I am a Nickname Jerk

Coble has a name. I don’t call her it. Coble’s husband has a name, the defining part of which he brought into the marriage and yet, to me, it’s Coble and Coble’s husband. Not for great feminist reasons, but because I’m a midwesterner and in my culture, when you like someone and kind of like [...]

One Eye and No Better View of Fate

I finally decided today, upon coming back to work after being out of the office since Thursday noon, that there’s something not quite right with my right eye. I don’t know if it’s my contact or my eye or what, but it’s not working. The thing I find most intriguing, though, and I can’t stop [...]

White People Jokes

I make ‘em, both because I think they’re funny and there is such a thing as white culture (or cultures), other than just being “default” American culture, and the only way to bring that into focus (other than just letting the racists define what white culture is) is to articulate it. Anyway, go laugh over [...]

I Have Complaints

I have complaints. And anxieties. Oh, so much fucking anxiety. I am a joy to be around this weekend, let me tell you. And I’d have liked to spend more time outside in the garden, where, after about ten minutes, you can’t think about whether your dreams are stupid and unreachable for reasons you don’t [...]

The Park and More Hollyhocks

I wonder if it would be wrong to tear up all the grass in the yard and just live in a field of hollyhocks?

So Long, The Modernity Ward

Jo is closing up The Modernity Ward. I used to be kind of sad when blogs I like shut down, but it really is a different world. People email me and ask “How do I get in touch with the bloggers?” and I’m now asking back “What bloggers are left?” Everyone’s been coopted or gone [...]

Hermitting Up My Weekend

I got the big bed weeded and planted, though I am running massively late in that regard and am not sure if anything will come up. I also accidentally pulled up a coneflower, which, ugh. The dog stayed inside all morning, which concerned me, because if there’s anything she loves, it’s baking herself on the [...]

Are These the Best Photos My Camera Has Ever Taken?

It’s a crappy little camera, but I guess the stars aligned. I mean, shoot, it even caught a bee at the lavender. And my new Tennessee coneflowers are blooming! And they look great. And my white sage was all acting like it’s ready to go outside, so I’ve started hardening it off. Boy they are [...]

A Perplexing Thing

I’m about halfway through Sings, Cures, and Witchery: German Appalachian Folklore  by Gerald C. Milnes and I have mixed feelings. I think his ear for what is important information from his informants is spot-on. And whew, he’s hearing some really interesting stuff. But his history… ugh… I don’t trust it. And I don’t think his [...]

Gardening Joy

An Open Letter to Stacey Campfield

Dear Stacey Campfield, You know I think you’re a giant douchebag of historic proportion. You know I think you never met a “fuck you, bitches” bill you wouldn’t champion because I think you hate women. And you know I think your a massive creep. But this is painful to watch, even for me, who thinks [...]

One Disturbing Thing

During one of the presentations yesterday, we got to see this Youtube video of Kellie Pickler on Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? I can’t stop thinking about it. I don’t know. I find it so upsetting. I mean, first of all, there’s a moment, shortly after Pickler looks like she would like to [...]

I Would Go to Mike Turner’s Church!

Preach it, Brother Mike. But, if I can assuage Mike’s fears, I’m sure folks don’t think we all have cowlicks on the sides of our heads. I’m sure they’re willing to concede that some of us may have cowlicks right up front. (For the record, I am spending the day barefoot and with crappy hair.)

Another Long Day

But towards the end of it I heard this song, the Delmore Brothers doing “Nashville Blues.” Which, of course, put me in the mind of Steve Earle’s “South Nashville Blues” and I wanted to listen to them together to decide if I could hear an actual connection and, really, I don’t know. But I love, [...]

Brief Geneological GRRRR

As you know, I’ve been trying to find any siblings or parents for Luke Phillips, who says he’s from New York, but seems to have sprung out of Michigan fully formed in 1828. I noticed him living near Jay W. Phillips’s family at one point, Jay also being from New York and right about the [...]

He Does It All for the Nookie

You know how I told you I hoped to show you the most awesome thing I saw today? I now have permission to show you the most awesome thing I saw today. God damn, I love my readers. Please keep in mind this isn’t mine, so don’t steal it. Don’t steal from me, either, but [...]

Long Day

I went into the office for approximately five seconds this morning and then packed up and headed over to the International Country Music Conference. I hadn’t been in a little bit, since my job has changed, but it was like old home day. I saw a ton of people I’ve known forever and it was [...]

Scarier: NES or Lightning?

After the winds came roaring up Clarksville Pike, we lost power in the weirdest way. Usually, when we lose power, it’s like “click” and the power is out. This happened, somehow, just a hair slower than that. It was almost as if the electricity said “bah, fuck this” and within the span of “bah” went [...]

Is Governor Baby Scolding the Chamber?

For a man elected for his business acumen, Governor Baby’s tone towards the Chamber of Commerce–remember, made up of businesses in Tennessee–is… um… daring: Haslam noted that the state Chamber of Commerce didn’t turn against the measure until after he signed it into law, and said businesses should have voiced their concerns earlier. “You know, [...]

THE HARROW & THE HARVEST

Could I be more excited? I could not be. I hope it’s good. It’s been so long since she’s had an album out. And the cover makes me hope this is some kind of full-on pagan tribute to The Wicker Man or something. I am almost positive this is deliberately in they style of a [...]

Campfield is Being Played

I should unequivocally enjoy watching Campfield get his ass handed to him by one of his colleagues. So, yes, when I read that Campfield’s budget amendment to defund Planned Parenthood had been undone by another amendment Campfield tried, but failed, to remove from the budget, I laughed. Oh, I laughed long and hard. But this [...]

The Hardest Lesson

Braisted has a long, but important, post up today about the struggles within our state Democratic party to actually be a party of the people who consider themselves Democrats–which means not just letting women and black people and Hispanic people and gay people and young people and people with disabilities and on and on come [...]

Just When You Thought Governor Baby Couldn’t Get More Vile…

Check out what he says in this story by Tom Humphrey: “I don’t think many Tennesseans feel like we don’t have enough mandates on businesses,” Haslam said after he signed legislation that prohibits local governments from creating anti-discrimination laws that are stricter than the state’s rules. “This had the concurrence of 70 percent of the [...]

Governor Baby Explains It All

See here: Governor Haslam responded to the controversy during a stop in Chattanooga saying “We are not in favor of discrimination — I want to be very clear about that. We are in favor of businesses deciding within federal laws what their policies should be. We just don’t think that local governments should set H.R. [...]

Friends, You are Not Allowed to Get Sick

There is one person I have known my whole life who I am not related to. The Other Minister’s oldest son was born in January and I was born Sunday. Anyway, he’s in the hospital with something that necessitates calling in the CDC. I told his brother to tell him that, if he doesn’t get [...]