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I got distracted and lost my chain of thought. Which is fitting. I was thinking about paradoxes… and somehow got derailed by one. I was about to create a list about things that are paradoxical, ironically ironic, awkwardly unawkward. And… more ›
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Sometimes the quietest conversations are the ones we have with ourselves.They come in fragments—moments of memory, glimpses of people we’ve loved, the echo of a voice we thought we’d lost. This is one of those conversations. It started with a… more ›
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Back in the day, a bicycle was freedom. It was far more than a way to get from here to there. We treated our wheels the same way our dads and big brothers treated theirs. Well… at least I did.… more ›
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Sitting with myself this morning, coffee in hand, I asked, “Why do you create?” …and the reflection in the mug stared back, quiet, like it already knew the answer before I did. “Why do you create?” I asked again, slower… more ›
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Messaging on multiple platforms… something a little different on each… but somehow threaded together. An interesting way to connect. It’s fascinating—and honestly, pretty human. Different platforms invite different versions of us. A text might be quick and practical. A voice… more ›
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This comes not as a confession, but as a quiet observation—drawn from conversations with those who have known loss, who have carried grief quietly and persistently. Grief is both deeply personal and inherently human, connecting us even as we navigate… more ›
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There are things that will make you angry. You’re human. It’s inevitable. Something, somewhere, sometime is going to piss you off. It’s going to happen. What really matters is how you respond. I was faced with that today. Let me… more ›
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Life seems to follow its own quiet algorithm. The humans in our lives are much the same. The ebb and flow of everyday living moves so naturally that we rarely notice the subtle shifts—the people and places that slowly drift… more ›
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Being a teacher comes with certain perks. Among the best of them are the relationships you build with your students. Getting to know those little humans in progress can be a real blessing. Sure, some of them behave like crazed… more ›
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There’s an unwritten law about backyard grilling that no one ever explains, but everyone somehow understands: the beer bottles will eventually line up. It starts innocently enough. A man steps outside with purpose. He’s carrying tongs like a surgeon carries… more ›
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Music. For most, it is simply entertainment. For some, it fills the silence. For others, it is just noise, or a distraction from what weighs on the mind. But for a smaller number, music is more—it is healing, it is… more ›
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When I was a kid growing up, like any other kid, I had dreams about what I wanted to be when I grew up. A writer wasn’t one of them. It wasn’t even on the radar. Not even in the… more ›
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I understand referrals. I really do. Anyone who has spent more than ten minutes in a classroom understands that sometimes a line gets crossed. A kid pushes too far, the lesson derails, and documentation becomes necessary. There are days when… more ›
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I was contemplating something the other day. It came out of a very brief conversation with someone. Another writer. Just two sentences, really. Not much on the surface, but it was an exchange. More than just a quick chat. And… more ›
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Kids have a natural talent for doing risky things. Sometimes those things are brilliant.Sometimes they’re creative.Sometimes they’re hilarious. …and sometimes they are just plain stupid. Me? I had a special knack for doing things that somehow managed to be all… more ›
Mariano Velez
INKBLOTZ 