Forum 2.0

My Mother Is At Peace.

On January 14, 2026, my mother, MaryAnn Portelli passed away quietly at home at the age of 87. 

She went to the hospital on December 12, 2025, was almost sent to a rehab facility then took a turn for the worst. By Dec.19, doctors began to tell us to p

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Solitaire 2: The Agenda now available!

 

This one unfortunately took longer than I thought it would to go from first draft to finished novel between a couple of computer crashes, the loss of a beloved family pet and the passing of my father but SOLITAIRE 2: THE AGENDA has finally been publ

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"Lack of Effort" Things That Bug You

In the Skipper's JSA thread, Commander Benson recently posted regarding his objections to various elements of Darwyn Cooke's The New Frontier. He mentioned certain errors regarding military procedures and uniforms that he has encountered in comics ov

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Kaiju Go! 2025 - DFW's Premier Kaiju Event

Tracy and I plan to attend this coming weekend.

KAIJU GO!, the premier kaiju event in Dallas-Fort Worth, returns to the historic TEXAS THEATRE on AUGUST 16, 2025. This showcase of Japanese monster films, art, and toys will, once again, bring fans a Go

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Last call for George Wendt

George Wendt, best known as Norm from Cheers, died today, May 20, 2025, at the age of 76. He had a lengthy career before then as one of those "It's that guy!" actors, and continued to work regularly after Cheers completed its long run. He is survived

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RIP Jill Sobule

I don't know how many of you were fans of the indie folksinger, best known for  "Supermodel" (which appeared, among other places, in the soundtrack for Clueless), "I Kissed A Girl" (Not the Katy Perry song, but the earlier one that's actually about s

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Jules Feiffer Dead at 95

Back in the day, he worked with Will Eisner on The Spirit.

Jules Feiffer, Pulitzer-winning cartoonist and playwright, dies - Los Angeles Times

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About Neil Gaiman

I haven't seen any discussion here about Gaiman, and maybe it's because we don't really want to go down that road with another celebrated person. I don't know even know what to say. I've admired his writing, my brief interaction with him at a con was

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Godzilla: The Official Cookbook

The official cookbook inspired by the Toho Godzilla movies and creatures, featuring a wide variety of fun, kaiju-themed food and drink recipes to suit all tastes and skill levels, including the scrumptious Guaczilla, the delicious Gigan’s Wings and t

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The New Season (2024)

It's that time of year again!

Actually, it's well past this time of year.

Continuing the tradition started by Doctor Hmmm? back in 2010, and followed inconsistently since (2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023), here

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You're Wearing That?

 

To avoid further hijacking the "Movies I Have Seen Lately" thread, and because there seems to be some interest in men's attire, I've created this discussion to pursue it.  (If I'm wrong abut the level of interest, this discussion can die on the vine

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Olympics once again

Once again, friends, it is time for the Summer Olympic Games (officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad and officially branded as Paris 2024). It is held this year in Paris, marking the 100th anniversary since the last time it did so, in 1924.

In a

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The New Season (2023)

It's that time of year again!

Actually, it's well past this time of year.

Continuing the tradition started by Doctor Hmmm? back in 2010, and followed inconsistently since (2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022), here's a c

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R.I.P. Jeannie Epper, a real Wonder Woman

Jeannie Epper, a founding member of the Stuntwomen’s Association of Motion Pictures, and the chief double for Lynda Carter on The New Adventures of Wonder Woman, passed away at 83. She also doubled for Linda Evans and Kathleen Turner over a 40-year c

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Happy New Year! (2024)

Happy New Year, Humans of Earth!

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Grammar Cop

Post your linguistic pet peeves here.

I'll start with with the improper use of the third person plural personal pronoun "they" when the singular form is called for.

(See below for the correct pronoun to use in this case.)

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RIP Jimmy Buffett

Story    Another legend gone.  I'll never be able to think of Buffett without thinking of the late, great Rich  Lane, the biggest Parrothead I ever knew.

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Godzilla & Godzilla Raids Again - The Original Novels

Godzilla emerged from the sea to devastate Tokyo in the now-classic 1954 film, produced by Toho Studios and directed by Ishiro Honda, creating a global sensation and launching one of the world's most successful movie and media franchises. Awakened an

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Historical context for books?

Of late, I've been indulging my interest in books, particularly crime/Detective fiction. Now, something I've always done is check the publication date of the books I'm reading to gain some historical context (I even did this as a small child reading

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The Marist College Mindset List for 2026

Once again, friends, it's time for the latest guidance from Marist College, which has inherited the Mindset List from Beloit College.

See the 2025 list here, the 2024 list here, the 2023 list here, the 2022 list here, the 2021 list here, the 2020 lis

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