Matthew Alan Thyer's Blog, page 18

Done and Done

Resentments

I was sitting at the kitchen table sipping coffee and looking inward. Recollections of dry sage were clipping my knees and thighs re-running past my mind’s eye. Grasping for the scents, the images of long-needled Ponderosas passing by, the sound of a stellar’s jay or my dog panting at my heal. I was thinking about these things when she sat down next to me when she saw a vacant look on my face.
This morning my loving wife asked me straight up if I resented her or A-bear. The question took me b...

Dear Brooks Running

I am on my last pair of Brooks Running PureGrit 2s, and as I raise miles, they are quickly disintegrating on my feet. So here’s a plea to my favorite running shoe manufacturer.Please bring THIS show back. I’ve tried all the subsequent versions of this shoe and yeah, you had a good thing and borked it.

Royally borked it.

You’ve got all my wishes and most of my love, please do me this one kindness.

Here Comes the Storm

You can read all about it here, but right now there the remnants ofTyphoon Songda are off the left coast making things very wet and very windy.

While not a hurricane this is a big deal. We haven’t seen anything this bad, in fact, since 2006 when another instance of bombogenesis blew down trees and powerlines during a cold November.

We’re hunkered down for the time being. Electricity and theinternet are still working, but I don’t imagine that this will last for too much longer. If you’re in t...

I support I-732

This is a no brainer. Seriously,I strongly support I-732, the revenue-neutral carbon tax swap,which will help to reduce Washington State’s greenhouse gas emissions, lessen the regressiveness of our tax system, and serve as a potent bipartisan model of long-termaction for the rest of the nation. More informationhere.

The October Omnibus Update

I’m going to drill down on what’s up with the words. That’s the part that you’re likely interested in the first place, and it’s certainly at the core of everything I do.

Short Stories

Since I sent Shadow Over Your Shoulder out into the world, I’ve been working on another short project. The working title is “Running,” and it’s a refugee story about a woman caught between her culture and an alien invasion.

This has been a difficult writing exercise for me because I’m not a woman and I’ve never...

JasP, Thank You!

I called my Dad yesterday, ostensibly to make certain he’d been able to sort out some technical issues with Kindle. Good news! We’ve apparently fixed that mess.

But we got to talking. While at a community center shin-dig we stayed on the line so long he went outside to sit in his jeep. We touched on a bunch of topics, but Dad one was the value of reviews. Specifically Amazon reviews. At the end of every Samuel Peralta anthology, he writes an appeal to readers to review what they’ve read. My...

It’s Not About How Strong You Are

I’m going to ask you to pretend for a moment. I’m going to request that you empathize with me and try to imagine yourself within the context of my experience. I’m making this request because recently Donald Trump spoke to a group of Vets.

“When people come back from war and combat and they see maybe what the people in this room have seen many times over, and you’re strong and you can handle it, but a lot of people can’t handle it,” he said.

The implication I and many others took away from thi...

Owning It

Yesterday I posted “The Great October Update” after reading a similar update post from an author who’s good opinion I value highly. Monica Byrne is an excellent storyteller, and she’s also got some amazing insights into Patreon as a platform.

Consequently, when I see her doing something, I follow it closely. I read what she writes and listen to what she says, because, as I said yesterday I see how important Patreon is for me as a writer.

But I made a big mistake yesterday. I adapted an update...

The Great October Update

“I’m sorry, is it okay if I can only pledge X?” Donald Trump sits on baby kittens every time you apologize for something that’s not wrong. Seriously, stop killing kittens, because that’s wrong. Pledging ANYTHING is a huge leap of faith on your part. You’re buying into a fantastic new economy while at the same time investing your hard earned cash in the art of an unknown. I support a handful of artists on Patreon too, and the most I pledge to any one of them is $5. Take a look at my numbers...