Humdrum Places - BlogFlock

Chicago Blackhawks are No. 1 in Scott Wheeler’s 2026 NHL prospect pool rankings - The Independent Variable

2026-04-08T17:49:23.000Z

Could it be? Some actual good news for Chicago sports—even if it is just future potential that will probably be squandered away eventually anyway? Even better is this excludes the young established guys like Bedard, Nazar, and Levshunov.

Wednesday, April 8, 2026 - A Humdrum Life

2026-04-08T14:22:41.000Z

Struggling to get going this morning. Feel like I need a gallon of espresso right now.

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‘The Drama’ Is Now A24’s Third-Best Box-Office Opening - The Independent Variable

2026-04-07T23:50:39.000Z

vulture.com

Audiences said ‘I do’ to the rage-bait-y rom-com, making it A24’s third-highest-grossing opening to date.

I honestly did not see this coming, even with the high opinion and known quantity that Zendaya and Robert Pattinson are. The movie just didn't seem to really be connecting to its marketing. And while Dream Scenario was a fun movie, it wasn't superb, so we're not selling tickets based off the creator. It has to be a Zendaya thing, but it still surprises me a bit.

Don’t read the book before the movie - The Independent Variable

2026-04-07T23:03:42.000Z

chadcomello.com

When you save the book for after the movie, it’s like getting an extended director’s cut that includes so much more material, and lets you dive into that world even deeper with characters and details that weren’t captured on screen.

I thought I was going to strongly disagree with this, but after reading it and thinking about it more, it honestly makes sense. People who read the book are almost never happy with the movie because there's just so much context and depth in a book that you can't get in the movie. So if you go see the movie first, it'll be a fun romp and you'll enjoy it, and then if you really enjoyed it, you can read the book and get more context and likely enjoy it even more, rather than being disappointed with the movie after loving the book.

Seth MacFarlane to Adapt Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl for Peacock - The Independent Variable

2026-04-07T22:12:48.000Z

reactormag.com

Dinniman and MacFarlane will serve as executive producers on the project, with Chris Yost (Thor: Ragnarok, The Mandalorian, Cowboy Bebop) also on board as writer and executive producer.

I thought the first book was a fun romp, but I really hope MacFarlane has learned a little bit of restraint after The Orville so they don’t go overboard on this. DCC finds a sweet spot of sentimentality an over-the-top humor and I can see MacFarlane goes way overboard on both directions if he isn’t reined in.

Cubs’ Cade Horton will have elbow surgery, miss the rest of the season - The Independent Variable

2026-04-07T22:10:22.000Z

nytimes.com

After a brilliant rookie season during which he emerged as a key part of the Cubs’ rotation and posted a 2.67 ERA, Horton was viewed as a big piece for a team that has World Series aspirations.

Whelp… there goes our season. Stupid Pope putting a curse on us so his stupid White Sox don’t look like the mega dumpster fire they are over on the south side.

Brockmire (2017) - A Humdrum Life

2026-04-07T17:39:12.000Z

A fun, silly show, which is perfect for binging. Might be a bit too crass for some, but we blew through the first season.

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Tuesday, April 7, 2026 - A Humdrum Life

2026-04-07T17:02:00.000Z

Am I doing daily note posts on Pika now, following the giant footsteps of the one and only Mr. Jack Baty?!?! I’d do him the kindness of linking to his blog, but who on earth even knows where he’s doing his daily note posts these days???? 😝

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Bulls fire GM Marc Eversley, executive Artūras Karnišovas in front-office shakeup - The Independent Variable

2026-04-06T20:41:26.000Z

nytimes.com

The Bulls had made the playoffs just once since the two men took over the front office in 2020.

Even though the Bulls have been stuck in purgatory since this leadership team joined, I honestly didn't see this coming. The roster at the current moment in time is probably the worst it's been in a decade—which is a bummer—and the leadership team has definitely made some mistakes with draft picks and trades, but to start over fresh and get rid of the team who built the Denver Nuggets juggernaut feels risky, especially at a time when we're probably going to lose our head coach Billy Donovan to UNC.

It Is Time To Canonize A New Baseball Saint - The Independent Variable

2026-04-06T17:09:16.000Z

defector.com

The Marlins beat the Brewers 5-1. In all four situations where a player has hit for the Saint Cycle, their team has won the game. Sacrifice does not go unrewarded.

