J. Fred Henry Publications, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Geoff Carter He was cool, one of the first anti-heroes of the silver screen. Maybe even a little cooler than Steve McQueen. With his world-worn face, half-lidded eyes, relaxed self-assurance, and deep sonorous baritone, Robert Mitchum exuded a powerful yet unassuming screen presence. You’ll never …
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Month:November 2022
Kickass and the Great Filter
Luke Hancock, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, is at a loss to help the keeper deal with the “Great Filter” theory which has it that the reason we have not detected intelligent life on other planets is that civilizations out there in space evolve to get so smart that …
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Kickass and Heights Vet Day
Noah Wulf, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports on behalf of the keeper that he–the keeper does not remember a Veterans Day when he felt so honored and privileged as the most recent one when he was invited to be a guest of the Wisconsin Heights School where …
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Kickass and Veterans Day
Bjarki Sigursveinsson, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper in noting that Veterans Day is when the country pauses to briefly consider all those mostly young people that it has either hired or drafted to go off to kill the mostly young people–but sometimes inadvertently the woman and …
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Kickass and Phyllis the Star
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, agrees with the keeper that living with a star–Phyllis, has its exciting moments, as when channel 3 showed up at the Vista West art show, and Phyllis was among the many talented people who had a few on-camera moments. The variety and depth of …
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Make-Believe
Artwork by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter We live in strange times. In an era with nearly unlimited access to knowledge available anywhere or at any time, an era of fantastic leaps in science and technology, and an era of unparalleled artistic accomplishment; in this era, today, a significant portion of our population is still …
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Kickass and Titanic Course Change
CBS Television Network, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper in noting that according to yesterday’s official Nov. 8 Auction results, the ship of state–otherwise known as the USS Political Titanic has altered course only slightly and now will not hit the iceberg, but instead crash into …
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Kickass on the Titanic
Willy Stöwer , Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, notes that he will be joining the keeper on this official Auction Day by imagining that they are on the Titanic, it is colder than hell out on the deck, the band is playing “Nearer my God to Thee,” and half …
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Kickass and Alexis as Goalie
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper in urging women to take over the world from the fumbling, failing men, and is encouraged in that regard by the example of Phyllis’s granddaughter Alexis, who is a member of the Marshfield Fire Department and does a lot of ambulance …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Yesterday is Here
Mathieu Kappler, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Film Review of Call Jane By Geoff Carter The movie Call Jane starts off with a long tracking shot following an immaculately dressed woman as she descends the staircase of a ritzy hotel on her way to a dinner with members of her husband’s upscale law firm. The woman pauses …
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Kickass and Phyllis Family
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, fresh from helping Phyllis host her family at a pre-holiday get together, is impressed anew at what it means to be a member of a loving, good-humored family whose members deeply care about each other and joy in giving the united finger to an …
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Kickass and DST
Garonzi Stefania, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper in resting up for tomorrow’s adjustment to DST, which is increasingly stressful for him–the keeper, since, at his age, he should not lose so much as a minute, never mind an entire hour. Time is too precious to be …
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