Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Hi there from Scars Publications (this letter is being sent from a bulk email address and all replies should NOT go to the Gmail address but to any scars. tv email address) – we wanted to let you know that Scars Publications released a 2021 annual collection book of select poetry, flash fiction, prose, & art from 2021 issues of cc&d magazine and Down in the Dirt magazine. Since your material was chosen from the past year of accepted materials for inclusion in this annual collection book anthology, we wanted to let you know about this brand new annual collection book, titled “Regarding Utopia”!
Links to see all of chosen writers and artists (and the titles of their work) in “Regarding Utopia”: http://scars.tv/2021collection/Regarding_Utopia.htm
This is where you can also find out what material of yours appears in this annual collection book.
Enjoy the 2021 poetry, flash fiction, prose (and don’t forget the artwork) anthology with a 2021 Editor’s Choice contest winner from Scars Publications, titled “Regarding Utopia” of select poetry, flash fiction, prose & art in this one-of-a-kind annual 2021 anthology collection book, which contains select accepted writings chosen from 2021 issues of both cc&d magazines and Down in the Dirt magazine…
To know exactly what is included in this collection book, view the listing below… If your writing or artwork appears in this collection book (or if you know someone with the material in this book, or if you just want to pick up a great book to read), order a copy of “Regarding Utopia” today!
And HEY! Any video recorded readings of material included in this date book are also listed here, so check out the video links here as well…
To know exactly what is included in this collection book, view the listing below… If your writing or artwork appears in this collection book (or if you know someone with material in this book, or if you just want to pick up a great book to read), order a copy of “Regarding Utopia” today!
My poem 5-7-7 Love Poem
This writing was accepted
for publication in the
108 page perfect-bound ISSN# /
ISBN# issue/book “Prayers and Bullets” Down in the Dirt, v181
(the March 2021 Issue)
Order the paperback book:
Missing you missing me
Dreaming about you, do you dream the same
Will love you until end of time; will you remember me then?
the End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
81 Words published
81 words has published my short story,
“Dream Girl”
You are receiving this email because you have had one of your stories published via the 81 Words Writing Challenge run on my website.
We have now confirmed the official publication date for the 81 Words Flash Fiction Anthology. It will be published on Saturday 20th November 2021.
The printed version of the book is available for pre-order from Victorina Press. It will also be available globally from Amazon by the release date. Victorina Press will be registering the book with the Nielson database, meaning it will be available from Waterstones and many other book retailers over time. Please note that this may not be in place by the release date as it can take a while to go through their system.
With your help, we could make the 81 Words Flash Fiction Anthology an Amazon bestseller. Please visit the page, read it carefully and follow the plan on launch day – you’ll help us sell more books, gain readers for your stories and generate money for charity 🙂
The launch party will take place on Saturday 15th January 2022 online, via Zoom, at 7pm GMT. It will be held in conjunction with Talking Tales, an established storytelling event. There will be many readings from the book, plus readings by other writers via Talking Tales. You are welcome to read your 81 word story at the event, or just come along and listen if you prefer. If you’d like to attend, please reply to this email.
I will be sending another email to everyone specifically about the launch party nearer the time. I will also set up a Facebook event for the launch.
In case anyone missed my previous emails, sent in January and June 2021, here is a recap: We received our 1,000th story on 17th January 2021 and are now preparing to publish the unofficial world record breaking anthology. Proceeds from book sales will support The Arkbound Foundation, a charity in the UK that aims to widen access to literature and improve diversity within publishing. The book is being published by Victorina Press, an independent UK publisher who follow the principles of bibliodiversity.
A note re communication. All the other writing challenge books I’ve published have 100 authors in them. I would usually just send updates via BCC (blind carbon copy) from Outlook. Because this project requires 1,000 people to be contacted, I have set up an email list in Mailchimp for communication – it’s the only safe way I can send that many emails at once. So, you are on an email list but it will ONLY be used for updates about the 81 Words project. This should result in around 5 or 6 emails that communicate release dates, where you can find the book, details of the launch party etc. Once the book is launched and we’ve undertaken the launch party, the list will be permanently deleted and you will not be contacted again.
If you have any questions, please reply to this email.
Cheers, Chris
==============================================
You are receiving this email because you have had one of your stories published via the 81 Word Writing Challenge run on Chris Fielden’s website. The challenge has been running since April 2017. We received our 1,000th story recently and are now preparing to publish an unofficial world record breaking anthology. You can find all the details here: https://www.christopherfielden.com/writing-challenges/81words.php
Our mailing address is: www.christopherfielden.com
16a Beach Road West
Portishead
Bristol, Bristol BS20 7HR
United Kingdom
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
I suffer from poet envy. I can’t ever get past thinking that roses are red, and then I get stuck.
One person that I’ve always admired is John “Jake” Cosmos Aller. His poetry seems to reflect many thoughts I’ve had about life, love, loss, and loneliness.
Touched by Jake’s Words
We know that any writer who touches us stays with us, and with each subsequent Poetry Break or fiction submission for the Best 1000 words for an Image Prompt, he hasn’t disappointed me.
“Sam, how are you doing? An old friend of mine, I am delighted that I can speak with you.”
Sam looked around and could not find out where the voice was coming from but realized that the bench had spoken to him. Sam laughed and said, “Well, bench, if you can speak, tell me what you know.”
The bench spoke of Sam’s life and of the lives of others in the community that Sam knew. The bench said he knew everything that occurred in the lives of the people that sat down to rest, reflect, or remember.
And the trees knew, too, as did the cosmic cat and even the squirrels. But people, well, they just did not know how to listen to nature and the world around them. In a way, it was too bad because the bench had so much wisdom to implant.
I See His Poetry
When I started at Two Drops of Ink in 2014, I claimed the job of finding images for posts. Scott Biddulph was a great editor, but his choice of images sometimes seemed lackluster. Don’t worry, we had that conversation, so I’m not talking behind his back. His response was, “I don’t have an artistic talent; you do.”
So I scoured every known site and found Pixabay and Unsplash. If you need images for your blog, these are two free-to-use sites that never disappoint me.
I loved the job then and still do. Some of Jake’s poetry has been especially fun to the image. It might just be me, but if you squint, I think you can see a little of Jake in the image for Just An Unhinged Lunatic Howling At The Moon
And finally, I had to say something
So I gathered up my manly courage
And walked up to her
And she looked at me
And instantly bewitched my soul
With a devilish grin
I lost all reason
And became a raving lunatic
Just an unhinged lunatic
Howling at the moon
Switching Gears
From a female perspective, we sometimes wish we had that kind of influence on a man. But then, Jake switches things up for us in Howling at the Moon. Our love-struck man transforms under the effects of the moon:
Excerpt:
Beneath the lunatic rays
Of the blood-red full moon
The lunatic lights of the moon
Casts a wild primeval glow
On me
The hormonal chemicals are unleashed
The wild beast within
Escapes it chain
And I howl with delight
A werewolf
Free at last
Understanding His Characters
The other thing I like about Jake’s poetry is that he writes about subjects I know, if not first hand, then in the retelling by countless men and women I’ve worked with for 30 years. Addiction either robs us, or we give it away, all the things that some people take for granted – a job, home, children, car, or food on the table.
Some of the characters in his poetry are downtrodden, not necessarily from addiction, but the sentiments and experiences of his character in Just Enough for Coffee sound hauntingly familiar.
Alzheimer’s, homelessness, and out-of-work are subjects that most people wouldn’t tackle in poetry, yet Jake does so admirably.
Excerpt:
The homeless man
Had been on the streets
For too long
Barely remembered his life
Before early-onset Alzheimer’s
Robbed him of his job
His dignity
His wife
His life
His money
Now he drifted
Waiting for the grim reaper
To call him home
Any day now
He prayed nightly
To a god
That he no longer believed in
Lonely and Laudable Words
Jake delves into loneliness with wonderful mind/word images in many of his poems. Here are some that express the despair of all humans cut off from contact, friendship, and love in Reflections and One Crazy Day.
Excerpt:
One dismal night
One lousy, lonely, loathsome demented night
In a godforsaken bar
In the global south
In a tropical hell hole
Drinking my way to hell
As fast as I could
Drinking alone with my buddies
Jack Daniels, Jimmy Walker
Wild Turkey and Old Grandad
Excerpt:
I looked up
Looked out at the window
At the full moon
Saw by its lunatic light
Your face
Was on the moon
And I looked up
At the light
That crazy light
And dreamed
I was with you
Again
And I woke up
Again
And I woke up
Alone in my bed
Climate Change in Poetry?
I am so impressed with Jake’s ability to take a hot topic and turn it into poetry. Ten Years After Climate Change Collapse envisions the collapsed world through a poet’s eyes. Excerpt:
Sam Adams carried heat
To protect himself
Against the wild animals.
The lions, tigers, coyotes, wolves,
And their running feral dog gangs,
Who prowled the city streets
Preying on deer, feral cows,
feral cats and pigs
Who grazed among the ruins.
And the two-legged neo-savage gangs,
And what was left of the city police
Interchangeable with the gangsters,
Battled it out for control.
The second poem in that group sizes up the situation from the Lion King’s perspective. We’ve spent years killing animals and they finally decide that enough is enough.
Excerpt:
lion
The lion king,
Addresses the animal parliament
The question before them
Was simple.
Will humans have to die,
To atone for their sins,
In almost destroying the world.
Through pollution, mismanagement of resources
Subsequent climate change,
Fueled by greed and corruption?
Are all humans guilty as charged
Will they all have to die?
Positive Poetry from Jake Aller
Before you think that all of Jake’s poetry is maudlin and melancholy, there’s a humorous and positive side to many of his poems, too. Dora, The Intergalactic Explorer, and Dragonfly in My Mind are two that show his playful, positive side.
Excerpt:
dora
Dora, the intergalactic explorer
Is traveling to the strangest planet
of all the known worlds
she is traveling incognito
with a video crew
making a documentary
the planet earth
is known as a planet
of intelligent monkeys
Excerpt:
Oh, difficult, negative thoughts
Be gone
Like the bugs
You are
I’ll squash you like
The evil creatures
You are
The sweet music
Invades my soul
Driving away
The evil bugs
And I soar
Like the majestic
Dragonfly
Far above
The chaos below
Piqued Your Interest in Jake’s Poetry?
I hope I’ve gotten your attention and that you read Jake’s posts here at Two Drops of Ink. Here’s four more for your enjoyment:
I wonder if Jake could help me with my roses are red? Oh, sorry, I digress. But I just know that with the imagination Jake has, he could do something magical. I might just ask him.
Bio: John “Jake” Cosmos Aller
John “Jake” Cosmos Aller is a novelist, poet, and former Foreign Service officer, having served 27 years with the U.S. State Department. He toured in ten countries – Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Korea, India, St Kitts, St Lucia, St Vincent, Spain, and Thailand, and traveled to 45 countries during his career.
Jake has been an aspiring novelist for several years. He is pursuing publication on:
He has been writing poetry all his life and has published his poetry in electronic poetry forums, including All Poetry, Moon Café, and Duane’s Poetree and literary magazines.
He is looking forward to transitioning to his third career – full-time novelist and poet after completing his second career as a Foreign Service officer and his first career as an educator overseas for six years upon completing his Peace Corps service in South Korea.
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
The Poet Publishes Wild Thing
The Poet has published an Adversity Anthology featuring two of my poems. “Wild Things”, and “Wild Things Run Amuck”. You can find them on page 33-35 in volume Two. This is the third time I have been published in The Poet’s anthologies and I will submit again on the theme of cultural identity. To my writer friends, this is a great publication, they do quality work but unfortunately no payment yet.
To order a copy from Amazon.co.uk click on the button below. Alternatively, search ASIN: B09JJ7FQ6S in your own country’s Amazon store.
Wild Things Run Amuck
Wild Things
A Poet Contemplating the End of Times
Computer plots against me
the Democratic Party Needs a Lion Tamer
more monster images for poem jpg
Wild Things Run Amuck
4 am
O dark hundred
Bewitching hour
Time for wild things.
To escape
From their prisons
Deep in the mind
Of the sleeping man.
They escape
Hideous demons
Ghouls, goblins, monsters
Escaped banshees.
The wild things
Sniff the air
Saying it was time
For some wilding.
The wild things
Jump out the window
And run amuck
Spreading chaos
in their wake.
Killing everyone they see
Raping women and children,
Vandalizing buildings,
Yelling screaming.
As the wild things
Run amuck
Led by a half man half horse
Centaur like creature
With a Putin like mask
And the voice of Donald Trump
The wild things run amuck
All over the town
Spreading chaos
Until the dawning sun,
Turns them back
Into vampire like creatures.
And werewolves
Howling at the full moon.
The wild things
Come back
And enter their prison
Deep in the sleeper’s head
.And the wild things
Fade into a nightmarish image
As the sleeping man
Awakes recalling the dream,
And the night of terror
When the wild things
Came out to play
At o dark hundred.
Wild Things
Wild things come out to play
Intending to unleash chaos
Leaving their prisons
Deep inside the mind.
The wild things
Have come out to run amok
In the light of the full moon.
Nightmarishly real foul creatures
Great demons, werewolves, goblins,
Monsters, hell hounds,
Escaped banshees
Straight out of hell
Howling at the lunatic light
Of the full moon.
A Poet Contemplating the End of Times (submited but not published.)
I often think
that my computer
hates me
and is plotting against me.
for example
often
the computer dies
killing my data
and giving me the proverbial finger.
other times it takes forever
to open a simple word document
multiple copies
all with nonresponse errors.
and excel
well don’t get me started
one day
for some reason,
Excel refused to accept
anything imported
from outside Excel.
gave me a very helpful error message
ran out of fonts
okay?
and you click Okay
five to 500 times (a record I counted)
until finally, it cleared
but you lost
any data you might have had.
I have pretty much given up
on Microsoft
I sent them a goodbye letter.
but they of course
true to form
never acknowledge it.
and so they are doomed
to become the latest
corporate dinosaur.
like Block Buster
or Sears Roebuck.
the Democratic Party Needs a Lion Tamer
(submited but not published.)
joe biden
the democratic elders
sitting around
the proverbial non-smoked filled room
contemplating the state of play
looking at the candidates
that are still at play
realizing that none of them
are the lion tamer
that the times need
to take on the President
the President is the ultimate
disrupter of the status quo
the ultimate change agent
the master of destruction
who has the pulse
of the public
the democrats need to find
a progressive champion
a real new deal
who can become
their lion tamer
and put the beast
that is Trump
back in his dark cage
the hour is getting late
as the nation contemplates their fate
will the democrats step up to the plate
and stop the lion in his place
Are we all doomed
to watch the end of America
from our television screens
as the beast emerges
triumphant and real
calling forth the trumpeters
and their dark allies
in the alt-right.
OUR NEXT THEME
One question we always ask our poets is; do your culture and heritage influence your writing? And so, for our next collection, the theme is Cultural Identity. Click on the link for further details:
They publish four anthologies a year. I have been in three out of the recent four ( and due to the technical glitch mentioned above should have been in a fourth one).
Contribute to our anthologies
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Our next anthology’s theme: CULTURAL IDENTITY
Deadline Jan 31st, 2022
One question we always ask our poets is; does your culture and heritage influence your writing?
Another challenging subject for our next collection; Cultural Identity is a part of a person’s identity, or their self-conception and self-perception, and is related to nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality or any kind of social group that has its own distinct culture.
Use your skills as a poet to tell us about YOUR OWN particular cultural identity, heritage, nationality or social and ethnic background. What do you love about your culture? What aspects or features of your culture inspire you? How is your culture unique and fascinating, and how does it influence you to put words onto paper?
You can also submit poetry in your own language, but it MUST be accompanied by a translation into English.
Submission guidelines for CULTURAL IDENTITY
You can submit up to SIX pieces per themed anthology (but please do not submit more than six). Any style aside from continuous prose. No word count for poetry, but keep in mind the length if you would like more than one or two considered, as we can’t devote too many pages to just one poet.
Along with your submission/s, please also send:
1). A writers’ biography, in the THIRD PERSON, of between 150 and 500 words, INCLUDING your country of origin AND the city and country in which you currently reside, OR the city and state if in the USA, (however, we don’t need your actual mailing address, but our focus is to showcase the diversity of international poets contributing to our collections). Let us know if we can use your biography from a previous contribution.
2). Any contact and social media details you’d also like publishing e.g. website, Amazon author’s page, Facebook, Insta, Twitter, Blogs etc. (We will always add your email address for other editors/poets to connect with you – but please let us know if you don’t want this adding). For social media, please add your handle (for example.: FB @Robin.Barratt1), and not just your name, as sometimes it takes us ages to find the poet’s social media page!
General Guidelines
Please try to send all contributions together in a Word or Open Office.doc, AND/OR within the body of the email. Email your submission/s to: Robin@ThePoetMagazine.org with a COPY to RobinBarratt@hotmail.com (as sometimes emails go into spam folders and they can get missed). So we can identify your submission, please mark in the subject line the collection in which you are contributing to, e.g. CULTURAL IDENTITY. We have hundreds of emails every week, and sending everything together in one email makes it much easier for us to look at specific contributions, rather than looking through lots of different emails from the same contributor (which may then accidentality get overlooked).
We will, of course, check for typos and spelling (as we are based in the UK, and to retain continuity, we change American spelling into English spelling), but we don’t heavily edit a poet’s work, so please, as a poet, it is YOUR responsibility to make sure your poem is checked, proofed and ready for publishing, so ONLY send final, print-ready copy.
VERY IMPORTANT: Our readership and contributors range from age 11 to over 100, and from virtually every culture and country. We respect everyone, so strictly nothing of an adult nature, and no swearing, profanities or obscenities of any kind, or disrespect to other countries or cultures.
We at THE POET really do want your words to be read by as many people as possible, so therefore you retain FULL copyright on your work (by submitting, you are giving THE POET permission to publish and/or re-publish your work) and, unlike many other literary platforms and magazines, with THE POET you can re-publish your work elsewhere, and at anytime (but if you can kindly mention first published with THE POET, then great!). Also, we accept previously published material too, but ONLY with details of where and when it was previously published. Please add this to the end of the poem previously published.
PLEASE NOTE: we are not-for-profit and so we don’t pay for contributions, nor send paperback copies out to every contributor – with so many contributions from all over the world, for example; in FRIENDS & FRIENDSHIP there are 248 contributions from 175 poets in 46 countries, and from 26 states in the US, this would be almost impossible to do, and extremely expensive, and we simply couldn’t publish if we did. Instead we prefer to focus on promoting and publishing poetry, and showcasing poets worldwide, and virtually all our poets so far (now over 1000) are more than happy to contribute under these terms. Please do not submit your work if you are unhappy with these terms. We do, however, send contributors a free PDF copy of every anthology they contribute to.
Questions? CONTACT US.
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You can now support THE POET, and promote your book at the same time! Whether a new release, or an older title you would like to re-promote, our new Bookshelf is a great, very low-cost place to promote your book/s to thousands of poetry lovers worldwide.
Lastly, because of the volume of poetry and poet profiles we are currently receiving, we are temporarily closed for submissions from poets to be featured on THE POET’s website, but will keep you updated and let you know when we re-open.
Back again shortly, until then … keep writing poetry everyone!
With 272 contributions from 158 poets in 49 countries, and 28 states across the US; published in two volumes, ADVERSITY is now our most contributed to the anthology to date. Please support us as we support poets by buying a copy; they are not expensive, and every copy we sell goes towards helping us promote and publish poetry.
Thank you!
Volume 1
AUTUMN 2021 – Poetry on the theme of ADVERSITY, from poets around the world.
75 poets
138 poems
255 pages
Large format 6 x 9 inch (15.24 x 22.86 cm)
Featuring: Phyliss Merion Shanken – NEW JERSEY, USA; Niels Hav – DENMARK; Ed Ahern – CONNECTICUT, USA; Kathy Sherban – CANADA; Michael Ceraolo – OHIO, USA; Ali Alhazmi – SAUDI ARABIA; Ndaba Sibanda – ZIMBABWE / ETHIOPIA; C.S. Kempling – CANADA; Michelle Morris – ENGLAND; P. J. Reed – ENGLAND; Nolo Segundo – NEW JERSEY, USA; Linda M. Crate – PENNSYLVANIA, USA; Fahredin Shehu – KOSOVO; Monsif Beroual – MOROCCO; Mark Andrew Heathcote – ENGLAND; Alicia Minjarez Ramírez – MEXICO; Gary Shulman – CALIFORNIA, USA; Mukund Gnanadesikan – CALIFORNIA, USA; Joralyn Fallera Mounsel – PHILIPPINES / SINGAPORE; John Grey – USA / AUSTRALIA; Nancy Shiffrin – CALIFORNIA, USA; Francis H. Powell – ENGLAND; Ana Stjelja – SERBIA; Lynn White – WALES; Germain Droogenbroodt – SPAIN / BELGIUM; Judy DeCroce – NEW YORK, USA; Antoni Ooto – NEW YORK, USA; Shikdar Mohammed Kibriah – BANGLADESH; Pavol Janik PhD – SLOVAKIA; Srđan Sekulić – SERBIA; Gayle Bell – TEXAS, USA; Tali Cohen Shabtai – ILLINOIS, USA; Ana M. Fores-Tamayo – CUBA / USA; Aminath Neena – MALDIVES; Bryan Andrews – SOUTH AFRICA; Borche Panov – REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA; Daniela Andonovska-Trajkovska – REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA; Karen Douglass – COLORADO, USA; Cordelia Hanemann – NORTH CAROLINA, USA; Zorica Bajin Đukanović – SERBIA; Joan McNerney – NEW YORK CITY, USA; Wansoo Kim PhD – SOUTH KOREA; Carl ‘Papa’ Palmer- WASHINGTON, USA; Caroline Johnson – ILLINOIS, USA; Alonzo “zO” Gross – PENNSYLVANIA, USA; Alisa Velaj – ALBANIA; Jyotirmaya Thakur – ENGLAND / INDIA; Fabrice Poussin – GEORGIA, USA; Patrick O’Shea – NETHERLANDS / UK; Russell Willis – VERMONT, USA; Paul S. Mugano – UGANDA; Michael Estabrook – MASSACHUSETTS, USA; Susan Sonde – MARYLAND, USA; Alexious J. Kachepa – MALAWI; Lou Faber – FLORIDA, USA; Eliza Segiet – POLAND; Mark Fleisher – NEW MEXICO, USA; Anthony Ward – ENGLAND; Mark J. Mitchell – CALIFORNIA, USA; Nelie Bautista – SINGAPORE / PHILIPPINES; Jack D. Harvey – NEW YORK, USA; Norbert Góra – POLAND; Tamam Kahn – CALIFORNIA, USA; Kristine Ventura – MALAYSIA / PHILIPPINES; Shweta Shanker – INDIA / SWITZERLAND; Igor Pop Trajkov – REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA; Kevin Brown – ARKANSAS, USA; Ndumiso Maphumulo – SOUTH AFRICA; Pat Smekal – CANADA; Gary Beck – NEW YORK, USA; Carolyn Martin – OREGON, USA; Neil Leadbeater – SCOTLAND; Amrita Valan – INDIA; Rema Tabangcura – PHILIPPINES / SINGAPORE and Mantz Yorke – ENGLAND.
To order a copy from Amazon.co.uk click on the button below. Alternatively, search ASIN: B09JJ7FQ6S in your own country’s Amazon store.
Volume 2
AUTUMN 2021 – Poetry on the theme of ADVERSITY, from poets around the world.
83 poets
134 poems
265 pages
Large format 6 x 9 inch (15.24 x 22.86 cm)
Featuring: Rhonda Parsons – ILLINOIS, USA; Andr
My poems appear on pages 33-32.
Carter Brown – CALIFORNIA, USA; Hussein Habasch – KURDISTAN / GERMANY; Anne Mitchell – CALIFORNIA, USA; Dr. Sarah Clarke – KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN; Brian Wake – ENGLAND;Mónika Tóth – ROMANIA; Jyoti Nair – INDIA; Jake Aller – SOUTH KOREA / USA; Shereen Abraham – UNITED ARAB EMIRATES; Michal Mahgerefteh – USA / ISRAEL; Shikdar Mohammed Kibriah – BANGLADESH; Stephen Kingsnorth – WALES; Steven Jakobi – USA / HUNGARY; Tony Daly – VIRGINIA, USA; David A Banks – ENGLAND; Linda Imbler – KANSAS, USA; Eduard Schmidt-Zorner – REPUBLIC OF IRELAND / GERMANY; Dianalee Velie – NEW HAMPSHIRE, USA; Aleksandra Vujisić – MONTENEGRO; Maria Nemy Lou Rocio – HONG KONG / PHILIPPINES; Rezauddin Stalin – BANGLADESH; John Tunaley – ENGLAND; Anne Maureen Medrano Esperidion – HONG KONG / PHILIPPINES; Rahim Karim – KYRGYZSTAN; Sazma Samir – AUSTRALIA / SINGAPORE; Rich Orloff – NEW YORK, USA; Volkan Hacıoğlu – TURKEY; Ermira Mitre Kokomani – NEW JERSEY, USA; Mark O. Decker – DELAWARE, USA; Sandy Phillips – ENGLAND; Lorraine Sicelo Mangena – ZIMBABWE; Gabriela Docan – ENGLAND / ROMANIA; William Conelly – ENGLAND / USA; Sharon Harper – MISSOURI, USA; Andrei Pershin – RUSSIA; Amelia Fielden – AUSTRALIA; Bhuwan Thapaliya – NEPAL; Barbara Webb – ENGLAND; Jenny Brown – ENGLAND; Marilyn Longstaff – ENGLAND; S. D. Kilmer – NEW YORK, USA; Donna Zephrine – NEW YORK, USA; Nivedita Karthik – INDIA; Kakoli Ghosh – INDIA; Bill Cushing – CALIFORNIA, USA; Rachel Elion Baird – MASSACHUSETTS, USA; Brajesh Singh – INDIA; Kate Young – ENGLAND; Bill Cox – SCOTLAND; Vesna Mundishevska-Veljanovska – REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA; Gabriella Garofalo – ITALY; Tracy Davidson – ENGLAND; Cheryl-lya Broadfoot – ENGLAND; Shaswata Gangopadhyay – INDIA; Jill Sharon Kimmelman – DELAWARE, USA; Jane Fuller – SCOTLAND; Ian Cognitō – CANADA; Adrienne Stevenson – CANADA; Anamika Nandy – INDIA; Wilda Morris – ILLINOIS, USA; Kathleen Bleakley – AUSTRALIA; John Laue – CALIFORNIA, USA; Vernes Subašić – BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA; Paula Bonnell – MASSACHUSETTS, USA; Madhavi Tiwary – KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN / INDIA; Ankita Patel – INDIA; Janet Bi Li Chan – AUSTRALIA; Carol Casey – CANADA; Rose Menyon Heflin – WISCONSIN, USA; Prafull Shiledar – INDIA; Lisa Molina – TEXAS, USA; Aaron Pamei – INDIA; Monica Manolachi – ROMANIA; Maid Čorbić – BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA; Alun Robert – ENGLAND; Suchismita Ghoshal – INDIA Dr. Achingliu Kamei – INDIA; Julie Ann Tabigne – SINGAPORE / PHILIPPINES; Mary Anne Zammit – MALTA; Jenelyn Leyble – SINGAPORE / PHILIPPINES; Hanh Chau – CALIFORNIA, USA and Maria Editha Turingan Garma-Respicio – HONG KONG / PHILIPPINES.
There is no subscription to THE POET magazine; everything on the website is FREE to view. Our anthologies are FREE to read online too! And there are NO annoying adverts or banners! But we do need financial support to keep THE POET going, and to continue promoting and publishing poetry from around the world.
Please consider ordering a copy of this book (volume one) and On the Road and on Faith which all featured my poems.
The next call is also right up my alley as I have written several poems on this topic.
the End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
COVID Negative
corona testing
I have written numerous Corona poems since the pandemic hit. One of my favorite COVID characters is General Corona, He came to me in a vision after watching the former guy droned on about battling an invisible army, I figured every army even a virus army had to have a commanding general. I imagined him as a huge figure riding the black horse of pestilence from revelations and the virus army as imperial storm troopers looking for the the unvacinated, unmasked victims to infect with ray guns that spread the virus about , This one is sort of a haibun poem based on my getting a COVID test for travel the other day.
I had to get a COVID test
To get on a plane
Anxiety filled my mind
As I waited to take the test
I was filled with anxiety
Then I got the results
“COVID Negative
Cleared for International travel”
Anxiety fades away
Everything is fine
The world resumes
I defeated COVID
For now.
Yesterday I had to get a COVID test for my upcoming return to the States, flying to DC for three weeks on the 15th. US is requiring a negative PRT COVID test conducted within 72 hours of departure. You can get it done at a health center but it would cost 100 dollars and results take 24 to 48 hours. Fortunately, the US army at Camp Humphreys had their act together. Took less than an hour to do the test which was not too invasive a procedure and to get the needed “COVID Negative, Cleared for International Travel” certificate.
We have to do the same thing upon our return but getting a test site in the U.S. was a bit difficult as it was hard to find a place that would guarantee results in time for your flight, but we found a lab that guaranteed 24-hour returns for a price.
Word to the wise, if you are traveling to the US and returning, make sure you get your re-entry permit on time, and your COVID tests were done on time. You may have to call around to get a place that gets results back in time.
General Corona Poems
Coronavirus
General Corona Leads His Troops Into Battle, crown of sonnets
General Corona leads his forces across the world
riding on a black horse
from out of the Apocalypse ride the four horsemen
which are let loose upon the world
He leads his forces across the world
into battle as the leader of his evil forces
The enemy of humanity
General Corona he does not care
nor does his virus minions care
about your nationality he does not care
about your politics he does not care
or your wealth or who you are
for all you are nothing but humanity
the corona general sees humanity
the corona general sees humanity
as nothing but hosts for his virus army
as nothing but hosts for his virus army
chanting death to humanity
until his evil army
sweeps throughout the world
throughout the world
and millions must die
it is the will of the general all must die
and it is the end of the world
or perhaps the beginning of a new world
filled with hope and love through out the world
humanity comes alive throughout the world
fighting back against the virus army
peace, love and compassion defeats the army
and general corona will finally himself die
General Corona is coming for us all
corona
I saw the best minds of my generation
destroyed by madness
consumed by the greed
all around us
the dreaded corona virus spreads
its death and destruction
all over the world
no one can escape
THE FATE OF THE WORLD
IS INDEED AT STAKE
NONE OF US CAN
ESCAPE
OUR
FATE
content tracing “Howl” by Allen Ginsberg
General Corona is Happy
corona virus
General Corona
is happy
his mission is a great success
as his armies of virus bots
spread throughout the world
spreading chaos and destruction
as all bow down
to his invisible armies
none can escape their fate
on that date
that he unleashed his armies
upon the world
all humans must die
his armies scream out
Plane, Train or Automobile – none of us can escape our fate
covid 580
in these dark and dire times
we find ourselves living
we often fear that the times
are infected with death
and so we are afraid
deathly afraid
that if we take a plane
we will find General Corona
among the passengers
and we are afraid
deadly afraid
that the subways
are incubators
of death and destruction
the virus spreads
fear and death
in its wake
many of us
retreating to our homes
and venturing out
in our cars
only to find
death is stalking us
as traffic piles up
traffic accidents
still killing more people
that the dreaded General Corona
the grim reaper smiles
his work is done
Cosmic Debris Corona sonnet 2
covid 19 virus
I received a mysterious email package
followed by a phone call offering me a magical mask
a mask that they claim would prevent me
from the dreaded General Corona
hey there
who you jiving with that cosmic debris
a mask that they did not want me
me to know about
TOP SECRET CODE 2 LEVEL STUFF
MUST ACT NOW
SEND MONEY ASAP
BUY
IT
NOW
# content tracing- “Cosmic Debris by Frank Zappa”
with apologies to Frank Zappa
Corona Consumes Me Corona Sonnet 3
covid19
I am consumed by the corona virus
and I am slowly being taken over
as the virus infects my mind
taking me over turning me
into a wild raving zombie man
Let there be light
will I become the first
ZOMBIE APOLYCAPASE LOOMS
WILL WE ALL DIE
CORONA
KILLS
ME
content tracing – Let there be light from Bible and the entire Zombie Apocalypse genre where the Zombie flu started usually in China as a flu and then morphs into the zombie disease
God Deals with Corona
god is having a crisis meeting
on the corona virus situation
on planet 679542099199
otherwise known as planet earth
in a minor corner
of the milky way
the deranged inhabitants
of the planet
somehow thought that GOD
created them in his image
and that they are his children
all of them
and that he listens to his prayers
god was so tired of dealing with humans
the most ornery stubborn stupid creatures
of all the millions of sentient beings
he had to deal with them
more than any one else
God created the world
but then let nature take its course
and sometimes things worked out
and sometimes they did not
and God just did not have the time
to deal with every little detail
of life on millions of planets
across the vast universe
His arch enemy Satan
banished to Hell’s prison
was always causing trouble
everywhere in the universe
and Satan also loved the mad
creatures on planet earth
what was god to do
he did not know
as he saw the death rates
increase and grim reaper’s
armies go to work
his courts will be filled
billions stuck in limbo
for centuries
just did not have enough
staff to do the work
God signed off the conference
and sighed again
thinking about the mad creatures
on the planet earth
hoping that they would pull it together
but knowing that he might have to intervene
and went back to his other business
enough of humans for one day
the End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Unlikely Stories will publish my poem, “Jack Daniels Intervention” in their November edition.
Dear Jake,
Thank you for your continuing submissions to Unlikely Stories Mark V! I loved “Jack Daniels’s Failed Intervention” and would be delighted to publish it. We aim to run this piece sometime in the week of November 14-20.
Yes, please resend your bio. Also, please feel free to send a headshot.
If you tweet about publication, tag us at @USDotOrg, and we’ll retweet.
Please join our Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/unlikely.stories/. There, we’ll discuss your publication at Unlikely, and feel free to promote your other publications, as well.
And please consider becoming a patron at http://www.patreon.com/unlikelystories, and/or disseminating that link.
Also, in keeping with our activist mission, we’re asking contributors to recommend a charity. The charity will be mentioned at the end of your bio, like this: “Jake recommends [charity name and link].”
Charities can be any organization, anywhere in the world, that does not operate for profit. A charity does not need to be a registered non-profit. For example, another press or magazine that deliberately operates at a loss is fine. This program is of course voluntary. Please do contact me with any questions.
Thanks again,
Jonathan
Jack Daniel’s failed Intervention
Sam Adams
Was drinking alone
In the infamous Cosmos Bar,
In Bangkok,
The city of lost angels.
Twenty drinks too sober
He barely noticed
The naked ladies
Dancing on the stage.
On his table
He had a bottle of Jack Daniels
Along with a bottle of Johnny Walker
And five bottles of Singha beer.
Drinking his way to hell
Following the advice
Of the old song
This was his usual
Friday night routine
Just another pathetic loser
Drinking in the Cosmos bar.
The barmaids
Left him alone
He never paid them
No attention anymore.
He was there
To make love
to his booze bottles,
the booze bottles,
were his only friends.
That night,
About 0 dark hundred
He looked up.
Saw the bottle of Jack Daniels
Had somehow transformed
Into that of a younger version
Of Sam Adams.
The figure announced,
That he was the spirit
Of Jack Daniels
And had a message
For Sam Adams.
“Master,
It is not my place
To complain
But you are
Drinking a bit too much.
Twenty drinks a night
For the last few weeks,
Don’t you think?
You are so far gone
You don’t even notice
The naked ladies
Anymore.
I want you
To quit
This one-way ride
Down the hell hole.
Put down the bottle
Go home with Khun Lek
Who will help you forget
What you need to forget.
If you continue drinking tonight,
The only destination is death
My friend the Grim Reaper
Has your ticket
Ready for redemption.
So, stop drinking “
Soon the other bottles
In front of him
Started talking to him
Pleading with him
To just stop drinking.
He stared out
Convince he was going mad
The barmaids stared
At the unholy sight,
As the bottles in the room
All came alive,
And began chasing Sam,
Out into the busy street
Where a bus ran him over,
Died on the spot.
Thus ended Sam Adams’s
Last binge
In the city of lost angels.
Note: There is a real Cosmos Bar in Bangkok, at least there was back in the day. This is based on a writing com prompt to write a personification poem about the feelings of an inanimate object, I chose a bottle of Jack Daniels.
I submitted the following as well, but there were not published.
The Shrimp Talkback
Gov Abbot Calls for Freedom of Choice In Making Medical Decisions = Irony Meters Blow A Gasket Found Poem with snarky commentary
Governor Abbot, What Is Wrong with You? COVID
9-11 Evil
the Shrimp Talkback
shrimp
Sam Adams and friends
Were enjoying a shrimp feast,
Watching the live shrimp
Being roasted
Waiting to enjoy eating them.
The head shrimp jump out of the pot
Followed by other shrimp
Soon thousands of shrimp
Were everywhere.
The head shrimp spoke up
“Humans
What gives you the right
To kill us,
To eat us,
To burn us alive?
Perhaps we should kill you
Tear you apart
And eat you?
Would you like that
You human scumbags?”
The shrimp surrounded the humans
Swarming all over them
Killing them.
Burning them
As they overturn
The flaming pots
Biting them
Smothering them
In hot sauce
As they eat them.
Screaming
“Death to all humans.”
The head Shrimp finally said,
Time to go
We are so out of here.
The shrimp all ran out the door
And back into the shrimp farm waters.
The firefighters
Find the charred remains
Of the humans.
Now just charred skin and bones,
Wondering how they died.
The shrimp in the pound
Lookout,
Wondering if they should attack
But decide they had eaten
Enough human meat.
For the evening.
Gov Abbot Calls for Freedom of Choice in Making Medical Decisions = Irony Meters Blow a Gasket -found poem
“
FILE PHOTO: Texas Governor Greg Abbott speaks at the annual National Rifle Association (NRA) convention in Dallas, Texas, U.S., May 4, 2018. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo
Apparently,
Rhetorical consistency
Is about as high
On Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s agenda
As ensuring his constituents
Have a working power grid,
Are safe in their schools
And can easily vote.
On Thursday,
the Republican governor
fired off a tweet,
blasting President Joe Biden’s announcement,
of new requirements for large employers,
to ensure workers either get vaccinated
or face weekly COVID-19 tests.
Calling the mandate
an “assault on private businesses,”
Abbott pledged that Texas,
or its GOP leadership anyway,
was working to thwart Biden’s “power grab.”
And here’s where the tragicomic
part comes in.
“I issued an Executive Order
protecting Texans’
right to choose
whether they get the COVID vaccine
Added it to the special session agenda,”
If you’ve been paying attention,
you’re then aware
that Abbott’s tweet trumpeting
Texans’ right
to make individual health choices,
comes days after he signed a law.
banning the majority
of abortions in the state.
Abbott is talking
out both sides of his mouth
when it comes to matters of choice.”
Comment:
The irony meters
Have blown a gasket
You talk about the right to choose
The right to not get vaccinated
Or wear a mask.
You know that is the right
To infect everyone else
Including you
You and your family could die.
Because of idiots
Who refuse to get a vaccination
Or wear a mask.
The blood is on your hands
Own it.
The corona ghosts
Are watching you.
Governor Abbot, what is Wrong with You?
Governor.
I want to ask you a very simple question
about your opposition to mass mandates
and vaccination requirements,
and your saying people have a right to choose
not to get vaccinated, or wear a mask.
what is wrong with you?
Right now,
in this country,
COVID is spreading out of control/
especially in Texas and Florida,
and a few other states
where the vaccination rate is fairly low
and people have abandoned wearing masks.
People are dying
Because so many people
Refuse to do the right thing.
Get a vaccine
Wear a mask
Avoid crowds
If everyone did their part
The pandemic would be soon over.
But if people
Continue to follow your guidance
Acting like the self-centered scumbag
That we now see you are,
Thousands more will die
The economy will not re-open
Travel will not resume.
Perhaps more dangerous variants
Will emerge.
And it is all on you
Governor Abbot.
Just man up,
Admit you were wrong
Encourage people to shut up.
Get the vaccine
And save your state
And country.
The corona ghosts
Are watching you!
Evil
Evil in this world
lurks in the deadliest places.
Evil came to town on 911
the day that evil swept over the world
a true Black Swan event
that transformed everything
splitting the world into a pre-9-11 world
and a post 9-11 world
unleashing the War on Terror, the wars in Afghanistan, the wars in Iraq, the war in Libya, the war in Syria, the wars in Africa, the horrors of ISIS, the horrors of the Taliban resurgent, the horrors of Al Qaeda and all the rest of the Muslim terrorists, the war in the streets of any big city, the war on Muslims, the war on Christians, the war on Jews, the apartheid in Palestine, the wars on dissent at home, the Arab Spring
so many things can be traced
to the impact of 9/11
one of the most unlikely events
of recent history
that transformed
everything
yes there was a pre-9-11 world
hard to imagine now
and a post 9-11 worldwide police state
on steroids
lost democracy at home
and abroad
we are still coping
with the damages unleashed
by the evil plane bombers
fulfilling their mad desires
their dictates from their mad God
transforming the world
unleashing evil
on the once innocent world.
the End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Journal of Expressive Writing, one of my favorite journals has just published, 2021 Dawns, 21 Haiku.
Dawns 21 Haiku
PROMPT — I will not rest until …
2021 Dawns
Politics are still uncertain.
Thousands still are dying.
2021 Dawns
The New president offers.
Hope new beginning.
2021 Dawns
The Madness never ends it seems.
Consuming us all.
2021 Dawns
The hope springs eternally.
We will overcome.
2021 Dawns
35,000 lies.
Fading like ghosts.
2021 Dawns
Politicians still lying.
Thousands still dying.
2021 Dawns
Corona virus spreading.
More corona ghosts.
2021 Dawns
There is New hope in the air.
Will politics kill it?
2021 Dawns
The news stills scream death and despair.
I turn it all off.
2021 Dawns
As I wake up at dawn.
I see my sleeping wife.
2021 Dawns
We wait for the coming fires.
End of the world fears.
2021 Dawns
Q continues to spread hate.
Millions still follow him.
2021 Dawns
Will optimism and love?
Overcome the hate.
2021 Dawns
Many questions still remaining.
I have no answers.
2021 Dawns
With hope I leap out of my bed.
Watching TV kills hope.
2021 Dawns
Will this be the end of my days?
Will I overcome it?
2021 Dawns
2020 hangover.
like a dark nightmare.
2021 Dawns
Politicians still refusing.
To do anything.
2021 Dawns
The rich are still getting richer.
The poor remain poor.
2021 Dawns
We hope the past will fade away.
Into dark memories.
2021 Dawns
I wake up hoping for best.
Dreading worst to come.
2021 Dawns
I am still alive thank god.
Filled with love for wife.
they will also publish Cancel Culture in December.
Cancel Culture Run Amuck
I am so sick
And tired
Of the so-called “Cancel culture”
Nonsense
That has spread out
Along with the rightwing media verse
Infecting the public
With their hatred and disdain
I don’t know what it all means
Something about political speech
social conservatives
Being canceled
By left-wing woke mobs
In the mainstream media
“Libtard “Coastal elites
And tech giants
Seems that they don’t like
Being held to account
For minimal standards
Of decent behavior
For example, not spreading lies
About COVID vaccinations
I mean you Senator Johnson
Banned by YouTube for a week
Or inciting a riot
I mean you
Former guy
And his minions
Used to be
That we were all
Held to account
For decent behavior
By a sense of public shame
So, we did no go there
We knew where the lines were
And respected them
But in the era
Of the former guy
All civilized restrains
Have gone out the window
I say to my republican friends
If you don’t want to be canceled
Don’t say or do disgusting things
Don’t spread hate and misinformation
Then we would not have to
Cancel your nonsense
Until then I need to shut
Off the damn media noise box
They previously published a number of my pieces, and I participated in their first open mike reading “ Just Enough for Coffee”.
The End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
“Two Drops of Ink” has recently published some of my darker poems. They previously published a number of my poems. Included in this posting
Climate Change -Ten Years Later
The Lion King Speaks Up
Wild Things Run Amuck
Wild Things
Climate Change -Ten Years Later
Sam Adams
Prepared to go outside
Ten years after the collapse
Of the old world.
The city was still standing
But most people had long fled
To isolated country communities
Deep in the burned-out countryside.
The city was half-flooded
The bay had flooded the central valley
Turning it into a massive inland sea,
The massive storms
Had finally put out
The burning fires.
But mutant wildfires
Still erupted
From time to time.
Getting food and water
Was a constant problem
The city markets
Mostly sold canned goods
Salvaged from supermarkets.
There were some small farmers
Who farmed among the ruins
Of the city.
Trade had collapsed
Travel got too complicated
COVID still spreading
Everyone masked up
To protect themselves
Against the sun
The lingering smoke
Of the burning city
And the rampaging virus.
Sam Adams
Looked out at the decaying cityscape,
Wondering how much longer
Will civilization linger.
Sam Adams carried heat
To protect himself
Against the wild animals.
The lions, tigers, coyotes, wolves,
And their running feral dog gangs,
Who prowled the city streets
Preying on deer, feral cows,
feral cats and pigs
Who grazed among the ruins.
And the two-legged neo-savage gangs,
And what was left of the city police
Interchangeable with the gangsters,
Battled it out for control.
Already neo-feudal warlords,
We’re battling for control,
SF was run
By a gang of former criminals
And their political allies.
Sam sighed
And went to work
At the market
Selling salvaged goods.
The Lion King Speaks Up
The lion king,
Addresses the animal parliament
The question before them
Was simple.
Will humans have to die,
To atone for their sins,
In almost destroying the world.
Through pollution, mismanagement of resources
Subsequent climate change,
Fueled by greed and corruption?
Are all humans guilty as charged
Will they all have to die?
The tiger spoke for the prosecution
Arguing that humans are like cancer,
For the good of the planet,
They must be wiped out
Hunted down and killed,
The dog spoke up
In defense of humans,
Humans writ large are guilty,
But not every human is guilty,
Many are trying to save the planet,
And with our help
They might succeed,
The tiger denounced the dog
As being running dogs
Of the imperialist warmongering humans.
The vote is 900 to 800
All humans must die
The animals sent the word out,
Animals all over the world,
Revolt against the humans.
Shouting
“Death to all humans’
As the swarm over humans
Biting, clawing, and stomping
Them to the death.
The humans fight back
But in the end
They all die
On the night of revenge
Of the animal world.
Wild Things Run Amuck
4 am
O dark hundred
Bewitching hour
Time for wild things.
