Personal Essays

Growing up Jehovah’s Witness and Dutch Reformed

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I lived in fear of the idea that if I didn’t abide by both customs I’d be disowned as a young adult from one of the lives that was defined by them. This tension defined how I grappled with the Christian faith, not in terms of understanding scripture, but rather in the spiritual connection I have with God.

From Preachy
On July 26, 2021
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The Last Dirty Picture Show

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A love letter to the Tiki Adult Theater: "When it’s gone, where will all these lost souls go?" While Los Angeles used to be a hot spot for smut shacks, the Tiki is now the last show in town — the Studs, née Pussycat, Theater down Santa Monica Boulevard was, for years, the only other holdout, but no longer plays skin flicks. The Tiki, however, continues, in spite of it all, to screen three “very recent” ones on an endless loop, operating 24 hours a day. Time is purchased in four, eight, and 12-hour blocks; bottles of poppers, the only concessions, are sold at the box office for $20.

From Popula
On July 5, 2021
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A Walk Down the Towpath: What Actually Happens?

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Like lots of other things in Central New York, and like a lot of “nature” itself, the trail is something repurposed, turned beautiful long after it stopped being useful to humans. Back in the day, people walked their mules parallel to the water here, and the mules pulled floating goods along that needed transporting.

From Popula
On May 31, 2021