Published inMuddyUm·Nov 10Member-onlyAll the Black Holes in the UniverseTwo billion death stars haven’t got a chance — Fourty quintillion black holes exist within today’s Universe¹, yet I’m still here. You would think with 40 quintillion out there I’d be spaghettified already but no. I’m still here. Fourty quintillion is a lot. It’s even more than the quadrillions the Empire had to spend to build the Death Star…Black Holes3 min readBlack Holes3 min read
Published inRedemption·Oct 26Member-onlySo EasyWhere is God now? — When I was young, fate gifted me two or so years during which I had almost all black friends. Such parties! Such barbecues! Such music! Such church! Such dances! At one such dance I’d had rather too much to drink. I was hanging out in a stairwell with some guys…Fiction3 min readFiction3 min read
Published inMuddyUm·Oct 21Member-onlyMore Stupid ThingsIn which your fearless explorer returns to the bottomless well of contemporary human stupidness — Gonzo percentages A few days ago an online friend told me she was 110% on board with something or other. I think it was a bar of soap. If she figures out I’m talking about her she will 100% kill me. But she can’t 110% kill me. …Stupidity3 min readStupidity3 min read
Published inMuddyUm·Oct 11Member-onlyWe Are Stupid, Take TwoWe don’t care about the environment either — In We Are Stupid, I presented three aspects of modern life that show how we make ChatGPT seem like a genius. Not wanting to leave anyone unconvinced, I now offer three additional proofs of our non-intelligence. Soap dispensers In my lead image, you will notice two soap dispensers in a public restroom…Safety5 min readSafety5 min read
Published inILLUMINATION·Sep 23Member-onlyHow to Believe in God Even if You Are An AtheistOur stories make us human — Walking in a stream bed, we might see an interesting pebble under the water. We might bend down to pick it up. Like everything else, including God, the pebble becomes part of our story as soon as we pick it up, as soon as we include it in our conscious…God7 min readGod7 min read
Published inMuddyUm·Sep 19Member-onlyVacuum Like a PirateAnybody can talk like one — Do pirates ever vacuum their ships? I’m not talking about the pirates of yore, with their plumed hats and parrots. Everybody knows they didn’t vacuum their ships. Vacuum cleaners had not been invented yet. They had to clean the decks of their ships by scrubbing them with sand and a…Pirates4 min readPirates4 min read
Published inCrow’s Feet·Aug 30Member-onlyIt’s Been FunTurn the lights out for me — In this, my eighth decade, I think about death about as much as I thought about sex when I was in my twenties. Among the differences between sex and death is that with sex you feel like you need some personal experience if you are going to have anything cogent…Death5 min readDeath5 min read
Published inMuddyUm·Aug 22Member-onlyGet Plenty of ExerciseEven if it kills you — Get plenty of exercise. We olds hear it so much we want to run away screaming, “Shut up already! No? In that case, may I please die now?” Want to keep yourself out of that mobility scooter? Get plenty of exercise. Want to keep your brain sharp? Get plenty of…Humor4 min readHumor4 min read
Published inMuddyUm·Jul 30Member-onlyWe Are StupidHere’s proof — Previously, I wrote about how GPT-4 outstrips us when it comes to intelligence and awareness. That isn’t much of an accomplishment. I will now present three examples from modern daily human existence to support that assertion. YOU SAVED $7.48 Look at the picture above. I’m sorry, I didn’t save anything. I spent $30.50…Modern Life4 min readModern Life4 min read
Published inThe Wind Phone·Jul 28Member-onlyLove in the Past TenseAdriann and the gift of death — You read this text from your ex-wife: Time To have hard conversation. Please call me today Your throat tenses. You will it to relax the way you did when you swallowed an overly large wad of chewed-up bagel. Relax, let it slide — Your head jerked upward that time. You…Death And Dying5 min readDeath And Dying5 min read
