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Foundations of Poodlism – Mirth
Mirth is one of those words that sounds like it ought to be wearing a waistcoat. It has a polite little lilt to it, like it might tip its hat as it passes you on the street. “Good day! I am Mirth. I brought a chuckle and perhaps a mildly undignified snort.” It’s not quite…
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Oryctolagus Cuniculus
What do Cher, Madonna, Beyoncé, and Rihanna have in common? Besides all being mononymous? Ok, add Diana Ross and Lady Gaga. Girl singers? Well yah, thank you Captain Obvious. What if I add Elton John, Freddie Mercury, and Lil’ Nas X? Gay singers? Sure, but Cher’s not gay. I’ll throw in Divine and RuPaul. Gay…
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Money
It’s time to answer one of those questions you didn’t know you had. There are things we all say or do because we always have. Call it growing up. Call it socialization. Call it inculturation. Some of them are practical: don’t put baked beans on a paper plate at a picnic or you’ll soon be…
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One Thousand Words
It is said that when you have hit what’s called a writer’s block you should simply start writing something. Anything. This is not a topical blog, so there’s not a “thing” I can turn to, like cheese, or philately – it means stamp collecting, but it sounds like a sex act, yes? – or current…
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Mountains, Richard Nixon, and Cats
When you’ve been to the top of the mountain, you realize how deep the valley is, how treacherous the ravines, how jagged the rocks. And you long for the mountaintop’s view, for the air up there, which just seems fresher, and for that sense of achievement that comes from finishing your climb. I grew up…
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On the milestone of my 200th post
Shortly after moving in to Stonewall Gardens Assisted Living in 2015, I turned 50. A milestone. Last week, now in my eleventh year here, I turned 60. Another milestone. And thinking that a good idea for a post, I did lots of research on milestones – their origin in, where else but ancient Rome, their…
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Where’s my flying car?
The 1960s were an amazing time to be born, if only for the television programs. And growing up in the 70s meant those programs found their way into syndication and were a kindof “life primer” for a young boy like me in the suburbs of Los Angeles. Flipping between channel 11 (KTTV) and channel 13…
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More Fool Me
Well it’s here. April Fools’ Day. I didn’t post anything for it last year. And the year before that, I mimicked the BBC’s 1957 Swiss Spaghetti Harvest story from the news program Panorama. So I thought this year I would talk about the origins of the day. Seriously, no joke. Despite its widespread popularity across…
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Remember The Captain and Tennille?
I have always said I “grew up” in the 80s. But chronologically that’s not entirely true. I “came of age” in the 80s, but the boy to teenager progression – what we typically mean by “growing up” – took place in the 70s; in fact, I became a teenager just as the decade was changing:…
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The Tipping Point
Tipping, or the practice of giving gratuities for service, is so ingrained in some societies that it feels natural and inevitable. Yet its origins reveal a far more complex and uneven history, shaped by class structures, labor systems, and cultural values. Far from being universal, tipping emerged in specific historical contexts and continues to vary…
Your mileage may vary.