Author Archives: stephenschrum

A Secret About Eggs

Here’s a secret absolutely no one knows about me: I don’t like the taste of eggs. I’ve never revealed this to anyone, from childhood to retirement. Until now. As a child I would only eat the white part. Eventually I started eating the yolk. But I never liked eggs. Many people have seen me eatContinue reading “A Secret About Eggs”

Disrupt (v.) Disrupt!

Among the words that recently I’ve come to detest from overuse are “unprecedented” and “broken.” And now it’s time to add “disrupt” to the list. I understand the desire to shake things up. I’ve never been a fan of the static status quo. And I know you have to stir the pot in order toContinue reading “Disrupt (v.) Disrupt!”

Whistling Backstage, Dark or Not

There’s an old tradition that one does not whistle backstage in a theatre. Like most theatrical traditions, you don’t question it, but nevertheless  I often wondered about it. And for years I taught the reason for this in my Intro to Theatre course; I don’t know if I read this, or just made it up,Continue reading “Whistling Backstage, Dark or Not”

Ah, Travel? Big Deal…

While on a cruise to Greece, I wrote the following: “Here I am in Greece. Amazing, but that usual phenomenon of ‘Here I am!’ And then: ‘Big deal.’” What I’m referring to is the state of mind that seems to always happen to me when I travel internationally. I get very excited by the prospectContinue reading “Ah, Travel? Big Deal…”

One Really Bad Purchase

When I was a young teenager, I was really into cars. We would go to the Thomasville airport to watch the NHRA drag races (from a distance, at the end of the runway). I subscribed to car magazines and devoured them. At one point I even thought I might go to Vo-Tech and learn toContinue reading “One Really Bad Purchase”

And It Continues…

Awhile back I was posting a lot of these “wrong number” texts and my improv’d responses to them. A friend suggested that the origin of those might in fact be AI bots, but I don’t think it makes it less funny or tragic. Take these two; their approach is slightly different but I responded theContinue reading “And It Continues…”

Stacking Plates?

Years ago, when I was visiting my then-girlfriend, later wife, and later late wife in her Pittsburgh apartment with her roommate, one of them would make dinner. (This was before I became a major cook.) As a result, it seemed fair that I would do the dishes. One evening I was criticized for not washingContinue reading “Stacking Plates?”

Clap for the Wolfman!

I recently attended a Burton Cummings concert. He was apparently the lead singer of the Guess Who back in the day, but I had never really heard of him until my fiancée expressed interest in seeing him. She loved his version of “When a Man Loves a Woman”—which he did not sing during this concert. Continue reading “Clap for the Wolfman!”

What’s Your Passion?

I know a lot of people hate their jobs. And I’m sorry for that. A line I used to say to people was: “I love my work, but I hate my job.” There are times when being a college professor could be very annoying,  But the most important thing about that was that I didn’tContinue reading “What’s Your Passion?”