Archive

"Mind's Time" will be in the 2026 Fark Fiction Anthology

My short story Mind's Time will appear in the 2026 Fark Fiction Anthology. For now, I've made the version here members only, so if you want to read it early, sign-up. Getting more writing out has been a struggle lately. I'm querying agents,

How I approach storytelling. Part 2

😮‍💨Yes. I'm bad at blogging, or newsletters, or whatever the hell we're calling long form content in 2026. Expect these callouts when I finally show up with a post. The personal update: I've mentioned I started a job last October and it consumes much

8 Big Boys, one amazing trip

It's been a minute since I posted. The new job is going well but it takes up much of my time. New writing is coming soon! In the meantime, I finally put together the video. If you haven't read the full Big Boy Trip now you

The 2025 Fark Fiction Anthology is out

The anthology including my story We Taught Sand to Think is now available! Huge thanks to the Fark Fiction editors for selecting my story. I'm excited to read all the stories in this year's installment. Get yours here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0G6Z3G85T All proceeds

My first real author credential

I'm excited to announce my short story We Taught Sand to Think will be in the next Fark Fiction anthology. After going through a horrible job search and receiving several rejections trying to get published the first time, I was feeling a bit down. Rejections are part of

Wrapping up the Journey

When I set out on my trip on June 4th, I resolved to travel all the way to the East Coast, and then back, all the way to the West. By the time I arrived in Cheyenne on June 20th, I had a cooler full of trout, and concern I

Railroading and Fishing in Colorado

I love Colorado. I love the weather, I love the mountains, I love most of the people I come across. Weed is doing good things there. It's the top place I'd move if I could find a job there. After seeing 4023 in Omaha, I drove

Sioux City, Omaha, and #4023

Leaving Green Bay, I headed across Iowa to Sioux City. I wasn't going to say much in this post but since there wasn't a full museum there, you get extra filler more brilliant content! I headed to Sioux City because I'd read about a

The National Railroad Museum - Green Bay, WI

It took a few days to get from Scranton, PA all the way to Green Bay. I considered seeing Niagara Falls and then cutting through part of Canada, going across Michigan and then taking a ferry into Wisconsin. I ended up not doing that because I came out to see

Steamtown National Historic Site and #4012

Back to Big Boy Locomotives after some detours. On June 10th, I visited the Steam National Historic Site. This is a real national park, run by the federal government "in celebration of the machines that built America" as my tour guide put it. If you're a

Liberty and Justice for All

💡This one gets a political. You've been warned. Philadelphia was great. I don't care for the football team, but the city itself is beautiful, and everyone I interacted with was friendly. I spent the day with Vicky, a long time friend who I hadn't

Finding Myself in the Keystone State

I'd never been to Pennsylvania before this trip, and I have to say it was pretty great. There's a ton of railroad history, combined with friendly folks, good food, and nice scenery. Despite the rain (there was a lot of rain), and a minor EV charging

Gary and the Three Daves

Friday morning (6/6/2025) I visited the National Museum of Transportation, the resting place of Big Boy #4006. I couldn't pass up the stupid headline, even though I only met two of the Daves, but Dave #2 informed me that there is a Dave #3. (I saw

The destination is the journey

I've had a rough couple of years. I can't get into every reason why, but I've left my job after more than a decade, and I've had a hell of a time trying to find a new one. (I've been

Pizza Dough and an Update

I'm bad at newsletter updates, or blogging, or whatever this thing is. As everyone's mom has said at one point or another: "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all." The world is on fire.

Transactional Forgiveness

I've thought a lot about forgiveness. I'd hoped I could make this post the last one of 2024 but it's been hard to gather my thoughts around it. The past year has been difficult, due in part to interpersonal conflicts that have festered and

The False Dichotomy of American Lore

I've had trouble knowing what to say here lately. In the past few months, I've focused on my novel in some ways to hide from the world going on outside. It's been a hard year for me personally and each new day brings another

Thoughts on unpaid internships

One afternoon, pre-COVID, I received a call at my office and something possessed me to answer it[1]. Normally a call on this line is someone trying to sell me on a new fiber connection, recruiting services, or the latest and greatest software tool that will make my teams

Improving Diversity in Tech

Diversity: the subject of social media flamewars and Republican talking points. Great for getting clicks. Not so great for people trying to make a living without worrying about being judged on their culture or skin color. Maybe this isn't timely content with major corporations rolling back their DEI

Ultimate Texas Chili

Do you like Chili? Of course you do!

