Raised By Turtles

The Hotel on Pluto

7 Dec 2018 (updated 16 Nov, 2019)

Ahwahnee, Majestic, planet, not a planet. Does it make any difference? For some people it’s a big deal. For me, not so much, but if I can just get investors for my hotel on Pluto, I can make the people who care very happy.

Google Chrome Prints Blank Pages from Google Sheets

12 Mar 2018 (updated 16 Nov, 2019)

It’s probably caused by your PDF driver, but the new (as of Chrome 65) Print Preview UI might help also. So will switching to Firefox.

The Forgetoir

23 Jan 2018 (updated 21 Dec, 2022)

Picture of abandoned railway station in the desert

As we edge toward the third decade of the 21st century, I have decided that it is time to forge ahead with a new literary genre — the forgetoir, a record of all the things we’ve forgotten or, at least, are trying to forget.

The Complete List of Things You Must Do Everyday in 2018

3 Jan 2018 (updated 16 Nov, 2019)

It’s not a long list. In fact, it’s very short. Unlike the list of things you don’t actually have to do every day no matter what people tell you.

Bug Zappers and Thoreau

6 Dec 2017 (updated 16 Nov, 2019)

Thoreau loved swamps. Modern Americans love swamps too, as long as they surround them with bug zappers. I think there’s a lesson in there.

Going Solar without Rooftop Panels (Renters Too!)

22 Nov 2016 (updated 22 Dec, 2020)

If you live in the PG&E service area, and a growing number of other locales in the US, you can now choose grid-sourced solar energy for your electricity. Reduce your carbon footprint and encourage more renewable energy in the future.

Why I Quit Using Facebook and Pocket

12 Feb 2016 (updated 2 Sep, 2021)

It wasn’t just that I grew tired of being a click slave in the Facebook mines, but I also didn’t like what it was doing to my mind. What *was* it doing to my mind? That’s a bit complicated.

I’d Like to Add You to My Network

11 Jan 2016 (updated 21 Dec, 2022)

The varieties of LinkedIn Connections seem so limiting.

A Theory of Dryer Crimes

19 Nov 2015 (updated 21 Dec, 2022)

Jason lived between a hammer and an anvil, between his wife and the Caledcotts

Your life is awesome? Great!

13 Nov 2015 (updated 14 Nov, 2019)

I’m troubled by how awesome you all are on Facebook. This is why my Facebook feed seems so impersonal

Personal Favorites

Improved Roads (thoughts on the loss of wild places)
A Theory of Dryer Crimes (fiction in which Jason turns out to be an asshole)
The Forgetoir (a new literary form to replace the memoir)
The Faithful Couple (a poem about long-term love)
Curriculum Vitae (a poem about learning to live)
Best Jeremiah Johnson Quotes (the only post to appear on both the "favorites" list and the "most popular" list, because JJ is a movie to live by)
Ice Cream For Dinner (imaginary high school graduation speech; my chance to tell young people to stop listening to the lies of their elders)
The Boy Behind the Couch (reading Susan Cain and my secret life as an introvert)
How To Tell Tom from Las Vegas (my friends get this, others may not)
Sarah's Watch (fiction fragment and experiment in writing with Hemingway App)
Learning to Read (and what makes a great reader).
You Can Always Yell Later (a life lesson from my mom on getting what you want and making the world better)
I’d Like to Add You to My Network. Some of these Linked in connection options are getting scary (humor, I think).
Six Essential Skills that Marketers Can Teach Academics (for scholars who write grants and apply for fellowships, please stop aiming the gun at your foot).