Don Hall 12/25/21 Don Hall 12/25/21

Unforging Marley's Chain: Cracking the Life Code via Dickens

I don't see myself in Scrooge much—not wealthy or particularly skin-flinty with dough—and I'm not Republican in any way yet I'm finding a bit more appreciation for Bill Clinton-style centrism. For me, it's those fucking chains of Marley that give me pause.

Don Hall 12/22/21 Don Hall 12/22/21

The Word of 2021 was "Impatience"

We can’t escape the world but we can re-learn Patience and Self-Discipline.

Don Hall 12/20/21 Don Hall 12/20/21

I Believe... [Get Her the Combs Already]

...that you should read O. Henry’s The Gift of the Magi before Christmas Eve.

Don Hall 12/18/21 Don Hall 12/18/21

The Thought That Counts (Repost from 2016)

There are a couple of simple rules that I try to follow when participating in the ritual of gift-giving and receiving.

Don Hall 12/15/21 Don Hall 12/15/21

Starting Over After It All Goes Up in a COVID Smoke

“Everything I had built in the past 15 years just went up in smoke. It’s gone. I mean, what the fuck do I do now?”

Don Hall 12/14/21 Don Hall 12/14/21

I Like to Watch | Succession (HBO)

I hated it. I loved it. But I really hated it. I loved the score (especially the opening which I ended up watching every single episode because the music is so ridiculously Punch Drunk Love perfect). I hated every character, every scene, every moment.

Don Hall 12/13/21 Don Hall 12/13/21

I Believe... [Variant Snap]

...that the next strain of COVID will be known as the Thanos Variant.

Don Hall 12/11/21 Don Hall 12/11/21

How Many Confederate Statues Are There Left to Topple?

At last count there are roughly 1900 monuments and statues throughout the southern United States commemorating the Confederacy. In 2020, 200 had been taken down, demolished, or hidden from view.

I'm no mathematician but that seems to leave us with 1700 left.

Don Hall 12/9/21 Don Hall 12/9/21

On Smollett, BLM, and the Chicago Police Department

On the other hand, his statement regarding the corruption at the very heart of the Chicago Police Department is as blatantly true and obvious as Smollett's guilt.

Don Hall 12/6/21 Don Hall 12/6/21

I Believe... [No Body Positivity for Fat Dudes]

...that body positivity as a concept is exclusively for women because no one wants to claim big fat dudes are owning their best selves when they decide to become burlesque dancers as a therapeutic measure.

Don Hall 12/4/21 Don Hall 12/4/21

No One Remembers Being Twenty and Smart at the Same Time

The certainty of the ignorant weighs less than the opinion of the intelligent.

Don Hall 11/30/21 Don Hall 11/30/21

I Like to Watch | The Beatles Get Back (2021)

I won't likely sit through all eight hours again but I'm already dipping back in. It's like being in a room with four effortlessly talented musical legends and hoping they can get it together if only for the music's sake.

Don Hall 11/29/21 Don Hall 11/29/21

I Believe... [Enduring the Use of Masks]

...that the wave of organized groups smashing into high-end retail stores and stealing things would be just fine if they were wearing hashtag t-shirts aligning with a Utopian cause. At least they were wearing masks, though…

Don Hall 11/25/21 Don Hall 11/25/21

Finding Gratitude in a World That Only Wants Shame

"Well, Tim, I suppose that's your right to feel ashamed of yourself. It is not OK for you to decide that because you feel ashamed that everyone else has to feel it, too. Most of the class is thinking about what they are grateful for which isn't a terrible thing to do for one day a year."

Don Hall 11/24/21 Don Hall 11/24/21

I Like to Watch | Dopesick (Hulu)

Opioids are not created for recreation like quaaludes, weed, or coke. Opioids are created for destruction in exchange for massive profits.

Don Hall 11/23/21 Don Hall 11/23/21

Losing Friends Over Cultural Lines in the Sand

when you lose your temper, you lose everything else as well

Don Hall 11/22/21 Don Hall 11/22/21

I Believe... [Most Are NOT Outraged]

...that the unwritten purpose of most media today is to make you think that the views of 17 percent of the country are actually the views of 83 percent of the country. The media doesn’t want you informed, they want you outraged. You being informed doesn’t make them rich. You being outraged does.

Don Hall 11/20/21 Don Hall 11/20/21

On the Nature of Heroes and Victims

According to the vast wasteland known as the internet, the most defining characteristics of heroes included bravery, integrity, courage, conviction, honesty, willingness to protect others, and self-sacrifice.

Don Hall 11/15/21 Don Hall 11/15/21

I Believe... [When the Self Righteous Decide to Educate]

...that the impulse of both the hard left and hard right to ‘educate’ the rest of us is seeped in the arrogance of the self righteous. Also, genuinely boring. Show, don’t yell.

Don Hall 11/11/21 Don Hall 11/11/21

Retiring the Tribal Language: An Individual Choice

If the goal is to come together, maybe the name calling and labeling should shift more kindly.