page contents Google

WRITING ROOM: FROM FAMILY ROOM TO SICK ROOM AND BACK

A writing room is any room where writing is done. It’s a bedroom, a classroom, or living room. It could be a bar or coffee house; a bus or train. Some writing rooms belong to writers who need ‘consistency of place’ to be productive. How can you be sure your writing room is right for […]

STORY CATCHER IN THE WRITING ROOM NOT SO WRY

J.D. Salinger was a story catcher who wrote books. One of them sells like new today: Approximately 250,000 copies of The Catcher in the Rye are sold each year – which is almost 685 per day! The Catcher in the Rye was first published in 1951. That’s quite a record for keeping readers coming back. […]

GREAT MEMORIES ADVICE: FROM ONE LIFE STAGE TO THE NEXT

Great memories ought to inform current decisions. After all, if you have great memories you cherish, why not add to them? Moving along life’s stages, from one to the next, from being a kid, to teenager, to young adult, to middle age, to senior, fills up a big wagon of memories to pull along. Did […]

SATURDAY FIGHTS: MMA BLOOD STAINS THE OCTAGON

Saturday fights on ESPN lined up match after match, finishing with title fights. Not boxing, not wrestling, but Mixed Martial Arts. If that’s not the Big Time for UFC, Ultimate Fighting Championship, what is?

MASK SAFETY ADVICE? IT STARTED BEFORE COVID AROUND HERE

Mask safety feels a little redundant after a year, as if slow learners are leading the way, and it’s going astray. To clear things up, point to a mask and what it means. Give it a good look. It’s a blue mask, a white mask, a cloth mask, or an N95 mask. That mask, worn […]

OREGON PIONEER, GOLD MAN, GOLDEN LOGGER, THAT GUY

The Oregon Pioneer atop the Salem capitol dome is every boy who grew up in the golden era of Oregon logging when you could drop out of high school, get a job in the woods, then buy a house, a truck, and a boat. All you had to do was show up early and do […]

CANCER AWARENESS ADVICE: HPV IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Cancer awareness question: What cancer has a vaccine? Cancer awareness answer: HPV cancer. What cancer threat creates a bitter response from parents: HPV cancer. Why would some random advice blogger give a damn? Please continue.

HISTORICAL ADVICE: THIS IS WORTH SOMETHING, ISN’T IT

Historical advice usually comes from a book, or a class where some gray bearded funky old man in a musty suit jacket rambles on and on in a cloud of dandruff. Doing history is different than studying history. History museums Do History for everyone else. Museum visitors walk from exhibit to exhibit, floor to floor, […]

SOLDIER ADVICE: WHEN TO STAY, WHEN TO GO

Soldier advice usually comes from one place in the beginning. Can you guess where? If you said “recruiter,” you are correct. First they make an alluring argument for signing up. College money, healthcare, clothing, living expenses, food allowance. It’s all right here for a military career. If that hook isn’t sunk deep enough, Drill Sergeants […]

GRANDDAD ADVICE: WHAT KIDS LEARN FIRST

Granddad advice is the last thing needed for a newborn? Whoever said that? If you’re a grandpa who doesn’t give Granddad advice, do you know what’s coming? Grandma advice. No matter who speaks up first, make it useful. The first thing to beware of: