Joel’s Improved Personal Website

Volume VII

Pursued It with Forks and Hope

The Windhover: Radio address for October 14, 2010, released a few days late. Have you ever been pathetically but persistently pursued?
(Sun Oct 17, 2010)
Oct 1, 2010: Comments on an NPR
Orange Chocolate: The words ‘orange chocolate’ conjure a mottled, raggled raft of feelings – feelings about things that ought to be simple but ended up being, for a long time, gnarly.
(Tue Aug 17, 2010)
How to Write a Good Site: Have you ever wanted your site to be the one with the polka dots on the graph-paper diagram?
(Wed Aug 11, 2010)
The Exceptional Causes of My Absence: Written mainly so listeners will have a dim idea of what keeps me away in town these days.
(Tue Aug 10, 2010)
We Will Haunt and Hunt Our Own Creations: When we write the story, we sit in the seat of God, and our understanding of God betrays itself too well.
(Thu Jul 29, 2010)
The Tape of Nature's Anomalies: Radio address for March 27, 2010: a weather report of sorts. Nature always skips skips skips the beat.
(Sat Mar 27, 2010)
One Take Only: I had an opportunity of doing a letterpress workshop at the Minnesota Center for Book Arts again. I had only three hours to set the type, buy paper, do my printing and clean up, so I thought I would aim low by setting up one of my “marquee fiction” pieces.
(Fri Mar 19, 2010)
Thinking in Ribbons and Smudges: Radio address for February 17, 2010, guest-starring my Smith-Corona Super Sterling (not, as it might sound, a gun, but a typewriter). The excerpt at the end is from Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens, Book I, ch. XV.
(Wed Feb 17, 2010)
The Voice of the Bard: Some things are hidden from your senses until you say “yes.”
(Sun Feb 7, 2010)
A Hand Up on Deck: How far apart we are when we start; how good it really is to come on board!
(Sat Jan 30, 2010)
Better Post and Packing: Someone recently opined that the Postal Service is always having problems. I heartily agree. As long as we’re subsidizing a national postal service, we might as well angle for one that we, as a nation, can be proud of.
(Wed Aug 26, 2009)
A Kind of Runic Rhythm: Hammer-swinging and lumber-fumbling are happily put on hold due to fresh snow. I form a new exclusive association based on a silly battle cry. Notion-planting is examined, and ending notes are struck on a bell, the moon, and a star.
(Mon Mar 2, 2009)
The Bee-Loud Glade: What kind of honey is this, anyway?
(Tue Feb 10, 2009)
The Month after Midnight: An impression of January that is fine, lasting, and hard to convey; some poetry; and a small dose of tired but devoted thought.
(Sat Feb 7, 2009)
A Note.: Yesterday.
We'll Dance And We'll Sing Love: In which ever-rarer and older Christmas songs are sampled like fine cheeses.
(Fri Dec 12, 2008)
Happy Thanksgiving: Radio address for Thanksgiving Day, 2008. The bulk of today’s address comes from Charles Laughton – a part of a 1960s recording that MPR broadcasts every year on Thanksgiving.
(Thu Nov 27, 2008)
Intermission to Follow: Radio address for November 20, 2008, which I saved out of the wastebasket and the cutting floor.
(Thu Nov 20, 2008)
An Older Flavour, Preserved in Isolation: Radio address for November 12, 2008, involving Thermoclines, the Odd Days, and working in the dirt and the dark. Ironically, as soon as I had finished recording, I had to go out and get Dave, who’d broken down on the side of the road. We spent an hour and a half out in the dark, waiting for the tow truck, watching the snow fall, and listening to CBC radio.
(Wed Nov 12, 2008)
The Smoke Makes You Think You're Alone: Radio address for November 2, 2008. I opened Pandora’s box the week before all these ghastly holidays, and let out a swarm of dark visions.
(Sun Nov 2, 2008)
Snowing at the Mast: Regarding emotions-as-colors, and the coming of snow – and all that that implies. Relish the risk.
(Wed Oct 29, 2008)
Publishing a Podcast: Some notes on publishing a podcast that others may find helpful.
(Tue Oct 28, 2008)
Clear His Table of Its Clutter: Radio address for October 21, 2008, on the number 23, building a house, and some lines from an old biography.
(Tue Oct 21, 2008)
A Feast in the Woods: Radio address for October 14, 2008, involving primarily Leaves and Squirrels.
(Tue Oct 14, 2008)
A Very Mild Solution: Radio address for October 8, 2008, involving overheard radio snippets, a spot of philosophy, and Snoo’s newfound athleticism.
(Wed Oct 8, 2008)
A Walk in the Dark: Involving an evening walk, the two kinds of Qualms, family aliases and the value of fashion even in total darkness.
(Sat Oct 4, 2008)
Fall in your Heels: Back from summer break! Bear with me as I reminisce, complain just a little, and talk breifly about Saxon racism.
(Wed Oct 1, 2008)
Old Dutch: How to persuade a nightingale to stick around awhile?
One hopes?: Photo of a recent journal entry that will stand the test of time.
How...nice.: Nice distinctions.
(Tue Jul 22, 2008)
High-Altitude View of Words Had: I’ve written 311 lines of verse on this site since 1999.
What shall I do to be saved: The question has no answer…but there must be some answer. The man thinks it all through again, arrives at the same terrible paradox, and cries out again. And again. And again.
(Sun Jul 6, 2008)
An easy style but not flowing: Bringing you up to speed on beards, racoons, the house project, and my first insurance physical.
(Fri Jun 27, 2008)
Reader Complaint: In which I attempt to respond to a complaint.
(Tue Jun 10, 2008)
Thoughts on That Hideous Strength: Some thoughts on a book by C.S. Lewis that might only make sense if you are familiar with everything else he wrote. (Double meaning intended.)
(Wed May 28, 2008)
Merely an older child: A picture
(Wed May 14, 2008)
Worse and worse: The oddity of the despair caused at first by the gospel.
(Sat Apr 19, 2008)
Northern Savings Line: Here’s how I set myself up as a bank in miniature.
(Wed Apr 16, 2008)
Crazy and Burdened.: The man unburdens his soul and we see how “troubled” he really is.
(Mon Apr 14, 2008)

