Kickass and Dog Ski Wax

Posted on Updated on by Bill StokesCategories:Humor, Kickass, Memories, Weather, Wisconsin

Attribution: EgorovaSvetlana, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, indulges the keeper as he wallows in a memory of the early days of cross-country skiing—wooden skies with metal bindings that required constant attention from the rapidly evolving world of ski wax. To replace out-of-season trout fishing or grouse hunting, the …
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Kickass and Ice Floes

Posted on Updated on by Bill StokesCategories:Aging, Humor, ICE, Kickass

Attribution: Photo by Ekaterina Moroshilova on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper in viewing the onset of winter with more than the usual trepidation as he tries not to dwell on vague thoughts of an Eskimo culture that once floated its elderly and infirmed off on ice flows as a means of final …
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Kickass and Leftovers

Posted on Updated on by Bill StokesCategories:Family, Humor, Kickass, Nature

Attribution: Photo by Gurth Bramall on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, will be joining the keeper and Phyllis in their efforts at improving relationships with some of the other pack species by viewing the consumption of leftovers as “returning to the kill” in the mode of lions, wolves or hyenas. While there is different terminology …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Review of “Frankenstein”

Posted on Updated on by Geoff CarterCategories:Michael DiMilo, Movies

Monsters: Film Review of Frankenstein ★★★1/2 Illustration by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter Mary Woolstencraft Shelly’s gothic novel Frankenstein has gone through as many—or more—film iterations than any other horror story, except perhaps the Dracula franchise. Depending on the critical lens being used to examine it, the story can be seen as addressing issues of …
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Kickass and Snow Sounds

Posted on Updated on by Bill StokesCategories:Humor, Kickass, Weather, Wisconsin

Attribution: Breaking ground in deep snow by Trevor Littlewood, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper and Phyllis in listening to the sounds of a snowy day coming out of the muting gloom:             *The scrape of a passing snowplow.             *The buzz of the neighbors premature snowblower.             *Command signals …
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Kickass and Snow Angels

Posted on Updated on by Bill StokesCategories:Social Commentary

Attribution: Photo by Andrey Lear on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, will be following the keeper’s example and napping through the big snow predicted for the weekend. Fortified by one of Mike’s extravagant Thanksgiving feasts, the keeper and Phyllis will abandon their concerns and complaints about getting old. They will instead fixate on the fact …
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Revolution Redux

Posted on Updated on by Geoff CarterCategories:Activism, History, Michael DiMilo, Movies, Politics, POTUS

Illustration by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter There have been instances when the sometimes all-too-thin lines between art and reality have intersected, crossed, and become blurred. The China Syndrome, a film about safety violations at a nuclear power plant, was released only twelve days before the partial meltdown at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant. Wag the …
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Kickass and Pardoning Ceremony

Posted on Updated on by Bill StokesCategories:Holidays, Humor, Kickass, Politics, POTUS

Attribution: The White House, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the following: TWO TURKEYS TALKING: 1ST turkey, “So you were at the White House pardoning ceremony then?” 2nd turkey, “Yes, and it was even more of a fiasco than usual.” 1st turkey, “How so?” 2nd turkey, “The POTUS got confused and announced …
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