Wednesday, January 7, 2026

When will we all agree that enough is enough?

 

                                   R.I.P. Renee Nicole Good


RT @TheJFreakinC on X/Twitter 


ICE/Border Patrol agents have shot a woman, who was a legal observer, in the face and killed her in a Minneapolis neighborhood. Details are still emerging, and the exact circumstances have not yet been officially confirmed. 

 According to video from the scene, a man heard gunshots and ran outside. The wife of the victim, who was in the car, is sitting on the ground nearby with a dog, visibly distressed. In the video, she is heard saying they had stopped to film, she yelled something, and moments later agents fired, fatally shooting the woman. 

What happens next is even more alarming. 

A man identifying himself as a physician attempts to approach the scene to provide medical assistance. He repeatedly tells agents that someone medically trained needs to intervene, that the victim is bleeding, and that a doctor is required to assess or pronounce death. Instead of allowing aid, agents point guns at him, threaten him, and force him to back away… leaving the woman shot inside the car without assistance. 

Eventually, medics arrive and remove the woman from the vehicle. 

This is an active, developing situation. More verified information is needed, but the video raises serious and urgent questions about use of force, denial of medical aid, and accountability.

A link to the video for those who care to watch the horror:





All The World's A Stage πŸ‘‚

 


Wide Spreading Ripples



 

 


The sitting POTUS defended what that murderer did today while he’s taking over another country for their oil while he’s directing his own personal DOJ to slow walk the Epstein files. This is not normal. This is not acceptable. THIS IS NOT A DRILL


 


CRY ME A RIVER 


The death of a young provocateur

 

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Monday, December 1, 2025

My Year In Reading - Books Consumed in 2025



  








Here they are for your visual perusal - the books that made it on to my 2025 reading list. If you care to read my thoughts about them, stop by my page on Goodreads. Prefer to listen to what I had to say? Then head over to my booktube channel - Roy's Book Reviews. Maybe even subscribe, which would fill me with such joy. Simply want to know what they are? Scroll down the page of this blog post where you'll find them presented in no particular order. Tasked by Shepherd.com with the pleasant mission of selecting a Top 3, I settled on The Song of Achilles (Madeline Miller), Small Mercies (Dennis Lehane), and The Vanishing Half (Brit Bennet). The narrowing down process wasn't easy since I read several excellent novels in 2025. Olive Kitteridge and A Visit from the Goon Squad both won the Pulitzer Prize for good reason, The Changeling had me hooked from page one; The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store is wonderful storytelling; The Night Circus is a master class in descriptively establishing a sense of fantastical place; Dan Brown made us wait a minute before putting out his latest addictive gem; and Zone One is another gift from one of my favorite authors - Colson Whitehead. 

*****











And to wrap up my year in reading, I finished this excellent book in between Christmas and New Year's Eve. I've since moved on to What is the What by Dave Eggers.




Oh, by the way, along with reading a number of books I also finished writing one (my third novel) in 2025. I read it as well in the editing process as I've tweaked it in follow-up drafts, so technically that's one more novel read this year. Stay tuned here and beyond for more news about the upcoming publication of SECOND SHOT.



 







Another thing I managed to squeeze in before switching to a new calendar is recording and posting my latest children's book reading at Roy's Book Reviews.


   







@mudhousebooks πŸ“š #booktok ♬ I Walk This Earth All By Myself - Ekkstacy
@mudhousebooks How was your year in reading? How much are you looking forward to your 2026 reads? πŸ“š #booktok ♬ Jazz Instrumental - Marco Antonio
@mudhousebooks Patches of Grey - a novel by Roy L. Pickering Jr. Available in print and kindle editions at Amazon. #booktok #stockingstuffer ♬ Gray - Ari Bose
@mudhousebooks

Matters of Convenience by Roy L. Pickering Jr. (sold at Amazon)

♬ original sound - little4love
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Friday, October 17, 2025

Some Stuff I made




I keep finding stuff to make. From the laborious - like writing a novel. To the mindless - like using Grok's AI tech to animate a bunch of pictures. I highly recommend that you do some making of your own. The stuff you can generate with a few pushes and swipes on your phone is increasingly impressive, but that which comes from artistic minds will forever be the gold standard. So, if you think you have it in you, or even if you don't - Make Short Stories; Make Books; Make Plays; Make Poems; Make Screenplays; Make Drawings; Make Paintings; Make Music; Make Moves; Make Memes; Make GIFs; Make Noise; Make A Fuss In These Perilous Times; Make A Stand; and of course, Make Love.

While you're thinking of specifically what you'd like to make, enjoy and be inspired by the makings of others. Including mine!



@mudhousebooks The holiday shopping season quickly approaches and this book makes a wonderful gift for the little readers (or those who are read to) in your life. #AvaAppelsawse (available at Amazon) #christmasgiftideas ♬ After Nine - Veil
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THE SAXOPHONE MAN



 



                                                            *****
 Merry are the makers. For they can always think of something to do to occupy themselves.
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Friday, September 12, 2025

The death of a young provocateur


R.I.P. Charlie Kirk - But let's be real here about who he was, discuss some of the ridiculous assumptions and attempts at pinning blame that took place in the brief time between murder and capture, and touch upon attempts by the usual suspects to use a young man/husband/father's death to rile up a Civil War. Much better to keep our eyes on the prize (return of normal democracy). And those infamous files.


   



 


   



   



   



   




Okay, fine. If you know me you know I have a little more than that to say. As do others.


   



   


That was probably a rhetorical question, but whether sincere or not, the answer/song remains the same.


   





   






   

Don't get it twisted no matter how much misinformation they spread. The Democratic party, while by no means unflawed, is not the organization that's indoctrinating and turning people into hateful killers. While I'll grant that there may have been some sensitivity overkill on the generous behalf of those belonging to marginalized groups, the "wokeness card" is being severely overplayed. So called wokeness has resulted in a grand total of zero deaths/tragedies. When it comes to killing, or to combatting BS masked in "Conservative Christian values", the Dems simply don't have it it them.


   



   


   





      


   


   



   


   




R.I.P. Iryna Zarutska

P.S. - Mostly unrelated, but this social media post caught my eye recently and is too good not to repeat.

  


~~~

Also unrelated to Charlie Kirk / Tyler Robinson and other non-fictional people specifically - but take a listen to the video below anyway and stay tuned for more of SECOND SHOT. 


~~~

  
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