Volume VI

The Trees of the Field Will Clap Their Hands

Left of the Mount: There is this line of thought gathering steam out there that really needs to be euthanized. It essentially says that Jesus’ teachings, such as those in the Sermon on the Mount, represent the ideal Christian approach to government.
(Tue Apr 8, 2008)
Art is Long: I just finished a Letterpress course. Photos included.
Still Going: I contemplated a summer hiatus. Thoughts on Christ’s perspective. My little sister has easy solutions for hard problems.
(Wed Feb 27, 2008)
Emotion Spectrum: Sketch of a possible map of the emotional spectrum.
(Wed Feb 20, 2008)
Big Faces: I saw a billboard on the way into work. Realtors don’t seem real in pictures, and insurance agents are downright scary.
(Sun Feb 17, 2008)
Brain Food: I read a book over dinner that was absolutely better than nothing at all.
(Thu Feb 14, 2008)
Interestingness: Your life is interesting. And photogenic.
(Sun Feb 10, 2008)
February 6, 2008: I went to the caucus on Tuesday to be a cog.
(Thu Feb 7, 2008)
February 4, 2008: Today at the coffee shop, I had a short thought about coffee shops.
(Mon Feb 4, 2008)
February 2, 2008: I found some pictures while dusting.
(Sat Feb 2, 2008)
Birds: A haiku set on the chirruping little fellas.
(Fri Feb 1, 2008)
January 31, 2008: Our house’s plumbing is interesting, inscrutable, and a little dangerous.
(Fri Feb 1, 2008)
January 29, 2008: Two predictions of summer trends that somehow feel plausible.
(Wed Jan 30, 2008)
January 28, 2008: It warmed up by 40 degrees and started raining. Cities can be so inhuman.
(Tue Jan 29, 2008)
January 26, 2008: I somehow have energy to stay on top of stuff. Advice to people who work at places that defy reason.
(Sun Jan 27, 2008)
January 24, 2008: I finally have my hair cut by paid amateurs. Karen is my most recent Liberian acquaintance. Why does everyone have to live so far away?
(Thu Jan 24, 2008)
January 21, 2008: We went skiing in Duluth. Listening to the radio at night in the car.
(Mon Jan 21, 2008)
January 19, 2008: It is OK to write LOL if it is done judiciously. Cold air from Canada claims our souls.
(Sat Jan 19, 2008)
January 17, 2008: How the weather affects movie rental patterns. Van break-down. Grace plays a jingle. What does it mean to be a man?
(Fri Jan 18, 2008)
January 16, 2008: January is like three o’clock in the morning. We played some hockey today.
(Wed Jan 16, 2008)
January 15, 2008: Preparing for St. Patrick’s Day.
(Tue Jan 15, 2008)
January 14, 2008: First Address. Cold and clear. Heard about my house.
(Mon Jan 14, 2008)
Goal Hunter: In order to keep the goal hunter at bay, here are some things I will achieve this year, God willing.
Bit Parts: This is what “one kinda skinny, kinda angry, pretty fired up girl” can “do about it.”
(Thu Dec 27, 2007)
Merry Christmas: Please to see the King.
(Wed Dec 19, 2007)
Sound Bite Exegesis - No. 1: (Tue Nov 27, 2007)
Living Color: I saw a portrait of myself the other day, and hung a copy of it in my living room.
(Sun Nov 25, 2007)
Transfiguration: This is the clearest explanation I have yet heard of an episode in the gospels I have never before understood to my satisfaction.
(Wed Nov 14, 2007)
November 5, 2007: “I had forgotten, however, about the power of the Dueck Brotherhood.”
Observe: A lesson in the making.
(Mon Sep 10, 2007)
These Are The Earliest Days of Autumn: It begins just before the leaves change colour, while it is still hot.
(Wed Aug 15, 2007)
Answer: Answer me this.
(Sun Jul 29, 2007)
Spring 007: (Sun Jul 15, 2007)
Faith: I need no longer speculate that my faith might come only from my circumstances.
Promise: The work of God in the heart of his child is a very real experience.
(Thu Jul 5, 2007)

