PODCAST

: lower black pain.

Jd Michaels - The CabsEverywhere Creative Production House

Life’s lemons into rich, dark chocolate. lowerblackpain.substack.com

society & culture performing arts

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4:34

From Great Grandpa.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/04/10

Ok, the world is nuts.I never really write about how crazy the world is because I’m always writing to The Future. I don’t want to be too time-specific in order to be relatable to my great grandchildren, who will read aloud my quips and jibes in their blue reflective jumpsuits, marveling at the simplicity of the writing (“…perhaps Great-Grandpa took a sharp blow to the head as a child?”) and the universal themes which somehow still ring true to them, even though I lived so long ago and never had even

3:35

Sesquicenntennialish.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/04/03

In 1976, my family celebrated America’s bi-centennial with red, white and blue Jell-o™ parfaits that used Cool Whip™ for the white part. These fancy desserts represented the United States of America. I knew from the flag that the white represented the states, and because my mother was a teacher, that the red was courage and the blue was justice.The ad with this recipe had been printed in nearly every magazine as patriotic inspiration.Those currently prone to over-analyzation might make gentle fun,

3:54

Chances Are.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/03/27

This was the first year I forgot to wear green on St. Patrick’s Day. I knew what day it was, and I did have a clean green shirt in the closet, but I rocketed through the house getting ready in the morning and it just didn’t register. Hours later, I’m sitting in a meeting and realize what’s happened. There wasn’t even green on my socks… I had the blue ones with the little clouds on.I’m not Irish. My grandmother-in-law was, but I don’t think that’s really close enough to claim any kind of identity

5:38

with the blast shield down i can't even see

: lower black pain. ·

2025/03/20

I was going to write a poem, but quickly learned that nothing rhymes with the word “avoiding”. The line I was trying to rhyme with was “…all the news that i’m avoiding”Often I begin writing poems in the middle, and then branch outwards, like a pre-school child distributing a glob of finger paint on a large sheet of construction paper. This line was my glob of paint, and would not properly spread without a rhyme to match it somewhere. The closest I came was the non-word “reccognoiting”, which was

7:24

Contented.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/03/13

During this time of year, I always try to learn something new. This year I have once again approached my guitar, dedicating myself to learn one scale well enough to be able to play Frank Zappa inspired solos atop lydian chord progressions. It’s going well.I made an apple crumble from scratch yesterday morning before I left for the office. That worked out.I am still attempting a chin-up and pull-up regimen, though my recent bout of both COVID and Flu A (combined) made that goal much more challenging:

6:27

Choose Your Own Adventure. NOW.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/03/06

When I was 13 years old, I wanted everyone to call me “Han”. And to speak fluent Latin. Just admitting that up front as research material that’ll be helpful in a few minutes. Also, I knew I wanted to make music, but my favorite album was a toss up between the Star Wars Original Soundtrack and Barry Manilow: LIVE. And then… disco.Ok.The local Board of Education just wrote us an email asking our opinion of their high school selection process.We had opinions, and suggestions, and even the lightest of

7:06

Whatdyaknow?

: lower black pain. ·

2025/02/27

Dark physics are occurring in our spice cabinet.My research has been extensive and the results undeniable; when opening the cabinet, none of the labels, on ANY of our spices, EVER point FORWARD.A simple need for marjoram immediately necessitates a complex fingertip ballet, where jar after jar is delicately turned around to view its label, which covers about half its surface, but never the half facing me.And yes, I heard you:“It’s the way that you put them back in the cabinet!” you said. “You must be

6:23

The Treachery of Images.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/02/20

Subways are concrete tunnels containing smaller concrete tunnels, with the only sound absorption provided by the organic objects which move through them (on two legs or four). Thus the full-throated voice of a child careens about the place, bouncing off everything, naturally amplified to a level matching the screech of a mythical banshee.Of course we all look around to make sure there isn’t some emergency, which thankfully is rarely the case… just another toddler losing their mind over a dire life

5:49

Custom Packaging.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/02/13

My mother would find “her shade” of stockings by holding a large plastic egg shaped container upside down to see the color swatch printed on the bottom of the paper sleeve it was in. They all looked brown to me, just various browns, like the multi-tone color cards in the paint section.She would hold the container next to the back of her other hand and kind of tilt her head to the left and narrow her eyes a little. I realized that they were supposed to match somehow, like her makeup did, but I wasn’t

7:14

One To Grow On.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/02/06

During the Pandemic I had the opportunity to work with a group of black artists to produce an event during February, which naturally became associated with Black History Month. But since the event’s content focused on science fiction, it was decided we would celebrate Black Future Month instead, telling stories that focused on what might be rather than what had been.This appealed to all the artists, but not all of the organizers, who were confused at what they considered a wasted opportunity for us