This is the kind of sports journalism we are looking for around here. Focus on the little things that really help teams win. Don't swing for the fences every time and strike out half the time. Smart sacrifices are all about winning games.

Self-Published Saturday: Jim Mahfood and Jesse Lonergan deliver alternate takes on bat-themed vigilantes - The Independent Variable

2026-04-06T17:08:22.000Z

comicsbeat.com

For this new edition of self-published Saturday, we take a look at two very different bat-evoking comics by Jim Mahfood and Jesse Lonergan.

Love us some Self-Published comics, and Jim Mahfood and Jesse Lonergan are two of the best artists doing it right now. They both deserve so much more recognition than they currently have. So if you aren't familiar with their work, go check them out. Raw, punk, fluid, and exceptional storytelling throughout their artwork.

Personal Encyclopedias - The Independent Variable

2026-04-06T17:06:54.000Z

whoami.wiki

This is when I realized I was no longer working on a family history project. What I had been building, page by page, was a personal encyclopedia. A structured, browsable, interconnected account of my life compiled from the data I already had lying around. I've been working on this as whoami.wiki. It uses MediaWiki as its foundation, which turns out to be a great fit because language models already understand Wikipedia conventions deeply from their training data. You bring your data exports, and agents draft the pages for you to review.

This is an incredible open source project that I love. I've always tried to dabble with tools like TiddlyWiki, Roam, and Obsidian to essentially build my own little personal wiki. This is a tool to help make that happen based off of data that already exists and working with Claude Code (or other AI tools). I wish there was a more user-friendly interface for it, but beggars can't be choosers, and this tool is incredibly cool. It's also really neat to read about how it came to be, this little personal encyclopedia.

The Big Lebowski (1998) - A Humdrum Life

2026-04-06T04:21:48.000Z

One of the greatest achievements in cinema.

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Weekend Edition Vol.093 - foofaraw

2026-04-05T22:36:40.000Z

I've been ignoring my duties a bit here as I've been building something new that's in a bit of a soft launch now. It's a suite of web apps I've developed partly to help me organize different things, partly as an experiment. I think they are pretty cool though and you can check 'em out here.

Mindlessly Massive March is officially over with the publication of Michael Allen Rose's Of Iron & Oatmeal. We are still putting the final touches on April's issue, but you can check out the first story that went live on Thursday from Lisa Taylor, The Retro Diner, now!

🥣 Of Iron & Oatmeal

Michael Allen Rose

foofarawfoofaraw

🎙️ Michael Allen Rose

An interview with the author of Of Iron & Oatmeal

An interview with the author of The Retro Diner

Foofaraw Press on Metalabel

Printed books and zines from the foofaraw digital zine

🎙️ Lisa Taylor - foofaraw

2026-04-03T18:00:59.000Z

Read Lisa's story, The Retro Diner, now!

What makes you hopeful these days?

The collective action of concerned citizens to address current issues is the only thing outside of my own circle of family and friends that is currently giving me hope.

Do you view this story as a one in the Groundhog Day family of stories?

No, I don’t think of it in that vein, but rather, in more of a dystopian fiction a la The Twilight Zone. I wrote it after I’d been reading Ray Bradbury’s, The Illustrated Man, and was in a bit of a funk. When I settled on the premise of the story, I remembered being profoundly struck by “The Monkey’s Paw,” and felt that Harriet would have to take that into consideration. I re-read it myself, and was horrified anew.

Does Harriet realize she’s looping back or is it more of a fresh slate?

Harriet is a good person and is seriously trying to do the right thing, so I couldn’t be so cruel as to make her cognizant of the perpetual loop, however, she does have an unsettling feeling of deja vu.

Do you know what you’d wish for if given the opportunity to visit the seventh floor?

Nothing! The Monkey’s Paw still resonates, as does an excellent graphic novel called Shubeik Lubeik by Deena Mohamed set in a fictional Cairo, Egypt where wishes can be bought and sold.

Do you think having a single free wish like that would feel like a gift or a burden?

A burden, 100%!

Was there a particular reason you chose this particular setting and timeframe to set the story?

