J.J. Goodman: Writings, Musings and More

  There are a lot of things I simply don't understand. Complex mathematics. The appeal of the Power Rangers in adults. Why people actually enjoy running. But, while I don't understand them, I'm not going around bashing mathematicians, Power Rangers fans, and runners. I'm very proud to say I count some in each category among my nearest and dearest. If there is one thing I will never truly comprehend, however, it's the extreme levels of hatred, ignorance, and intolerance so pervasive today…. Sadly, though not unsurprisingly, it more than often comes from those claiming to be "religious." And I struggle to understand why.   There are states in our country, supposedly "the land of the free," that are currently banning education based on our actual history. They criminalize parents who support the LGBTQ children as "abusers." They refuse to allow their schools to even acknowledge homosexuality as if refusing to say the word "gay&quo

  I've written something like this and deleted it many times over, because I hadn't wanted to anger or offend those that I love and care for… but I can't hold it in any more. Because, honestly, I'm angered. I'm offended. And more troubling, I'm heartbroken . It guts me to see members of my family and friends buying into COVID-19 misinformation so fully that they refuse to get vaccinated. Because, of those I know, there is absolutely no legitimate reason whatsoever, no religious exemption, no underlying medical condition, nothing that should prevent them from getting vaccinated. The only thing standing in their way is a dangerous mix of misinformation and willful ignorance.   Let's start with this: Literally half of the entire human race is vaccinated at this point with at least one dose; over a third is fully vaccinated. And no, I'm not exaggerating. Half of all of humanity, billions of human beings world-wide. And you're worried about, what, e

I have a problem. (Just one?) *squints menacingly*  I see my time away from my personal blog hasn't dulled the wit of the parenthetical heckler. I suppose that's a good thing, considering the fact that the heckler is born of my imagining of my reader's reactions to my neurosis. So I got that going for me, I guess. But things have been rough, this past year and a half. That creativity that once fueled me has, for the most part, gone dormant. And if you know me, or even if you're familiar with these pages, you know how much of a problem that is for me. Writing is my outlet and, if I have no outlet, all that boils and roils within this dark mind of mine stays there in the shadows. Growing. Festering. Overtaking. Even visits to my "Serenity Point" pictured above haven't helped me to release the growing tempest in my head.  This past year, despite the incredible joy it has brought me, has perhaps been more difficult for me than I let myself admit. Increas

So... a friend of mine recently gave me a writing prompt/challenge to start a story with the sentence "one more step." Well, as I've been obsessed with The Expanse as of late, I decided to write a short story based within the Expanse universe  It's something I just kind of whipped together on my lunch hour the other day, so forgive any errors or continuity issue with the show/books.  For these purposes, the story would be set around the same timeframe as Book 1, Leviathan Wakes , and Season 1 of the show. I purposely tried to keep specific reference to the series to a minimum, but picture the ship in the story being something akin to the  Canterbury . With that,  I look forward to your thoughts on One More Step : an Expanse fan-fiction short story. ********************************** One more step. That's what you told yourself out there in the void. One more step. Then another. Then another after that, until the job was done and the airlock cycled shut behind you