So my brother DM'd me: "Judge is pressing." I agreed. And so we have to factor that into Greatest Home Run Hitter Ever. Yes? Mr. October was/is Reggie Jackson. So where does that factor into the GOAT (greatest of all time) of home run hitters? Jackson only hit .300 once in his career. However he … Continue reading Pressure and Personality
Author: Mark Jabbour
This is my fourth book. Like the others it deals with the intersection of politics and personality. From a unique psychological, evolutionary, and personal perspective it combines history, geography, and fiction in an attempt to get close to reality.
Greatest Home Run Hitter Ever
is a great debate. It's between four New York Yankees: Babe Ruth in 1927: 60 Home runs; 164 Runs batted in; .356 Batting average; 158 runs scored. Mickey Mantle in 1956: 52 Home runs: 132 runs batted in; .352 Batting average; 132 Runs scored. Roger Maris in 1961: 61 Home runs; 142 Runs batted in; … Continue reading Greatest Home Run Hitter Ever
The Trauma Wake
The Early Years: 1963 - 1970 For me, my Trauma Wake began in November of 1963, just days before my fourteenth birthday. Before that date, my life was pretty peachy. After President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed I began to drink, and quit going to church. I can't say if those events are … Continue reading The Trauma Wake
The Upgrade Problem
Recently I watched Out Of Africa, a beautiful film (1985, Best Picture). The movie is based on the true life adventure of the Danish (Isak Dinesen) author's time in Africa during World War I. In the movie Meryl Streep muses, "Perhaps earth was made round so we wouldn't see too far down the road." I thought, … Continue reading The Upgrade Problem
Writing Creatively: A Review
George Saunders wrote a book about "writing, reading, and life", A Swim in a Pond in The Rain (2021). A New York Times best seller. But it shouldn't be. Saunders says as much in his concluding remarks "We End", which is the only chapter you need read. It's only seven pages. The rest of the book is seven … Continue reading Writing Creatively: A Review
Big Dry Creek Flood
Big Dry Creek runs just north of my apartment complex. The complex is perhaps 100 feet above the creek, which runs all year out of Standley Lake, just east of Boulder, Colorado. Today, Tuesday August 16, 2022, it flooded. The creek flooded in a matter of minutes this morning. After the rain, at around 11:30, … Continue reading Big Dry Creek Flood
Magpie update
At 8AM I exited my building's entry door and there were magpies everywhere. This is uncommon. At first, they were all on the ground. When I returned from my three mile walk there were three times as many. Maybe three dozen, perched on the roof and flying about. This is strange behavior for the birds. … Continue reading Magpie update
The River Why Revisited
The River Why (1983) is a novel by David James Duncan (1952) that I've reread now because the movie version (2010) casts Amber Heard in the female role. The movie is very good, the novel stellar. The novel is now historical fiction. It accurately and brilliantly depicts what it was like to be a certain type … Continue reading The River Why Revisited
Enemy Of God: King Arthur
Is a novel (1996) by Bernard Cornwell. He also wrote The Winter King (1995) which the Netflix series The Last Kingdom was based on. I loved this book. It is historical fiction at its finest. Because it attempts to take something that is unknowable, indeed, even uncertain and give it life - authenticity. Is that possible? The tale takes … Continue reading Enemy Of God: King Arthur
Memorial Day Down By The River
This Memorial Day weekend found me experiencing time travel. In mid-March my long-time friend passed away. His daughter and son decided to have a service for him and his long-time partner on that national day of remembrance. Fitting. The "returning" celebration was held on the land they had lived on for decades. It is land … Continue reading Memorial Day Down By The River