I wanted to place the story in a future that felt relatable—a world in which we’ve yet to conquer or even collectively grapple with the most basic questions of society — war, class, environment. I decided that if the women met at the Retro Diner, I would have a vehicle for making the world feel familiar. I wanted to impart a reminder that we continue to repeat past mistakes while learning little or nothing in the process.

How many times has this story been rejected by other markets?

I can honestly tell you that it was rejected only once. I try very hard to find a perfect home for each of my poems or stories. Sometimes, I will hold on to one for years until I find a likely place for it. I’m so glad that this one found a home with Foofaraw.

What’s a great short story you’ve read recently?

I enjoyed Lovers at the Museum by Isabel Allende, but I hesitate to recommend it because it’s an Amazon exclusive. I reviewed it for a magazine, but otherwise would have passed it up because of its Amazon affiliation. Pity. I read many online, too, but don’t have a particular one in mind.

What book are you reading right now?

I am currently reading Evelyn in Transit by David Guterson. I review at least two books per month for Kirkus, so some are not of my choosing, but this one I am reading for pleasure and enjoying it. My favorite recent book read for pleasure is I Cheerfully Refuse. Seldom does one find a hopeful dystopian future. I highly recommended it—the book, not the dystopian future.

Thanks to Lisa for chatting about hope and burdens with us on this lovely Friday evening!

🍽️ The Retro Diner - foofaraw

2026-04-03T05:22:46.000Z

Harriet entered the building through the main lobby doors and checked her watch. Satisfied, she bypassed the elevators, and walked purposefully to the stairwell. The stairs would take longer, but she savored the anticipation. She clutched a tiny foil wrapper in her hand, and for the first time in months, Harriet felt hopeful.

A week ago, Harriet had been having lunch at a popular café with friends. The weekly lunch date was important to her well-being. Since the war had started, she was trying hard to maintain some semblance of normalcy in her life. Lunch at the Retro Diner was always a highlight of her week. The server approached their table. “Separate checks, right?” he asked.

“Yup, same as usual,” she answered. A few minutes later, he returned and placed their checks in a pile with four foil-wrapped candies on the table.

“Ooh, chocolates! That’s new!” said Esther, reaching for one and popping it into her mouth. She glanced at the writing on the wrapper and smoothed it out on the table. “Laugh heartily once a day. It’s food for the soul,” she read aloud. “Ha! That’s rich! As if there were anything worth laughing about lately.”

“Mine says Good health comes of good habits,” said Susan. “Tell that to everyone who died in that last pandemic. Good habits didn’t help them.” She glanced over at Harriet, who seemed oddly distracted.

“A polka-dotted umbrella will make you happy,” read Linda. “Well, that’s kind of true. What’s yours say, Harriet? Harriet? Are you even listening?” Harriet looked down at the wrapper in her hand.

“Redeem your free wish at 2:00 PM this Friday on the seventh floor,” Harriet answered slowly.

“Really? That’s what yours says? That’s oddly specific,” said Esther.

“Let me see that,” Susan said, taking the foil wrapper from Harriet’s hand. “Huh. It looks just like the rest of ours. The font is the same and everything. So weird,” she said. “Well,” she added more brightly, “what would you wish for if you could wish for anything, Harriet?”

“I, uh, I’m not sure. There’s so much wrong in the world right now. Where to start?” answered Harriet.

“Well, I’d wish for world peace,” Linda declared.

“How would that even work?” Susan asked. “If we had world peace, what would happen to people in occupied countries? Is each country stuck in its current situation? What about disputed borders and all that?”

“OK, well, these constant storms are becoming unbearable. How about a climate reset to the year 2050? Wouldn’t that be great?” asked Linda.

“I don’t know, Linda,” Harriet answered. “It sounds good, but I doubt that a wish could reverse what’s already happened. You can’t change history. How about… eternal happiness?”

“No, that’s no good,” said Susan. “It’s sorrow and adversity that makes us appreciate happiness; if you were always happy, it wouldn’t be special. No, there has to be a better wish…”

“Money!” said Linda. “That’s what I’d wish for. I’m drowning in student loans.”

“You know what they say,” Esther offered, “money can’t buy happiness. Rich people are just as miserable as the rest of us. And besides, didn’t you ever read that famous horror story, ‘The Monkey’s Paw’? That guy wished for money, and it cost him his son!” They continued in this way for a few more minutes as they paid their bills and walked outside.

