Day 2,143, Quasi-Quarantine: Ambitious "The End Of The World As We Know It" Sets Tales In The World Of Stephen King's "The Stand"

 

“I wanted to tell him that blood had always and would always lubricate the grinding gears of the universe.”

~“The Story I Tell is the Story of Some of Us” by Paul Tremblay

In many quarters, Stephen King's "The Stand" is the most iconic post-apocalyptic novel of all time. The sprawling story has inspired a legion of fans and creators, and "The End Of The World As We Know It" encapsulates its beloved status among established and aspiring writers.

“I wanted to curl up and cry for days–to just expel everything and then fade into the soil, to be recycled and fed into the earth so I could be of use to something again.” 

~“La Mala Hora,” Alex Segura

Edited by Christopher Golden and Brian Keene, this collection of 34 tales set in the world -- or the aftermath -- of "The Stand" represents nearly every geography and perspective one might imagine. There are stories set in outer space and Pakistan, and from the perspective of children, animals, and the living dead.

“You did not understand that we were the new. God’s rejects were the change. We will remake the world into a thing you do not recognize. We will remake the world into a thing that works.”

~“The Devil’s Children,” by Sarah Langan

At nearly 800 pages, "The End of the World As We Know It" can be something of a slog, and the quality of the short stories can vary. Many were better in concept in execution, and novellas may have been a better format than short stories for some as well.

“He looked like the hero of a Springsteen song, but in every way he bled darker.”

~“Keep the Devil Down,” by Rio Youers

However, a number of these works were worthy of the (Stephen) King, including "In a Pig's Eye," by Joe R. Lansdale; "La Mala Hora," by Alex Segura; "Kovach's Last Case," by Michael Koryta; "Keep the Devil Down," by Rio Youers; "Grand Junction," by Chuck Wendig; and "The Unfortunate Convalescence of the SuperLawyer," by Nat Cassidy.

“A utility worker starfished along the roadside with a throat so black and swollen you felt you could float down the river on it with a cooler of beer and some George Strait on the boom box.”

~“Lenora,” by Jonathan Janz

These stories -- among a handful of others -- made the effort more than worthwhile ... and a worthy complement to the King canon.

“‘There are no police anymore,’ she whispered. ‘And there are no doctors. There are only survivors and dreamers, and there are two kinds of dreamers. Only one of them is going to write the story from here. Which one will it be, Detective Kovach?’”

~“Kovach’s Last Case,” by Michael Koryta

Day 2,136, Quasi-Quarantine: Stearns Seeks To Salvage Mets' Offseason With Winter Flurry Of Activity

It's clear the Mets and president of baseball operations David Stearns were intent on breaking up the 30-something "core" of the team this offseason in favor of more dynamic and defense-oriented players, and while many fans got into their feelings, there were a number of compelling reasons:

• Brandon Nimmo's agent has helped turned him into a high-strikeout, medium-power guy, and he's devolved into a bad outfielder with perhaps the worst throwing arm in MLB.
• Jeff McNeil is a utility guy who was a progress stopper for a backlog of younger infielders in the system.
• Pete Alonso's bat didn't offset his age enough to justify a lengthy deal -- which just wasn't in the cards after contract talks got a bit contentious last year -- and he wasn't willing to move to a permanent DH role yet

Now, replacing those guys with Marcus Semien (35 years old, strong fielder, good clubhouse guy), Jorge Polanco (32, never played first base in a game), and Bo Bichette (great hitter, never played third base in a game, can opt out after one season) was questionable at best. In the process, New York also took third base away from Brett Baty -- who earned the gig -- and added another infielder to a roster that already had entirely too many.

In addition, closer Edwin "Sugar" Diaz -- the team's most popular player in some quarters of the fanbase -- inked with the Dodgers, despite the Mets offering slightly more money. The New York beat seemed to think that "Sugar" just preferred Los Angeles at this point in his career, and it's hard to blame him for that.

At that point, I was among those looking for any hints at the larger plan. But then Stearns really went to work. 

First, he landed center fielder Luis Robert Jr. from the White Sox in exchange for infielder LuisAngel Acuna and an A-ball pitching prospect. While Robert hasn't been able to replicate a 2023 season that saw him crush 38 homers and earn down-ballot MVP votes, he is a stellar defensive player with a ton of athleticism and a chance to overcome his injury history.

Prior to the Robert trade, one could argue the Mets only had one everyday outfielder on the roster, and that was Juan Soto, a weak fielder. Tyrone Taylor is a fourth outfielder/defensive replacement and Baty has a handful of minor-league appearances in left field. I know they want Carson Benge to win the left field job out of spring training, but that's extremely, um, hopeful thinking.