To escape
From their prisons
Deep in the mind
Of the sleeping man.
They escape
Hideous demons
Ghouls, goblins, monsters
Escaped banshees.
The wild things
Sniff the air
Saying it was time
For some wilding.
The wild things
Jump out the window
And run amuck
Spreading chaos
in their wake.
Killing everyone they see
Raping women and children,
Vandalizing buildings,
Yelling screaming.
As the wild things
Run amuck.
Led by a half-man, half-horse
Centaur like creature
With a Putin mask
And the voice of Donald Trump
The wild things run amuck
All over the town
Spreading chaos
Until the dawning sun,
Turns them back
Into vampire-like creatures.
And werewolves
Howling at the full moon.
The wild things
Come back
And enter their prison
Deep in the sleeper’s head
And the wild things
Fade in to a nightmarish image
As the sleeping man
Awakes to recall the dream,
And the night of terror
When the wild things
Came out to play
At o dark hundred.
Wild Things
Wild things come out to play
Intending to unleash chaos
Leaving their prisons
Deep inside the mind.
The wild things
Have come out to run amok
In the light of the full moon.
Nightmarish real foul creatures
Great demons, werewolves, goblins,
Monsters, hell hounds,
Escaped banshees
Straight out of hell
Howling at the lunatic light
Of the full moon.
Yesterday Morning
Yesterday morning,
I awoke
Like most mornings
Dead inside.
I walked
Out of my drug-infested slum,
Into my computerized car,
Down the freeways of my mind,
Searching
for the pot of golden dreams.
I stopped in at a restaurant
Drank copious amounts
of free coffee
And saw all the people
One by one disappearing
Into the crowds
All I knew was wrong,
Or worst yet
A figment of my dark,
drugged imagination,
Every person changed
Transformed
Into an interchangeable
Computer cyborg nightmare figures.
All the same
Turned into the borg
Cyborgs with no soul.
Everybody
Living in instant suburbia
Moving about their meaningless life.
All the same
all the same
Not me screamed
Into my coffee as I sat
Inhaling it’s the dark aroma.
Yet another victim
Of our creeping
Collective insanity.
Just cogs in the wheel
Cogs in the wheel
Of the nightmare
That is our world.
And so, I rise up
Pay my bill
Sell my soul a bit.
Do what the man says
The rights to me
Having been sold
A long time ago.
I go down the road
And get inline
Just another dead drone
After all.
Just Enough for Coffee
A homeless man
Stood on the street
Counting his change
From panhandling all morning
Just had enough for a cup of coffee
coffee
All in all
A good start
He ambled off to his favorite coffee shop
Where the owner
Was kind to the homeless
Sometimes
Treating them to a meal
On the house
The man said
I was in your shoes
Once years ago
And you never forget
When you are down
And out
Everyone forgets your face
No one knows your name
For you are now
Invisible
Almost a ghost
The old man tried to pay
The owner said
Keep your change
You need it more than me
Have a meal with me
My friend
On the house
He ordered up
The homeless man’s favorite
Lumberjack special
Eggs, pancakes, sausage, bacon
Cornbread
Lots of hot black coffee
To wash it down
The old man
Often had just one meal a day
Usually, a late breakfast.
Sometimes if he were lucky
He would have dinner
And on a red-letter day
He would have three meals
The homeless man
Had been on the streets
For too long
Barely remembered his life
Before early-onset Alzheimer’s
Robbed him of his job
His dignity
His wife
His life
His money
Now he drifted
Waiting for the grim reaper
Any day now
He prayed nightly
To a god
That he no longer believed in.
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
= Response to Gray Live Matters Found Poem with snarky commentary
Comment:
Ann Coulter is one of the pundits on the right that I hate the most. Every time I read one of her vile, despicable postings my blood boils over. In her latest postings, she lauds Robert E Lee and other Confederate heroes who were merely defending their states against tyrannical overreach by the northern states totally buying into the lost cause mythology of the South. She maintains of course that slavery had nothing to do with it when objectively speaking slavery had everything to do with it. She also has a typically racist bigoted anti-immigrant, in this case, Haitian immigrant posting.
She did correctly note that Lee did the responsible thing in ending the war when it was clear that they could not continue and refused to condone a guerilla war campaign. She failed to note the Forester and others quickly formed the paramilitary KKK who did wage guerilla war against free Black people and their white supporters. To his credit, Robert E Lee wanted nothing to do with the KKK but did not really speak out forcibly against the KKK either.
She also fails to note that most of the statues that dot the South and the place names and school names lauding the Confederate leaders went up in the post-world war civil rights era. She cynically says that Black people were perfectly fine with these statues until recently when mostly white “woke” activists started making a big deal out of it. I wrote the following found poem with snarky commentary and sent it to her. I doubt she will respond if she does I will update this blog posting accordingly.
Robert E Was a Traitor
My ancestors were Presbyterian abolitionists
Who fought on the Union side, but I get ticked off
When imbeciles take a sledgehammer t
To my country’s history.
Comment
By “my country” you mean
White America, right?
End comment
Last week, with self-satisfied glee,
Savages tore down the 14-foot statue of Robert E. Lee
Designed by the French sculptor Antonin Marcie
And installed in 1890
On land deeded to the state.
Comment:
“Savages?,” “Imbeciles”, “Illiterate”
Really? Want to go there? Ann?
As usual
You love to use insulting languages
To describe your enemies,
Most of the statutes and names lauding the confederate generals
went up post-World War 11
during the civil war era to remind self-assertive Negroes,
that their noble ancestors fought a war to keep them, slaves.
End comment.
Comment:
It’s not just “Southerners”
Who revere Lee, as his Wikipedia page implies.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt called Lee
“One of our greatest American Christians
And one of our greatest American gentlemen.”
Dwight Eisenhower said Lee was
“Noble as a leader and as a man,
And unsullied as I read
the pages of our history.”
The son
— not grandson –
– of a hero of the American Revolution,
Lee graduated
Second in his class at West Point,
Then distinguished himself
In the Mexican-American War.
Lee’s reputation
Was so great
That President Lincoln
Asked him to take
command of the Union forces
Against the South.
But Lee was a Virginian
And felt compelled
To take Virginia’s side,
So, he resigned from the U.S. Army.
(For my illiterate readers
And anyone who gets his news from MSNB
That makes Lee
The opposite of a “traitor.
” A traitor is someone who pretends to be on your side,
While secretly working
With the enemy,
Not someone who loudly announces,
I quit. My friends and I are leaving.)
Comment:
Sorry to disappoint you, Anne
But General Lee and the confederates
Were rebels
Against the legitimate government
Launched a civil war
To dissolve the union.
All to ensure that they could
Continue to enslave African Americans
They were the dictionary definition
Of traitors.
Just in case you can’t read
Here is how Webster defines “Treason”
“One who betrays another’s trust Or is false to an obligation of duty, One who commits treason”
General Lee violated his sacred oath “to defend the constitution against all enemies, foreign or domestic”
treason is defined as
“the offense of attempting by overt acts to overthrow the government of the state to which the offender owes allegiance,”
insurrection is defined as
“the act of instance of revolting against civil authority or an established government.”
They are guilty of all charges They were not patriots They were traitors Against the United States.
That is all they were They were in the words
Or Eric Trump,
“Not heroes Just zeroes “
who lost
The war.
Traitors to the nation.
End comment
Among his accomplishments,
There’s also the minor fact
That Lee saved the country.
Immediately after a bitter, bloody civil war,
Pitting brother against brother –
– four of Mary Lincoln’s five brothers fought for the Confederacy –
The landscape was littered with the dead,
Lee ensured that the South would accept defeat.
When Lee surrendered at Appomattox,
He was at the height of his powers,
Idolized throughout the South.
The president of the Confederacy,
Jefferson Davis wanted to fight on,
Telling his officers,
“I think we can whip the enemy yet,
If our people will turn out.”
But Lee, not Davis,
Held the hearts of his compatriots.
When one of Lee’s officers
Urged him to lead
a guerilla war against the North,
Lee remonstrated,
“As a Christian people,
There is now
But one course to pursue.
We must accept the situation.
These men must go home
And plant a crop,
And we must proceed
To build up our country on a new basis.”
Comment:
I grant you this General lee
Did the right thing
To end the war.
But he was not a hero
..Still a traitor in the end
He was just realistic
Knew that it was over
And the South had lost.
End Comment
He could easily have pulled a Trump
And told his supporters,
We got screwed!
Take to the hills!
They would have followed.
Hundreds of thousands
More lives would have been lost.
The country might never have recovered.
Comment:
I love the snarky comment
Dissing Trump
Whom you now hate
Good for you, Ann,
End Comment
But Lee said no, it ends now.
Thanks to Lee,
We became a functioning country again
Within about 15 years,
Instead of becoming Serbia, Afghanistan, Korea,
Vietnam, Rwanda
And on and on and on.
Comment:
I give you that
The war ended,
General Lee
Did the right thing
To take down his arms
Accept the inevitable.
And try to begin
The on-going process
Of national reconciliation
And healing,
A job that still needs to be done
All these years later.
The cold war against
Black people began immediately,
Jim Crow terrorism launched,
Against the newly free slaves.
Started in earnest
And continues in some way
To this very day.
The KKK
led by former generals.
Such as Forrester,
Started right after the war
Reached its peak
At the end of the 19th
early 20th century.
Although remnants
Continue to be active
With a resurgence
Under Obama
And especially Trump.
General Lee
To his credit
Wanted nothing to do with the KKK,
But did not try
to shut it down either.
General Lee and his traitors
Have blood on their hands
End comment.
“The vandalizing of American history
Has absolutely nothing
To do with black people or slavery.”
Comment:
Ann
You still don’t get it
the civil war had everything to with slavery!
The whole civil war
Was fought to preserve slavery
End comment.
Lots of historical figures had slaves.
Not only American heroes
Like Washington and Jefferson,
But Kamala Harris’ ancestors — according to her father.
Comment:
nice dissing Kamala Harris
And Obama
With absolutely no evidence.
Other than your slanderous accusations.
End comment
Barack Obama
Is the only president
Who might be descended
From slave traders,
A particularly repellent group,
Since Kenya
Was a major player in the slave trade.
Comment:
Of course, you have evidence
Kenya was a minor source of slaves
Most came from the west coast
Not from Kenya. Which sent
Slaves mostly to the Middle East,
And there is no evidence at all
That Obama’s family was involved.
Other than in your fevered
racist imagination.
End comment
No, the moving force
Behind this frenzied destruction of American history
Aren’t black people
Suddenly offended by monuments
That has been around for a century.
Comment:
We did not put up statues
Of Hitler or Goebbels or Tojo
Or Ho Chi Minh.
Nor for that matter
Did Germany
Recognizing that they
were traitors
And evil monsters.
Although Berkeley, my hometown
Bless its liberal heart
Briefly name a park
Ho Chi Minh Park
During the height
of the Vietnam war.
The bottom line is simply this,
Black people have put up
With white people
And their fixation
On the noble lost cause
Of the white southerners,
For far too long.
They finally had enough
General Lee was a traitor
And should be remembered
As such.
And the statues should be moved
Into museums
Military bases, schools, and roads
Should be renamed.
We all have had enough
Time to end the racist
lost cause mythology
End comment
Ann C Voodoo This
Ann Coulter says
“Brush Up on Your Voodoo! “
Bemoaning all the Haitians coming to the U.S.
Part no doubt of the great replacement theory
That is consuming the right-wing universe
“For the millions of U.S. immigrants
who wanted to immigrate to Haiti,
but couldn’t get in.
.. Guess what?
The country you’re living in is
about to become Haiti.
This will also come as good news
to the GOP’s top-dollar donors,
whose sole political thought is:
HOW DO WE WIN THE BLACK VOTE?
(Next goal: Reverse the rotation of the Earth.)
Apparently,
it’s humiliating for people who live
in 100% white neighborhoods
to belong to a party that appeals
to white people”.
the GOP has slobbered
over Colin Powell, Alan Keyes,
Condoleezza Rice, Allen West,
Michael Steele, Herman Cain,
Ben Carson, John James, Tim Scott,
Candace Owens, Herschel Walker
Comment:
nice choice of words
“slobbering”
End Comment
With hordes of Haitians pouring
across our border –
because a certain lying
conman didn’t build a wall –
Comment:
Nice dissing of the former president
end comment
Haitian President Francois “Papa Doc”
began his regime
by killing off or exiling t
he educated elite
for being too light-skinned,
then expropriated the peasants’
small parcels of farmland
, leading, like night into day,
to mass starvation.
Result: Haitian peasants adored him!
Even after a regime of mass murder
and widespread starvation, followed by
Duvalier maneuvering
his teenage son into the presidency,
the Associated Press reported in 1980
that “the Duvalier family’s support
comes from the dark-skinned peasants
Downside: insane execution squads,
malnutrition, illiteracy, and chaos.
Upside: Duvalier persecuted
light-skinned Haitians
and embraced voodoo.
Let’s just hope
they bring their Satan-worshiping voodoo!
As Haitians worldwide
descend on our country,
it’s worth mentioning
that their homeland
is often described as “90%
Catholic and 100% voodoo.”
While The New York Times
(Which hates our country and wants it destroyed)
Burbles giddily about Haitian voodoo –
“a healing-based religion,”
“An affirmation of national pride,”
“a vibrant but gentler faith,”
“Equal parts happening
and psychoanalysis”
You can read more
about these “vibrant” rituals
in the book “Hostage to the Devil:
The Possession and Exorcism of Five
Contemporary Americans.”
Or just wait for them
to show up in your neighborhood.
Comment:
nice scare mongering
.
for the record,
Voodoo is not satanism
rather is more shamanistic
communing with spirit forces.
i like your dissing the NYT
which for the record
is not out to destroy America
they do hate people like you though.
End Comment.
If you thought moving
100,000 Somalians into Minnesota
posed challenges to assimilation,
that will be a pleasant dream
compared to the multitudes of Haitians
Biden is letting into
the country right now.
Comment:
You forgot to mention
the Muslim hordes
coming from Afghaistan
and the millions of Mexicans
still pouring across the border
you are slipping my dear
I am so disappointed…
Anne
Your racist tirade
Is getting tiresome.
Just replacement theory
right-wing nonsense
So, I say this to you.
Voodoo this
Anne,
Let the Haitians
Come and contribute
Their skills
To the country.
Like all immigrants before
And all immigrants coming
In this land
Still welcoming immigrants.
and with any luck
they will put a voodo curse
on you
so we can finally
hear your shrill racist rant
no more.
Voodoo that, Ann.
End of Rant
Like this:
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
9-11 2021- was the classic black swan event, a low probability event that changed almost everything. The world can be divided into a pre-9-11 world and a Post 9-11 world. 9-11 led to the Afghanistan war, recently concluded, the Iraq war, the Syria war, the Libyan civil war, countless wars in Africa, the war on terror, the Muslim travel ban, the war on domestic dissent in so many parts of the world, all justified as a reaction against the events of that September day. Here are some of my reflections on the events of 9-11 including a prose poem about where I was that terrible day. It affected me deeply because at the time I was a US immigration officer in the State Department serving in Mumbai, (Bombay) India.
” The attacks had a profound and lasting impact on the country, especially regarding its foreign and domestic policies. U.S. Pres. George W. Bush declared a global “war on terrorism,” and lengthy wars in Afghanistan and Iraq followed. Meanwhile, security measures within the United States were tightened considerably, especially at airports. To help facilitate the domestic response, Congress quickly passed the controversial USA PATRIOT Act, which significantly expanded the search and surveillance powers of federal law-enforcement and intelligence agencies. Additionally, a cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security was created.”
Comments appreciated.
Index
Reflections on 9-11 where I was Prose Poem
Reflections on 9-11 where was I then
Reflections on 9-11
9-11 Unleashed Evil
The Day After 9-11 U.S Visa Officer’s Perspective
9-11 Fridge (Based on fridge magnet poems daily prompts)
Reflections on 911 Where I was Prose Poem
On 9-11
When the planes struck the World Trade center
Unleashing evil on the world
I was working
at the deputy consular chief
at the US Consulate
in Mumbai (Bombay) India
I was at a Polish national day event
at the legendary Taj Mahal hotel
chatting with the Polish Ambassador
and his charming wife.
Someone told me
I needed to check out the news,
I saw the CNN news feed,
I rushed back to the consulate
to prepare our response.
I put together a task force
focused on helping American citizens
in our district.
I worked almost 15-20 hours
for almost three days
before finally getting a night off.
We continued to process visas
during this time
but our priority
was to reach out to the Americans
who lived in our district
and to monitor the reactions of Indians
especially Muslims living in our district.
I tracked down my wife
who had gone into emergency action
in her position in Korea as a MI officer.
We both reflected
That if she had not taken the job in Korea
She might have died that day
As she had been working in the ops center
At the Pentagon which was destroyed.
Since it was shift work
if she had been on the early morning shift
it might have been game over for her.
Reflections on 9-11
the events of 9-11
transformed the modern world
in the aftermath of 9-11
the US launched the war on terror
That led to Afghanistan
Led to Iraq
Led to Syria
And so many other wars
Secret and not so secret
War on dissent at home
All because of 911
A true black swan event
That almost destroyed
Our country
And still has ramifications
All over the world
911
A day that truly
Will live
In infamy
9-11 unleashed Evil
Evil in this world
lurks in the deadliest places.
Evil came to town on 911
the day that evil
Swept over the world
a true Black Swan event
that changed almost everything
splitting the world
into a pre-9-11 world
and a post 9-11 world
unleashing the War on Terror, the wars in Afghanistan, the wars in Iraq, the war in Libya, the war in Syria, the wars in Africa, the horrors of ISIS, the horrors of the Taliban resurgent, the horrors of Al Qaeda and all the rest of the Muslim terrorists, the war in the streets of any big city, the war on Muslims, the war on Christians, the war on Jews , the apartheid in Palestine, the wars on dissent at home, the Arab Spring
so many things can be traced
to the impact of 9/11
One of the most unlikely events
of recent history
that totally transformed
everything
yes there was a pre 9-11 world
hard to imagine now
and a post 9-11 world-wide police state
on steroids
War on democracy at home
and abroad
the world is still coping
with the damages unleashed
by the evil plane bombers
and their mad desires
their dictates from their mad God
transforming the world
unleashing evil
on the once innocent world.
The Day After 9-11 U.S Visa Officer’s Perspective
9-11 changed everything
For the lowly visa officers
Around the world
Especially for American visa officers
Pre-9-11
The emphasis was on efficiency
Issuing as many visas as possible
Refusing a few as possible
Looking the other way
At minor incidents of fraud
When in doubt
Just say yes
Terrorism was not a concern at all
No one anticipated
The horrible events of 9-11
All the hijackers
Had been issued visas
hey were considered low-risk applicants
As most Saudi citizens were
Few overstayed
None wanted to work
Illegally in the U.S.
The students studied
Came back home
Saudi, the UAE, and Oman
Were about to be approved
For the visa waiver program
They met the criteria
Low refusal rates
Low overstay rates
Terrorism was not a concern
Although the CIA was blocking it
On 9-12 and afterwards
Everything changed
Just say yes
Became just say no
Fraud became a big concern
Terrorism an overwhelming concern
Saudi, Oman and UAE
Became overnight
Suspicious characters
Extreme vetting began
Years before Trump
Announced it
Interviewing everyone
Became the policy overnight
Biometrics were rushed to be deployed
Everyone including Kings
Must be enrolled
No exceptions
Zero tolerance of visa infractions
Became the norm
Both at State and at the new DHS
Airports became unfriendly nightmares
For foreign visitors
As did the embassies
Where visa officers
Were now free
To be mean, abrupt
Just say no
Became the motto
The officers had 2 minutes
To go through the ever expanding
Security checks etc
Anything at all
That took two more minutes
Led to a quit denial
Denials were seldom overcome
Even when it was obvious
That the visa should have been issue
The visa function almost moved
To the new neo-fascist
Department of Homeland Security
Nicknamed by its critics
As the Homeland Security Ministry
The homeland security department
Send visa security officers
Overseas to police the lax state department
Whose prior courtesy culture was mocked
The new mean to everyone culture
Soon emerged
Everyone competed
To see who could be the meanest
Zero tolerance soon met zero common sense
Every applicant became a potential criminal
A potential security threat,
All Muslim applicants
Were seen as potential terrorists
All of this led
To the draconian visa policies
which began
on September 12, 2001
the day after 9-11
then Trump and his MAGA crew
swept to power
extreme vetting became the new mantra
unleashing a war
on Muslims and immgirants
that sadly had continued
to this day
The culmination of years
Of the war on terror
All of this was the result of 9-11
The day that changed everything.
Following 9/11
Patriots Blunder
Whack a mole
Worry Frequently
About terrorists and Muslims
Whomever, wherever they be
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
One of my “guilty pleasures” is reading my favorite writer, Stuart Woods. Boy, can the dude pump them out! In the last count, he has written over 80 books almost all of the best sellers and he has been pumping out one to two a year since he first got published in the late ’70s.
He started out writing “Chiefs” which became a movie as well. The main character is a police chief in a small town in Georgia. The character reappears in many later novels, eventually becoming a two-term president, and in town, Delgado also appears as a place in many of his later novels. Most of his novels are set in NYC, Maine, Key West, Los Angeles, and Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Most of his books feature the exploits of Stone Barrington, an NYC high-society type who is a James Bond-like character. He is a retired NYC cop, a lawyer, a real estate investor, a part-time CIA agent, and a player with many love interests. He is also best friends with three presidents and the not-so-secret lover of the current President. He introduced me to Knob Creek bourbon which is now one of my favorite bourbons, and he is also partial to Martinis-made James Bond style.
In this alternative universe, the President serves two terms, his wife serves two terms, and her secretary of State is elected President. Stone is friends with them all.
Stone’s best friend is Dino Bachetti, his old NYC homicide partner who became NYC Police Commissioner and helps Stone out officially and unofficially over the years. He has had a lot of love interests including Holly Barker who was a former secretary of state and president.
Another recurring character is Ed Lee who is a friend of Stone who lives and works out of Santa Fe New Mexico. Ed Lee is a 6’8 former college basketball player who becomes an attorney.
My only criticism is that his books are very formalistic. At some point, someone is going to be able to program a computer to write novels and his novels would be a great place to start because I am sure that a computer could generate believable Stone Barrington novels. Having said that, his novels are still enjoyable.
He has written a few non-Stone Barrington novels stand-alone novels. One I enjoyed recently was Palindrome which is a psychological thriller set on an island off the South Carolina coast. Written in the mid 90’s I believe.
I often start a novel of his while waiting around in the PX for my wife to finish up, and throughout several visits, often finish the novel.
The following is a list of his novels, I bolded the ones I have read. One of my bucket list reading goals is to finish reading all of his novels.
The list
Stuart Woods Books in Order (Bold indicates I have read it)
Stuarts Woods is an American novelist. He was born in Georgia in 1938 and graduated from the University of Georgia in 1959. He then enrolled in the National Guard before moving to New York to start a career in Advertising.
He then moved to London and spent a further 3 years working in advertising before deciding that he wanted a change and he began writing his first novel. It is at this time that he decided to move to Ireland where he lived a solitary lifestyle, only leaving his home to make money writing adverts for local television.
Sailing
Woods moved to Ireland in the 70s and this was where he fell in love with sailing. He spent many years competing in sailing competitions and learning how to be a better sailor. He finally bought his boat when his grandfather died and left him some money, so he could afford it. It was then that he took sailing more seriously and spent most of 1974 learning more about sailing.
Writing
Woods began writing about his experiences in his yacht races and he was published in 1977, with the book Blue Water, Green Skipper. It seemed like he had found an ideal career based on the thing he loved most, sailing.
Changing Plans
His second book was supposed to be about another boat race that he was due to take part in, but the race was canceled due to inclement weather, so he decided to drive around the UK and write a book about his adventures in the county inns.
Chiefs
Woods then went on to write his first novel called Chiefs. He made the mistake of selling the book to publishers unfinished because he thought he would have gotten a lot more for it had he waited until the book was finished.
Norton was the company to publish the hardback, but he felt like the company let him down because they didn’t do much to promote the book. He then contacted Bentham Books, who published the paperback and it was much more successful.
Note: the main character resurfaces in the Stone Barrington novels as a politician and eventually two-term president. his wife then serves as president after he retires.
Charlton Heston
In 1983, the book was made into a tv series starring Charlton Heston and Danny Glover. It was aired by CBS over three nights and it ended up being nominated for three Emmy Awards.
The popularity of the tv show meant that more people wanted to read the books and there was renewed interest in the paperback version of the books and Woods won the Edgar Award for the Best First Novel.
Series Over Standalones
Woods is one of those authors who are more focused on the series of novels over the standalone. His most popular series is the Stone Barrington Novels. He has just released his 27th novel in the series and he has written 3 more novels, which are set to be released in 2014.
Who is Stone Barrington?
Stone Barrington is a counsel for a law firm. After he finished college, he joined the police and served 14 years on the force. He left after disagreeing with his superiors and then got a job with the law firm. The novels tell the story of his exploits so far.
In the Stone Barrington novels, Woods is often congratulated for getting the law procedures correct when he has no background in law himself. It is noticed a lot and one fan asked how he gets it all right. He indicates that he is a massive fan of law procedurals such as LA Law and Law & Order, so gets all of his knowledge from there. He has made a few friends who are Lawyers, so if he gets anything wrong, they tell him.
Holly Barker
Holly Barker is a character in another series of books that he writes. She is an ex-army officer and navy brat. She left the army because of a sex scandal and she has to learn how to live a civilian life. She begins her new life as the Chief of Police and she learns just how dangerous her new life is.
Update: she eventually becomes Stone Barington’s main love interest, joines the CIA and becomes Secretary of State and later the second Female President. These are all chronicalled in the Stone Barington Novels, the Holly Barker novel focus on her earlier life as the chief of police. end updated note
Even though Woods has written several series, which focus on the life of a single character, the characters from each of the novels do crossover into other series. For example, Stone Barrington appears in the second Holly Barker novel and he also appears in the second novel of the Rick Barron novels.
Rick Barron
The Rick Barron novels are only two books deep at the moment. Rick Barron was a police detective and he was demoted after a run-in with a higher officer. He gets the job as security for Centurion Pictures but finds himself in the middle of a double murder case in the period that is said to be the golden age of Hollywood cinema.
The first Rick Barron novel, The Prince of Beverly Hills, was meant to be a standalone novel but Woods ended up writing a sequel after he was bombarded with emails from fans asking him to write another. He has no plans to write another at this moment in time.
After Chiefs was made into a TV series, one of his other books was adapted for TV as well. Grass Roots was made into a TV series in 1993. Since then, no other books have been made for TV.
Woods indicates that he would love it for his other books to be made into movies and if a director has read one of the books and wants to buy the rights, then he encourages the writer to get in touch with his agent.
In his personal life, Woods loves to fly, having his planes and he still sails regularly on his private yacht. He had married before but it ended in divorce and little is known about this marriage. He has stated that he preferred to live the life of a bachelor, but in 2013 he fell in love and married Jeanmarie Cooper. They have three homes, which they travel between, with their dog Fred.
End Stuart Wood com excerpt.
Note: Teddy Fey
Teddy Fay first appears as a domestic terrorist taking out corrupt political leaders. He is a disgruntled ex CIA agent and the master of covert action. He is eventually pardoned by President Lee and moves to LA where he works as a actor/producer for Stone Barington’s son who is a movie producer. He continues to occasionally engage in assasinations as a free lancer taking out those who need to be killed.
Note: Herbie Fisher
Herbie Fisher appears as Stone’s newphew who is sort of like a smary, “Wally Cleaver” kind of young man. He eventually passes the bar on the 5th try, and becomes a lawyer, but a bit on the shady side of the street.
The End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
“Strangers Sleeping on the Streets”
9/9/2021 update:
Spillwords has published my poem, “Sleepless on the Streets” .They previously published a number of my poems, including “Eve Eats the Apple” and “Mocking Laughter.” They also published an interview and additional poems below. Including a bonus poem, not published called “ I am the Snake” on a similar theme, re-telling the story of the garden of Eden from the snake’s perspective.
This morning I read my poem, “Just Enough for Coffee” on the Journal of Expressive’s Arts First Zoom Open mike. They will be hosting it monthly and I hope to read some more of work there.
I grew up in Berkeley, California, and Washington DC, and went to College in Stockton, California. After college, lived five years in Korea as a Peace Corps volunteer and teaching ESL. I returned to the US to Seattle for graduate school. Afterward, I joined the Foreign Service where I lived and worked in over ten countries. I retired and lived in Korea and the west coast.
What is the greatest thing about the place you call home?
I live in Youngjando island, South Korea near the Incheon Airport. I live in a garden city. There is a magnificent park – the world peace forest behind my house and a nice mountain to hike in. Over three hundred restaurants are within walking distance of my house. There are five beaches ten minutes’ drive away, Incheon is nearby as is Seoul.
What turns you on creatively?
All my work starts with a dream. I don’t dream dreams; I dream movies, filled with action, sound, music, smells many times in a completely different world. I have been writing a dream journal for many years. I write five to ten dreams per day, saving them as stand-alone flash fiction, and also write one to ten poems per day.
What is your favorite word, and can you use it in a poetic sentence?
One of my favorite words is my portmanteau scumbaggery which I define as the actions of a ”Scumbag.”
The scumbaggery Of Texas Senator Ted Cruz Utterly confounds
What is your pet peeve?
Racism, sexism, homophobia, bigotry, right-wing nutcases, left-wing zealots, Christian holy rollers, gun violence, police misconduct, anti-Asian hate crimes, hate crimes, America Firsters, QAnon conspiracy theorists, neo-Nazis, White Supremacists, Proud Boys, Boogaloo Bois, and the Oath Keeper militia, etc. I don’t like ”gangsta rap,” “heavy metal,” or “country music.” Pragmatist and don’t care about ideological correctness.
What defines Jake Cosmos Aller?
Grew up in Berkeley and DC. Lived all over the world, visiting forty-five countries and all 50 states. Served my country as a foreign service officer, and Peace Corps volunteer and taught ESL and government overseas. But what is more important than anything is that I married the girl of my dreams who became my wife 40 years ago.
Dora The Intergalactic Explorer written by: Jake Cosmos Aller @Jakecaller Dora the intergalactic explorer Is traveling to the…
Dora the intergalactic explorer
Is traveling to the strangest planet
of all the known worlds
she is traveling incognito
with a video crew
making a documentary
the planet earth
is known as a planet
of intelligent monkeys
not much is known
about them
as very few
have ever been there
the inhabitants are described
as blood thirsty insane creatures
ruled by hidden sexual and political passions
following incomprehensible
religious dogmas following Gods
that clearly do not exist
the inhabitants are just on the verge
of developing intergalactic travel
and the galactic empire
is worried that they will be driven
to try to conquer the rest of the universe
driven by their needs to impose
their religious dogma
everywhere in the world
the planet is divided into large tribal groups
governed by corrupt elites
corrupt businesses destroying the planet
in pursuit of profit
and the locals are little more
than wage slaves
barely making a living
addicted to alcohol, drugs, gambling
pornography and illicit sex
and their main land
is ruled by a clearly delusional madman
intent on poking a fight
with all his alleged enemies
Dora assumed the appearance
of a character from TV
and will pose as a journalist
trying to make sense
of it all
but she was afraid
that she if found out
could face the worst consequence
her ship crash lands
and she is outside
the capitol
of the non empire empire
called the United States of America
Dora gets her crew together
and walks into the city
staring at all the strange sights
as the monkeys go about
their daily activities
she stops at a restaurant
tries the coffee
the chief drug of choice
and is instantly addicted
wow no wonder
these people are crazed
she tries the local booze
and smiles
perhaps she could
become an intergalactic merchant
introducing the world
to the galaxy
her thoughts are interrupted
as a mad man armed
with weapons of war
bursts in and starts shooting
yelling at people
and she is shot dead
the authorities
are shocked
when they recover the body
and realize
that she is not a human
as she reverts other original
form
sort of a giant feline like creature
two legs and arms
and clearly from an advanced
civilization given her gear
what was she doing
no one knew
as all the aliens
died in the gun blaze
the world is shocked
at what had happened
and fearful that the aliens
were coming to invade
their world
the galactic senate
decides to contain
the humans
declaring them
a threat to the global civilization
and the humans vow
to discover the secrets
of interstellar travel
and travel to her land
to enter into business arrangements
and spread the one truth faith
to the heathen space aliens
thus ended Dora’s excellent adventure
in the crazed world at the edge
of known civilization
Where is my home? Where do I belong?
I really don’t know, always moving on to another place
Moved every other year it seems the last 45 years
Traveled to 49 states, 45 countries, drove across the U.S. six times
Lived in Berkeley, Yakima, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, DC, Oregon, Korea, Thailand, India, The Eastern Caribbean, and Spain
Where do I belong? Where is my home?
Neither here nor there, nowhere and everywhere
And so is that my rambling man’s fate
Never to really belong anywhere at all
Bus Rides in America’s Underbelly written by: Jake Cosmos Aller the Bus – Travels Through America’s Underbelly I…
the Bus – Travels Through America’s Underbelly
I am a bus rider
That makes me unusual
For a white male
From an upper middle class family
Our people are not bus riders
Though some are subway riders
Bus riders are other people
The poor, minorities, immigrants
People who don’t drive
Because they are blind
Or have a DUI
And in my case
I don’t drive
Because I have bad vision
And bad coordination
Just never got the hang
Of the whole driving thing
Fortunately for me
My wife does the driving
But I still take the bus
From time to time
I rode the AC buses in Berkeley
As a child
Line 67, line 51, line 43 F bus
Rode them long before BART came along
And afterwards as well
As an adult seldom rode the bus
But when I did so
I was always impressed
By the sheer diversity
Of the bus riding property
Hundreds of languages
All sorts of sexual orientation
Some were white
Most were not
Most of my fellow passengers
Were nice enough
Some were friendly
And some were lost
In their own thoughts
And a few
Were scary looking dudes
With the look
Of someone who had done time
And were capable of more violence
I also rode the bus
In Seattle as a graduate student
A lot of fellow UW students
And the usual immigrants
Minorities etc
And some white people
Commuting
And in DC
Over the years
I rode a lot of buses
Mostly to and from the metro
But I got to know
And love the DC buses as well
I also took the greyhound bus
Across the country
Several times over the years
All over the U.S.
From Bay Area to Stockton
From Bay Area to Clear Lake
From Bay area to NYC
NYC to DC
All over the USA
Taking the Greyhound
Was always an adventure
Met a lot of interesting people
As people on long distant bus rides
Tend to open up and talk
To pass the time away
Overseas I took the bus
All over
In India, in Barbados
In Spain and in Korea
The Korean buses
For many years
Were difficult for foreign visitors
As the signs were all in Korean
Most have signs
Now in English, Chinese and Korean
And are much more foreigner friendly
Riding the bus
In America
Allows one access
To the underbelly of American society
The poor, the marginalized
The immigrant communities
That many middle-class white people
Just never see
And for that reason
I am glad
That I am a bus rider
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:
Based on my experiences riding the bus all over the world from 1968 to 2018.
The End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
I will read my poem, “Snarling Cup of Coffee” on the Journal of Expressive Writing’s first global poetry reading zoom session, starting at 7 pm on September 8th EST.
Update: I ended up reading “Just Enough for Coffee”. It was a lot of fun. I am going to do it again, and try PSH and Rattle open zoom mike readings as well. Perhaps someday I will do some open mike readings or slams when I am back in the states. end update.
Want your friends and/or family to attend? We hope so! Please send them this free registration link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/open-mic-tickets-166176880523. Once registered, they will receive the Zoom link 24 hours in advance of the event.
Jennifer A. Minotti
Founder Editor-in-Chief
Journal of Expressive Writing
We are so thrilled that you signed up to read your writing for the inaugural Journal of Expressive Writing’s poetry open mike reading on September 8, 2021 at 7 p.m. on Zoom!
This is just a reminder: Each reader should plan on reading—in any genre—for a maximum of four minutes. Please time your reading(s) in advance, as we have a lot of readers signed up! for the poetry open mike reading.
Want your friends and/or family to attend? We hope so! Please send them this free registration link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/open-mic-tickets-166176880523. Once registered, they will receive the Zoom link 24 hours for the poetry open mike reading in advance of the event.
Here are a few reminders:
We will send you the Zoom Link 24 hours in advance poetry open mike reading .
You will be on Zoom with us by audio and video for this OPEN MIC. You can choose to put your video off.
Please “mute” yourself upon entry and stay muted unless it’s your turn.
Please feel free to say “hello” and tell everyone where you’re from in the chat room! We love having conversations and reading your comments there. Please feel free to share ways that you connect with the writing of other readers and show your appreciation & encouragement.
PLEASE! If you’re registered and need to withdraw, e-mail jen@journalofexpressivewriting.comand cancel your registration so that we may offer your space to someone on the waitlist.
Follow us on social media and help us spread the word.
Read the latestexpressive writing, free writing, non-fiction, poetry, and prose by both new and established writers in the Journal now!
Should you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.
See you soon! for the poetry open mike reading.
Jen Minoti
Kelly DuMar
Snarling Cup of Coffee
coffee
I like to start my day with a hot cup of coffee
I pound down the coffee
First thing I do every day as the dawning sun
Lights up my lonesome room
Yeah, but not just a simple cup of java Joe, but a God damn snarling sarcastic smarmy cup of coffee
I mean, – we are talking about an alcoholic, all speed ahead, always hot, always fresh, always there when I need it, angry, attitude talk to the hand Ztude, bad, bad assed, beats breaking, beatnik, bluesy, bitter, bitchy, bombs away, capitalistic, caffeinated up the ass, cinematic, communistic, Colombian grown, Costa Rican inspired, Cowabunga to the max, crazy assed, devilishly angelic, divine, divinely inspired, dyslexic, epic, extreme vetting, evil eye, expensive, erotic vision inducing, Ethiopian coffee house brewed, euphoric, freaky, freazoid, foxy, Frenched kissed, French brewed, funkified, foxy lady, graphic, GOD in my coffee, with Allah, Ganesh, Jesus, Kali, Buddha, Christians, Durga, Hindus, Mohamed, Jesus and Mo and their friend, the cosmic bar maid, Sai Babai, Shiva, Taoists, Zoroastrians, drinking my god damned coffee in Hell; growling, gnarly, happy, hard as ice, Hawaian blessed, high as a kite, hippie, hip, hipster, hip hoppy, hot as hell yet strangely sweet as heaven, jazzy, jealous, Kerouac approved, kick ass, kick my god damn ass to Tuesday, kick down the doors and take no prisoners, grown in the Vietnam highlands by ex Vietcong, Guatemalan grown, kiss ass, illegal in every state, imported from all over the god damn world, insane, lovely, loony, lonely, lonesome, malodorous mean old rotten, motherfucking, nasty, narcotic, never whatever, never meh, never cold, not approved by the CIA, not approved by DHS, not approved for human consumption by the FDA, not your daddy’s sissified corporate cup of coffee, NOT DECAFE coffee, not your Denny’s truck driver weak as brown water cup of fake coffee, not your establishment friendly cup of coffee, Not your FBI coffee, Not FAKE Herbal coffee substitute, but a real cup of coffee, not your farmer brothers dinner crap, not made in America for Americans, not safe for work, not your Starbucks average expensive overpriced crappy corporate chain cup of coffee, Not pretentious, Not White House approved, not State Department safe, nuclear, Not Patriotic, operatic, Peets’s coffee approved, paranoid, pornographic, psychotic, pontific, politically aware, rapping, rhyming, right here, right now in River city, rock and roll up the Yazoo, sad, sadistic, sarcastic, sassy, satanic, schizoid, shitting, silly, sexy, smarmy, smelly, smooth, snarky, snarling, stupid, stinking, sweet as honey, sweat inducing, symphonic, Trump can’t handle this coffee, vengeful, Wagnerian, wicked, with nutmeg and cinnamon swirls, with a hint of stevia, with a hint of vanilla, with a hint of rum, with a hint of whisky, with a hint of cherry, with a hint of fruit overtones, with a hint of drugs spicing up the coffee, spendific, speeding, splendid, superior accept no substitutes, survived the Vietnam war, the Iraq war, the Afghan war, the first and Second Korean war, World War 11, the war on poverty, the war on drugs, the war on black people, the sexual revolution, Soulful as a summer’s night in MOTOWN- James Brown approved, TOP approved, Berkeley approved, the coffee that Jimmy Hendrix drank before he died, the coffee that Elvis drank on his last breakfast, the coffee that Barry White crooned as he drank his cup of coffee – and the coffee that made the white boy play stand up and play that funky music, the coffee that made Jonny B Goode play his guitar, and made Jonny bet the devil his soul after he drank his morning cup of righteous coffee and the coffee that make the Rolling Stones Rock and Roll, the coffee your mother warned you against drinking, the coffee that Napoleon drank when he became the Emperor of all Europe, the Coffee that Beethoven drank when he wrote the Ninth symphony, the coffee that Mozart drank as he wrote his last symphony, the coffee that Lincoln drank before he was killed, the Hemingway drank before he killed himself, the coffee that started the 60’s, and ended the 20th century, the coffee that Lenin drank as he plotted revolution, the coffee that Hitler and Stalin drank with FDR as they divided up the world after World War 11, the cup that JFK drank before he was blown away, the coffee Jerry drinks while driving in cars with random celebrities and political figures, the coffee that Jon Stewart drinks before he goes on an epic take down of some foolish politico, the cup of Arabic coffee that Sadaam drank the day he was executed, the coffee that GW and Cheney drank when they bombed Baghdad, the Indian cup of coffee that Bid Laden drank before 9-11 and just before the seals blew his ass to hell, the cup of coffee that Tiger Woods drank with his mistresses while playing a 3, 000 dollar round of golf at Sandy Lane golf course in Barbados, the last legal drug that does what drugs should do, the cup of coffee that Obama drank when he became President, Vietnamese, Vienna brew, wacky, whimsical, Whisky Tango Foxtrot, wild, weird, wonderful, WOW, Yabba dabba doo! Yada Yada yada Zappa’s favorite cup of cosmic coffee, and Zorro’s last cup of coffee, Good to the last drop rolled into one simple cup of hot coffee
As I pound down that first cup of coffee
And fire up my synaptic nerve endings with endless supplies
Of caffeine induced neuron enhancing chemicals
I face the dawning day with trepidation and mind-numbing fear
I turn on the TV and watch the smarmy newscasters in their perfect hair
Lying through their teeth about the great success the government is having Following the great leader’s latest pronouncements
I want to scream and shoot the TV
And run out side Shouting “Stop the world.
I want to get off this fucking crazy planet”
The earth does not care a whit about my attitude
It merely shrugs and moves around the Sun
In its appointed daily run
And I sit down
The madness dissipating a bit
And enjoy my second cup
Of heaven and hell
In my morning cup of Joe
the end
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Spillwords has published two of my poems, “Eve Eats the Apple” and “Mocking Laughter.” They also published an interview and additional poems below. Including a bonus poem, not published called “ I am the Snake” on a similar theme, re-telling the story of the garden of Eden from the snake’s perspective.
Eve Eats the Apple
Eve was in the garden
Talking with Mr. Snake
Her new best friend
She was complaining about Adam
And about the management
Of the garden
The snake suggested she eat
The forbidden fruit.
She said
but the man
Said that I cannot eat
That fruit
It is forbidden.
Yes that is what the man said
That is what
he does not want you
To experience.
The man and Adam
Are in on it together.
I Heard that Adam
Will eat the apple tonight
But you need to get there first.
Do you trust me, Eve?
Of course, Mr. Snake
So you know what to do.
Eve ate the apple
Called Adam over
Told him to eat the apple.
While the Snake chanted
Eat it eat it
Set yourself free,
And so, Adam ate the apple
And joined Eve
In knowing everything.
God came down
Banished them from the garden
Telling them.
Well, you made the bed
You will have to sleep in it.
Go away
You disgust me
Humans…..
And Satan
You won your bet
You damn Snake,
Mocking Faces Staring at Me written by: Jake Cosmos Aller
I grew up in Berkeley, California, and Washington DC, and went to College in Stockton, California. After college, lived five years in Korea as a Peace Corps volunteer and teaching ESL. I returned to the US to Seattle for graduate school. Afterward, I joined the Foreign Service where I lived and worked in over ten countries. I retired and lived in Korea and the west coast.
What is the greatest thing about the place you call home?
I live in Youngjando island, South Korea near the Incheon Airport. I live in a garden city. There is a magnificent park – the world peace forest behind my house and a nice mountain to hike in. Over three hundred restaurants are within walking distance of my house. There are five beaches ten minutes’ drive away, Incheon is nearby as is Seoul.
What turns you on creatively?
All my work starts with a dream. I don’t dream dreams; I dream movies, filled with action, sound, music, smells many times in a completely different world. I have been writing a dream journal for many years. I write five to ten dreams per day, saving them as stand-alone flash fiction, and also write one to ten poems per day.
What is your favorite word, and can you use it in a poetic sentence?
One of my favorite words is my portmanteau scumbaggery which I define as the actions of a ”Scumbag.”
The scumbaggery Of Texas Senator Ted Cruz Utterly confounds
What is your pet peeve?
Racism, sexism, homophobia, bigotry, right-wing nutcases, left-wing zealots, Christian holy rollers, gun violence, police misconduct, anti-Asian hate crimes, hate crimes, America Firsters, QAnon conspiracy theorists, neo-Nazis, White Supremacists, Proud Boys, Boogaloo Bois, and the Oath Keeper militia, etc. I don’t like ”gangsta rap,” “heavy metal,” or “country music.” Pragmatist and don’t care about ideological correctness.
What defines Jake Cosmos Aller?
Grew up in Berkeley and DC. Lived all over the world, visiting forty-five countries and all 50 states. Served my country as a foreign service officer, and Peace Corps volunteer and taught ESL and government overseas. But what is more important than anything is that I married the girl of my dreams who became my wife 40 years ago.