“So, Harriet, are you coming back here at 2:00 PM on Friday to redeem your free wish?” Susan asked with a smile.

“I wish—pun intended,” Harriet answered, “but I’ll be at work. Sorry, friends, I’ll have to miss my chance to bestow global nirvana, or whatever. Ha ha!” The friends chuckled and went their separate ways.

Artwork by Tony Tran

She had laughed it off for her friends, but for the rest of the week, Harriet kept thinking about wishes, and re-reading the candy wrapper. Redeem your free wish at 2:00 PM this Friday on the seventh floor. She thought back to old folk and fairy tales that she’d read. Wishes often went awry—even if you got what you wished for. She had read “The Monkey’s Paw” online earlier in the week. That was enough to scare anyone from wishing for personal gain; but surely there was a wish that wouldn’t be harmful. Harriet weighed the possibilities in her mind and thought about Friday. The building that housed the restaurant was close enough to work. She could take a late lunch break and go up to the seventh floor. What was up there? Just offices, she guessed. But—maybe the candy wrapper was some kind of restaurant promotion with a prize or something. Maybe the restaurant had a business office on the seventh floor, and they’d be waiting for her. It couldn’t hurt to look, she assured herself. She could go up to the seventh floor and look around. Later on, she’d tell her friends and they’d all have a good laugh. Harriet made up her mind to go.

On Friday at 1:45 PM, Harriet left work and walked down the block. She felt optimistic. She passed the restaurant entrance and entered through the building’s main lobby doors. She walked up the stairs and checked the time again. It was 1:57 PM. At precisely 1:59 PM, she pushed open the fire doors and stepped into the seventh-floor corridor.

Nothing. There was no sign, no greeting, no people. A quick glance at the directory on the wall told her the restaurant did not have an office here. Her optimism was replaced by a sense of foolishness. She had come this far, however, so she kept faith in the plan. At exactly 2:00 PM, she held out the tiny wrapper in both hands and declared aloud, “I wish that I will always have reason to hope.” The lights flickered for a second and Harriet felt dizzy. She looked around, distractedly, and blinked slowly.

“Redeem your free wish at 2:00 PM this Friday on the seventh floor,” Harriet answered slowly.

Lisa Taylor is a writer and academic librarian. Her poems and short stories have been published in a variety of print and online journals and anthologies, including publications of Third Estate Art, Moonstone Arts, The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature, MER Literary, and Black Hare Press. Lisa makes her home in Florida, the land of flowers, where it's harder to stop something from growing than to start it.

🎙️ Michael Allen Rose - foofaraw

2026-04-03T05:17:10.000Z

Read Michael's story, Of Iron & Oatmeal, now!

Do you view this story as a critique of military (and/or corporate) “brainwashing?”

There are certain themes I come back to again and again in my writing, and one of those is the abuse of power. You can bet that in just about any Michael Allen Rose story, eventually the “big bad guy” will be revealed, at least in part as Religion or Capitalism or the Corporation or the Government. One of those “big ol’ capital letter” systems that have bloated to the point where although they may be “run by” people, they no longer consider “people” a central concern. So yes, I think even when I’m being glib and funny in my genre fiction, whether it’s horror or sci-fi or bizarro or whatever, there’s always a layer of social satire underneath that screaming “don’t trust the system, it’s there to exploit you.” I think history will back me up on this.

Were you a military brat, by chance?

I came from a long line of military folks, but actually I was the one who broke the cycle. I was the first kid on my dad’s side of the family to go to college and get liberal arts degrees rather than dropping out of high school and joining the service. I saw what military service did to my dad, who ended up disabled and retired by the time I was three, and thought “Nope.” Growing up just down the road from an Air Force base though, certainly had an influence on me. I was surrounded by military brats all through my school years, and befriended several, so I was peripheral to the military in more than a few ways.

What are your feelings on oatmeal? And if you do like it, I’m curious why that was the food you chose for this specific story?

