For a character I wrote about…

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“Bowling shoes are the prom dresses of real life.”

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Whether you read this a metaphor for yielding before the end of the game or of life’s subtle way of robbing our optimism and easy smiles toward the small yet infinite lives we lead….

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… I can’t wait until the morning to return with the promise of simple politics, instead of this mad view from inside the blender.

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A little political humor for Senator Tom Cotton…

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Even the postal service knows me too well. Any piece of mail marked “First Class Fail” comes directly to my house.

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Culinary tip: I love you all but no one in this universe can both prepare and photograph guacamole elegantly enough to avoid a Pampers flashback.

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It took me 40+ years to identify the voice in my head: it’s a drunk mime, being stung by bees.

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I love it when the birds sing too, except when they are doing bad karaoke.

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Did you know that I-45 in Texas is the shortest primary interstate? Let’s hope it applies to President 45, too.

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While silence may indeed be the best reply to a fool, as a wise person once quipped, it is certainly not the most satisfying of all available options. – X

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“To get the best most honest experience when meeting new people: smile, make eye contact, extend your arm and hand slightly – and then slap yourself. Now you are ready to delve into the frightening world of other people.” From my new book, “Yes, Seriously.”

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A eulogy written in passing for the day: I dreamed of a time when snowfall carried no possible menace and the idea of depthless anger seemed like nothing more than a childhood fantasy. And now that I’m older, I see too often that it is me who contains both the menace and the ire and I wonder by what fundamental and incremental shift the world changed me. Few of us willingly opened the door to these visitors and yet many of us still sit by the fire with these uninvited guests, our faces false and without indication of our betrayal.

The SNL skit starring Christopher Walken and Will Ferrell is a staple of our culture.

Beyond its stunning simple humor, for me it is a sublime reminder that we can see and experience joy even when examining the most normal of things.

The dominate cowbell was there, waiting patiently for Will Ferrell to devise a way to make it funny. I think we all have a similar task throughout our days. Even if we can’t create the things we find beautiful, we can share the laughter and joy that pours from it.

I hope you find a little bit of cowbell in each of your days.

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The last year has changed things considerably: When someone says they do something religiously, I wonder if that means they themselves do it without due consideration – while judging others who do it.

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Promise me that you will always have a doubt. Certainty is the rancorous poison which puts to slumber our humanity. It allows us to throw the punch, whether manufactured of damning words or clinched and coiled fingers. Doubt causes a flicker of consideration, allowing our better self to impose.

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All the movies portray the crazy person fighting friends and family, insisting that illness hasn’t touched them. Except in the real-life version, all the people still defending Trump are collectively playing that role. Those of us around you are trying to help, even as you flail around in possessed denial.

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Me, re-imagined as a radical, both inside and out.

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I re-imagined Trump’s inaugural photo, without any satirical intent. Intense.

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