discussion with hypothetical “others”, some of whom agree with me, and some of whom play devil’s advocate. It’s like I have a built-in fanfic generator for real life, one that allows me to run through a series of what-ifs at any given moment.
Lilies and Onions: A Poem
A Plague of Otherness
As we’re finally starting to get a handle on a virus that’s kept us apart, it’s becoming apparent just how detached we’ve been all along.
Fiction Writers Are Chronic Oversharers
Years ago, I heard author Wayson Choy speak at a conference, and he argued that we write because we think what we have to say is important, and based on what I’ve seen of writers, I have to agree.
A Playlist For Nonsensical Times
In the immortal words of Kurt Vonnegut, “Of course it is exhausting, having to reason all the time in a universe which wasn't meant to be reasonable.” Mr. Vonnegut, I am definitely exhausted. Time for some tunes.
Your Kid Can Rebuild You. They Have The Technology.
Things I was afraid to say and do seem far more say-able and do-able. Since this little girl joyfully moshed her way into my life, there’s been an addition built onto the wussy, wet noodle parts of my self. She’s given me an additional story that I didn’t even know I needed.
