TBT: Back to the Grind 2020

12 August 202112 August 2021 The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

This past Monday, teachers at my small private school resumed work, sitting through our annual OSHA blood-borne pathogens training and another sales pitch from the AFLAC representative (start offering long-term disability insurance, AFLAC, and I’ll buy a policy). Registration for new and returning students is now in full swing.

Last year was a unique school year, with its own challenges and opportunities. As I detailed in this post, we had a host of new sanitation procedures, as well as the odious masks. This year, the masks are optional, but we’re still sanitizing desks and checking temperatures at the door.

Unlike last year, we’ll have all the fun stuff again: pep rallies, chapel, etc. I know the students will be excited for some fun events to return to campus.

Of course, that means yours portly will be back to hustling to satisfy the bottomless appetite for audio-visual production values the students (and my administration) crave. One silver lining of last school year was the vast reduction in constant events and activities, which allowed me the time to focus on teaching and grading.

Oh, well—here’s to another year! And here’s 10 August 2020’s “Back to the Grind 2020“:

Lazy Sunday CXXIII: Murphy

25 July 202124 July 2021 The Portly Politico10 Comments

The big news this week is that I got a dog, Murphy, an eight-year old female bull terrier. I promise that I am not turning the blog into a gushfest for this lovable, chunky fur ball, but given how much I’ve written about her this week, it made sense to dedicate this Lazy Sunday to posts about Murphy. I mean, she is super lazy (she’s asleep at my feet at this very moment), and so I am; why scroll through a bunch of posts from all over the years, when I can just rehash the three related to my awesome dog?

“Big News: TPP is Going to the Dogs” – This post announced the big news that I would begin fostering Murphy. The opportunity to do so came up rather quickly; I had only contacted The Bull Terrier Rescue Mission (donate to them) a week before they called to say they had a dog for me. It really is miraculous how perfectly everything has come together.
“Supporting Friends Friday: The Bull Terrier Rescue Mission” – Because of the amazing work the organization does—and because they helped bring Murphy into my life—I dedicated this week’s Supporting Friends Friday to
The Bull Terrier Rescue Mission (donate to them). They really do wonderful work with a difficult breed, and could use your support.
“SubscribeStar Saturday: Dog Days: Early Reflections on Dog Ownership” (full post on SubscribeStar) – At the time I wrote this post, I’d only had Murphy two days (and change). Now I’ve had her three days (and change). Ergo, these are definitely early reflections. The post also includes a photo dump of a bunch of dog pictures—probably worth subscribing just for that!
Subscriber-only “Flash Poll: Murphy Posts” – I anticipate that some people will love reading about (and seeing pictures of) Murphy, but some will find it annoying. Subscribers to my SubscribeStar page can vote in this poll to share their true feelings on the topic.

Happy Sunday!

—TPP

Other Lazy Sunday Installments:

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Saturday Updates; SubscribeStar Saturday Delayed

17 July 2021 The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

I’m moving my girlfriend to her new apartment this weekend, and despite a flurry of writing throughout the week, I was unable to get SubscribeStar Saturday done before the insanity of the move hit. It’s been an unusually difficult move logistically, but the worst of it is over, and today should be a breeze.

The planned SubscribeStar Saturday post is going to be a real doozy, so keep your eyes peeled. It might be Tuesday before I can get it done, but it will be worth the wait.

A big thanks to Dr. Rachel Fulton Brown for sharing my review of Centrism Games. The good doctor herself sent along her kudos via Telegram, and told me that my analysis of the poem is accurate.

I have some other potentially big news pertaining to the folks at the Bull Terrier Rescue Mission. Details to come.

Those are the quick updates for now. Apologies for the delay, but as soon as sore, battered body has recovered, I will have this weekend’s SubscribeStar post done.

Happy Saturday!

—TPP

TBT: Island Living

15 July 202115 July 2021 The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Whenever the weight of the world—work, politics, etc.—gets to be too much, I’m tempted to retreat to a remote woodland cabin and live off the fat of the land, drinking chicory on cold mornings in a flannel shirt while stroking my rugged beard contemplatively.

That fantasy scenario ignores the fact that I know nothing about living “off the fat of the land,” and would likely die in two weeks without running water and a nearby grocery store. But there is something appealing about unplugging from society and becoming self-sufficient.

Indeed, it’s little wonder that the modern homesteading movement has grown so large. People are tired of unresponsive governments, woke corporations, tyrannical HR departments, and public scolds. Why not buy a few acres in a red State and raise some chickens?

This throwback post, “Island Living,” details a couple in British Columbia who built their own island out of discarded lumber and such. Talk about living the dream!

Here’s 21 July 2020’s “Island Living“:

Adventures in Dog Walking

13 July 202112 July 2021 The Portly Politico10 Comments

Taking long, contemplative walks is one of life’s simple pleasures. Doing so with a dog, I have discovered, is even more fun, even if it means carrying around a hot, steaming bag of poop part of the time.

For the past week, I’ve been dog sitting my girlfriend’s lovable German Shepherd, Lily. Lily is nearly three-years old, and very well-trained (my girlfriend will tell you otherwise, but she did a good job with Lily). For that reason, we have been walking a lot this past week. Being somewhat inexperienced with dogs, anytime she starts nosing at the door and whimpering, we go for a walk, so we’re probably doing it way more than necessary.

