Category Archives: Just Thinking

Impromptu posts, maybe with photos, that I want on the blog at the spur of the moment.

A Stretch of Beach

Posted on April 9, 2020 by John Swinburn

A long stretch of desolate beach, barely visible in the budding sunrise. Miles of sand, unsullied by tire tracks or footprints. Early in the morning, before the heat of the day causes gusty winds, the stillness of the air is … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Thinking | 4 Comments

Love Letters

Posted on March 28, 2020 by John Swinburn

I tend to keep personal letters I receive in the mail, whether handwritten or typewritten. Maybe my practice is driven by their rarity. Or perhaps they offer evidence someone thought I was worth the time and energy required to write … Continue reading →

Posted in Communication, Just Thinking, Philosophy | 2 Comments

A Short and Cynical Critique of Society

Posted on February 17, 2020 by John Swinburn

We sometimes fail to see massive changes in society because they occur in response to much smaller—seemingly innocuous—changes. For example, governments at all levels, over time, began to mimic customer service practices originally initiated by businesses. The idea was to … Continue reading →

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Witchcraft

Posted on December 17, 2019 by John Swinburn

I awoke to witchcraft this morning. I witnessed the effects of heat traveling through wires protruding from wounds in the wall. The heat caused water to boil and chickens’ eggs to congeal and harden in response. Heat from another source, … Continue reading →

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Ruminations and Conversations with a Madman

Posted on July 29, 2019 by John Swinburn

The next New Moon will occur on Wednesday this week, coinciding with the next  Black Moon at the same time, 10:11 p.m. Central time. A New Moon occurs when the Sun and Moon are aligned, with the Sun and Earth … Continue reading →

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Conversation with Myself

Posted on July 5, 2019 by John Swinburn

The U.S. Department of Agriculture first printed its “Special Report on Diseases of the Horse” in 1890. It was reprinted in 1896 and later revised and reprinted in 1903, 1908, 1911, and finally in 1916. The 1916 edition, and possibly … Continue reading →

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Confusion

Posted on October 18, 2018 by John Swinburn

Scraps of paper hide the scarred wood of my corner desk. A well-organized person would have placed the sheets of paper in piles, ordered by subject, but I paid no heed to organization. I left each sheet where it fell … Continue reading →

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Physics, Philosophy, Phiction, Phriends, and Phiery Phood

Posted on April 8, 2018 by John Swinburn

Michio Kaku labels himself, and is labeled by his media adherents, as a “theoretical physicist, futurist, and popularizer of science.” From time to time, I see his name or his image, but I haven’t paid much attention. Kaku apparently is … Continue reading →

Posted in Church, Just Thinking | 4 Comments

A Question of Identity and Hidden Secrets

Posted on April 7, 2018 by John Swinburn

I suspect that many people have at least one secret they are unwilling or unable to share with anyone, even the person (or the people) closest to us. Sometimes, I wonder whether we might be unwilling to share it even … Continue reading →

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Wine Thinking and Drinking

Posted on June 13, 2017 by John Swinburn

I’m sipping a Jacob’s Creek Shiraz-Cabernet blend. The wine snobs on Vivino talk trash about it, saying such things as these: “Not a wine to cherish. Pepper and vanilla stood out but a rather generic fruit flavour. Was a little … Continue reading →

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Rose-Colored Glasses

Posted on June 9, 2017 by John Swinburn

Some people see the world through rose-colored glasses. I do not. But, recently, when the phrase came to mind for unknown reason, I decided to explore its origin. Early in my search, I found reference to Labyrinth of the World … Continue reading →

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Morphing

Posted on May 20, 2017 by John Swinburn

We sometimes vent frustrations in ways that make sense only to us. Others look at us as if we’d stopped on the side of the road, spread a tablecloth on the ground, taken out a knife and fork, and dined on … Continue reading →

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Revisiting Tired Themes that Just Won’t Go Away

Posted on May 11, 2017 by John Swinburn

I think—somewhere among the two thousand, three hundred and six posts I have made to this blog since I created it—seeds worthy of sprouting clamor for attention. Yes, I know; I go back and forth between thinking I will always … Continue reading →

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Fury

Posted on May 10, 2017 by John Swinburn

Festering rage. Seething hatred. Scalding fury. Bristling contempt. Loathing amplified by a factor of fifty, ramped up by an exponent equivalent to the temperature of the sun. Hatred with an intensity that would vaporize diamonds and turn a ball of … Continue reading →

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Memory Storm

Posted on May 9, 2017 by John Swinburn

I associate ‘squalls’ with sailing on open water. The word prompts me to think of explosive bursts of wind and rain that put sailboats in danger of capsizing. ‘Squalls’ triggers memories of my teenage years, living just a few blocks … Continue reading →

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