Going into 2011 I expected to at least double last year’s number of posts. At that point I was eying an extended summer road trip followed by an autumn overseas. Neither happened. Now, as 2012 approaches, I end 2011 with considerably fewer posts than in 2010.
So much for goals.
I was never good at them anyhow.
Did everyone have good Thanksgiving? Mine was good, aside from the carbon monoxide thing, and then the turkey catching fire thing. In the end, they added up to a whole lot of nothing and we ate heartily.
December is here, which means the… Continue Reading Yearly Archives: 2011
Goals: Past & Present
Going into 2011 I expected to at least double last year’s number of posts. At that point I was eying an extended summer road trip followed by an autumn overseas. Neither happened. Now, as 2012 approaches, I end 2011 with considerably fewer posts than in 2010.
So much for goals.
I was never good at them anyhow.
Did everyone have good Thanksgiving? Mine was good, aside from the carbon monoxide thing, and then the turkey catching fire thing. In the end, they added up to a whole lot of nothing and we ate heartily.
December is here, which means the… Continue Reading Recall Fever Sweeps Wisconsin
Madison, WI – Recall fever has struck Wisconsin, where a monumental effort is underway to oust Gov. Scott Walker less than a year after the radical conservative took office. After months of planning, the campaign began in earnest early last week when thousands of volunteers hit the streets to gather the 540,000 signatures necessary to force a recall election.
Remarkably, in less than a week, more than 105,000 people have signed the petitions. That’s more than one-fifth of the total signatures needed, with more than 50 days to go before the statutory petition deadline.
Though Walker is the main course,… Continue Reading The Dark Beauty of the Badlands
Badlands, SD – Cruising along the meandering scenic bypass through Badlands National Park in southwestern South Dakota it’s difficult to ignore the supernatural inklings they evoke. Teddy Roosevelt, awed by the dark beauty of this region, aptly described the Badlands as “hell without the fire.”
Indeed, this vast, jagged landscape is composed of eroded buttes and spires spread across nearly 244,000 acres that formed as a giant sea receded some 69 million years ago. Prehistoric animals likes mammoths, rhinos and saber-toothed cats once flourished here, making it one of the most fossil-rich areas in the nation, with some fossils… Continue Reading Maniacs, and the Women Who Love Them
The problem with maniacs is that you can’t reason with them. They lack perspective and all sense of proportion. They dwell so hard on the small things that the bigger picture gets obscured. I know, because all summer I’ve been menaced by a lunatic who’s gone to extraordinary lengths to rain misery on everyone around him.
Meet Joe, a developmentally disabled alcoholic who’s spent much of his adult life in and out of prison for crimes ranging from multiple drunk drivings to burglary. Joe and my sister were dating and living at my father’s house when I returned from Philly… Continue Reading The Town That Couldn’t
Lost Springs, WY – If you’re looking for a drive to get away from it all, I-25 north from Denver to US-HWY 20 east in Wyoming is about as remote as it gets. Two-hundred-and-fifty miles of beautiful nothing. You won’t see utility lines strung along as there are no towns along the way. It’s beautiful country, with large, rocky hills covered with prairie short grass. Wyoming is the nation’s least populous state and Lost Springs is its least populous town.
Lost Springs sits on US-HWY 20 east. It’s a town that never really was. It’s population peaked during the… Continue Reading Dude, Quit Pissin’ on My Van
Commerce City, CO – On our first day on the lot at Dick’s Sporting Good’s Park, a tall dready I’d met prior to the lot opening pulls me aside to ask if I want to do a bunch of coke. “Not really,” I reply. He seems a little surprised, a little disappointed. “Mind if I duck inside your van for a minute?” he asks, like he really needs a bump. “Ah,” I say, “I’d rather you didn’t.” No luck here, he darts off to find someone else with a van who wants to snort coke. Me? Well, I had beer… Continue Reading The Benefits of Using a Uniquely Human Trait: Foresight
Commerce City, CO – When hashing out the logistics of big projects I can always count on one thing: forgetting something important. Halfway to Denver I realized I’d forgotten several important things. First was a jar full of silver change that I save to pay meters, tolls and other small expenses. Next it occurred to me that I’d forgotten the folding table, which necessitated us having to purchase one in Colorado. I also left behind our drink cups and shot glasses as well as our extra cooler. In all, my forgetfulness set us back $100.
D’oh!
These were small… Continue Reading Red Rocks: One of Colorado’s Greatest Treasures
Morrison, CO – Colorado is full of natural wonders, undying beauty and vast open wilderness. Though the eastern range is a little flat and barren, you need not travel too far west of Denver to discover why the area has dazzled humans since the time Clovis technology made its way south from the Bering land bridge.
Just fifteen minutes from downtown Denver you’ll find Red Rocks Park, famous for its world-class outdoor amphitheater and its gigantic red sandstone outcroppings. Many of the rocks are sedimentary and formed the bed of giant river more than 245 million years ago. Then,… Continue Reading Down and Out in Denver
Denver, CO – One of my favorite state crossings is from Nebraska into Colorado. The landscape changes almost instantly from endless acres of corn-covered farmland to a craggy-soiled moonscape dotted with tufts of sage and desert brush. Barbed-wire fences meander into the horizon, disappearing into a wide open sky.
I love Denver, t00. As far as cities go it is clean, easy to navigate and the people are notably polite and helpful. I was called ‘hon’ more times here than in Hon Town, Baltimore and the bums say ‘thank you’ whether you give them change or not. No one in… Continue Reading 
McKenna and Droogs Torment Private Citizen