Regardless, taking all these walks has afforded the pup and I several opportunities to see the town. Walking a location, rather than zipping by in a car, gives the walker an intimate understanding of a place. Lily has certainly left her mark—scatologically and otherwise—all over.

TBT^16: Happy Birthday, America!

8 July 20218 July 2021 The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Since 2018, I’ve been reblogging my original “Happy Birthday, America!” post, which dates back to 2016 and the old Blogger site. Each year I add another layer of commentary to to the original post, which essentially analyzed and discussed very briefly Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.

My view on Lincoln’s role in American history has shifted somewhat in five years, but it’s undeniable that the Gettysburg Address is a powerful, succinct speech. The Address, unlike my windy blog posts, is the quintessential illustration of the principle that “less is more.”

Like last year, this year’s post is a bit delayed due to the way the Fourth fell this year (on a Sunday). It was a very quiet Independence Day: my younger brother had my girlfriend, myself, and another friend over to have hot dogs and burgers, as his wife and kids were away visiting family. I manned the grill, turning the dogs like a human-operated convenience store hot dog roller. The thin, diner-style smash burgers my brother made were delicious, especially with American cheese.

This year was the first in awhile that didn’t really feel like the Fourth of July, even though last year’s celebration was during the supremely unfree Age of The Virus. I suppose the holiday snuck up on me, and with the nation in the state it is, perhaps I just wasn’t feeling all that patriotic.

Nevertheless, I reminded myself that America has been on the ropes before, and we’re not going to let some bug-eating, gender-confused CommieNazis destroy our hope.

With that, here are several posts commemorating July Fourths past:

Summertime Schedule Begins

8 June 20218 June 2021 The Portly Politico4 Comments

After a long school year and a whirlwind trip to Universal Studios, I am finally settling into my summertime schedule. My History of Conservative Thought course did not “make” this summer, as I only had one student enroll (the course really needs a minimum of three students to work well), but my dance card is full enough with lessons and other obligations and engagements.

Next week I’ll be running my first ever “Rock and Roll Camp” at my little school. It will essentially be a condensed version of the Music Ensemble class I run throughout the school year, squeezed into four three-hour days. The plan is to end the final day with a short concert. I’m waiting to hear back on who is enrolled and what kind of instrumentation we have, as that will determine the song selections, but I think it will should be a fun camp.

After that it’s the return of Minecraft Camp, a perennial favorite. At last count I have either ten or eleven campers signed up for that camp, which is quite good. Minecraft Camp is the most lucrative camp of the summer, and accounts for a good chunk of my supplemental income this time of year. I missed out on it last year, as I was very sick, so here’s hoping I’m good to go this summer.

Back to Universal Studios Again; Summer Vacation Updates

4 June 20213 June 2021 The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

I’m back in Orlando, Florida, for another trip to Universal Studios. Tomorrow’s SubscribeStar Saturday will likely be late again, but Lazy Sunday should be good to go. I’ll post in a bit more detail about our adventures down here later on.

Next week I’ll be making up last week’s SubscribeStar Saturday and tomorrow’s in great detail. Apologies to subscribers for the delays. Even though it’s now summer vacation, those final teacher workdays were doozies, with a flurry of end-of-the-year items to complete, not least of all accurate report card grades and comments.

It looks like this summer’s run of History of Conservative Thought will be cancelled, unfortunately, due to low enrollment (one student signed up—d’oh!). It actually works out, though, as I’m hitting a whopping ten students for private music lessons over the summer. If everyone continues into the next academic year, I’ll have twelve students in total during the school year—the highest ever.

Restoring Order

1 June 202131 May 2021 The Portly Politico3 Comments

Friday night I hosted my Spring Jam, the second front porch concert I’ve staged (the first was the Spooktacular, which will be back again this October). I’ll be writing a detailed review of Friday’s concert this weekend, and will catch up this week on some of the details of preparing for it (apologies, subscribers, for the delayed post).

The evening was a great deal of fun, with around forty attendees at any given moment (some folks stuck around for the whole thing, while others came and went). We sold t-shirts, hot dogs, baked goods, and drinks, and took in tips and donations to pay our musicians. I even managed to sell one of my pieces of artwork (!!!; the other one is still available). One of my musician buddies and fellow bloggers, fridrix, showed up unexpectedly, and treated us to a surprise, three-song set, including his open mic song about open mics, “Fish Bowl.”

Of course, with all those people on the front lawn—and my niece and nephews running around with other kids inside the house—there was a good bit of cleaning up to do afterwards. We knocked out the outdoor teardown fairly quickly, which meant throwing everything inside. As such, my house was a wreck.

With my senior students graduating Saturday morning—and Memorial Day Weekend fun looming large—I had to put off the long task of restoring order to my home until Monday.

Gig Day V: TJC Spring Jam

28 May 202126 May 2021 The Portly Politico3 Comments

After seven long months, it’s time for another front porch concert! Following the success of Spooktacular II, I decided I should try the format twice a year: the classic Halloween event, and a springtime one. Thus, the TJC Spring Jam is born!

Halloween is easy, because it comes packaged with all sorts of fun activities: Halloween songs, costume contests, spooky décor, etc. A generic springtime theme is a bit more vague, and with it already feeling like summer here in South Carolina, the theme presented some initial problems.

The Portly Politico

One Southerner's unique, erudite, conservative perspective in a hectic world

Tag: navel-gazing