Author Archives: John Swinburn

About John Swinburn

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

Conjecture

Posted on March 24, 2020 by John Swinburn

My mind wandered deep into my past this morning, suddenly and for no apparent reason. In my mind’s eye, I saw images of items I probably last saw when I was a very young child. I remembered tiny replicas of … Continue reading →

Posted in Covid-19, Memories, Mexico | Leave a comment

Struggles (AR) in the Times of Pestilence

Posted on March 23, 2020 by John Swinburn

The fictional town of Stuggles, Arkansas morphed from a small town coping with abandonment by its principal employer, a manufacturing plant, into a community on life support, thanks to a virus for which no immunity nor any treatment exists.  The … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Writing | 3 Comments

What I am Learning, Even Today, from Steinbeck

Posted on March 22, 2020 by John Swinburn

The Grapes of Wrath. I remember (though indistinctly, as if through a heavy fog) reading Steinbeck’s classic novel depicting the struggles of Depression-era Dust Bowl migrations. What I remember clearly about the story, though, is the intensity of Jim Casy’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy | 2 Comments

Solutions Already Exist

Posted on March 21, 2020 by John Swinburn

Solutions to the problems we are facing exist, already, in our heads. We just need to find ways to mine for them and process raw ideas into finished, implementable processes that yield results. Creativity blossoms when monstrous challenges  confront us. … Continue reading →

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Speculation and Organization

Posted on March 20, 2020 by John Swinburn

The threats posed by the coronavirus have changed my life, thus far, in only limited ways. The seismic shifts taking place throughout the rest of the world have begun here, but I spend most of my time at home, anyway, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

A Lone

Posted on March 19, 2020 by John Swinburn

I sometimes reflect on my life thus far as if it were a single event playing out across a spectrum of time. That viewpoint allows me to contemplate the experience from an unusual perspective; as if I were watching it … Continue reading →

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Life in the Times of Pestilence

Posted on March 18, 2020 by John Swinburn

We have no weapons to fight this war. Our only realistic hope is to hide from the enemy; play dead and hope the beast does not call our bluff. If we confront him, face to face, the best we can … Continue reading →

Posted in Covid-19, Health | 1 Comment

I’m Not Going to Work Today

Posted on March 17, 2020 by John Swinburn

On Labor Day several years ago, my wife and I listened to the Glenn Mitchell Show as we drove around Dallas. I was enthralled by Mitchell’s talk show, especially his “Anything You Ever Wanted to Know” segment; the tag line … Continue reading →

Posted in Covid-19, Memories, Music | 2 Comments

Fear and Dark Humor and Complete Disorientation

Posted on March 16, 2020 by John Swinburn

Fear drives both rational and irrational behaviors. In times of chaos, we find differentiation between them increasingly difficult. For example, are consumers rational when they stock up on toilet paper and non-perishable foodstuffs? It depends on perspective. If information available … Continue reading →

Posted in Covid-19, Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Facts, Bias, and Slant

Posted on March 15, 2020 by John Swinburn

Media bias is real. Yes, there are fake news sites. But the “main stream media,” a term right-wing near-nazis (note I did not call them neo-nazis) does not, by and large, conform to my definition of the propagators of fake … Continue reading →

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Restlessly Waiting

Posted on March 15, 2020 by John Swinburn

Avocado toast and bacon improved my state of mind yesterday morning. Lunch yesterday helped, too. We had leftover (from the night before) cioppino. My wife found a recipe that married the Italian-American dish to Korean flavors (the latter courtesy of … Continue reading →

Posted in Covid-19, Health | Leave a comment

Confronting Two Enemies

Posted on March 14, 2020 by John Swinburn

In the wake of a growing concern about a mysterious disease, when will a gnawing worry evolve into fear? What incident will cause fear to mushroom into terror, breeding deep suspicion of anyone outside our immediate circle? At what point … Continue reading →

