Attribution: Photo by Phyllis Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper in lamenting the demise of yet one more sign of spring—the “cow party” which was the day the cows, after a winter of standing in cramped stalls, were turned loose in the cow yard or pasture for an exercise opportunity. …
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Kickass and Menopause
Attribution: Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper wondering how he might upgrade the evolutionary status of old men to match that of old women who, after they are no longer able to bear children, are still seen by the one and only evolutionary …
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Kickass Goes to Prom
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, consults with the keeper about just what to do about April being the prom month after Phyllis says she has no interest in going to the prom because it hurts her feet to dance, especially as an inept dancing keeper is likely to step …
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Dialogues on Life During Wartime: The Price of Opportunity Costs
Attribution: Petty Officer 2nd Class Jordan Jennings, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Featuring the Fabulous Dadbots: Mark M., Dave S., Mark O., Dennis C., John K., Michael D., and Geoff Carter Bots, Allow me to interrupt your nonstop chanting of “USA! USA! USA!” for a few brief moments, with this unfortunate note of warning. Commandante …
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A Night at the Opera
Photo by Geoff Carter By Geoff Carter Timothee Chalamet is wrong. And he’s right. During a CNN/Vanity Fair town hall with Matthew McConaughey, the young actor said, “I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera, or, you know, things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive,’ even though no one cares about …
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Kickass and the Sparrow Egg
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, passes along news from the keeper that the sparrows have made a bid to participate in the egg business conducted by Phyllis as she distributes eggs from the flocks of granddaughter Alexis and cleaning crew leader Lilia. These sources provide a variety of chicken …
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Kickass and Being Somewhere
Attribution: Photo by Pablo Heimplatz on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper and Phyllis in noting the many interesting places where people find themselves this morning—looping around the moon, routinely getting the kids to school and then yourself to work, running a mile on an old railroad bed, walking the dog, heading over …
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Kickass and Remembering at Easter
Attribution: Photo by Jerrick Castillo on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper and Phyllis and their Easter dinner guests in a post ham-dinner stupor lingering over dessert and coffee exchanging childhood memories. Some of those recited memories were old enough to have long beards and others from younger Easter eaters were as in-tune …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Review of “The Perfect Neighbor”
Handling the Truth: Review of The Perfect Neighbor ★★★1/2 Illustration by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter Ever since the Lumiere Brothers produced “actuality films” (single shot recordings of real-life events like train arrivals and galloping horses), various iterations of cinematic travelogues, and Joseph Flaherty’s groundbreaking 1922 documentary Nanook of the North, documentary filmmakers have sought to …
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Happy Easter from The Pen in Hand!!
Photos by Geoff Carter After a long night of egg delivery, it’s time to do some Chicago barhopping…. Well done, you wily wabbits!!
Kickass and Marsh Hawk Eggs
Attribution: Photo by Ben Lande on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper in noting on this Easter morning that maybe one of the reasons he has lived so long is to give him time to make amends, or at least apologize for some of the thoughtless things he did as a farm boy …
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Kickass and Sexy Saturday
Attribution: Photo by Ajay Kumar Jana on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that the keeper, in his careful study of this day between Good Friday and Easter, designates it as “Sexy Saturday.” The designation is obvious considering that both the Easter Bunny and colored eggs were historically chosen as Easter symbols for their representation …
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