Volume V

Excursion Around the Bay

This Is Your Life: This is a graph of an eighty-year life. Each slice represents one year.
(Thu Apr 19, 2007)
Free Air: Take a deep breath.
(Tue Apr 17, 2007)
Crime and the County Board: What about zoning ordinances?
(Mon Feb 26, 2007)
Dread Pirate: Black Spot Rules: My brother picked up the board game Dread Pirate on Boxing Day, and we’ve cooked up some additional rules to improve upon it.
(Thu Jan 11, 2007)
Dia Gnosis: To what shall I compare the Kingdom of Heaven in America?
(Wed Jan 10, 2007)
The Name of Crime: Another page in the search for the greatest crime.
(Mon Oct 30, 2006)
An Unfortunate Trend: We (for once) hope this does not offend anyone, but something needs to be said.
(Tue Oct 10, 2006)
An Interesting Diversion: Seeing a new version of the Text Adventure Development System is like watching Haley’s Comet. It doesn’t happen very often but when it does it’s worth noticing.
(Thu Sep 14, 2006)
Crime Against Crime: In which the question is further explored.
(Sat Aug 19, 2006)
The Greatest Possible Crime: Question Posed: I had fallen behind in my journal somewhat, so I bought a typewriter and began filling the pages up with the first question that came to my head: what is the greatest possible crime? More to follow.
(Thu Aug 3, 2006)
Radio Silence: If you have tried to call recently, you should know that Joel is not very good at remembering to bring his cell phone.
(Sat Jul 29, 2006)
Sore Throat: Stuck in a comma.
(Mon Apr 24, 2006)
Remembering Old Mr. Laser-Beams: I first met him on one of those rare occasions in when there is an off-the-cuff speech at a potluck dinner.
(Sat Nov 5, 2005)
Outage: It might have been terrorists, but as time goes on most people think it was caused by a huge rash of sunspots.
The Sound of Corn Growing: New situations are accepted and yet met with skepticism.
(Sun Jun 26, 2005)
Found on Sidewalk: I tried to maintain parity between questions and answers, but at the end of the piece there are always more of the former and I haven’t been able to get rid of them entirely.
(Tue May 17, 2005)

Volume IV

Furiouser And Furiouser

Mister H. is a Stalwart Fellow: This is a line of correspondence from the past year; no context is given, but we feel that a reader of average intelligence will have enough from which to get a sense of the true circumstances regarding Mr. Potato Head.
(Sun Jan 2, 2005)
Carpe Noctum: We, the undersigned, wish that your nights may be long and comfortable.
(Mon Dec 20, 2004)
"Good Night, Irene" - Scene 6: More of fiction of the short kind. So short it could fit in your billfold. (256 characters or less)
(Tue Dec 7, 2004)
He Still Favors Fresh Walleye: While on a canoe trip in northern Minnesota, I found a classic piece of amateur prose in a small-town newspaper. I love small-town newspapers.
(Thu Nov 25, 2004)
Cold Water: Sleep hard, not well, and forget those Cream of Wheat breakfasts. (More notes from the Regular Vein.)
(Tue Nov 16, 2004)
"Good Night, Irene" - Scene 5: Fall is a beautiful time of year. (Marquee fiction: in 256 characters or less)
(Sat Oct 9, 2004)
On Building, Part Four: Green Tape: When I was just starting in construction, I took every single tool I bought – every screwdriver and pliers and everything – and put a band of green electrical tape on it.
(Sat Oct 2, 2004)
Screech: Screech is the worst conceivable quality of Caribbean rum, bottled by the Newfoundland government under the Screech label. This has something to do with writing, and it’s not what you think.
(Thu Aug 12, 2004)
Mail Call: About once a calendar year we open the mail and sharpen our pencils. Mr. Dowdley is taking a lot of heat but we feel he is as safe as ever. The narratives are doing well, despite my library fine.
(Fri Jul 16, 2004)
Rare Opportunity: Say something.
(Fri Jul 9, 2004)
Summer Clouds: What Foget saw in the warm darkness, while keeping watch aboard the Regular Vein, and which ended with a sickening sound. It’s bromide to say the truth is more strange than fiction, but those people don’t read much fiction.
(Sat Jul 3, 2004)
"Good Night, Irene" - Scene 4: Another short story – how awkward.
(Sun Jun 6, 2004)
All Creation Marching: The Regular Vein plows on. Relative velocity to the world? Zero.
(Sat May 22, 2004)
Looming Figures: The female voice on the radio is describing a personal friend of hers, a composer.
(Mon May 17, 2004)
The Regular Vein: A ship manned by (among others) Foget, and the Port-sands Mariner.
(Sun May 2, 2004)

