Leave Me Alone!
Written after the ten-hours-walking video: on street harassment, abuse, and the difference between a greeting and a threat.
Tag: Writing Life (Page 26)
Online Harassment & TrollsDon’t Feed the Trolls
Trolls sow discord for the reaction, and the reaction is the reward. Starving them works; arguing never does.
ComedyPerfect Storm
Three pirates, a Fresno renaissance faire, a four-hour drive, no GPS, and everything going wrong at once.
Critical ThinkingInsidious Advertising
Advertising's real problem is not bad products. It is emotional buttons pressed unconsciously until buying becomes irresistible.
HabitsVices? Who Needs Vices?
Never tasted alcohol, never smoked, no vices at all, and happier for it, even after managing a liquor store at eighteen.
Critical ThinkingWas the Atomic Bombing of Japan Necessary?
The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki is treated as self-evidently wrong, but the picture from 1945 stops being simple fast.
Online ShamingEvery Little Stupidity Enshrined Forever for All to See
You used to be able to do something dumb in public and live it down. Now every camera is attached to the internet forever.
Personal GrowthNo Whining Allowed
The sign over my desk said No Whining Allowed. It never won popularity contests, and it was right.
BellydanceIs It So Bad to Be Uncomfortable?
Photographing an all-male bellydance show made me uncomfortable for about ten minutes. Discomfort is not damage.
EmergencyA Night of Terror
Furniture dancing across the apartment and my wife pushed to the floor: surviving the earthquake, drafted as a book introduction.
Personal GrowthFriendship and Distance
Some of my closest friendships are with people ten thousand miles away whom I have never physically met.
EconomicsCredit
Left with a mountain of debt after Claudia died, I went through gut-wrenching debt settlement. The credit report held a surprise.