Not Phil Collins

Not Phil Collins

The other day I was talking with a friend about a writing project I’m working on. In describing a scene I mentioned this to her: “If this character had a spirit animal, I think it would be Ted Nugent.” She smiled and laughed in the manner of someone...
Dogged

Dogged

Dedicated readers have realized that it’s been a while since I’ve written here. Now it’s true that no one’s actually said anything about my absence—there have been no Bring Aaron Back hashtags or comparable social media drives—but on such...
Pop Matters: How Wilco fixed what U2 botched

Pop Matters: How Wilco fixed what U2 botched

In the fall of 2007, Radiohead released their seventh album, In Rainbows, via the internet. For all its simplicity the price was exceptionally radical: you paid whatever you wanted to pay. It was an awesome, What the—really?!? moment courtesy of one of the most...
As Funny As I Think I Am

As Funny As I Think I Am

You know, she said as she looked across the table at me, you’re not as funny as you think you are. She’d said this, this woman seated across from me, because I’d sniffed my glass of wine, looked ruminatively toward the sky and said, “Hmmh,...
On Resolutions, Or Duking-It-Out In The New Year

On Resolutions, Or Duking-It-Out In The New Year

2015 started with a bright blast here in Seattle: the thermometer struggled to reach 32°, the skies above cleared themselves wide open and bluer-than-blue, and the sun, visible for once, permitted a scroll of wonders: snow-tipped mountains sparkled everywhere along...
Knowing When

Knowing When

Earlier this week a co-worker looked at me and said, Hey, what’s going on with your beard? It’s getting pretty thick. He was right. I hadn’t shaved in a couple weeks and hadn’t had a hair-cut in nearly two months. I was looking pretty shaggy...