One of my favorite writers is the late, 20th century philosopher and Episcopalian priest Alan Watts. I ran across this passage a few days ago while reading his book “Out of your Mind.” “Have you ever really looked at a seashell? There’s not an aesthetic fault in it anywhere-it’s absolutely perfect. Now, do you think […]
I’ve been thinking a lot about an old, Russian allegory. Perhaps you’ve heard it, or something similar. A poor farmer, his wife and teenage son lived on the frigid, barren steppe near Siberia. One day, their prize stallion broke free and disappeared into the forest. All the neighbors said: “What great misfortune.” To which the […]
As I write this, the results of the election are still unknown. Which means most Americans are experiencing some level of anxiety. And if you’re the kind of person who loves to sit in front of Fox News or MSNBC or CNN, absorbing their collective stream of fear-mongering bullshit, it’s likely your anxiety is off […]
Those of us who toil in the fields of the American farm have been the backbone of this country since its founding. Unlike my fellow agri-millionaires, I came to farming recently. What some cynics might call an accident, I call divine providence as the horse corn we fed our backyard squirrels found its way into […]
DATELINE: Cincinnati, OH March 12, 2019 A caravan of migrant squirrels from Mexico (or possibly, Pittsburgh) has amassed outside of our privacy fence. They are seeking both asylum and orange peels. The crisis began to unfold on January 20th when, for my birthday, my left-leaning Kate gave me three bird feeders, a one-thousand-pound bag of […]
Thursday is the most important, manufactured holiday of the year: Valentine’s Day. Which means, on Wednesday, the Hallmark aisle at Kroger’s will be clogged with panicked men searching for just the right, over-priced card to show how much they love their spouse. And mother. This seems like the perfect time to reflect on a sad, […]
On September 14, 2017, my wife Kate was in a freak accident in the wilds of Northern Wisconsin. She broke her back in two places, broke her femur and suffered a serious concussion that occasionally bares its teeth a year and a half later. She was fortunate, as the results of the accident could have […]
“The cradle rocks above an abyss, and common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.” Vladimir Nabokov I am writing this on the morning of my 61st birthday. As I have done for nearly two decades, I began my day with 30 […]
Today is Orthodox Christmas. And yes, you may wish me a Merry Christmas. Also, feel free to send gifts. Cash or athletic socks are the traditional Orthodox Christmas gifts. I was raised in the Christian Orthodox faith. My mother was Ukrainian Orthodox and my father Russian Orthodox. Essentially the same religion, except for the fact […]
In his 1974 Pulitzer Prize-winning book “The Denial of Death” cultural anthropologist Earnest Becker said: “This is the terror: to have emerged from nothing, to have a name, consciousness of self, deep inner feelings, an excruciating inner yearning for life and self-expression – and with all this yet to die. It seems like a hoax. . […]
