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Javi Mendez, 59, spent 22 years as a forest fire smokejumper before launching his small wildfire risk consulting firm in Bend, Oregon, and he’d avoided every neighborhood fundraiser for the past decade until his old jump crew practically dragged him to the beer garden event that crisp late August evening. He showed up in the … Read more
Manny Ruiz, 62, retired south Texas high school woodshop teacher, leans against a splintered picnic table at the county fair, sweating through the collar of his faded pearl snap. He drove 45 minutes from his small ranch outside town to judge the student woodworking entries, a gig he’s taken every year since he quit teaching … Read more
Cole Hewitt, 58, retired U.S. Forest Service firefighter with a scar slashing across his left eyebrow and a habit of keeping to himself, leaned against a splintered cedar fence at the west end of the Mesa summer street fair, a half-eaten chili dog in one hand and a cold canned IPA in the other. He’d … Read more
Dale Rainer, 58, retired U.S. Forest Service firefighter, has spent the last eight years hiding in plain sight. Widowed after his wife Linda’s sudden stroke, his defining flaw is a stubborn, unearned loyalty to a life that no longer exists—he still sleeps on his side of the king bed, still buys her favorite lemon drops … Read more
Elroy Voss, 62, retired high school woodshop teacher, had manned the block party grill every July for 19 years straight. He knew the exact heat to get bratwurst casings to snap without burning the meat inside, knew which kids snuck extra bags of chips, knew which neighbors would corner him to beg for custom cutting … Read more
Silas Marlow is 57, makes his living restoring vintage typewriters out of a cinder block workshop behind his bungalow in west Asheville. His biggest flaw is that he’s carried a grudge against casual socializing ever since his wife left him for a 28-year-old SaaS sales rep eight years prior, going so far as to lie … Read more
Our eyes may lie to us more often than we think. Optical illusions are seen in everyday life. Viral Strange will list some pictures that really need a second look. Our eyes may lie to us more often than we think. Optical illusions are seen in everyday life. Viral Strange will list some pictures that … Read more
Understanding Women Starts With Paying Attention For years, conversations about dating and relationships have been filled with myths, confusion, and overcomplicated advice. Some men act like women are impossible to understand, while others pretend there is some secret formula to attraction. The reality is much simpler than that. Women are not mysterious creatures from another … Read more
Our eyes may lie to us more often than we think. Optical illusions are seen in everyday life. Viral Strange will list some pictures that really need a second look. Our eyes may lie to us more often than we think. Optical illusions are seen in everyday life. Viral Strange will list some pictures that … Read more
