Category Culture
Columbus and the Indigenous Peoples
The fair city of Seattle recently abolished Columbus Day and replaced it with Indigenous Peoples’ Day. It is tempting, then to embark on an impassioned polemic about how Columbus was either a monster to be reviled or bemoan the continual attacks on our traditions from those ornery and persistently unassimilated minorities. As much fun as […]
Naked Fantasy, Naked Power
The Deep South. Dixie. The Confederacy. The Bible Belt. How is it that every name I can think of for this region carries with it emotional baggage? If you are a liberal, black or committedly secular person, the words with which I began this essay probably make you angry. They make you think of Bull […]
My Ghost
On a surface level, I just went on a ghost hunt. However, if I really think of what I was doing on the levels of symbolism and cognition, it was really closer to an act of war. Since this is a story about ghosts, according to the Most Holy Book of Cultural Cliché, I’m supposed […]
The Meaning of Life
This is a translated version of the speech I delivered yesterday in my Toastmaster’s Meeting. Yoon Du-kyeong, Kim Hyeon and Lee Kyeong are my students, and fellow Toastmasters, at Mokwon University. The original is here, in Korean. What is the meaning of life? That’s a very deep question, so I’ll give you a second to […]
인생의 중심
이런 기사는 저의 토스트마스터스의 연설입니다. 윤두경, 김현과 이경은 토스트마스터스 멤버와 목원대학생입니다. 영어로 쓴 각본은 여기있습니다. 인생의 중심 뭐에요? 아주 깊은 생각입니다. 윤두경, 인생의 중심 뭐에요? “즐거운 삶을 지내면 인생의 중심입니다.” 흠. 흥미로워요. 틀리지만, 흥미로워요. 김현, 인생의 중심 뭐에요? “가족은 인생의 중심입니다.” 아뇨. 인생의 중심은 철학입니다! 어린이부터 저의 인생을 이해하고 싶었습니다. 초딩때 백과사전을 읽었습니다. 특별히 공룡의 […]
Decision Time
When second wave feminists argue for near absolute sameness between men and women – psychological, sexual, physical – they run headlong into a simple yet distressing question. What is a woman?
Courage and Writing, the Podcast
My friend and fellow writer Gina Akao recently asked me to be part of her free podcast series. I of course accepted and now, just a few months after we first discussed the idea, my interview about writing, courage, getting people to read your blog and using technology to sell books has made its way […]
An Open Letter About Barbarian Hordes
Dear Dan Carlin, You are ruining my life. I have responsibilities. I have a job, and a side job, and another side job. I should be doing more writing. I should be sleeping more and I should definitely be organizing my house more. But no, you are swallowing up all my free time with your […]
An Open Letter to Joelle Fraser
Joelle Fraser is a memiorist and (soon to be) novelist. She has been published by Random House and Counterpoint Press to critical acclaim. She is also my editor. This interview will cover her first book, “The Territory of Men.” The Territory of Men follows a young Joelle as her mother bounces from man to man […]
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