March 10, 2019 8:39 pmPublished by John Montesi
Through the eroding power of time and numbing experiences, these days the inputs have to be somewhat stronger to come through. Connections corrode with time and rust is simply a protective shell for the fresh parts beneath it.
January 15, 2018 1:54 pmPublished by admin
We gradually fade from sharp-toothed puppy to hyperactive youngin’ to sleeping eighteen hours a day, and as is the nature of existing, we only really notice our most current state of being. A senior dog fades into the background and then occasionally surprises us with a half snarl or a flash of the spunk that used to wear us down through sheer quantity of energy. An old friend falls through the cracks as we see enough glimpses of them looking happy on the internet that we forget to check in and actually talk. The best moments of our life slowly fade into the shadows until we neither remember nor forget them; they are simply there until a tragedy brings them into high relief and we remember them wistfully.
October 24, 2017 11:50 amPublished by John Montesi
If there is one quality that I’ve been told I possess which I’m finally starting to truly believe, it’s that I still get as excited as a child about lizards and automobiles and carnivorous plants and, as it turns out, muskoxen. I think this is my number one greatest survival skill, because it gives me the upper hand over any number of existential crises, chemical imbalances, and structural damages that may otherwise rob me of much desire to proceed.
October 11, 2017 2:58 pmPublished by John Montesi
I stood there in a long sleeve T-shirt and blue jeans, exposed in all the most vulnerable ways to the elements, and felt a certain type of ridiculous freedom that men often chase their entire lives. One would never explicitly state that they aspire to something as trite as peeing atop Atiguin Pass, but that may be part of the problem.
July 29, 2017 3:43 pmPublished by John Montesi
This was a literal crossroads that felt aggressively metaphorical. I wanted to curse the very road junction itself for pointing in all directions and inviting us to follow them wherever they may lead...
July 5, 2017 3:44 pmPublished by John Montesi
“The middle of nowhere” is a loaded idiom. It’s a vague-yet-precise phrase that invokes a certain situation or location, and which could be positive or negative depending on who says it. It offers up visions of amber waves and orange plateaus, of abandoned filling stations and faded glimpses of the past’s future. It is a place devoid of the decades of social construction required to populate a city with its traps and trappings.
May 17, 2017 11:24 amPublished by John Montesi
I recently became aware of the improbable story of Amanda Coker. It is noteworthy in several ways. Firstly, she just... View Article
April 18, 2017 1:56 pmPublished by John Montesi
I shirk at the word escapism, though my counselor has encouraged me increasingly not to attach pejorative connotations to things... View Article
April 12, 2017 12:35 amPublished by John Montesi
How would you like to feel 10% less like spontaneously weeping and 90% less passionate about everything from the sound of music to laughing at jokes to your dog’s wellbeing?
April 4, 2017 12:19 pmPublished by John Montesi
This moment turned out to be a subtle turning point in the narrative. Since picking up the Land Cruiser and having a hilarious Saint Paddy’s Day that was blessedly free of self-awareness sabotaging my enjoyment, I now presented the trip as not just a salve for the pained brain clanging around in my head but also as a concerted effort to rediscover the simple joys that make me who I am and thusly make me worth spending any time around.
March 27, 2017 1:32 pmPublished by John Montesi
Signs stood in the trees warning hunters not to hunt in this area. We were quite near a State Game Land, of which Pennsylvania has many, and I suppose if you spent enough time in the woods and chased a deer far enough, you could wind up here. Of course, if you missed, your rifle shot might go through one of the remaining houses in Centralia. Or its sharp crack may just be the straw that breaks the asphalt’s back and sends you or the deer into a deep, hot hole.
March 22, 2017 11:11 amPublished by John Montesi
Arriving in a new city by night is always a confusing experience, made all the more surreal by the biting cold and sound-deadening snow that blanketed the town on Saint Patrick’s Friday. Aside from brief breaks for fuel and key exchanges, I’d last stood on solid ground in Manhattan, which made this quietude a special blessing and also a shock to an addled system.
March 6, 2017 5:52 pmPublished by John Montesi
Nothing will snap me out of my hypnogogic trance faster than someone telling me that I have more interests or dreams than they do. I will fiercely accost a perfect stranger because I believe so firmly in the human imagination and the childlike whimsy that resides somewhere inside every one of us.
January 8, 2017 1:58 pmPublished by John Montesi
From Raleigh, heading North made for quicker progress across state lines. I made plans to move beyond the comfortable confines... View Article
January 7, 2017 12:47 amPublished by John Montesi
Words lingered in the air like the sparks that danced above the crackling fire. Not a word was spoken about the cars that had brought us all together.
December 20, 2016 11:43 amPublished by John Montesi
It appears that somehow my piece on Petrolicious is climbing its way back into the ranks of the ‘most popular’... View Article
December 9, 2016 1:23 pmPublished by John Montesi
People are fickle enough on a good day. Even at our best, there are plenty of small things that can... View Article
December 1, 2016 2:56 pmPublished by John Montesi
Something I find myself contemplating a lot lately is the slow and simple pursuit of joy across disciplines and slices... View Article
October 17, 2016 11:14 amPublished by John Montesi
The vulnerability offered up and time taken to compliment a laugh or share some commonality in written words is a beautiful thing, and every bit of it makes me want to pour myself into my writing and the people I meet a trillion times more.
October 4, 2016 10:27 amPublished by John Montesi
Many of us remember being told as children to never trust strangers, or at least to never accept candy from them or get into their cars. I’ve long since broken all of those rules.
July 28, 2016 10:42 amPublished by John Montesi
Getting nearly killed by a car, or anything else for that matter, can be a magnificent blessing in disguise. It... View Article