Sometimes, I’ll start a story with a title or a line, instead of a fully formed idea. In this case, it was the non-sequiter: “I’m not very happy about it, but I ate the oatmeal.” It’s a fun challenge, and I highly recommend it for other writers to try. Then, it sat there in a file all alone for several years, until eventually my brain started to mull over things like “Why is my character upset about eating the oatmeal? What does oatmeal mean to them? Were there raisins?” I worked at a call center for a summer back in high school, and hated it. Combined with my natural disgust for corporations and impersonal capitalist systems, the story slowly formed. For the record, I like oatmeal just fine. Most of my experience with it comes from making it for my girlfriend on the weekend (she likes how I make it. The secret is the milk to oats ratio.) Apple cranberry is my meal of choice.

What’s the worst job you’ve ever had?

I’ve had a variety of crap jobs. In my teen years, I worked as a housekeeper at a hospital, and at one point actually ended up cleaning the floors of the morgue, armed with only a floor buffer. I distinctly recall the sound of the bubbling machines that, I assume, kept bodies in good condition, while being the only person on that floor of the building. I also worked as a dishwasher at a country club, where even little kids had check books of their own. I worked at a pet store for a bit, where I got to scoop handfuls of liquid puppy poo out of cages filled with ill puppies. But believe it or not, my worst job was for a corporation (which shall not be named) just doing office work. The back-stabbing, the cruelty, the social climbing and politics, the mean spirited exhaustion of people, the byzantine paperwork, and the endless glare of the fluorescent lights slowly killing us? I cried on the way to work sometimes.

And do you think it made you as queasy and felt as soul-sucking as Robert’s new gig?

In an ideal world, most people would be able to pursue their passions,find meaningful work, and have enough resources to cover their basic needs no matter their employment status. I would imagine, if people were really honest, and you were able to take a poll of every person in the world that works, the majority would probably be generally unhappy with at least some - if not most - aspects of what they do. Especially those people who have no choice but to work in conscience-crushing, soul-sucking jobs they’re forced to pretend to care about. So, yeah, because the world we live in is so very far from ideal, I think most people have this experience at least once in their lives, if not many times. Except maybe billionaires, but… screw billionaires.

The ending is both pretty funny and revelatory—we don’t know what this thing is, where it comes from, but if we can harness its power for our benefit while “the people” bear the “costs,” we are more than happy to be complicit… I guess that’s a long way to tie this back to the current moment we seem to be living through and ask if that rings true to you as well?

Oh absolutely. It’s easy to forget that a lot of genre fiction writers, especially in sci-fi and horror, aren’t really writing about the future. They’re simply looking at the present and extrapolating what they see, taking it to an extreme, and writing a world that’s only a couple of tiny changes away from our own. We are living in a time that’s hotly politicized, with every aspect of our lives being scrutinized, criticized, and used as fuel for straw-men created by those who don’t agree with us so they can justify harm. But even with that tension, most people are happy to sit behind their keyboard, spread conjecture and insults, and not actually seek out verified information or build connections. Or worse yet, listen to “an authority” that definitely doesn’t care about them or have any of their interests at heart. They are, as you say, complicit in their own subjugation. Most people don’t like to consider consequences, or think long-term. It’s inconvenient and unpleasant.

How many times has this story been rejected?

I think the story was rejected around 6 to 8 times from various publications? Interestingly, the first time it got somewhere was in 2024 when it was picked up as a translation for an anthology released by South America’s Vestigio Press called Brecha II: AntologÍa de Literatura ExtraÑa. It was my first foreign language publication. I wish I could read it, but sadly my public school education failed me, and I can’t read Spanish well enough to enjoy it! It was “kept for further consideration” once or twice, but until now, has not seen publication in English. I’m happy that Foofaraw enjoyed it enough to unleash it on the masses!

What’s a great short story you’ve read recently?

This is cheating a little bit, because it’s a story in one of the anthologies my own small press RoShamBo Publishing put out, but John Bruni wrote a wonderful story called Family Tradition for our Stories From The Motel Sick anthology. A man checks into our metaphysical motel to commit suicide, and ends up having a long, dark night of the soul in which he meets the ghosts of his father and his past and breaks a long cycle of violence and mental illness. It’s hard to explain further without spoiling it, but for me publishing it was a no-brainer.

What book are you reading right now?

