Perhaps the most enduring gag from the Peanuts cartoon strip involves Charlie Brown, Lucy van Pelt, and a football. Year after year, Lucy would offer to hold the ball while Charlie kicks it; year after year, Charlie would convince himself that this time would be different; year after year, Charlie would wind up on his…
Author: Clio
Ten of the Reasons I Believe You
Women, why would you lie? That’s not to say you couldn’t be lying. Plenty of women lie. But experience has taught me to trust men less than I trust women. So if it’s down to he said/she said, I’ll believe you first. Plus, it wasn’t just one or two of you. It was nearly all…
Fragment of a dream
I woke, but the dream retained its tendrils in my heart. I had dreamed of a white house with no windows; I was standing outside of it, looking for the door. The sidewalk was cracked, and had heaved from the pressures of the frost and the roots of the tree that stood over my head….
sometimes words
sometimes words do not have the expanse to fit the truth they’re trying to hold i am an apostate i am not the first the streetlights that dimly guide my way are lit by the souls of those who went before the furtive glow and the long shadows belie the keening inside their bulbs behind…
the first time
the first time i saw a naked female breast i was ten years old or so i had thrown a dictionary at a girl’s head in third grade although i don’t remember that (a piece of paper i found years later said it so it must be true) i was labeled ‘emotionally impaired’ which nobody…
Songs of the Wolf #1
On my car stereo this morning was Rob Jungklas’s “John Doe“, one of the best songs you’ve never heard of. And I have the thought that there’s a small cadre of people that listen to Jungklas and are impressed with him, and they’re his audience. This evening, I’m thinking about how frustrating it is that…
Boys Will Be… Held Accountable for Their Actions
“You know how boys are.” My son, in third grade, is involved in two afterschool activities this year. One is gymnastics, where he’s in a boy’s class at the local YMCA. Even though it’s an Olympic sport, we struggle to find classes for our boy: Even in a place where the M stands for Men,…
The Manhood Behind the Curtain
In October 2017, a man opened fire on a concert, killing 58 people and injuring hundreds more. In 2016, at least 49 died when a man opened fire in a Florida night club. In 2013, a man opened fire in an elementary school, killing 27; most of the victims were elementary school children. In 2012, a dozen people…
Why I Don’t Spank My Child (and What I Do Instead)
Research from the American Psychological Association, the Journal of Family Psychology, and others generally concludes that spanking your child has long term negative effects. Research similarly shows that spanking is rarely effective at promoting the desired behaviors. There is some dissent, but the strong majority scientific opinion is that spanking a child is psychologically counterproductive….
You’re Not Color Blind, You’re Snow Blind
It’s been thirteen months now since Colin Kaepernick first raised eyebrows by kneeling during the National Anthem. Many people criticized his silent protest as the wrong way to address the issue. Last week, Donald Trump said that the NFL should fire any player who protests during the National Anthem. The NFL’s response was consistent: Players…