Essays

These are more in-depth posts that deal with real-world material, but aren't direct commentary on news events.
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Things Activists Should Know About Guns

Written: December 17, 2012
As I've covered before, when it comes to gun control, I seem to largely be on the side of the gun control activists. We differ on a few things (I have no problem with open carry or concealed carry by responsible people), but at the core of it, I favor more regulation, and more importantly, more eff...
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Learning New Technology

Written: April 9, 2009
Despite the fact that really don't like teaching, I find myself doing a surprising amount of it. Usually, it's in the form of helping older/less tech-savvy people learn how to use new (to them) technology. Most recently, I had to help my grandma figure out how to use a cellphone.

The Problem With Trigger Warnings

Written: April 23, 2013
"Triggering". Like "privilege", it's a word that has a legitimate place in social discussions, but has been so ridiculously overused on the internet (I'm looking at you, Tumblr) that it's difficult to bring into a serious conversation. Attempting to do so tends to conjure mental images of whiny te...

What Dining Out Means To Me

Written: January 29, 2013
In an effort to eat out less, and learn to cook at home, my dear friend Dusk Dargent has taken on a challenge: For the entire month of February, with a small number of practical exceptions, he is not allowed to eat from a restaurant. Anything he eats must require home preparation. He's set up a T...

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Fiction/Nonfiction Stories

Stories, primarily fictional.

Amateur Radio Saves The Day

Written: October 22, 2009
After a frigid, rainy weekend, I was determined to get out and hike at least one more time before the end of the season. And, well, today was the perfect day. Since this was likely to be one of my last hikes, I wanted to choose a trip that would be truly spectacular, to sort of "go out on a bang" ...

Hiking With Mommy

Written: June 30, 2009
“Wake up, sleepyhead, we’re here.” A young wolfess turned off the engine of her run-down old Jeep, and gently stroked her son’s hair to wake him up. He looks so peaceful and sweet, I hate to wake him up, she thought to herself, but we have a long evening ahead. The little fox kit, Kisun...

Christmas Eve with Daddy

Written: December 24, 2006
"Come on, Foxie, time to go to bed!" Felix called down to the living room. It was 9:00, after all, and long past time for little fox kits to be in bed. "Aww, but I'm almost done with my car, daddy!" said the little red fox, already snugly wrapped up in his favourite tie-dyed sleeper and night d...

Lupinia Ch. 2 - History Lesson

Written: June 3, 2005
The rest of the weekend seemed to pass instantaneously for Thaddeus. His brief adventure in Lupinia consumed his concentration, and Monday couldn’t arrive fast enough. He made arrangements to skip class that day, claiming he’d caught the flu while camping, and loaded up the truck almost a full d...

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Miscellaneous

Articles which do not fit other categories.
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Perfect Strawberry Milkshake Recipe

Written: August 2, 2012
I've admitted to being a food snob on numerous occasions, and milkshakes are one of the many things I'm a bit picky about. Chocolate shakes aren't terribly hard to make, but ever since I was a kid (and had nearly-unlimited access to fresh strawberries during the summer, courtesy of grandma's garden...

Shopping Center Bingo

Written: December 31, 2012
I've often played a game to amuse myself while travelling, which I call "Ghetto Shopping Center Bingo". It's also helpful for determining whether a shopping center is a place you want to be. A shopping center starts at zero points (a neutral position), and loses one point for each of the following...

Internet Forum Humor

Written: June 26, 2012
One of the websites I host/maintain is a moderately-popular internet forum geared toward a teenage audience. Obviously, I'm not a teenager anymore, I still work there because I've been running it since I was 19, so I don't really relate on a personal level to a lot of the members there. But, I sti...

Weather Forecasts

Updated: February 1, 2012
These are easy-reference weather reports and forecast links for locations I frequently travel to.  Largely for my own reference, but you might find them useful too.

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Reviews

Reviews of pretty much anything, from products, to restaurants, to books and movies.
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Theatre Review: Claudie Hukill

Written: November 30, 2012
I'll preface this review by saying I'm not a theatre critic, I've never acted in a stage performance, never been around theater much (aside from working lights and sound for a high school production), and I only go to a couple performances a year, if that. But I enjoy a good theatre production, and...
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HAM Radio: Kenwood TH-D7A(G) HT

Written: September 22, 2007
As someone who buys a lot of expensive toys, I'm not really in the habit of writing reviews of the things I buy.  However, every once in awhile, a product I use on a regular basis simply begs to be reviewed, in the hopes of sharing my positive experience with the world.  This is one such product,...

Movie Review: Side Effects (2013)

Written: February 18, 2013
Spoiler warnings generally aren't my style, because I believe that when reading a review, there should generally be an assumption that parts of the work being reviewed will be revealed. It's impossible to write a thoughtful review otherwise. However, since this movie is still in theatres at the ti...

TV: Undercover Boss

Written: February 22, 2012
I watch very little TV, usually, and I avoid anything that can be called "reality TV" as devoutly as possible. In my opinion, it's the epitome of everything that's wrong with modern television, and I have no interest in partaking in it. However, every rule has an exception, and for me, that except...

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Trips and Events

Articles about trips I've taken, events I've been to, hiking and off-roading excursions, and other related topics.
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Obama's Inauguration

Written: January 22, 2009
My close friend Syme and I went to watch Obama's inauguration, and holy crap, what a day! It was like the entire day was one long adrenaline rush; Syme and I didn't have a chance to sit down from the time we got out of his car at the Metro station at 7:30, to the time we sat down for lunch at 15:30...
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Obama Rally In Harrisonburg

Written: November 3, 2008
This past Tuesday (Oct. 28), Barack Obama held a campaign rally in my hometown of Harrisonburg, VA! And I managed to go! It was, in a word, intense. It was also the first time in almost 150 years that this town hosted a presidential campaign rally.

Rally to Restore Sanity

Written: November 5, 2010
Simply put, the Rally to Restore Sanity was the most awesome thing I've been to in a very, very long time! Definitely worth the extra effort to go to it in-person, rather than watch it on TV. The trip actually started Friday, I came up to stay with Syme so that I wouldn't have to get up at the c...