John P. Weiss

Nevada

Cartoonist, Writer and Artist at The Good Men Project

Writer and Artist at Freelance

Articles

The Places In-Between

3 weeks ago | goodmenproject.com | John P. Weiss

I hate flying. There’s just something utterly unnatural about crowding into a pressurized cylinder with wings, blasting into the sky, hurtling over 500 mph at 36,000 feet, and pretending to relax in cramped quarters for hours on end. It may be the safest way to travel, but then, when your car breaks down you can pull over. Engine trouble at 36,000 feet presents few options other than dropping. Of course, air travel offers other charms before you even take off.
Where All Your Yesterdays Are Buried Deep

1 month ago | goodmenproject.com | John P. Weiss

It seems I am stranded again. Strangers are prowling around my home, exploring its rooms and decor and circling the backyard pool. They point at things and discuss details. I know this thanks to the security cameras that link to my smartphone. My wife and I recently put our house on the market, having decided to downsize a bit. We seldom use our pool, and we’re tired of the landscaping maintenance and overall expense. We hope to move nearby to a simpler house with a view of the Las Vegas strip.
They Will Be There Long Before Any of Us

1 month ago | medium.com | John P. Weiss

We had to say goodbye to our little dog yesterday. He was quite old, mostly blind, and despite a bum ticker that brought frequent fainting spells, his heart held unconditional love for us. And so now he is free from life’s pains and struggles. Free to frolic in that place where all our beloved animal companions go, to play and bark and watch over us. The night before he left us had been a good one. His failing heart required me to carry him outside to relieve himself. Sometimes he managed just fine.
The Day the Muse Died

1 month ago | medium.com | John P. Weiss

I had a clear game plan. After 26 years in law enforcement, I was ready to retire early and reinvent myself as a fine artist. Why not? I’d been drawing since I was a boy, and then I moonlighted as an editorial cartoonist for two newspapers during my police career. Then, I dove into landscape painting. I took several vacations to travel to Idaho and study oil painting with Scott L. Christensen, one of the preeminent landscape painters in the country.
The Janitor

1 month ago | medium.com | John P. Weiss

Late in the afternoon, when the sun hangs low and shadows cast deep across the school quad, a lone figure sits quietly on a wooden bench beside the library, sipping sweet tea and savoring his turkey sandwich. Finches flit about the trees, searching for food in this golden hour before soft sunshine recedes and timed fluorescent lights flicker across the school’s buildings, their artificial glow attracting disoriented moths.
Undoing the Damage of Haste

2 months ago | goodmenproject.com | John P. Weiss

We don’t get many reliable sanctuaries from the indignities and relentless pace of life. Our homes come close when no one rings the doorbell and we can catch our breath before the next rent check or taxes are due. Relationships offer solace, but they can be capricious and unreliable, as evidenced by infidelity, divorce, and death. Even our children, who most of us love unconditionally, can move away (physically and sometimes emotionally).
Curiosity Has Its Own Reason for Existence

2 months ago | medium.com | John P. Weiss

There had been rain for several days and finally, it let up. I was housebound and the call of the woods, with its deer trails, towering trees, and mysterious shadows, all awaited my anxious exploration. As a boy, the sanctity of my bedroom was a refuge that held books, drawing pads, and my creative imagination. But even beloved, safe places cannot hold us forever. We won’t grow unless we step outside ourselves and beyond the boundaries of familiarity and security.
Life Is One Long Series of Letting Go

2 months ago | medium.com | John P. Weiss

With parenting, the days are long but the years are short. In those early days of teething, crying, sleepless nights, diapers, homework, parent/teacher meetings, birthday parties, and more, we ask what we’ve gotten ourselves into. We love our children unconditionally, but we wonder when it will all get easier. We soldier on, and some things get easier. The kid can go to the bathroom by himself now. No more diapers.
Faith, Love and That Thing That Unites Us All

2 months ago | goodmenproject.com | John P. Weiss

Most people navigate life with the illusion that they have control over where they are headed. How things will turn out. Somewhere in the back of the mind, we’re aware of our mortality and the uncertainties of life. The nightly news, with its ubiquitous reports of accidents and shootings, is hard to escape. Yet we push aside the nightmares, fears, and worst-case scenarios in order to live our lives.
There Is a Brave Child Inside Me

2 months ago | goodmenproject.com | John P. Weiss

There is a brave child inside me, always wanting to come outside and explore the world, but I’m afraid for him. So I keep the doors locked and tell him to play inside where it’s warm and safe. He knows I’m protective of him, but he wants to be set free so he leans in and whispers sweetly in my ear. It’s always the same three words that roll off his lips. Do the work. There’s a brave child inside me that wants to go outside and survey the confectionery store. To taste the sweet things in life.