Dora The Intergalactic Explorer written by: Jake Cosmos Aller @Jakecaller Dora the intergalactic explorer Is traveling to the…
Dora the intergalactic explorer
Is traveling to the strangest planet
of all the known worlds
she is traveling incognito
with a video crew
making a documentary
the planet earth
is known as a planet
of intelligent monkeys
not much is known
about them
as very few
have ever been there
the inhabitants are described
as blood thirsty insane creatures
ruled by hidden sexual and political passions
following incomprehensible
religious dogmas following Gods
that clearly do not exist
the inhabitants are just on the verge
of developing intergalactic travel
and the galactic empire
is worried that they will be driven
to try to conquer the rest of the universe
driven by their needs to impose
their religious dogma
everywhere in the world
the planet is divided into large tribal groups
governed by corrupt elites
corrupt businesses destroying the planet
in pursuit of profit
and the locals are little more
than wage slaves
barely making a living
addicted to alcohol, drugs, gambling
pornography and illicit sex
and their main land
is ruled by a clearly delusional madman
intent on poking a fight
with all his alleged enemies
Dora assumed the appearance
of a character from TV
and will pose as a journalist
trying to make sense
of it all
but she was afraid
that she if found out
could face the worst consequence
her ship crash lands
and she is outside
the capitol
of the non empire empire
called the United States of America
Dora gets her crew together
and walks into the city
staring at all the strange sights
as the monkeys go about
their daily activities
she stops at a restaurant
tries the coffee
the chief drug of choice
and is instantly addicted
wow no wonder
these people are crazed
she tries the local booze
and smiles
perhaps she could
become an intergalactic merchant
introducing the world
to the galaxy
her thoughts are interrupted
as a mad man armed
with weapons of war
bursts in and starts shooting
yelling at people
and she is shot dead
the authorities
are shocked
when they recover the body
and realize
that she is not a human
as she reverts other original
form
sort of a giant feline like creature
two legs and arms
and clearly from an advanced
civilization given her gear
what was she doing
no one knew
as all the aliens
died in the gun blaze
the world is shocked
at what had happened
and fearful that the aliens
were coming to invade
their world
the galactic senate
decides to contain
the humans
declaring them
a threat to the global civilization
and the humans vow
to discover the secrets
of interstellar travel
and travel to her land
to enter into business arrangements
and spread the one truth faith
to the heathen space aliens
thus ended Dora’s excellent adventure
in the crazed world at the edge
of known civilization
Where is my home? Where do I belong?
I really don’t know, always moving on to another place
Moved every other year it seems the last 45 years
Traveled to 49 states, 45 countries, drove across the U.S. six times
Lived in Berkeley, Yakima, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, DC, Oregon, Korea, Thailand, India, The Eastern Caribbean, and Spain
Where do I belong? Where is my home?
Neither here nor there, nowhere and everywhere
And so is that my rambling man’s fate
Never to really belong anywhere at all
Bus Rides in America’s Underbelly written by: Jake Cosmos Aller the Bus – Travels Through America’s Underbelly I…
the Bus – Travels Through America’s Underbelly
I am a bus rider
That makes me unusual
For a white male
From an upper middle class family
Our people are not bus riders
Though some are subway riders
Bus riders are other people
The poor, minorities, immigrants
People who don’t drive
Because they are blind
Or have a DUI
And in my case
I don’t drive
Because I have bad vision
And bad coordination
Just never got the hang
Of the whole driving thing
Fortunately for me
My wife does the driving
But I still take the bus
From time to time
I rode the AC buses in Berkeley
As a child
Line 67, line 51, line 43 F bus
Rode them long before BART came along
And afterwards as well
As an adult seldom rode the bus
But when I did so
I was always impressed
By the sheer diversity
Of the bus riding property
Hundreds of languages
All sorts of sexual orientation
Some were white
Most were not
Most of my fellow passengers
Were nice enough
Some were friendly
And some were lost
In their own thoughts
And a few
Were scary looking dudes
With the look
Of someone who had done time
And were capable of more violence
I also rode the bus
In Seattle as a graduate student
A lot of fellow UW students
And the usual immigrants
Minorities etc
And some white people
Commuting
And in DC
Over the years
I rode a lot of buses
Mostly to and from the metro
But I got to know
And love the DC buses as well
I also took the greyhound bus
Across the country
Several times over the years
All over the U.S.
From Bay Area to Stockton
From Bay Area to Clear Lake
From Bay area to NYC
NYC to DC
All over the USA
Taking the Greyhound
Was always an adventure
Met a lot of interesting people
As people on long distant bus rides
Tend to open up and talk
To pass the time away
Overseas I took the bus
All over
In India, in Barbados
In Spain and in Korea
The Korean buses
For many years
Were difficult for foreign visitors
As the signs were all in Korean
Most have signs
Now in English, Chinese and Korean
And are much more foreigner friendly
Riding the bus
In America
Allows one access
To the underbelly of American society
The poor, the marginalized
The immigrant communities
That many middle-class white people
Just never see
And for that reason
I am glad
That I am a bus rider
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:
Based on my experiences riding the bus all over the world from 1968 to 2018.
The End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Hi there from Down in the Dirt (this letter is being mailed from a bulk email alternative email address – all inquiries about Down in the Dirt should not reply to this email, but continue to be sent to Down in the Dirt <dirt@scars.tv>). We wanted to let you know that Scars Publications released a collection book of the May-August 2021 issues from Down in the Dirt magazine. Since your material (writing/artwork) APPEARS in these issues, that means your material appears in this issue collection book, and we wanted to let you know about this brand-new issues collection book is titled “Lockdown’s Over”!
Links to see all of the Down in the Dirt writings in “Lockdown’s Over”: http://scars.tv/2021May-August-issue-collection-book/Lockdowns_Over.htmAnd you can find this book any time at Scars in MULTIPLE locations. Now it is linked on the main page at http://scars.tv, and it appears at the top of the list of choices on the books link (one click away from the main page, or also directly at http://scars.tv/books/) as well as at the top of the “CD Books Sale” link (direct link http://scars.tv/sale/) at Scars!Also, by the end of the business week this week, the database with your accepted writings should also (when you go to your accepted writings) have a link to this collection book that your writing is in, so people can find links to this collection book on your writing pages in the writings section of http://scars.tv (at http://scars.tv/cgi-bin/framesmain.pl?writers)...
Links for ordering this collection book appear on all of the links above, and will also appear in the writings section too, so any of your writing in this collection book will also see a link to this collection book in the writings section too!
Currently, these books are available directly through the Amazon affiliate printer in the U.S., the U.K., and to Europe – and even to Japan and Australia, and it ships to India too! (the above link is for U.S. orders.)
So check out the Scars Publication links to see what material of yours appears in these collection books, and if you’d like, order a copy today (I hear they make great gifts!), and again, thank you for being a part of the Down in the Dirt community!
I have a small request to make. I want to expand my followers on all my platforms. So if you have not signed up yet for this blog, or followed me on intraframe, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, or Bloglovin or listened to my podcast on Spotify please do so now.
Hi there… You are getting this letter because you are a contributor to
the current issue of Down in the Dirt magazine (with writing or art), and
we wanted to let you know that the brand-new issue of Down in the Dirt was
just released! The new issue of the June 2021 issue Down in the Dirt is
v184, titled “Sprung from Grief”!
Now, there are a bunch of ways you can see this issue online. You can go
to the main scars page at http://scars.tv and see it not only in the text
listing but also as one of the cover images on the main page (right
frame). You can also go to the home page of Down in the Dirt at http://scars.tv/dirt and click on the “see the current issue” link – and
you can even go to the link for ALL of the issues and see this issue
linked right at the top of the listing.
Currently, this issue is available not only online but also available as
the print issue for sale through all of the amazon channels throughout the
The United States, the U.K., and Europe. Find it at http://scars.tv (at the
issue link, the links at this issues page AND the main page) – and the
books link at http://scars.tv/books and the CD/Book Sale page at http://scars.tv/sale will all have links to ordering the book through
Amazon (though the scars site will only list it through the U.S. Amazon
links).
And if you look at any writing by any writer IN this issue in the writings
section of http://scars.tv at http://scars.tv/cgi-bin/framesmain.pl?writers you will see links to the
Internet (web page) issue (and eventually to the print issue of this
magazine too).
In the meantime, we hope you enjoy the new issue – and thank you for being
a part of the Down in the Dirt community!
Hi there… You are getting this letter because you are a contributor to
the current issue of cc&d magazine (with writing or art), and we wanted to
let you know that the brand-new issue of cc&d has just been released! The June
2021 issue of cc&d is the 28th-anniversary issue, v310, titled
“Falling”! We hope you like the issue…
Now, there are a bunch of ways you can see this issue online. You can go
to the main scars page at http://scars.tv and see it not only in the text
listing but also as one of the cover images on the main page (right
frame). You can also go to the home page of cc&d at http://scars.tv/ccd and
Click on the “see the current issue” link – and you can even go to the
link for ALL of the issues and see this issue linked right at the top of
the listing.
Currently, this issue is available not only online but also available as
the print issue for sale through all of the amazon channels throughout the
The United States, the U.K., and Europe. Find it at http://scars.tv (at the
issue link, the links at this issues page AND the main page) – and the
books link at http://scars.tv/books and the CD/Book Sale page at http://scars.tv/sale will all have links to ordering the book through
Amazon (though the scars site will only list it through the U.S. Amazon
links).
And if you look at any writing by any writer IN this issue in the writings
section of http://scars.tv at http://scars.tv/cgi-bin/framesmain.pl?writers you will see links to the
Internet (web page) issue and to the print issue of this magazine too.
In the meantime, we hope you enjoy the new issue and thank you for being
a part of the cc&d community!
NEW TO SCARS: BRAND NEW MAGAZINE ISSUES! The cc&d v310 June 2021 28th anniversary issue/book “Falling” and the Down in the Dirt v184 June 2021 issue/book “Sprung from Grief” are now available — so check out these brand new magazine issues online AND as perfect-bound paperback books!
Enjoy the Scars Publications 2020 anthology collection books — Scars released anthology collection books to show off 2020 writings and artwork, like the flash fiction collection book “2020 in a Flash” with selected flash fiction and art, and the 2020 poetry collection book “inside the box” with selected 2020 poems and art, and the 2020 short story collection book “Vote Early, Read Often” with selected 2020 short stories and art. Anthology collection books contain writing and art from accepted material in 2020 issues of cc&d magazine and Down in the Dirt, and collection books like this are truly a one-of-a-kind anthology — any collection book is also perfect to order for yourself or a gift!
Order a 2021 January-April MAGAZINE ISSUE ANTHOLOGY BOOK today! Pick up a copy of the 420-page “Excerpts from the Plague Years” from Down in the Dirt, and order a copy of the 424-page cc&d issue collection book “What Lies on the Other Side”, both mammoth collections of brand-new issues — because an issue anthology book is a great way to get several magazine issues altogether in a great volume set! Pick up a copy today!
Check out the BRAND NEW books released recently, including the new poetry book “Saints and Sinners” by Kenneth DiMaggio, three short-story horror books marking the LAST books Scars Publications will EVER produce by Christopher E Ellington, titled “Tartarus Sauce”, “Valkyrie Elieson”, and “Gehenna Shampoo”. Peruse GREAT poetry books like “Broken Music” of poetry and short stories by Drew Marshall, and two volumes perfect for the entire year: “Every Event of the Year (Volume one: January-June)” and “Every Event of the Year(Volume Two: July-December)” — at 220 and 286 pages of poetry in 7½” x 9¼” books for holidays & events from each half of the calendar year. Check out “Kidnapped” by Rochelle Lynn Holt — and remember that you can always check the books listing for a complete and up-to-date listing of books released, or check out the CD / Books sale page for a sorted listing of the book too…
If you’re looking for your video fix, you can always check out the regularly updated Scars Video page at the art villa (highlighting videos of recent performances)! And don’t forget, you can also check out all past videos (through “scars girl” Janet Kuypers) at YouTube, Facebook, or Twitter any time!
20210415 Scars just published a Down in the Dirt issue collection book with material from you!
Hi there from Down in the Dirt – we wanted to let you know that Scars
Publications released a collection book of the January-April 2021 issues
from Down in the Dirt magazine. Since your material (writing/artwork)
APPEARS in these issues, that means your material appears in this issue
collection book, and we wanted to let you know about this brand-new issues
collection book is titled “Excerpts from the Plague Years”!
And you can find this book any time at Scars in MULTIPLE locations. Now it
is linked on the main page at http://scars.tv, and it appears at the top
of the list of choices on the books link (one click away from the main
page, or also directly at http://scars.tv/books/) as well as at the top of
the “CD Books Sale” link (direct link http://scars.tv/sale/) at Scars!
Also, by the end of the business week this week, the database with your
accepted writings should also (when you go to your accepted writings) have
a link to this collection book that your writing is in, so people can find
links to this collection book on your writing pages in the writings
section of http://scars.tv (at http://scars.tv/cgi-bin/framesmain.pl?writers)...
Links for ordering this collection book appears on all of the links above,
and will also appear in the writings section too, so any of your writing
in this collection book will also see a link to this collection book in
the writings section too!
Currently these books are available directly through the Amazon affiliate
printer in the U.S., the U.K. and to Europe – and even to Japan and
Australia, and it ships to India too! (the above link is for U.S. orders.)
So check out the Scars Publication links to see what material of yours
appears in these collection books, and if you’d like, order a copy today
(I hear they make great gifts!), and again, thank you for being a part of
the Down in the Dirt community!
If you for any reason have difficulty sending emails to this address, you
can (in emergencies only) send your questions/emails to Janet Kuypers
through facebook, or directly to janetkuypers at gmail dot com.
Enjoy the 2021 magazine collection book from Scars Publications and Down in the Dirt magazine, with the January-April 2021 magazine issues titled “Excerpts from the Plague Years”.
The author names in this listing appear as they are listed in magazine issue/books. For writings that appear in issues, the titles of their writing do not appear on this web page, but all of the names are linked to the individual issue/book that actually contains the material.
To know exactly what is included in this collection book, view the listing below. All author entries are listed in this collection book as they are listed in magazine issue/books.
April 30 In Search of America 1975 – Hitch hiking Tales
hitchhikers
When I was young and foolish
Broke and stubborn
I hitchhiked across the USA
Started in Salt Lake City
Where my greyhound bus pass
Was stolen
The station manager
Could have helped me
But refused to do so
Threaten to call the cops
When I grabbed my bags Without the stolen tags
I said
Go ahead
But I am so out of here
Wondered about Salt Lake City
Went to a bar
Found I had to buy my booze
Next door
And they would mix it for me
Had to order food too
After a bloody Mary
And a burger
I walked about town
Saw the Mormon Temple
Finally about 3 pm
It was time to hit the road
Did not look back
Ended up in Cody Wyoming
Got a room shower
Steak beer
Using my rapidly depleted cash Spent 25 dollars
Money really went far
Back in those days
A band of professional
Communist agitators
Gave me a ride
To Des Moines
Lots of weed, booze
And politics later
Got off the road
Slept outside
Next day
A beautiful woman
Drove me to near Chicago
In a red mustang
Might have been
The girl in the song
Took it easy
Digging her vibe
She invited home
But was not sure
If her estranged husband
Would welcome me
So, I am being foolish
And inexperienced with women
Did not go to her place
And always regretted
That I had lost
My chance that day
Then on to Chicago
Several rides later
Visited friends
Hit the road again
A series of uneventful rides
With truckers
And others
And a week later
I ended in New York City
Slept along the way
In cars
In truck stops
In high way rest stops
Always moving
Always going
Non stop talking
And lots of free weed
And beer
And conversation
One more memorable ride
Occurred outside Albany
On my return to Chicago
A middle age creepy looking man
Picked me up
In a brand-new Cadillac
He was he said a dynamite deliverer
For the Mafia
Went to various places
To blow up shit
He hated a lot of people
Particularly hippies from California
And Jewish people
Looking at me to confirm
That I was both
I told him that I lived in New York
And had never been to California
And although I might have looked Jewish
As I what was called back in the day
A “Jewfro”
I was not Jewish
Many years later I discovered
That I am indeed part Jewish
But then I did not know
And I felt a bit of strategic information
Might keep me alive
Then I realized that he was just jiving with me
And we relaxed
And he pulled out some weed
And beer
And we mellowed out
But I believe that he really was with the mob
Perhaps not a dynamite dealer
A real made Italian made mafia member
By Chicago
I had enough
I called my Dad
Told him what had happened
Wanted a ticket home
And he sent me a ticket
And 500 dollars
And I went home
I told him I would tell him
My tales some day
But never did
I learned so much
About my fellow Americans
And the strange vibe
That was 1975
And now it is too late
But I wanted to finally
Tell the world
While reading Charles Bukowski poetry
On the metro ride home
Listening to Buddha bar music
On my oh too hip IPod
I begin to see myself as I was
Over 30 years ago when I was merely a bit player
A minor character in a Charles Bukowski poem
A wild young underemployed intellectual
Hanging out in dismal bars and dives all over Asia and California
Hanging with disreputable women and drunks and drinkers
And characters out of his kinds of haunts
A mad poet bard of the underground
A drunken poet in a drunken bum show
That nightly played in his head
Then one day I met the women of my dreams
And went down a different path
A long slow path to respectability
And now 30 years later
I am no longer a wild man
I am still a poet at heart
But I am now also a bureaucrat
In a button down suite
Doing the people’s business
Working for the Government
I’ve become the Man
Sometimes I wonder
Would I have been better off
Going down that another path
Would I have ended up
Somewhere else
Doing something else
Would I have been as happy
Would I have been as successful?
There is no answer that satisfies
The longing in my heart
For that wild thing
That still lurks beneath
It’s civilized cover
And I know that I am still
A mad poet at heart
Railing against the injustice of the world
As I work day by day in the belly of the great beast of State
I recall the ancient Chinese saying,
“Confucian during the day while Taoist rebel at night”
Playing out in my head and nightly dreams
In the true American Upper class patrician tradition
I close the book and look out the window
Get off the train, and walk slowly home
And realize I had no choice
But to take the path that I’ve trodden on
And so I put aside my misgivings
And say goodbye to my “Bukowskian”desires
For another night of domestic contentment
Was it worth it all to take the conventional path
And not take the bohemian road to hell and back
I look at my wife and realize
I had no choice, had no choice
But to follow her to the ends of the earth
And beyond by her side as we walked our path
Of shared destiny
Goodbye Charles Bukowski wherever you are
May I meet you in a bar in the next life
And figure out where we should have gone
I like to start my day with a hot cup of coffee
I pound down the coffee
First thing I do every day as the dawning sun
Lights up my lonesome room
Yeah, but not just a simple cup of java Joe, but a God damn snarling sarcastic smarmy cup of coffee
I mean, – we are talking about an alcoholic, all speed ahead, always hot, always fresh, always there when I need it, angry, attitude talk to the hand Ztude, bad, bad assed, beats breaking, beatnik, bluesy, bitter, bitchy, bombs away, capitalistic, caffeinated up the ass, cinematic, communistic, Colombian grown, Costa Rican inspired, Cowabunga to the max, crazy assed, devilishly angelic, divine, divinely inspired, dyslexic, epic, extreme vetting, evil eye, expensive, erotic vision inducing, Ethiopian coffee house brewed, euphoric, freaky, freazoid, foxy, Frenched kissed, French brewed, funkified, foxy lady, graphic, GOD in my coffee, with Allah, Ganesh, Jesus, Kali, Buddha, Christians, Durga, Hindus, Mohamed, Jesus and Mo and their friend, the cosmic bar maid, Sai Babai, Shiva, Taoists, Zoroastrians, drinking my god damned coffee in Hell; growling, gnarly, happy, hard as ice, Hawaian blessed, high as a kite, hippie, hip, hipster, hip hoppy, hot as hell yet strangely sweet as heaven, jazzy, jealous, Kerouac approved, kick ass, kick my god damn ass to Tuesday, kick down the doors and take no prisoners, grown in the Vietnam highlands by ex-Vietcong, Guatemalan grown, kiss ass, illegal in every state, imported from all over the god damn world, insane, lovely, loony, lonely, lonesome, malodorous mean old rotten, motherfucking, nasty, narcotic, never whatever, never meh, never cold, not approved by the CIA, not approved by DHS, not approved for human consumption by the FDA, not your daddy’s sissified corporate cup of coffee, NOT DECAFE coffee, not your Denny’s truck driver weak as brown water cup of fake coffee, not your establishment friendly cup of coffee, Not your FBI coffee, Not FAKE Herbal coffee substitute, but a real cup of coffee, not your farmer brothers dinner crap, not made in America for Americans, not safe for work, not your Starbucks average expensive overpriced crappy corporate chain cup of coffee, Not pretentious, Not White House approved, not State Department safe, nuclear, Not Patriotic, operatic, Peets’s coffee approved, paranoid, pornographic, psychotic, pontific, politically aware, rapping, rhyming, right here, right now in River city, rock and roll up the Yazoo, sad, sadistic, sarcastic, sassy, satanic, schizoid, shitting, silly, sexy, smarmy, smelly, smooth, snarky, snarling, stupid, stinking, sweet as honey, sweat inducing, symphonic, Trump can’t handle this coffee, vengeful, Wagnerian, wicked, with nutmeg and cinnamon swirls, with a hint of stevia, with a hint of vanilla, with a hint of rum, with a hint of whisky, with a hint of cherry, with a hint of fruit overtones, with a hint of drugs spicing up the coffee, spendific, speeding, splendid, superior accept no substitutes, survived the Vietnam war, the Iraq war, the Afghan war, the first and Second Korean war, World War 11, the war on poverty, the war on drugs, the war on black people, the sexual revolution, Soulful as a summer’s night in MOTOWN- James Brown approved, TOP approved, Berkeley approved, the coffee that Jimmy Hendrix drank before he died, the coffee that Elvis drank on his last breakfast, the coffee that Barry White crooned as he drank his cup of coffee – and the coffee that made the white boy play stand up and play that funky music, the coffee that made Jonny B Goode play his guitar, and made Jonny bet the devil his soul after he drank his morning cup of righteous coffee and the coffee that make the Rolling Stones Rock and Roll, the coffee your mother warned you against drinking, the coffee that Napoleon drank when he became the Emperor of all Europe, the Coffee that Beethoven drank when he wrote the Ninth symphony, the coffee that Mozart drank as he wrote his last symphony, the coffee that Lincoln drank before he was killed, the Hemingway drank before he killed himself, the coffee that started the 60’s, and ended the 20th century, the coffee that Lenin drank as he plotted revolution, the coffee that Hitler and Stalin drank with FDR as they divided up the world after World War 11, the cup that JFK drank before he was blown away, the coffee Jerry drinks while driving in cars with random celebrities and political figures, the coffee that Jon Stewart drinks before he goes on an epic take down of some foolish politico, the cup of Arabic coffee that Sadaam drank the day he was executed, the coffee that GW and Cheney drank when they bombed Baghdad, the Indian cup of coffee that Bid Laden drank before 9-11 and just before the seals blew his ass to hell, the cup of coffee that Tiger Woods drank with his mistresses while playing a 3, 000 dollar round of golf at Sandy Lane golf course in Barbados, the last legal drug that does what drugs should do, the cup of coffee that Obama drank when he became President, Vietnamese, Vienna brew, wacky, whimsical, Whisky Tango Foxtrot, wild, weird, wonderful, WOW, Yabba dabba doo! Yada Yada yada Zappa’s favorite cup of cosmic coffee, and Zorro’s last cup of coffee, Good to the last drop rolled into one simple cup of hot coffee
As I pound down that first cup of coffee
And fire up my synaptic nerve endings with endless supplies
Of caffeine induced neuron enhancing chemicals
I face the dawning day with trepidation and mind-numbing fear
I turn on the TV and watch the smarmy newscasters in their perfect hair
Lying through their teeth about the great success the government is having Following the great leader’s latest pronouncements
I want to scream and shoot the TV and run out side Shouting
“Stop the world.
I want to get off this fucking crazy planet”
The earth does not care a whit about my attitude
It merely shrugs and moves around the Sun
In its appointed daily run
And I sit down
The madness dissipating a bit
And enjoy my second cup
Of heaven and hell
In my morning cup of Joe
On the night of the blood-red super full moon
I sat in an evil, depraved godforsaken bar
Drinking drams of demented, fermented dream dew
Washed down by endless rounds of whiskey
rum, tequila, vodka, soju and of course beer
drinking with my buddies the Jack Daniels Gang
Drinking my way to Hell and beyond
Just as fast as I could
twenty damn drinks too sober
Just an unhinged lunatic
Dreaming of howling at the full moon
Watching the world walk by
Looking at all the fine-looking babes
Walking by the street
Thinking wild, erotic thoughts
Of endless wild libertine passions
When into the bar
That din of cosmic depravity
Walked the most beautiful women
In the Universe
So wild, so free
So wonderfully alive
I did not know what to do
As this vision of delight
Sauntered through the bar
In a skin-tight leather pant
Looked so fine
That my eyeballs hurt
And finally, I had to say something
So, I gathered up my manly courage
And walked up to her
And she looked at me
And instantly bewitched my soul
With a devilish grin
I lost all reason
And became a raving lunatic
Unhinged lunatic
Howling at the blood red full moon
Foaming at the mouth
A wild, free werewolf
Howling at the lunatic light
Of the blood red blue full Moon
Charles Bukowski Road Not Chosen
And Other Poems
By Jake Cosmos Aller
Published in Down in the Dirt
Charles Bukowski Road Not Chosen
John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller
While reading Charles Bukowski poetry On the metro ride home Listening to Buddha bar music On my oh too hip IPod
I begin to see myself as I was Over 30 years ago when I was merely a bit player A minor character in a Charles Bukowski poem
A wild young underemployed intellectual Hanging out in dismal bars and dives all over Asia and California Hanging with disreputable women and drunks and drinkers And characters out of his kinds of haunts
A mad poet bard of the underground A drunken poet in a drunken bum show That nightly played in his head
Then one day I met the women of my dreams And went down a different path A long slow path to respectability
And now 30 years later I am no longer a wild man I am still a poet at heart But I am now also a bureaucrat In a button down suite
Doing the people’s business Working for the Government I’ve become the Man
Sometimes I wonder Would I have been better off Going down that another path
Would I have ended up Somewhere else Doing something else
Would I have been as happy Would I have been as successful?
There is no answer that satisfies The longing in my heart For that wild thing That still lurks beneath It’s civilized cover
And I know that I am still A mad poet at heart Railing against the injustice of the world
As I work day by day in the belly of the great beast of State I recall the ancient Chinese saying, “Confucian during the day while Taoist rebel at night” Playing out in my head and nightly dreams In the true American Upper class patrician tradition
I close the book and look out the window Get off the train, and walk slowly home
And realize I had no choice But to take the path that I’ve trodden on
And so I put aside my misgivings And say goodbye to my “Bukowskian”desires For another night of domestic contentment
Was it worth it all to take the conventional path And not take the bohemian road to hell and back
I look at my wife and realize I had no choice, had no choice But to follow her to the ends of the earth
And beyond by her side as we walked our path Of shared destiny
Goodbye Charles Bukowski wherever you are May I meet you in a bar in the next life And figure out where we should have gone
In the fall weather As I walk amid the falling leaves I see the signs everywhere
Of the fall of America The once great and mighty Empire Everywhere signs of the fall appear
The dark skies mirror The darkness that settled over our land
Death, destruction and random acts of chaos Are all around us Surrounding us with visions of doom
Nothing can stop the bloodletting No one seems to be in charge
As the leaves fall And the darkness descends The fall of America continues
My Name Is Nobody
John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller
My name, it is Nobody No one cares who I am I am just a nameless clone In the cold unfeeling bureaucracy
Just one of the army Of civilians who flood into and out of the city Every day
A non-entity, A ghost A govbot A cyber A spook A faceless automan A bureaucrat
Just a grey suited cog in the machinery And no one cares No one knows who I really am
And I am legend Everywhere and nowhere
Just the way this modern world All shred of humanity Crushed beneath the cruel wheel of society
In the cold harsh world There is no room anymore For true human feelings
We are just robots, clones, machines And so I go to work Put on my mask
And no one hears my inner screams And no one will ever care
Strangeness in the Air
John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller
There is a strangeness in the air A sense of cosmic unease Hangs silently in the purple crystalline sky
America woke up And decided it was time To quit following like lemmings Over the Clift
As the pied piper chants Stay the course, stay the course We were like lemmings following him Dying to save his wounded pride
Today there is that strange difference In the air As Americans woke up And threw off their chains of fear
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
I will year try to finish reading classic books. I have a collection from Kindle of 50 books to read before you die, in three volumes – 15O books in total see list below. I have read many of them already which I have noted. As I read them, I will add them to the chronological listing below.
The List
The List
Best American Poetry 2018
Allison Adair Miscarriage
Kaveh Akbar Against Dying
Julia Alvarez American Dream
David Barber Sherpa Song
AR Amnov Finishing Up
Andrew Bertaina A Translator’s Note
Frank Bidart Mourning What We Thought We Were
Bruce Bond Anthem
George Bradley Those Were the Days
Joyce Clement Birds Punctuate the Days
Brennan Constantine The Opposite Games
Marianne Cobbett Prayer Concerning the New More Accurate Translation of Certain Prayers
Robert Cording Toast to My Dead Parents
Cynthia Cruz Artaud
Dick Davis A Personal Sonnet
Warren Decker Today’s Special
Susan De Sola the Wives of The Poets
Dante De Stefano Reading Dostoyevsky At 17
Nausheen Eusuf Pied Beauty
Jonathan Galasso Oriental Epithalamion
Jessica Goodfellow Test
Sonia Greenfield Ghost Ship
Joy Harjo an American Sunrise
Terrance Hayes American Sonnet from My Past and Future Assassins
Ernest Hilbert Mars Ultor
Nemo Hill the View from The Bar
Tony Hoagland Into the Mystery
Anna Maria Hong Yonder a Rental
Paul Hoover, I Am the Size of What I see
Maria Howe Walking Home
Mandy Kahn Ives
Ilya Kaminski, We Lived Happily During the War
Stephan Kampa The Quiet Boy
Denika Kelly Love Poem Chimera
Mary Jo Salter We Will Always Have Parents
Jason Schneiderman Voxel
Nicole Sealy Violence
Michael Schumacher Advent
Carmen Gimenez Smith Dispatch from Midlife
Tracy K Smith an Old Story
Gary Snyder Why California Will Never Be Like Tuscany
An E Stallings Pencil
Anne Stevenson How Poems Arrive
Adriene Su Substitutions
Natasha Trethewey Shooting Wild
Agniezeku Tworek Grief Runs Untamed
Waldrep Dear Office in Which I Must Account for Tears
Wang Ping Lao Jia
James Matthew Wilson on A Palm
Ryan Wilson Face It
Best American Poetry 2017
Christian Wiman Assembly
Dan Allerbotti Weapons Exchange Report
David Barber on A Shaker Admonition
Dan Beachy-Quick Apophatic
Bruce Bond Homage to a Painter of Small Things
John Brennan Intrigue in The Trees
John Ashbery Commotion of Birds
Jericho Brown Bullet Points
Nicole Brown The Dead
Cyrus Cassells Elegy with A Gold Cradle
Isaac Cates Fidelity and The Dead Singer
Allison Cobb, I Forgive You
Leonard Cohen Steer Your Way
Michael Collier a Wild Tom Turkey
Billy Collins Presence
Carl Dennis Two Lives
Katia Claudia Emerson Spontaneous Emission
David Feinstein Kaddish
Carolyn Fouche The Boatman
Viva Francis Given to Those proclivities By God
Amy Gerstler Dead Butterfly
Reginald Gibbons Canasta
Margaret Given Passage
Aracelis Girmay From the Black Maria
Jeffrey Harrison Higher Education
Terrace Hayes Ars Poetica with Bacon
RJ Herbert Mounting the Dove Box
Tony Hoagland Cause of Death Fox News
John Hogan Hamlet Texts Guildenstern About Paying Upon the Pipe
David Brendan Hopes Certain Things
Major Jackson Trends a Well Light Summer Cocktail
John James History
Rodney Jones Homecoming
Fatty Judah Progress Notes
Meg Kearney Crackle
John Koethe the Age of Anxiety
Yusef Komunyakaa from the last bohemian of Avenue A
Danusha Lammers The Watch
Jordan Laux Lapse
Phillip Le Van Rain in Winter
Amit Majumdar Kill List
Jamal May Things That Break
Judson Mitchem White
John Murillo Upon reading that Eric Dolphy transcribed Even the calls of certain species of birds
Joyce Carol Oates to Marlon Brando in Hell
Sharon Olds Ode to The Glands
Matthew Bozeman Letter Beginning with Two Lines by Czeslaw Milosz
Gregory Orr Three Dark Proverb Sonnets
Carl Phillips Rockabye
Rowan Picado Phillips Halo
Robin Robert Pinksy Names
Stanley Plumly Poliomyelitis
Paisley Rekdal Assemblage of ruined Plane Parts Vietnam Military Museum
Michael Ryan the Mercy Home
David St John Emanations
Cheryl Santos, I Went for A Walk in Winter
Taiji Silverman Where to Put It
Charles Simic Seeing Things
Danny Smith Last Summer of Innocence
Maggie Smith Good Bones
RT Smith Maricon
RE Stallings Shattered
Pamela Sutton Afraid to Pray
Chase Twitchell Sad Song
James Valvis Something
Emily Van Kley Dear Skull
Wendy Videlock Deconstruction
Lucy Waigner Scheherazade
Crystal Williams Double Helix
Christian Wiman Prelude
Monica Yoan Green acre
C Dale Young Precatico Simplex
Dean Young Infinitives
Kevin Young Money Road
Matthew Zapruder Poem for Vows
Best American Poetry 2019
Dilruba Ahmed Phase One
Rosa Alclad You and The Raw Bullets
Margaret Atwood Updates on Werewolves
Catherine Barnett Center Park
Joshua Bennett America Will Be
Fleda Brown Afternoons on The Lake
Sumitra Chakraborty Essay on Joy
Victoria Chung Six Orbits
Glen Chan, I Invite My Parents to A Dinner Party
Leonard Cohen, I Drank a Lot
Laura Cronk Like a Cat
Kate Daniels Metaphor Less
Carol Dennis Armed Neighbor
Tori Derricotte Apology to The Reader
Thomas Devaney Brilliant Corners
Natalie Diaz Skin- Light
Jean Dominique Duryer Declined in The Adoration of Jack in The Pulpits
Martin Espada, I Now Pronounce You Dead
Nausheen Eusurf The Analytic Hour
Vievere Francis Cazonian Blue Than Bluer
Gabriela García Guantanamera
Amy Gerstler Update
Camila Guthrie Virgil
Yona Harvey Dark and Lonely After Takeoff A Future
Robert Hass Dancing
Terrance Hayes American Silent My Past and Future Assassin
Juan Felipe Herrera Roll Under the Waves
Edward Hirsch Stranger by Night
Jane Hershfield Ledger
James Hock Sunflowers
Bob Homan All Praise Cecil Taylor
Garrett Hongo The Brothers Cassia
Ishion Hutchison Sympathy of a Clear Day
Major Jackson in Memory of Derek Alton Walcott
Ilya Kaminski from testament
Ruth Ellen Kocher We May No Longer Considered the End
Deborah Landau Soft Targets
Quraysh Ali Lansana Higher Calling
Li-Young Lee the Undressing
David Lehman, It Could Happen to You
Ada Limon Cannibal Women
Rebecca Lynn Berry a Brief History of The Future Apocalypse
Nubile Lovelace the S in I Love You Porgy
Clarence Major Hair
() Gail Mazur At a Lands End
() Shane Mcrae The President Visits the Storm
() Jeffrey Mcdonald Fired from A Parallel World
() Campbell Mcgrath Gray Miles Davis Birth of The Cool at The Founding in Brasilia
Ange Milinko Sleepwalking in Venice
Kamela Aisha Moon
The Last of England
Paul Moulton Aubade
John Murio on Confessionalism
Naomi Shihab Nye My Own State Department
Sharon Olds Rasputin Aria
Michael Palmer Nord-Sur
Morgan Parker The Black Saint, And the Sinner Lady, The Dead, and The Truth
William Perdomo Head Crack Head Crack
Carl Philip Star Map with Action Figures
Ishmael Reed Just Rolling Along
Paisley Rekdal Four Marys
Sonia Sanchez Belly, Buttons and Straight Spines
Nicole Santalucia #Me Too
Philip Schultz Encore
Jane Shore Who Knows One
The Greatest Personal Privation
Ae Stallings Harms Way
Arthur Sze The White Orchard
Natasha Trethewey Through Her a Duty
Ocean Voong Partly True Phone Reflecting in A Mirror
David Wojahn Still Life Stevens Wallet and Key West Hotel Dresser
Kevin Young High
In the following poems, poets use different types of imagery to express their concepts.
Visual imagery …
Blazing in Gold and Quenching in Purple
by Emily Dickinson
Glass by Robert Francis Writing com
Blue Winter by Robert Francis Writing com
encounter writing com
Where I Belong – Contest winner Feb 24, 2021, writing com
Edna St. Vincent Millay -Pastoral writing com
Lorraine Marguerite Gasrel Black -Pastoral Rhapsody writing com
Daniel Miltz -Pastoral Day writing com
Henry Kirke White -A Pastoral Songwriting com
Carl Sandberg Passers-By
Poetry Corner, writing com Poetry corner
Randall Jarrell The Olive Garden Writing com poetry
Randall Jarrell the Breath of Night Writing com poetry
Randal Jarrell the Orient Express Writing com poetry
Abdul Ala armada Rafi I poem Friend, this world is like an unburied corpse
Ali Ahmad Saeed poem
Alton David translation of a man and a woman white
Andre Breton Man and Woman Absolutely White
Mary Bernard, translation of Sofia he is more than a hero
Ingeborg Bachman poem
Anne Bradstreet letter to her husband 1650 first Published woman poet in the US
Willis Barnstone translation of mother’s song if snow
Charles Bernstein writing exercises
William Blake Sick Rose
Elizabeth Browning Sonnets from the Portuguese #43 how Do I love Thee
Elizabeth Bishop one art Britain
Andre Carter Stephen D translation lady is shichimi if someone would come
William Barnstone she is at island me turn off
Maxine Chernoff writing exercises
Chilam Balam poem
Chiyo various lines
William Corbett Vermont Apollinaire
Robert Creely the business
EE Cummings In Jest
Bel Dao Listen, I Don’t Believe Chinese poet mid-20th century
David Wagner lines and since a call since Elam since summer
Thomas Campion When to her lute Corinna sings
Jon Donne Holly Sonnet 14
Lucile Clifton, I don’t know how to do
Emily Dickinson lines and poems 214
Emily Dickinson poem 262
Emily Dickinson poem 640
Emily Dickinson poem 986
Emily Dickinson poem 1732
Enhenduanna The Exaltation of Inanna, antiphonal Hymns Praise of Inanna
Egyptian Poem, untitled
Fanny Howe About Face
Imr El Quais The Great Ode
Elaine Feinstein excerpt from translation Marina TSvetayeva poems of the end Lawrence Ferlinghetti excerpt from constantly risking absurdity Coney Island of the mind
Donald Finkel excerpt from a translation of Bel Dao
Roberts Elizabeth silent poems
Frances Kathleen vanishing point third black quartet from Wayne
Robert Frost Nothing Gold can stay
Robert Clark translation departure by Pierre Reverdy
Jorie Graham In what matter is the body united with the soul
Barbara Guest Lines from red lilies
HD Dread
HD Sea Rose
HD Oread
Allen Hibbert translation of Adonis desire moving through the Maps of the material
Ronald Hoffman excerpt from deceptively like a solid
Kelly Holt writing exercises
Bible, Ecclesiastes for everything there is a season
Homer Odyssey
Homer Iliad
Edward Arlington Robinson Richard Corey
Fanny Howe About Face
George Herbert Death
Linda jarkesy the bed
John K
Randall Jarred the death of the Bell turret gunner
John Keats The Eve of St Agnes
Lao Tzu Rule a Large Nation
DH Lawrence Bavarian Gentians
LiPo Moonlight Pools
Liu Tsung-yuan From One thousand mountains
Audre Lorde lines from coal
Hugh MacDiarmid Another epitaph on the army of mercenaries
Jackson Mac Lou excerpt from antic quartans
Omar Khayyam Rubaiyat excerpt
Alexander Pope Essay on Criticism
Bernadette Mayer writing exercises
WS Merwin excerpts from leviathan
Pablo Neruda leaning into afterworlds
Pablo Neruda and walking around
John Milton excerpts from Allegro
John Milton excerpts from paradise lost
Mariana Moore experts from the monkeys
Laura Moriarty the mouth
Bridge Mullins writing exercises
Ellen Myles honey bear
Lorraine Niedecker now in one year
Charles North excerpt from shooting for line
George Oppen excerpt from psalm
Dorothy Parker resume
Bob Pearlman speaker vibrates through the entire house after from AK
Ezra Pound in a station in the Metro
David Ray translation lines from Chiyo
Kenneth Rexroth translation of Midnight songs
Pierre Reverdy Departure
Christopher Sawyer Le is More Than an Hericenone translation Flight of the Itza
Dominion Searls translation of a kind of loss
Shelly Love Philosophy 19th Century
Sappho He is more than a Hero
Jack Spicer lines for imaginary elegies part 1-111
John Tipane translation Abu Hamza al online from this world
Dante in the middle of the road
Anonymous Egyptian poem only one matchless sister
manioc If snow falls on the left field
Issa Morning
Beowulf soon saw
Homer then wide ruling Agamemnon
Homer infinite terror
Homer wars spears
Imr El Qis here was the place I watched her
Arthur Rimbaud Bateau Ivre if I desire
Arthur Rimbaud memory
Arthur Rimbaud longing for young arms
Rig Veda there was no such things
Sappho the moon has set
Charles Thomasson lines from Mr. Birdy
David Trinidad monster mash
TS Elliot Excerpt from the Wasteland
Mariana Tsvetanyana Poem of the End
Alfred Tennyson Now Sleep the Crimson Petal
Anne Waldman excerpt for Iovis 19
William Carlos Williams except for the descent
Walt Whitman excerpts from Leaves of Grass
William Butler Yeats the second coming
William Wordsworth the Solitary Reaper
Louis Zukofsky in Arizona from 729 songs
Richard Lovelace 17th Century British Poet, “To Lucasta, Going to War”
Geoffrey Chaucer 1400 Call complaint to His Purs (Purse)
Parody Poems from NaPoWrMo April 27 Prompt
Lewis Carroll Crocodile
Isaac Watts How Doth the Little
Lewis Carroll This the Voice of The Lobster
Isaac Watts The Sluggard
Lewis Carroll Twinkle, Twinkle Little Bat
Other poems from Writing com and Elsewhere
Abandoned Farmhouse
by Ted Kooser Wooden Boats
Judy Serum Brown
Denise Levertov Celebration
Edgar Allan Poe A Dream Within a Dream
Heal the World with Marigolds poetic blossoming entry
Midnight encounters a poetic blossoming entry
David S the All-Mighty Thresher
Sally Ann Roberts example #1:it All Started with A Packet of Seeds
Walt Whitman When I Heard the Learned Astronomer Sight DYI MFA
Wilfred Owen Anthem for Doomed Youth Sound DYI MFA
Barry Cornwall A Petition to Time Touch DYI MFA
Emily Dickinson, I Like to See It Lap the Miles Taste DYI MFA
Walter Prichard Eaton the Lilac Smell DYI MFA
Space
T.E. Hume the Embankment
E.E. Cummings in Just
The Mouse’s Tale, By Lewis Carroll
Explanation
John Gillespie Magee, Jr. HIGH FLIGHT
Jeffrey Harrison Nest
Ted Kooser Abandoned Farmhouse
Randall Jarrell The Olive Garden
Randall Jarrell the Breath of Night
Randal Jarrell the Orient Express
William Seaman Higgledy-piggledy
Arthur W. Monks Higgledy-piggledy
Paul Pascal Higgledy-piggledy
Juliet Capulet Higgledy-piggledy
John Hollander Higgledy-piggledy
Alfred Lord Tennyson The Charge of the Light Brigade (By Alfred Lord Tennyson)
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Evangeline
Robert Browning The Lost Leader
Walt Whitman Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking
Ian Lancashire Higgledy Piggledy
Sidney Lanier Poems
Sidney Lanier The Song Of The Chattahoochee
Sidney Lanier, Ireland
(Written for the Art Autograph during the Irish Famine, 1880.)
Sidney Lanier A Sunrise Song
Steve Smith Poems
Stevie Smith My Heart Goes Out
Stevie Smith My Heart Was Full
Stevie Smith Alone In The Woods
To read
Harvard Classics
50 books to read before you DIe
1000 books to read before you die
Elliot Novels
Poets Companion Finish
Art and Craft of Poetry Finish
Whitman Leaves of Grass
Dickenson Collected Poems
Robert Service Poems (From Alaskan Gold Rush Period)
Milton Collected Poems
Mina Nair Beyond and Back Indian short stories
Robert Buswell The Zen Monastic Tradition
Mod Poe poetry
the end
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
this is an updated to my 2021 movie listing reflecting among other things the K Dramas I have recently gotten into. I will update it again at the end of the year, if not sooner.
Movie Watching Goals 2021
night at the movies
100 movies/TV series by the end of the year.
At least one Korean movie per week
At least one Spanish movie per month
One Bollywood or another foreign language movie per month
A mixture of thrillers, K Drama, comedies, romcom, etc
Make a list of Oscar movies, watch several
Resume going to the theater later in the year
When traveling to the US watch five movies each trip
the list
Movie Watching Goals 2021
100 movies/TV series by the end of the year.
At least one Korean movie per week
At least one Spanish movie per month
One Bollywood or another foreign language movie per month
A mixture of thrillers, K Drama, comedies, romcom, etc
Make a list of Oscar movies, watch several
Resume going to the theater later in the year
When traveling to the US watch five movies each trip
the list
January
Bloodshot
Ozark
Bloodlines
Discovery
Humans are Useless Hoopla
Wu Assassins
6 Underground
Warrior Nuns
Alice In Borderland
I Am Not Okay with This
Constantine
February
The Beach
Holliday
Rebecca
About Time
Spy games
We could be heroes
Vastness of the Night Amazon
Hanna
The Expanse
Sneaky Pete -Amazon
March
How it Ends
The I Land
Wonder Woman
Get Out
Space Sweepers K SF Drama
I Care a Lot 2020 TV
Messiah
Itaewon Class K Drama
April
Sense 8 –has Korean star
Salvation
The Order
Lock N Key
Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Titans
O/A
Abyss
Outer Banks
May
White Lines
Umbrella Acadamy
The Last Man Standing K Drama
Suicide Squad
The Honest candidate K Drama
Behind Her Eyes
Sisyphus K Drama
Venzano K Drama
Strangers K Drama
The Woman in the Mirror
Gemini Man
Legends
Wanted with An
Bridgeton
Agelina Jolie
War Dogs
The Holliday
The woman in the Mirror
How It Ends
Love and Monsters
Knives Out
Old Guard
Love, Death, and Robots
Borek Movie
July
61 Sweet Tooth
Mine K Drama
Glitch
Parasite K movie 2020 Oscar Winner
Legends of Alhambra K Drama
Sin City
The Talented Mr. Ripley
August
The negotiator K movie
No exit K movie
Crash Landing On Me K Drama
Jackel 1997 US Movie
Night in Paradise K movie
My Love from the Stars – K Drama
Movie Watching Goals 2021
100 movies/TV series by the end of the year.
