Monthly Archives: March 2022

Mixed Messages

Posted on by under Generic Rant, photos

Saw this sign on the side of a building during a recent bike ride:

Okay, I’m good with that. I’m a massive proponent of supporting local businesses.

But wait! Pull back a little and we see the bigger picture:

What am I supposed to do with this cognitive dissonance? Subway spreads like a deadly pandemic across the face of this country. Fine. Let Iowa, Florida, and New Mexico have their nasty, mass-produced, generic sandwiches. But here in the Boston area, home of some of the best local sub shops east or west of Tuscany, Subway is unnecessary at best, a cancer at worst, eating away at our culture like the rot slowly consuming the shack in this photo.

Run away! Run away!!

The NFL’s Priorities

Posted on by under blog snax, Generic Rant

The NFL’s Cleveland Browns signed Deshaun Watson. He didn’t play at all in 2021 and he faces civil lawsuits for sexual misconduct from 22 different women. He has lost endorsements from Nike and Beats. But the Browns, perennial NFL bottom dwellers, believe in him.

Now, it’s possible that every one of those accusations is false. It’s as likely that Donald Trump will win a Nobel Peace Prize.

Watson’s resume includes exactly one playoff win. He has never made it past the first round of the NFL postseason.

Meanwhile, Colin Kaepernick, who had the gall to exercise his constitutional right to protest this nation’s continued oppression of African-Americans, can’t get a cup of coffee in the same league. Here’s a guy who has a 4-2 record in the playoffs with one Super Bowl appearance and he can’t get a job in a league with an overabundance of poor and mediocre quarterbacks.

In other news, the Cleveland Browns have announced they’ll be playing reruns of “The Cosby Show” during the halftimes of their games.

Like “Don’t Look Up”? You’ll love this!

Posted on by under Movies, Original writing

In light of the nomination of the film “Don’t Look Up” for Best Picture at a certain awards ceremony that must remain nameless or I’ll have to put ®’s and ©’s all over the place, it’s time to point out that the production company I’m affiliated with filmed a very similar epic (the screenplay for which I humbly admit authorship of) ten years ago.

The film, entitled “Worst Case Scenario” predates some of the issues that gave rise to the newer film, concepts such as climate change denial and an insane cult trying to overthrow the American government, but it deals with other foolishness, just as topical now as it was then. Let’s see if “Don’t Look Up” remains as relevant in ten years as ours is today.

Want to see how the two films compare? Watch “Worst Case Scenario” here.

Opportunities for me and you…

Posted on by under About writing, Books

Maybe because spring is a time of new beginnings, this time of year presents loads of opportunities of so many types. Here is my list of opportunities for you to give and receive in the coming days.

For the month of March, Old Mill House Coffee in Chelmsford, MA, is celebrating Read Across America Month 2022 with “Blind Date with a Book”. Stop by and choose a genre to a get gift-wrapped copy of one of the many books by local authors. Maybe you’ll get one of my seven books!

Which book will surprise you?

That’s not the only event at Old Mill House Coffee this month featuring local authors. To celebrate International Writers Day (which was actually on March 3; better late than never) they will hold “Speed Dating with a Book”. On March 27, you can read snippets of a series of books and decide which one you want to spend more time with.

For more information or to register, click here or on the image to the left.

A new documentary about Multiple Sclerosis will premiere at the Chelmsford Center for the Arts on April 2, 2022 at 2:00 PM. (2’s are wild! 🙂 ) The film is called Who Is MS? It’s a profile of people living with MS and thriving in spite of the obstacles the disease throws at them. If you have MS or know someone who does or you simply want to increase your awareness of this devastating condition (after all, March is MS Awareness Month) this movie is a must see. Come to learn, come to be inspired.

Tickets are free but seats must be reserved in advance.

For complete details and to view the trailer, click here or on the image to the right.

Or reserve seats now by emailing:

whoisms.movie@gmail.com

To understand MS, we must understand who it affects.

Last opportunity: Support the fight against MS.

A group of cyclists, some with multiple sclerosis, will participate in a fundraiser on Martha’s Vineyard to raise money for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. We call ourselves the Vineyard Square Wheelers for two reasons. First, living with MS is like trying to ride a bike on square wheels – it’s possible but it ain’t easy. Second, our sponsors are the good people at Vineyard Square Hotel and Suites.

To support our team, click here or on the image to the left to reach our donor site. You can support the whole team or individual riders.

Thank you for your consideration.

Happy First Day of Spring!*

Posted on by under blog snax, Generic Rant

Today, March 1, is the first day of spring. Many will deny this, claiming that the first day of spring is somewhere in the 20’s of the month. That’s fine if you’re into stars and constellations and such. If you care about the weather, however (and for what other reason would we anxiously anticipate the season of rebirth?) you celebrate the start of the season on the first day of March.

The fact is that March 21 is the vernal equinox, the first day of astronomical spring. But who cares about equinoxes or astronomy?!? What we (or, at least, I) care about is the weather and that means meteorological (that’s weather, folks) spring, which begins on March 1.

Happy Spring!

(See this article for a full explanation.)

*This brief post marks the debut of Blog Snax® q.v.