Next, Stearns dealt for pitchers Freddy Peralta and Tobias Myers, sending righty starter Brandon Sproat and top prospect Jett Williams to the Brewers in return. Peralta is an All-Star entering a contract year, but one has to think that the Mets have a plan to extend him at some point before he hits free agency. Losing Sproat was a hit to future rotations, but Williams seemed to be caught in the middle of a logjam of infield prospects.

After this dizzying series of transactions, the positional lineup looks like:

• Catcher: Francisco Alvarez
• 1B: Jorge Polanco
• 2B: Marcus Simien
• 3B: Bo Bichette
• SS: Francisco Lindor
• LF: Carson Benge or Brett Baty
• CF: Luis Robert
• RF: Juan Soto
• DH: Mark Vientos or Brett Baty
• PR/IF: Vidal Brujan
• PH/OF: Tyrone Taylor

The rotation looks like:

• Righty Freddy Peralta
• Righty Nolan McLean
• Righty Kodai Senga
• Lefty David Peterson
• Lefty Sean Manaea
• Righty Clay Holmes

The rotation looks more established, the bullpen looks deeper (Devin Williams, Luke Weaver, Brooks Raley, A.J. Minter, Tobias Myers, Huascar Brazoban, Luis Garcia, others), the lineup looks capable of more consistent contact, and the defense looks more polished.

Does that add up to a better overall team? Maybe. But keep in mind that the Mets were 10 games under .500 (47-57) in the final four months of 2025. So was that rapidly aging core really worth keeping in place anyway?

For better or worse, Stearns has put his stamp on the franchise in a big way now. We'll find out soon whether his seismic late moves will pay off in 2026.

Day 2,135, Quasi-Quarantine: Complex Puzzle Depicts Stunning Sea Shells, With Only One Thing Missing

 

After unexpectedly having some extra time around the house recently, we tackled a sea shells puzzle from Elena Essex. Measuring 28 x 20 inches, this work was challenging, with a lot of similar shades making you really work for it.

Unfortunately, this 1,000-piecer did have a missing piece, though the company did include a note inside the box for how to contact them in such cases. A) How thoughtful! but B) Does this mean it's a common occurrence?

All told, this was a beautiful and complex puzzle that made me long for the beach -- with a slight ding in the grade for the missing piece.

8.7 out of 10, would painfully construct during bereavement again

Day 2,128, Quasi-Quarantine: "Rebel Hearts" Features Painstaking Research Into The History And Impact Of The Troubles On Both Sides

“Ireland already suffers from too much history; in that country history is a disease, a canker from the past that poisons the present. History is a weapon, a poker you keep in your pocket to beat the present senseless and so reorder its alignment to the past and justify present murder.”

Kevin Toolis's emotional exploration of the Troubles spanned 10 years, documenting with precision the war between the Provisional IRA and the British Army. "Rebel Hearts" gets off to a slow start, as the author seemed to struggle to figure out what this book was supposed to be and how large a role he should play in the telling.

“Ten years of journeys within the Irish Republican Soul have made me weary of such political passion and the sacrifice of lives for ideals. But I remain a Republican, albeit a constitutional Republican, both for Ireland and for my adopted country, England. I am a product of my people, I too remain possessed of a rebel heart.”

Toolis eventually emerges as an ancillary character, forced to reckon with his Irish origins and his feelings about the IRA. Fortunately, he eventually moved mostly away from centering himself as part of the story.

“Clausewitz said that war is politics pursued by other means. In Ireland, murder was politics pursued by other means.”

Followers of current events will easily draw similarities between British and Ulster organizations and ICE. Similarly, the author was careful to point out that the parameters of the aggression are unique.

“The Troubles, and this is important to remember, were acts of rebellion rather than revolution. No one had a plan to proclaim a ‘liberated’ Northern Ireland a Marxist state.”

“The IRA were fighting to remove the British Crown from what they regarded as Irish soil and reunite Ireland. The British Government were fighting to defend the Northern Irish state and the desire of the 850,000 strong Northern-Irish-born Protestant population to remain separate from the rest of Ireland. It is the longest war the world has ever known.”

Published in 1995, right near the end of The Troubles, "Rebel Hearts" features a variety of acronyms, and the sprawling number of names and incidents can be difficult to follow. However, Toolis does a tremendous job of documenting the impact of the violence on families on both sides and tying in the lengthy history of the Troubles themselves.

“It was the final bitter contradiction of the Troubles; the justness of the political cause was invalidated by the cruelty of the murders carried out in its name.”

