Author Archives: Jim Blackwood Jr

If It Isn’t On MY Phone . . . It Didn’t Happen

Posted on August 23, 2019 by Jim Blackwood Jr

I have become a true aficionado of Portland street violence. No really, I savor every riot, every confrontation and each unpermitted march like a vintage of fine wine.  Each clash is an expression of the Portland terroir.  I won’t critique the street … Continue reading →

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Racist!!! Whatever Dude

Posted on July 22, 2019 by Jim Blackwood Jr

I chose to hover somewhere just left of center in the American political drama. What was I thinking? Some days I live I a vertiginous nightmare spinning from one political extreme to the other. It must be nice to live … Continue reading →

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How Right Wing Talk Radio Works — A Challenge

Posted on June 20, 2019 by Jim Blackwood Jr

It occurs to me that few people I know understand how right-wing radio really works because our information bubbles are close to hermetically sealed. I hear people say, “How can those Trump supporters think that?” Let’s see how it works. The … Continue reading →

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Talk Radio. It’s All the Same Show

Posted on June 19, 2019 by Jim Blackwood Jr

Button number 1 on by car radio is Oregon Public Broadcast (OPB).  Button number 4 is KXL Talk Radio. When I am driving in the Portland area, I compulsively bounce from one station to the other. In the noon hour … Continue reading →

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So Many Words

Posted on April 30, 2019 by Jim Blackwood Jr

When I finished my 40th noclock.org essay, I did the math. Authors work in word counts not pages. I had written a total of almost 50,000 words. Yikes, that’s a lot of words. I wondered what that really meant. Google told … Continue reading →

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The Chief

Posted on January 29, 2019 by Jim Blackwood Jr

The tiny round table was already overloaded with 6 empty beer bottles.  She had waved away the offer of glasses.  We met at the little bar beneath the office tower where I was currently robbing an insurance company as a … Continue reading →

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Voting from the Middle

Posted on October 18, 2018 by Jim Blackwood Jr

The mailman just delivered our property tax bill and mail-in ballots.  With my larger project well underway, this inspires me to take a pause and consider the mid-term elections.   A few years into my time working in Portland City … Continue reading →

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Many Nights at the Ballpark

Posted on August 19, 2018 by Jim Blackwood Jr

I have seen 21 live baseball games this season.  16 Pickles games.  4 Major League games and 1 minor league game.  The season isn’t over but I have most likely seen my last live game for the summer.  The local … Continue reading →

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Where Are You From? Two Houses

Posted on August 7, 2018 by Jim Blackwood Jr

  While the memory of such things can be tricky, I have lived in 14 different places.  West coast to east coast.  Up and down the Pacific coast.  I think this fluidity of movement is a very American thing.  I … Continue reading →

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Why Helsinki Will End Trump’s Long Con

Posted on July 17, 2018 by Jim Blackwood Jr

Watching Trump’s news conference with Putin yesterday the last lines of Hunter S. Thompson’s “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” came to mind. “…you can go up on a steep hill in Las Vegas and look West, and with the … Continue reading →

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