Author: Steve Ainslie

After my visit to Duke University yesterday, I had an epiphany – I should never have gone to college. My friend who gave me a guided tour was explaining how the university was an enclave for the wealthy. He, himself, was a scholarship student but most of his peers came from extremely wealthy families. They…

Yesterday I visited Duke University with a friend to check out the Duke Gardens, the chapel, the campus and the buildings where he spent his college years. At the entrance to every building were signs saying “Masks are strongly encouraged“. Taped on the doors of the offices and classrooms were signs saying, “Social distancing is…

The best thing about opting out of dating is not going on dates. The second best thing is not caring what others think of me. I don’t wonder if my weird habits will be a turn off. I don’t worry that I’m not attractive. I don’t have to go places I don’t enjoy. I don’t…

I have been a AAA member since I first started driving 40 years ago. Back then, before cell phones & Uber, when I was lucky to earn $50/week from my part time minimum wage job, AAA was a life saver when the car wouldn’t start, the spare tire was missing or when the car died…

There’s been a lot of hype over the past few years about houses becoming unaffordable for young, first time home buyers. Although it began before Covid, the pandemic, coupled with low interest rates and people staying at home much more, fueled a home buying frenzy that drove up prices. Now, several years later with interest…

I am fairly certain that people have been predicting the end of the world for a long time. In my brief lifetime, doomsayers have predicted catastrophic end-of-civilization scenarios including: These are just the ones I could list of the top of my head. With a little googling, I’m sure I could add dozens more to…

I caught up with a friend of mine who I hadn’t spoken with in a few months. He’d just returned from a weekend trip to DC with his girlfriend. When we spoke, I think he had me on speaker phone. Or else, he was relaying the conversation to her because she would jump into our…

I am reading the book, “The World: A Brief Introduction” by Richard Haas. In it, he presents a history of the major regions and countries in the world, with a focus on post World War I to present day. He writes about wars, alliances, economics, struggles, governments, and crises. It’s been fascinating. I was quite…

There was a leak of a Top Secret US Military Briefing Presentation posted online this week. The document included information about: The independent media is presenting this as a major story. The White House is trying to spin it as misinformation while also threatening to prosecute the person who leaked this document for treason. The…

Lately I’ve been fascinated with language – specifically the English language, its history, the origins of words, and its usage. I’ve been reading a lot more this year since my local library branch reopened. I have been writing more. And I’ve been been listening to more podcasts – ranging from political commentary to comedy to…