6:18

Surprise.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/01/30

My body is way fancier than me.It simply HAS to have the latest flu, while it’s still pret-a-porter, before those knockoff hags get their greedy little paws on it and shovel it everywhere. But I’m not a heartless Cruella DeVille about it, I share it freely with my family. Why, just last weekend we were all in the car for a Saturday drive, zombielike and gently wheezing, simply dizzy with designer disease. How jealous the people passing us looked in the grocery store parking lot, with their clear

6:10

Quadrennial.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/01/23

I bought another chin-up bar. The category is actually listed as “pull up bars” now, I guess you don’t have to make it all the way up with your chin. Maybe that’s too much pressure, like calling push-ups “full body straight arms” or sit-ups “nose touching knees”. It’s still a valid sit-up even if you aren’t sitting ALL THE WAY up, though mine are kind of “lean-ups” now, when I try to do them.( Ahem. I apologize. Give me just a second. I’m just a wee bit… distracted.)Observant viewers may have

2:49

Go.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/01/16

For all that we’re about to see I’m ready as I’ll ever be.I don’t know if I’m really brave but I can face the facts(if we’re still doing that)I persevere and think I’ve learned to subjugate my fearsomewhatI’ve tried to save a little here and there just for emergencies andkept in shape or, in a shape – I walk enough to fill the red ring on my watch most days if not the green oneI can recognize the super blatant crazy lies but who can say what’s really wha beyond that with AI and allI call my Momcheck

6:55

Steady.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/01/09

They didn’t teach my daughter about irregular verbs in school. Neither did she gain significant instruction regarding irregular nouns. When we noticed her speaking of childs, tooths, and mouses we began to gently correct her, which always led to the entirely understandable question of “Why is it like that?”, to which we had no better reply than, “I don’t know.” When we mentioned this educational deficit at the next parent-teacher conference, we were told directly that yes, irregular parts of speech

5:17

Ready.

: lower black pain. ·

2025/01/02

Our former neighbors held a wonderful housewarming party at their new home on New Year’s Day. At this party was our host’s 7 year old niece, who sat very quietly playing a game with her brother in the bedroom until very near the party’s end, when the Chappell Roan album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” began playing from the bluetooth speaker.Now when I was seven I was a bit of a ham. Hard to imagine, I’m sure, if you know me, but I had a pretty impressive Ed Sullivan imitation… swinging

3:23

Neanderthals and Astronauts.

: lower black pain. ·

2024/12/26

End of the calendar year and I realize thatwe look forward and backward a lot as human beings.what was the best music this year when is that movie coming outwhen did these pants last fit how long will these shoes lastdidn’t I used to and how are we ever going to be able toAround this time, we become, each one of us historians, yet futuristsclassical archeologists and inventor engineersBut what is the term for being now? What's the term for being when we are?In the middle of

5:13

For Goodness Sake.

: lower black pain. ·

2024/12/19

Many apartments in New York City don’t have shades, curtains, or blinds on their windows, particularly above the third floor.My mother believes that this is a sign of mass insanity.“People can see right into their house!” she’ll say.“No one’s looking into their house, Mom.”“But if they wanted to they could! Don’t they care about their privacy?’‘I don’t think they think anybody cares about them enough to spy on them with binoculars from a highway at night going 65 miles per hour. I’d be more

7:02

Christmas. Trains.

: lower black pain. ·

2024/12/12

When I picture a Christmas tree with toys underneath it, I always see a doll, a teddy bear, a ball, and a toy train. Sometimes the train is wooden, hand carved, painted with primary colors. Sometimes it’s a little electric one going around on a track that encircles the base of the tree. Can you see it? It’s traditional, classic… yet that universal scene has never happened for me, because we have cats.They are, the three of them, wonderful all year round, but their naturally curious nature and

2:09

Perfect Gifts.

: lower black pain. ·

2024/12/05

my daughter tried to throw awaymy Hot Wheels™ track the other daybecause she didn’t understandthe joy of seeing a little car landso far from where it used to bethrough wobbly ramps and gravitymy wife is under the impressionthat ‘cause I’m past 57I don’t need a Lite Brite™ nowbecause she hasn’t experienced howthe thrill of pushpin pointillismfulls the heart with wonder. It’s ananalog art-form that occuredbefore I knew what pixels wereOf yo-yos I’ve quite the selectionhalf a century of collectionstill

5:57

History.

: lower black pain. ·

2024/11/28

This time of year used to be a bit more challenging, if you think about it. Family and friends getting together used to be an annual chance to catch up, hear stories, look at pictures, silently judge and relentlessly compare while eating our feelings and perhaps a few of theirs.“What’s happened” or as we used to call it “History” is now a constant flow of unsolicited communication through smartphones. Yes, I did see your new puppy, he’s darling. Your vacation was such an adventure! We saw that

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