Life interrupted by one man’s war — I experience something quite cathartic about the weeping and gnashing of teeth. Two weeks feels as long as a year, but I can still hear yesterday calling, when everything was fine. I’m developing a serious case of sympathetic PTSD. Challenged by my obligation to write the story I am not…

Someone should tell Putin — Kyiv is one of the oldest cities on this side of the last two millennia. One could argue the establishment of this metropolis was the beginning of an entire empire geographically shapeshifted throughout history, Kyivan-Rus. The capture of this city eludes to an irresistible and historical power grab for Putin. The great deception …

Does it make dollars and sense? — I left a comment on a Medium Creators article recently. Someone replied with no words, only a link redirecting to another site. Hello, Sinister Suspicion! I remember reviewing my stats in the past and noticing traffic originating from websites such as pilachowski dot c’mon and others ending in odd letters…

Making the world great again — Is anyone else surprised Donald J. Trump managed to remove the Putin-pop from his mouth long enough to even make a statement? It would be great if Trump could stop providing sound bites, indefinitely. One tyrant glorifying another has provided vocal ammunition currently being replayed on Russian state television as…

Now I have to go back and tell her why — A beautiful, young, Russian woman caught me by surprise. Her words churned in my imagination. Maybe she enjoys the season of conflict? Maybe she looks down on Ukrainians? Perhaps she swallows every bite of Russian controlled state media she is fed and is full of Putin pride? Maybe she's a…

There will be no cease-fire and no surrender — No point in playing this game of negotiations. A cease-fire will not happen. Putin is a monster. Monsters don’t negotiate and cannot be trusted. What will he destroy during this round of discussions? People. He will destroy people. Putin probably enjoys the begging though. The indirect impacts from an enemy…

Chasing the beast — The futility is obvious. Putin’s word is worth absolutely nothing. He has come to lie, steal, kill, and destroy. Sanctions on top of sanctions against Russia keep coming. These consequences do not readily raise concern from Putin, but they affect Russian civilians. What does a monster care about sanctions? …

I should probably focus but… — I’m failing myself. I’m not living up to my own expectations, and I’ve lowered my standards. That’s ok, I guess. It’s only me. I’m only letting myself down, kind of. I would love to be better to the few people left in my life. …

Extreme couponing gets the boot — Margo, did you really need 17 tubes of toothpaste, 23 packs of bubble gum, a dozen bottles of shampoo, and 11 boxes of cereal for you and your live-in boyfriend? Derek, do you even have enough room in your apartment freezer for the 30 TV dinners you bought at such…