The Plan (for Escape)

Phase 1 -- Week 1 (ending Sat., Aug. 22):  I'll share a link to each new blog post on both (a) my personal Facebook profile and (b) the "Eye of Mike" group.

Phase 2 -- Week 2 (ending Sat., Aug. 29):  I'll summarize those Phase 1 posts in "The Week That Was! (#34 of 2020)," share a link to it on both my personal profile and the group, but share links to any new blog posts only on the group.

Phase 3 -- Week 3 and beyond:  I'll only share a link on the "Eye of Mike" group for "The Week That Was!" summary (table of contents) of the week's new blog posts.  One exception: if I write a blog post in response to someone's "notable" post on Facebook (i.e., anything from "inspiring" to downright stupid), I might share a link as my comment on their post.

As for sharing photos on Facebook: not sure yet.

I'll still 'lurk' to see what you're doing, even if you're just telling me that you're eating somewhere with someone.  (You're being 'used' by big & small business when you do that!  Ya know that, right?)

I'll still maintain my personal profile so far-flung family & long-lost friends can search for me.  And I'll continue to participate in, moderate, or administer some groups or pages.

And, of course, I'll occasionally share my goofiness & self-deprecating humor in my comments on your posts.  After all, if you choose never to read my thoughts here, at least you can laugh at me on Facebook.

Remember: Copyright © 2020-08-15, Mike Kruchoski, All Rights Reserved.

The Week That Was! (#33 of 2020)

My original plan for the "Eye of Mike" group on Facebook was to merely post the permalink to a weekly "table of contents" for my posts here on the "Mouth of the West" blog.  That way, you'd get a once-a-week reminder that I'm still alive & kickin' (and writing).  Just 52 times a year to decide whether to bother reading what I have to say.  Or, of course, you could simply choose to leave the group forever.

Anyway, as I've mentioned, things never quite went according to that plan.  Witness my long silence after first drafting this -- https://mouthofthewest.blogspot.com/2020/08/the-week-that-was-9-of-2020.html -- which I never completed but only just now posted.

Tonight's post will be a bit different.  It's really not about the past week, but rather a summary of the past month.

As of next Monday (August 17th), it will have been four weeks since I intervened to save a homeless woman's life, then worked with a variety of community members to help get her off the streets and under competent medical & psychological care.  It will mark two weeks since a horrible hit-&-run accident seriously injured an extended-family member who still remains in the hospital intensive care unit in a medically-induced coma, awaiting surgery.  And it will be about a week since another extended-family member went to the emergency room, not just once but twice.  Jill and I are doing our best to be supportive and understanding.  On top of all that, a string of "challenging" meetings with the U.S. Department of Justice (& others) about community policing councils and related issues.

While I don't consider myself emotionally fragile, I certainly am emotionally exhausted.  It didn't help that I was labeled a "demon" by that very woman I helped save.  But I took that in stride, understanding the emotional trauma she has experienced over 55 years.

So, here I am, doing my best NOT to randomly post disconnected 'snippets' on Facebook, which (IMHO) is a cesspool of anger, stupidity, hatred, conspiracies, and narcissism.

In the morning I make my usual, monthly donation to the blood bank.  #My_Daily_Kindness_Shared.  What is yours?

Remember: Copyright © 2020-08-14, Mike Kruchoski, All Rights Reserved.

 

The Week That Was! (#9 of 2020)

My second week back home, after an all-too-brief visit with Ben, Lindsey, granddaughter Zoe, and grandson Quinn.  The story about that trip another time.

Monday, Feb. 24th:  Death on the NICU.  Then the accusations of a power grab.

Wednesday:  Friend of the Court.

Thursday:  Bureaucracy for the Greater Good. Crafting guidance for community policing.

Saturday:  Daffodil Days and Volunteer Contributions.

Sunday, March 1:  Family Duty Never Ends, It Seems.

 

Remember: Copyright © 2020-03-02, Mike Kruchoski, All Rights Reserved.

 

 

A Mini-Essay: Bye, Bye Facebook -- Sorta!

About a decade ago, I thought I’d turned my back on the so-called ‘social’ media.  I posted my last ‘tweet’ on Twitter, then archived my “Thousand and One Tweets” and deactivated my “Eye of Mike” profile.  Then I archived my Facebook posts and actually closed my profile.

A while later -- can’t remember quite when or why -- I opened my current Facebook profile, and followed with a few new Twitter profiles in the years since.

Four years ago, I once again announced my intent to withdraw from Facebook, writing at that time:

“A Mini-Essay: Bye, Bye Facebook -- Sorta!"

“When asked what I do, I often tell people I'm ‘retired’ -- but not really, that I simply plan to work until I drop dead. I'm still a 24/7/366 (not merely 365!) kind of guy. Then I explain: until I die, I get to do more of what I like, and less of what I find tedious or bureaucratic.

“So, what exactly is it that I like? I quickly cite my four broad passions: writing, photography & videography, and travel -- all of which go together quite nicely -- and free agent product development.

“I've been trying for months to carve out enough free time to resume my writing. It seems that day has finally arrived.

“Henceforth, less verbiage on Facebook. I'll resurrect three of my long-dormant, publicly attributed blogs: Mouth of the West; Daddosaurus; and The Apostate Gun Owner. And I'll begin writing about photography on another blog: 'No Pretenses' Photography (the name of one of my Meetup groups). Lastly, I'll continue writing on my two anonymous blogs, published under pseudonyms.

“When I want to share my thoughts here (on Facebook), I'll post the link to one of those blogs. As topics come to mind, I'll post the working titles of drafts in progress below. Should one of those pique your interest, you can let me know with a ‘Like’ (or not) -- on the specific title -- and I might devote more time & energy to it for earlier publication. Or I might not.”

Well, that didn't quite go according to plan back then.  So, on December 24, 2016, I created my “Eye of Mike” group on Facebook.  I’ve described it as “a one-way portal (i.e., links only) to my writings elsewhere (blogs, Twitter, etc.).”  But it’s been pretty much dormant ever since.

Well, the time has finally come to change that.  Henceforth, less verbiage on Facebook.

Remember: Copyright © 2020-08-13, Mike Kruchoski, All Rights Reserved.