A Facebook tag takes me back to a newspaper office in 1979

I recognized the face immediately when it popped up on my Facebook page, a mom smiling between her two daughters. We’ve been friends on social media for … well, since the advent of people telling journalists that social media just might be a good way to prop up the work life. Oh, say, a decade…

Free Advice — Damn copycat or thanks for the flattery!

Free Advice is a periodic feature in which I answer letters sent to me at markbialczak@gmail.com. This question comes directly from BloggyVille, and it has the blog’s name attached. In fact, the question hits close to home because it’s about somebody stealing swiping borrowing copying recently starting a format that greatly resonates with a fellow…

The Doc makes house calls

In 1986 Doc’s visits came via TV April innings snuck sparingly during work nights May Saturday games yelled at in smoky Syracuse bars June July August hoping this 21-year-old Dwight remained good and true Third year in the bigs with my Mets on a real roll Thunder and lightning fastball Lord Charles curve Opposing batters,…

Happy Looney June from Syracuse

Happy June 1, world. Ready for anything, are you, in this month meant for warm thoughts and summer play (up here in the northern hemisphere, anyway)? Well, my friend Paul over at The Captain’s Speech was not content leaving it remain merely any old June. No, Paul, this Canadian fellow who lives even a bit…

Our little cherry tree now has a name

The results are in. You voted with your feet. Well, no you didn’t. It wasn’t the kind of poll where you actually have to drive there and pull down the lever and hang a chad or anything like that. No, a week ago I decided to ask the world with a poll what my dear…

Political Surprises

If We Were Having Coffee Your Barista – Paul Welcome to Willow’s weekly coffee and tea garden. My name is Paul, I’ll be your barista today and I’m happy to be here once again. This week Willow is unable to access her Internet so we’ll be meeting here at Mark Bialczak’s Little Bitty in Syracuse,…

Throwback: Fake cover for imaginary album by faux band. Really!

Back in the late 1970s, our two bedroom, one-bath apartment in Adelphi, Md., was always rocking. Yes, Twenty, Aggo and I were eyebrows deep into two years of hard university time within those walls in the cockroach-inhabitated complex we used to lovingly call Residential Plaza, dropping their officious P from the first name because that…