How I approach storytelling

💡Happy 2024. I have returned. Apologies for my absence, the last few weeks have been a lot. Hoping to get back into the routine. I was recently invited to a Discord server for writers where I've enjoyed finding a community and receiving feedback on my work. I don&

Sometimes I'm not enough

I'm still here. I don't really feel like writing but after a month of radio silence, I decided I should post something if only to let everyone know I'm still alive and the site isn't dead, at least not yet. I could

Mind's Time

Dariush Mohammadi jolted awake to a harsh buzzing. Three sharp screeches like a strangled goose, reverberated through the room, paused, and screeched again. He slapped an unsteady night table until he landed on a rectangular plastic box, causing the sound to cease.

Deconstruction Resources that Helped Me

While my own experiences ultimately led me out of Evangelicalism, I was recently asked if there were resources I could share as well. If you're new here and interested in Evangelical deconstruction, I encourage you to read about my journey. Otherwise, the rest of these are in the

The Death of Twitter and Thoughts on Billionaires

Turn out the lights. Twitter is over[1]. It's been over for a while but it seems we're nearing a tipping point. The company is hemorrhaging money and the "Free Speech Absolutist" owner has a nazism problem. Even if he didn't, he

Evangelicals and the End Times

In light of renewed fighting between Israel and Palestine, there have been the requisite takes on the conflict started, who is right or wrong, and the "common sense" ways to resolve it once and for all. When it's brought up: What does this conflict have to

Government Dysfunction and You

I'm from the U.S. and write from a U.S.-centric viewpoint. This post will be about the U.S. federal government with a sprinkle of other levels, mainly to highlight why we are so dysfunctional, especially if anyone in the audience is not U.S.-based.

We Taught Sand to Think

AI, Creativity, and Labor

I tend to avoid writing too much about current events because there are voices better than mine on most topics and such posting has a limited shelf-life. I decided I'd weigh in on this one because it is at the intersection of two of my passions. If

Those times I harassed Mormon missionaries

The title doesn't lie. There were two instances of Mormon missionary harassment. Neither are particularly interesting and I present them in the context of regret and of the Evangelical pot calling the kettle "black".

When Perfect is the enemy of good enough

Short stories and more information about my novel are coming. It may not be perfect but it will be interesting.

What I (now) Believe - Deconstruction Part 10

Instead of ranting about what I’m against, I’ll tell you what I’m for. That answer is simple: I am for humanity. I’m for humans over religions, over nations, and over corporations. I believe that we are equal.

The Final Straw - Deconstruction Part 9

In some ways, I wish I could say that Trump was the final straw or Evangelicals’ embrace of his presidency. I wish I could say it was the abysmal COVID response, the relentless drive to pack the courts and subjugate women. I wish I’d seen the racism, the bigotry,

Filling the Void - Deconstruction Part 8

White supremacy is a big problem for mainline Protestant churches. The more liberal members are walking away from church entirely. The more conservative ones leave for places that have no qualms with preaching it.

Leaving is painful (Deconstruction Part 7)

Evangelicalism treats people as marketing tools, a source for the offering plate, and a vote to propel their political power.

And the walls come tumbling down (Deconstruction Part 6)

Deconstruction is a process. Maybe some people wake up one day and realize they no longer believe in the things they spent decades cultivating but that's not what happened for me. 2010 until 2013 was a difficult time. Financially we were recovering from the failure of my business.

The other first crisis (Deconstruction Part 5)

💡Welcome to cfreak.dev! If you're new here you might wish to start with part one. If you haven't subscribed, please consider doing so. It's free and it helps me track engagement. Bonus: When you sign up you'll be able to comment

Always artificial, rarely intelligent

Artificial Intelligence. It's been in the news lately if you haven't noticed. AI will take our jobs, run off with our partners, and kill us all.[1] I'm often asked about how I think AI will shape the world so for today's

The first crisis

Deconstruction Part 4 - or how I learned to stop worrying and reject the idea of Hell I love Isaac Asimov. Well, his later works probably aren't as good. Maybe it's better to say I like Asimov. Except he had a problem with misogyny. Ok fine. I

All the promises are empty

A journey of deconstruction Part 3 "Prosperity Gospel" was inevitable.  For those not familiar "Prosperity Gospel" is the idea that good Christians will be blessed with wealth in the current life. Therefore the most wealthy are the most righteous. Of course, the best way for God

On Writing

Friday Update #1 I've made a decision. It happens from time to time, we'll see if it is a good one. Part 3 of the Deconstruction series is still in progress but I'd like to have three updates a week. To that end, my

A game of Evangelicalism

Deconstruction Part 2 At the Resort Ministry, there were three groups. The hunters, the hunted, and the insiders. The hunters donned camouflage clothing and painted their faces. Their game proved to be the most fun on nights like this one where the moon remained hidden in its monthly orbit and

A journey of deconstruction

Part 1 - Definitions The best place to start any journey is at the beginning. My morals, ethics, and worldview are, for better or worse, shaped by evangelical Christianity and it frames a great deal of my writing. This being the first post, I think it wise to start with a