At least one Korean movie per week
At least one Spanish movie per month
One Bollywood or another foreign language movie per month
A mixture of thrillers, K Drama, comedies, romcom, etc
Make a list of Oscar movies, watch several
Resume going to the theater later in the year
When traveling to the US watch five movies each trip
the list
January
Bloodshot
Ozark
Bloodlines
Discovery
Humans are Useless Hoopla
Wu Assassins
6 Underground
Warrior Nuns
Alice In Borderland
I Am Not Okay with This
Constantine
The Beach
Holliday
Rebecca
About Time
Spy games
We could be heroes
Vastness of the Night Amazon
February
Hanna
The Expanse
Sneaky Pete -Amazon
How it Ends
The I Land
Wonder Woman
Get Out
Space Sweepers K SF Drama
I Care a Lot 2020 TV
Messiah
March
Itaewon Class K Drama
Sense 8
Salvation
The Order
Lock N Key
Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Titans
April
O/A
Abyss
Outer Banks
White Lines
Umbrella Acadamy
The Last Man Standing K Drama
May
Suicide Squad
The Honest candidate K Drama
Behind Her Eyes
Sisyphus K Drama
Venzano K Drama
Strangers K Drama season one
Strangers K Drama season two
Strangers K Drama season three
The Woman in the Mirror
Gemini Man
Legends
Bridgeton Netflix top-ranked series
June
Wanted with Angelina Jolie 2005?
War Dogs
The Holliday
The woman in the Mirror
How It Ends
Love and Monsters
Knives Out
July
Old Guard
Love, Death, and Robots
Borek Movie
Sweet Tooth
Mine K Drama
Glitch
Parasite K Drama
Legends of Alhambra K Drama
August
Sin City
The Talented Mr. Ripply
The negotiator K movie
No exit K movie
Crash Landing On You K Drama
September
Jackel 1997 US Movie
Night in Paradise K movie
DP K drama
Con K drama movie
October
When the Camelia Blooms K Drama
Squid Games K Drama number 1 on netflix
The Devil’s Advocate
Move to Heaven K Drama
The Money Heist Spanish Series
On Plane
Minuri
Cool Hand Luke
Citizen Kane
Jungle Cruise
Free Guy
Black Widow
King Kong V Godzilla
Crazy Rich Asians
Return to Korea
Bliss Amazon
Tomorrow’s Wars Amazon
Reflections on You (K Drama, Netflix)
Red Notice (Netflix)
Reflection on You (K Drama)
Hell Bound K Drama
To watch list
Dune
Latest James Bond
Amazon Prime videos
K Drama List
Crashlanding on you
Legends of Alhambra
The negotiator movie
No exit movie
Mine
Venzeano
Sisyphus
Stranger
Space Sweepers K SF Drama
The Last Man Standing K Drama
Mr. Sunshine
Itaewon Class
Mr. Kim’s convenience
A night in Paradise
Minuri
Reflections On You
Hell Bound
To watch
My Love from the Stars K Drama
Sky Castle
Kingdom
Reply 1988
Signal
My Mister
Hospital PlayList
Flower of Evil
The Most Exciting TV Shows Coming in 2021: From ‘Wanda Vision’ to ‘Impeachment’
I May Destroy You and The Queen’s Gambit makes Willa Paskin’s list.
2020 was not a great year—even for television. There was a tremendous amount of TV shows, most of which were fine; some of which, despite not even being all that fine, hit the strange, stressful, contained spot we all found ourselves in; and some of which that was, you know, good. For this list, when I say “good” I mean “the shows I most enjoyed,” a deeply fuzzy determination based on the series’ ambition, uniqueness, and, like, how much I wanted to watch it. This list contains several shows—including the first two—that I would describe as the year’s “best,” but it’s also peppered with shows I would primarily describe as personal favas. Would I have loved Ted Lasso so much in another year? I truly don’t know. All I know is, in this one, it felt like a bomb.
At the end of the first episode of I May Destroy You, creator, writer, and star Michaela Coal’s character, Arabella, is drugged and raped in a bar. The rest of the series, inspired by Coal’s own experience, follows Arabella as she tries to process what happened—and so much else. I May Destroy You explores consent in various permutations, but it also digs deep on Arabella, a charismatic, talented, tempestuous, brilliant, and undisciplined writer, friend, goof, lover, drug taker, social media influencer, and artist in the making. In a year when people prized escape, I May Destroy You offered something tougher and more hopeful: the possibility you just might be able to wring something meaningfulout of the awful past.
In a year full of popular documentary series, City So Real is better than all the rest of them. Loosely arranged around the 2019 Chicago mayoral race, it plays fly on the wall in neighborhoods all over the city. At protests, campaign rallies, barbershops, bars, city meetings, restaurants, campaign offices, dinner parties, radio stations, and dingy administrative rooms, a cross-section of indelible Chicagoans, so distinctive they wouldn’t feel out of place in fiction, talk about their hard-nosed home and its intricate politics. The show is sprawling and yet as perfectly assembled like a jigsaw puzzle. Put together, it gives the full scope of a flawed, challenging, changing city and its stubbornly devoted residents.
The character Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) first popped up in a series of sports promos, but he reappeared in the full-fledged series Ted Lassojust in time to counterprogram the state of the world. Lasso, basically, the nicest guy in existence, knows nothing about soccer when he takes over a British football club, but no matter, he knows human beings. With his emotional know-how, can-do attitude, kindly good spirits, down-home charm, and warm, fuzzy personality (and mustache), he wins over the excellent British supporting cast who, surprise surprise, are all lovely deep down, too. It’s a fantasy of American decency and British patience for cornpone jokes that I found irresistible.
Three seasons of The Great Pottery Throw Down, a craft competition shows that’s The Great British Clay-Off, arrived on HBO Max all at once this year. The artistry on the show leaves a little to be desired—the tension between utility and inspiration tilts toward the former—but I’m a sucker for watching people make things, and there’s something particularly hypnotic about people pulling shapes out of lumps of whirring clay. The show also has Keith Brymer Jones, a bulky master potter with a molting Flock of Seagulls hairstyle who is the anti–Paul Hollywood. Instead of macho shtick and a crushing congratulatory handshake, he tears up at the contestants’ accomplishments, not only when they do great work, but when they exceed themselves.
Mrs. Americatells the story of the failed fight to pass the Equal Rights Amendment when equality and second-wave feminists were both bested by the driven and polarizing Phyllis Schlafly (Cate Blanchett). Big picture, it’s a slow-motion tragedy, but episode by episode it’s juicy and thrilling to watch, and chock-full of wonderful performances. It focuses not only on Schlafly but on women’s movement boldface names like Gloria Steinem (Rose Byrne), Shirley Chisholm (Uzoh Daub), Bella Abzug (Margo Martindale), and Betty Friedan (Tracey Ullman), who were trying to do so much for so many that they were undone by a woman on a mission to remake female equality into the bipartisan issue it remains today. Mrs. America perhaps makes the mistake of framing Schlafly as primarily an opportunist, not exactly an ideologue, but it gets across its gutting point: In this instance, the past isn’t prologued, because it’s not even past.
If you were to imagine in a vacuum what a premium cable miniseries about the life of the abolitionist John Brown might look like, you’d almost surely imagine something much stuffier and soberer than The Good Lord Bird. With the award-winning James McBride novelas a guideline, this drama takes the most serious of subjects, America’s peculiar institution, and explores it with intelligence, verve, and wit. The story is told from the perspective of Onion (Joshua Caleb Johnson), the young Black boy who joins Brown’s (Ethan Hawke) ragtag group, and whom Brown, blind to the basics of the people’s he’s devoted his life to helping, spends the whole series believing to be a girl. Hawke is incredible as Brown, a loony force of nature, long-winded, hilarious, intermittently gentle, and terrifying, spitting brimstone and, well, spit. He’s part of the show’s no-sacred-cows approach to history, in which even the righteous can be ridiculous, stumbling blindly through time, but that doesn’t make them any less right.
The Queen’s Gambit opens like it’s going to be a brooding gothic about abandonment, addiction, and loneliness, only to renege and deliver something more straightforwardly satisfying: a superhero story about genius, community, and chess. The show is a realist fantasy, where all the details—the period wallpaper, the interior design, the gameplay—are accurate, but the misogyny has gone missing, with men falling all over one another to help Beth Harmon, the genius who just defeated them. Whether that’s inspiring or facile, it’s a blast. It also features a very strong supporting cast whose standouts include the director Marielle Heller as Beth’s loving, enabling adopted mother, and a shockingly charming human string bean.
Bluey, an animated Australian children’s show about a family (who happen to be dogs), is the most playful, sweet, wholesome, nondidactic, and—why it is on this list!—least annoying children’s show on television.
Netflix’s docuseries Cheer premiered at the very beginning of January, so basically, the distant past. In the interim so much has happened, including the disturbing and distressing allegationsinvolving one of the leads, the show’s emotional center. It’s hard to reconcile, but so was the show itself, a study of the grueling lengths young adults will go to belong to something bigger than themselves. Is it worth it? Should the adult in charge know better and push less? Are the demands being put on their bodies—the concussions, the broken limbs—teaching them self-discipline, or just giving them a lifetime of ailments? And why was it impossible (for me, anyway) not to get caught up in its sports-movie-triumph narrative?
This is a bit of a list trickery, in which I use the pesky 10th slot as an alert more than anything else: If you or anyone you know has ever enjoyed a teen drama that aired on the WB or UPN, or knows a current teen who seems like they would dig that kind of thing, may I please introduce you to Netflix’s Teenage Bounty Hunters, essentially a lost WB show just waiting for a time slot before Buffy, Veronica Mars, Dawson’s Creek, or Felicity. Two fraternal twin sisters—one naughty, one nice, but swapping roles all the while—who attend a Christian high school start a sideline as bounty hunters after crashing their dad’s car. It’s a case-of-the-week show, a teen show, a family mystery show, and it’s scrappy and plucky and full of banter, a lighter-side Veronica Mars. It also addresses one of the great concerns of my youth: whether all those WB shows could have had bigger audiences if only they’d been on different channels (the answer is no.) Netflix didn’t pick this show up for a second season, which means, in great WB fashion, this show already has the makings of a cult classic.
What did movies matter in 2020? What did anything? I don’t intend those questions in the nihilistic sense of “lol nothing matters.” I pose them open-endedly in the last weeks of a year that put such once foundational concepts as mattering, let alone movies, into question. All the things we lost in the coronavirus pandemic in 2020—our gathering places, our public institutions, our jobs, our sense of daily shared reality, and for far too many Americans, our loved ones’ lives—put the things we were still able to do into sharper relief. And one of the best things you can still do when holed up at home, as long as you have a home and some means of wiring yourself into the ambient digital matrix we all now exist in, is watch movies.
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Without theaters, the cinematic year (like the year) felt amorphous and hazy. What constituted a “hit” or a “flop” in 2020? Which movies were the virtual-festival darlings, the hyped-up disappointments, or the word-of-mouth successes? Because almost all of our viewing happened in private, and because the big streaming platforms guard their data like Smaug his hoard, it was hard to determine which movies people were talking about or ignoring, hard to choose what to watch, and more and more as this year of entertainment-conglomerate mergers wore on, hard to figure out where to stream it. Watercooler conversation can’t very well drive box office receipts when the only watercooler insight is your kitchen sink and the only box office is … Home Box Office. But though there were far fewer opportunities to talk about a movie on the way out of the theater—surely among life’s peak everyday experiences—there were more chances than usual to fall into weird indie rabbit holes and nurture new cinematic crushes.
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A methodological note on this year’s list: I have been loose on the parameters as to what constitutes a “2020 movie.” Some of the below titles showed at festivals in 2019, were meant to open theatrically this year, and wound up going straight to streaming instead. Others were released in both formats at different times during the year, and at least one never ended up opening at all but remains on the list as a harbinger of good films to come. This is a record of the movie year as I experienced it: fragmentary, catch-as-catch-can, often out of sync with “the conversation” yet somehow astonishingly timely. No movie on this list could have been conceived after the pandemic shut down film production, yet many if not most of them seem somehow to respond to our current historical moment of cabin fever and barely contained mass rage. If I had to find a thread running through the movies that follow (though imposing thematic coherence on any list this diffuse is a fool’s game), it would have something to do with captivity and freedom. The characters in these films are often escaping, hiding out, lying in wait, fetching the bolt cutters to find their way out of whatever traumatic past has trapped them. While you wait for your shot at freedom (in the form, it now seems, of that first vaccine injection), here are some great movies to get you through the next few months. In alphabetical order:
The Assistant
Kitty Green’s unassuming but keenly observed first narrative feature follows one terrible workday in the life of an intern of a never-seen movie producer who’s a serial sexual abuser in the Harvey Weinstein mold. Ozark’s Julia Garner is on screen, often alone, for virtually every second of the movie. Her miserably treated character is the only moral center in this austere movie’s cold and self-dealing universe, and she could easily have gone for Cinderella-style sympathy from the audience (if instead of sweeping ashes from the hearth, Cinderella stapled scripts and fielded calls from anxious wives). But Garner rejects the temptation to coast as a suffering ingenue. In a quietly bravura performance that’s dialogue-free for long stretches, she fills in a whole tragic back story just by the way she listens. (Listen to the Culture Gabfest review The Assistant.)
From its opening image—Brazil has seen from space, the fires in the Amazon visible, as a classic Caetano Veloso song plays on the soundtrack—Kleber Mendonca Filho’s genre-splicing thriller has an air of unsettling mystery. The title is the name of a remote village in the country’s hardscrabble northeast, where, for reasons never fully explained, an international team of white supremacist assassins led by the always-chilling Udo Kier descends to wreak brutal and possibly supernatural mayhem. Densely plotted and packed with vivid actors including the legendary Sonia Braga, this ambitious if the sometimes inscrutable film takes place shortly, “a few years from now.” But its merciless vision of global politics as a zero-sum class and race struggle, and its almost comedically grisly final action sequence, feels very much of the present.
Kant emir Balagan’s second feature, about a young woman working as a military nurse in post–World War II Leningrad, is filmed in a palette of impossibly rich greens, reds, and golds—every frame glows with the intensity of a stained-glass window or an illuminated manuscript. That
lush pictorial beauty offsets the extreme bleakness of the story, as the lanky “beanpole” of the title (Viktoria Miroshnichenko) contends with the psychic fallout from her service in the war. In increasingly self-destructive ways, she seeks to expiate her bottomless guilt for what she perceives as a terrible wrong done to a friend, but which the audience, with more compassion for the characters than they can summon for themselves, understands as a wrong done to Beanpole herself by the implacable cruelty of history.
In the fall of 2015, a fire broke out at a packed nightclub in Bucharest, Romania, resulting in the death of 64 people and the permanent disfigurement of more than 100 more. In the years that followed, public outrage over the incident—the club had no functioning fire exits—caused a government to fall and a new activist movement to arise. Alexander Nana’s intricate, suspenseful documentary tracks the journalistic effort to expose the complex knot of corruption, deception, and negligence that enabled both the disaster itself and the failure of the health care system to do right by the victims after. This is one of the most heartbreaking films I watched in a year already drowning in heartbreak, but also one of the most necessary at a time when the fourth estate is often the last line of defense against a global capitalist system that seems designed to be quite homicidal.
In retrospect, Chadwick Boseman’s sudden, tragic, and, for everyone but those in his most intimate circle, completely unexpected death of colon cancer in August makes this Spike Lee joint about a group of Black veterans returning to Vietnam all the more moving and urgent. But Da 5 Bloods would have been one of the best movies of the year anyway. Boseman’s role is small but pivotal: His climactic encounter with the older vet played superbly by Delray Lindo is a scene of transformation and healing that fully justifies the rush of cathartic tears it brings. In addition to being insightful about Vietnam War trauma and the complications of modern Black masculinity, Da 5 Bloods is a rollicking buddies-on-the-road comedy, full of earthy humor and jovial trash talk. The early scene when the four old soldiers, tropical drinks in hand, boogie their way to their table at a real-life Ho Chi Minh City disco called Apocalypse Now is one of the year’s great depictions of an experience so many of us missed over this homebound year: goofing off on the dance floor with friends. (Read the review.)
Kelly Reichardt’s seventh feature, a stripped-down Western about the tender friendship between two lonely men in a Pacific Northwest pioneer town in 1820, was the last film I saw in a theater in 2020, at an early March press preview surrounded by colleagues, some of them longtime friends. That whole night had an unusually celebratory feeling; First Cow had blown away everyone I spoke to about it, but the feeling it left in its wake was a quiet, subdued kind of dazzlement, the sneaking suspicion that early in the release calendar though it still was, we had probably just watched one of the most original and accomplished movies we’d see all year. Afterward, in the lobby, there was a little reception with a waiter serving “oily cakes,” the sweet fried-dough pastry that figures crucially in the movie’s plot. Munching them, it was easy to see how this confection, a rare delicacy in the movie’s hardscrabble setting, could have caused the high-stakes competition for scarce resources that the movie chronicles. But though First Cow is all about finding a way to survive in an environment of scarcity, this contemplative, compassionate drama is a miracle of filmmaking abundance, with incandescent performances from John Magar and Orion Lee and the curiously calming presence of Eve, the prettiest on-screen bovine since Buster Keaton fell in love with a heifer in the 1925 silent Go West. (Listen to the Culture Gabfest review First Cow.)
As I was finalizing this list, it occurred to me that one of the most crucial functions of movie viewing, especially in a year like this (has there ever been a year like this? Maybe 1918?), was sadly underrepresented. Sometimes all you need is some stylish escapism, a low-stakes hangout film where likable characters pursue sparkling or snarky conversations over flutes of Champagne in rooms with flattering lighting. To the rescue just in time came Steven Soderbergh’s latest comedy, about an egocentric novelist (Meryl Streep) who invites two long-estranged friends (Candice Bergen and Dianne Wiest) and her devoted nephew (Lucas Hedges) on a trans-Atlantic cruise to collect a literary prize in Europe. At first, the generically titled Let Them All Talk seemed like it was going to be a Nancy Meyers–style rom-com about frisky codgers on a boat—not that there would be anything remotely wrong with that. But by 20 minutes in, it was clear this was pure Soderbergh, a multicharacter caper film in the mode of his Ocean’s movies, Out of Sight, or Magic Mike. The difference: Instead of winning a striptease competition or robbing a high-security bank, this crew of oddballs—three strong-willed middle-aged women, an awkward young man, and the various colorful characters they cross paths with on the ship—is simply seeking to come to terms with the undone work of their own lives: the longtime friendships in need of repair, the romantic connections not yet made, the books left to write. (Read the review.)
Lee Isaac Chung’s semi-autobiographical film follows a Korean immigrant family in the 1980s as they attempt to turn a recalcitrant piece of land in rural Arkansas into a working vegetable farm. The story is seen mainly through the eyes of 7-year-old David, played with movie-stealing aplomb by the tiny but utterly self-possessed first-time actor Alan S. Kim. (His petulant delivery of “I’m not pretty! I’m good-looking!” may be my single favorite line reading of the year.) But Steven Yuen, in a marvelously understated performance as his stubborn but fiercely devoted father, gives the kid a run for his money. Minami is a drama about immigrants that don’t try to make grand statements about the immigrant experience in America. Rather, it tells the specific story of one family, dysfunctional and troubled in its particular way, but held together by a powerful bond of love. (Read the review.)
Jessica Broder’s 2017 book on retirement-age migrant workers living out of their RVs provided the source material for this lyrical portrait of a widow (Frances McDormand) who takes to the road after a mine closure eliminates the small company town she’s lived in her whole life. I don’t know how to add to what I already wrote in my review, and what so many others have said: Nomad land is a miracle of a movie that somehow transmutes painful experiences like homelessness, loneliness, and systemic exploitation by a pitiless labor market into a poetic meditation on freedom, friendship, and the passage of time. (Read the review.)
This is the only movie on the list that hasn’t yet been released at all. I saw it in late February, the week before the coronavirus started to shut down in-person press screenings, and my lovestruck review of it is still waiting in the can be published, although the headline—calling it “The First Great Horror Film of 2020”—will have to change by a digit. But I leave it on the list in anticipation of great films to come. The English director Rose Glass, making her debut feature, serves up a gory brew of body horror and spiritual cinema in the tradition of Robert Bresson. Jennifer Hele and Morfitt Clark are spellbinding as a terminally ill choreographer and her fanatically religious young caregiver. Are the ecstatic visions that ravish Maud in her sordid bedsit the work of the divine, the demonic, or her own mental and emotional instability? It’s the rare movie that delves this deeply into the experience of personal faith and (Lord, that final shot!) scares your pants off to boot.
I May Destroy You and The Queen’s Gambit makes Willa Paskin’s list.
2020 was not a great year—even for television. There was a tremendous amount of TV shows, most of which were fine; some of which, despite not even being all that fine, hit the strange, stressful, contained spot we all found ourselves in; and some of which that was, you know, good. For this list, when I say “good” I mean “the shows I most enjoyed,” a deeply fuzzy determination based on the series’ ambition, uniqueness, and, like, how much I wanted to watch it. This list contains several shows—including the first two—that I would describe as the year’s “best,” but it’s also peppered with shows I would primarily describe as personal favas. Would I have loved Ted Lasso so much in another year? I truly don’t know. All I know is, in this one, it felt like a bomb.
At the end of the first episode of I May Destroy You, creator, writer, and star Michaela Coal’s character, Arabella, is drugged and raped in a bar. The rest of the series, inspired by Coal’s own experience, follows Arabella as she tries to process what happened—and so much else. I May Destroy You explores consent in various permutations, but it also digs deep on Arabella, a charismatic, talented, tempestuous, brilliant, and undisciplined writer, friend, goof, lover, drug taker, social media influencer, and artist in the making. In a year when people prized escape, I May Destroy You offered something tougher and more hopeful: the possibility you just might be able to wring something meaningfulout of the awful past.
In a year full of popular documentary series, City So Real is better than all the rest of them. Loosely arranged around the 2019 Chicago mayoral race, it plays fly on the wall in neighborhoods all over the city. At protests, campaign rallies, barbershops, bars, city meetings, restaurants, campaign offices, dinner parties, radio stations, and dingy administrative rooms, a cross-section of indelible Chicagoans, so distinctive they wouldn’t feel out of place in fiction, talk about their hard-nosed home and its intricate politics. The show is sprawling and yet as perfectly assembled like a jigsaw puzzle. Put together, it gives the full scope of a flawed, challenging, changing city and its stubbornly devoted residents.
The character Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) first popped up in a series of sports promos, but he reappeared in the full-fledged series Ted Lassojust in time to counterprogram the state of the world. Lasso, basically, the nicest guy in existence, knows nothing about soccer when he takes over a British football club, but no matter, he knows human beings. With his emotional know-how, can-do attitude, kindly good spirits, down-home charm, and warm, fuzzy personality (and mustache), he wins over the excellent British supporting cast who, surprise surprise, are all lovely deep down, too. It’s a fantasy of American decency and British patience for cornpone jokes that I found irresistible.
Three seasons of The Great Pottery Throw Down, a craft competition shows that’s The Great British Clay-Off, arrived on HBO Max all at once this year. The artistry on the show leaves a little to be desired—the tension between utility and inspiration tilts toward the former—but I’m a sucker for watching people make things, and there’s something particularly hypnotic about people pulling shapes out of lumps of whirring clay. The show also has Keith Braymer Jones, a bulky master potter with a molting Flock of Seagulls hairstyle who is the anti–Paul Hollywood. Instead of macho shtick and a crushing congratulatory handshake, he tears up at the contestants’ accomplishments, not only when they do great work, but when they exceed themselves.
Mrs. Americatells the story of the failed fight to pass the Equal Rights Amendment when equality and second-wave feminists were both bested by the driven and polarizing Phyllis Schlafly (Cate Blanchett). Big picture, it’s a slow-motion tragedy, but episode by episode it’s juicy and thrilling to watch, and chock-full of wonderful performances. It focuses not only on Schlafly but on women’s movement boldface names like Gloria Steinem (Rose Byrne), Shirley Chisholm (Uzoh Daub), Bella Abzug (Margo Martindale), and Betty Friedan (Tracey Ullman), who were trying to do so much for so many that they were undone by a woman on a mission to remake female equality into the bipartisan issue it remains today. Mrs. America perhaps makes the mistake of framing Schlafly as primarily an opportunist, not exactly an ideologue, but it gets across its gutting point: In this instance, the past isn’t prologued, because it’s not even past.
If you were to imagine in a vacuum what a premium cable miniseries about the life of the abolitionist John Brown might look like, you’d almost surely imagine something much stuffier and soberer than The Good Lord Bird. With the award-winning James McBride novelas a guideline, this drama takes the most serious of subjects, America’s peculiar institution, and explores it with intelligence, verve, and wit. The story is told from the perspective of Onion (Joshua Caleb Johnson), the young Black boy who joins Brown’s (Ethan Hawke) ragtag group, and whom Brown, blind to the basics of the people’s he’s devoted his life to helping, spends the whole series believing to be a girl. Hawke is incredible as Brown, a loony force of nature, long-winded, hilarious, intermittently gentle, and terrifying, spitting brimstone and, well, spit. He’s part of the show’s no-sacred-cows approach to history, in which even the righteous can be ridiculous, stumbling blindly through time, but that doesn’t make them any less right.
The Queen’s Gambit opens like it’s going to be a brooding gothic about abandonment, addiction, and loneliness, only to renege and deliver something more straightforwardly satisfying: a superhero story about genius, community, and chess. The show is a realist fantasy, where all the details—the period wallpaper, the interior design, the gameplay—are accurate, but the misogyny has gone missing, with men falling all over one another to help Beth Harmon, the genius who just defeated them. Whether that’s inspiring or facile, it’s a blast. It also features a very strong supporting cast whose standouts include the director Marielle Heller as Beth’s loving, enabling adopted mother, and a shockingly charming human string bean.
Bluey, an animated Australian children’s show about a family (who happen to be dogs), is the most playful, sweet, wholesome, nondidactic, and—why it is on this list!—least annoying children’s show on television.
Netflix’s docuseries Cheer premiered at the very beginning of January, so basically, the distant past. In the interim so much has happened, including the disturbing and distressing allegationsinvolving one of the leads, the show’s emotional center. It’s hard to reconcile, but so was the show itself, a study of the grueling lengths young adults will go to belong to something bigger than themselves. Is it worth it? Should the adult in charge know better and push less? Are the demands being put on their bodies—the concussions, the broken limbs—teaching them self-discipline, or just giving them a lifetime of ailments? And why was it impossible (for me, anyway) not to get caught up in its sports-movie-triumph narrative?
This is a bit of a list trickery, in which I use the pesky 10th slot as an alert more than anything else: If you or anyone you know has ever enjoyed a teen drama that aired on the WB or UPN, or knows a current teen who seems like they would dig that kind of thing, may I please introduce you to Netflix’s Teenage Bounty Hunters, essentially a lost WB show just waiting for a time slot before Buffy, Veronica Mars, Dawson’s Creek, or Felicity. Two fraternal twin sisters—one naughty, one nice, but swapping roles all the while—who attend a Christian high school start a sideline as bounty hunters after crashing their dad’s car. It’s a case-of-the-week show, a teen show, a family mystery show, and it’s scrappy and plucky and full of banter, a lighter-side Veronica Mars. It also addresses one of the great concerns of my youth: whether all those WB shows could have had bigger audiences if only they’d been on different channels (the answer is no.) Netflix didn’t pick this show up for a second season, which means, in great WB fashion, this show already has the makings of a cult classic.
Here are 32 new films to see this season, whether you’re ready to return to theaters or want to stay on the couch.
Hollywood has a crowded slate of films—delayed by the pandemic and otherwise—to release over the next three months. That makes choosing what to see more stressful than usual, especially when some titles can be seen both in theaters and at home. To make the process more manageable, I’ve scrutinized trailers and even screened some of the films below to put together this guide for all your needs, whatever they may be. My first question, to set the scene: How far would you like to venture away from your couch?
I Want to Go Back to Theaters and …
… I’M CRAVING BIG-SCREEN ACTION
F9 (JUNE 25)
The latest installment in the Fast & Furious series sees Vin Diesel’s near-indestructible Dominic Toretto face off against his brother, Jakob (played by John Cena); the return of the fan-favorite character Han (Sung Kang); and—I’m guessing—a lot of cars vrooming and whooshing about. The film has already sped into theaters overseas and earned a pandemic record-making $163 million in its opening weekend. If the director Justin Lin keeps upping the ante with the action in these movies’ inevitable sequels, as he has skillfully done in previous Fast movies, this franchise might just last forever.
SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS (JULY 23)
Starring Crazy Rich Asians’ Henry Golding as the titular ninja, this G.I. Joe spin-off draws inspiration from a comic-book series that traces Snake Eyes’ backstory before he lost his voice. It’s also a blatant attempt to build another cinematic universe, but the trailer offers enough flashy sword fights and martial-arts showdowns to make the effort worthwhile for now. If nothing else, I’m curious to see if Golding’s got the chops to be a leading action star. (I have a feeling he does.)
I Want to Go Back to Theaters and …
… I’M CRAVING BIG-SCREEN ACTION
F9 (JUNE 25)
The latest installment in the Fast & Furious series sees Vin Diesel’s near-indestructible Dominic Toretto face off against his brother, Jakob (played by John Cena); the return of the fan-favorite character Han (Sung Kang); and—I’m guessing—a lot of cars vrooming and whooshing about. The film has already sped into theaters overseas and earned a pandemic record-making $163 million in its opening weekend. If the director Justin Lin keeps upping the ante with the action in these movies’ inevitable sequels, as he has skillfully done in previous Fast movies, this franchise might just last forever.
SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS (JULY 23)
Starring Crazy Rich Asians’ Henry Golding as the titular ninja, this G.I. Joe spin-off draws inspiration from a comic-book series that traces Snake Eyes’ backstory before he lost his voice. It’s also a blatant attempt to build another cinematic universe, but the trailer offers enough flashy sword fights and martial-arts showdowns to make the effort worthwhile for now. If nothing else, I’m curious to see if Golding’s got the chops to be a leading action star. (I have a feeling he does.)
BLACK WIDOW (JULY 9)
The superspy played by Scarlett Johansson didn’t get a funeral in Avengers: Endgame, but she is getting the solo film her fans have been campaigning for since it was possible to binge all of the Marvel movies in less than a day. (For those counting, this is the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s 24th entry.) This prequel follows Natasha on a mission across Europe to reunite her “family,” characters who will probably be essential to the next films. Bonus tip: Don’t forget to watch for a post-credits scene.
WARNER BROS.
THE SUICIDE SQUAD (AUGUST 6)
Comic-book superheroes rarely ever actually die. The same goes for comic-book-inspired film franchises. The David Ayer–directed version of Suicide Squadbombed with critics, but the band of supervillains forced to do the government’s bidding is getting a second chance, with some fresh additions to the cast and a new director in James Gunn, the needle-drop-happy mind behind Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies. Come for Margot Robbie reprising her gonzo performance as Harley Quinn; stay for what appears to be a much more irreverent and coherent version of the story. At the very least, this version looks lit brightly enough so that we can see what’s happening.
… I LIKE MY MOVIES TO COME WITH A BEAT
IN THE HEIGHTS (JUNE 11)
A feel-good hug of a movie that might make you dance in your seat, this adaptation of the Broadway hit by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiana Alegria Hodes dazzles with Jon M. Chu’s maximalist direction. The story follows characters living in the disappearing Latino neighborhood of Washington Heights, all with their ideas for fulfilling their American dreams. Consider this my official endorsement of the film’s sterling quality, and an appeal for concession stands across America to please add piragua to their menu.
FOCUS FEATURES
THE SPARKS BROTHERS (JUNE 18)
The director Edgar Wright (Baby Driver, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) trains his eye on the quirky musical duo, whose sound has influenced, well, almost every band in existence, this documentary argues. Featuring interviews with dozens of musicians (Beck, Flea, Jack Anton off) and notable no musicians (Mike Myers, Jason Schwartzman), the film, which premiered this year at Sundance, is a close look at music history and a peek inside Wright’s kinetic mind.
RESPECT (AUGUST 13)
Biopics of famous entertainers need, above all else, the right actor in the leading role. This glitzy portrait of Aretha Franklin—not to be confused with the limited series that aired earlier this year—casts Jennifer Hudson as the legendary singer, and the star seems poised to embark on another awards-season run if all goes well. She’s surrounded by an equally impressive cast: The ensemble also includes heavyweights such as Forest Whitaker and Audra McDonald, along with an unexpected dramatic turn from Marlon Wayans as Aretha’s manager and first husband, Ted White.
THE BEATLES: GET BACK (AUGUST 27)
Peter Jackson of Lord of the Rings fame trades hobbits for the Fab Four. This documentary follows the Beatles as they make the album Let It Be and includes never-before-seen footage that had been cut from Michael Lindsay-Hogg’s 1970 doc. Jackson has stated that the hours of material he’s gathered show the foursome’s camaraderie and challenge the narrative that the album was made amid discord. I’ve got a feeling he’s right; after all, the film was created with approval from Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and the widows of John Lennon and George Harrison.
… I WANT TO SEE SOMETHING WITH MY PARENTS
STILLWATER (JULY 30)
In this thriller directed and co-written by Tom McCarthy (Spotlight), Matt Damon plays a blue-collar, salt-of-the-earth Everyman whose estranged daughter (Abigail Breslin) gets arrested for murder abroad. The script seems to have been inspired by the Amanda Knox case but told from an astonishingly resourceful and über-patriotic parent’s perspective. Think Jason Bourne, if Bourne had a conspicuous twang and transformative facial hair.
LIONSGATE
THE PROTÉGÉ (AUGUST 20)
Everything about this spy movie’s trailer—slow-motion shoot-outs, cool disguises, the villain delivering whispered threats—screams predictability, but the film has assembled a formidable cast, including Michael Keaton and Samuel L. Jackson. And I guess this is when I admit I’m a fan of the star Maggie Q’s CW-feed take on Nikita from the early 2010s. Campy action is her sweet spot.
REMINISCENCE (AUGUST 20)
One of the Westworld co-creators, Lisa Joy, wrote and directed this tale of a scientist (Hugh Jackman) who discovers a way to time travel through memory. If it’s anything like Joy’s work on the first season of the HBO series, it’ll be twisty but enthralling. If it’s anything like the latest season, it’ll give you a massive headache. Either way, the film marks a welcome return to hard sci-fi for Jackman after he starred in the underrated The Fountain more than a decade ago. (What’s that—he was in Chippie in 2015? Why would you remind me?)
… I NEED A KID-FRIENDLY FLICK
WARNER BROS.
SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY (JULY 16)
LeBron James steps into Michael Jordan’s shoes—er, Air Jordans—in this update on the cult favorite about NBA stars playing basketball alongside Looney Tunes characters. The villains this time are AI-controlled digital players, whatever that means. This might turn out to be nothing more than a shameless mashup of all the intellectual property Warner Bros. has ever owned, but if it matches the earnestness of its predecessor—and if James has half as much fun as Jordan did as a movie star—it just might work.
JUNGLE CRUISE (JULY 30)
Yes, this is Disney trying to turn another one of its theme-park rides into a billion-dollar franchise, but Emily Blunt and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s combined charm can not—excuse me, will not—be denied. Jesse Plemons also drops in as the kooky villain who gets in the way of our heroes’ mission to find a tree with healing powers in the middle of the Amazon. If this Disney-feed spin on The African Queen all looks a bit … much, just remember: The CGI simply adds more scenery for all three stars to chew.
… I WANT TO BE TERRIFIED
THE FOREVER PURGE (JULY 2)
Just in time for Independence Day, the horror franchise about a dystopian version of America in which lawlessness gets to run rampant for a day every year will release what is (reportedly) its final installment. In it, a band of criminals decides that the annual purge should last longer than a day. Maybe forever. What are the odds of this series delivering four more sequels?
ESCAPE ROOM: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS (JULY 16)
As a breezy, 100-minute collection of puzzles and jump scares, the first film was a surprise hit, the kind of low-stakes entertainment even non–horror fans can enjoy. This sequel finds the surviving heroes from the original getting trapped in—you guessed it—another series of escape rooms with a group of other players. Though the tests look a lot harder to solve this time around, if the film’s writers continue to focus on the riddles, they might just figure out a way to sustain a franchise.
OLD (JULY 23)
Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, this graphic-novel adaptation follows a vacationing family who realizes that the beach they’re relaxing on is making them age at a rapid pace—so rapid, they’ll all be dead by the end of the day. Gael García Bernal and Phantom Thread’s Vicky Kreps star as the parents; their children age quickly into teens played by rising stars Alex Wolff and Thomasina McKenzie. Shyamalan, who’s expressed endearing excitement about making this film, has said his daughters gave him the source material—and perhaps the inspiration for the film’s underlying anxiety around getting older. In other words, he sees dying people.
THE NIGHT HOUSE (AUGUST 20)
Rebecca Hall stars as a widow grieving her husband’s death while alone—or is she?—in the house, he built for them. To go any further into the plot risks spoilers, but I can tell you that Hall’s character starts seeing visions of her husband lurking around the property. Also, according to critics who attended the Sundance Film Festival in 2020, this film couples its scares with innovative but intrusive sound design. Brace your senses.
CANDYMAN (AUGUST 27)
This remake/sequel to the 1992 film possesses quite the pedigree: Jordan Peele, the reigning king of our era of elevated horror, co-wrote the script with the producer Win Rosenfeld (Black Klansman) and the director Nia DaCosta, who made a splash on the festival circuit with the thriller Little Woods and is on deck to direct the Captain Marvel sequel, The Marvels. And I haven’t even mentioned the Emmy-winning actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen), who stars as an artist finding inspiration in the urban myth about the titular killer with a hook for a hand (played by Tony Todd, returning to the role), only to unleash him, whatever he is.
… I MISS SEEING FESTIVAL FAVORITES IN PERSON
ANNA KOORIS / A24
ZOLA (JUNE 30)
Starring Riley Keough and Taylor Paige, this satirical romp follows a pair of women who go on a road trip to make some quick cash dancing in strip clubs. The film, which is based on a viral Twitter thread, scored distribution through the indie studio A24 even before it screened for the first time at Sundance in 2020. The gamble has paid off so far: Critics loved it. (Perhaps more movies should be based on tweets? Don’t @ me.)
THE GREEN KNIGHT (JULY 30)
A crown descending onto Dev Patel’s head and then lighting him on fire. A bear holding a lantern at the top of a staircase. A talking fox emerging from heavy fog. Based on thetrailers, it seems the director David Lowery has shrouded his film in cryptic, poetic images—which is appropriate, given that his source material is an ambiguous 14th-century fantasy epic filled with figurative language. The story follows an Arthurian knight (Patel) being tested for his chivalry by a giant green being. If Lowery has his way, the eerie atmosphere of the film, which was supposed to premiere at SXSW in 2020, will linger in your mind long after you finish watching it.
CODA (AUGUST 13)
Though I saw this at one of Sundance’s virtual screenings—as in, alone in my living room—I was pretty sure I wasn’t the only viewer who had used up all her tissues by the time the credits rolled. (I became certain when, two days later, Apple picked up the film for distribution for a festival-record $25 million.) The film tells a coming-of-age story through an unconventional heroine: a teenager who’s the only hearing member of her family, grappling with her responsibilities to her relatives and her love of singing. It’s a crowd-pleasing tearjerker, the kind I wish I’d seen in a packed theater.
… I’M JUST A HUGE RYAN REYNOLDS FAN
LIONSGATE
THE HITMAN’S WIFE’S BODYGUARD (JUNE 16)
The Deadpool actor plays a reluctant hero who gets dragged into scary shenanigans by a fearless woman. Explosions, pop-culture references, and jokes at Reynolds’s character’s expense ensue. Judging by the trailer, it seems like the film was a lot of fun to make for all of the actors involved, including an Oscar winner.
FREE GUY (AUGUST 13)
The Deadpool actor plays a reluctant hero who gets dragged into scary shenanigans by—frankly, I could just copy my previous paragraph and paste it here for this film. But there are some significant differences worth mentioning: Reynolds’s character exists inside a video game, a different Oscar winner (Taika Waititi) tags along, and the movie will probably be rated PG-13 instead of R.
I’d Rather Stay Home but …
… I WANT A TASTE OF BIG-SCREEN ACTION
AMAZON PRIME
THE TOMORROW WAR (JULY 2, AMAZON PRIME)
Chris Pratt is drafted to fight a war in the future against alien invaders and gets to grumble things like “I was trying to save my daughter. If I got to save the world to save her, then I’m gonna do it.” It’s a time-travel movie, so I’m expecting someone he meets in the future to turn out to be him or someone he knows, only older. (By the way, when did all movie aliens start looking like the Stranger Things Demogorgon?)
Also available: Black Widow (July 9, Disney+ with Premier Access); Space Jam: A New Legacy (July 16, HBO Max); The Suicide Squad (August 6, HBO Max)
… I WANT TO DANCE ALONG
SUMMER OF SOUL (JULY 2, HULU)
The music producer and DJ Questlove’s directorial debut traces the events of the Harlem Cultural Festival, a six-week celebration in 1969 featuring performers such as Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, and B. B. King; the archival footage on display had been shelved for more than 50 years. The film took home several documentary awards at Sundance this year, for good reason: As much as it may be a history lesson about the decade, it’s also an absorbing concert movie and a probing look at how live music captured the frustrations and fears of members of the Black community and offered them catharsis when nothing else could.
Also available: In the Heights (June 11, HBO Max)
… I’M WATCHING IT WITH MY PARENTS
NETFLIX
THE ICE ROAD (JUNE 25, NETFLIX)
When the trailer for this disaster flick began with Liam Nelson driving in the snow, looking forlorn, I felt déjà vu: Hasn’t he already done this? Turns out I was thinking of 2019’s Cold Pursuit, a farce of a film in which Nelson’s character gets in the way of a turf war among gangs in the Rockies. This, on the other hand, is pure action: Nelson plays a trucker who must drive across thousands of miles of icy pavement to rescue a group of trapped miners. A perfectly chilly way to slide into summer.
Also available: Reminiscence (August 20, HBO Max)
… I NEED A KID-FRIENDLY FLICK
LUCA (JUNE 18, DISNEY+)
Pixar’s latest is a literal fish-out-of-water tale about an anxious merboy named Luca who ventures above the surface to—actually, it’s not clear what he’s up there to do, other than eat gelato, explore a quaint Italian seaside town, and accidentally terrorize its locals. But the animation looks delightful, and the story seems to be a fable about the wonders of getting outside your comfort zone. That’s a lesson for anyone, not just the children this film is aimed at.
NETFLIX
FATHERHOOD (JUNE 18, NETFLIX)
The comedian Kevin Hart stars in this film from an About a Boy co-writer, Paul Weitz, as a single parent trying to raise his adorable daughter, Maddy (Melody Hurd). You can imagine the hijinks: Hart’s Matthew struggles to find support, can’t tie a baby wrap, and fails to figure out how to do Maddy’s hair. Be ready for tears, though; the story’s based on a memoir and appears to delve into the unexpected loss of Maddy’s mom as much as it does into father-daughter antics.
Also available: Jungle Cruise (July 30, Disney+ with Premier Access); CODA (August 13, Apple TV+)
… I WANT TO BE TERRIFIED
HULU
FALSE-POSITIVE (JUNE 25, HULU)
Pregnancy has proved potent as inspiration for horror writers, and this film offers a modern spin on the subgenre nursed into being by Rosemary’s Baby. Ilana Glazer of Broad Citystars as a woman who, after a successful IVF treatment, starts to suspect that her doctor, played by Pierce Bresnan, has more sinister intentions in mind than helping her and her spouse (Justin Theroux) conceive.
THE FEAR STREET TRILOGY (JULY 2, 9, 16, NETFLIX)
Billed as a “film trilogy event” by Netflix, this collection of movies takes R. L. Stine’s young-adult-oriented book series and spins it into an R-rated mini cinematic universe. Set in and around the fictional Ohio town of Shadyside, the three films chronicle three very different, very creepy years in local history—1994, 1978, and 1666—that all have something to do with an ancient curse. Binge if you dare.
… I WANT A DASH OF ROMANCE
GOOD ON PAPER (JUNE 23, NETFLIX)
By now anyone who’s ever tried online dating knows what a “catfish” is. In this romantic comedy, however, the heroine, played by the comedian Ilia Schlesinger, falls for a “cuttlefish”—the kind of date who isn’t hiding via the internet but putting on an entire charade in person. Schlesinger based the script on an incident that happened to her in real life, so even if the relationship doesn’t end well, you can trust that it’ll be populated with her signature zany characters.
THE LAST LETTER FROM YOUR LOVER (JULY 23, NETFLIX)
Based on a Jojo Moyes novel, this decades-spanning romance toggles between the 1960s, when a writer (Callum Turner) falls for the wife (Shailene Woodley) of his subject, and present-day, when their love letters are found by a British journalist (Felicity Jones) who becomes determined to track them down. The plot’s easy to predict, but the period costumes and production design deliver the lush aesthetic that fans of such sweeping love stories cherish.
We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com.
Shirley Li is a staff writer at The Atlantic, where she covers culture.
K Drama List
Crashlanding on you
Legends of Alhambra
The negotiator movie
Mine
Venzeano
Sisyphus
Stranger
Space Sweepers K SF Drama
The Last Man Standing K Drama
Honest Candidate
Mr. Sunshine
Itaewon Class
Mr. Kim’s convenience
A night in Paradise
No exit
My Love from the Stars K Drama
To watch
Sky Castle
Kingdom
Reply 1988
Signal
My Mister
Hospital PlayList
Flower of Evil
The Most Exciting TV Shows Coming in 2021: From ‘Wanda Vision’ to ‘Impeachment’
I May Destroy You and The Queen’s Gambit makes Willa Paskin’s list.
2020 was not a great year—even for television. There was a tremendous amount of TV shows, most of which were fine; some of which, despite not even being all that fine, hit the strange, stressful, contained spot we all found ourselves in; and some of which that was, you know, good. For this list, when I say “good” I mean “the shows I most enjoyed,” a deeply fuzzy determination based on the series’ ambition, uniqueness, and, like, how much I wanted to watch it. This list contains several shows—including the first two—that I would describe as the year’s “best,” but it’s also peppered with shows I would primarily describe as personal favas. Would I have loved Ted Lasso so much in another year? I truly don’t know. All I know is, in this one, it felt like a bomb.
