We had a Radio Shack here in town for a lot of years, but not as long as till 2015. The manager/co-owner also had a story in another, larger city, and eventually moved there. He and DH were really good friends before I came along, and then we all made friends. I used to do volunteer literacy tutoring; one time, our director asked me if I’d try working with a young woman who could read and pronounce English, but had no idea how to converse, having only ever used Farsi for communication. Of course I tried it. It turned out she was our Radio Shack friend’s sister in law! I still am not really sure I taught her much; she already knew how to greet people, and some rudimentary questions and answers, “What do you think about this weather?” “Do you know whose cat that is?” But, she was not confident. She could comprehend and repeat, but not necessarily always apply and respond conversationally in English (her husband sometimes came along, and did translation.) I worked with her for a few years and she seemed to feel better about it all and I saw improvement, but no real click. One time, they didn’t show up for a session, and I’ve never seen them again. I’d heard that our friend had had a little trouble, too, here in town; this would have been a few weeks after the plane crashes in Sept. of 2011. I finally got up the nerve to just ask him if they were OK. He said they moved a little farther East, by some other relatives. They were doing fine, and he’d tell them I said hello. I asked him to tell their little girl that our son said hello, too; she had a crush on him because he read to her while I was working with her mom. I guess I just needed to share that story; this Radio Shack piece reminded me of all of that. Thanks for hangin’ in with me on this!
Category: Written Media / Books
Four Things I Hope You’ll Share With Friends & Family
Pretty neat. by Charlotte Clymer Read on Substack
A few months ago, Substack generously invited thirty or so of their writers to NYC for the opportunity to create some ads for our blogs. I really didn’t know what to expect, but the experience itself with Cash Studios (cashstudios.co) was delightful.
For about an hour, I worked with the staff in their studio on various ideas they had, all of which I found interesting. Moreover, I was quite impressed with their creativity and professionalism. They were kind, curious about my work, and really wanted to bring out my authenticity.
A few days ago, the ads were sent out to all of us, and I was quite blown away by the care and thoughtfulness put into creating them. I feel that Cash Studios did an exceptional job in capturing what I try to do with Charlotte’s Web Thoughts, and I’m thankful to the folks at Substack for this level of investment in my work.
They cut four ads, and I want to share them with all my subscribers, with a humble request: if you have friends, family, colleagues, or whomever you think might connect with my writing, send them one of these ads. Tell them that it’s free to subscribe to the blog, that all they need is an email, and that I don’t spam.
Here are the ads! Enjoy:
The Road to Splitsville AND THE AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN TRASHING ICONIC BUILDINGS GOES TO…
Written in Wonkette style. Must be read! It’s not long. It’s jaw-droppingly appalling. Not the article, the subject of it.
by Rebecca Schoenkopf Read on Substack

How do we know we’re on the Road to Splitsville (and possibly headed to a political and legal separation of the red states and the blue), and not on some other thoroughfare, like the Highway to Hell or the Boulevard of Broken Dreams? We know, because such a Split would be absurd and grotesque. But the red states are Republican states, and the Republican Party is the Donald Trump Party, and the fans of Donald Trump love the absurd and eat the grotesque with a fucking spoon.
Speaking of which: what are you doing on September 5?
If you’ve got some time, and $2,500 (per individual) to spare, you could join Christ-knows-how-many dipshits, ghouls, imbeciles, and traitors at—we kid you not—the “J6 Awards Gala,” to be held at Donald Trump’s golf club-cum-Ex Sematary in Bedminster, N.J. Go alone, with your significant other, or rope together eleven of your chums and snag a table for 12. Yes, 12 x $2,500 = $30,000 but, because this a Donald Trump-related production, the actual cost of a table for 12 is a cool $50,000. But think of th—
What? You have a question? (snip-a bit more, well worth the click. You can read if you’re not a subscriber.)
Reblog from MPS
An important story linked here, and another important blog entry linked in the comments. Well worth the clicks, not TL;DR.
News coverage 1 8 28 2024
For fun: another Cover Snark
from the Smart Ones! Enjoy, probably without beverage.
With thanks to personnelente-
an important read from Army Times.
Into The Eyes of Racism (A Sonnet)
In Work Be Restless
George Orwell Reviews Mein Kampf: “He Envisages a Horrible Brainless Empire” (1940)
in History, Literature | August 22nd, 2024
It’s an informative yet short read, with a link to the full review at the end of this article. Points are well made within this one.