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Recent Posts
- On Randall K. Wilson’s “A Place Called Yellowstone”: Award-Winning History of Yellowstone National Park
- On Candice Millard’s “River of Doubt” and “River of the Gods”: Bugs, Snakes, and Disease Aplenty
- More Alone than “Alone”: On Adam Shoalts’s “Vanished Beyond the Map: The Mystery of Lost Explorer Hubert Darrell” (2025)
- Rachel McAdams film “Send Help” (2026) Makes Comic Gold Out of “Survivor” and “Alone” Audition Videos
- “The Wiggle Room”: A Short Story
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Category Archives: Uncategorized
"A Flag From the Poor Kid": A Christmas Essay
So a week ago I attended my daughter’s first community choir event for the Christmas season, at a Lutheran church no less. It was a lovely—even, dare I say, spiritual—event, a crowd of darling children singing (or not) Christmas carols in … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Education, Politics, The West, Uncategorized
Tagged Climate Change, Gun Control, Poverty, The West
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Three Ideas for "Real" Change: Support States' Rights on Marijuana, Mandate Solar Panels of New Home Roofs, Ban All Assault Weapons
So the Obama administration has one chance for real change right now, with a couple more that are much needed. I live in Colorado, which has legalized marijuana, but the Obama administration has yet to respond on exactly what they’ll … Continue reading
Posted in Climate Change, Gun Control, Politics, The West, Uncategorized
Tagged Climate Change, Gun Control, Politics, The West
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Phillip Roth Hangs Up His Pen, While Kent Haruf and George Saunders Have New Books in the Offing
So on the literary beat there’s an interesting tidbit in the news this week (delayed, as you’ll see, from our attention), in that the great American novelist—he did name one of his books that: The Great American Novel (1973)—Phillip Roth … Continue reading
On Finishing David Quammen's "Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic"
So I’ve finished David Quammen’s excellent new book of nonfiction, Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic, about zoonotic viruses and the danger we face from new pandemics originating in crossover viruses leaping from animals to humans. At 520 … Continue reading
Posted in books/film, Climate Change, Uncategorized
Tagged Book Reviewing, Climate Change, David Quammen's Spillover
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Review of "The Bird Saviors" in the San Antonio Express-News, and Miles & Miles of Texas
So I’m on a book tour of Texas right now, and have actually driven 1,400 miles so far, from Texline in the northeast part of the Panhandle to South Padre Island at the very southern tip of the state. And … Continue reading
Posted in Birding, books, The West, Uncategorized
Tagged Birding, Book Reviewing, The Bird Saviors, The West
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On Bogus Book Reviews, Facebook Hoopla, & Why Book Reviews Even Matter
So I read with some amusement and (tempered, jaded) dismay a good piece in the NY Times about bogus, “bought” online book reviews, here. I didn’t know about any of this, exactly, but I’m not too surprised. The ‘net is … Continue reading
Posted in books, The West, Uncategorized
Tagged Book Reviewing, Cormac McCarthy, The West
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Teenage Mutant Cannibal ATV Riders & The Coming Megadrought in the West
So last weekend I was camping in the Medicine Bow Wilderness Area of southern Wyoming, loving it, my family all alone in a beautiful campground, when the sound of loud motors, screams, dogs barking, and shouting wafted through the forest … Continue reading
Posted in books, Climate Change, The West, Uncategorized
Tagged Climate Change, Drought
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Reading "The Southwestern Journals of Zebulon Pike: 1806-7": A Vision of Colorado Springs Before It Was Afire, Plus "The Bird Saviors" Appears on KRCC, Colorado Springs Radio
So after returning from another trip to Santa Fe, I’m now reading “The Southwestern Journals of Zebulon Pike: 1806-7,” which recounts an expedition to explore the Arkansas River boundary of the Louisiana Purchase—otherwise known as a Poor Man’s Lewis & … Continue reading
Posted in Birding, books, Climate Change, Photography, The West, Uncategorized, Weird Weather
Tagged Birding, Climate Change, Good Fiction, Photography, Santa Fe, The Bird Saviors, Wildfires, Wildlife photos
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Fires in the West a Sign of Things To Come: Prophecies in "The Bird Saviors" Coming True, Unfortunately
So my novel The Bird Saviors is set in the “near future,” which I always thought to be something like five to ten years from now, but some of the calamities forecast in the story are unfolding right now—particularly an … Continue reading
Posted in Birding, books, The West, Uncategorized, Water Crisis
Tagged Birding, Climate Change, Good Fiction, The Bird Saviors, Water Crisis, Wildfires
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Big Friend, Boohoo, Big Mess: How the Facebook IPO Symbolizes the False Hype of the Financial World
So I’m mildly amused by the debacle that was Facebook’s Wall Street debut, in that I always found the multi-billion dollar value of FB to be an illusion. Now that it’s dropped in value by over $20 billion, my suspicions … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Politics, Social Networking, Uncategorized
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