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Here are those old clips I mentioned, that the Vineyard Gazette sent me.

First up is an article I had written about a band in high school, Slow Leslie. Looking back, it’s not such a terrible article from a 17-year-old. I’ve definitely written worse.

Next is a piece about an antique car show that was going on at the time. I believe it still happens annually. I haven’t read this one again since I got the clip, so I have no idea if it’s good or bad (maybe you guys can tell me, huh?).

And finally, at least for now, an article about the high school’s yearly “Hell Week” football camp to get the kids in shape after a summer of laziness. I remember being upset at the time that the lede was changed so heavily – the one the news editor put in there seems so bland to me, but I’ll admit I’m biased. I don’t even remember what the original said at all, but I’d like to think of it as some great injustice anyway.

As usual, enjoy and let me know your thoughs. Keep in mind that these are from seven years ago, so cut me a break if they’re not perfect.

In honor of Valentine’s Day (I know, I guess I should have thought of posting this yesterday), I thought I’d throw up this essay I wrote for the New York Times last year for a contest for their Modern Love column in the Style section. No, I don’t read the Style section, but my friend Ben’s mother told me about it and thought it was worth a shot. It was never published, but I really liked the way it came out. Feedback is always welcome.

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I was perusing the Lexis-Nexis database (I have access through UMass) the other day and because I’m a vain, egotistical, petty man, the first thing I searched for was myself and found the sports article I wrote for The Boston Globe. I was thinking tonight while driving the bus that I can use this blog as sort of a platform for my work, past and present, and I’ll post old articles I’ve written as I come across them, and eventually set up a separate portfolio section. It’ll come in handy when I start applying for jobs to have an easily-accessible archive of my work.

Anyway, I exported this particular article in PDF format, so I’ll just link it here instead of copy/pasting it. Keep in mind it’s from 6 years ago, when I was 18, and it’s the only sports article I’ve ever written. I didn’t expect the first article I’d write for a major newspaper would be a sports article, but hey, it’s still a proud accomplishment.

Enjoy.

In other news, I had to get a shot of cortisone directly into the bottom of my foot. I have a (fairly common) tissue buildup along a ligament that runs the length of the foot, and this should break it up. Despite the freezey shit the doctor sprayed on, when he jammed that needle in, it was the most excrutiating pain of my life. The best part is, I have to get 3-5 more shots, once a week for the next 3-5 weeks. Oh, and I have to have oral surgery to remedy an issue going on in that area, too. The doctor assured me that a biopsy is just standard procedure but he’s 99.9% sure it’s not an issue. Fun shit.