Nickname?

What’s the story behind your nickname? In another blog post I talked about the origin of my avatar’s name, and how I came up with Phorkyad Acropolis. Here we focus on my real life name. To begin, I don’t really have a nickname, per se. My birth certificate says, “Stephen Alan Schrum.” My mother onceContinue reading “Nickname?”

Travel Travails

What are your future travel plans? Actually, I have nothing to say here today about the travails of traveling, but I did want to comment about these prompts, which seem to be repeating themselves a bit, with minor variations. Since I try to not repeat myself (though I don’t always succeed), I’d like the promptsContinue reading “Travel Travails”

Small Change

What would you change about modern society? The title of my post today was also the title of my first novel. Or should I say “novel”? It was basically an autobiographical accounting of the last days of my time in high school and a little while after in to the post-graduation era where I foundContinue reading “Small Change”

The Soundtrack in My Head

What do you listen to while you work? Of course, the way my mind works, there’s almost always a song playing in my head. Many times someone will say something, and my inner jukebox will hear the rhythm of a line and start playing a song with that same lyrical setup. Like, right now, IContinue reading “The Soundtrack in My Head”

Comforting Food

What’s your go-to comfort food? I’m not a believer in “comfort food.” I don’t really seek out foods to feel better. Oh, yes, sometimes, I really enjoy that peanut butter cup or that ice cream cone, but I don’t feel comforted; I just enjoy it. There are two strong examples for my avoiding this idea.Continue reading “Comforting Food”

It’s a Game

What’s your favorite game (card, board, video, etc.)? Why? Growing up I played the old favorites: Monopoly, Parcheesi, and Uno. When Chess became a big thing, I played a lot of it—and I became pretty good at it, though I seem to have lost that ability now. For awhile I enjoyed Backgammon, but never hadContinue reading “It’s a Game”

Meta-Meata

What foods would you like to make? Sometimes I approach these prompts from a 3rd-person perspective, using them merely as a jumping-point for my blog entry. Other times, I feel the need to go meta and comment on the prompt before diving in. Today is the latter, when I have to ask, “Do you meanContinue reading “Meta-Meata”

Cats or Dogs?

Dogs or cats? I often rail against false choices.The pandemic brought a lot of those into the discussion. For example, we were to choose between education and health; children were less susceptible to infection, so we needed to send them to school, and who cares if a few teachers die for the good of theContinue reading “Cats or Dogs?”

Your Name is Hypokrites!

What bothers you and why? “What bothers you and why?” suggests an incredibly long blog response. So many things! From that fly buzzing around me on a warm summer day (the one I mentioned to my Intro to Theatre students, that would set me off to help me understand the anger of a killer!!) toContinue reading “Your Name is Hypokrites!”

Certainties…

List 10 things you know to be absolutely certain. When I was growing up, people commonly proclaimed two things: 1) Never talk about politics or religion. 2) The only things certain are death and taxes. Now we are constantly subjected to people’s religious and political views. That may be the only certainty that I canContinue reading “Certainties…”