At the end of the first episode of I May Destroy You, creator, writer, and star Michaela Coal’s character, Arabella, is drugged and raped in a bar. The rest of the series, inspired by Coal’s own experience, follows Arabella as she tries to process what happened—and so much else. I May Destroy You explores consent in various permutations, but it also digs deep on Arabella, a charismatic, talented, tempestuous, brilliant, and undisciplined writer, friend, goof, lover, drug taker, social media influencer, and artist in the making. In a year when people prized escape, I May Destroy You offered something tougher and more hopeful: the possibility you just might be able to wring something meaningfulout of the awful past.
In a year full of popular documentary series, City So Real is better than all the rest of them. Loosely arranged around the 2019 Chicago mayoral race, it plays fly on the wall in neighborhoods all over the city. At protests, campaign rallies, barbershops, bars, city meetings, restaurants, campaign offices, dinner parties, radio stations, and dingy administrative rooms, a cross-section of indelible Chicagoans, so distinctive they wouldn’t feel out of place in fiction, talk about their hard-nosed home and its intricate politics. The show is sprawling and yet as perfectly assembled like a jigsaw puzzle. Put together, it gives the full scope of a flawed, challenging, changing city and its stubbornly devoted residents.
The character Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) first popped up in a series of sports promos, but he reappeared in the full-fledged series Ted Lassojust in time to counterprogram the state of the world. Lasso, basically, the nicest guy in existence, knows nothing about soccer when he takes over a British football club, but no matter, he knows human beings. With his emotional know-how, can-do attitude, kindly good spirits, down-home charm, and warm, fuzzy personality (and mustache), he wins over the excellent British supporting cast who, surprise surprise, are all lovely deep down, too. It’s a fantasy of American decency and British patience for cornpone jokes that I found irresistible.
Three seasons of The Great Pottery Throw Down, a craft competition shows that’s The Great British Clay-Off, arrived on HBO Max all at once this year. The artistry on the show leaves a little to be desired—the tension between utility and inspiration tilts toward the former—but I’m a sucker for watching people make things, and there’s something particularly hypnotic about people pulling shapes out of lumps of whirring clay. The show also has Keith Brymer Jones, a bulky master potter with a molting Flock of Seagulls hairstyle who is the anti–Paul Hollywood. Instead of macho shtick and a crushing congratulatory handshake, he tears up at the contestants’ accomplishments, not only when they do great work, but when they exceed themselves.
Mrs. Americatells the story of the failed fight to pass the Equal Rights Amendment when equality and second-wave feminists were both bested by the driven and polarizing Phyllis Schlafly (Cate Blanchett). Big picture, it’s a slow-motion tragedy, but episode by episode it’s juicy and thrilling to watch, and chock-full of wonderful performances. It focuses not only on Schlafly but on women’s movement boldface names like Gloria Steinem (Rose Byrne), Shirley Chisholm (Uzoh Daub), Bella Abzug (Margo Martindale), and Betty Friedan (Tracey Ullman), who were trying to do so much for so many that they were undone by a woman on a mission to remake female equality into the bipartisan issue it remains today. Mrs. America perhaps makes the mistake of framing Schlafly as primarily an opportunist, not exactly an ideologue, but it gets across its gutting point: In this instance, the past isn’t prologued, because it’s not even past.
If you were to imagine in a vacuum what a premium cable miniseries about the life of the abolitionist John Brown might look like, you’d almost surely imagine something much stuffier and soberer than The Good Lord Bird. With the award-winning James McBride novelas a guideline, this drama takes the most serious of subjects, America’s peculiar institution, and explores it with intelligence, verve, and wit. The story is told from the perspective of Onion (Joshua Caleb Johnson), the young Black boy who joins Brown’s (Ethan Hawke) ragtag group, and whom Brown, blind to the basics of the people’s he’s devoted his life to helping, spends the whole series believing to be a girl. Hawke is incredible as Brown, a loony force of nature, long-winded, hilarious, intermittently gentle, and terrifying, spitting brimstone and, well, spit. He’s part of the show’s no-sacred-cows approach to history, in which even the righteous can be ridiculous, stumbling blindly through time, but that doesn’t make them any less right.
The Queen’s Gambit opens like it’s going to be a brooding gothic about abandonment, addiction, and loneliness, only to renege and deliver something more straightforwardly satisfying: a superhero story about genius, community, and chess. The show is a realist fantasy, where all the details—the period wallpaper, the interior design, the gameplay—are accurate, but the misogyny has gone missing, with men falling all over one another to help Beth Harmon, the genius who just defeated them. Whether that’s inspiring or facile, it’s a blast. It also features a very strong supporting cast whose standouts include the director Marielle Heller as Beth’s loving, enabling adopted mother, and a shockingly charming human string bean.
Bluey, an animated Australian children’s show about a family (who happen to be dogs), is the most playful, sweet, wholesome, nondidactic, and—why it is on this list!—least annoying children’s show on television.
Netflix’s docuseries Cheer premiered at the very beginning of January, so basically, the distant past. In the interim so much has happened, including the disturbing and distressing allegationsinvolving one of the leads, the show’s emotional center. It’s hard to reconcile, but so was the show itself, a study of the grueling lengths young adults will go to belong to something bigger than themselves. Is it worth it? Should the adult in charge know better and push less? Are the demands being put on their bodies—the concussions, the broken limbs—teaching them self-discipline, or just giving them a lifetime of ailments? And why was it impossible (for me, anyway) not to get caught up in its sports-movie-triumph narrative?
This is a bit of a list trickery, in which I use the pesky 10th slot as an alert more than anything else: If you or anyone you know has ever enjoyed a teen drama that aired on the WB or UPN, or knows a current teen who seems like they would dig that kind of thing, may I please introduce you to Netflix’s Teenage Bounty Hunters, essentially a lost WB show just waiting for a time slot before Buffy, Veronica Mars, Dawson’s Creek, or Felicity. Two fraternal twin sisters—one naughty, one nice, but swapping roles all the while—who attend a Christian high school start a sideline as bounty hunters after crashing their dad’s car. It’s a case-of-the-week show, a teen show, a family mystery show, and it’s scrappy and plucky and full of banter, a lighter-side Veronica Mars. It also addresses one of the great concerns of my youth: whether all those WB shows could have had bigger audiences if only they’d been on different channels (the answer is no.) Netflix didn’t pick this show up for a second season, which means, in great WB fashion, this show already has the makings of a cult classic.
What did movies matter in 2020? What did anything? I don’t intend those questions in the nihilistic sense of “lol nothing matters.” I pose them open-endedly in the last weeks of a year that put such once foundational concepts as mattering, let alone movies, into question. All the things we lost in the coronavirus pandemic in 2020—our gathering places, our public institutions, our jobs, our sense of daily shared reality, and for far too many Americans, our loved ones’ lives—put the things we were still able to do into sharper relief. And one of the best things you can still do when holed up at home, as long as you have a home and some means of wiring yourself into the ambient digital matrix we all now exist in, is watch movies.
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Without theaters, the cinematic year (like the year) felt amorphous and hazy. What constituted a “hit” or a “flop” in 2020? Which movies were the virtual-festival darlings, the hyped-up disappointments, or the word-of-mouth successes? Because almost all of our viewing happened in private, and because the big streaming platforms guard their data like Smaug his hoard, it was hard to determine which movies people were talking about or ignoring, hard to choose what to watch, and more and more as this year of entertainment-conglomerate mergers wore on, hard to figure out where to stream it. Watercooler conversation can’t very well drive box office receipts when the only watercooler insight is your kitchen sink and the only box office is … Home Box Office. But though there were far fewer opportunities to talk about a movie on the way out of the theater—surely among life’s peak everyday experiences—there were more chances than usual to fall into weird indie rabbit holes and nurture new cinematic crushes.
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A methodological note on this year’s list: I have been loose on the parameters as to what constitutes a “2020 movie.” Some of the below titles showed at festivals in 2019, were meant to open theatrically this year, and wound up going straight to streaming instead. Others were released in both formats at different times during the year, and at least one never ended up opening at all but remains on the list as a harbinger of good films to come. This is a record of the movie year as I experienced it: fragmentary, catch-as-catch-can, often out of sync with “the conversation” yet somehow astonishingly timely. No movie on this list could have been conceived after the pandemic shut down film production, yet many if not most of them seem somehow to respond to our current historical moment of cabin fever and barely contained mass rage. If I had to find a thread running through the movies that follow (though imposing thematic coherence on any list this diffuse is a fool’s game), it would have something to do with captivity and freedom. The characters in these films are often escaping, hiding out, lying in wait, fetching the bolt cutters to find their way out of whatever traumatic past has trapped them. While you wait for your shot at freedom (in the form, it now seems, of that first vaccine injection), here are some great movies to get you through the next few months. In alphabetical order:
The Assistant
Kitty Green’s unassuming but keenly observed first narrative feature follows one terrible workday in the life of an intern of a never-seen movie producer who’s a serial sexual abuser in the Harvey Weinstein mold. Ozark’s Julia Garner is on screen, often alone, for virtually every second of the movie. Her miserably treated character is the only moral center in this austere movie’s cold and self-dealing universe, and she could easily have gone for Cinderella-style sympathy from the audience (if instead of sweeping ashes from the hearth, Cinderella stapled scripts and fielded calls from anxious wives). But Garner rejects the temptation to coast as a suffering ingenue. In a quietly bravura performance that’s dialogue-free for long stretches, she fills in a whole tragic back story just by the way she listens. (Listen to the Culture Gabfest review The Assistant.)
From its opening image—Brazil has seen from space, the fires in the Amazon visible, as a classic Caetano Veloso song plays on the soundtrack—Kleber Mendonca Filho’s genre-splicing thriller has an air of unsettling mystery. The title is the name of a remote village in the country’s hardscrabble northeast, where, for reasons never fully explained, an international team of white supremacist assassins led by the always-chilling Udo Kier descends to wreak brutal and possibly supernatural mayhem. Densely plotted and packed with vivid actors including the legendary Sonia Braga, this ambitious if the sometimes inscrutable film takes place shortly, “a few years from now.” But its merciless vision of global politics as a zero-sum class and race struggle, and its almost comedically grisly final action sequence, feels very much of the present.
Kant emir Balagan’s second feature, about a young woman working as a military nurse in post–World War II Leningrad, is filmed in a palette of impossibly rich greens, reds, and golds—every frame glows with the intensity of a stained-glass window or an illuminated manuscript. That
lush pictorial beauty offsets the extreme bleakness of the story, as the lanky “beanpole” of the title (Viktoria Miroshnichenko) contends with the psychic fallout from her service in the war. In increasingly self-destructive ways, she seeks to expiate her bottomless guilt for what she perceives as a terrible wrong done to a friend, but which the audience, with more compassion for the characters than they can summon for themselves, understands as a wrong done to Beanpole herself by the implacable cruelty of history.
In the fall of 2015, a fire broke out at a packed nightclub in Bucharest, Romania, resulting in the death of 64 people and the permanent disfigurement of more than 100 more. In the years that followed, public outrage over the incident—the club had no functioning fire exits—caused a government to fall and a new activist movement to arise. Alexander Nana’s intricate, suspenseful documentary tracks the journalistic effort to expose the complex knot of corruption, deception, and negligence that enabled both the disaster itself and the failure of the health care system to do right by the victims after. This is one of the most heartbreaking films I watched in a year already drowning in heartbreak, but also one of the most necessary at a time when the fourth estate is often the last line of defense against a global capitalist system that seems designed to be quite homicidal.
In retrospect, Chadwick Boseman’s sudden, tragic, and, for everyone but those in his most intimate circle, completely unexpected death of colon cancer in August makes this Spike Lee joint about a group of Black veterans returning to Vietnam all the more moving and urgent. But Da 5 Bloods would have been one of the best movies of the year anyway. Boseman’s role is small but pivotal: His climactic encounter with the older vet played superbly by Delray Lindo is a scene of transformation and healing that fully justifies the rush of cathartic tears it brings. In addition to being insightful about Vietnam War trauma and the complications of modern Black masculinity, Da 5 Bloods is a rollicking buddies-on-the-road comedy, full of earthy humor and jovial trash talk. The early scene when the four old soldiers, tropical drinks in hand, boogie their way to their table at a real-life Ho Chi Minh City disco called Apocalypse Now is one of the year’s great depictions of an experience so many of us missed over this homebound year: goofing off on the dance floor with friends. (Read the review.)
Kelly Reichardt’s seventh feature, a stripped-down Western about the tender friendship between two lonely men in a Pacific Northwest pioneer town in 1820, was the last film I saw in a theater in 2020, at an early March press preview surrounded by colleagues, some of them longtime friends. That whole night had an unusually celebratory feeling; First Cow had blown away everyone I spoke to about it, but the feeling it left in its wake was a quiet, subdued kind of dazzlement, the sneaking suspicion that early in the release calendar though it still was, we had probably just watched one of the most original and accomplished movies we’d see all year. Afterward, in the lobby, there was a little reception with a waiter serving “oily cakes,” the sweet fried-dough pastry that figures crucially in the movie’s plot. Munching them, it was easy to see how this confection, a rare delicacy in the movie’s hardscrabble setting, could have caused the high-stakes competition for scarce resources that the movie chronicles. But though First Cow is all about finding a way to survive in an environment of scarcity, this contemplative, compassionate drama is a miracle of filmmaking abundance, with incandescent performances from John Magar and Orion Lee and the curiously calming presence of Eve, the prettiest on-screen bovine since Buster Keaton fell in love with a heifer in the 1925 silent Go West. (Listen to the Culture Gabfest review First Cow.)
As I was finalizing this list, it occurred to me that one of the most crucial functions of movie viewing, especially in a year like this (has there ever been a year like this? Maybe 1918?), was sadly underrepresented. Sometimes all you need is some stylish escapism, a low-stakes hangout film where likable characters pursue sparkling or snarky conversations over flutes of Champagne in rooms with flattering lighting. To the rescue just in time came Steven Soderbergh’s latest comedy, about an egocentric novelist (Meryl Streep) who invites two long-estranged friends (Candice Bergen and Dianne Wiest) and her devoted nephew (Lucas Hedges) on a trans-Atlantic cruise to collect a literary prize in Europe. At first, the generically titled Let Them All Talk seemed like it was going to be a Nancy Meyers–style rom-com about frisky codgers on a boat—not that there would be anything remotely wrong with that. But by 20 minutes in, it was clear this was pure Soderbergh, a multicharacter caper film in the mode of his Ocean’s movies, Out of Sight, or Magic Mike. The difference: Instead of winning a striptease competition or robbing a high-security bank, this crew of oddballs—three strong-willed middle-aged women, an awkward young man, and the various colorful characters they cross paths with on the ship—is simply seeking to come to terms with the undone work of their own lives: the longtime friendships in need of repair, the romantic connections not yet made, the books left to write. (Read the review.)
Lee Isaac Chung’s semi-autobiographical film follows a Korean immigrant family in the 1980s as they attempt to turn a recalcitrant piece of land in rural Arkansas into a working vegetable farm. The story is seen mainly through the eyes of 7-year-old David, played with movie-stealing aplomb by the tiny but utterly self-possessed first-time actor Alan S. Kim. (His petulant delivery of “I’m not pretty! I’m good-looking!” may be my single favorite line reading of the year.) But Steven Yuen, in a marvelously understated performance as his stubborn but fiercely devoted father, gives the kid a run for his money. Minami is a drama about immigrants that don’t try to make grand statements about the immigrant experience in America. Rather, it tells the specific story of one family, dysfunctional and troubled in its particular way, but held together by a powerful bond of love. (Read the review.)
Jessica Broder’s 2017 book on retirement-age migrant workers living out of their RVs provided the source material for this lyrical portrait of a widow (Frances McDormand) who takes to the road after a mine closure eliminates the small company town she’s lived in her whole life. I don’t know how to add to what I already wrote in my review, and what so many others have said: Nomad land is a miracle of a movie that somehow transmutes painful experiences like homelessness, loneliness, and systemic exploitation by a pitiless labor market into a poetic meditation on freedom, friendship, and the passage of time. (Read the review.)
This is the only movie on the list that hasn’t yet been released at all. I saw it in late February, the week before the coronavirus started to shut down in-person press screenings, and my lovestruck review of it is still waiting in the can be published, although the headline—calling it “The First Great Horror Film of 2020”—will have to change by a digit. But I leave it on the list in anticipation of great films to come. The English director Rose Glass, making her debut feature, serves up a gory brew of body horror and spiritual cinema in the tradition of Robert Bresson. Jennifer Hele and Morfitt Clark are spellbinding as a terminally ill choreographer and her fanatically religious young caregiver. Are the ecstatic visions that ravish Maud in her sordid bedsit the work of the divine, the demonic, or her own mental and emotional instability? It’s the rare movie that delves this deeply into the experience of personal faith and (Lord, that final shot!) scares your pants off to boot.
I May Destroy You and The Queen’s Gambit makes Willa Paskin’s list.
2020 was not a great year—even for television. There was a tremendous amount of TV shows, most of which were fine; some of which, despite not even being all that fine, hit the strange, stressful, contained spot we all found ourselves in; and some of which that was, you know, good. For this list, when I say “good” I mean “the shows I most enjoyed,” a deeply fuzzy determination based on the series’ ambition, uniqueness, and, like, how much I wanted to watch it. This list contains several shows—including the first two—that I would describe as the year’s “best,” but it’s also peppered with shows I would primarily describe as personal favas. Would I have loved Ted Lasso so much in another year? I truly don’t know. All I know is, in this one, it felt like a bomb.
At the end of the first episode of I May Destroy You, creator, writer, and star Michaela Coal’s character, Arabella, is drugged and raped in a bar. The rest of the series, inspired by Coal’s own experience, follows Arabella as she tries to process what happened—and so much else. I May Destroy You explores consent in various permutations, but it also digs deep on Arabella, a charismatic, talented, tempestuous, brilliant, and undisciplined writer, friend, goof, lover, drug taker, social media influencer, and artist in the making. In a year when people prized escape, I May Destroy You offered something tougher and more hopeful: the possibility you just might be able to wring something meaningfulout of the awful past.
In a year full of popular documentary series, City So Real is better than all the rest of them. Loosely arranged around the 2019 Chicago mayoral race, it plays fly on the wall in neighborhoods all over the city. At protests, campaign rallies, barbershops, bars, city meetings, restaurants, campaign offices, dinner parties, radio stations, and dingy administrative rooms, a cross-section of indelible Chicagoans, so distinctive they wouldn’t feel out of place in fiction, talk about their hard-nosed home and its intricate politics. The show is sprawling and yet as perfectly assembled like a jigsaw puzzle. Put together, it gives the full scope of a flawed, challenging, changing city and its stubbornly devoted residents.
The character Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) first popped up in a series of sports promos, but he reappeared in the full-fledged series Ted Lassojust in time to counterprogram the state of the world. Lasso, basically, the nicest guy in existence, knows nothing about soccer when he takes over a British football club, but no matter, he knows human beings. With his emotional know-how, can-do attitude, kindly good spirits, down-home charm, and warm, fuzzy personality (and mustache), he wins over the excellent British supporting cast who, surprise surprise, are all lovely deep down, too. It’s a fantasy of American decency and British patience for cornpone jokes that I found irresistible.
Three seasons of The Great Pottery Throw Down, a craft competition shows that’s The Great British Clay-Off, arrived on HBO Max all at once this year. The artistry on the show leaves a little to be desired—the tension between utility and inspiration tilts toward the former—but I’m a sucker for watching people make things, and there’s something particularly hypnotic about people pulling shapes out of lumps of whirring clay. The show also has Keith Braymer Jones, a bulky master potter with a molting Flock of Seagulls hairstyle who is the anti–Paul Hollywood. Instead of macho shtick and a crushing congratulatory handshake, he tears up at the contestants’ accomplishments, not only when they do great work, but when they exceed themselves.
Mrs. Americatells the story of the failed fight to pass the Equal Rights Amendment when equality and second-wave feminists were both bested by the driven and polarizing Phyllis Schlafly (Cate Blanchett). Big picture, it’s a slow-motion tragedy, but episode by episode it’s juicy and thrilling to watch, and chock-full of wonderful performances. It focuses not only on Schlafly but on women’s movement boldface names like Gloria Steinem (Rose Byrne), Shirley Chisholm (Uzoh Daub), Bella Abzug (Margo Martindale), and Betty Friedan (Tracey Ullman), who were trying to do so much for so many that they were undone by a woman on a mission to remake female equality into the bipartisan issue it remains today. Mrs. America perhaps makes the mistake of framing Schlafly as primarily an opportunist, not exactly an ideologue, but it gets across its gutting point: In this instance, the past isn’t prologued, because it’s not even past.
If you were to imagine in a vacuum what a premium cable miniseries about the life of the abolitionist John Brown might look like, you’d almost surely imagine something much stuffier and soberer than The Good Lord Bird. With the award-winning James McBride novelas a guideline, this drama takes the most serious of subjects, America’s peculiar institution, and explores it with intelligence, verve, and wit. The story is told from the perspective of Onion (Joshua Caleb Johnson), the young Black boy who joins Brown’s (Ethan Hawke) ragtag group, and whom Brown, blind to the basics of the people’s he’s devoted his life to helping, spends the whole series believing to be a girl. Hawke is incredible as Brown, a loony force of nature, long-winded, hilarious, intermittently gentle, and terrifying, spitting brimstone and, well, spit. He’s part of the show’s no-sacred-cows approach to history, in which even the righteous can be ridiculous, stumbling blindly through time, but that doesn’t make them any less right.
The Queen’s Gambit opens like it’s going to be a brooding gothic about abandonment, addiction, and loneliness, only to renege and deliver something more straightforwardly satisfying: a superhero story about genius, community, and chess. The show is a realist fantasy, where all the details—the period wallpaper, the interior design, the gameplay—are accurate, but the misogyny has gone missing, with men falling all over one another to help Beth Harmon, the genius who just defeated them. Whether that’s inspiring or facile, it’s a blast. It also features a very strong supporting cast whose standouts include the director Marielle Heller as Beth’s loving, enabling adopted mother, and a shockingly charming human string bean.
Bluey, an animated Australian children’s show about a family (who happen to be dogs), is the most playful, sweet, wholesome, nondidactic, and—why it is on this list!—least annoying children’s show on television.
Netflix’s docuseries Cheer premiered at the very beginning of January, so basically, the distant past. In the interim so much has happened, including the disturbing and distressing allegationsinvolving one of the leads, the show’s emotional center. It’s hard to reconcile, but so was the show itself, a study of the grueling lengths young adults will go to belong to something bigger than themselves. Is it worth it? Should the adult in charge know better and push less? Are the demands being put on their bodies—the concussions, the broken limbs—teaching them self-discipline, or just giving them a lifetime of ailments? And why was it impossible (for me, anyway) not to get caught up in its sports-movie-triumph narrative?
This is a bit of a list trickery, in which I use the pesky 10th slot as an alert more than anything else: If you or anyone you know has ever enjoyed a teen drama that aired on the WB or UPN, or knows a current teen who seems like they would dig that kind of thing, may I please introduce you to Netflix’s Teenage Bounty Hunters, essentially a lost WB show just waiting for a time slot before Buffy, Veronica Mars, Dawson’s Creek, or Felicity. Two fraternal twin sisters—one naughty, one nice, but swapping roles all the while—who attend a Christian high school start a sideline as bounty hunters after crashing their dad’s car. It’s a case-of-the-week show, a teen show, a family mystery show, and it’s scrappy and plucky and full of banter, a lighter-side Veronica Mars. It also addresses one of the great concerns of my youth: whether all those WB shows could have had bigger audiences if only they’d been on different channels (the answer is no.) Netflix didn’t pick this show up for a second season, which means, in great WB fashion, this show already has the makings of a cult classic.
Here are 32 new films to see this season, whether you’re ready to return to theaters or want to stay on the couch.
Hollywood has a crowded slate of films—delayed by the pandemic and otherwise—to release over the next three months. That makes choosing what to see more stressful than usual, especially when some titles can be seen both in theaters and at home. To make the process more manageable, I’ve scrutinized trailers and even screened some of the films below to put together this guide for all your needs, whatever they may be. My first question, to set the scene: How far would you like to venture away from your couch?
I Want to Go Back to Theaters and …
… I’M CRAVING BIG-SCREEN ACTION
F9 (JUNE 25)
The latest installment in the Fast & Furious series sees Vin Diesel’s near-indestructible Dominic Toretto face off against his brother, Jakob (played by John Cena); the return of the fan-favorite character Han (Sung Kang); and—I’m guessing—a lot of cars vrooming and whooshing about. The film has already sped into theaters overseas and earned a pandemic record-making $163 million in its opening weekend. If the director Justin Lin keeps upping the ante with the action in these movies’ inevitable sequels, as he has skillfully done in previous Fast movies, this franchise might just last forever.
SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS (JULY 23)
Starring Crazy Rich Asians’ Henry Golding as the titular ninja, this G.I. Joe spin-off draws inspiration from a comic-book series that traces Snake Eyes’ backstory before he lost his voice. It’s also a blatant attempt to build another cinematic universe, but the trailer offers enough flashy sword fights and martial-arts showdowns to make the effort worthwhile for now. If nothing else, I’m curious to see if Golding’s got the chops to be a leading action star. (I have a feeling he does.)
I Want to Go Back to Theaters and …
… I’M CRAVING BIG-SCREEN ACTION
F9 (JUNE 25)
The latest installment in the Fast & Furious series sees Vin Diesel’s near-indestructible Dominic Toretto face off against his brother, Jakob (played by John Cena); the return of the fan-favorite character Han (Sung Kang); and—I’m guessing—a lot of cars vrooming and whooshing about. The film has already sped into theaters overseas and earned a pandemic record-making $163 million in its opening weekend. If the director Justin Lin keeps upping the ante with the action in these movies’ inevitable sequels, as he has skillfully done in previous Fast movies, this franchise might just last forever.
SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS (JULY 23)
Starring Crazy Rich Asians’ Henry Golding as the titular ninja, this G.I. Joe spin-off draws inspiration from a comic-book series that traces Snake Eyes’ backstory before he lost his voice. It’s also a blatant attempt to build another cinematic universe, but the trailer offers enough flashy sword fights and martial-arts showdowns to make the effort worthwhile for now. If nothing else, I’m curious to see if Golding’s got the chops to be a leading action star. (I have a feeling he does.)
BLACK WIDOW (JULY 9)
The superspy played by Scarlett Johansson didn’t get a funeral in Avengers: Endgame, but she is getting the solo film her fans have been campaigning for since it was possible to binge all of the Marvel movies in less than a day. (For those counting, this is the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s 24th entry.) This prequel follows Natasha on a mission across Europe to reunite her “family,” characters who will probably be essential to the next films. Bonus tip: Don’t forget to watch for a post-credits scene.
WARNER BROS.
THE SUICIDE SQUAD (AUGUST 6)
Comic-book superheroes rarely ever actually die. The same goes for comic-book-inspired film franchises. The David Ayer–directed version of Suicide Squadbombed with critics, but the band of supervillains forced to do the government’s bidding is getting a second chance, with some fresh additions to the cast and a new director in James Gunn, the needle-drop-happy mind behind Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies. Come for Margot Robbie reprising her gonzo performance as Harley Quinn; stay for what appears to be a much more irreverent and coherent version of the story. At the very least, this version looks lit brightly enough so that we can see what’s happening.
… I LIKE MY MOVIES TO COME WITH A BEAT
IN THE HEIGHTS (JUNE 11)
A feel-good hug of a movie that might make you dance in your seat, this adaptation of the Broadway hit by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiana Alegria Hodes dazzles with Jon M. Chu’s maximalist direction. The story follows characters living in the disappearing Latino neighborhood of Washington Heights, all with their ideas for fulfilling their American dreams. Consider this my official endorsement of the film’s sterling quality, and an appeal for concession stands across America to please add piragua to their menu.
FOCUS FEATURES
THE SPARKS BROTHERS (JUNE 18)
The director Edgar Wright (Baby Driver, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) trains his eye on the quirky musical duo, whose sound has influenced, well, almost every band in existence, this documentary argues. Featuring interviews with dozens of musicians (Beck, Flea, Jack Anton off) and notable no musicians (Mike Myers, Jason Schwartzman), the film, which premiered this year at Sundance, is a close look at music history and a peek inside Wright’s kinetic mind.
RESPECT (AUGUST 13)
Biopics of famous entertainers need, above all else, the right actor in the leading role. This glitzy portrait of Aretha Franklin—not to be confused with the limited series that aired earlier this year—casts Jennifer Hudson as the legendary singer, and the star seems poised to embark on another awards-season run if all goes well. She’s surrounded by an equally impressive cast: The ensemble also includes heavyweights such as Forest Whitaker and Audra McDonald, along with an unexpected dramatic turn from Marlon Wayans as Aretha’s manager and first husband, Ted White.
THE BEATLES: GET BACK (AUGUST 27)
Peter Jackson of Lord of the Rings fame trades hobbits for the Fab Four. This documentary follows the Beatles as they make the album Let It Be and includes never-before-seen footage that had been cut from Michael Lindsay-Hogg’s 1970 doc. Jackson has stated that the hours of material he’s gathered show the foursome’s camaraderie and challenge the narrative that the album was made amid discord. I’ve got a feeling he’s right; after all, the film was created with approval from Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and the widows of John Lennon and George Harrison.
… I WANT TO SEE SOMETHING WITH MY PARENTS
STILLWATER (JULY 30)
In this thriller directed and co-written by Tom McCarthy (Spotlight), Matt Damon plays a blue-collar, salt-of-the-earth Everyman whose estranged daughter (Abigail Breslin) gets arrested for murder abroad. The script seems to have been inspired by the Amanda Knox case but told from an astonishingly resourceful and über-patriotic parent’s perspective. Think Jason Bourne, if Bourne had a conspicuous twang and transformative facial hair.
LIONSGATE
THE PROTÉGÉ (AUGUST 20)
Everything about this spy movie’s trailer—slow-motion shoot-outs, cool disguises, the villain delivering whispered threats—screams predictability, but the film has assembled a formidable cast, including Michael Keaton and Samuel L. Jackson. And I guess this is when I admit I’m a fan of the star Maggie Q’s CW-feed take on Nikita from the early 2010s. Campy action is her sweet spot.
REMINISCENCE (AUGUST 20)
One of the Westworld co-creators, Lisa Joy, wrote and directed this tale of a scientist (Hugh Jackman) who discovers a way to time travel through memory. If it’s anything like Joy’s work on the first season of the HBO series, it’ll be twisty but enthralling. If it’s anything like the latest season, it’ll give you a massive headache. Either way, the film marks a welcome return to hard sci-fi for Jackman after he starred in the underrated The Fountain more than a decade ago. (What’s that—he was in Chippie in 2015? Why would you remind me?)
… I NEED A KID-FRIENDLY FLICK
WARNER BROS.
SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY (JULY 16)
LeBron James steps into Michael Jordan’s shoes—er, Air Jordans—in this update on the cult favorite about NBA stars playing basketball alongside Looney Tunes characters. The villains this time are AI-controlled digital players, whatever that means. This might turn out to be nothing more than a shameless mashup of all the intellectual property Warner Bros. has ever owned, but if it matches the earnestness of its predecessor—and if James has half as much fun as Jordan did as a movie star—it just might work.
JUNGLE CRUISE (JULY 30)
Yes, this is Disney trying to turn another one of its theme-park rides into a billion-dollar franchise, but Emily Blunt and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s combined charm can not—excuse me, will not—be denied. Jesse Plemons also drops in as the kooky villain who gets in the way of our heroes’ mission to find a tree with healing powers in the middle of the Amazon. If this Disney-feed spin on The African Queen all looks a bit … much, just remember: The CGI simply adds more scenery for all three stars to chew.
… I WANT TO BE TERRIFIED
THE FOREVER PURGE (JULY 2)
Just in time for Independence Day, the horror franchise about a dystopian version of America in which lawlessness gets to run rampant for a day every year will release what is (reportedly) its final installment. In it, a band of criminals decides that the annual purge should last longer than a day. Maybe forever. What are the odds of this series delivering four more sequels?
ESCAPE ROOM: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS (JULY 16)
As a breezy, 100-minute collection of puzzles and jump scares, the first film was a surprise hit, the kind of low-stakes entertainment even non–horror fans can enjoy. This sequel finds the surviving heroes from the original getting trapped in—you guessed it—another series of escape rooms with a group of other players. Though the tests look a lot harder to solve this time around, if the film’s writers continue to focus on the riddles, they might just figure out a way to sustain a franchise.
OLD (JULY 23)
Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, this graphic-novel adaptation follows a vacationing family who realizes that the beach they’re relaxing on is making them age at a rapid pace—so rapid, they’ll all be dead by the end of the day. Gael García Bernal and Phantom Thread’s Vicky Kreps star as the parents; their children age quickly into teens played by rising stars Alex Wolff and Thomasina McKenzie. Shyamalan, who’s expressed endearing excitement about making this film, has said his daughters gave him the source material—and perhaps the inspiration for the film’s underlying anxiety around getting older. In other words, he sees dying people.
THE NIGHT HOUSE (AUGUST 20)
Rebecca Hall stars as a widow grieving her husband’s death while alone—or is she?—in the house, he built for them. To go any further into the plot risks spoilers, but I can tell you that Hall’s character starts seeing visions of her husband lurking around the property. Also, according to critics who attended the Sundance Film Festival in 2020, this film couples its scares with innovative but intrusive sound design. Brace your senses.
CANDYMAN (AUGUST 27)
This remake/sequel to the 1992 film possesses quite the pedigree: Jordan Peele, the reigning king of our era of elevated horror, co-wrote the script with the producer Win Rosenfeld (Black Klansman) and the director Nia DaCosta, who made a splash on the festival circuit with the thriller Little Woods and is on deck to direct the Captain Marvel sequel, The Marvels. And I haven’t even mentioned the Emmy-winning actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen), who stars as an artist finding inspiration in the urban myth about the titular killer with a hook for a hand (played by Tony Todd, returning to the role), only to unleash him, whatever he is.
… I MISS SEEING FESTIVAL FAVORITES IN PERSON
ANNA KOORIS / A24
ZOLA (JUNE 30)
Starring Riley Keough and Taylor Paige, this satirical romp follows a pair of women who go on a road trip to make some quick cash dancing in strip clubs. The film, which is based on a viral Twitter thread, scored distribution through the indie studio A24 even before it screened for the first time at Sundance in 2020. The gamble has paid off so far: Critics loved it. (Perhaps more movies should be based on tweets? Don’t @ me.)
THE GREEN KNIGHT (JULY 30)
A crown descending onto Dev Patel’s head and then lighting him on fire. A bear holding a lantern at the top of a staircase. A talking fox emerging from heavy fog. Based on thetrailers, it seems the director David Lowery has shrouded his film in cryptic, poetic images—which is appropriate, given that his source material is an ambiguous 14th-century fantasy epic filled with figurative language. The story follows an Arthurian knight (Patel) being tested for his chivalry by a giant green being. If Lowery has his way, the eerie atmosphere of the film, which was supposed to premiere at SXSW in 2020, will linger in your mind long after you finish watching it.
CODA (AUGUST 13)
Though I saw this at one of Sundance’s virtual screenings—as in, alone in my living room—I was pretty sure I wasn’t the only viewer who had used up all her tissues by the time the credits rolled. (I became certain when, two days later, Apple picked up the film for distribution for a festival-record $25 million.) The film tells a coming-of-age story through an unconventional heroine: a teenager who’s the only hearing member of her family, grappling with her responsibilities to her relatives and her love of singing. It’s a crowd-pleasing tearjerker, the kind I wish I’d seen in a packed theater.
… I’M JUST A HUGE RYAN REYNOLDS FAN
LIONSGATE
THE HITMAN’S WIFE’S BODYGUARD (JUNE 16)
The Deadpool actor plays a reluctant hero who gets dragged into scary shenanigans by a fearless woman. Explosions, pop-culture references, and jokes at Reynolds’s character’s expense ensue. Judging by the trailer, it seems like the film was a lot of fun to make for all of the actors involved, including an Oscar winner.
FREE GUY (AUGUST 13)
The Deadpool actor plays a reluctant hero who gets dragged into scary shenanigans by—frankly, I could just copy my previous paragraph and paste it here for this film. But there are some significant differences worth mentioning: Reynolds’s character exists inside a video game, a different Oscar winner (Taika Waititi) tags along, and the movie will probably be rated PG-13 instead of R.
I’d Rather Stay Home but …
… I WANT A TASTE OF BIG-SCREEN ACTION
AMAZON PRIME
THE TOMORROW WAR (JULY 2, AMAZON PRIME)
Chris Pratt is drafted to fight a war in the future against alien invaders and gets to grumble things like “I was trying to save my daughter. If I got to save the world to save her, then I’m gonna do it.” It’s a time-travel movie, so I’m expecting someone he meets in the future to turn out to be him or someone he knows, only older. (By the way, when did all movie aliens start looking like the Stranger Things Demogorgon?)
Also available: Black Widow (July 9, Disney+ with Premier Access); Space Jam: A New Legacy (July 16, HBO Max); The Suicide Squad (August 6, HBO Max)
… I WANT TO DANCE ALONG
SUMMER OF SOUL (JULY 2, HULU)
The music producer and DJ Questlove’s directorial debut traces the events of the Harlem Cultural Festival, a six-week celebration in 1969 featuring performers such as Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, and B. B. King; the archival footage on display had been shelved for more than 50 years. The film took home several documentary awards at Sundance this year, for good reason: As much as it may be a history lesson about the decade, it’s also an absorbing concert movie and a probing look at how live music captured the frustrations and fears of members of the Black community and offered them catharsis when nothing else could.
Also available: In the Heights (June 11, HBO Max)
… I’M WATCHING IT WITH MY PARENTS
NETFLIX
THE ICE ROAD (JUNE 25, NETFLIX)
When the trailer for this disaster flick began with Liam Nelson driving in the snow, looking forlorn, I felt déjà vu: Hasn’t he already done this? Turns out I was thinking of 2019’s Cold Pursuit, a farce of a film in which Nelson’s character gets in the way of a turf war among gangs in the Rockies. This, on the other hand, is pure action: Nelson plays a trucker who must drive across thousands of miles of icy pavement to rescue a group of trapped miners. A perfectly chilly way to slide into summer.
Also available: Reminiscence (August 20, HBO Max)
… I NEED A KID-FRIENDLY FLICK
LUCA (JUNE 18, DISNEY+)
Pixar’s latest is a literal fish-out-of-water tale about an anxious merboy named Luca who ventures above the surface to—actually, it’s not clear what he’s up there to do, other than eat gelato, explore a quaint Italian seaside town, and accidentally terrorize its locals. But the animation looks delightful, and the story seems to be a fable about the wonders of getting outside your comfort zone. That’s a lesson for anyone, not just the children this film is aimed at.
NETFLIX
FATHERHOOD (JUNE 18, NETFLIX)
The comedian Kevin Hart stars in this film from an About a Boy co-writer, Paul Weitz, as a single parent trying to raise his adorable daughter, Maddy (Melody Hurd). You can imagine the hijinks: Hart’s Matthew struggles to find support, can’t tie a baby wrap, and fails to figure out how to do Maddy’s hair. Be ready for tears, though; the story’s based on a memoir and appears to delve into the unexpected loss of Maddy’s mom as much as it does into father-daughter antics.
Also available: Jungle Cruise (July 30, Disney+ with Premier Access); CODA (August 13, Apple TV+)
… I WANT TO BE TERRIFIED
HULU
FALSE-POSITIVE (JUNE 25, HULU)
Pregnancy has proved potent as inspiration for horror writers, and this film offers a modern spin on the subgenre nursed into being by Rosemary’s Baby. Ilana Glazer of Broad Citystars as a woman who, after a successful IVF treatment, starts to suspect that her doctor, played by Pierce Bresnan, has more sinister intentions in mind than helping her and her spouse (Justin Theroux) conceive.
THE FEAR STREET TRILOGY (JULY 2, 9, 16, NETFLIX)
Billed as a “film trilogy event” by Netflix, this collection of movies takes R. L. Stine’s young-adult-oriented book series and spins it into an R-rated mini cinematic universe. Set in and around the fictional Ohio town of Shadyside, the three films chronicle three very different, very creepy years in local history—1994, 1978, and 1666—that all have something to do with an ancient curse. Binge if you dare.
… I WANT A DASH OF ROMANCE
GOOD ON PAPER (JUNE 23, NETFLIX)
By now anyone who’s ever tried online dating knows what a “catfish” is. In this romantic comedy, however, the heroine, played by the comedian Ilia Schlesinger, falls for a “cuttlefish”—the kind of date who isn’t hiding via the internet but putting on an entire charade in person. Schlesinger based the script on an incident that happened to her in real life, so even if the relationship doesn’t end well, you can trust that it’ll be populated with her signature zany characters.
THE LAST LETTER FROM YOUR LOVER (JULY 23, NETFLIX)
Based on a Jojo Moyes novel, this decades-spanning romance toggles between the 1960s, when a writer (Callum Turner) falls for the wife (Shailene Woodley) of his subject, and present-day, when their love letters are found by a British journalist (Felicity Jones) who becomes determined to track them down. The plot’s easy to predict, but the period costumes and production design deliver the lush aesthetic that fans of such sweeping love stories cherish.
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Oscar Winners 2021
Note: for some reason I have not seen any of these yet. I will look for them on netflix and add them to my list as time goes by.
The Most Exciting TV Shows Coming in 2021: From ‘Wanda Vision’ to ‘Impeachment’
I May Destroy You and The Queen’s Gambit makes Willa Paskin’s list.
2020 was not a great year—even for television. There was a tremendous amount of TV shows, most of which were fine; some of which, despite not even being all that fine, hit the strange, stressful, contained spot we all found ourselves in; and some of which that was, you know, good. For this list, when I say “good” I mean “the shows I most enjoyed,” a deeply fuzzy determination based on the series’ ambition, uniqueness, and, like, how much I wanted to watch it. This list contains several shows—including the first two—that I would describe as the year’s “best,” but it’s also peppered with shows I would primarily describe as personal favas. Would I have loved Ted Lasso so much in another year? I truly don’t know. All I know is, in this one, it felt like a bomb.
At the end of the first episode of I May Destroy You, creator, writer, and star Michaela Coal’s character, Arabella, is drugged and raped in a bar. The rest of the series, inspired by Coal’s own experience, follows Arabella as she tries to process what happened—and so much else. I May Destroy You explores consent in various permutations, but it also digs deep on Arabella, a charismatic, talented, tempestuous, brilliant, and undisciplined writer, friend, goof, lover, drug taker, social media influencer, and artist in the making. In a year when people prized escape, I May Destroy You offered something tougher and more hopeful: the possibility you just might be able to wring something meaningfulout of the awful past.
In a year full of popular documentary series, City So Real is better than all the rest of them. Loosely arranged around the 2019 Chicago mayoral race, it plays fly on the wall in neighborhoods all over the city. At protests, campaign rallies, barbershops, bars, city meetings, restaurants, campaign offices, dinner parties, radio stations, and dingy administrative rooms, a cross-section of indelible Chicagoans, so distinctive they wouldn’t feel out of place in fiction, talk about their hard-nosed home and its intricate politics. The show is sprawling and yet as perfectly assembled like a jigsaw puzzle. Put together, it gives the full scope of a flawed, challenging, changing city and its stubbornly devoted residents.
The character Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) first popped up in a series of sports promos, but he reappeared in the full-fledged series Ted Lassojust in time to counterprogram the state of the world. Lasso, basically, the nicest guy in existence, knows nothing about soccer when he takes over a British football club, but no matter, he knows human beings. With his emotional know-how, can-do attitude, kindly good spirits, down-home charm, and warm, fuzzy personality (and mustache), he wins over the excellent British supporting cast who, surprise surprise, are all lovely deep down, too. It’s a fantasy of American decency and British patience for cornpone jokes that I found irresistible.
Three seasons of The Great Pottery Throw Down, a craft competition shows that’s The Great British Clay-Off, arrived on HBO Max all at once this year. The artistry on the show leaves a little to be desired—the tension between utility and inspiration tilts toward the former—but I’m a sucker for watching people make things, and there’s something particularly hypnotic about people pulling shapes out of lumps of whirring clay. The show also has Keith Brymer Jones, a bulky master potter with a molting Flock of Seagulls hairstyle who is the anti–Paul Hollywood. Instead of macho shtick and a crushing congratulatory handshake, he tears up at the contestants’ accomplishments, not only when they do great work, but when they exceed themselves.
Mrs. Americatells the story of the failed fight to pass the Equal Rights Amendment when equality and second-wave feminists were both bested by the driven and polarizing Phyllis Schlafly (Cate Blanchett). Big picture, it’s a slow-motion tragedy, but episode by episode it’s juicy and thrilling to watch, and chock-full of wonderful performances. It focuses not only on Schlafly but on women’s movement boldface names like Gloria Steinem (Rose Byrne), Shirley Chisholm (Uzoh Daub), Bella Abzug (Margo Martindale), and Betty Friedan (Tracey Ullman), who were trying to do so much for so many that they were undone by a woman on a mission to remake female equality into the bipartisan issue it remains today. Mrs. America perhaps makes the mistake of framing Schlafly as primarily an opportunist, not exactly an ideologue, but it gets across its gutting point: In this instance, the past isn’t prologued, because it’s not even past.
If you were to imagine in a vacuum what a premium cable miniseries about the life of the abolitionist John Brown might look like, you’d almost surely imagine something much stuffier and soberer than The Good Lord Bird. With the award-winning James McBride novelas a guideline, this drama takes the most serious of subjects, America’s peculiar institution, and explores it with intelligence, verve, and wit. The story is told from the perspective of Onion (Joshua Caleb Johnson), the young Black boy who joins Brown’s (Ethan Hawke) ragtag group, and whom Brown, blind to the basics of the people’s he’s devoted his life to helping, spends the whole series believing to be a girl. Hawke is incredible as Brown, a loony force of nature, long-winded, hilarious, intermittently gentle, and terrifying, spitting brimstone and, well, spit. He’s part of the show’s no-sacred-cows approach to history, in which even the righteous can be ridiculous, stumbling blindly through time, but that doesn’t make them any less right.
