Artwork by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter We have become an inhuman and cruel people almost without realizing it. We witness atrocities and killings daily but simply shrug and turn away. We value profit over the sanctity of human life. And worse, we have become indifferent, apathetic—even actively antithetical—to the welfare of our children. On …
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Kickass Around the Campfire
Attribution: Alasdair, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports on the keeper and Phyllis including in their central sand lake, week-long runaway, a sitting-around-the-campfire session with Phyllis’s son Keven, Colleen, Gordan and Luka, during which the keeper was prompted to conclude that staring into campfire flames is one thing …
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Kickass and the Birds
John James Audobon (1785-1851), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, passes on word from the keeper and Phyllis as they spent day-three of their sand country lake runaway in the greatest of company: the birds. First it was the pair of sandhills at the bird feeder just outside the …
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Kickass and the Creek Bottom
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that the keeper, in his efforts to get the most out of the visit he and Phyllis are making to the central sand country thought it would be nice to show Phyllis a natural spring that was a favorite feature of property where …
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Kickass and Running Away
Photo by Phyllis Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that the keeper and Phyllis are off-leash and have run away to spend a few days on the shore of a very small—no motors, lake in the central sand country. Running away is a life-long option from the time Mom’s discipline seemed extreme …
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The Hired Gun
Photo by Maxim Hopman on Unsplash By Geoff Carter According to the “Internet Movie Firearms Database”, which lists every type of firearm ever used in a Hollywood movie, over eleven types of pistols, seven types of revolvers, seven types of rifles, eight types of submachine guns, seven types of shotguns, two types of machine guns, and six other …
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Kickass and Phyllis as Publisher
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper in singing the praises of Phyllis who has become the in-house publisher of “KICKASS the DOORSTOP DOG (almost daily 2022).” In compiling a year’s worth of Kickass, Phyllis demonstrates many things, not the least of which is her willingness to tolerate …
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Kickass and Being an Old Fool
Attribution: Anderson Mancini from Sao Paulo, Brazil, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, does his best to help the keeper maintain his standing as “old fool” since that is an identity that he seems to wear most comfortably, and most often. And an incident yesterday so demonstrated the keeper’s …
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Kickass and Tech Isolation
Attribution: Nantucket Historical Association Library, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that the keeper, having had grandfathers who found it difficult if not impossible to make the transition from horses to automobiles, sympathizes with the old dudes in their painful discoveries that early cars did not respond to …
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Kickass Snubbed by Crows
Attribution: Sheila Sund from Salem, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, has been trying to assist the keeper in his relationship with crows, but the brutal truth may be that the crows are smarter than the keeper and choose not to waste their time with him. After …
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Goodbye, Robbie, and Thank You…
Robbie Robertson: 1943-2023 Capitol Records, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Robbie_Robertson_(1971).png “The Weight” from The Last Waltz https://youtu.be/Z2eTW8qZBtk
No More Pencils, No More Books, No More Teachers…
Artwork by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter Summer is drawing to a close. School will be starting soon. It’s the time of year that parents usually welcome and kids usually dread. We’ve already started to see the avalanche of back-to-school ads from Target, Walmart, Old Navy, and the other big box stores. This is usually …
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