Over the past 30 or 40 years, a handful of friends, family, and even a few strangers (I won't pretend there were a lot) have asked for printed copies of some of the pieces I've written, posted or published in various forms. I'm always flattered and have always been happy to oblige. But I recently ran into a little trouble locating a couple of pieces that were requested. I realized that I hadn't been a very good steward of my written ramblings and tirades.
I decided to gather as much of this material as I could find, which turned out to be harder than I imagined, given decades of computer updates and software changes. As it turned out, my writings would be found in a lot of different formats, in a lot of different places. A less ego-driven personality would have given up long ago. But, I had also promised my son that I would try to leave the paper trail that I wish I had had from my own father. I have pieced together at least a short trail for him. Whether he finds it of any value, or even interest, will not be in my control.
As for anyone else who decides to wade through this, I am fully aware that a huge percentage of you will vehemently disagree with a huge percentage of what is written here. I'm okay with that. I am so accustomed to it, in fact, that I sometimes feel the need to reevaluate my stance when I find myself siding with the majority. Maybe that's just contrarianism; something I have been labeled with more than once. Not surprisingly, many of my family and friends long ago learned to ignore me. I am also okay with that.
So ... read it, or don't. Agree with it, or don't. Much of it was written without the expectation that anyone else would ever see it. It was put on paper in the first place mostly to prevent my head from exploding. Even if nobody comes inside the tent, you still gotta feed the elephant.