Author Archives: John Swinburn

About John Swinburn

"Love not what you are but what you may become."― Miguel de Cervantes

Sepsis

Posted on November 5, 2016 by John Swinburn

I went to sleep last night in a different country. I awoke this morning in this one. This country, in which wolves are hunted for their feet; chopped off and hung from belts as talismans to fend against demonic marauders. … Continue reading →

Posted in Absurdist Fantasy, Fantasy, Fiction, Writing | 2 Comments

What Would You Do?

Posted on November 4, 2016 by John Swinburn

Imagine a set of conjoined twins. One has physical and behavioral problems that require constant therapy. The other, consumed by full-on psychosis, is a very real threat to his twin and to the nurses that tend to him; keeping sharp objects … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy | 2 Comments

Profound Gratitude

Posted on November 3, 2016 by John Swinburn

If you are reading this, you must know I love you. You are among a tiny, almost nonexistent, band of people who find my words valuable or, at least, not intolerably offensive. I write this blog to free my brain … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

The Comedies of Rage

Posted on November 3, 2016 by John Swinburn

Win or lose, an emphatic obligation to engage in mass preemptive euthanasia becomes more apparent with each rising sun. Poisoning the water supply in key conservative districts as a means of correcting the abuses of gerrymandering. Explorations into the potential mental health … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Negative Space

Posted on November 3, 2016 by John Swinburn

Negative space. That’s an interesting concept. The term refers to the space around and between one or more subjects of a visual image; it’s the space that surrounds an image. To an artist—and others who understand the concept in an … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art, Language, Literature | Leave a comment

Watching

Posted on November 2, 2016 by John Swinburn

We have a house guest, so I cannot go into the guest bedroom as usual to sit and cogitate and scheme. Instead, I must sit here in what I call the sky room, the room with monstrous windows that, when … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Seven Lonely Birthdays

Posted on November 2, 2016 by John Swinburn

Seven now. Seven of her birthdays without her present to celebrate. My oldest sister died in 2010, just about three months after her November 2, 2009 birthday. On the day she died—Friday, February 19, 2010—I wrote a tribute on the blog I … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Love | Leave a comment

Exploring Answers

Posted on November 1, 2016 by John Swinburn

You may or may not wonder, “What has John learned from his experience writing this blog?” That’s a question I often ask myself. My answers, when I choose to give them, vary from day to day. They range from “absolutely nothing” … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Thinking | Leave a comment

Unmasked

Posted on October 31, 2016 by John Swinburn

It’s hard to believe, but today marks my sixty-third consecutive party-free Halloween. That’s right. I’ve never in my life attended a Halloween party. At least not in my adult life. And probably not even in my childhood. It’s not that I … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Eclectica

Posted on October 30, 2016 by John Swinburn

I’m in an eclectic musical mood, brought about, perhaps, by my earlier exorcism. Music helps me think or, more precisely, helps me analyze my thoughts. The playlist so far this morning, thanks to Spotify: Stranger in a Strange Land, Leon Russell … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Leave a comment

Exorcism

Posted on October 30, 2016 by John Swinburn

At four minutes past three this morning, when I walked outside on the back deck and looked skyward, I was treated to an amazing, spectacular vision. It was as if the stars had not hidden themselves behind the ambient light beneath … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Thinking | Leave a comment

Only Ideas

Posted on October 29, 2016 by John Swinburn

I have always considered myself somewhat ‘bohemian.’ But my unorthodox core, for virtually all my life until this very moment, has remained hidden beneath a shell, a cover designed to appear conventional. Perhaps that’s a story I tell myself, though. It may … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy | Leave a comment

Culinary Hypocrisy

Posted on October 29, 2016 by John Swinburn

I was reminded this morning of an essay I read six years ago that made me pause and reflect on my fascination with food. The essayist, William Deresiewicz, asserts that food replaced art as the embodiment of high culture. Deresiewicz says the “foodie” … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, Materialism, Philosophy | Leave a comment

Gunfire

Posted on October 28, 2016 by John Swinburn

Yesterday, my wife and I got involved in some gunplay. We went to a shooting range about ten miles from the house and fired a variety of weapons: 9mm Glock, a shotgun, and I fired an M4 carbine, though my wife … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Ahead of the Game

Posted on October 27, 2016 by John Swinburn

This afternoon, after missing an author’s presentation at the community library due to uncooperative time and distance, I arrived home to continue yesterday afternoon’s endeavor: painting a ceramic bust I made in my sculpture class. I bisque fired the monster … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Seeing Smoke

Posted on October 27, 2016 by John Swinburn

Elvin Sharp awoke with a start. His eyes sprang open to reveal ribbons of soft blue and white light billowing from beneath the motel door. The swirling strips of light confused him. Light doesn’t curl like that, does it? Of course not. … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Writing | Leave a comment

Bribe

Posted on October 26, 2016 by John Swinburn

My first visit to Germany is a bit of a blur. I traveled there on a “fam trip.” That’s a euphemism for “bribe.” A familiarization tour is a means by which the hospitality industry attempts to bribe people with the power … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Photograph

Posted on October 25, 2016 by John Swinburn

The boy I was, looking earnestly into the camera, could not have known his passion would melt, after a thousand defeats, into painful indifference. That hopeful lad, barely in his twenties, knew nothing of failure. He believed intellect could take him … Continue reading →

Posted in Poetry, Writing | Leave a comment

The Person You Have Been

Posted on October 24, 2016 by John Swinburn

Boy, could I tell you some stories! You probably wouldn’t believe them, even though they’re all true. See, when you’ve lived a life as crazy as mine, people think the stories you tell are pure fiction. Nobody believes me when I … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Writing | Leave a comment

Human Trafficking

Posted on October 23, 2016 by John Swinburn

I attended an interesting and informative, but disturbing, presentation this morning on human trafficking. I learned that human trafficking is not a problem limited to other countries but is of enormous concern right here in the USA. Sex trafficking, labor … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy | Leave a comment

Grace

Posted on October 23, 2016 by John Swinburn

An image of a hand-written letter George H.W. Bush left in the Oval Office on January 1993 for Bill Clinton has gone viral (click on image to enlarge). The letter exemplifies a flurry of shared sentiments that seem to have sparked … Continue reading →

Posted in Civility, Philosophy, Politics, Secular morality | Leave a comment

Hoodwinked

Posted on October 22, 2016 by John Swinburn

Bloody insomnia! I tried a new tactic last night, getting to bed very early (before 9 pm), figuring I might be able to get more sleep if I gave myself more time to sleep. You know, if I planned to … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Birthday Decadence

Posted on October 21, 2016 by John Swinburn

Birthday Alarm (which I once used to remind me about birthdays of people with whom I did business) tells me I share my birthday with Dizzy Gillespie, Carrie Fisher, Alfred Nobel, and Benjamin Netanyahu. I should feel honored to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Aging, Food, Mythology | Leave a comment

Sinking into Fear and Politics

Posted on October 20, 2016 by John Swinburn

In terms of sleep, last night was moderately better than the several nights that preceded it. I think it only took me about thirty minutes to drift off to sleep after I went to bed at 12:30, though I was … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Leave a comment

Adaptive Jook

Posted on October 19, 2016 by John Swinburn

Well, insomuch as my efforts to sleep in recent hours were only modestly successful, there’s only one thing to do: post a photo of last night’s dinner with an explanation. What you see in the photo is bastardized adaptive jook. … Continue reading →

Posted in Food | Leave a comment