Day 2,114, Quasi-Quarantine: Promising "Stranger In A Strange Land" Loses Steam Due To Sheer Density

 

“Here, by the grace of God and an inside straight, we have a personality untouched by the psychotic taboos of our tribe–and you want to turn him into a carbon copy of every fourth-rate conformist in this frightened land! Why don’t you go whole hog? Get him a briefcase and make him carry it wherever he goes–make him feel shame if he doesn’t have it.”

This uncut version of Robert A. Heinlein's sci-fi novel is absorbing, if a victim of its own sprawl. Published in 1961, "Stranger in a Strange Land" is certainly a product of its time in its approach to religion, sexuality, and politics, but manages to challenge societal norms and conventions along the way.

“A confidence man knows that he’s lying; that limits his scope. But a successful shaman ropes himself first; he believes what he says – and such belief is contagious; there is no limit to his scope.”

Valentine Michael Smith is a human born and raised in a Martian community, and his arrival on Earth triggers a series of planet-defining events. As he connects with the hilarious Jubal Harshaw and a community of outsiders, Smith begins to "grok" the ways of humanity and naively point out the uncountable number of hypocrisies and inanities.

“He did not expect reasonable conduct from human beings; he considered most people fit candidates for protective restraint and wet packs.”

The novel begins to feel like simply a vehicle for Heinlein to question our underpinning beliefs in the guise of describing Earth to a newcomer, with the story losing steam as it devolves into commentary. A series of grammatical errors and bizarre punctuation can also slow the reader down at key moments, and the Ben-Jill dynamic got short shrift and deserved more airtime.

“He’s as weird as a snake's suspenders but sweet as a stolen kiss, too.”

Reporting indicates that Heinlein delayed the publication of "Stranger In A Strange Land" until he felt the culture had evolved enough to accept it, though it was later excluded from school reading lists. The author makes a number of bold plot choices that may bog down and confuse some readers, but the end product is a thought-provoking and worthwhile read.

“There was one field in which man was unsurpassed; he showed unlimited ingenuity in devising bigger and more efficient ways to kill off, enslave, harass, and in all ways make an unbearable nuisance of himself to himself. Man was his own grimmest joke on himself.”

Day 2,096, Quasi-Quarantine: "The Geek Way" Explores How Companies Embrace Change And Culture, But Omits The Pitfalls

 

“A company with the wrong norms generates bureaucracy, sclerosis, delays, hypocrisy, cultures full of undiscussable topics, and lousy jobs. A company with the right ones generates excellent performance and a healthy work environment.”

"The Geek Way" is all the rage in tech circles, and Andrew McAfee surfaces a number of unique concepts in the realm of process and project management. From "farming for dissent" to managing your internal press secretary to the perils of stack ranking, this book relies extensively on interviews with successful companies, case studies from failed companies, and anecdotes from inciting actions.

“As the saying goes, though, ‘Culture eats strategy for breakfast.’ Some companies can successfully execute the strategies they come up with. Some can’t. The differences between these two types are largely cultural.”

Though concepts like single-threaded managers and the role of the "prisoner's dilemma" in corporate decision-making are fascinating, the author permits little to no discussion of the risks and failures of this geek way.

“Excess bureaucracy is a bug for anyone who wants a company to run efficiently, but it’s a feature for the Homo ultrasocialis who seeks to gain status in the organization. They’ll invent work so that they can be part of it. They’ll want to participate in more and more activities over time. They’ll strive to be consulted on lots of decisions, and if possible, have veto power over them.”

As an employee of a company that has taken to viewing this book as something of a playbook, I'm seeing firsthand how some of the negative aspects of this approach are impacting culture and collaboration. As a result, I think some of the grandiose language McAfee uses vastly overestimate the viability of this "way" as an airtight solution.

“A bunch of geeks have figured out a better way to run a company. As a result, they’re taking over the economy. And they’re just getting started.”

McAfee explores why some companies have cultures that have become an integral part of their brands (Netflix, HubSpot), how the agile methodology can improve openness and ownership, and how a reliance on science and speed can foster the innovation that make a company both successful and attractive to work for. Though the work can border on the precious, the topics and approaches do bear close examination for the right kinds of companies and industries.

“Bureaucracy [is] … a heavy curtain drawn between the right thing to do and the right person to do it.”

~Honore de Balzac

Day 2,094, Quasi-Quarantine: Back On That Noel Puzzle Vibe

 

Galison has become our go-to holiday puzzler, and we kicked off the season with another 500-piecer recently.

"Winter Wonderland" was a bit on the easy side, with a few tricky parts (the starry night and the ridgeline). Throwing on some Christmas vinyls and working through another puzzle was as peaceful -- and needed -- as we remembered from previous years.

7.5 out of 10, would synergize with a Sam Smith again