I'm an award winning and losing playwright and screenwriter; I'm a dad of two great kids, an aggressive spoiler of dogs, and hopelessly addicted to baseball and The Beatles. I have no recollection of ever having worn a mullet, yet photos in the 80's say otherwise.
Who Am I? Depends Who You Ask Barring a few Zen Masters, all of us spend virtually every waking moment (and every non-waking moment) in our own heads. These accommodations may strike you as lightless prison cells, bright, soft palaces, or something in between, depending on your moods and/or medications. Hamlet claimed, “I could be … More “We Know What We Are, But Know Not What We May Be”
Politics…has started to metastasize into gleefully naked power grabs in which the basic assumptions that make democracies functional have been replaced by a mosh pit, a zero sum game in which the sole object is the accretion of power. … More Thoughts from the Ledge of Democracy
First of all, let’s just take a moment to enjoy the aesthetic decadence of that word. It’s zippy, it’s got zest. In some ways, as we will see, it captures a greater than zero percentage of the zeitgeist. It is every bit the equal of “zozzled,” a Jazz Age term for drunk. But “zugzwang” isn’t … More Zugzwang
Not me doing sports, obviously. That’s bizarre and more than a little disquieting to even picture. But for many people, sports, or more precisely, following a particular sport, team, or player, is something for which they feel a deep abiding passion. For me, it’s baseball. And even though I’m about to relate something specific to … More Why Sports Help Me
Some talented people have acted out the skit thingy I wrote for here and spruced it up with their talents for your listening pleasure. Hope you like it! And please be sure to – if you’d like – to subscribe to our YouTube channel! Or here’s the link: LEAKED TRUMP AUDIO | An NNR Exclusive … More Listen to Something Being Read You May Have Already Read!
As the leaves start to turn, like so many stomachs at the sight of a MAGA hat, one becomes reflective. I’m the one, by the way. I’m not saying I’m Number One or anything, it isn’t an ego thing. I just thought it would sound classier. But reading back over it, it feels maybe a … More Autumnal Thoughts About Fall As Autumn Nears
Looking to verbally best an adversary? Look no further. Here’s all you need to be best at being a bester. … More Snappy Comebacks I’ve Written For You
The NY Times reports the FBI seized a recording of former President Trump trying to pre-emptively pardon himself and his children during its search of his house in August. . Here, according to anonymous sources, the transcript: Trump: So listen. I want to pardon myself for stuff. White House Lawyer: what “stuff,” sir? Trump: Just … More Breaking News: Document Seized at Mar-A-Lago Leaked
Like most people, I’ve led an unusual life. For me, part of its unorthodoxy is my insistence on trying to make a living as a writer. Let’s just say, it’s been an uphill climb. But occasionally I comfort myself with the knowledge that there are a million reasons why things either gain recognition or fail … More A Mercifully Brief Post About Knowing Nothing
Prime time cable shows aren’t interested in prompting informed debate. They are indignation dispensaries … More Please Stop Assuring Me I’m Right
Or “Insomnia” for You Fancy Types Until the last few years, I’d prided myself on my ability to sleep virtually anywhere, regardless of privacy, noise, or light levels. That this is what I prided myself on is a topic for another post. Categories of Sleeplessness There are two kinds of sleeplessness: the one in which … More Sleeplessness: a Meditation
The Story So Far I moved into a new house in March and for the first time in my life, I am the only human living with myself. I find, almost five months in, that I’m generally OK to live with, albeit a little moody and quiet sometimes. I usually keep the same hours I … More How Can I Live with Myself? Well, Let’s See
Art doesn’t owe me (or anyone) any favors. It didn’t sell on becoming an artist like it was talking you into a time share. Art says, “You want to be an artist? Great. Best of luck,” and then it walks away, probably on its way to a gallery opening in the West Village, and leaves you to do the rest. … More Art: It’s Just Not That Into Me (Or Most of Us)
I confess to not ever being comfortable with having pride in the country you were born in. Conceptually, I think it’s a flawed idea from the get go. A recipe for provincialism and a potent catalyst for intolerance and violence. Having said that, I admit there have been moments I’ve allowed myself to warm my … More June 24th, 2022
Why James Joyce’s seminal novel is worth the considerable frustration it may sometimes induce
… More Happy Bloomsday!!
I’m awfully judgmental for someone who temporarily blinded himself last week by vigorously shaking a bottle of salad dressing with the cap off. How did I get that way and how can I stop? … More Judging Judgment (I Know, Too Cute by Half. Not a Promising Start)
So my great uncle was, I think, 19 (let’s say 19) and stationed in England as a private in the US Army on the eve of the Normandy invasion. And he was scared out of his wits. So much so, he placed a call to his oldest brother, my grandfather, and confessed he was thinking … More Memorial Day in America
I’m a sucker for words of all shapes, sizes, and especially, sounds, but even at its gaudiest moment of impressionism, its chief function is communication… but when you use “stochastic,” [you’re] not making a good-faith effort to communicate. … More Words, Words, Words
each slaughter that sprouts up has chipped away at my humanity, and has created a thicket of scars around what I will refer to, for lack of a more exact term, soul. And these scars have left me largely numb . … More The Numbing of the American Soul
There are people, and you’ve likely met some of them, hell, some of you may even be some of them, who are, and there’s simply no polite way of saying it, organized. You know the type. The types who always take out the correct recycling on the right night. Who never misplace their car keys … More Trying To Get Organized