The Story Grid

The Bitter Withy _________________________ John Fraim Again, thanks Heather for introducing me to this book. Screenwriters who come to this book might find it un-familiar based on all the various structure steps proposed. But the difference here is the creator of this system is not a screenwriter but rather a respected book editor.  If I […]

Late Night Piano Meditations

(From the Honest Broker post from Ted Gioia) Nils Frahm: Night Late Night Piano Meditations Performed on the Klavins M450—a One-Ton Upright Piano  Ted Gioia I really should tell you about the music, and not the piano. But I love the sound of this instrument. That’s because it’s a special piano: It looks like a circus […]

Art Pepper

John Fraim Thanks to the recommendations of Ted Gioia and his site The Honest Broker. Subscribe on the site. Far above anyone else who looks at culture these days. Been on the site for a few years now. (Thanks to Bill my jazz friend friend Texas for introducing me to Ted!) Today’s post has some […]

The Harvard Decision

Fly With The Wind / McCoy Tyner John Fraim This whole discussion is so long overdue. So good it is finally being addressed. The initial strike from the administration through Homeland Security is taking student visas away from 27% of Harvard foreign students. (I was surprised at this huge percentage of foreginers Harvard is educating. […]

The MAHA (Make American Healthy Again) Report

Sun God / Horace Silver _______________________ The WH-The-MAHA-Report-Assessment is just out. As RFK, Jr. says, the “diagnosis.” Next comes the “prescription.” The diagnosis focuses on four major problem areas with health in children: Rising rates of childhood chronic disease are likely being driven by a combination of factors, including 1) the food children are eating […]

The AI 2027 Scenario

Birdland / Weather Report _______________________________ John Fraim Today, one can take time to meticulously investigate the events of the world. As a famous philosopher once said, an unexamined life is not worth living. However, he was living a few thousand years ago. Fame and historical relevance is something that seems to come and go with […]

Metaphors of the Enemy

The Deep State Swamp of Trump 45 / FBI Building on top / Diorama by John Fraim Sunflower ____________________ Metaphors of the Enemy: How They’ve Changed for Trump John Fraim For Trump 45 the great villain metaphor was the “deep state” that lived in the DC “swamp” that had to be drained. Trump 47’s major […]

Hyalite twilight

Hyalite twilight. Montana. Jake Mosher River Man _______________________ John Fraim What makes a great photographer? Well, for one, hardly no one ever mentions a great photographers go to places in our world few go to. Off the beaten track. Off the grid. With editing software, the temptation is to put in your own scenes. No […]

Rust Belt

Monessen, PA. / Rich Yost 5/13/25 Old Black Magic _______________________ Monessen is a city in southwestern Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, located along the Monongahela River. The population was 6,876 at the 2020 census. Steel-making was a prominent industry in Monessen, and it became a third-class city in 1921. With restructuring of the steel industry in the […]

Speed of News

The Trump Express / Year 2025 has Brought Speed & Technology to the Bureuacracy Need for Speed ______________ There seems the finest of lines these days between reality and fiction. Even Hollywood screenwriters have a hard time staying ahead of reality. By the time their movie is made, the world has moved on to some […]