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CUTTING WOOD WITH A CREW

February 22, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Like most kids growing up on the Oregon coast, like most people with a fireplace, I’ve spent time cutting wood. My brother and I hauled and chopped rounds my dad sawed from the logs washed up on the causeway connecting Hwy101 to the sand dunes. The old man was the boss. He said we could […]

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OLD STANDARDS UNDER STRAIN? HOLD MY BEER

February 21, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Old standards are only for old people. Wrong. What’s wrong is the idea of standards, which I’ll clear up right now in case there’s any doubt: The Standard is the standard, no matter the age, young, or old. Got it? Good. So what exactly is The Standard?

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WAY OF LIFE. WHOSE WAY OF LIFE?

February 20, 2026 by David Gillaspie

I hear the words ‘way of life’ and automatically think of tribes deep in the Amazon who have never been out of the jungle. Instead of the variety of life found in America, I go straight to pre-contact indigenous people, who of course have had contact since we know of them. Pre-contact? Amazon jungle? In […]

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AGING FEAR FOR THE FIRST TIME

February 18, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Aging fear kicks in when you start wondering about tomorrow. Will you be there for it? Why wouldn’t you? Oh, that’s why.

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PLAY ACTING STOPPAGE

February 10, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Acting? Play acting? Playing? What’s the difference when an actor is playing a part? I’ve seen the difference from my third row center season tickets at The Armory. For years my wife and mother in-law were theater buddies, two outgoing ladies of a certain age parking underground, riding up in elevators, and walking the cement sidewalks […]

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RISK AVOIDANCE FOR WASHINGTON POST IN BEZOS’ WORLD? WRITER PLEASE

February 8, 2026 by David Gillaspie

The only risk avoidance for the Washington Post firings, layoffs, retirements? Avoid holding their place at the top of the print media pyramid. No matter the metric, The Washington Post was among the top five, if not top three with The NY Times and Wall Street Journal. Maybe it will stay up there, but not […]

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SELF IMPROVEMENT IS THE BEST YOU CAN EXPECT?

February 3, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Yes, self improvement is the best you can expect. What else would you want? If you make a mess and clean up after yourself? That’s improvement. Sounds easy enough.

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PUSHING YOUR BOUNDARIES? NOT TOO FAR

January 31, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Do you know your boundaries, and how far to push? I reviewed some yesterday. Maybe one. As a fitness fan who also likes taking it easy, I sometimes go too far. To far one way with a slack day, or two; too far another day with too much. Here’s how it worked out yesterday:

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NATIONAL PRIDE FROM THE BACK ROW

January 29, 2026 by David Gillaspie

The idea of national pride usually comes from where you were brought up, and who raised you. My sense of things comes from growing up in small town America, raised by parents who came from even smaller towns. The sophisticate in the family was Grandma, who grew up in Dallas, Texas, graduated high school as […]

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ORDINARY MEN: RESERVE POLICE BATTALION 101 REVIEW

January 28, 2026 by David Gillaspie

After watching a portion of a documentary on German Reserve Police Battalion 101 I’m left with concerns. As the story is told on Netflix, ordinary men were recruited into police work. The idea of joining a police staff was better than going to the front. The guys selected got some extra training, then loaded up […]

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