Automatic Rejection

Fans of Jimi Hendrix are sometimes astonished to learn that the popular Hendrix tune “All Along the Watchtower” is actually a cover tune of a song originally composed by Bob Dylan. For those not clear on what I mean by the term “cover,” periodically some artist or band will record a song that is a […]

There is a passage in the Hebrew Bible, located within what is referred to as the Wisdom Literature, that has always caught my attention. It’s found in the book of Proverbs, 23rd chapter, 7th verse. In the King James vernacular, it reads as follows: “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” It […]

I recently posted something fairly innocuous on social media. I was commenting on the beauty and the virtue of a certain edifice of sacred significance, a place of profound meaning and enlightenment. There shouldn’t have been anything controversial about what I said. And yet, a certain small but deeply troubled demographic that lurks among us […]

It feels good to laugh. Laughter is a real “high” as endorphins are released into the bloodstream, providing an emotional sensation that is almost euphoric. Sometimes we get to laugh at ourselves, and it is good if we do so. We shouldn’t take ourselves too seriously. Other times we get to laugh with others (notice […]

I recently (Issue #302) wrote about bullying in this column. I received a lot of feedback on that piece, and it got me thinking about bullying even further. It has since occurred to me that a less violent form of bullying often occurs in more professional settings by insecure individuals who wish to push their […]

I find the entire saga of the Fall of Adam and Eve utterly fascinating and thought provoking. While virtually all of the known Christian dogmas on this consequential occurrence view the Fall with regret, remorse, and disdain (often blaming Eve for succumbing to the temptations of Lucifer, who approached her through the medium of a […]

I attended Junior High School in Los Altos, a posh little community located in Northern California, in a region today known as Silicon Valley. The school was called Egan Junior High School. It encompassed 7th and 8th grade. I didn’t care for the place, even though we had it pretty good. I remember feeling apprehensive […]

There is an old saying that’s been around for a while: “Be careful what you wish for.” There are times that we wish for things, and actually attain things, that may seem like a good idea at the time, but then we end up regretting the decision. That is because often times there are unintended […]

There is in the music of various modern-day composers a certain mesmerizing quality that enables one to become lost in one’s thoughts, or transported, however temporarily, to a higher plane. The musical project dubbed VNV Nation (Victory Not Vengeance Nation) has produced a moving piece titled “As It Fades” which can only be described as […]

There is a falsehood floating around out there in the form of this phrase: “I have no regrets.” How is that possible? Life, if lived to any degree or capacity, is loaded with regrets. How many people have fantasized about going back in time to their beginnings and starting all over again, and being able […]