Day 73: Crazy Uncle Dave’s Temperance Letter

originally published March 13, 2012 Dear Marty, As your “crazy hip uncle”, I feel that I should reach out to you. You are at a crucial age, one where you’ll be faced with a lot of choices about how to live your life. Some of those choices may offer you a better path than others. […]

Day 49: Off-Key – Why I’ll Never Be A City’s Pride

originally published February 18, 2012 The Key to the City. It sounds so glamorous. What does it open? Everything in the city? Is it a magic key? To the city’s vending machines? An unending supply of Twix and Fresca? I’ll probably never be awarded the key to any city, but the arbitrary honor remains a […]

Day 47: The Texucation System

originally published February 16, 2012 How do I write an article about the education system in Texas without making derogatory jokes about the 43rd president or country music? Probably not going to happen, but I’ll try. There are a number of entries about education in Texas. The first that caught my eye was something called […]

Day 39: Crap-Bucket Of History – President John Tyler

originally published February 8, 2012 Ask most people who John Tyler was – especially people in my corner of the non-American world, you’ll get a tiny minority who will know the answer. Congratulations, if you’re reading this article, you get to be part of that tiny minority. We meet on Thursdays; orange drink will not […]

Day 32: “What’s Your Flava” Literary Analysis

originally published February 1, 2012 Today’s seminar will deal with one of the most important poets to have emerged from England since Sir Linchley Hassbrumley of Limerick delivered to the throne his epic Poeme regarding the well-fortuned lad from Nantucket: Craig David. He unfurled this bastion of artistic purity in 2002, lending vocals through his […]