Posts Categorized: Uncategorized

Joy of Blogging: Part One

letters

Captain’s Log, Stardate 43125.8. We have entered a spectacular binary star system in the Kavis Alpha sector on a most critical mission of astrophysical research. Our eminent guest, Dr. Paul Stubbs, will attempt to study the decay of neutronium expelled at relativistic speeds from a massive stellar explosion, which will happen in a number of… Read more »

Yea? Nay? All Win In Denver Elections

Denver Elections Division

Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost.” – John Quincy Adams When I signed on to be an election judge in 2018, I thought—correctly—the job might be fun and interesting and I might meet some new people. But I never… Read more »

Mr. Rogers And Journalism

Mr. Rogers stamp.

Mr. Rogers And Journalism Journalists need to let their ahhh (wonder) show through when they witness the glory of life … they have as much responsibility to celebrate life and the goodness of it as they do to root out evil.—Fred Rogers When I saw A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood, I was pleasantly surprised to… Read more »

Taking Teaching From Onsite To Online

Starting around March 2020, schools throughout the U.S. suddenly found themselves immersed in distance learning. Write an essay in three parts telling what this was like first from a student’s point of view, second from a teacher’s point of view, and finally from a parental point of view. Feel free to use your imagination and… Read more »

Responding To A Slacker Vampire

Plenty of writers resist this idea. They feel that revising a story according to the likes and dislikes of an audience is somehow akin to prostitution. If you really feel that way, I won’t try to change your mind. You’ll save on charges at Copy Cop, too, because you won’t have to show anyone your… Read more »

Life In The Time Of Covid-19

Guggenheim Museum

“It was a meditation on life, love, old age, death: ideas that had often fluttered around her head like nocturnal birds but dissolved into a trickle of feathers when she tried to catch hold of them.” – Gabriel  Garcia Marquez, Love in the Time of Cholera On March 5, 2020, I left my home in Denver for a… Read more »

The Latest On News Literacy

“Fostering a free society that is media literate will help promote more robust and productive civil discourse—which is one of the foundations of our democracy, after all.”—Rep. Lisa Cutter  Changes at one of the schools where I substitute are creating deep uncertainty about the future and a fertile environment for the spread of misinformation.  Responding… Read more »

Cowboys, Cowgirls And Animals Galore

The National Western Center will serve as a catalyst for the New West and a new way of thinking…. It will tell the story of our frontiering spirit through strong partnerships, a celebration of our Western heritage, and pioneering opportunities for the future. —National Western Center Master Plan Denver today is more a magnet for… Read more »

Lessons from J-School

Journalism can never be silent: that is its greatest virtue and its greatest fault. It must speak, and speak immediately, while the echoes of wonder, the claims of triumph, and the signs of sorrow are still in the air.—Henry Anatole Grumwald The first time I heard about Twitter was in 2008. I was in Texas… Read more »

Telling Stories

Peter Dinklage/Tyrion Lannister

“…I’ve had nothing to do but think these last few weeks – about our bloody history, about the mistakes we’ve made. What unites people? Armies, gold, flags, stories? There’s nothing in the world more powerful than a good story. Nothing can stop it. No enemy can defeat it. …” Tyrion Lannister, Game of Thrones, David… Read more »