Volume III

What I Tell You Three Times Is True

Relativity on the Road: The morality of not going fast.
(Mon Apr 5, 2004)
Textpattern Semantics: A special revelation of Textpattern signs & wonders
(Fri Apr 2, 2004)
"Good Night, Irene" - Scene 3: A third installment of marquee fiction.
(Thu Mar 18, 2004)
The English Are Chased Out: The continued meddlings of Mr. Dowdley, and the metric system.
(Wed Feb 25, 2004)
"Good Night, Irene" - Scene 2: More marquee fiction.
(Thu Jan 29, 2004)
On Building, Part Three: Dratted Days: Building by the seat of your pants in the dead of winter.
(Sat Jan 24, 2004)
The Angelic Voices: a Theological Urban Legend: There seems to be a perennial question about whether or not angels actually euphonize. (Written on Christmas Eve.)
(Wed Dec 24, 2003)
"Good Night, Irene" - Scene 1: Fiction in 256 characters or less.
(Sat Dec 20, 2003)
A Cipher for Christmas: A simple substitution cipher with a few cruel twists. (Sun Dec 14, 2003)
On Building, Part Two: The Wind, The Rain: A thing is always hard before it is easy.
(Tue Nov 18, 2003)
I Slept, and Dreamed a Dream: Wherein Mr. Ed Nathaniel Dowdley and I have coffee.
(Mon Nov 17, 2003)
On Building, Part One: Hand Me That Piano: Hit a rhythm, get a system down.
(Sat Oct 11, 2003)
Hesitations on the Herd Mentaility: It is healthy to get away.
(Sun Sep 21, 2003)
Deicide and Spelling Fads: I am somewhat frustrated by all this muck about The Passion, and also by an unrelated spelling convention.
(Sat Sep 13, 2003)

Volume II

After a Long Silence

The Way Of Our Errors: Examining HTTP 404.
(Fri Jul 18, 2003)
Our Take on the Timeless Way: When it comes right down to it, Mr. Alexander is a nut.
(Thu Jul 17, 2003)
How to Syndicate with RSS: A rough and ready guide to making your own XML news feed.
(Wed Jul 9, 2003)
What You Might Have Done: An exercise in evocation (evocativity? evocularity?).
(Mon Jul 7, 2003)
Living Life (In 120 Words Or Less): Put that into your pipe and smoke you it.
(Sat May 17, 2003)
Advertisement: Long ad. Actor wanted.
(Thu May 15, 2003)
The Tragic Complaint of Uncle Mike: “…he is still in traction but therapy does wonders and he is already able to move his right arm and wiggle his toes…”
(Tue Apr 22, 2003)
One Foot In Front of the Other: What’s it all in aid of, anyway?
(Mon Mar 31, 2003)
Editor In The Dock: Answering the mail.
(Tue Mar 11, 2003)
Art Fare for the Common Man: It’s not all as good as they would have you think it is.
(Mon Feb 10, 2003)

Volume I

The Early Days

The Last Word: This article ran in December of 2000, just before JIPW vanished a few months later. A kind of historical marker for this site.
(Fri Dec 1, 2000)
Agony Columns: Some short public promulgations.
(Tue Aug 29, 2000)
In Defense of Dandelions: There is something about the nature of this sunny perennial that ought to be more widely appreciated.
(Thu Jul 13, 2000)
Sneezing For Sound Health: To sniff, perchance to sneeze. Boy, does that feel good.
(Fri May 12, 2000)
Taming of the Tigger: A cross-pollination of Shakespeare and Winnie-the-Pooh.
(Sun Apr 23, 2000)
Those Empty Altoids Tins: Callard & Bowser may not be gouging us after all.
(Mon Mar 13, 2000)
Why America Should Conquer Canada: A rarely articulated doctrine.
(Thu Dec 16, 1999)

“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.”
—Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962)