mrteague

Glitch

Anyone who has spent five minutes using any kind of tech knows that the world of computers is fraught with inexplicable malfunctions, errors, and unintended glitches (especially when updates occur). Unfortunately, this is affecting my blog. Without too many painful specifics, I’ll just say that, last week, WordPress developed a glitch that ruins the formattingContinueContinue reading “Glitch”

Non Sequitur

“Non sequitur” is a Latin phrase that means, “It does not follow.” In formal logic, “non sequitur” describes a logical fallacy where the conclusion doesn’t follow from the premise. A simple example might be, “All cats have claws, therefore, all cats scratch furniture.” Logically, you can’t prove that all cats scratch furniture just because theyContinueContinue reading “Non Sequitur”

Flee As a Bird

One of The Hunger Games soundtracks features the song, “Tomorrow Will Be Kinder” by The Secret Sisters. I was struck by the delicate harmonies and by the fact that it was hymn-like but not an old song. For years I thought about exploring more of The Secret Sisters’ music but didn’t do anything about itContinueContinue reading “Flee As a Bird”

this world

This past week, I started getting my next book ready for self-publication. A Song of Glass: Dreams, Stories, and Poems will debut in late August or early September. As I’ve mentioned before, this book will be a little different since it includes a couple short-stories and poems where I experiment with language or with poetryContinueContinue reading “this world”

The Singularity

My son, Evan, has a birthday this week. He’s a long, lean, lanky teen with a keen interest in Sun Tzu, astrophysics, and….junk food. Like many teenagers, his appetite is, well, cosmic 😆 To commemorate this stage of his life, I wrote a poem for Evan that describes his appetite in terms of astrophysics. “TheContinueContinue reading “The Singularity”

Pythagoreans

Bust of Pythagoras It’s no secret that humans are unique. Shakespeare (through Hamlet) called people “the paragon of animals.” Don’t get me wrong: animals can do some amazing things. I once saw a crow drop out of the sky onto a stroller handle, plunge its head into an unzipped backpack, pull out a bag ofContinueContinue reading “Pythagoreans”

Flag

Primaries are coming up where I live so I have elections on my mind. One thing that always interests me is the campaign signs, banners, or flags that are still up after final elections in November–especially if the candidate lost the election. I wonder if they were forgotten or left up on purpose: now signsContinueContinue reading “Flag”

The Cat’s Meow

Lily is our 18 year old cat (which is pretty dang old for a cat). While she won’t live forever, we think there’s still a chance she might outlive all of us 😸 Most, if not all, of my books have cat poems. My future book, Above the Rain will be no exception, and willContinueContinue reading “The Cat’s Meow”

Remember?

My birthday is this month. I’ve never been one to dwell on (or act) my age, but since hitting my 50s there are ways my age is unavoidable: chronic aches (physically and emotionally), new (and unpleasant) routine medical procedures, and an awareness of how much is behind me (versus in front of me). Last weekContinueContinue reading “Remember?”

Old Glory

July fourth, Independence Day, memorializes the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. This document formally announced The United States’ separation from England and outlined the reasons for the separation. Americans consider July fourth our country’s birthday, and this year we are 250 years old. Happy Birthday, USA! Below is a poem from my first book,ContinueContinue reading “Old Glory”