Writer at Work:
Santas, Wizards, & Life behind the Curtain

Merry Christmas!

I’m always impressed by writers who despite busy schedules manage to produce timely blogs and podcasts. I try. But when other work piles up, I tend to vanquish into the world of deadlines. 

This month has brought some exciting projects and opportunities that I hope to share in the weeks ahead, but right now it’s all about staying behind the curtain and getting it done. In the meantime, here’s a vintage post from a few Decembers ago that seems relevant in a number of ways. 

Warm holiday wishes to all … and scop on! 

So it’s December 1997. I’m driving north out of Oakland, toward Bigelow Boulevard and downtown Pittsburgh. It’s a gray day, light snow falling. Colored lights trim some of the buildings along North Craig Street, but it doesn’t feel like Christmas.

Then I see him.

I clear the rise toward Bigelow Boulevard, and there he is—fourteen-feet high and smiling down from a roadside billboard atop the snowy hillside. Red suit, white beard. It’s Santa. Or is it? I do a double-take. This guy’s wearing rollerblades, sporting a Mohawk haircut, and throwing a peace sign. I slow down. Look again. That’s not Santa. That’s  … [read the rest of the original 2016 post at 21st Century Scop]