Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick made national headlines five years ago when he started taking a knee while the U.S. national anthem played before his games. Kaepernick was exercising his freedom of speech by using this silent gesture to draw attention to the killing of Black men by the police across this country. His simple gesture fueled a national debate that continues to this day, as the Black Lives Matter campaign has become a powerful national movement. Colin Kaepernick was blackballed by the league for his actions, but his influence as a public figure is exponentially greater today than if... Read more →

Hi everyone, How is your long weekend going so far? No complaints on this end. I know the world was a dumpster fire, but it was a very productive week here. I took care of almost every item on the to-do list. Some of the tasks had been on there for a long time, so it was particularly satisfying to finally resolve them. Today will probably be pretty quiet, apart from the fact that we're going to vote in the Boston city preliminary election in a little bit. The official election day is the 14th, but BDH and Little Buddha... Read more →

The United States is a sports-obsessed country, but millions of fans remain apathetic at best about the rampant sexism and misogyny that permeates every corner of professional athletics. We largely turn a blind eye to criminal behavior like domestic violence committed by athletes because we don't want to think about our heroes committing such terrible acts. There's also the reality that so many men seem to get angry about women participating in sports at any level, whether it's as athletes, reporters, or in other roles. While some progress has been made over the years, this country has so much further... Read more →

The story of Jeffrey Epstein is a stain on the United States. The wealthy businessman spent years sexually abusing underage women, while forcing many of them to also perform services for his associates. He faced little to no repercussions for his actions for the majority of his life until his suspicious death in a prison cell in 2019. This monster ruined many lives, and rather than provide justice, the U.S. judicial system failed his victims at almost every turn because he had the vast resources to evade meaningful consequences. Many people know the general outline of the story as we... Read more →

Richard Marx is not a modest man, and his new memoir, Stories to Tell, is better off for it. The singer/songwriter/producer has had an amazing career for almost 40 years. Many remember his 1987 debut album which included the classic hits, "Should've Known Better," "Endless Summer Nights," "Don't Mean Nothing," and "Hold on to the Nights." He's sold over 30 million albums over the course of his career. However, some people may not know that he was a successful backup singer for years before going out on his own, and he's also written and produced many hits for other artists... Read more →

Hi everyone, How are you? This is just a brutal stretch. I watered the garden yesterday evening, which was a good call, because there's suddenly less rain in this week's forecast. Those plants are tough, friends. They're hanging in there and looking gorgeous, even though it's like an oven outside. Had to stay up later than usual afterwards, because it was still something like 84 degrees at our usual bedtime. That's ridiculous. Of course BDH and Little Buddha can sleep through anything, but it was a fight the whole way for me until the temps dropped down to a chilly... Read more →

Hi everyone, How are you? BDH and Little Buddha were just giving me the weather forecast. It's supposed to rain for most of the afternoon/early evening, and we could even see some showers this morning. It is a little dark outside right now, but I can't help wondering if this is going to be yet another one of those times where it's a 40% chance of precipitation all day, and we end up with a light sprinkle at most. I have to water the garden either today or tomorrow, so hopefully this isn't some big tease. Either way, the highs... Read more →

Hi everyone, Welcome back! How are you? Did you have a good weekend? I had a nice time celebrating Father's Day with Dad Clutter last night. We went out for dinner for the first time in 15 months, which was a real treat. BDH and Little Buddha were just telling me about today's weather forecast. It's already warm in here. I admit, I might wuss out of this morning's bike ride. There are a couple of errands on the to-do list, so those may count as today's exercise until we get to garden time later in the afternoon/evening. The good... Read more →

The United States struggles with few issues as much as the undying prevalence of racism in this country. Discrimination shows its ugly face daily in every aspect of American life, from police brutality, to unequal employment and education opportunities, to the racial hostility that put Donald Trump in the White House as a backlash to eight years of Barack Obama in the Oval Office. "Black Lives Matter" protests dominate the headlines because this country consistently shows that we collectively don't believe it. As debates about civil rights rage on, it would be helpful for many members of our society to... Read more →

Hi everyone, Welcome back! How was the rest of your weekend? I had a great time in the garden yesterday afternoon. A little sore this morning, but not too bad. Filled four yard waste bags, and I still have some more work to do before the compost arrives in two weeks. That's okay, we'll get there. BDH and Little Buddha say the birds are chirping about how there's some sunlight now when we wake up in the morning. That definitely makes for a better start to the day. So, overall, we're all doing well, and now you're here, which makes... Read more →