I’m currently in the middle of a true crime book about the murder of Emmett Till called The Barn: The Secret History of a Murder in Mississippi by Wright Thompson. It’s pretty intense, as you’d imagine. And I just finished an amazing book called Mother-Eating by Jess Hagemann that’s a horror-tinged retelling of the story of Marie Antionette’s reign through the lens of a woman who sells her daughter to a Texas death cult for fame and fortune. In lighter moments, I’ve been absolutely obsessed with Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl series!

I have a Patreon where I release a new zine or chapbook just about every month, so if people like weird, limited edition, hand-mailed stories, plays, and other oddities, that’s a good place to get more of me! You can find that, and all sorts of other things at my link tree: http://linktr.ee/michaelallenrose

Also, Bizarro Con is coming up, which is something I’ve been involved with for years, and is the place I met many of my best friends in writing. Portland, Oregon, May 14-16 2026! If you’re a weirdo and haven’t found a place your imagination fits in yet, you should check it out. www.bizarrocon.com

Be kind to each other. Please. Help each other out. A rising tide raises all ships.

Thanks to Michael for taking the time to talk oatmeal, terrible jobs, and brainwashing on this lovely afternoon!

Shrinking (2026) - A Humdrum Life

2026-04-02T05:47:42.000Z

Some of the emotional beats still work for me, others fell flat, and others just seemed to vanish. Still a fun hang with delightful characters.

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Shrinking (2026) - A Humdrum Life

2026-04-02T05:47:30.000Z

Some of the emotional beats still work for me, others fell flat, and others just seemed to vanish. Still a fun hang with delightful characters.

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Shrinking (2026) - A Humdrum Life

2026-04-02T04:03:42.000Z

Some of the emotional beats still work for me, others fell flat, and others just seemed to vanish. Still a fun hang with delightful characters.

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Humdrum Places - BlogFlock

Chicago Blackhawks are No. 1 in Scott Wheeler’s 2026 NHL prospect pool rankings - The Independent Variable

Wednesday, April 8, 2026 - A Humdrum Life

‘The Drama’ Is Now A24’s Third-Best Box-Office Opening - The Independent Variable

Don’t read the book before the movie - The Independent Variable

Seth MacFarlane to Adapt Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl for Peacock - The Independent Variable

Cubs’ Cade Horton will have elbow surgery, miss the rest of the season - The Independent Variable

Brockmire (2017) - A Humdrum Life

Tuesday, April 7, 2026 - A Humdrum Life

Bulls fire GM Marc Eversley, executive Artūras Karnišovas in front-office shakeup - The Independent Variable

It Is Time To Canonize A New Baseball Saint - The Independent Variable

Self-Published Saturday: Jim Mahfood and Jesse Lonergan deliver alternate takes on bat-themed vigilantes - The Independent Variable

Personal Encyclopedias - The Independent Variable

The Big Lebowski (1998) - A Humdrum Life

Weekend Edition Vol.093 - foofaraw

🎙️ Lisa Taylor - foofaraw

What makes you hopeful these days?

Do you view this story as a one in the Groundhog Day family of stories?

Does Harriet realize she’s looping back or is it more of a fresh slate?

Do you know what you’d wish for if given the opportunity to visit the seventh floor?

Do you think having a single free wish like that would feel like a gift or a burden?

Was there a particular reason you chose this particular setting and timeframe to set the story?

How many times has this story been rejected by other markets?

What’s a great short story you’ve read recently?

What book are you reading right now?

Thanks to Lisa for chatting about hope and burdens with us on this lovely Friday evening!

🍽️ The Retro Diner - foofaraw

🎙️ Michael Allen Rose - foofaraw

Do you view this story as a critique of military (and/or corporate) “brainwashing?”

Were you a military brat, by chance?

What are your feelings on oatmeal? And if you do like it, I’m curious why that was the food you chose for this specific story?

What’s the worst job you’ve ever had?

And do you think it made you as queasy and felt as soul-sucking as Robert’s new gig?

How many times has this story been rejected?

What’s a great short story you’ve read recently?

What book are you reading right now?

Do you have anything else you’d like to share?

Thanks to Michael for taking the time to talk oatmeal, terrible jobs, and brainwashing on this lovely afternoon!

Shrinking (2026) - A Humdrum Life

Shrinking (2026) - A Humdrum Life

Shrinking (2026) - A Humdrum Life