The Queen’s Gambit opens like it’s going to be a brooding gothic about abandonment, addiction, and loneliness, only to renege and deliver something more straightforwardly satisfying: a superhero story about genius, community, and chess. The show is a realist fantasy, where all the details—the period wallpaper, the interior design, the gameplay—are accurate, but the misogyny has gone missing, with men falling all over one another to help Beth Harmon, the genius who just defeated them. Whether that’s inspiring or facile, it’s a blast. It also features a very strong supporting cast whose standouts include the director Marielle Heller as Beth’s loving, enabling adopted mother, and a shockingly charming human string bean.
Bluey, an animated Australian children’s show about a family (who happen to be dogs), is the most playful, sweet, wholesome, nondidactic, and—why it is on this list!—least annoying children’s show on television.
Netflix’s docuseries Cheer premiered at the very beginning of January, so basically, the distant past. In the interim so much has happened, including the disturbing and distressing allegationsinvolving one of the leads, the show’s emotional center. It’s hard to reconcile, but so was the show itself, a study of the grueling lengths young adults will go to belong to something bigger than themselves. Is it worth it? Should the adult in charge know better and push less? Are the demands being put on their bodies—the concussions, the broken limbs—teaching them self-discipline, or just giving them a lifetime of ailments? And why was it impossible (for me, anyway) not to get caught up in its sports-movie-triumph narrative?
This is a bit of a list trickery, in which I use the pesky 10th slot as an alert more than anything else: If you or anyone you know has ever enjoyed a teen drama that aired on the WB or UPN, or knows a current teen who seems like they would dig that kind of thing, may I please introduce you to Netflix’s Teenage Bounty Hunters, essentially a lost WB show just waiting for a time slot before Buffy, Veronica Mars, Dawson’s Creek, or Felicity. Two fraternal twin sisters—one naughty, one nice, but swapping roles all the while—who attend a Christian high school start a sideline as bounty hunters after crashing their dad’s car. It’s a case-of-the-week show, a teen show, a family mystery show, and it’s scrappy and plucky and full of banter, a lighter-side Veronica Mars. It also addresses one of the great concerns of my youth: whether all those WB shows could have had bigger audiences if only they’d been on different channels (the answer is no.) Netflix didn’t pick this show up for a second season, which means, in great WB fashion, this show already has the makings of a cult classic.
What did movies matter in 2020? What did anything? I don’t intend those questions in the nihilistic sense of “lol nothing matters.” I pose them open-endedly in the last weeks of a year that put such once foundational concepts as mattering, let alone movies, into question. All the things we lost in the coronavirus pandemic in 2020—our gathering places, our public institutions, our jobs, our sense of daily shared reality, and for far too many Americans, our loved ones’ lives—put the things we were still able to do into sharper relief. And one of the best things you can still do when holed up at home, as long as you have a home and some means of wiring yourself into the ambient digital matrix we all now exist in, is watch movies.
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Without theaters, the cinematic year (like the year) felt amorphous and hazy. What constituted a “hit” or a “flop” in 2020? Which movies were the virtual-festival darlings, the hyped-up disappointments, or the word-of-mouth successes? Because almost all of our viewing happened in private, and because the big streaming platforms guard their data like Smaug his hoard, it was hard to determine which movies people were talking about or ignoring, hard to choose what to watch, and more and more as this year of entertainment-conglomerate mergers wore on, hard to figure out where to stream it. Watercooler conversation can’t very well drive box office receipts when the only watercooler insight is your kitchen sink and the only box office is … Home Box Office. But though there were far fewer opportunities to talk about a movie on the way out of the theater—surely among life’s peak everyday experiences—there were more chances than usual to fall into weird indie rabbit holes and nurture new cinematic crushes.
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A methodological note on this year’s list: I have been loose on the parameters as to what constitutes a “2020 movie.” Some of the below titles showed at festivals in 2019, were meant to open theatrically this year, and wound up going straight to streaming instead. Others were released in both formats at different times during the year, and at least one never ended up opening at all but remains on the list as a harbinger of good films to come. This is a record of the movie year as I experienced it: fragmentary, catch-as-catch-can, often out of sync with “the conversation” yet somehow astonishingly timely. No movie on this list could have been conceived after the pandemic shut down film production, yet many if not most of them seem somehow to respond to our current historical moment of cabin fever and barely contained mass rage. If I had to find a thread running through the movies that follow (though imposing thematic coherence on any list this diffuse is a fool’s game), it would have something to do with captivity and freedom. The characters in these films are often escaping, hiding out, lying in wait, fetching the bolt cutters to find their way out of whatever traumatic past has trapped them. While you wait for your shot at freedom (in the form, it now seems, of that first vaccine injection), here are some great movies to get you through the next few months. In alphabetical order:
The Assistant
Kitty Green’s unassuming but keenly observed first narrative feature follows one terrible workday in the life of an intern of a never-seen movie producer who’s a serial sexual abuser in the Harvey Weinstein mold. Ozark’s Julia Garner is on screen, often alone, for virtually every second of the movie. Her miserably treated character is the only moral center in this austere movie’s cold and self-dealing universe, and she could easily have gone for Cinderella-style sympathy from the audience (if instead of sweeping ashes from the hearth, Cinderella stapled scripts and fielded calls from anxious wives). But Garner rejects the temptation to coast as a suffering ingenue. In a quietly bravura performance that’s dialogue-free for long stretches, she fills in a whole tragic back story just by the way she listens. (Listen to the Culture Gabfest review The Assistant.)
From its opening image—Brazil has seen from space, the fires in the Amazon visible, as a classic Caetano Veloso song plays on the soundtrack—Kleber Mendonca Filho’s genre-splicing thriller has an air of unsettling mystery. The title is the name of a remote village in the country’s hardscrabble northeast, where, for reasons never fully explained, an international team of white supremacist assassins led by the always-chilling Udo Kier descends to wreak brutal and possibly supernatural mayhem. Densely plotted and packed with vivid actors including the legendary Sonia Braga, this ambitious if the sometimes inscrutable film takes place shortly, “a few years from now.” But its merciless vision of global politics as a zero-sum class and race struggle, and its almost comedically grisly final action sequence, feels very much of the present.
Kant emir Balagan’s second feature, about a young woman working as a military nurse in post–World War II Leningrad, is filmed in a palette of impossibly rich greens, reds, and golds—every frame glows with the intensity of a stained-glass window or an illuminated manuscript. That
lush pictorial beauty offsets the extreme bleakness of the story, as the lanky “beanpole” of the title (Viktoria Miroshnichenko) contends with the psychic fallout from her service in the war. In increasingly self-destructive ways, she seeks to expiate her bottomless guilt for what she perceives as a terrible wrong done to a friend, but which the audience, with more compassion for the characters than they can summon for themselves, understands as a wrong done to Beanpole herself by the implacable cruelty of history.
In the fall of 2015, a fire broke out at a packed nightclub in Bucharest, Romania, resulting in the death of 64 people and the permanent disfigurement of more than 100 more. In the years that followed, public outrage over the incident—the club had no functioning fire exits—caused a government to fall and a new activist movement to arise. Alexander Nana’s intricate, suspenseful documentary tracks the journalistic effort to expose the complex knot of corruption, deception, and negligence that enabled both the disaster itself and the failure of the health care system to do right by the victims after. This is one of the most heartbreaking films I watched in a year already drowning in heartbreak, but also one of the most necessary at a time when the fourth estate is often the last line of defense against a global capitalist system that seems designed to be quite homicidal.
In retrospect, Chadwick Boseman’s sudden, tragic, and, for everyone but those in his most intimate circle, completely unexpected death of colon cancer in August makes this Spike Lee joint about a group of Black veterans returning to Vietnam all the more moving and urgent. But Da 5 Bloods would have been one of the best movies of the year anyway. Boseman’s role is small but pivotal: His climactic encounter with the older vet played superbly by Delray Lindo is a scene of transformation and healing that fully justifies the rush of cathartic tears it brings. In addition to being insightful about Vietnam War trauma and the complications of modern Black masculinity, Da 5 Bloods is a rollicking buddies-on-the-road comedy, full of earthy humor and jovial trash talk. The early scene when the four old soldiers, tropical drinks in hand, boogie their way to their table at a real-life Ho Chi Minh City disco called Apocalypse Now is one of the year’s great depictions of an experience so many of us missed over this homebound year: goofing off on the dance floor with friends. (Read the review.)
Kelly Reichardt’s seventh feature, a stripped-down Western about the tender friendship between two lonely men in a Pacific Northwest pioneer town in 1820, was the last film I saw in a theater in 2020, at an early March press preview surrounded by colleagues, some of them longtime friends. That whole night had an unusually celebratory feeling; First Cow had blown away everyone I spoke to about it, but the feeling it left in its wake was a quiet, subdued kind of dazzlement, the sneaking suspicion that early in the release calendar though it still was, we had probably just watched one of the most original and accomplished movies we’d see all year. Afterward, in the lobby, there was a little reception with a waiter serving “oily cakes,” the sweet fried-dough pastry that figures crucially in the movie’s plot. Munching them, it was easy to see how this confection, a rare delicacy in the movie’s hardscrabble setting, could have caused the high-stakes competition for scarce resources that the movie chronicles. But though First Cow is all about finding a way to survive in an environment of scarcity, this contemplative, compassionate drama is a miracle of filmmaking abundance, with incandescent performances from John Magar and Orion Lee and the curiously calming presence of Eve, the prettiest on-screen bovine since Buster Keaton fell in love with a heifer in the 1925 silent Go West. (Listen to the Culture Gabfest review First Cow.)
As I was finalizing this list, it occurred to me that one of the most crucial functions of movie viewing, especially in a year like this (has there ever been a year like this? Maybe 1918?), was sadly underrepresented. Sometimes all you need is some stylish escapism, a low-stakes hangout film where likable characters pursue sparkling or snarky conversations over flutes of Champagne in rooms with flattering lighting. To the rescue just in time came Steven Soderbergh’s latest comedy, about an egocentric novelist (Meryl Streep) who invites two long-estranged friends (Candice Bergen and Dianne Wiest) and her devoted nephew (Lucas Hedges) on a trans-Atlantic cruise to collect a literary prize in Europe. At first, the generically titled Let Them All Talk seemed like it was going to be a Nancy Meyers–style rom-com about frisky codgers on a boat—not that there would be anything remotely wrong with that. But by 20 minutes in, it was clear this was pure Soderbergh, a multicharacter caper film in the mode of his Ocean’s movies, Out of Sight, or Magic Mike. The difference: Instead of winning a striptease competition or robbing a high-security bank, this crew of oddballs—three strong-willed middle-aged women, an awkward young man, and the various colorful characters they cross paths with on the ship—is simply seeking to come to terms with the undone work of their own lives: the longtime friendships in need of repair, the romantic connections not yet made, the books left to write. (Read the review.)
Lee Isaac Chung’s semi-autobiographical film follows a Korean immigrant family in the 1980s as they attempt to turn a recalcitrant piece of land in rural Arkansas into a working vegetable farm. The story is seen mainly through the eyes of 7-year-old David, played with movie-stealing aplomb by the tiny but utterly self-possessed first-time actor Alan S. Kim. (His petulant delivery of “I’m not pretty! I’m good-looking!” may be my single favorite line reading of the year.) But Steven Yuen, in a marvelously understated performance as his stubborn but fiercely devoted father, gives the kid a run for his money. Minami is a drama about immigrants that don’t try to make grand statements about the immigrant experience in America. Rather, it tells the specific story of one family, dysfunctional and troubled in its particular way, but held together by a powerful bond of love. (Read the review.)
Jessica Broder’s 2017 book on retirement-age migrant workers living out of their RVs provided the source material for this lyrical portrait of a widow (Frances McDormand) who takes to the road after a mine closure eliminates the small company town she’s lived in her whole life. I don’t know how to add to what I already wrote in my review, and what so many others have said: Nomad land is a miracle of a movie that somehow transmutes painful experiences like homelessness, loneliness, and systemic exploitation by a pitiless labor market into a poetic meditation on freedom, friendship, and the passage of time. (Read the review.)
This is the only movie on the list that hasn’t yet been released at all. I saw it in late February, the week before the coronavirus started to shut down in-person press screenings, and my lovestruck review of it is still waiting in the can be published, although the headline—calling it “The First Great Horror Film of 2020”—will have to change by a digit. But I leave it on the list in anticipation of great films to come. The English director Rose Glass, making her debut feature, serves up a gory brew of body horror and spiritual cinema in the tradition of Robert Bresson. Jennifer Hele and Morfitt Clark are spellbinding as a terminally ill choreographer and her fanatically religious young caregiver. Are the ecstatic visions that ravish Maud in her sordid bedsit the work of the divine, the demonic, or her own mental and emotional instability? It’s the rare movie that delves this deeply into the experience of personal faith and (Lord, that final shot!) scares your pants off to boot.
I May Destroy You and The Queen’s Gambit makes Willa Paskin’s list.
2020 was not a great year—even for television. There was a tremendous amount of TV shows, most of which were fine; some of which, despite not even being all that fine, hit the strange, stressful, contained spot we all found ourselves in; and some of which that was, you know, good. For this list, when I say “good” I mean “the shows I most enjoyed,” a deeply fuzzy determination based on the series’ ambition, uniqueness, and, like, how much I wanted to watch it. This list contains several shows—including the first two—that I would describe as the year’s “best,” but it’s also peppered with shows I would primarily describe as personal favas. Would I have loved Ted Lasso so much in another year? I truly don’t know. All I know is, in this one, it felt like a bomb.
At the end of the first episode of I May Destroy You, creator, writer, and star Michaela Coal’s character, Arabella, is drugged and raped in a bar. The rest of the series, inspired by Coal’s own experience, follows Arabella as she tries to process what happened—and so much else. I May Destroy You explores consent in various permutations, but it also digs deep on Arabella, a charismatic, talented, tempestuous, brilliant, and undisciplined writer, friend, goof, lover, drug taker, social media influencer, and artist in the making. In a year when people prized escape, I May Destroy You offered something tougher and more hopeful: the possibility you just might be able to wring something meaningfulout of the awful past.
In a year full of popular documentary series, City So Real is better than all the rest of them. Loosely arranged around the 2019 Chicago mayoral race, it plays fly on the wall in neighborhoods all over the city. At protests, campaign rallies, barbershops, bars, city meetings, restaurants, campaign offices, dinner parties, radio stations, and dingy administrative rooms, a cross-section of indelible Chicagoans, so distinctive they wouldn’t feel out of place in fiction, talk about their hard-nosed home and its intricate politics. The show is sprawling and yet as perfectly assembled like a jigsaw puzzle. Put together, it gives the full scope of a flawed, challenging, changing city and its stubbornly devoted residents.
The character Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) first popped up in a series of sports promos, but he reappeared in the full-fledged series Ted Lassojust in time to counterprogram the state of the world. Lasso, basically, the nicest guy in existence, knows nothing about soccer when he takes over a British football club, but no matter, he knows human beings. With his emotional know-how, can-do attitude, kindly good spirits, down-home charm, and warm, fuzzy personality (and mustache), he wins over the excellent British supporting cast who, surprise surprise, are all lovely deep down, too. It’s a fantasy of American decency and British patience for cornpone jokes that I found irresistible.
Three seasons of The Great Pottery Throw Down, a craft competition shows that’s The Great British Clay-Off, arrived on HBO Max all at once this year. The artistry on the show leaves a little to be desired—the tension between utility and inspiration tilts toward the former—but I’m a sucker for watching people make things, and there’s something particularly hypnotic about people pulling shapes out of lumps of whirring clay. The show also has Keith Braymer Jones, a bulky master potter with a molting Flock of Seagulls hairstyle who is the anti–Paul Hollywood. Instead of macho shtick and a crushing congratulatory handshake, he tears up at the contestants’ accomplishments, not only when they do great work, but when they exceed themselves.
Mrs. Americatells the story of the failed fight to pass the Equal Rights Amendment when equality and second-wave feminists were both bested by the driven and polarizing Phyllis Schlafly (Cate Blanchett). Big picture, it’s a slow-motion tragedy, but episode by episode it’s juicy and thrilling to watch, and chock-full of wonderful performances. It focuses not only on Schlafly but on women’s movement boldface names like Gloria Steinem (Rose Byrne), Shirley Chisholm (Uzoh Daub), Bella Abzug (Margo Martindale), and Betty Friedan (Tracey Ullman), who were trying to do so much for so many that they were undone by a woman on a mission to remake female equality into the bipartisan issue it remains today. Mrs. America perhaps makes the mistake of framing Schlafly as primarily an opportunist, not exactly an ideologue, but it gets across its gutting point: In this instance, the past isn’t prologued, because it’s not even past.
If you were to imagine in a vacuum what a premium cable miniseries about the life of the abolitionist John Brown might look like, you’d almost surely imagine something much stuffier and soberer than The Good Lord Bird. With the award-winning James McBride novelas a guideline, this drama takes the most serious of subjects, America’s peculiar institution, and explores it with intelligence, verve, and wit. The story is told from the perspective of Onion (Joshua Caleb Johnson), the young Black boy who joins Brown’s (Ethan Hawke) ragtag group, and whom Brown, blind to the basics of the people’s he’s devoted his life to helping, spends the whole series believing to be a girl. Hawke is incredible as Brown, a loony force of nature, long-winded, hilarious, intermittently gentle, and terrifying, spitting brimstone and, well, spit. He’s part of the show’s no-sacred-cows approach to history, in which even the righteous can be ridiculous, stumbling blindly through time, but that doesn’t make them any less right.
The Queen’s Gambit opens like it’s going to be a brooding gothic about abandonment, addiction, and loneliness, only to renege and deliver something more straightforwardly satisfying: a superhero story about genius, community, and chess. The show is a realist fantasy, where all the details—the period wallpaper, the interior design, the gameplay—are accurate, but the misogyny has gone missing, with men falling all over one another to help Beth Harmon, the genius who just defeated them. Whether that’s inspiring or facile, it’s a blast. It also features a very strong supporting cast whose standouts include the director Marielle Heller as Beth’s loving, enabling adopted mother, and a shockingly charming human string bean.
Bluey, an animated Australian children’s show about a family (who happen to be dogs), is the most playful, sweet, wholesome, nondidactic, and—why it is on this list!—least annoying children’s show on television.
Netflix’s docuseries Cheer premiered at the very beginning of January, so basically, the distant past. In the interim so much has happened, including the disturbing and distressing allegationsinvolving one of the leads, the show’s emotional center. It’s hard to reconcile, but so was the show itself, a study of the grueling lengths young adults will go to belong to something bigger than themselves. Is it worth it? Should the adult in charge know better and push less? Are the demands being put on their bodies—the concussions, the broken limbs—teaching them self-discipline, or just giving them a lifetime of ailments? And why was it impossible (for me, anyway) not to get caught up in its sports-movie-triumph narrative?
This is a bit of a list trickery, in which I use the pesky 10th slot as an alert more than anything else: If you or anyone you know has ever enjoyed a teen drama that aired on the WB or UPN, or knows a current teen who seems like they would dig that kind of thing, may I please introduce you to Netflix’s Teenage Bounty Hunters, essentially a lost WB show just waiting for a time slot before Buffy, Veronica Mars, Dawson’s Creek, or Felicity. Two fraternal twin sisters—one naughty, one nice, but swapping roles all the while—who attend a Christian high school start a sideline as bounty hunters after crashing their dad’s car. It’s a case-of-the-week show, a teen show, a family mystery show, and it’s scrappy and plucky and full of banter, a lighter-side Veronica Mars. It also addresses one of the great concerns of my youth: whether all those WB shows could have had bigger audiences if only they’d been on different channels (the answer is no.) Netflix didn’t pick this show up for a second season, which means, in great WB fashion, this show already has the makings of a cult classic.
Here are 32 new films to see this season, whether you’re ready to return to theaters or want to stay on the couch.
Hollywood has a crowded slate of films—delayed by the pandemic and otherwise—to release over the next three months. That makes choosing what to see more stressful than usual, especially when some titles can be seen both in theaters and at home. To make the process more manageable, I’ve scrutinized trailers and even screened some of the films below to put together this guide for all your needs, whatever they may be. My first question, to set the scene: How far would you like to venture away from your couch?
I Want to Go Back to Theaters and …
… I’M CRAVING BIG-SCREEN ACTION
F9 (JUNE 25)
The latest installment in the Fast & Furious series sees Vin Diesel’s near-indestructible Dominic Toretto face off against his brother, Jakob (played by John Cena); the return of the fan-favorite character Han (Sung Kang); and—I’m guessing—a lot of cars vrooming and whooshing about. The film has already sped into theaters overseas and earned a pandemic record-making $163 million in its opening weekend. If the director Justin Lin keeps upping the ante with the action in these movies’ inevitable sequels, as he has skillfully done in previous Fast movies, this franchise might just last forever.
SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS (JULY 23)
Starring Crazy Rich Asians’ Henry Golding as the titular ninja, this G.I. Joe spin-off draws inspiration from a comic-book series that traces Snake Eyes’ backstory before he lost his voice. It’s also a blatant attempt to build another cinematic universe, but the trailer offers enough flashy sword fights and martial-arts showdowns to make the effort worthwhile for now. If nothing else, I’m curious to see if Golding’s got the chops to be a leading action star. (I have a feeling he does.)
I Want to Go Back to Theaters and …
… I’M CRAVING BIG-SCREEN ACTION
F9 (JUNE 25)
The latest installment in the Fast & Furious series sees Vin Diesel’s near-indestructible Dominic Toretto face off against his brother, Jakob (played by John Cena); the return of the fan-favorite character Han (Sung Kang); and—I’m guessing—a lot of cars vrooming and whooshing about. The film has already sped into theaters overseas and earned a pandemic record-making $163 million in its opening weekend. If the director Justin Lin keeps upping the ante with the action in these movies’ inevitable sequels, as he has skillfully done in previous Fast movies, this franchise might just last forever.
SNAKE EYES: G.I. JOE ORIGINS (JULY 23)
Starring Crazy Rich Asians’ Henry Golding as the titular ninja, this G.I. Joe spin-off draws inspiration from a comic-book series that traces Snake Eyes’ backstory before he lost his voice. It’s also a blatant attempt to build another cinematic universe, but the trailer offers enough flashy sword fights and martial-arts showdowns to make the effort worthwhile for now. If nothing else, I’m curious to see if Golding’s got the chops to be a leading action star. (I have a feeling he does.)
BLACK WIDOW (JULY 9)
The superspy played by Scarlett Johansson didn’t get a funeral in Avengers: Endgame, but she is getting the solo film her fans have been campaigning for since it was possible to binge all of the Marvel movies in less than a day. (For those counting, this is the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s 24th entry.) This prequel follows Natasha on a mission across Europe to reunite her “family,” characters who will probably be essential to the next films. Bonus tip: Don’t forget to watch for a post-credits scene.
WARNER BROS.
THE SUICIDE SQUAD (AUGUST 6)
Comic-book superheroes rarely ever actually die. The same goes for comic-book-inspired film franchises. The David Ayer–directed version of Suicide Squadbombed with critics, but the band of supervillains forced to do the government’s bidding is getting a second chance, with some fresh additions to the cast and a new director in James Gunn, the needle-drop-happy mind behind Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies. Come for Margot Robbie reprising her gonzo performance as Harley Quinn; stay for what appears to be a much more irreverent and coherent version of the story. At the very least, this version looks lit brightly enough so that we can see what’s happening.
… I LIKE MY MOVIES TO COME WITH A BEAT
IN THE HEIGHTS (JUNE 11)
A feel-good hug of a movie that might make you dance in your seat, this adaptation of the Broadway hit by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiana Alegria Hodes dazzles with Jon M. Chu’s maximalist direction. The story follows characters living in the disappearing Latino neighborhood of Washington Heights, all with their ideas for fulfilling their American dreams. Consider this my official endorsement of the film’s sterling quality, and an appeal for concession stands across America to please add piragua to their menu.
FOCUS FEATURES
THE SPARKS BROTHERS (JUNE 18)
The director Edgar Wright (Baby Driver, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) trains his eye on the quirky musical duo, whose sound has influenced, well, almost every band in existence, this documentary argues. Featuring interviews with dozens of musicians (Beck, Flea, Jack Anton off) and notable no musicians (Mike Myers, Jason Schwartzman), the film, which premiered this year at Sundance, is a close look at music history and a peek inside Wright’s kinetic mind.
RESPECT (AUGUST 13)
Biopics of famous entertainers need, above all else, the right actor in the leading role. This glitzy portrait of Aretha Franklin—not to be confused with the limited series that aired earlier this year—casts Jennifer Hudson as the legendary singer, and the star seems poised to embark on another awards-season run if all goes well. She’s surrounded by an equally impressive cast: The ensemble also includes heavyweights such as Forest Whitaker and Audra McDonald, along with an unexpected dramatic turn from Marlon Wayans as Aretha’s manager and first husband, Ted White.
THE BEATLES: GET BACK (AUGUST 27)
Peter Jackson of Lord of the Rings fame trades hobbits for the Fab Four. This documentary follows the Beatles as they make the album Let It Be and includes never-before-seen footage that had been cut from Michael Lindsay-Hogg’s 1970 doc. Jackson has stated that the hours of material he’s gathered show the foursome’s camaraderie and challenge the narrative that the album was made amid discord. I’ve got a feeling he’s right; after all, the film was created with approval from Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and the widows of John Lennon and George Harrison.
… I WANT TO SEE SOMETHING WITH MY PARENTS
STILLWATER (JULY 30)
In this thriller directed and co-written by Tom McCarthy (Spotlight), Matt Damon plays a blue-collar, salt-of-the-earth Everyman whose estranged daughter (Abigail Breslin) gets arrested for murder abroad. The script seems to have been inspired by the Amanda Knox case but told from an astonishingly resourceful and über-patriotic parent’s perspective. Think Jason Bourne, if Bourne had a conspicuous twang and transformative facial hair.
LIONSGATE
THE PROTÉGÉ (AUGUST 20)
Everything about this spy movie’s trailer—slow-motion shoot-outs, cool disguises, the villain delivering whispered threats—screams predictability, but the film has assembled a formidable cast, including Michael Keaton and Samuel L. Jackson. And I guess this is when I admit I’m a fan of the star Maggie Q’s CW-feed take on Nikita from the early 2010s. Campy action is her sweet spot.
REMINISCENCE (AUGUST 20)
One of the Westworld co-creators, Lisa Joy, wrote and directed this tale of a scientist (Hugh Jackman) who discovers a way to time travel through memory. If it’s anything like Joy’s work on the first season of the HBO series, it’ll be twisty but enthralling. If it’s anything like the latest season, it’ll give you a massive headache. Either way, the film marks a welcome return to hard sci-fi for Jackman after he starred in the underrated The Fountain more than a decade ago. (What’s that—he was in Chippie in 2015? Why would you remind me?)
… I NEED A KID-FRIENDLY FLICK
WARNER BROS.
SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY (JULY 16)
LeBron James steps into Michael Jordan’s shoes—er, Air Jordans—in this update on the cult favorite about NBA stars playing basketball alongside Looney Tunes characters. The villains this time are AI-controlled digital players, whatever that means. This might turn out to be nothing more than a shameless mashup of all the intellectual property Warner Bros. has ever owned, but if it matches the earnestness of its predecessor—and if James has half as much fun as Jordan did as a movie star—it just might work.
JUNGLE CRUISE (JULY 30)
Yes, this is Disney trying to turn another one of its theme-park rides into a billion-dollar franchise, but Emily Blunt and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s combined charm can not—excuse me, will not—be denied. Jesse Plemons also drops in as the kooky villain who gets in the way of our heroes’ mission to find a tree with healing powers in the middle of the Amazon. If this Disney-feed spin on The African Queen all looks a bit … much, just remember: The CGI simply adds more scenery for all three stars to chew.
… I WANT TO BE TERRIFIED
THE FOREVER PURGE (JULY 2)
Just in time for Independence Day, the horror franchise about a dystopian version of America in which lawlessness gets to run rampant for a day every year will release what is (reportedly) its final installment. In it, a band of criminals decides that the annual purge should last longer than a day. Maybe forever. What are the odds of this series delivering four more sequels?
ESCAPE ROOM: TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS (JULY 16)
As a breezy, 100-minute collection of puzzles and jump scares, the first film was a surprise hit, the kind of low-stakes entertainment even non–horror fans can enjoy. This sequel finds the surviving heroes from the original getting trapped in—you guessed it—another series of escape rooms with a group of other players. Though the tests look a lot harder to solve this time around, if the film’s writers continue to focus on the riddles, they might just figure out a way to sustain a franchise.
OLD (JULY 23)
Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, this graphic-novel adaptation follows a vacationing family who realizes that the beach they’re relaxing on is making them age at a rapid pace—so rapid, they’ll all be dead by the end of the day. Gael García Bernal and Phantom Thread’s Vicky Kreps star as the parents; their children age quickly into teens played by rising stars Alex Wolff and Thomasina McKenzie. Shyamalan, who’s expressed endearing excitement about making this film, has said his daughters gave him the source material—and perhaps the inspiration for the film’s underlying anxiety around getting older. In other words, he sees dying people.
THE NIGHT HOUSE (AUGUST 20)
Rebecca Hall stars as a widow grieving her husband’s death while alone—or is she?—in the house, he built for them. To go any further into the plot risks spoilers, but I can tell you that Hall’s character starts seeing visions of her husband lurking around the property. Also, according to critics who attended the Sundance Film Festival in 2020, this film couples its scares with innovative but intrusive sound design. Brace your senses.
CANDYMAN (AUGUST 27)
This remake/sequel to the 1992 film possesses quite the pedigree: Jordan Peele, the reigning king of our era of elevated horror, co-wrote the script with the producer Win Rosenfeld (Black Klansman) and the director Nia DaCosta, who made a splash on the festival circuit with the thriller Little Woods and is on deck to direct the Captain Marvel sequel, The Marvels. And I haven’t even mentioned the Emmy-winning actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen), who stars as an artist finding inspiration in the urban myth about the titular killer with a hook for a hand (played by Tony Todd, returning to the role), only to unleash him, whatever he is.
… I MISS SEEING FESTIVAL FAVORITES IN PERSON
ANNA KOORIS / A24
ZOLA (JUNE 30)
Starring Riley Keough and Taylor Paige, this satirical romp follows a pair of women who go on a road trip to make some quick cash dancing in strip clubs. The film, which is based on a viral Twitter thread, scored distribution through the indie studio A24 even before it screened for the first time at Sundance in 2020. The gamble has paid off so far: Critics loved it. (Perhaps more movies should be based on tweets? Don’t @ me.)
THE GREEN KNIGHT (JULY 30)
A crown descending onto Dev Patel’s head and then lighting him on fire. A bear holding a lantern at the top of a staircase. A talking fox emerging from heavy fog. Based on thetrailers, it seems the director David Lowery has shrouded his film in cryptic, poetic images—which is appropriate, given that his source material is an ambiguous 14th-century fantasy epic filled with figurative language. The story follows an Arthurian knight (Patel) being tested for his chivalry by a giant green being. If Lowery has his way, the eerie atmosphere of the film, which was supposed to premiere at SXSW in 2020, will linger in your mind long after you finish watching it.
CODA (AUGUST 13)
Though I saw this at one of Sundance’s virtual screenings—as in, alone in my living room—I was pretty sure I wasn’t the only viewer who had used up all her tissues by the time the credits rolled. (I became certain when, two days later, Apple picked up the film for distribution for a festival-record $25 million.) The film tells a coming-of-age story through an unconventional heroine: a teenager who’s the only hearing member of her family, grappling with her responsibilities to her relatives and her love of singing. It’s a crowd-pleasing tearjerker, the kind I wish I’d seen in a packed theater.
… I’M JUST A HUGE RYAN REYNOLDS FAN
LIONSGATE
THE HITMAN’S WIFE’S BODYGUARD (JUNE 16)
The Deadpool actor plays a reluctant hero who gets dragged into scary shenanigans by a fearless woman. Explosions, pop-culture references, and jokes at Reynolds’s character’s expense ensue. Judging by the trailer, it seems like the film was a lot of fun to make for all of the actors involved, including an Oscar winner.
FREE GUY (AUGUST 13)
The Deadpool actor plays a reluctant hero who gets dragged into scary shenanigans by—frankly, I could just copy my previous paragraph and paste it here for this film. But there are some significant differences worth mentioning: Reynolds’s character exists inside a video game, a different Oscar winner (Taika Waititi) tags along, and the movie will probably be rated PG-13 instead of R.
I’d Rather Stay Home but …
… I WANT A TASTE OF BIG-SCREEN ACTION
AMAZON PRIME
THE TOMORROW WAR (JULY 2, AMAZON PRIME)
Chris Pratt is drafted to fight a war in the future against alien invaders and gets to grumble things like “I was trying to save my daughter. If I got to save the world to save her, then I’m gonna do it.” It’s a time-travel movie, so I’m expecting someone he meets in the future to turn out to be him or someone he knows, only older. (By the way, when did all movie aliens start looking like the Stranger Things Demogorgon?)
Also available: Black Widow (July 9, Disney+ with Premier Access); Space Jam: A New Legacy (July 16, HBO Max); The Suicide Squad (August 6, HBO Max)
… I WANT TO DANCE ALONG
SUMMER OF SOUL (JULY 2, HULU)
The music producer and DJ Questlove’s directorial debut traces the events of the Harlem Cultural Festival, a six-week celebration in 1969 featuring performers such as Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, and B. B. King; the archival footage on display had been shelved for more than 50 years. The film took home several documentary awards at Sundance this year, for good reason: As much as it may be a history lesson about the decade, it’s also an absorbing concert movie and a probing look at how live music captured the frustrations and fears of members of the Black community and offered them catharsis when nothing else could.
Also available: In the Heights (June 11, HBO Max)
… I’M WATCHING IT WITH MY PARENTS
NETFLIX
THE ICE ROAD (JUNE 25, NETFLIX)
When the trailer for this disaster flick began with Liam Nelson driving in the snow, looking forlorn, I felt déjà vu: Hasn’t he already done this? Turns out I was thinking of 2019’s Cold Pursuit, a farce of a film in which Nelson’s character gets in the way of a turf war among gangs in the Rockies. This, on the other hand, is pure action: Nelson plays a trucker who must drive across thousands of miles of icy pavement to rescue a group of trapped miners. A perfectly chilly way to slide into summer.
Also available: Reminiscence (August 20, HBO Max)
… I NEED A KID-FRIENDLY FLICK
LUCA (JUNE 18, DISNEY+)
Pixar’s latest is a literal fish-out-of-water tale about an anxious merboy named Luca who ventures above the surface to—actually, it’s not clear what he’s up there to do, other than eat gelato, explore a quaint Italian seaside town, and accidentally terrorize its locals. But the animation looks delightful, and the story seems to be a fable about the wonders of getting outside your comfort zone. That’s a lesson for anyone, not just the children this film is aimed at.
NETFLIX
FATHERHOOD (JUNE 18, NETFLIX)
The comedian Kevin Hart stars in this film from an About a Boy co-writer, Paul Weitz, as a single parent trying to raise his adorable daughter, Maddy (Melody Hurd). You can imagine the hijinks: Hart’s Matthew struggles to find support, can’t tie a baby wrap, and fails to figure out how to do Maddy’s hair. Be ready for tears, though; the story’s based on a memoir and appears to delve into the unexpected loss of Maddy’s mom as much as it does into father-daughter antics.
Also available: Jungle Cruise (July 30, Disney+ with Premier Access); CODA (August 13, Apple TV+)
… I WANT TO BE TERRIFIED
HULU
FALSE-POSITIVE (JUNE 25, HULU)
Pregnancy has proved potent as inspiration for horror writers, and this film offers a modern spin on the subgenre nursed into being by Rosemary’s Baby. Ilana Glazer of Broad Citystars as a woman who, after a successful IVF treatment, starts to suspect that her doctor, played by Pierce Bresnan, has more sinister intentions in mind than helping her and her spouse (Justin Theroux) conceive.
THE FEAR STREET TRILOGY (JULY 2, 9, 16, NETFLIX)
Billed as a “film trilogy event” by Netflix, this collection of movies takes R. L. Stine’s young-adult-oriented book series and spins it into an R-rated mini cinematic universe. Set in and around the fictional Ohio town of Shadyside, the three films chronicle three very different, very creepy years in local history—1994, 1978, and 1666—that all have something to do with an ancient curse. Binge if you dare.
… I WANT A DASH OF ROMANCE
GOOD ON PAPER (JUNE 23, NETFLIX)
By now anyone who’s ever tried online dating knows what a “catfish” is. In this romantic comedy, however, the heroine, played by the comedian Ilia Schlesinger, falls for a “cuttlefish”—the kind of date who isn’t hiding via the internet but putting on an entire charade in person. Schlesinger based the script on an incident that happened to her in real life, so even if the relationship doesn’t end well, you can trust that it’ll be populated with her signature zany characters.
THE LAST LETTER FROM YOUR LOVER (JULY 23, NETFLIX)
Based on a Jojo Moyes novel, this decades-spanning romance toggles between the 1960s, when a writer (Callum Turner) falls for the wife (Shailene Woodley) of his subject, and present-day, when their love letters are found by a British journalist (Felicity Jones) who becomes determined to track them down. The plot’s easy to predict, but the period costumes and production design deliver the lush aesthetic that fans of such sweeping love stories cherish.
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Shirley Li is a staff writer at The Atlantic, where she covers culture.
Oscar Winners 2021
Note: for some reason I have not seen any of these yet. I will look for them on netflix and add them to my list as time goes by.
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
I will year try to finish reading classic books. I have a collection from Kindle of 50 books to read before you die, in three volumes – 15O books in total see list below. I have read many of them already which I have noted. As I read them, I will add them to the chronological listing below.
Glass by Robert Francis Writing com
Blue Winter by Robert Francis Writing com
encounter writing com
Where I Belong – Contest winner Feb 24, 2021, writing com
Edna St. Vincent Millay -Pastoral writing com
Lorraine Marguerite Gasrel Black -Pastoral Rhapsody writing com
Daniel Miltz -Pastoral Day writing com
Henry Kirke White -A Pastoral Songwriting com
Carl Sandberg Passers-By
Poetry Corner, writing com Poetry corner
Randall Jarrell The Olive Garden Writing com poetry
Randall Jarrell the Breath of Night Writing com poetry
Randal Jarrell the Orient Express Writing com poetry
Abdul Ala armada Rafi I poem Friend, this world is like an unburied corpse
Ali Ahmad Saeed poem
Alton David translation of a man and a woman white
Andre Breton Man and Woman Absolutely White
Mary Bernard, translation of Sofia he is more than a hero
Ingeborg Bachman poem
Anne Bradstreet letter to her husband 1650 first Published woman poet in the US
Willis Barnstone translation of mother’s song if snow
Charles Bernstein writing exercises
William Blake Sick Rose
Elizabeth Browning Sonnets from the Portuguese #43 how Do I love Thee
Elizabeth Bishop one art Britain
Andre Carter Stephen D translation lady is shichimi if someone would come
William Barnstone she is at island me turn off
Maxine Chernoff writing exercises
Chilam Balam poem
Chiyo various lines
William Corbett Vermont Apollinaire
Robert Creely the business
EE Cummings In Jest
Bel Dao Listen, I Don’t Believe Chinese poet mid-20th century
David Wagner lines and since a call since Elam since summer
Thomas Campion When to her lute Corinna sings
Jon Donne Holly Sonnet 14
Lucile Clifton, I don’t know how to do
Emily Dickinson lines and poems 214
Emily Dickinson poem 262
Emily Dickinson poem 640
Emily Dickinson poem 986
Emily Dickinson poem 1732
Enhenduanna The Exaltation of Inanna, antiphonal Hymns Praise of Inanna
Egyptian Poem, untitled
Fanny Howe About Face
Imr El Quais The Great Ode
Elaine Feinstein excerpt from translation Marina TSvetayeva poems of the end Lawrence Ferlinghetti excerpt from constantly risking absurdity Coney Island of the mind
Donald Finkel excerpt from a translation of Bel Dao
Roberts Elizabeth silent poems
Frances Kathleen vanishing point third black quartet from Wayne
Robert Frost Nothing Gold can stay
Robert Clark translation departure by Pierre Reverdy
Jorie Graham In what matter is the body united with the soul
Barbara Guest Lines from red lilies
HD Dread
HD Sea Rose
HD Oread
Allen Hibbert translation of Adonis desire moving through the Maps of the material
Ronald Hoffman excerpt from deceptively like a solid
Kelly Holt writing exercises
Bible, Ecclesiastes for everything there is a season
Homer Odyssey
Homer Iliad
Edward Arlington Robinson Richard Corey
Fanny Howe About Face
George Herbert Death
Linda jarkesy the bed
John K
Randall Jarred the death of the Bell turret gunner
John Keats The Eve of St Agnes
Lao Tzu Rule a Large Nation
DH Lawrence Bavarian Gentians
LiPo Moonlight Pools
Liu Tsung-yuan From One thousand mountains
Audre Lorde lines from coal
Hugh MacDiarmid Another epitaph on the army of mercenaries
Jackson Mac Lou excerpt from antic quartans
Omar Khayyam Rubaiyat excerpt
Alexander Pope Essay on Criticism
Bernadette Mayer writing exercises
WS Merwin excerpts from leviathan
Pablo Neruda leaning into afterworlds
Pablo Neruda and walking around
John Milton excerpts from Allegro
John Milton excerpts from paradise lost
Mariana Moore experts from the monkeys
Laura Moriarty the mouth
Bridge Mullins writing exercises
Ellen Myles honey bear
Lorraine Niedecker now in one year
Charles North excerpt from shooting for line
George Oppen excerpt from psalm
Dorothy Parker resume
Bob Pearlman speaker vibrates through the entire house after from AK
Ezra Pound in a station in the Metro
David Ray translation lines from Chiyo
Kenneth Rexroth translation of Midnight songs
Pierre Reverdy Departure
Christopher Sawyer Le is More Than an Hericenone translation Flight of the Itza
Dominion Searls translation of a kind of loss
Shelly Love Philosophy 19th Century
Sappho He is more than a Hero
Jack Spicer lines for imaginary elegies part 1-111
John Tipane translation Abu Hamza al online from this world
Dante in the middle of the road
Anonymous Egyptian poem only one matchless sister
manioc If snow falls on the left field
Issa Morning
Beowulf soon saw
Homer then wide ruling Agamemnon
Homer infinite terror
Homer wars spears
Imr El Qis here was the place I watched her
Arthur Rimbaud Bateau Ivre if I desire
Arthur Rimbaud memory
Arthur Rimbaud longing for young arms
Rig Veda there was no such things
Sappho the moon has set
Charles Thomasson lines from Mr. Birdy
David Trinidad monster mash
TS Elliot Excerpt from the Wasteland
Mariana Tsvetanyana Poem of the End
Alfred Tennyson Now Sleep the Crimson Petal
Anne Waldman excerpt for Iovis 19
William Carlos Williams except for the descent
Walt Whitman excerpts from Leaves of Grass
William Butler Yeats the second coming
William Wordsworth the Solitary Reaper
Louis Zukofsky in Arizona from 729 songs
Richard Lovelace 17th Century British Poet, “To Lucasta, Going to War”
Geoffrey Chaucer 1400 Call complaint to His Purs (Purse)
Parody Poems from NaPoWrMo April 27 Prompt
Lewis Carroll Crocodile
Isaac Watts How Doth the Little
Lewis Carroll This the Voice of The Lobster
Isaac Watts The Sluggard
Lewis Carroll Twinkle, Twinkle Little Bat
Other poems from Writing com and Elsewhere
Abandoned Farmhouse
by Ted Kooser Wooden Boats
Judy Serum Brown
Denise Levertov Celebration
Edgar Allan Poe A Dream Within a Dream
Heal the World with Marigolds poetic blossoming entry
Midnight encounters a poetic blossoming entry
David S the All-Mighty Thresher
Sally Ann Roberts example #1:it All Started with A Packet of Seeds
Alfred Lord Tennyson The Charge of the Light Brigade (By Alfred Lord Tennyson)
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Evangeline
Robert Browning The Lost Leader (By Robert Browning)
Walt Whitman (Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking
Ian Lancashire Higgledy Piggledy
Sidney Lanier
The Song Of The Chattahoochee
Sidney Lanier Ireland
Sidney Lanier A Sunrise Song
“Where Grandpa Died”
“Syllables in Velvet” www.Rainbow.Communications.com
Examples of Dactyl in Literature
Example #1: The Charge of the Light Brigade (By Alfred Lord Tennyson)
Example #2: Evangeline (By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)
Example #3: The Lost Leader (By Robert Browning)
Example #4: (Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking (By Walt Whitman)
Example #5: Higgledy Piggledy (By Ian Lancas
The Song Of The Chattahoochee
by Sidney Lanier
Ireland
by Sidney Lanier
(Written for the Art Autograph during the Irish Famine, 1880.)
A Sunrise Song
by Sidney Lanier
To read
Poets Companion Finish
Art and Craft of Poetry Finish
Whitman Leaves of Grass read
Dickenson Collected Poems
Robert Service Poems (From Alaskan Gold Rush Period)
Milton Collected Poems
Mina Nair Beyond and Back Indian short stories
Robert Buswell The Zen Monastic Tradition read
the end
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Re-discovering the Beaches of Yeongjong International City, Incheon Beaches Await!
I recently rediscovered Korean beaches
I have been living near several beaches
Seldom going to the beach
Just too busy
With retired life
Even though
We are just a few miles away
When we went there
It was better than I had imagined
Finally solved the chronic parking problems
Not too crowded, mid-week
even during the middle
of Korean beach season
because of COVID
and the bad economy
The weather was hot
But not overwhelming
We stopped for tea
At a rustic hut
On some rocks
Overlooking the beach
Been there for 30 years
Hardly changing
The beach town itself
Is “Old school”, old fashioned
No high rises, no fancy hotels
No fancy restaurants
a bit expensive by local standards
during low tide
people go clamming
lots of fresh clams
and seafood
Pretty basic
But we liked that
the water was cleaner
Better than we had remembered
Not too many foreigners
Yet near the airport
The nearest beach to Seoul
We are planning to go
Weekly throughout the year
As long as we live
Near the beach
Why not I say?
Eurwangni Beach 을왕리 해수욕장 -eul-wangli haesuyogjang
I have been living off and on in Yeongjong International City, near the Incheon airport since I retired a few years ago. We live near three beaches, and four other islands. Yet for some reason, I have not spent a lot of time exploring the Beaches of my new home island.
I recently went to Eurwangni beach the other day and was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. I am now going to go regularly.
Korean beaches are still somewhat seasonal, but going to the beaches off-season has become much more popular than when I first came to Korea decades ago when there was a beach season and the beaches the rest of the year were deserted.