Posted in Covid-19, Depression, Health, Hope, Philosophy | Leave a comment

Love is the Richest Emotion

Posted on March 13, 2020 by John Swinburn

I love you. You know who you are. I could listen to your voice for hours if you’d let me. And I suppose you would. But what reason could I give for wanting to hear it? What excuse could I … Continue reading →

Posted in Love, Writing | Leave a comment

Circles of Light

Posted on March 12, 2020 by John Swinburn

One of the definitions of corona, courtesy of the Cambridge Dictionary, begins with “a circle of light…” There’s more to it, of course, but I prefer to leave it there for the sake of clarity; clarity that even language is … Continue reading →

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Stigma

Posted on March 11, 2020 by John Swinburn

Routines that, until recently, guided me through the predawn hours have dissolved into misty memories over the course of the last few months.  I could point to a single change, over which I had no control, that caused the disruption—but … Continue reading →

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Patterns

Posted on March 10, 2020 by John Swinburn

It’s a pattern. I daydream about hitting the road for an extended period to explore new places, revisit places from my long ago past, or simply to separate myself from the day-to-day routine by which I sometimes feel confined. It’s … Continue reading →

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The Rest

Posted on March 9, 2020 by John Swinburn

I’m writing this on Sunday night as the clock tells me it’s close to 11:00 p.m. I have a good reason for writing it Sunday, instead of early Monday. I will be up early again on Monday; there’s no question. … Continue reading →

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Early-Onset Nosophobia and Unrelated Mental Tantrums

Posted on March 8, 2020 by John Swinburn

I had occasion recently to read a story I wrote almost five years ago. Among the many character names mentioned in the story—most only in passing—were Shady Fulcrum, Gludge Mokrey, Cleatus Pryor, and Barney Clump. There were several others, most … Continue reading →

Posted in Covid-19, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Self-Limiting Thoughts

Posted on March 7, 2020 by John Swinburn

Perhaps this, the third item I’ve written since I got up around 5 this morning, will satisfy my desire to create something I am willing to share. The first two provided me with outlets for thoughts about intellectual and emotional … Continue reading →

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Late Lethargy

Posted on March 6, 2020 by John Swinburn

It’s 7:00 a.m. and I’ve only been up for about fifteen minutes. I’ve wasted a significant portion of the day, sleeping in! Around 5:00 a.m., I awoke and decided to get up “in a minute,” but that didn’t happen. Nor, … Continue reading →

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Forgiveness and Food

Posted on March 5, 2020 by John Swinburn

I spilled red wine on a grey and white carpet last night. I did my best to clean it; my best was inadequate, as ample evidence of the spill remains. My faux pas bothered me, but it didn’t send me … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, Language | Leave a comment

My Schizophrenic Electoral Attitude

Posted on March 5, 2020 by John Swinburn

It occurred to me that I posted something a couple of days ago that suggested I voted for Biden. I didn’t. I voted for Warren. But I had concluded by the time I wrote the post that a centrist like … Continue reading →

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Yesterday’s Journal: A Dull Tale of a Semi-Typical Day (and a rebirth of my interest in writing)

Posted on March 4, 2020 by John Swinburn

Yesterday morning, before we left for Little Rock for my wife’s blood draw, frustration was afoot because the medical folks had not confirmed that she had an appointment at 11:15. Because we did not want to miss that appointment, assuming … Continue reading →

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Musings on Politics, People, Society, and the Almost Certainly Impossible

Posted on March 3, 2020 by John Swinburn

I do not worry that electing a left-leaning candidate like Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren would lead to economic catastrophe. Nor do I worry that electing a centrist like Biden would embed a Republican-light approach to government for the foreseeable … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy, Politics | Leave a comment

Medical Delays

Posted on March 3, 2020 by John Swinburn

Yesterday, we delayed our planned departure to Little Rock by thirty minutes to accommodate some to-do items; it was a good thing we did. My wife got a call from her doctor’s nurse, saying she wanted my wife to get … Continue reading →

Posted in Health | Leave a comment