John Guthrie's Ready Room

Every Once In A While

Sometimes the world just seems laser-focused on fucking everything up. This is one of those times, I don’t need to mention all the bullshit, you can probably guess. At times like this, I shut down and walk away from the chaos. I try to go as far away as

Everyday Kindness

Kindness keeps me going through good times and bad. Kindness became a central point of my life several years ago, and I have benefitted tremendously since then.  Kindness is so simple. There are really just two things to work on. First of all, there is consistency. Practice Kindness every day

More Unsettling News Just In Time For The Holidays

It never fails that something negative and unsettling happens around the start of the holiday season. 2023 is no exception as the news breaks about a “suspicious” vehicle accident at a US-Canada border crossing in Niagara Falls, NY/ONT. While everyone is allegedly still gathering facts about the event, the

What is one good thing that I often take for granted?

I am the luckiest man in the world because I met my incredible partner, Hal, almost twenty-three years ago, and I love him more than anything. I fear being together for such a long time might give me a reason to take our relationship for granted, and I never want

Even In The Quietest Moments

Getting older can be hard to deal with when you start realizing that you’re happier staying at home than going out. Even on beautiful autumn days, staying home and just resting is the most rewarding thing we can do.

Perfection is the Enemy of True Creativity

I am currently reading a book by a published author who advises anyone struggling with the writing method on how to improve their craft. She talks about just writing without a goal in mind and then going back over your work later and finding essential things that you initially glossed

It Sounds Selfish, But The Only Person I Have To Make Happy When I Write Is Me

When I write, it expresses what I am feeling and thinking at that particular moment in time. I never try to rationalize or sanitize what I write in order to make it seem more palatable to others. That’s not why I write.  I found the writers' community on

Blazing My Own Trail

I started my writing career, as soon as many of us did, in elementary school. Writing book reports was an assignment that I looked forward to while most of my friends dreaded it. I was raised by literate and liberal parents who taught me the beauty of the written and

Fear Of A Blank Page

Why does the thought of a blank page in my journal, or a blank screen on my blog frighten me so much? I try to convince myself that they are simply places to write, to let my true feelings show, but that doesn’t lessen the sense of dread that

Spirits In A Material World

There are times when I feel like I am alone in the world. I am with Hal and The Stooges, but we seem to exist in our own little world. Most of this is my own fault because I chose the path of Kindness, which automatically separates me from so

Choosing Isolation

I like to think of myself as a people person, but I’m finding that more and more difficult as I grow older. The art of conversation has died, and in its place, we are left with arguments seemingly decided not by the validity of a position but by the

A Prisoner Of My Own Device

With thanks to the Eagles and their classic “Hotel California,” I am also a prisoner of my own device. I’m a diabetic and that limits some of my activities each day. On Sunday afternoon, I once again tried to check out without my insulin, only to be brought back

A Beautiful Ending

I saw the video for the new Beatles song “Now and Then” and I thought it was a beautiful ending to the career of the band. I’m fascinated by the technology used to create the song from an old cassette tape recorder. I watched the story of the song

Time To Take Charge Of My Life

I talked with my therapist the other day, and we discussed how things are going in my life. I told her that my disability claim was finally settled after the threat of a lawsuit. She told me it was time to start enjoying my life again. The stress of the

My Perfect Halloween Costume

Halloween has changed through the years. It used to be focused almost completely on children and trick or treat. Sometime in the 1980s, if memory serves me correctly, Halloween started to change into a more adult-themed holiday. The Halloween events became parties, chances for adults to cut loose and get

Trying Something New

Kindness is in short supply right now. All my efforts to focus on the here and now are falling short, and I am letting the tension go and relaxing before making any rash decisions I know I will regret later. With that being the case, I wrote my story using

Every Once In A While

Sometimes the world just seems laser-focused on fucking everything up. This is one of those times, I don’t need to mention all the bullshit, you can probably guess. At times like this, I shut down and walk away from the chaos. I try to go as far away as

Kindness Journey - Killing Time, Or My Views On Suicide

When I made the decision, or rather Hal did, for me to see a therapist earlier this year, one of the first things I had to do was filling out a questionnaire for my new therapist. I was surprised at how generic the questions were, except for the questions about

Radio - My College Days

I thought about one of the strangest things that happened while I was in college. This was many years ago, but I still remember it vividly. This story happened many years before I embraced Kindness; I was young and headstrong. I was assigned a roommate in the dorm from a

Welcome to my newest follower

Salmon, I’m honored to have you as a friend and follower.

Karma Cat

Karma Cat always sits patiently next to my computer to remind me that no matter what inflammatory things I see on the internet, I can always choose the path of peace. Karma Cat never gets upset, which inspires me on my bad days when it seems that nothing is going

Trying To Keep Calm

“I will always find something to worry about.” Those words from my therapist race around my mind on days like this. I keep the news turned off, because I worry that the propaganda machine is gearing us up for something catastrophic in the Middle East. I haven’t seen anything

Welcome to my newest follower

Welcome to my newest follower Amethysta Herrick I’m glad you’re here. I look forward to sharing with you ❤️

A Massive Weight Has Been Lifted From My Shoulders

Friday, October 6, 2023 started like every other Friday. Hal and I went to the chiropractor and then picked up groceries. We had a minor scare when the low tire pressure light came on in the car, so I drove to the neighborhood AAA service center and they quickly determined

The Waiting Is The Hardest Part

Tom Petty really nailed how I felt on Wednesday at the doctor’s office. The waiting is the hardest part. We drove. Fifty miles to get to the office, and my appointment was scheduled for 1045. Naturally, it was nearly 1130 by the time I was led from the waiting