Remembering my favorite veteran 

An armistice between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. It was November 11, 1918, and it was the end of “the war to end all wars.”

Today Veterans Day honors Ame… Read full post »

I haven’t been around OS much these days and am just checking in.  My 86 year old father died on October 4 and I was fortunate to be holding his hand when he did.  He lived alone and independently in Detroit and was active and vigorous until felled by a hemorrhagic/… Read full post »

“I fought Lexus and Lexus won”

I have been posting and playing on OS for almost a year. I’ve seen a lot of people come and go.  I’ve laughed, gotten teary-eyed, gotten irritated, been impressed, touched, moved, and even prodded into considering new ideas because of/… Read full post »

“I’m here to get validated.”

Our good pirate friend Cap’n Parrotdead put up a post today titled This Place Has Stopped Validating Me.  It reminded me of a video that was posted awhile back here titled Validation. Watch it and I guarantee you’ll feel go… Read full post »

Primeval and Primordial

I was reading an OS (aka “Little Salon”) post the other night about how President Obama is trying to “indoctrinate” schoolchildren in the United States. It was from one of our regular far right wing... “Give us our country back”… Read full post »

My previous post  on a recent trip to Nicaragua included the beginning of a walk around Matagalpa. If you didn’t see it and you’ve got a few minutes, I’d suggest clicking on it here first,  and then rejoining me here.  Or just come on along.  The following/… Read full post »

Day 1 in Matagalpa: Beauty Amidst Poverty 

I recently visited my 23 year old daughter (Emmy) who lives and works in Matagalpa, Nicaragua. She originally moved down there last year to work at Finca Esperanza Verde (FEV). This magical place is an eco-lodge in the coffee growing regio/… Read full post »

I am in Matagalpa, Nicaragua visiting my 23 year old daughter who lives and works here with an awesome program called Global Glimpse. They sponsor high school students to spend three weeks immersed in a foreign country.  This is not your typical tour thing - rather the students participat… Read full post »

Psych Ward Stories: The Quiet Room and the Porcelain Plate

It was a locked psychiatric ward on the third floor in the oldest part of the medical center hospital.  I was the head psychiatric attendant and all of 23 years old. There were fifteen patient rooms of varying size,/… Read full post »

I love to play with Open Salon advertisers. It’s that “little man” in me I guess. I had fun with Shelloil and Lexus. Now along comes Le Tourment Vert. I felt a strike through strike through post/… Read full post »

"I AM WHITE GUY"

Syndicated columnist Rick Horowitz has written a great satirical piece on Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) titled How it looks to Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III . It is a “must read” regarding white male privilege. I strongly urge you to click on/… Read full post »

I am staying on OS. Please do not try and talk me out of it.  I have given this matter serious consideration and I have decided clearly that I have little to say, so why would I go anywhere else?   I buy my gas at Shell, and someday/… Read full post »

Procopius wrote a great post yesterday titled 50 Years Ago On the Other Side of the Globe (And Today, Too)  recalling the first American casualty engraved in the Vietnam memorial in Washington, D.C.   He also reflected on our engagement in Afghanistan and its apparent futility and said… Read full post »

So many have given so much so that we may be free.   Let us never forget. 

(Suggestion: Go to 2:45 of the Taps video and play it from there as you scroll down.)

 Revolutionary War Graves

C… Read full post »

wakingupslowly posted a great article titled  YOU Can Make an Impact on the Health Reform Debate THIS Week . This post is full of information on health care reform issues, the legislation being discussed in Washington, and how to contact various legislators if you’re so inclined.  It/… Read full post »

Older Addicts/Alcoholics Are the Best Liars!! 

(Note: I have been thinking for awhile now about how lying and addiction are intertwined.  The credible stories about MJ’s drug addiction this past week were the catalyst for writing this post.  It’s not about MJ/… Read full post »

NOTICE TO ALL BLOGWHORES AND BLOGPIMPS!!

YOU WILL NO LONGER BE ABLE TO SEND ME FREE PRIVATE MESSAGES (PM’S).  PLEASE DEPOSIT $1.00 (U.S. – NO FUNNY MONEY - aka CANADIAN) IN MY ADSENSE ACCOUNT EACH TIME YOU PIMP YOURSELF TO ME. 

I REALIZE THIS… Read full post »

(Note: I haven't written much on OS these past months.  I have occasionally stopped in to read and comment; however, I just have not had the time to spend here that I typically enjoy.  This little piece on the meaning of life has been brewing around some, and today just seemed lik… Read full post »

MEMORANDUM 

TO:     Joan Walsh, Editor-in-Chief, Salon  

FROM: Kerry Lauerman, Open Salon 

           Director 

RE:      OS Rig/… Read full post »

 Stellaa recently wrote a post titled When Public Policy Goes Kafka . It was all about a Chinese county that taxed cigarettes and encouraged its citizens to smoke more.  Apparently they were willing to sacrifice health (and life) in order to raise revenue.  In/… Read full post »

THE TRUTH (HONEST!!!!) 

OK. I’m pretty insulted by how many people have said that they totally think I have been arrested AT LEAST THREE EFFIN’ TIMES OR MORE, and once for indecent exposure for God’s sake.   

Well, #1 is TRUE.

In the spring… Read full post »

Ok.  I am not an MD.  I do not, nor have I ever played one on TV.  My father is an MD; however, I did not consult him on this post.  I did not consult Dr. Amy either (Dear God, can you believe I mentioned her in a/… Read full post »

I was sitting on the truck tailgate while grilling some chicken. It was late afternoon and the sunlight was doing its selective highlighting .  I had a good day at work and was now in my jeans (it really doesn't get any better than the jeans after a day of work attire),… Read full post »