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Author Archives: John Swinburn
Old Notes
I make notes to myself. In the days before I had an iPhone, I’d write the notes in little 3×5″ spiral-bound notebooks I kept in my pocket. I rarely carry those little notebooks anymore; not because I prefer the iPhone … Continue reading
Copper
Old couples hold hands as they walk slowly down the quiet grey beach, shrouded in mist. They disappear into the fog, two by two. Their lives are strands of copper wire, flexing and bending until there’s nothing left to yield, no … Continue reading
Ridin’ the Rails
We’re contemplating another long trip, this time by train. I say “we,” but the contemplation is mostly mine; my wife is indulging my dreamery and allowing as to how she would be OK with the trip if I take care … Continue reading
Posted in Friendship, Travel
2 Comments
So Many Places with Potential…
My recently renewed enthusiasm about third places (see this, this, this, and this) has led me to do more research about “great good places.” That research has opened my eyes to my myopia about places I’ve lived, places I’ve long since … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Demographics, Essay, Housiing, Third Place, Urban planning
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Building Community, One Third Place at a Time
Yesterday, I went to a nearby branch of the Dallas Public Library to pick up a book I’d requested, Celebrating the Third Place: Inspiring Stories about the “Great Good Places” at the Heart of Our Communities. I haven’t finished the … Continue reading
Posted in Third Place
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The Death of Libraries
Many of us take libraries for granted. We think they always will be there. Always. Whether we frequent them or not, whether we support them or not, whether we defend them or not, libraries always will be there. Would that … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Libraries, Third Place
4 Comments
Doing Without Alcohol: Alternative Addictions?
My perception of my year of doing without is changing. My casual experiment is having unexpected results. I’m thinking of things I didn’t allow myself to think before I started this. This is my month for doing without alcohol. Iced … Continue reading
Posted in Doing Without, Self-discipline
6 Comments
Columbus, IN…Who Knew?
Some knew. I did not. I had no idea. Because I was uniformed. Uneducated. I was the poster boy for architectural ignorance. Now, I’m on my way to enlightenment. The first step, they say, is to recognize the problem. My … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Art
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Finding Places–Ohio and Beyond
We started the trip on Tuesday, August 27, around 11:30 a.m. We had planned to start it Monday (and before Monday, Sunday and Saturday and the week before…but never mind), but decided for a variety of reasons that we should … Continue reading
On the Road
After four nights being hosted by my nephew and his lovely wife, we’re about to hit the road again. We may drift east or north, we may turn back toward home, taking a more westerly route. Only after getting in … Continue reading
Posted in Travel
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Doing Without: First Success
The month of August has passed and so has my first successful month of doing without. I gave up coffee for the entire month with no difficulty. Today, I began September with a treat: a cup of very nice, rich, … Continue reading
Posted in Doing Without, Self-discipline
6 Comments
Friends
It’s not a silly question. Despite the fact that “everybody knows” what a friend is and how friendship develops and what it means to be a friend, it’s not a silly question. What is a friend? There are dozens more … Continue reading
Posted in Friendship
1 Comment
Drift
He drifts slowly from consciousness, slipping from crisp coherence into a soft, shallow haze of semi-awareness. The clot of tangled detritus upon which he rests floats down the street, snagging a street sign, then a tree branch, then a lonely … Continue reading
Posted in Fiction
3 Comments
The Bedrock of Compromise
The following is an edited version of a post extracted from another of my blogs, written just over two years ago. I read the post again to determine whether my position has changed. It hasn’t. It pays to remind ourselves … Continue reading
Posted in Politics
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Tanning Laundries
Recently, my wife and I had a conversation about tanning salons. They are everywhere. The only person, to my knowledge, I’ve ever known to regularly visit a tanning salon was a sociopath who used to steal from her employers…and may … Continue reading
Posted in Money laundering
2 Comments
Prevarication or Procrastination
I lied. At least that’s the way it looks. No paint. No brushes. No caulk. Nothing. And today is not looking any better. I have my reasons, mind you, but it appears, nonetheless, that I lied. And I am nothing, … Continue reading
Posted in Lies/disinformation, Procrastination
2 Comments
Focus…Focus…Focus
It’s time for me to return to the important task at hand: getting the house ready to sell. I’ve been remiss of late in that I’ve essentially withdrawn from my responsibilities for taking care of a lot of cosmetic necessities. … Continue reading
Posted in Housiing, Procrastination, Travel
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Christian Nation
A friend of mine who shares many of my attitudes about religion suggested to me recently that I read a book, a novel, she had just started reading. She suggested I would find it interesting, but she warned me that … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Politics, Religion
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Hearing Voices
Wading through masses of “stuff” we’ve kept in boxes, drawers, bins, closets, and who knows where else, my wife came across some old cassette tapes. Her encounter with the tapes happened as she was seeking to find things to give … Continue reading
Posted in Family, Voices
2 Comments
Antisocial
On occasion, I find myself feeling especially antisocial. I feel utterly disinterested in conversation, in fact completely opposed to any interaction of whatever kind. Today is one of those occasions. I have an inkling of what brought it on this … Continue reading
Posted in Depression
2 Comments
Grasshopper
I trained the water from the nozzle of the hose on the grasshopper, knocking it off the wall. It half fell, half jumped onto the grass a few feet away, fleeing yet another obstacle to life. Another attack in a … Continue reading
Posted in Nature
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Coffee-Walk-Sloth-Pain
I’m only on day two of doing without and, as expected, I have had no difficulty doing without coffee. But my coffee replacement, a 30+ minute morning walk, has been more of an adjustment than it should have been, considering … Continue reading
Posted in Doing Without, Self-discipline, Sloth, Walking
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Ora Pro Nobis
One recent weekend, my wife and I went for a long, aimless drive north and west of Dallas. Our trip took us to Bowie, where we had lunch at the Armadillo Grill, and then along a nearly deserted back road … Continue reading
Posted in Religion
2 Comments
Doing Without: An August Beginning
I’ve been thinking all month about what I would do without in my first month of doing without. July, of course, was not the first month. That will be August. For my first month, I’ll do without coffee, which will … Continue reading
Posted in Doing Without, Self-discipline
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The Algebra of Procrastination
Procrastination is a calculation. It’s a calculation of value. It goes something like this: If X=the pain of doing the task; and Y=the pleasure of having done the work; Then the task will be done when the value of Y … Continue reading
Posted in Procrastination
2 Comments