Cheerful Curmudgeon

A complete lack of ideas and the power to express them.

Six Months

Six months ago, Hamas terrorists took hundreds of civilian hostages. 130 of those hostages are still captive. Yesterday, I listened to a mother describe her family’s experience on October 7, 2023. She lived in Nahal Oz, Israel, near the border with Gaza. After 19 hours hiding in the safe room in her house, with her […]

Zuckerberg Did Not Apologize

Today, Mark Zuckerberg said, I’m sorry for everything you have all been through. No one should have to go through the things that your families have suffered, and this is why we invested so much. There are three components to a real apology. Zuckerberg only did part 1. So let’s stop pretending that he apologized.

Clean Bicycle Chain

Do you remember the good ol’ days of childhood biking when the chain was something you didn’t want to touch cuz it was a greasy mess? Me too. Life was simpler back then. I have 350 miles on my “new” Masi Giramondo bike. I’m a smart guy and I’ve been washing my bike and cleaning […]

Dear Ford… About the Maverick

Dear Ford, The Maverick is a fine car, like this. I owned one so I know. Except for that time when it trashed a water pump and I had to nurse it home from Michigan to Indiana at 2:00am and I missed a midterm because my car wouldn’t get me back to Ann Arbor, it […]

Trek Verve+ 2 Electric Bicycle

I took the plunge and bought an electric bicycle a/k/a e-bike and holy cow am I delighted. I had forgotten how much I enjoy being outside on a bike. Having an electric motor to help me up the hills vanquishes all of the pain so all I have now is the fun and the aerobic […]

Coffee Spice

Once upon a time, Rabbi James Stone Goodman introduced me to Turkish coffee in which he infused some cardamom. In today’s vernacular, OMG was that good! A few months later, I was listening to the Fiddler on the Roof soundtrack and wondered what coffee was like in eastern Europe and Russia back in the day. […]

Dear White People

I recently discovered Hannah Drake’s blog, WriteSomeShit. Believe me, she has some powerful shit to convey. For MLK Day, please take a few minutes to read her post, Dear White People, Before You Post Dr. King Quotes To Make Yourself Feel Good… Drake writes, …before you rush to Google on Monday to search for a […]

Sunken Cities: Egypt’s Lost Worlds

I visited the St. Louis Art Museum’s exhibition “Sunken Cities: Egypt’s Lost Worlds” back in May and took a few photos. Here are two of my favorites. You can see the rest in my Sunken Cities online photo gallery.

We Will Not Yield

I was deeply disturbed by the hatred visible in Charlottesville. I was deeply disturbed to hear Donald Trump equivocate on opposition to neo-Nazis and racists. After Trump was elected, I remember having a conversation with a friend, in which I told him about my fears. I knew that Muslims would be killed, simply because of […]

Now is the Time

Pray for our community and our country. More importantly, speak up to your friends and neighbors here on this Earth. Ask all of your friends to speak up. Our community and our country are descending into hatred. This is not the America that I believe in.

Transgender in the Bathroom

This week included a watershed day for me: the first time that I knowingly used the men’s room with a transgender man. I followed a trans man into the bathroom and guess what happened: Nothing special. I used the urinal. He used a stall. I left. He left later (I presume, since I have seen […]

Hurry up! Paint it again!

Have you ever wondered what happens when you spray paint something without thoroughly cleaning the metal first? You get to paint it again. When I painted the seat frames of my BD-4C airplane back on the 14th, I was hurrying to finish up in time for an evening commitment. Big mistake. Most of the paint adhered nicely but I […]

Goal Achieved: Lost 32 Pounds

  I have lost 32 pounds. 🙂 It took a year and I am very pleased. I used the Weight Watchers mobile app and self-discipline. I did not bother with the WW meetings. For the last few weeks, I have maintained my weight without following the WW program, just eating sensibly, so this morning I […]

A Graceful Exit from the Syria Trap

President Obama is in a tight spot. On the one hand, he wants to appear strong and follow through on his “red line” statement. On the other hand, he wants to appear strong and not knuckle under to Congress’ disapproval of military action in Syria. The only choices being discussed are: a) Attack Syria, or […]

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