Author Archives: John W. Howell

On the Radio with Fresh Ink Group

The terrific guys at Fresh Ink Group invited me to appear tonight on their 138th Blog Talk Radio show. That’s them above. Of course, if you invite me, I will show up. So tonight at 8:00 Eastern Time, Stephen Geez, Beem Weeks, and I will be chewing the fat about all things authorly. To listen […]

Finger Point Prompt – Big Disaster

Keith Channing is still off, so today’s prompt was pulled from The Last Drive. The idea is to open a book to a random spot and point. The words closest to the pointing finger become the prompt. The random page today is 129, and the words are “big disaster.” Big Disaster by John W. Howell […]

Top Ten Things Not to Say to Your Household Staff

  Originally posted on March 16th, 2016. I thought it would be fun to revisit since it is totally fiction. * * * This list was inspired by taking a moment to walk in the shoes of the one thousand or so Billionaires in this world. I wanted to imagine how hard it would be […]

Views of the Neighborhood – The greenbelt and Bluebonnets

Today we are visiting one of my favorite places, The Hamilton Greenbelt in Lakeway. It has been several weeks since the ice storm, and the greenbelt is again open. It was closed because of the danger of falling limbs and trees across the trails. We are catered by Bouldin Creek Cafe of Austin. (We are […]

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt – “Tape”

    For the second week in a row, the coffee appears without drama from the AI drama queen. The cup to the lips and a long slow sip is interrupted by the sounds of a calliope followed by the amplified voice of Phil Harris. “Ladies and gentlemen and children of all ages. Welcome to […]

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay Good News

Today’s good news comes from the Good News Network. Here is the story in its entirety. Firefighter Lures Trapped Dog Off the Ice Using Treats–Then Lifts it Up a 10-Foot Wall By Andy Corbley March 15th, 2023 Patience, bribery, laughter, and a heck of a bicep muscle were all needed to rescue a helpless dog […]

Thursday – A Little Personal – Lucy and Twiggy

“Hey, Lucy. Why are these weird-looking runners here.” “Against her better interior decorating sense, mom bought them for me.” “For you? Why?” “Well, Little One, I’m having trouble walking on the tile.” “Trouble? What kind of trouble?” “We old folks sometimes can’t control slipping.” “Then what happens?” “I basically fall down and can’t get up. […]

Tuesday – Anything Possible – Finger Point Prompt- “This Ain’t No Game, Lady.”

Keith Channing will be taking some time off, so I will again feature a finger-point prompt. The way it works is I open a book to a random page and then, without looking, point to the page. The word or phrase closest to my pointing finger is it. Today I opened the sequel to Eternal […]

Top Ten Things You Should Never Say to Your Neighbor

This post ran on February 29, 2016, and still seems current since we all have neighbors. I hope you enjoy it. * * * The inspiration for this list comes up all the time. I, of course, have had the presence of mind not to say any of these things. Not that I have not […]

Views of the Neighborhood – St. Patrick’s Day Decorations

We went out to see if there were any St. Patrick’s Day decorations in the neighborhood. We found some so the tour is on. We are catered by Foxy’s Proper Pub in Austin. Our entertainment is (who else?) The Irish Rovers FRIED PICKLES pickle chips, chipotle ranch CURRY CHIPS sweet potato, bonito, toasted coconut, cilantro, […]