Kickass and Granddaughter Goodbye

Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, agrees with the keeper and Phyllis that, while there was a time when grandchildren grew up and lived out their lives on adjoining farms or in houses down the block where it was possible for grandparents to have frequent contact and to admire and …
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Kickass and Naked Gardening Day

Tainted Fruit, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, notes that in the keeper’s inability to keep up with the flow of things, he missed “Naked Gardening Day,” even though he has been witnessing Phyllis’s–fully-clothed–gardening preparations for several weeks. The keeper mentioned the day briefly to Phyllis, but she was …
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Days of the Locust

Artwork by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter We humans are the greatest of Earth’s parasites. –Martin H. Fischer Anyone who’s studied high school biology—or spent a summer evening outdoors in Wisconsin—is familiar with the concept of parasitism, an association between two organisms in which one benefits, or survives, at the expense of another. Mosquitoes, ticks, …
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Kickass Takes a Day Off

Edralis, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, ever anxious to add to the world’s vast store of knowledge, shows that this is how a dog, and the keeper, take a day off………….. Top Dog Tips Photo by Bill Stokes See more at… The Bill Stokes Author Page

Kickass and Marion Reunion

Fox Films, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, shares the keeper’s delight when circumstances produce a surprise encounter with old friends, and so it was when a book promo–“Treeson, an APOLOGIA to Trees” meant meeting with Marion Kienitz at All Saints Neighborhood on Madison’s west side. Marion and the …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Review of “A Disturbance in the Force”

Photo by Jake Hills on Unsplash When Worlds Collide: A Review of A Disturbance in the Force By Geoff Carter Own work based on unknown original creator, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Sitting in a crowded theater watching a movie is in many ways a solitary act. Viewers don’t—they’re not supposed to, at least—interact with each other during …
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Dialogues from the Florida Swamps: Battle of the Lizard Kings

The White House from Washington, DC, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Featuring the Fabulous Dadbots: Mark M., Dave S., Mark O., Dennis C., Paul C., and Geoff Carter Ron DeSantis was looking to make a pretty good run for the Presidency. But his campaign is faltering, and he is painting himself into a corner with …
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Kickass and Blaize is One

Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, notes the keeper has been overexposed to poetry during recent days, and submitted the following on the occasion of great-granddaughter Blaize’s first birthday: BLAIZE IS ONE, WELL, SUN-OF-A-GUN LET’S ALL PARTY AND HAVE SOME FUN. BLAIZE IS ONE AND WE LOVE HER A TON …
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Kickass and Mayhem Poets

Photo by jules a. on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/NvFkYV2ngOk By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, stayed home as the keeper and Phyllis went to a performance of The Mayhem Poets, three guys taking poetry out of the box and throwing it to the wind. As one who spent his lifetime working with words within the discipline of newspaper column …
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