I wasn’t expecting to gain insight from Shania Twain.  I don’t harbor any ill feelings about Shania Twain–I’ve just never been a big fan or paid that much attention to her. I saw her at the Brandi Carlise music festival in January 2025 and she seemed like a talented musician but not someone I would…

I’m not that excited by telepathy.  I realized this a while back (at least several months ago as I’ve not been very prolific with my blogging) when I attempted to listen to the first episode of the extremely popular “The Telepathy Tapes” podcast. This is a very popular podcast that many people are very enthusiastic…

I spent every free moment I had on Monday trying to learn to pronounce “Cyclosporiasis.” Thankfully, I didn’t need to call the doctor and say I had it. I was hoping to update the lyrics of my song “Salad Days” for an open mic performance tonight.  I don’t write topical or current events related songs–at…

I’m a macrodiaphile. It’s not a word that exactly rolls off the tongue, but it’s the invented label created for me by AI (Gemini). Yes, I willingly consulted an AI Overlord and asked: “Is there a word for someone who really really likes long days?” Gemini explained that there isn’t, but that it could make…

I attempted to participate in a cultural phenomenon today.  I failed. My goal was to see the “Beyond Walls” art project at Boom Island Park in Minneapolis, a 12,500-square-foot land art mural by Franco-Swiss artist Saype. Posts about the mural kept popping up on Facebook and Instagram, and my co-workers were talking about it, and…

I’m overinvested in a story about people who wanted to be pirates. (Not actual pirates, but Disney “Pirates of the Caribbean” type pirates).  I don’t know these aspiring pirates personally–I learned about them when I recently watched a 2012* episode of “Bar Rescue.” I don’t usually play in the reality TV show viewing space, but…

I lied in church. In front of the whole congregation.  I arrived at church late (as I usually do) but not too late, just a few minutes after our start time. As I entered the sanctuary and walked up the aisle to select a seat that wasn’t conspicuously in the very back but not too…

“It won’t be long before this looks pretty…” That’s a thought that kept running through my head during my first hiking excursion of the year at Afton State Park. It was early March, and while I was thankful for the unseasonably warm weather (mid-50’s) and sunshine, the scenery wasn’t exactly inspiring. Everything was brown. And…

I am full of grace.  This doesn’t seem very accurate to me, but who am I to argue with a poem/nursery rhyme from the mid-1800’s? That wouldn’t be very graceful, after all.  According to the poem in question, which assigns people characteristics based on the day of the week they are born, I’m full of…

I conducted an experiment and asked AI (Google’s Gemini) to write our 2025 holiday letter. The results were…interesting. Yes, I mean that in the most Minneostan way. The letter I got was annoyingly chipper and over-the-top, and weirdly wrong on some points. Yes, I know that in part this was because I didn’t give Gemini…