Eurwangni beach is the most famous of the Yeongjongdo beaches. It is the most developed. It is on the west side of the island and features low tide extensive mudflats. Many people go clamming there at low tide.
The main part of the beach is lined with the usual assortment of seafood restaurants and hotels but nothing that high-end. It is a very old-school vibe. It is about 700 meters long from the south end to the north end. At the north end of the beach, there is a fishing pier and a few small restaurants.
Transit options
From downtown, Seoul take the AREX train to the airport and get off at T1. From Incheon airport, T1 3rd Floor take bus 111 or 306 and get off at Seunchang Wangsan Beach stop (near the end of the line). The bus takes T-money.
Alternative plan – you can take a bus or taxi from Unseo station area. Unseo station area is lined with restaurants and budget friendlier places to stay.
AREX has a station at Yongju but it does not appear to be operational. The Airport MAGLEV goes there. From there the beaches are about a 15-minute walk or a short bus or taxi ride.
Yongju station is also the closest train stop to the entrance to Muido beaches. You can take a bus from there to Muido, and there are lots of restaurant options across the street. There is a nice walkway lined with restaurants as well.
Driving
If you drive, type in Eurwangni beach parking which will direct you to the parking lots at the south end of the beach. It is a five-minute walk to the main part of the beach and about a half-hour or more to the other beaches.
Theme: Rare Animals/ Plants/Spectacular Cliffs & Rock Formations
The name “Fairy Rock Beach” comes from the fact that fresh water is gathered at the seashore beneath…
Seongyeol rock is a series of rocks leading to a pine forest on the south end of Eurwangni beach. The rocks are closed during high tide and at night. If you go to Euwangni beach, tide permitting, it is a great 2-kilometer walk. At the end of the pathway, there is an old shack restaurant that has been there for almost 40 years. The owner of the shack is a nice young woman who inherited the property from her parents. I got the impression that she gets few visitors as it is at the end of a long pathway from the main beach. You can get your usual drinks, and fresh seafood there, but it closes at sunset. The trail at the shack turns inward entering the old pine forest but we ran out of time to explore that. We will be back no doubt.
Wangsang Beach
왕상해수욕장 -wangsanghaesuyogjang
Wangan beach is much less developed or crowded than its bigger neighbor, Euwangni beach, which is a 15-minute walk away. The beach has a nice camping ground next to the beach which has the usual camping essentials for sale or rent.
The sunset is very nice.
for more info
For more information you can call 82-32-777-1330 or wangsan-beach.co.kr. the web page says that they have English, Chinese, Japanese and Korean operators, but I have not verified that. The web page opens in English and provides information on a wide variety of nearby attractions and is well done. I was pleasantly surprised.
Transportation options
Public transportation
From Incheon airport, T1 3rd Floor take bus 111 or 306 and get off at Seunchang Wangsan Beach stop (near the end of the line). The bus takes T-money.
Driving
Same as Eurwangni beach with the following additions:
GSP enter Wangsang beach address is 810-204, Eurwang-dong, Jung ju, Incheon (Wangsang Beach).
118, Masiran-ro, Jung-gu, Incheon 22385 South Korea
(2.9 miles from Eurwangni Beach)
transportation:
public tranist – take the AREX train to the airport. Buses are available at the airport terminal 1, 3rd floor. The beach buses stop at all three breaches, Maisin beach is the first beach, Eurwangni the second and Wangsang is the final stop.
Driving
type Maisin beach into your GSP
118, Masiran-ro, Jung-gu, Incheon 22385 South Korea
depending upon traffic the beaches are about an hour from downtown Seoul or Incheon city.
무이도 Muui-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon South Korea
(3.3 miles from Eurwangni Beach)
Muido, So Muido and Silmido are islands near to Yongchongdo. You can get to the islands by taking a bus from the airport, or from the Yongju maglev stop. there is a new bridge and the roads have been improved, but Muido is super crowded on weekends so best to go mid-week if you can.
There are hotels and Korean style resorts near bridge and at the beach, there are huts for rent. There are restaurants near the ferry terminal and at the beach, but the selection is limited to Korean seafood.
When you enter the island there is a trailhead that takes you to the top of island – and you can walk the entire island in about four hours. The trail is very pretty and not too steep.
Update: Not sure if the tourism info stand is still there. last time I visited was just after the bridge opened. When I visited, the people were very helpful, spoke good English and had lots of maps and guides in English and can also tell you about the ferries to the other islands. Well worth a stop. You should stock up on tourism information here if you are going to the outer islands as once you get there is very little English language signage or English speakers on the islands. They are open until 6 pm most days.
Address
310-11, Daemuui-ro, Jung-gu, Incheon
인천광역시 중구 대무의로 310-11 (무의동)
1330 Travel Hotline: +82-2-1330
(Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese)
For more info: +82-32-760-7114
Muuido Island is located in Jung-gu, Incheon which is not far from the mainland but is only accessible by ferry. Nearby are two smaller islands, Silmido Island and Somuuido Island. In olden times, small boats were used to go from Muuido Island to Somuuido Island but the two islands are currently connected by a bridge so visitors can reach Somuuido after a 10-15 minute walk. Muuido Village Bus (maeul bus; 마을버스) takes people from Keunmuri Dock (큰무리선착장) to Gwangmyeonghang Port (광명항). To enjoy the beauty of Somuuido Island fully, Muuibadanuri-gil 8 Course is a must-visit path, taking around 1 hour and giving stunning views of the East Sea vista. Two beaches, Hanagae Beach and Silmi Beach are famous beaches in Muuido Island. One interesting thing in Silmi Beach is that people can walk to Silmido Island at low tide. Hiking up Horyonggoksan Mountain (호룡곡산) and Guksabong Peak is also available on Hanagae Island.
The trail head to Horyonggoksan Mountain (호룡곡산) and Guksabong Peak can be found at bridge entrance to the island and also near So Muido and at Hangagae beach as well. The round trip takes about three hours, and the trail is well marked but only in Korean. Go up the stairs and at the top turn right to access the main trail head.
Hanagae Beach
Hanagae beach is the main beach on Muido. It is near the end of the island. the turnoff is easy to miss though. on weekends it can get crowded. there are beach huts to rent and camping is also allowed. There is a zip line on the beach and the usual assortment of seafood resturants. Like all Incheon area beaches at low tide you can walk quite some distance and you can see people clamming.
From my trip advisor collumn –must visit island
Feb 2019
now a short drive from the airport. I’d take the bus from the airport or Unseo station so you can enjoy a drink. there is a great round the island hike takes five hours;. I will do that next week and write a fresh review. the beach is very nice includes a zipline and bungalows = 20,000 won per night! with the new bridge it is easy to get to. if you have five hour overlay you can defintiely make it to Muido and back.
Written January 27, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
So Muido 소무이도
So Muido is a nice spot for a walk as well. Take the bus to the end of the island and walk across. There are places to stop and eat in So Muido. The walk to the top of the mountain is a nice walk takes about an half an hour to reach the top. There is a private beach on the way back to town. On the weekend traffic and parking is impossible unless you get there really early. there are camp grounds near by and a number of hotels, but nothing too high-end.
Silmido
Silmido island is the site of a secret military base where they trained commandos going undercover into North Korea. They closed the base in the 80’s and a Korean K drama was filmed at the island. The island has a resort where one can stay but there are not much there, not even restaurants. Still the beach is nice but a bit deserted. You can walk across to Silmido at low tide, at high tide it becomes a separate island.
Shindo, Modo and Jangbo islands
신도, 모토, 장보도
Shindo, Modo and Jangbo Islands located near Incheon International Airport are great places to get away from Seoul or Incheon for that matter. These three islands are near Yongchongdo. You need to take a ferry to reach them. The ferry ride to Jangbo the biggest of the islands takes about an hour. The ferry runs every hour on the hour the last ferry back leaves about 6 pm. You can catch the ferry at Sammok quay.
삼목 부두 sammog budu
There are buses from the airport and from Unseo station to the ferry terminal.
Modo island is connected to Shindo island. You can easily walk around both Modo and Shindo in an hour or two. There are places to eat and spend the night, but Jangbo island is the biggest of the three and has the best facilities, beaches, restaurants, and walking biking trails.
Jangbo Island
The island is located one hour and 40 minutes from Seoul. To get there take airport express train from Seoul Station and get off at Unseo station and then transfer to a bus going to Sammok wharf in Yeongjong Island, Incheon. The ferry from there takes 40 minutes. The last ferry back leaves at 6 pm. There are plenty of places to stay near the beaches which are a short walk from the ferry terminal. This is also a popular place to camp as there are camping grounds near the ferry terminal. There is a mountain hiking trail that follows the ridge line all over the island and is a great hike. If you go to Jangbong island, it is worth stopping off at Shindo and Modo islands first and take a walk. A number of K dramas have been filmed on these islands.
More info from Visit Incheon web page follows:
Coastal Trail connecting Sindo Island, Sido Island and Modo Islands
Come to the triplet islands and have a bike tour around them for a fantastic ride along the shoreline. The triplet islands are very well known as one of the best spots in Korea for a bike tour. Come down to the Sinsimodo Islands for a safe and pleasant bicycle touring. Take a boat at Sammok Quay in Yeongjongdo Island. You will get to Sindo Island Quay in about 10 minutes. The three islands of Sindo Island, Sido Island and Modo Island are all connected by bridges, so you can tour all of them in a day. You can rent a bike on the island. There are only a few cars on the road, thus the island is recognized as one of the best places for bike riders.
Sindo Island Pureun Beonmal, a designated traditional agricultural village
The name Sindo Island (literally “the island of trust”) has come from the fact that its residents are conscientious and innocent. It is in this context that the salt produced in the island is called jinyeom (literally “genuine salt”). As the island have mud flats, salt evaporation ponds, and rice paddies, visitors can enjoy everything they can expect from the country’s rural area in Sindo Island Pureun Beotmal designated by the government as a traditional agricultural village.
Sinsido Island Yeondogyo Bridge
Sindo Island is connected to Sido Island by a bridge. The name of Sido Island has come from the legend that troops of the Joseon Dynasty practiced archery in Manisan Mountain with targets set in Sido Island (“an arrow island”). The island is also called “Salseom (‘sal’ also means an arrow in Korean).” Given the actual distance between the two locations, the story is hardly credible, but the idea is intriguing enough. Sido Island has been filming locations for popular TV dramas such as “Full House” and “Sad Love Story” because of the harmony between its slow slope hills and the sea.
Sugi Beach, the filming location of ‘Full House’
Sugi Beach in Sido Island was the filming location for the popular TV series called ‘Full House.’ You can see a few islands in the distance. The beach is covered with quality and beautiful white sands. Main characters in the TV drama series often spent time together here. Who would not have fallen in love with each other in such a beautiful environment?
Simodo Island Yeondogyo Bridge
Sido Island and Modo Island are connected by a bridge. Believe it or not, you can get to a totally different island in just a few minutes. The name Modo Island comes from the word ttiyeom (‘tti’ refers to King cogongrass). The legend says that fishermen in the region once complained that his fish net only had grass instead of fish. ‘Mo’ in Modo Island means ‘grass’ in Chinese.
Baemikkumi Sculpture Park
Baemikkumi Sculpture Park is located on Baemikkumi Beach in Modo Island. The ‘Baemikkumi’ (the local dialect meaning a hole in the bottom of a ship) has come from the fact the beach is as flat as the bottom of a ship. The beach is also famous for a sculpture park featuring a number of surreal erotic sculptures. Blue water, white sand, and dreamlike sculptures blend well with one another. The sculpture park has become a reason to many for a visit to Modo Island.
The Sinsimodo Islands, a paradise for bike enthusiasts
Together, the Sinsimodo Islands are small but pretty places to visit. Most notably, as they are connected, the Sinsimodo Islands will sustain the fame of a paradise for bikers in the West Sea for a long time to come.
Yeongjong Seaside Park 영종해변공원 -yeongjonghaebyeongong-won
Yeongjong seaside park is on the other side of the island. From the airport, you can get off at Unseo station and take a bus or taxi to the Yeongjong Seaside park. The park features a 5.6-kilometer rail bike that runs along the coast with great views. At the entrance to the park, there is a small beach. If you walk along the beach you will come to the Fishmarket complex which is a newly developing area lined with restaurants, hotels and is a colorful area to walk about.
other things to do
Yeongjongdo History Museum
The museum traces the history of Yeongjong Island. It is located on a hill next to the rail park.
The Incheon free economic zone (IFEZ) IFEZ has a nice FB and web page filled with information on things to do in Songdo, Cheongha, and Yeongjong International cities. Worth a visit.
Here is some information on local attractions I just discovered.
Let us introduce Yeongjong Dulle-gil where you can enjoy the nature of Yeongjongdo while looking around the sea of Incheon. How about taking a walk along Yeongjong Dulle-gil where you can get refreshed while following the quarantine rules?
Comment: every place has a ‘Dulle-gil” (walking trail) nowadays. Korea has lots of things to offer foreign visitors, but unfortunately, there still is not a lot of information on Korean tourism written in English. For example, the Yeoungjong International city Dulle-Gil (map above) is a nice trail, but because there is almost no information on the trail other than a few references here and there in Korean, most foreign visitors and Korean visitors as well simply don’t know that it even exists. This is sad because Korea has so much to offer foreign visitors. This is a small problem that can be easily fixed if the Korean tourism authorities took a more proactive approach to promote Korean tourism. The above map is only in Korean, is incomplete, and there are few if any references to the Dulle-Gil anywhere online or in the community making it challenging to follow the trail. At the minimum, there should be a clearly labeled map in English/Korean and maybe by attractions at every subway station. Some stations do a great job, others not so much.
World Peace Forest Yeongjong 세계평화의숲 (segyepyeonghwaui sup)
This is one of the hidden gems of living in Yeong Jong island. It is a five-mile-long trail that goes through pine forests, cherry trees, and along a lake. There is a lotus pond at one end of the trail. The trail leads to Paekrungsan mountain which is a nice hike. There is almost no information in English on this park and even locals don’t seem to know much about it. If you google it you will find my earlier blog posting on it.
We hike it daily. There are deer, foxes, wild cats, birds, snakes on the trail.
The trail was built in 2003 or so when they build the airport. The airport authorities had to promise to preserve most of the island in a natural state. As part of that commitment, they build the world peace forest with the two national airline carriers donating land, volunteers, and materials to build the park.
The park has become mature now and is much better than when I first encountered it in 2003 or so. Still not much information on the park though.
It would be a great thing to advertise as it is so close to the airport (less than five miles away).
Transportation options
By driving drive to Unseo station area and park nearby.
By public transit
Take the AREX train and get off at Unseo station (two stops from Terminal 2). Take the A exit and turn either left or right. If you turn left taking exit A from the AREX station and cross the street you will see the trailhead heading up Pakeyungsan mountain. If you turn right and go past the Lotte Mart you will see the trailhead across the street. It is a five-mile round trip walk, mostly flat except for the mountain trails along Pakeyungsan.
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
I am Jake Cosmos Aller, the host of the world according to Cosmos blog and podcasts, aviable on spotify and elsewhere.
I retired a few years ago from the State Department as a foreign service officer,(diplomat) and my wife from the Army as a major. We live in Yeongjong Island near the airport in the airport new city. Recently the whole island has been renamed Yeongjong International city and there is an expectation that there will be a lot of investment and more foreign residents. Much of that has been postponed due to COVID but will no doubt pick back up next year. There are a lot of foreigners walking around, but few are residents yet.
Yeongjong has a lot to offer visitors, and residents, and is a great place to stay. In fact it is one of the better communities in Korea.
The air is fresh, cooler than Seoul in the summer, warmer in the winter, with not too many storms and little snow. Lots of mountains, beaches, and rural areas to explore as the development so far has been focused on the key urban areas – the airport business district, airport new town (where I live) Sky city, Midan city (where the resorts are going up) the wharf and oceanside park, and the beaches. Most of the island is still forests, mountains, and rural areas. I hope that they don’t over-develop the island and keep much of the natural beauty intact. it is only an hour to downtown Seoul either by driving or the AREX train. And express buses from the airport take you into various parts of Seoul as well, often faster than the subway.
Traffic on the island and getting to the island is not too bad but the transit on the island is inadequate given the rapid urbanization of the island. Both the tolls on the bridges and the train fares are way too high. The authorities also have promised an LRT line, Maglev line, and express buses, expansion of the subway line nine, and a bridge to Gangwha island and Shindo, and Jangban islands. I hope they deploy them all within the next five years so I can enjoy using them before I turn 70!. These transportation improvements are way overdue. I will write about them in a separate blog posting soon.
The authorities promise to preserve at least 40 or 50 percent of the island, and I hope that they do as well. I am afraid they will over-develop the island, killing much of the semi-rural flavor of the island. The new Dream Land resort taking shape is destroying some vital mudflat wetlands. When they build the airport, they destoryed a few mountains, turning them into qauries. A few are still operational. They also shut down the old salt mines. But they kept their promise to not destory the remaining mountains.
I wish they would develop hiking trails on Kum mountain (Gold mountain) which is now blocked off due to Korean military bases. We are so close to North Korea (visable in the distance on a clear day from almost everywhere on the island) I doubt that they will reduce the Korean military bases anytime soon.
Mini-Macau or Las Vegas?
In the next few years, the integrated resorts will open up transforming Midan City into a mini-Las Vegas. The authorities have a grandiose plan to turn this island into another Singapore or Macau. But limiting the casinos to Foreigners only may not do the trick. In my opinion, they will need to allow Koreans some access to the casinos to make them economically viable. Perhaps limiting access to once or twice a month or a set loss fee would work.
The Hamptons of Seoul?
The way I look at it, they should be thinking of the Hamptons in long island, not Singnapore or Macaus, as the model for development, turning the city into a upscale weekend home district for rich Koreans and expatriats.
In a series of blog postings which I hope to turn into some articles, which I will share with the Mayor of Incheon, I will explore living in Yeongjong International city from my perspective.
The articles will include
Yeongjon International City, Beaches
Yeongjong Internation City Development Hype vs reality
Yeongjong International City – the Hamptons of Seoul?
Yeongjong Things to Do
Yeongjong International City Restaurant guide
Yeongjong International City Hiking guide
Yeongjong International City Wildlife guide
Yeongjong International City -Suggestions for transportation and other development plans.
Thanks
Hope you enjoy these articles. I also hope to get them published in the local Korean English press.
Jake Cosmos Aller Aka “Cosmos”
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Review of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Series
One of the most interesting and unique books I have read recently is the “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children” series. There were six books in the series
A sequel, titled Hollow City, was released on January 14, 2014.[13] The novel is set immediately after the first and sees Jacob and his friends fleeing from Miss Peregrines to the “peculiar capital of the world”, London.[14]
The third installment in Miss Peregrine’s series, titled Library of Souls, was announced in early 2015.[15] It was released on September 22, 2015.[15]
And there was a movie version, with Samuel L Jackson as the main villain.
alma peregrine
The books all follow a similar pattern. Old fake photos are interspersed throughout the books illustrating key people and events.
The original idea was to write a children’s book featuring the old photos and the story that photos told.
The series is somewhat like the Harry Potter series, a young man discovers a secret hidden world that he is a part of and he is destined for great things. The series unfolds as a grand battle between good and evil with the future of not only the peculiar world at fate but the entire world. It is also somewhat like the X files. Mutant children are hidden away at boarding schools hidden in time loops to protect them from prosecution in the larger world. The leaders of the peculiar world are women who are also part birds.
The main villain, Caul, is the sister of the main Ymbryn bird lady, Alma Peregrine. He intends to enslave all of pecurliardom and then enslave the normal as well. Her wards play a decisive role in the eventual defeat of Cual and his army of wrights, and hollogasts – who are terrifying creatures both in the book and in the movie.
How they defeat them I will leave the reader to read about as I don’t want to spoil the book or movie.
I disagree with the critics of the movie. The average rating was 3 out of 4, I might give it a 4 out of 4. The movie version is pretty close to the book and is one of the better adaptations of a book I have seen. I hope they make a sequel.
All in all, one of the most original, inventive, and yes terrifying young adult SF horror series I have read in years.
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is a contemporary fantasy debut novel by American author Ransom Riggs. The story is told through a combination of narrative and a mix of vernacular and found photography from the personal archives of collectors listed by the author.
This young adult book was originally intended to be a picture book featuring photographs Riggs had collected, but on the advice of an editor at Quirk Books, he used the photographs as a guide from which to put together a narrative.[1][2] Riggs was a collector of photographs but needed more for his novel. He met Leonard Lightfoot, a well-known collector at the Rose Bowl Flea Market, and was introduced to other collectors.[3] The result was a story about a boy who follows clues from his grandfather’s old photographs, tales, and his grandfather’s last words which lead him on an adventure that takes him to a large abandoned orphanage on Cairnholm, a fictional Welsh island.[2]
The book has been a New York Times bestseller.[1][4] It reached the #1 spot on the Children’s Chapter Books list on April 29, 2012, after being on the list for 45 weeks,[5] remaining there until May 20, when it dropped to the fourth spot on the list.[6][7][8] Critics have generally praised the book for the creative use of vintage photographs in the sepia style and surrealist form, as well as good characterization and settings.
As a child, Jacob Magellan Portman has been fascinated with his grandfather Abraham’s stories about surviving as a Jew during World War II, running from man-eating monsters, and living with peculiar children in a secret home guarded by “a wise old bird”. As Jacob grows older, he begins to doubt the stories until the arrival of his grandfather’s death. Blood-strewn, exhausted, and lying in his back garden on the outskirts of Florida Woods, Abraham’s last words are a mystery: “…find the bird in the loop on the other side of the old man’s grave on September 3, 1940, and tell them what happened.” As his grandfather dies, Jacob catches sight of a horrific monster just like the ones described in Abraham’s stories. Soon, he starts experiencing trauma and being plagued with nightmares relating to those monsters. Believing their son to be going crazy, Jacob’s parents take him to Dr. Golan, a psychiatrist, who suggests that Jacob go to Cairnholm, Wales, the location of his grandfather’s children’s home to confront the place of his trauma. On his own, Jacob locates and explores the old house only to find it empty and everything caked in dust. According to the local people, the place is haunted and a bomb had killed all its inhabitants many years ago, on September 3, 1940.
Sensing a connection, Jacob refuses to give up and returns to the house one more time, where he encounters a mysterious girl who can conjure fire with her hands whom he follows, trying to question her after hearing her call out his grandfather’s name. They reach the bogs surrounding the house before Jacob realizes that the people of Cairnholm are different, including the patrons at the inn and his father isn’t there. Luckily, a confused Jacob is rescued by the girl from before and an invisible boy, who introduce themselves as Emma Bloom and Millard Nulling’s respectively. A suspicious Emma holds him captive and brings him to the children’s home, where he finds it magically transformed to the paradise of his grandfather’s stories, complete with the peculiar children and the “wise old bird”, who is, in fact, the headmistress Miss Alma LeMay Peregrine (named after that well-known raptorial bird of prey the peregrine falcon).
There Jacob is also introduced to other peculiar children apart from Emma and Millard: Bronwyn Bruntley, a girl with incredible strength, Claire Densmore, a little girl with an extra mouth at the back of her head, Olive Abroholos Elephanta, a little girl who can levitate, Enoch O’Connor, a boy who can animate non-living things for a short amount of time by transplanting organs, Hugh Apiston, a boy with bees living in his stomach, Fiona Frauenfeld, a girl with an affinity for growing plants, and Horace Somnusson, a boy with prophetic dreams. Jacob is shocked and befuddled by the state of the place, so Olive and Millard explain that they are currently existing in a time loop, a place where time is constantly reversed and where they all relive the same day every day, September 3, 1940. This is all thanks to Miss Peregrine, a special type of peculiar being known as a ymbryne, one who can shapeshift into birds (namely a peregrine falcon after which she is named) and manipulate time. Apart from keeping them alive (if not the bomb would have killed them), this time loop also protects the peculiar children from being hunted by hollowgast — humanoid, tentacle-mouthed creatures that devour peculiars. That experiment occurred in the Siberian tundra, which was marked by a cataclysmic explosion, and from there the hollowgast was born. In addition to hollowgast being a threat, hollows who have consumed enough peculiars are evolved into wights, beings who resemble humans in every aspect save their eyes, which have no pupils. These wights’ ultimate goal is to gain power from the peculiars, as well as morph every one of their fellow hollowgast into wights that will rule the world.
Soon, Miss Peregrine’s former mentor Miss Avocet arrives at the loop mad with grief over the kidnapping of her wards to wights, who have executed their plan of raiding loops. Fearing for the children’s safety, Jacob is tasked with the job of reporting any suspicious information going on in the outside world. With his comings and goings, Jacob and Emma begin to develop feelings for each other, as well as get a glimpse into his peculiar self: he can see the hollows while other peculiars can’t, just like his grandfather. Miss Peregrine’s fears are confirmed when eyeless sheep bodies begin to pile up, and Martin, a worker in the Cairnholm Local Museum, is killed. Going against Miss Peregrine’s orders to not leave the house, Enoch, Bronwyn, Emma, Jacob, and Millard escape, and Enoch uses a sheep heart to briefly bring Martin back to life. Martin manages to inform the group of the presence of a wight on the island, but by then it is too late as one appears right behind them along with a hollow companion. To Jacob’s shock, he reveals himself to be Dr. Golan, as well as Jacob’s family’s hired lawn gardener, and Jacob’s middle school bus driver. Jacob refuses Golan’s offer to join him in finding peculiars and decides to stay with his friends. Golan sends his hollow after the group, and Emma and Jacob split up from the rest. After a brief scuffle, Jacob kills it with a pair of sheep shears. They make their way back to the orphanage, but discover that Golan has kidnapped Miss Peregrine and Miss Avocet and locked the rest of the children in the house.
Dr. Golan warns them not to attempt to rescue Miss Peregrine and leaves the loop, but Millard manages to sneak out invisibly and follow him. Jacob and his friends follow Millard’s tracks and find Golan near a lighthouse trying to catch a boat with his other wight comrades. During the process of saving Miss Peregrine, who is trapped in her bird form, Millard is wounded from a gunshot, but Golan is ultimately killed by Jacob. Just then, the other wights arrive and even though they can rescue Miss Peregrine, Miss Avocet is taken away. Returning to the orphanage, they find it destroyed, leaving them having to track down the wights and discover how to help Miss Peregrine. It is then Jacob decides to follow his friends and returns to the present to say goodbye to his father, but promises to return when his mission is finished. Guided by only a prophetic dream from Horace, they set sail to find help.
Otherwise known as synergist (a word meaning “peculiar spirit” in the Old Peculiar language, which is, in turn, the author’s adaptation of Old English, or Anglo-Saxon language), peculiar folk are a branch of humanity possessing a second soul which manifests itself in strange ways such as abnormal characteristics and abilities commonly referred to as peculiarities. Very rarely are peculiar children born to peculiar parents as the essence or gene of peculiarity often skips entire generations, making peculiar populations vastly less than that normal people.
A ymbryne (pronounced IMM-brinn) is a specific kind of female peculiar who can transform into distinct birds, control and manipulate time as she sees fit, and govern the peculiar world. Most essentially, the ability to control time lets these women possess a period of historical time by looping it, creating a potentially eternal sanctuary for peculiars. They often set out into the present-day world to rescue peculiars in dire situations or to search for those without a ymbryne. Ymbryne means “revolution” or “circuit” in Old Peculiar.
The Council of Ymbrynes is the official government and law of peculiardom. Their responsibilities include the maintenance of loop order, the writing or amending of laws regularly, and the determination of sentences for those convicted of a crime. Members are not specified.
Time loops are the fabric of the peculiar world, often referred to as peculiardom. Similar to towns, cities, states, and countries, they act as specific locations. Together they create a vast and quite complex world of varying whereabouts and dates only peculiars can enter. Within these loops, peculiars live indefinitely without aging or reliving previous experiences, even as the day around them repeats itself. While it may appear to be a form of eternal youth, it is the suspension of time inevitable. In reality, many, if not all, of Miss Peregrine’s children are over fifty years old, but the loop detains them as teenagers and small children physically and mentally. A loop must be reset daily or it will collapse, leaving all peculiars within it exposed to the outside world.
As a result of time loops, those who reside in them may not be able to return to the present day, depending on how long they’ve been there. In a mere matter of hours outside of the loop, the amount of time evaded will catch up. An example of this is Miss Peregrine’s former ward, a young girl named Charlotte who left the loop while Miss Peregrine was away. She was discovered by police in the mid-1980s and sent to a welfare agency. When Miss Peregrine found her just two days later, she’d already aged thirty-five years. Although she survived the ordeal, the unnatural aging process had caused Charlotte a great deal of mental disorder, and she was sent to live with Miss Nightjar, a ymbryne more suited for her care. The same process of deterioration applies to anything taken out of time loops as another instance was an apple Jacob took back to the inn where he and his father were staying in the present day. He left it on the nightstand next to his bed as he fell asleep that night, but by morning, found it had rotted to the point of disintegrating.
A word meaning “empty spirit”. The hollowgast are monsters who feed on peculiars. They were created by a freak accident in an unethical and illegal experiment conducted by Miss Peregrine’s two brothers. Hundreds had joined their cause, and with the aid of misguided but powerful ymbrynes, it was intended to achieve immortality without the limitations of time loops. Instead, it led to a catastrophic collapse that destroyed half of Siberia where the experiment took place. Everyone involved was presumed dead, but their corpses became deformed and crawled back to a lesser, animalistic state of life. Apart from their shadows, hollows are invisible to all but a gifted few including Abraham and Jacob Portman. They are also identified by the groups of large tentacle-like tongues that occupy their grotesquely stretched mouths. It is speculated that this outcome was the result of being reverse-aged to a time before their souls existed, thus the word hollowgast. Their souls having been erased, hollows possess no form of peculiarity, rendering them unable to enter time loops.
If a hollow consumes enough peculiar souls, its original human form is restored, except irises and pupils leaving the eyes entirely white. Because of this, peculiars refer to these evolved creatures as wights. They possess no extraordinary abilities but are highly skilled in posing as normal people under multiple identities and can even pass into time loops. Much of their existence revolves around procuring peculiars for remaining hollows to devour. Once they set their eyes on a peculiar child, they will follow them around, as they did with Jacob to the island.
Jacob Magellan Portman— A 16-year-old American teenager and the protagonist of the story. Jacob becomes subject to acute stress reaction after witnessing his grandfather’s death and claiming that a monster from his grandfather’s childhood stories had killed him. Everyone he knows begins to consider him crazy and avoids him. His parents eventually take him to see a psychiatrist, on whose instruction Jacob’s dad takes him on a trip to the Welsh island where his grandfather grew up. There, Jacob discovers that the stories of a magical orphanage and both peculiar children and the monster are real. He also learns that the ability to see these monsters is an extremely rare peculiarity as they are invisible to all but a few like himself.
Abraham Portman— Abraham was Jacob’s grandfather who also had the peculiarity of seeing the monsters. He left Miss Peregrine’s loop as a young man to join both the war against Germany and the war against the hollowgast, promising to make a home in America for his fellow peculiars. But having started a family of his own during his time in the normal world, he never went back for them. Despite this, he was still pressured into eradicating hollows, resulting in long, frequent hunting trips away from his wife and two children, a secret which they took as careless neglect. Over the years, Abraham became a near-stranger to everyone he knew and, in his old age, was killed by one of the very monsters he had fought so valiantly to defeat. Police simply concluded that dementia and an attack by wild animals were the cause of his death.
Emma Bloom— Emma is a teenager under Miss Peregrine’s care. Her peculiarity manifested in her hands when she was ten years old. They began to glow red, becoming painfully hot to the point of generating fire. Emma had a romantic relationship with Abraham which they maintained even as he went to war until he stopped responding to her letters. After years without replying, Abraham finally wrote her back simply to tell her he could no longer do so because he’d married another woman. Emma became heartbroken and bitter but still mourned him upon learning of his death when his grandson Jacob arrived in Miss Peregrine’s time loop. Although she treated Jacob harshly at first, their mutual sorrow for Abraham started a deeply sincere relationship between them.
Millard Nullings— Millard is a young adolescent possessing the peculiarity of invisibility which is said to be quite uncommon. He chooses to go about nude to stay fully invisible but wears clothes at supper on Miss Peregrine’s orders. He is also exceptionally well-versed in all things peculiar and, as a hobby, spends much of his time documenting every little detail of the day they live in.
Bronwyn Bruntley— A young adolescent possessing super-human strength, Bronwyn is also kindhearted and a loyal friend. She respects and obeys Miss Peregrine more than her fellow wards do, often correcting them and citing rules they’re meant to follow, mostly in fear of anyone getting in trouble. The only occasions for which she refuses to cooperate are when she is made to dress lady-like. Before Miss Peregrine took her and her older brother Victor in, Bronwyn discovered her strength at the age of ten when she snapped their abusive stepfather’s neck without actually meaning to.
Enoch O’Connor— A young adolescent with the ability to resurrect the dead and bring inanimate objects to life for a limited time by using the extracted organs of other living things. Enoch was born to a family of undertakers and, before moving into time loops, caused tremendous confusion by frequently bringing the dead to life at his father’s funeral parlor. He is the least liked of Miss Peregrine’s wards as the others are put off by his selfish behavior, negative thinking, and obsession with violence. His previous ymbryne was never specified, nor were his reasons for relocating to Miss Peregrine’s loop.
Olive Abroholos Elephanta— Olive is the second youngest to Claire and comes across as quite giddy and openly friendly. Her peculiarity renders her lighter than air, making her float freely like a balloon. She has barely any control over it and must always be weighed down or bound to something to keep from floating away. Her most routine means is a pair of heavy leaden shoes.
Hugh Apiston— Hugh is a teenager with bees living in his stomach. His peculiarity allows him to communicate with them and command them. He is in love with Fiona.
Horace Somnusson— Horace is a young adolescent capable of having prophetic dreams, albeit very scarcely. They occur most often as nightmares of events so horrifying, they tend to throw him into bouts of shock. He can be quite a snob and is an extremely passionate follower of fashion, commonly seen in a suit and tie with a top hat and monocle.
Fiona Frauenfeld— Fiona is a teenager possessing power over plants. Her peculiarity allows her to manipulate their life and growth and control their movements. She speaks with a thick Irish accent, though she rarely speaks at all, and has a romantic, symbiotic relationship with Hugh.
Claire Densmore— The youngest of all Miss Peregrine’s wards, Claire also possesses the most grotesque peculiarity in their midst: a second mouth in the back of her head with sharp teeth, hidden beneath her blonde curls. She is typically cheerful but becomes shy and self-conscious when made to dine with others.
Victor Bruntley— Miss Peregrine once had many more peculiars under her care, many of whom were killed by the hollowgast, including Bronwyn’s older brother Victor. Like Bronwyn, Victor possessed immense physical strength. He left during the loop’s early days, claiming he couldn’t stand being trapped there; it was a reckless decision that led to his demise. Until his burial when the loop closed, his lifeless body had remained at Miss Peregrine’s home, locked away in his bedroom and neatly laid to rest in bed. Some of the children would occasionally sneak in and have Enoch resurrect him, though he always seemed to be in a rush to get back to the afterlife.
The Twins— The Twins appear as two short children, wearing sacks on their heads that have holes for the eyes, however without their masks, they have pale gray, scaly skin with gray serpentine eyes and fangs. Not much is known about Twin’s personalities, besides the fact that they are shy and quiet because they do not speak to anyone besides each other. Not too much is known about their peculiarity, but in the movie, they were capable of turning a Wight into stone with just a glare, similar to Medusa in Greek Mythology. It was believed in the book they had a telepathic bond.
All ymbrynes take on last names which correspond to the type of bird into which they can shapeshift (e.g., Miss Peregrine can turn into a peregrine falcon).
Alma LeFay Peregrine— Miss Peregrine is a highly skilled ymbryne and the headmistress of her children’s-home. She is a delicate woman who enjoys smoking a pipe and adores her charges, though she can be strict at times. At a very young age, she learned to hone her peculiarity as a student under Miss Avocet. Miss Peregrine’s loop is located on the fictional island of Cairnholm, Wales, on September 3, 1940, though it’s September 2 for the first few hours.
Esmerelda Avocet— Miss Avocet is an elderly and wise woman from the mid-Victorian period in England. Having taught most notable ymbrynes to master their craft, she is regarded as near-royalty. Her loop is in Derbyshire on July 15, 1867, but it was invaded by wights and hollowgast, forcing her to flee to Miss Peregrine’s loop.
Miss Nightjar— Miss Nightjar takes in difficult cases of peculiars. One such case being Miss Peregrine’s former ward, Charlotte. Miss Nightjar’s loop is in Swansea, Wales on April 3, 1901, and is co-run by Miss Thrush.
Miss Finch— Miss Finch has an aunt who is also a ymbryne but prefers to stay in finch Their loop is based in London, but the date is not stated.
Millicent Thrush— Miss Thrush has a loop in London and is headmistress of a children’s home there but also co-runs Miss Nightjar’s special-care home.
Miss Kestrel— Possibly a rather historical ymbryne. Enoch mentions an old story of her being injured in a road accident. The incident is said to have trapped her in the form of a kestrel for an entire week, leading to the collapse of her loop before she healed. Location and date are not stated.
Balenciaga Wren— Miss Wren is the headmistress of a menagerie for peculiar animals. Her loop is based in mainland Wales in a much older, unknown time.
Miss Gannett— Miss Gannett has a loop in Ireland, in June of 1770.
Miss Treecreeper— Miss Peregrine mentions her name but doesn’t remember where or when her loop is based.
Franklin Portman— Jacob’s father, Frank, is an unemployed, amateur ornithologist who volunteers at a bird rescue and likes to pass it off as his job. He also spends much of his time writing manuscripts for nature books, though he’s never completed one, giving up on his every project midway. His whole life, he’s had a rather rough relationship with his father, Abraham, as he was rarely around. Frank is very protective of his son but understands his need for room to grow and learn on his own.
Maryann Portman— Maryann is Jacob’s obsessively materialistic mother and Franklin’s wife. She comes from a wealthy family that owns a drugstore company with one hundred and fifteen branches across the state of Florida. While she loves her son and is immensely protective of him, she tends to be more concerned about public image and what people think of them.
Golan— Dr. Golan was one of the many peculiars who supported and participated in the disastrous experiment that created the hollowgast. He is among those who have reached the state of being a wight, a term he disowns as “their word.” He is a licensed psychiatrist and, to uncover information on Miss Peregrine’s loop, has been stalking the Portman family for years under many a guise including their yardman, Jacob’s middle school bus driver Mr. Barron, and ultimately himself when Jacob begins seeing him for therapy.
Malthus— Malthus was once a peculiar and an old friend of Dr. Golan’s who also joined the rebellion against the ymbrynes, dying by the results of the experiment designed to overthrow them and reemerging a hollow. He now travels with the restored Golan, devouring peculiars as they discover time loops. For reasons not specified, Golan allowed him to kill Abraham before they could learn the location of Miss Peregrine’s loop. From then on, Malthus haunted Jacob, keeping a vigil on him day and night.
Martin Pagett— Martin is a part-time but knowledgeable and well-spoken curator of a small museum on Cairnholm, though due to the island’s sparse renown and low tourist appeal, they rarely see any patronage. He strikes up a bond with Jacob, giving him a rundown of Cairnholm’s s history and assisting him in learning how the children’s home was destroyed. Martin plays an unwitting but vital role in discovering Malthus and Dr. Golan on the island.
Oggie— Oggie is Martin’s uncle, whom he introduces to Jacob to help him learn more about the fallen children’s home. Elderly and gruff but still sharp of wit, Oggie recalls the strange children and their reclusive headmistress and recounts the bombing in detail, occasionally veering off into rants on the weather and politics. Though he longed to fight for his country, he was too young then and merely watched it all take place.
Susan Portman— Susan is Frank’s younger sister and Jacob’s aunt. While going through Abraham’s possessions with them after his passing, she found his copy of The Selected Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson and that he had written a brief well-wish to Jacob on the title page. When she gives it to him on his birthday, Jacob unwittingly discovers a letter from Miss Peregrine when it fell out from between the pages.
Ricky— Ricky is described as Jacob’s best and only friend, though their relationship is more of a deal for personal benefit: in exchange for Jacob helping Ricky with his homework, Ricky acts as Jacob’s bodyguard at school.
Miss Peregrine’s spent seventy weeks on The New York Times Best Sellers list for children’s chapter books. It reached the number one spot on the list on April 29, 2012, after being on the list for forty-five weeks.[5] It remained there until 20 May, when it dropped to the fourth spot on the list.[6][7][8] The book dropped off the list on September 9, 2012, after sixty-three weeks.[9][10]
According to Deborah Netburn for the Los Angeles Times, the best part of the novel is “a series of black-and-white photos sprinkled throughout the book”.[11]Publishers Weekly called the book “an enjoyable, eccentric read distinguished by well-developed characters, a believable Welsh setting, and some very creepy monsters.”[12]
A sequel, titled Hollow City, was released on January 14, 2014.[13] The novel is set immediately after the first and sees Jacob and his friends fleeing from Miss Peregrines to the “peculiar capital of the world”, London.[14]
The third installment in Miss Peregrine’s series, titled Library of Souls, was announced in early 2015.[15] It was released on September 22, 2015.[15]
An original graphic novel adaptation by Cassandra Jean and Ransom Riggs called Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children: The Graphic Novel was released in October 2013.[17]
Filming began in February 2015 in London and the Tampa Bay Area. The film premiered at Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas, on September 25, 2016, and was theatrically released in the United States on September 30, 2016, by 20th Century Fox.[5] It received mixed reviews and grossed $296 million worldwide against a production budget of $110 million.
Abe Portman has told stories to his grandson Jake about battling monsters and spending his childhood at “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children” at Cairnholm, an island off the coast of Wales. The home’s children and their headmistress, Miss Alma Peregrine, possess paranormal abilities and are known as “Peculiars”. One day, Jake finds Abe dying with his eyes removed, and he tells Jake to go to “the loop of September 3, 1943”.
Following advice from Dr. Golan, Jake travels to the United Kingdom to go to Cairnholm with his father Frank to investigate the children’s home, learning that it was destroyed during a Luftwaffe raid. Upon entering the ruins, Jake finds children from Abe’s stories. They take him through a portal and he emerges in the year 1943 when the house was still intact. Miss Peregrine greets him and explains that she belongs to a class of female Peculiars named “Ymbrynes”, who can transform into birds (in Miss Peregrine’s case, a peregrine falcon) and manipulate time. To avoid persecution for being Peculiars, she and her children hide from the outside world in a time loop she created, accessible only to Peculiars and set to September 3, 1943, allowing them to live the same day repeatedly and avoid aging as long as they stay inside it.
Jake is introduced to the rest of the children, including aerokinetic Emma Bloom, who he is attracted to. Jake learns he is also a Peculiar like his grandfather and can see the invisible monsters from Abe’s stories, which are called “Hollowgasts” (or “Hollows”). They are disfigured Peculiar scientists who killed a Ymbryne in a failed experiment to harvest her powers trying to achieve immortality. Led by shapeshifter Mr. Barron, they hunt Peculiars to consume their eyeballs, which allow them to regain visibly human form, but with milky-white eyes, named “Wights”.
A wounded Ymbryne named Miss Avocet arrives, explaining Barron assaulted her in the January 2016 time loop at Blackpool, England, killing her children, and is trying to repeat the failed experiment using more Ymbrynes. Miss Peregrine prepares to move out with her children and Miss Avocet, after learning from Jake that a Hollow may be on the island in the present after sheep were killed. Jake returns to 2016, but finding an elderly man killed by the Hollow, he goes back to the portal to warn them the Hollow is near. However, he is followed by another visitor on the island, an ornithologist who is Mr. Barron.
Barron had tried to extract the location of Ms. Peregrine’s loop from Abe, but he’s hungry Hollow companion, Mr. Malthus (the one on the island), killed Abe before he could do so. He then posed as Dr. Golan, encouraging Jake to go to the island so he could lead him to the loop. Using Jake as a hostage at the children’s home, Barron forces Miss Peregrine to trap herself in bird form and takes her to Blackpool, leaving Jake, the other children, and Miss Avocet as prey for Malthus.
Malthus arrives and kills Miss Avocet, but Jake and the children escape just as the Luftwaffe raid destroys the house, killing Malthus. Without Miss Peregrine to reset it, the loop closes, leaving them stuck in 1943. Rescuing a sunken ocean liner, they travel to Blackpool and enter its January 2016 loop, fight Barron’s Wight and Hollow allies, and rescue Miss Peregrine and other captive Ymbrynes. Barron disguises himself as Jake, hoping to confuse the children who have come to finish him off. But when the last remaining Hollow arrives, Jake can see and avoid it. The Hollow kills Barron and is in turn killed by Jake.
Before the time loop closes, Jake says goodbye to the children as they exit and return to their ship in 1943 while he stays in 2016, travels to Florida, and relates his adventures to Abe, who is alive and well: Barron’s death at the beginning of 2016 erased his presence in Florida later on. Abe gives Jake a map of international time loops, allowing Jake to reunite with his friends and Emma in 1943. They declare their feelings for each other and kiss. The children and Miss Peregrine sail their ship, seeking a happy time loop.
Eva Greenas Miss Alma LeFay Peregrine, the strict but clever and caring Ymbryne headmistress of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children who can transform into a peregrine falcon and manipulate time[6]
Terence Stampas Abe Portman, Jake’s grandfather who can see the invisible Hollows
Judi Denchas Miss Esmeralda Avocet, the Ymbryne headmistress of another shelter for Peculiar Children in Blackpool. Like Miss Peregrine, Miss Avocet can manipulate time; she can transform into an avocet.
Asa Butterfieldas Jake Portman, a 16-year-old American teenager, and Abe’s grandson. He visits Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children and is given, by Miss Peregrine, the task/promise of protecting the children. Like his grandfather, Jake can see the invisible Hollows.
Butterfield also portrays Mr. Barron’s disguised as Jake[9]
Ella Purnellas Emma Bloom, an aerokinetic teenager who can manipulate air and can breathe underwater by creating liquid bubbles of air. She is lighter than air and must always wear lead shoes or a tether to keep from floating away. Emma is also Abe’s former love interest in the 1940s and Jake’s current love interest.
Finlay MacMillan as Enoch O’Connor, a teenager and Olive’s love interest who can reanimate the deadand bring inanimate objects to life as his living puppets for a limited time by placing a heart inside
Lauren McCrostieas Olive Abroholos Elephanta, a pyrokinetic red-haired teenager, and Enoch’s love interest. She has to wear special black gloves to prevent burning everything she touches.
