I really have no idea how I got to SteemIt. I remember hearing about it around the time it launched (as I try to keep up, you know what I mean?). But why I decided today to try and wheedle my way in, I really don't know. There was probably something from somewhere I trusted in my inbox, with a link that I also trusted, and I clicked on it. That's how adventure starts sometimes.

I've got a blog on WordPress, and I mirror some of that at Medium.com. But I have to admit, the idea of $$$ from SteemIt seemed a shot worth taking, whether or not it's crypto $$$.

Bad Moon Rising

Some mentor or teacher at some point must have suggested to write what I know — advice that every writer has probably heard many times. So I follow my heart. With a shooter in Las Vegas and a hurricane in Puerto Rico, my heart is hurting more than a little right now. So I'll just mention a few of the things that interest me.

Well, everything interests me. Some of the more obvious subjects are reflected in my previous blog posts and you can expect to see them turn up here:

• Medicine: What I Most Recently Want to Believe: Electrodermal Testing
• World events: International Aid and the Business of Rape in Congo
• Science: Using the Shroud of Turin as a 3D Map
• Politics: Frank Miniter's Futile Attempt to Defend Trump Jr.'s Trophy Hunting

Sources Serious and Not So Much

My personal politics leans to the left. I admire the courage (and overall appearance...I mean, come on!) of Abby Martin and her Empire Falls YouTube channel; her recent interview with Peter Joseph blew me away (and pretty much unmasks my leftist tendencies). Speaking of Las Vegas, Robert Parry at Consortium News painted the 2nd Amendment with rare realism, and CounterPunch didn't hesitate to discuss the NRA's role in the mess.

As the heart can take only so much tragedy, I'll gladly allow goofiness such as that offered by Bad Lip Reading to tick away a few minutes of this precious life. I've also found time to write a few books, which sell weirdly — nothing for months and then someone (or something) will buy 30 or 40 copies at a time.

That's it for today, fellow Steemians. Glad to be among you and look forward to mucking around here, not causing too much trouble but hopefully inspiring, angering, or validating you to an acceptable degree. Thanks for having me.