Last night was a first for me. Last night I did not watch the Oscars.
Frankly, I just couldn’t bring myself to care. The Academy Awards have no relevance to my life. They don’t affect my choice of movies one whit. The hype, the red carpet, the fawning, the sniping, it’s like watching a nuclear-powered high school reunion on steroids. Plus, when you boil it down, it’s all about money, money for those at the top–the producers and directors and stars, not the key grip or the clapper-loader–and I grow tired of everything always benefiting those at the top, so I saved myself several hours and gave it all a pass.
So, what did I do on Oscar Night instead?
I watched a movie, of course.
I’ll bet it’s a movie you haven’t heard of, and that’s sad, because it was remarkable.
The team’s PO, PO P. O’Pio, was really PO’d when he found the PO at the PO.
Writers…we often cast ourselves in the lead of our own internal dramas, but rarely does one of our number actually make it to the big screen in a leading role. A couple of examples I’ve seen in recent years are The Words and Wonder Boys, in which Bradley Cooper and Michael Douglas were cast as the “writer.” (Ever notice how writers on-screen look a hell of a lot better than writers in real life?)
The restaurant business is difficult. Long hours, slim profit margins, physically demanding work…you really have to love it, because it requires dedication and toil. It’s also really easy to screw up.
When I was a child, by far the worst verdict my parents could lower upon my head was the dreaded, “We’re very disappointed in you.” Crushing, positively crushing.
My brain writhes through dark hours
Kurt R.A. Giambastiani 
Something…Wonderful
25 Feb 2015 by KRAG
Last night, as I was doing my taxes, something wonderful happened. Keep in mind: this is “wonderful” on a small, very personal scale. I did not happen upon the answer to problems in the Middle East or a cure for rampant stupidity. Nor did I find a loophole in the tax code that doubled my refund.
So, that’s what it wasn’t. With your expectations properly lowered, let’s move onward to what it was.
I was filling out Schedule SE (rather pleased that I had enough writing income to warrant its use) when an email came in. It was a message redirected to me from the Contact page here on this blog. I don’t get many direct messages from blog readers, and about half of those I do receive are from people wanting to market their wares via a guest-post on my blog–cheeky bastards–so when it was clear that this message was from a reader and not a self-promoter, it was already a good sign. I opened it, and I read.
In the hyperbolic style of internet memes: What happened next blew my mind. Continue Reading »
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Posted in Culture, Writing | Tagged creative writing, Dragon Magazine, reader comments, short stories, Spencer's Peace, Writing | 4 Comments »