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grin and bare it

A blog by Matthew Dicks

Melting ice or a bullet in the head?

By Matthew Dicks | June 28, 2010

There’s been much discussion over the potential loss of the polar bears as a result of the recent melting of polar ice. Many environmentalists have adopted the polar bear as their symbol of the dangers…

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I will pledge whatever my teacher says…

By Matthew Dicks | June 28, 2010

I’m just about finished reading THE BOOK THIEF, which provides a very interesting view of Nazi Germany from the perspective of a child.  Among other things, the book portrays a country that is fanatic in…

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Too close for comfort

By Matthew Dicks | June 27, 2010

From time to time my in-laws have debated moving from their sizable home in the Berkshires into a 350 square foot, single room apartment that they own in Manhattan.   I tried to convince them to…

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The choice is made!

By Matthew Dicks | June 27, 2010

After publicly flogging my fellow book club member (her words) and having another member propose that we may need to consider group therapy, a choice was finally made: BOTH WAYS IS THE ONLY WAY I…

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Childhood bogeyman returns

By Matthew Dicks | June 27, 2010

When I was a kid, my town and the surrounding communities were terrorized by the Blackstone Valley sniper. For a period of about two years, someone was firing a rifle into picture windows at the…

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DJ blunders and tribulations

By Matthew Dicks | June 27, 2010

Just as we were leaving to yesterday’s wedding, more than an hour away from home, my DJ partner, Bengi, noticed that the a tire on the truck was flat. Not trusting the spare, we got…

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Spoiled

By Matthew Dicks | June 26, 2010

I know it’s not even July, but football season is nearly upon us and I couldn’t be happier.  In just a couple short months, my beloved Patriots will begin playing again, and for the first…

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Telltale signs

By Matthew Dicks | June 25, 2010

I was listening to an interesting story on mapping on This American Life today, and it gave me the idea of writing the short story or a novella in which a protagonist’s life is told…

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Slacker book club extraordinaire

By Matthew Dicks | June 25, 2010

I’m a member of a slacker book club. Yes, I’ve heard stories about slacker book clubs before, and perhaps you are even a member of one yourself.  But my slacker book club is the most…

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Confirmed perfection

By Matthew Dicks | June 24, 2010

I was watching Journeyman today, a show that was sadly cancelled by NBC after just one season. In the episode, two characters are discussing the possibility of marriage. The female character asks, “Are you looking…

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