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Bertie Makes it Worse (2011)

Posted on Oct 13, 2013 in Fiction, Humor, Short Stories

If I said this story wasn’t influenced by Mark Twain’s Mrs. McWilliams and the Lightning, I would be lying.

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Ivan, You’re Busted! (2000)

Posted on Oct 5, 2013 in Gender, Humor, Magazines, Tapestry

When I became editor of Tapestry the office staff passed on to me a packet of correspondence which included several strange letters which seemed to me to be written by the same hand. “Oh, that’s Ivan,” they said. “He’s been sending us letters for years.” Ivan was their pet name for the letter writer. And so, I came up with this. IFGE never received another letter from him.

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Chronology of Transgen Group Postings (1996)

Posted on Oct 3, 2013 in Gender, Humor

The early internet group communication system USENET was famous for its flame wars; a number of trolls who continue to flame others on the internet today were already active in the mid-1990s. I wrote this in response to some of them.

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Wanted: Nation/State to Fill Vacant Axis of Evil Slot (2003)

Posted on Sep 12, 2013 in Americana, Humor, Politics

Wanted: Nation/State to Fill Vacant “Axis of Evil” Slot

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Popular Authors and Characters, Moonlighting (1981)

Posted on Sep 12, 2013 in Fiction, Humor, Short Stories

For the better part of two years I was a child protective services worker for the state of Tennessee. That, and my twisted sense of humor, explains this post.

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Overdue Journals (1981)

Posted on Sep 10, 2013 in Fiction, Humor

These periodicals have been reported missing from the stacks.

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Reader’s Favorite Graffiti (1983)

Posted on May 27, 2013 in Book Chapters, Humor

When, in the early 1980s, I read a book about graffiti by Marina Naan and Richard Hammerstrom, I sent them these selections for a forthcoming volume. It was and remains my only involvement with graffiti.

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The Brief but Illustrious Career of Reggie Ramloose (1983-1987)

Posted on Mar 30, 2013 in Columns, Computers, Humor, Magazines, Newsletters

When I arrived in Nashville for grad school I ventured to a computer store on 8th Avenue North for the formation of a users group for the VIC-20. There were about a dozen people, and each of us was eyeing all the others, wondering what sort of weirdo would have a computer in their home. The group grew and in 1983 merged with a forming C-64 group to form The Nashville Commodore Users Group. Soon there were more than 450 members and there was at least one meeting every week.

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