Category Archives: Commentary

Opinion or analysis concerning whatever’s on my mind.

Did Someone Mention Drugstore Cowboys?

Posted on March 20, 2025 by JMN

The Lone Ranger rides again! That was my first take on the photo. Then it stirred my childish you-haven’t-earned-your-Stetson attitude. I was sure the article would nudge me toward curdled cowboy hat bête noire-ism. But wait: As he cavorted across the … Continue reading →

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Atlas Shrugged and Put on a Hat

Posted on March 12, 2025 by JMN

“If you don’t like country music, get outta the way! Cause we’re KBUCK and we’re gonna keep comin’ atcha!” (A radio station, name disguised) In Arabic, ignorance is expressed with a verb, not a predication. It’s not a state you … Continue reading →

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Landscapes with High Horizon Lines, Shot Through with Blood and Shrapnel

Posted on March 9, 2025 by JMN

His layers of paint, a mudlike impasto, oil and acrylic paints mixed with raw materials like soil, iron, straw and dead leaves, form deep furrows on the canvas. These landscapes, with van Gogh’s high horizon lines, all seem to be … Continue reading →

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When You’re Gagging on Humbug, Remember Someone Fondly

Posted on March 7, 2025 by JMN

The family must have had a matriarchal streak, for I was grandly mothered. Grandmother had a choir-dominating soprano voice in the native stone church. She knew her way around the hymnal. Could coax some harmony from the ivories of an … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthology, Commentary | Tagged | 8 Comments

Messy Bacon

Posted on March 5, 2025 by JMN

I know an artist who thinks her studio is cluttered. The photo is from this article. (c) 2025 JMN — EthicalDative. All rights reserved

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A Bath of Warm Syrup Cooked from Stalk Cut in the ‘Family’ Canebrake

Posted on February 22, 2025 by JMN

My car radio is newly parked on my local country-western music station. It’s giving me the opportunity to hear music tangled in my ranch roots. The music partakes of both the familiar and the strange. In certain respects I’ve changed … Continue reading →

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The Coarsest of Coarse Discourse Courses Through the Corridors

Posted on February 14, 2025 by JMN

English isn’t made for rhyming compared to Spanish, French or Arabic. Alliteration was its strong suit of old. My title flaunts it with a homophone. It also goes to town on sibilants, which is icing on the cake. That’s a … Continue reading →

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‘Johanne Sacreblu[e]’: “Gracias a todos y a cada uno de ustedes”

Posted on February 10, 2025 by JMN

My title is the ending tag line of “JOHANNE SACREBLU[E] ‘el musical’ un homenaje a EMILIA PEREZ.” Adapted to the English formula, it means “Thanks to each and every one of you.” Camila D. Aurora is the artist behind the … Continue reading →

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Cussing with Class

Posted on February 2, 2025 by JMN

“Governor Newscum.”  Tut tut, Sir, it’s a scruffy taunt. My granddad put reverse English on his curses with statements such as: The blessèd cinch strap on this saddle is busted! And my uncle by marriage had the same name as … Continue reading →

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How Disparate Writings Intertwine

Posted on January 27, 2025 by JMN

“Over the past eight years, I have been tested and challenged more than any president in our 250-year history.” (Donald Trump, from Second Inaugural Address) Mr. Trump dictates revelation for his irrupting dispensation. There are impromptu connections one makes in … Continue reading →

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