Earlier this year, a beautiful young wife and mother of two small children walked out to the horse barn on her Indiana farm, retrieved a rifle, and took her own life. She was a member of my extended family. I didn't know her well, but I had

Christa Gail Pike was supposed to die Wednesday night.The State of Tennessee had a death warrant. The U.S. Supreme Court had cleared the way. Pike was strapped to a gurney inside the execution chamber at Riverbend Maximum Security Instituti

Wicked: The Musical used to be a barometer of where the Broadway industry was at. Many people watched their weekly grosses and sighed with relief if they were good or popped Tums before strategizing how to turn things around.But in 2026, W

I've been a writer all my life, and many of my friends are writers, too. Some write for a living. Some write because it's in their DNA. And some write for the sheer love of it. Sooner or later, someone in that group says, "I've lived throu

Around 4:30 Wednesday morning, three people climbed out of a manhole near Park Avenue and East 61st Street on Manhattan's Upper East Side. They got into two vehicles and drove away. Ordinarily, that would be enough to make me stop and ask

The Simpsons Ride opened on May 15, 2008, at Universal Studios Florida and four days later at their Hollywood location. It was an immeadite hit with guests and executives alike. A mere five years later, a more immersive land was built arou

One of my best friends recently texted me to say that he'd been removed from all the Meta platforms (Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, Threads and WhatsApp). Without warning he received a notice that he was completely banned.He had no idea w

The role writing plays in our lives is changing dramatically. The arrival of AI tools has fundamentally altered how we understand the act of writing and how we interpret the words we consume. Medium recently released its 2026 report on The

I've lived in Texas since 1984. That's long enough to know Texans have rules about everything from barbecue to property lines, and they're notoriously particular about who gets to tell us what to do.But in all my years hear as a naturalize

Princess Diana wore the most famous little black dress in history on the night her estranged husband publicly admitted he had been unfaithful. More than three decades later, the sultry black gown that became known around the world as Diana

In 1965, Scott Banish watched as his friends began to leave for boot camp. He had tried to enlist in the army himself but was rejected because of a heart condition. He was devastated. His parents, Loretta and Scott, were concerned that he

When a person losses their spouse or life partner they may be in for an aftershock. They may believe their social circle will support them.But many are horrified to discover that their friends pull away out of awkwardness or discomfort. Co

I'm taking a two-year graduate-level course in finance and investing. For the past several days, I've been buried in a nearly 200-page research paper dissecting my assigned Forex market using long-term wave and cycle theories. I've analyze

Kevin Reddington was on Good Morning America and made a stunning appeal. He asked Donald Trump to pardon Lindsay Clancy, his client whose trial ended in a mistrial on September 4, 2026.The request was shocking for a couple of reasons. Firs

Have you noticed how many men are hitting the gym because they believe they need to look bigger, stronger, and more masculine? It's not always about health. Increasingly, it's about achieving a very specific aesthetic. More men seem to be

I recently had a confession to make to my friend Edward. His writing had become so sharp, funny, and layered that I was beginning to wonder whether I could keep up with him. I admired what he was doing, but a tiny insecure voice inside me

I want to take you somewhere my readers don't normally get to go with me. Inside my head while I am creating a story. Not after the research is organized, the headline is polished, and every paragraph appears to have landed effortlessly in

Trying to succeed as an online writer has made me slightly unhinged.One of my Medium stories attracts readers.Lots of them.And I'm vibing.I feel like I've finally broken through Medium's super scary algorithm. But then the very next one di

One Etsy customer reportedly mailed her wedding bouquet and rehearsal dinner flowers to a preservation shop, paid more than $500, and waited patiently through repeated delays.The seller said the work would take six months. Then six months

On November 2, 2000, people perusing the Time Travel Institute message boards got a surprise. A member uploaded a message suggesting that he was a soldier in the United States Army and a real-life time traveler. In the initial posts, the

Social media seems fascinated with the trial of Lindsay Clancy. Content about her and the case goes viral with regular ease. Conversations are started with the slightest hint that something is happening in the courtroom.As is the case with

The murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on December 4, 2024, brought the debate about healthcare in the United States to the forefront. Many people across social media shared their stories of being delayed and/or denied by insura

Yellowstone National Park contains places so beautiful they hardly look real. Pools glow brilliant turquoise and deep blue. Steam drifts lazily across the landscape. Bands of yellow, orange, and green surround water so clear that you can s

Hiring a witch is no longer something that requires wandering into a mysterious little shop, consulting a woman with an alarming number of candles, or hoping your grandmother knows somebody who knows somebody.You can do it all from the com

You found it: the holy grail of travel. A beautiful house in a place you've always wanted to visit, and you're going to stay there for free.There's no $300-a-night hotel. No ridiculous resort fee. And absolutely no Airbnb cleaning charge t

I've been watching the TV show From on MGM+. For those that don't know what the show is about, the premise is surprisingly simple and complicated at the same time. A family stumbles upon a small town where there is no escape and monsters c

The 1991 arrest of William Leasure sent shockwaves through the Los Angeles Police Department. His colleagues were convinced that something was off. Some theorized that he was given an undercover assignment or something. The crimes he had b

Most people think artificial intelligence lives in the cloud. It doesn't. Every question you ask AI, every online purchase you make, every movie you stream, and every photo you save depends on enormous data centers operating around the clo

Author's note: It's my habit to make about 1,000 edits, rewrites, etc when writing a novel. This is a first iteration. Who knows what the future holds? Even the title is now just a working title and has a good chance of changing. It helps

When I watch TV, I usually throw on YouTube. Most of the time, I am watching a video about a case that I'm researching or ASMR to keep my mind calm and relaxed. Sometimes, though, I like to watch commentary on pop culture. A genre that I w

I've watched the movie Office Romance, recently released by Netflix, twice. After deciding I actually liked this movie, I started reading reviews and was not surprised to see the haters out in force. As someone who likes to observe human be

Back in October 2025, I hatched an idea for a true crime book. It centered on the Luigi Mangione case and how it had been so politicized. It was a project that really excited me. Eventually, it was titled, Did He Do It? Does It Matter? The

Before he was falling asleep in important meetings. Before he was threatening to destroy democracy with corruption so egregious it makes Nixon look innocent. Even before he uttered the words "you're fired" on national TV, Donald Trump was

The Met Gala is one of the most popular social events of the year. It happens on the first Monday of May every year. Celebrities and the press gather to show off the trendiest of fashions that fit the theme for the year. Since 1995, fashio

If you've spent more than five minutes on TikTok lately, you've probably seen them. Glossy strawberries layered with melted chocolate, pistachio cream, crunchy kataifi pastry, and enough green pistachio dust to make you question whether yo

"Well, Charlie* doesn't like this, but Trump did another thing that will help the farming class," said Bobby-Jo.* The three men were talking at work, and it was obvious that Charlie was the odd man out. Charlie was the only one who voted b

The day Joan Jett Blakk (aka Terence Alan Smith) turned 35 years old, he declared his candidacy for President of the United States. A year before, he had challenged Richard M. Daley for Mayor of Chicago. So his aspirations for higher offic

Love and lust make us do strange things. A man will go to a fancy restaurant for his partner. A lady may watch a sportsball game with her lover to make them happy. Clyde Barrow is reported to have killed a good number of people to please B

From the moment that UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot on the Manhattan streets in the early morning hours of December 4, 2024, there has been a lot of talk about the case. First, it was about who pulled the trigger. Then, the m

During the month of June, many corporations roll out the rainbows to welcome the LGBTQIA+ community and their cash. The corporate pandering usually goes way over the top. Social media posts spring up to remind people to look at what the co