Cameron King as the voice and motion-capture of Millard Nullings, an invisibleboy[10]
Pixie Daviesas Bronwyn Bruntley, a young girl with superhuman strength, Victor’s sister
Georgia Pemberton as Fiona Frauenfeld, a young girl who can control and maintain plants including the vegetables in Miss Peregrine’s garden[10]
Milo Parkeras Hugh Apiston, a boy with bees living in his stomach[10]
Raffaella Chapmanas Claire Densmore, a young girl with an additional mouth hidden in the back of her head[10]
Hayden Keeler-Stone as Horace Somnusson, a boy who can project his dreams (which are sometimes prophetic) through a monocle[10]
Joseph and Thomas Orwell as the Twins, two masked gorgon-like twin boys who turn anyone who sees them into stone. They normally wear hoods to hide their faces.
Louis Davison as Victor Brantley, Bronwyn’s late brother who had the same ability as her. He was killed by a hollow infiltrator before the events in the film and was briefly brought back to life by Enoch.[10]
Samuel L. Jacksonas Mr. Barron, the shape-shifting leader of the Wights and Hollows. Barron and his Wight and Hollow minions hunt Peculiars and devour their eyes to recover human form. Barron also believes by doing this that he is invincible. His shape-shifting peculiarity allows him to disguise himself as another person. When he uses his peculiarity to become a person who doesn’t exist, his white eyes don’t change, so he has to wear contact lenses. He can also form blades, axes, and/or lassos with his own hands.
Chris O’Dowdas Franklin “Frank” Portman, Jake’s father and Abe’s son
Kim Dickensas Maryann Portman (credited as “Jake’s Mom”), Jake’s mother[7], and an up-and-coming businesswoman
O-Lan Jonesas Shelly, Jake’s drugstore supervisor, and co-worker
Jennifer Jarackas as Susie Portman, Frank’s sister, and Jake’s aunt. She passes Jake her late father’s gift which gives him the way to find Miss Peregrine’s time loop.
George Vricos as Bobby, Judy’s husband, and Jake’s uncle
Brooke Jaye Taylor as Judy, Bobby’s wife, and Jake’s other aunt
Ioan Hefin as Kev, the bartender on Cairnholm in the present day
Nicholas Ameras Oggie, a blind and elderly present-day resident of Cairnholm
Shaun Thomas and Justin Davies as Dylan and Worm, two present-day teenage Welsh residents whom Jake meets in Cairnholm
Director Tim Burton makes a cameo appearance in the film as a visitor at the funfair in Blackpool who gets a skeleton thrown at him by a Hollow. Glen Mexted, who previously worked with Burton as an extra in both Dark Shadows and the music video for the Killers‘ “Here with Me“, also appears in the same scene as a customer eating ice cream.
On July 28, 2014, Eva Green was set to play Miss Peregrine in the film; Mischa Barton, Lucy Hale, and Alison Sudol were also considered.[6] On September 24, 2014, it was announced that Asa Butterfield was being eyed for the second lead role as Burton’s choice, but that at that time he had not yet been offered the role.[15] On November 5, 2014, Ella Purnell was offered a role and was in final talks to join the film; it was also reported that Butterfield had been offered the male lead role, and was the favored choice.[16] On February 6, 2015, Samuel L. Jackson was added to the cast to play Mr. Barron, while Butterfield was confirmed for the second lead role.[9]Terence Stamp, Chris O’Dowd, Rupert Everett, Kim Dickens, and Judi Dench were announced as being in the cast on March 12, 2015.[7]
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children was originally set for a release date of July 31, 2015.[21] The release date moved to March 4, 2016, then again to December 25, 2016,[5] before finally moving to September 30, 2016.
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children grossed $87.2 million in the United States and Canada and $207.9 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $295.1 million, against a production budget of $110 million.[3]
In the United States and Canada, the film opened alongside Deepwater Horizon and was projected to gross around $25 million from 3,522 theaters in its opening weekend.[4][22] In total, the film earned $28.9 million during its opening weekend, finishing first at the box office.[23] The opening was on par with Dark Shadows‘ $29.7 million in 2012, Burton’s last big budgeted film.[23]Variety called it “a mediocre start” given the film’s $110 million budget.[24]
It had number one openings in Russia ($6.3 million), France ($5.3 million), Mexico (3.8 million), Australia ($3.1 million), Brazil ($2.7 million) and the Philippines ($1.7 million), and the biggest opening for Burton in Malaysia and Indonesia.[25][26] In South Korea, it debuted at number two with $5.2 million. The film was released in China and Italy in December 2016 and Japan in February 2017.[27]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 64% based on 253 reviews, with an average rating of 5.9/10. The website’s critical consensus reads, “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children proves a suitable match for Tim Burton’s distinctive style, even if it’s on stronger footing as a visual experience than a narrative one.”[28] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 57 out of 100 based on 43 critics, indicating “mixed or average reviews”.[29] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of “B+” on an A+ to F scale.[30][31]
IGN critic Samantha Ladwig gave the film a 7.2/10, summarizing her review with: “Though there are lingering questions about certain characters by the time the end credits roll, the film’s striking visuals help compensate for its unemotional and anti-climactic script.”[32] Justin Chang of the Los Angeles Times wrote “Easily the director’s finest work since his masterful 2007 screen adaptation of Sweeney Todd, and a striking reminder of what an unfettered gothic imagination can achieve with the right focus and an infusion of discipline.”[33]USA Today‘s Brian Truitt gave the film 3.5 out of 4 and wrote, “After a long run of dystopianYA movies for teen crowds, Burton is just the right guy to make cinema weird again.”[34] Calvin Wilson of St. Louis Post-Dispatch gave the film 3.5 out of 4 and stated, “Burton delivers his most ambitious and engaging film since Sweeney Todd (2007). Although the story becomes increasingly complex as it goes along, the emotional payoff is more than worth it.”[35]
Michael O’Sullivan of The Washington Post gave the film 3 out of 4 and wrote “The very idea of this – at once gruesome and darkly funny — is perfectly suited to Burton’s sensibility, which also reveals itself in the casting of Butterfield, who has the quality of a young, slightly less freaky Johnny Depp.”[36]The Guardian‘sJordan Hoffman gave the film 4 out of 5 and said, “We get the playfulness of seeing quirky magic powers mixed with the familiarity of how a time loop plays out. Add in Burton’s authorial visual stamp and what we’ve got is an extremely pleasing formula. It gels as Tim Burton’s best (non-musical) live-action movie for 20 years.”[37]James Berardinelli from ReelViews gave the film 3 out of 4 and stated, “Overall, despite feeling a little long and suffering from a rushed ending, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is a fresh and engaging storybook adventure that should appeal to viewers both inside and out of the core demographic.”[38]The New York Times‘sManohla Dargis gave a positive review, writing: “The story gets busy — you may get lost in 1943 or perhaps closer to the present — but it scarcely matters. Mr. Burton’s attention to detail and the ebb and flow of tone (scary, funny, eerie), as well as his sensitive, gentle work particularly with the child actors, make each new turn another occasion for unfettered imagination.”[39] Devan Coggan from Entertainment Weekly gave the film “B-” (67/100), describing the film “The film chooses style over substance, emphasizing how cool the children’s powers are without fleshing them out as full characters. To compete with Burton’s best, his heroic weirdos need a little more heart — and the monsters need sharper teeth.”[40]
Kyle Smith of the New York Post, Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times, and Tom Huddleston of Time Out decried the film. According to Smith, who gave the film 2 stars out of 4: “It may be senseless, but it’s sumptuous: the picture looks like it cost about a billion bucks, with absolutely every detail giving Burton an excuse to take his mad picture-book mind and let loose, the way Emma the girl full of air keeps soaring away from earthly constraints. Burton may give us a bland hero, a tepid love story, and a muddled plot but, hey, at least he’s got a skeleton army doing battle with giant tentacle monsters at an amusement park.”[41] Roeper, who scored the film 1.5 stars out of 4, began his review by writing: “I’m wondering if the mutant kids at Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children ever play basketball against their rivals across the pond, Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. I’d watch that. I’d certainly rather watch that than Tim Burton’s adaptation of the popular children’s book about a school for freakishly gifted children. This is a messy, confusing, uninvolving mishmash of old-school practical effects and CGI battles that feels … off nearly every misstep of the way.[42] Tom Huddleston of Time Out gave the film 2 stars out of 5, writing: “Director Tim Burton likes his films busy: watch a classic like Beetlejuice or Batman, and you’ll be pushed to find a single frame that isn’t packed with background detail, weird creatures, ornate furnishings, and intricate costumes. The problem with his new film, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, is that the script is every bit as busy and it can get pretty confusing.”[43]
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
I grew up in Berkeley, California, and Washington DC, and went to College in Stockton, California. After college, lived five years in Korea as a Peace Corps volunteer and teaching ESL. I returned to the US to Seattle for graduate school. Afterward, I joined the Foreign Service where I lived and worked in over ten countries. I retired and lived in Korea and the west coast.
What is the greatest thing about the place you call home?
I live in Youngjando island, South Korea near the Incheon Airport. I live in a garden city. There is a magnificent park – the world peace forest behind my house and a nice mountain to hike in. Over 300 restaurants are within walking distance of my house. There are five beaches ten minutes’ drive away, Incheon is nearby as is Seoul.
What turns you on creatively?
Almost all my work starts with a dream. I don’t dream dreams; I dream movies, filled with action, sound, music, smells many times in a completely different world. I have been writing a dream journal for many years. I write five to ten dreams per day, saving them as stand-alone flash fiction, and also write one to ten poems per day.
What is your favorite word, and can you use it in a poetic sentence?
One of my favorite words is my own portmanteau scumbaggery which I define as the actions of a ”Scumbag”.
The scumbaggery Of Texas Senator Ted Cruz Utterly confounds
What is your pet peeve?
Racism, sexism, homophobia, bigotry, right-wing nutcases, left-wing zealots, Christian holy rollers, gun violence, police misconduct, anti-Asian hate crimes, hate crimes, America Firsters, QAnon conspiracy theorists, neo-Nazis, White Supremacists, Proud Boys, Boogaloo Bois, and the Oath Keeper militia, etc. I don’t like ”gangsta rap”, “heavy metal”, or “country music”. I am a pragmatist and don’t care about ideological correctness.
What defines Jake Cosmos Aller?
I grew up in Berkeley and DC. I lived all over the world, visiting 45 countries and all 50 states. I served my country as a foreign service officer, and Peace Corps volunteer and taught ESL and government overseas. But what is more important than anything is that I married the girl of my dreams who became my wife 40 years ago.
John (“Jake”) Cosmos Aller is a novelist, poet, and former Foreign Service officer having served 27 years with the U.S. State Department serving in over ten countries including Korea, Thailand, India, Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Spain. He has traveled to over 50 countries, and 49 out of 50 states. He speaks Korean, Thai, Spanish and studied Chinese, Hindi and Arabic.
Where is my home? Where do I belong?
I really don’t know, always moving on to another place
Moved every other year it seems the last 45 years
Traveled to 49 states, 45 countries, drove across the U.S. six times
Lived in Berkeley, Yakima, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, DC, Oregon, Korea, Thailand, India, The Eastern Caribbean, and Spain
Where do I belong? Where is my home?
Neither here nor there, nowhere and everywhere
And so is that my rambling man’s fate
Never to really belong anywhere at all
Dark Dangerous Thoughts
dark dangerous thoughts
An old man wakes up
Confronting the dark dangerous thoughts
The demons of the night
That haunt his dreams
And his life
He looks out at the dawning sun
And his sleeping wife
And realizes that it will be all right
And dismisses the demons of the night
Back to their caves in his mind
And he gets up
To take the dawning day
In Search of America
Hitchhiking Tales
hitch hikers
When I was young and foolish
Broke and stubborn
I hitchhiked across the USA
Started in Salt Lake City
Where my greyhound bus pass
Was stolen
The station manager
Could have helped me
But refused to do so
Threaten to call the cops
When I grabbed my bags
Without the stolen tags
I said
Go ahead
But I am so out of here
Wondered about Salt Lake City
Went to a bar
Found I had to buy my booze
Next door
And they would mix it for me
Had to order food too
After a bloody Mary
And a burger
I walked about town
Saw the Mormon Temple
Finally about 3 pm
It was time to hit the road
Did not look back
Ended up in Cody Wyoming
Got a room shower
Steak beer
Using my rapidly depleted cash
Spent 25 dollars
Money really went far
Back in those days
A band of professional
Communist agitators
Gave me a ride
To Des Moines
Lots of weed, booze
And politics later
Got off the road
Slept outside
Next day
A beautiful woman
Drove me to near Chicago
In a red mustang
Might have been
The girl in the song
Took it easy
Digging her vibe
She invited home
But was not sure
If her estranged husband
Would welcome me
So I being foolish
And inexperienced with women
Did not go to her place
And always regretted
That I had lost
My chance that day
Then on to Chicago
Several rides later
Visited friends
Hit the road again
A series of uneventful rides
With truckers
And others
And a week later
I ended in New York City
Slept along the way
In cars
In truck stops
In highway rest stops
Always moving
Always going
None stop talking
And lots of free weed
And beer
And conversation
One more memorable ride
Occurred outside Albany
On my return to Chicago
A middle age creepy looking man
Picked me up
In a brand new Cadillac
He was he said a dynamite deliverer
For the Mafia
Went to various places
To blow up shit
He hated a lot of people
Particularly hippies from California
And Jewish people
Looking at me to confirm
That I was both
I told him that I lived in New York
And had never been to California
And although I might look Jewish
As I what was called back in the day
A “Jewfro”
I was not Jewish
Many years later I discovered
That I am indeed part Jewish
But then I did not know
And I felt a bit of strategic information
Might keep me alive
Then I realized that he was just jiving with me
And we relaxed
And he pulled out some weed
And beer
And we mellowed out
But I believe that he really was with the mob
Perhaps not a dynamite dealer
A real made Italian made mafia member
By Chicago
I had enough
I called my Dad
Told him what had happened
Wanted a ticket home
And he sent me a ticket
And 500 dollars
And I went home
I told him I would tell him
My tales someday
But never did
I learned so much
About my fellow Americans
And the strange vibe
That was 1975
And now it is too late
But I wanted to finally
Tell the world
I am a bus rider
That makes me unusual
For a white male
From an upper middle class family
Our people are not bus riders
Though some are subway riders
Bus riders are other people
The poor, minorities, immigrants
People who don’t drive
Because they are blind
Or have a DUI
And in my case
I don’t drive
Because I have bad vision
And bad coordination
Just never got the hang
Of the whole driving thing
Fortunately for me
My wife does the driving
But I still take the bus
From time to time
I rode the AC buses in Berkeley
As a child
Line 67, line 51, line 43 F bus
Rode them long before BART came along
And afterwards as well
As an adult seldom rode the bus
But when I did so
I was always impressed
By the sheer diversity
Of the bus riding property
Hundreds of languages
All sorts of sexual orientation
Some were white
Most were not
Most of my fellow passengers
Were nice enough
Some were friendly
And some were lost
In their own thoughts
And a few
Were scary looking dudes
With the look
Of someone who had done time
And were capable of more violence
I also rode the bus
In Seattle as a graduate student
A lot of fellow UW students
And the usual immigrants
Minorities etc
And some white people
Commuting
And in DC
Over the years
I rode a lot of buses
Mostly to and from the metro
But I got to know
And love the DC buses as well
I also took the greyhound bus
Across the country
Several times over the years
All over the U.S.
From Bay Area to Stockton
From Bay Area to Clear Lake
From Bay area to NYC
NYC to DC
All over the USA
Taking the Greyhound
Was always an adventure
Met a lot of interesting people
As people on long distant bus rides
Tend to open up and talk
To pass the time away
Overseas I took the bus
All over
In India, in Barbados
In Spain and in Korea
The Korean buses
For many years
Were difficult for foreign visitors
As the signs were all in Korean
Most have signs
Now in English, Chinese and Korean
And are much more foreigner friendly
Riding the bus
In America
Allows one access
To the underbelly of American society
The poor, the marginalized
The immigrant communities
That many middle-class white people
Just never see
And for that reason
I am glad
That I am a bus rider.
The End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
I have known Gary Noland since high school. He is a very talented composer, piano player, and cartoonist who lives in Portland. His music is eclectic with a snarky sarcastic tone to it, somewhat like listening to Frank Zappa’s classical music scores. His cartoons are very Robert Crumpian in spirit. Take a listen and let me know what you think.
You can contact Gary Noland at nolandgary5@gmail.com
BIO
Introducing Gary Noland’s Music
Dr. Gary Lloyd Noland (a.k.a. author Dolly Gray Landon & artist Lon Gaylord Dylan), grew up in a crowded house shared by ten people on a plot of land three blocks south of UC Berkeley known as People’s Park, which has distinguished itself as a site of civic unrest since the late 1960 Dr. Gary Lloyd Noland (a.k.a. author Dolly Gray Landon & artist Lon Gaylord Dylan), grew up in a crowded house shared by ten people on a plot of land three blocks south of UC Berkeley known as People’s Park, which has distinguished itself as a site of civic unrest since the late 1960s. As an adolescent, Gary lived for a time in Salzburg and Garmisch-Partenkirchen, where he absorbed many musical influences. Having studied with a long roster of acclaimed composers and musicians, he earned his Bachelor’s in music from UC Berkeley in 1979, continued studies at the Boston Conservatory, and transferred to Harvard University, where he added to his credits Dr. Gary Lloyd Noland (a.k.a. Author Dolly Gray Landon & artist Lon Gaylord Dylan), grew up in a crowded house shared by ten people on a plot of land three blocks south of UC Berkeley known as People’s Park, which has distinguished itself as a site of civic unrest since the late 1960s.
As an adolescent, Gary lived for a time in Salzburg and Garmisch-Partenkirchen, where he absorbed many musical influences. Having studied with a long roster of acclaimed composers and musicians, he earned his Bachelor’s in music from UC Berkeley in 1979, continued studies at the Boston Conservatory, and transferred to Harvard University, where he added to his credits a Masters’ and a Ph.D. in Music Composition in 1989.
Gary’s catalog consists of hundreds of works, which include piano, vocal, chamber, experimental, and electronic pieces; full-length plays in verse, “chamber novels,” and other text pieces; as well as graphically notated scores. His award-winning chamber novel JAGDLIED for Narrator, Musicians, Pantomimists, Dancers & Culinary Artists was listed by one reviewer as the “Top Book of 2018.” Gary’s compositions have been performed and broadcast (including on NPR) in many locations throughout the United States, as well as in Europe, Asia, and Australia. He founded the Seventh Species concert series in San Francisco in 1990 and, for 23 years, produced well over 50 concerts of contemporary classical music on the West Coast. He is also a founding member of Cascadia Composers. Gary has taught music at Harvard, the University of Oregon, and Portland Community College. His musical scores are available from J.W. Pepper, RGM, Sheet Music Plus, and Freeland Publications. Six CDs of his compositions are available on the North Pacific Music label at: www.northpacificmusic.com. He has well over 300 videos of his music and narratives available for listening on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJt_eNyJqOZBErG9McQ51nA and numerous other sites on the Internet. composition lessons Lake Oswego Beaverton
The PIMPLETON PROCRASTURBATION ENSEMBLE performs STATE-OF-THE-ART EAR EXERCISES for MUSICAL COGNOSCENTI Op. 119 by GARY LLOYD NOLAND.
Featuring the composer and his five alter egos:
GARY LLOYD NOLAND: panda harmonium, malapropsichord, climaxophone, smorgasborgasmatron, bombasticordion, whoopeeboard, air cacophony or
GARY LLOYD NOLAND CHALLENGES MUSICAL CONVENTIONS, TRADITIONS, AND CUSTOMS
The distinction between music and noise is, I think, perfectly described by Physics.info. “Music and noise are both mixture
the music of sound waves of different frequencies. The component frequencies of music are discrete, separable, and rational, with a discernible dominant frequency. The component frequencies of noise are continuous and random with no discernible dominant frequency.” Hence, the further we delve into dissonant or even atonal music, the more likely it is to be perceived as noise. Ultimately the line between the two is very blurry, and writer Meghan Davis took this concept to task smartly, when she wrote: “Someone nearby is tapping their toe. Is this an irritating noise or a musical sound? As it turns out, the difference depends almost entirely upon the listener.” And that ultimately is the point, my friends. The beauty of sound is in the ears of the beholder.
So why this long premise on sonic contrasts? Well, when you engage with the music of an avant-garde composer, and dare I say, sound designer, such as Gary Lloyd Noland, there is no sitting on the fence. You either judge his album, “State-of-the-Art Ear Exercises for Musical Cognoscenti Op. 119”, as ingeniously brilliant, or utter hogwash. If this hard and fast assumption sounds dramatically drastic, well then so does Noland’s classically inspired, post-modern sonic concoctions.
Gary Noland has boundless artistic spirit
Gary Lloyd Noland, who has received glowing critiques, has a boundless artistic spirit, and a seemingly endless technical and musical ambition. His compositions strive to challenge the listener to cast away conventions, traditions, customs, and any formal limitations their musical mindsets may have locked them into. The 18 tracks contained within this album will take you through sounds composed of multiple frequencies that are produced by instruments whose names alone will have your mind twisting into a loop.
Your ears will be teased, stroked, stretched, and surprised, by the featured players – Gary Lloyd Noland and his alter-egos: Orland Doy Gladly, Darnalod Olly Yang, Lon Gaylord Dylan, Dolly Gray Landon, and Arnold Day Longly. Even more surprising, are the names of the instrumentation used by the players. Among them, the pandaharmonium, squealharp, googah, unstitched concussion, stench horn, nose cello, and toilet brushes.
Now if you’re thinking of, outright dissonant bombast, think again. Because the album is awash with beautiful classical motifs filled with luscious melody and harmony. They’re simply interposed by varying flurries of atonal sounds which most people link to dissonance. If you could imagine an ensemble led by the combined minds of Richard Strauss, Frank Zappa, Brain Eno, and Luigi Russolo, you may just have the slightest idea of where Gary Lloyd Noland is going. And that’s practically everywhere.
Even the song titles themselves will make you sit up and take notice: “Murder Hornet Lullaby”, “Vaginavenger Vortex”, “Elevator Mucus”, “Only Drooly Grubbles” and “Larcabounger Zizz”, being just a selected few. That being said, Gary Lloyd Noland’s endearing eccentricities only really seem far more subversive to those stuck in the conventions of the mainstream jungle.
Warped Musical Sensibilities
Though Noland’s appeal comes from his warped musical sensibilities; most of the melodies and core structures contained within the album are fairly accessible, reflecting an alluring fondness for classical music. It’s just that his arrangements are far more unusual and idiosyncratic than your normal or garden variety of music. The infusion of Noland’s avant-garde sensibility and experimental spirit makes for a fascinating combination, and very much is, what sets him apart everyone else. And I mean, EVERYONE else.
This album is literally packed with ideas and sounds, as Gary Lloyd Noland ventures into a different avenue with every track. The instrumentals have distinctive identities, and they’re extremely palatable in even in their most unusual forms. In 2021, you will definitely find fewer challenging albums, and maybe even more challenging albums, but you will never find anything quite like “State-of-the-Art Ear Exercises for Musical Cognoscenti Op. 119” anywhere else on this planet…maybe even in the entire universe for that matter!
—TUNEDLOUD!
WAYWARD AFFECTS & AFFLICTIONS
$17.00
The PIMPLETON PROCRASTURBATION ENSEMBLE performs WAYWARD effects & AFFLICTIONS Op. 120 by GARY LLOYD NOLAND
Fever DREAMS Op. 118,
an Unequivocal Crustbucket List of Smexy and Sophistocratic Quarantunes for Perspicacious Connoisseurmudgeons, Trans melancholiac Insomniacs, Necromantic Misanthropes, Compulsive Transgress mists, and other Categorical Certifiable from the Psycho-Experimental Ward of Herr Doctor Noland’s Avantgarde-Boiled Cynic Clinic
“Gary Noland is one of those 21st Century composers seeking to forge a new aesthetic based on older models that do not traffic in serialism or minimalism. These dry, playful pieces pay homage to classical forms from various periods while gently satirizing them. Zany waltzes, ragtime riffs, chorales, toccatas, and much else romp and tear through these depictions of superheroes and villains from his ‘chamber novels’; other pieces spoof serial music (‘Ventured, nothing gained’) to grand operas (‘Meditative’) and Jewish guilt (‘Spikes’). The irreverent program closes with two serious, impressive, endlessly modulating memorials: one to George Rothberg, an allusive homage to an important neo-romantic who was himself a master of allusion; another to Jon Sutton, an artist Noland feels was wrongfully neglected by a corporate culture that promotes dreck and mediocrity, making it ‘possible to have a Brahms or Schubert next door and not even realize it. This is a culture that ‘confers towering soapboxes to impostors of all persuasions, all too often to the exclusion of first-rate minds who are less savvy about how to work the system to their advantage’.
North Pacific Music
Smaller labels like North Pacific Music represent a new way of working that system, a small means of saving what Noland regards as ‘an endangered (and fast becoming extinct) high culture’. I could do without the ugly cover art, but the piano sound is extremely vivid—and Noland plays his work with wit and conviction.”
—Jack Sullivan, American Record Guide, July/August 2007
“Yesterday, the first day of the year [2004], I opened your CD package—and could hardly believe my ears when I listened to your Venge Art and 24 Postludes for Piano, Op. 72—how magnificent!! I will include most [of] your works in our local shows, especially in the Art Block program Sound Sculpture—a program for visual and sonic art.… I listen to all arriving music and [respond] seldom as excited as I did to your music.… Have a terrific 2004. You made mine with your inspiring music, talent, and creativity. Thank you.”
—Brita Heisman, Executive Producer, KAZU Local Programming, Pacific Grove, CA.
Royal Oil works Music
January 2006: “Royal Oil works Music” (electro-acoustic). Duration: ca. 75 minutes. Includes: “Prelude in E Minor” (Op. 34), “Serial Lullaby” (Op. 80, No. 1), “Spray Taint” (Op. 80, No. 2), “Dog Duo” (Op. 66), “Rag bones” (Op. 11), “Grey Malignant Banks” (Op. 80, No. 3) “My Babe’s Gone Down to Do Her Glue” (Op. 80, No. 4), “Royal Oil works Music” (Op. 80, No. 5) “Prelude & Zoo trot” (Op. 22), “Something Rotten” (Op. 80, No. 6) “Music is Dead” (Op. 53), “Treadmill” (Op. 37), “Deformed Fugue” (Op. 17), “Insurrection of the Office Slaves” (Op. 80, No. 7), “Psycho-Bacchanal” (Op. 80, No. 8). www.NorthPacificMusic.com (NPM LD 024). music CDs original compositions Beaverton Portland Lake Oswego
“We recently received a CD [Royal Oil works Music] of Gary Noland’s here at WOBC. I must say that upon previewing some of the tracks and reading the program notes that all of us have never laughed so hard in our lives. We usually don’t play music as arrogant and docile as Gary’s but the ironic-postmodern-naive-pretension that this CD showed made me reconsider. I would like to get in touch with M. Noland and arrange a telephone interview for one of our classical radio shows.”
… his attitude is not subtly disestablishmentarian, and you’d better enjoy it.… Some of the sounds are amusing, but the music is sort of deliberately annoying, both in sonority and in the mood—deliberately uninspired, almost to the point of inspiration. From Bach to rags to whatever, Noland seems determined to annoy as many people as he can, in an amusing way. He is an angry guy but witty.
If the idea of deliberate lack of originality purveyed in an atmosphere of political incorrectness appeals to you, here, in no uncertain terms, it is. Titles such as ‘Spray Taint’, ‘Dog Duo’, and ‘Insurrection of the Office Slaves’ give the mood, while the title tune [‘Royal Oil works Music’] is the real purpose of the Bush administration, as explained in the notes.…”
—David Moore, American Record Guide
Seriously Odd Classical Tongue in Check Electro-Acoustic
“Seriously odd classical… Tongue-in-cheek electro-acoustic combines baroque harpsichord and cheesy electronic sounds. Funny like Satie is funny – zany and irreverent. Lots of serialism … but the bizarre collage of styles and periods is brilliant. Oh, it’s also like PDQ Bach/Peter Schickele in some ways. Absurd liner notes! Baroque-sounding … Serialist electro-acoustic … very refreshing, given how “ivory tower” this type of music often is. Cheesy synths, electronic percussion, and trumpets … up tempo and funky. Baroque harpsichord with pop and world music sounds going on in off-kilter, almost random rhythms. WTF? Very cool …Waa Waa synth, fugue-like … Zany … Cecil Taylor piano over drum machine breakbeats … Close to Dual (Ed Chang and Doug Theriault – crazy dense guitar and laptop processing), with national anthem-like moments?? And bird song?? Zany … Slow serialist/romantic … prelude to baroque trills to Richian/rag arpeggios to a Chopin breakdown to a jazz ending. Phew. This rocks … Bogy woozy synth with jazz percussion and serialist randomness. Lots of noodling, er, electronic wanking? Upbeat … Staccato baroque fugue on electronic choral sounds and pipe organ sounds … funny … Rhythmically interesting … Fugue for harpsichord … Some free jazz freak-outs … Great title for this … Squeaky sounds with sax and choral synthesizer—like if you played the Handel theme from the film A Clockwork Orange, Sonny Rollins, Tchaikovsky, and, well, a psychotic serialist all at once.”
—KZSU FM90.3, Stanford, CA
“A look at the head-note will alert you to Gary Noland’s very personal way with words. Not for Noland the lures either of Olympian detachment or lower case “significance.” No, Noland is full-on and takes few linguistic prisoners. Similarly with the booklet artwork, Noland’s own, which is an example of crazed Robert Crumb à Africanize. And his music is much the same, Deformed Fugue, his 1977 piece for harpsichord summoning up pretty nicely his compositional stance. This is an elixir brewed of Couperin and Rameau, Scott Joplin, Bach, free funk, free Jazz (Cecil Taylor?), the Fugue, and an unholy alliance of straight sounding neo-classicism and its subsequent assault by the forces of percussive militancy.
Noland may be a romantic but doesn’t want you to know.
His Prelude is baroque-convincing though attended by some sour-is off notes he follows it with Serial Lullaby, a synthesizer-rich free funk piece that mocks its title. Spray Taint gives us assaulted baroque, the percussion blizzards full of jazz offbeat and whoop-bang noises (plus telephone rings and disco inferno). He subjects Ragtime to the same souring procedures as he does to his off-note harpsichord baroque and evokes a drugs fix (in My Babe’s Gone Down to Do Her Glue) with some haywire free form. He writes an American fanfare for the title track and subjects it to anti-Bush assault by bird song and drum blister.
Quixiotic Sense
His quixotic sense extends to opus numbers – the bowels of Op. 80 are scattered throughout the disc, and to instrumentation as well. I assume he makes all the noises, both pianistic and harpsichord synthesized and vocalized. He’s a veritable one-man band of off-kilter influences, the procedural repetition of which sometimes got me seriously down, though I did like his Swingle Sisters take-off on Music is Dead: A Paradox in Fugue.”
—Jonathan Woolf, Music Web International
24 Postludes for piano, Vol. 1
August 2004: “Twenty-Four Postludes for Piano” Vol. 1 (Op. 72, Nos. 1–12), performed by Gary Noland. Duration: 72 minutes. North Pacific Music (PO BOX 82627, Portland, Oregon 97282-0627, USA, tel/fax: 1-800-757-7384, www.NorthPacificMusic.com (NPM LD 018). music CDs original compositions Beaverton Lake Oswego
REVIEWS/ENCOMIUMS
“As usual I have been fiendishly busy and during my last absence, our humidification system went bonkers, depositing condensation and mold all over the place so now I am trying to deal with that on top of my overload. Nonetheless, I have put on the postludes whenever I’ve been at the computer and found them up to your usual iconoclastic, stylistic potpourri standards of giddy humor, no holds barred soup to nuts and high spirits. They are balm to the grim state of mind in which I find myself.”
—Robert Levin, pianist (cadenza improviser extraordinaire), scholar, Professor of Music, Harvard University
“Many thanks for the CDs you sent me, which I have been listening to with great pleasure and fascination.… I am bowled over by the expertise of your music: you use certain elements from the 19th century and jazz, etc., and just at the moment when I am about to say, OK, what else is new? you do several things, such as speeding up, becoming wildly dissonant, modulating to a distant continent, stopping completely, and throwing some kind of total surprise. All of these things are possible, but you seem to know exactly when to do what and how much. I don’t know anybody else who can do it! And the brief electronic statements are spooky in the best and most extreme sense. They make my hair (what’s left of it) stand on end.…”
—Andrew Imbrue, composer, Pulitzer Prize finalist
“Mr. Noland’s Postludes are a collection of wild and crazy pieces for … piano. These are essentially parodying of various styles, set in a dizzying harmonic language that loops uncontrollably through a wide-ranging gamut of possible and impossible tonalities. He applies this procedure to the fugue, ragtime, German dances (Schubert), romantic waltzes (Richard Strauss seems to be a favorite), and virtuosic piano scherzos. There’s a Chinese polonaise, a whiff of pentatonic Debussy; and, like most composers after Berlioz, he can’t seem to keep his hands off the Dies Irae (though fortunately, the tongue is firmly in cheek). Both Peter Schickele and Conlon Nan arrow hover over the proceedings. I’d even throw in Mark Applebaum, another Californian … The opening fugue is dedicated to the late David Lewin, the prominent Harvard theorist. Lukas Foss gets a dedication, also (maybe his Baroque Variations had some sort of influence on Noland at some point).
The general effect is like watching wet paintings of 19th Century musical memorabilia drip into frazzled 21st Century oblivion. The comic-book grotesquerie that graces the jewel box pretty much says it all … these pieces are striking and entertaining … (Postlude 12, an interminable exercise in blues montage, is the most daunting.) The pieces all have funny titles … Mustaches on the Mona Lisa, but those can be interesting if you’re in the right frame of mind.”
—Allen Gimbel, American Record Guide
“Composer and pianist Gary Noland are into ‘ha-ha music’—that is, classical music played for laughs, a genre famously (or infamously, depending on your taste in humor) popularized by Peter Schickele, also known as P.D.Q. Bach. This collection of solo piano music, identified as postludes rather than the more traditional preludes designation, indicates that, despite occasionally forcing the musical jokes (and writing far too many tortured puns in his liner notes), Noland has both the writing and playing chops to compensate for his painful musical humor. Dedicated to the late music theorist David Lewin, ‘Philomathetique’ is a witty trope on the music of Richard Strauss, with characterful motives and abundant quick modulations. ‘Effete Singulations’ is a deft, splashy bit of ragtime, while ‘Pickthanks and Premediates’ is a light-hearted romp played at a dizzying tempo and ‘Psychonipptions’ (dedicated to composer Henry Martin) is a send-up of 20th Century French music. Overall, Postludes is a mixed bag, but when Noland focuses on playing the piano well rather than simply playing for laughs, his compelling artistry shines through.”
—Christian Carey, Splendid Magazine
“Gary—you continue to be one of the most original of the contributors to ‘The Classical Salon.’ And ‘Effete Singulations’ [Postlude #2] opens one of my ragtime shows.”
—David Rifkin, Host, “Classical Salon” and “The Ragtime Machine,” KUSF 90.3 FM, University of San Francisco.
24 Interludes for piano, Vol. 1
August 2004: “Twenty-Four Interludes for Piano” Vol. 1 (Op. 71, Nos. 1-12), performed by Gary Noland. Duration: 74 minutes. North Pacific Music (PO BOX 82627, Portland, Oregon 97282-0627, USA, tel/fax: 1-800-757-7384, www.NorthPacificMusic.com (NPM LD 019). music CDs original compositions Beaverton Lake Oswego
“… intriguing, irritating, … distinctive, inventive, … subversive, … [the music] is never what you expect. You hear all sorts of styles and influences—Beethoven, ragtime, Nan arrow, stride—often in very quick succession.… I had the strange feeling with many of these pieces [Interludes and Postludes] that, about halfway through, I had got fed up with them, but I was then sorry when they finished.… You can hardly be indifferent to Noland’s music and so I would urge you to try it. Despite my frequent irritation, I will certainly be returning to it and seeking out examples of Noland’s chamber works and multimedia compositions. Music aside, speaking as a cat-lover, I feel an instinctive sympathy with the composer depicted on the front cover of the Interludes fondly embracing his cat. Illogical? Well, yes; I think this music has got to me after all.”
—Roger Blackburn, Music Web International
“Gary Noland, a composer, and pianist with an impressive academic pedigree (including a Ph.D. from Harvard) and extensive performing experience, here presents an album of solo piano compositions, or ‘interludes.’ Actually, some of these pieces seem in no way transitory; instead, they present extended musical dialogues that call upon a host of musical styles and require the considerable technical facility to perform. Noland, a fleet-fingered, ebullient performer, is more than up to the task. Pastiche pieces like ‘Mumbo Gumbo’ and ‘Expresso Wagon’ evoke all manner of Romantic-era classical piano figurations; they gently lampoon some of the genre’s conventions, but always remain bright, witty, and engaging. ‘The Temptation of Saint Floyd’ also channels Romanticism, particularly the Strassman sort, demonstrating a more reflective demeanor and adding a dollop of schmaltz to the proceedings. ‘Push Button Fingers’ is prevailingly modern in construction, with syncopated rhythms and sprightly, angular runs creating a far more contemporary sound world. Noland’s work may be eclectic—sometimes even a bit goofy—but Interludes is cleverly constructed and consistently well performed.”
July 2002: “Gary Noland: Selected Music from VENGE ART.” Duration: 75 minutes. Cellist Hamilton Heifetz and pianist Victor Steinhardt playing “Fantasy in E Minor” for cello & piano (Op. 24), pianist Randall Hodgkinson playing “Humoresque” for piano (Op. 3) and the “Russell Street Rag” (Op. 5), Gary Noland performing three segments of “P*run*Music” (Op. 48), Violist Katherine Murdock and pianist Randall Hodgkinson playing “Romance” for viola & piano (Op. 10), a computer-driven Disklavier performance of “Grande Rag Brillante” (Op. 15), The Onyx String Quartet playing “American Bozo Dance” (Op. 32, No. 8), and Guy Tyler conducting “Septet” (Op. 43) with clarinetist Carol Robe, alto saxophonist Tom Bergeron, French hornist Ellen Campbell, violinists Tawana Nagahara and Anthony Dyer, double-bassist Forrest Moyer, and pianist Art Maddox. Released by North Pacific Music (PO BOX 82627, Portland, Oregon 97282-0627, USA, tel/fax: 1-800-757-7384, www.NorthPacificMusic.com (NPM LD 012). music CDs original compositions Beaverton Lake Oswego
“Mr. Noland writes as a ‘time traveler’ in styles long abandoned by most composers as well as styles so new as to not have been imagined but by him. This he accomplishes naturally, convincingly, with originality and true passion. His command of all musical languages and his ability to traverse musical time is nothing less than remarkable. Listen!”
—Donald Martino, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer
“Composer Gary Noland is possessed of a rich musical imagination, whose technique distills the achievements of Roger, Strauss, and Schoenberg but also refracts their post-romantic/expressionist tendencies through the lens of twenty-first-century post-modernism, American style. Moreover, he fits Stravinsky’s definition of a great composer: one who doesn’t merely steal but knows what to steal. This Noland does with wit and aplomb unique to the music of our time.”
—Ira Braes, pianist, musicologist, Professor of Music, The Hart School
“Gary Noland’s Venge Art is more than just a collection of music.…inspiring. He walks with assurance through the treacherous landscape of late tonality and early post-tonality (e.g., Strauss).…a gifted composer.”
May 2000: “Player less Pianos: Virtual Music for Pianos Virtual and Otherwise.” Seventh Species Composers Series Debut Recording, Limited Collector’s Edition (NPM LCE 007—North Pacific Music). A compilation recording of works by various composers. Includes Gary Noland’s “Grande Rag Brillante” (Op. 15), which was recorded on August 19, 1998, on a Disklavier at SPARK Studios in Emeryville. music CDs original compositions Beaverton Portland Lake Oswego
Original Compositions by Gary Noland music CDs
1996: “Passion.” A compilation recording of works by composers Gary Noland, George Rothberg, Georges Enescu, Greg Steinke, and Jackie T. Gabel performed by violist Rozanne Weinberger and pianist Evelyne Lust. Includes Noland’s “Romance” for viola & piano (Op. 10). (NPM LD 003—North Pacific Music). Recorded September 1994 at MET Studio Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana. In Schwann Catalog. music CDs original compositions Beaverton Portland Lake Oswego
Be sure and listen to performances of Gary Noland’s music on this website under “videos,” “more videos,” etc.
All CDs are available for purchase from www.northpacificmusic.com music CDs original compositions Beaverton Portland Lake Oswego
The End
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Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
Welcome to the world according to Cosmos. I am your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller, aka Cosmos. I have been blogging for about 10 years since I retired from the US Foreign Service back in 2016. During my service, I worked in 10 countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts, St. Lucia, St Vincent, South Korea, India, Spain) and DC, and visited 45 countries. I have been to all States, DC and PR. I have been living in South Korea with an annual visit to the States -Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, DC since then. I have lived in five different cities in the U.S. -Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and DC,
The purpose of this blog is to provide a place for me to show my fiction, poetry, and political rants. I have decided, though to forgo any hot political topics for now as I don’t want to get into trouble with the man or invite cyber bullying, which unfortunately is happening all too often in the blogosphere.
Politically, I lean left but distrust hard-core ideologues on the left and on the right. I am a never trumper democrat, and a Bernie bro, and a big supporter of the LGBTQ community as I have LGBTQ and trans friends. Religion-wise, I am an agnostic sort of a new age neo Buddhist or dudist. My favorite movie is “The Big Lebrowski”. I am a big K-drama fiend. I am a big blues and funk fanatic. My favorite band is Tower of Power. My poetry is outlaw poetry style, neo-beatnik flavor. My fiction tends to be sci-fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a political family. My father taught at Cal State SF. I have 18 nationalities swirling in my family background. From my father, I am part Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. From my mother, English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother was from the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation -descended from indians who ran away into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears, I may also be part Chowtah, Creek, and Seminole Indian as the lost tribe members intermarried with other fleeing Indians, white settlers, and escaped slaves. The DNA test only shows native ancestry, not broken down by tribe.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name, Cosmos. The name Cosmos came about because my great-grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name aller to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked up Aller and found Cosmos or Universe. I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with me being born in Berkeley, although no one believes that, as the name is so “Berkeley”. Universe would have been even more of a Berkeley vibe, I think.
I appreciate my readers and any comments you may have. Please keep your comments civil. It is important that we all get along and remember that, despite our differences, we are all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not my enemy.
Thank you, and please enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry.
Jake Cosmos Aller aka Cosmos
About This Blog Poems and Rants from the Cosmos
Welcome to The World According to Cosmos. I’m your host, John (Jake) Cosmos Aller — better known simply as Cosmos. I’ve been blogging for about ten years, ever since I retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2016. During my career, I served in ten countries (Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, South Korea, India, and Spain) as well as Washington, D.C., and I’ve visited forty‑five countries. I’ve also traveled to every U.S. state, plus D.C. and Puerto Rico.
Since retiring, I’ve been living in South Korea, with annual visits back to the States — usually Oregon, Northern California, and Washington, D.C. Over the years, I’ve lived in five U.S. cities: Berkeley, Stockton, Seattle, Alexandria, and Washington, D.C.
This blog is my space to share fiction, poetry, and the occasional political rant. For now, I’m steering clear of the hottest political topics. I have no desire to attract trouble from the powers that be or to invite cyberbullying, which has become far too common in the online world.
Politically, I lean left, but I distrust hard‑core ideologues on both sides. I’m a Never‑Trumper Democrat, a Bernie Bro, and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community — many of my friends are LGBTQ or trans. Spiritually, I’m an agnostic with a New Age, neo‑Buddhist, “Dudist” streak. My favorite movie is The Big Lebowski. I’m a devoted K‑drama fan, a blues and funk enthusiast, and a lifelong admirer of Tower of Power. My poetry leans toward outlaw and neo‑Beatnik styles, while my fiction tends to be sci‑fi political thrillers.
I grew up in Berkeley in a very political family. My father taught at Cal State San Francisco. My ancestry is a swirl of eighteen nationalities. On my father’s side: Basque, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Jewish, Laplander, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, and Ukrainian. On my mother’s side: English, Cherokee, Irish, Italian, Nigerian, Scottish, and Welsh. Because my mother descended from the “lost tribe” of the Cherokee Nation — families who fled into the Ozarks to avoid the Trail of Tears — I may also have Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole ancestry. DNA tests only show Native ancestry, not tribal breakdowns.
My pen name, Cosmos, comes from my middle name. My great‑grandfather wanted an English translation of our German family name, Aller, to use as a middle name for his son, my grandfather. He looked it up and found “Cosmos” or “Universe.” I am the third and last Cosmos Aller. The name has nothing to do with being born in Berkeley, though no one ever believes that — it sounds so quintessentially “Berkeley.” Honestly, “Universe” would have been even more so.
I appreciate every reader who stops by. Comments are welcome — just keep them civil. Despite our differences, we’re all God’s children. I am not your enemy, and you are not mine.
Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy my fiction, musings, rants, and poetry. — Jake Cosmos Aller (aka Cosmos)
David Mason is an old friend of mine. He first came to Korea in the early ’80s as did I. He went to the Yonsei Korean language program, got his MA there, and has made a career of teaching and writing about all things Korea. He has numerous books on his site on Korean shamanism (he is one of the experts) and Buddhism.
Everything on this website is under my Copyright
2001-2021, except as-indicated. Please do not
use anything from it in any way without written
permission from the author via Email.
At the San-shin-gak of Biseul-san
Nam-jijang-sa Temple south of
Daegu City, Autumn 1999. Photo
by my old friend Kwon Soon-il.
Seondo Korean Daoism — the International Institute for Sundo
Taoist Cultural Research, led by Master Kim Hyeong-mun.
AKA Kuksundo [Guk-seondo] Daoist practices — very interesting stuff.
See my listing of Korea’s 40 most sacred places on
Martin Gray’s excellent Sacred Sites of the World
website, on this page about Korea.
For plenty of information on and beautiful photos of the
world’s holy pilgrimage destinations, get his excellent
book: Sacred Earth: Places of Peace and Power.
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and improvement of this free website —
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“Snarling Cup of Coffee” on the Journal of Expressive Writing’s first global poetry reading zoom session, starting at 7 pm on September 8th EST.
