Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, is little help to the keeper as he tries to figure out why he is prone to “collecting” while Phyllis prefers a more clutter-free life. In a recent visit with Carol who is among the Vista West premiere collectors, the point was made with …
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Category:Kickass
Kickass and News Anchors
Attribution: U.S. News & World Report photographer Thomas J. O’Halloran, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper toying with a new way of measuring his long life as he counts how many TV news anchors he has gone through as Lester Holt hung it up last night …
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Kickass Milks the Cows
Attribution: Jonathan Wilkins, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that the keeper, as a former farm boy who knew the experience of hand-milking cows, laments the progression of the twice daily task to “milking parlors” and rotating stalls and the hand-over to immigrant farm workers. With that last …
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Kickass Puts on Shoes and Socks
Attribution: Photo by Erik Mclean on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, encourages the keeper in his efforts to extract something useful from the verity that putting on your shoes and socks becomes a vastly different undertaking over the course of a lifetime. From a hurried minute when your youthful mind is on other things—you know …
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Kickass and Demonstrators
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that the keeper tries to lend a hand here and there as Phyllis and others mount a “Protection Rally” to proclaim the injustice of depriving seniors of necessary benefits and services as prescribed by a haunted and a contaminated White House. In an …
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Kickass and Memorial Day 2025
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, notes that the keeper is still around on this Memorial Day to get his usual note off to the two I & R platoon mates who are NOT around and haven’t been since the artillery shell took them out the day after their squad …
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Kickass and the Green Curtain
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper and Phyllis peeking under the lush green curtain that recently fell to hide the greatest show on earth. They see big gawky birds laying eggs in ragged treetop rookeries, thousands of exquisite warblers warbling to each other, fresh dirt from countless …
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Kickass and a Day Off
Attribution: It is unclear as to whether the press-materials were distributed by a personal publicity agency representing the subject, or if they were distributed by an agency employed to publicize the film, and/or the first CBS television broadcast of the film, which aired on November 3, 1956., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes …
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Kickass and Old Licenses
Attribution: Photo by Andreas Haubold on Unsplash Kickass, the doorstop dog, warns the keeper that it is possible to overdo in saving mementos as they are wont to span time on very rickety bridges and leave you stranded on an impossible fantasy island. So it was with the keeper’s 1944-1945 Wisconsin resident hunting and trapping licenses that somehow …
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Kickass and Too Much Lunch
Attribution: Photo by Shah Krish on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper and Phyllis fresh from a lush lunch with son Rick and his wife Becky and grandkids Jessy and Paul. As usual, take-home containers were the order of the day for the keeper and Phyllis as they finished their lunch later at …
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Kickass and War Killing
Attribution: Ray Platnick, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the question posed by a young grandson a long time ago as a family discussion veered into military matters, with the keeper perhaps recounting a combat story or two. “Did you ever kill someone?” the young listener asked. It …
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Kickass 5/19/25
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, notes how the keeper was reminded of the awesome burden of being an older brother by Taylor and Trevor at a recent gathering by the river. Citing his “older brother” experience with Orville, the keeper refrained from giving advice to Taylor, and only tried …
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