LGBTSR
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Devil’s Wood Chapter 4: Double Take (AUDIO – Final Tease)
Yes, this is my final offering from the upcoming ‘Devil’s Wood.’ It will be out by this summer, and if you’re hooked listening to these chapter samples, you’ll want to buy the book! Fasten your headphones for one last teaser. – Mark
Devil’s Wood begins when two boys wander into the woods outside Lambertville, New Jersey, and uncover a strange walking stick buried in the soil. One boy feels an immediate, nameless dread and keeps his distance; the other is drawn to it, pulling it free and revealing a grim truth beneath the earth—a human skull buried alongside the object. The discovery hints at an old, unfinished wrong, and a wood that has long remembered what was done there, waiting patiently for someone to find it.
The stick first surfaces in the life of Peter Brightly, a forty-two-year-old antique dealer struggling to hold together the fragments of his life after a painful divorce. As Peter becomes increasingly attached to the object, his health, judgment, and moral center begin to erode. The wood exerts a quiet pull, the past presses closer, and Peter is forced to confront how far he is willing to go to protect his own sanity.
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This Week’s Fun Facts: Things to Know about Mexico
We’re heading out this morning for a tour of Cabo San Lucas, having spent two days on Royal Caribbean’s Quantum of the Seas getting here from Los Angeles. I’m a big fan of Mexico, and one of my favorite trips was a business convention I organized in Mexico City 20 years ago. I still use a blanket I got there as a seat cushion at my desk. Here are some things you may nor may not know about this wonderful country and its past.
Mexico City is sinking—slowly. Built on an ancient lakebed, parts of the city sink several inches a year.
Corn was born here. Maize was domesticated in Mexico over 9,000 years ago and is still central to daily life.
Chocolate started as a drink. The ancient Maya and Aztecs drank cacao mixed with spices—no sugar involved.
The ancient Maya kept stingless bees. Their honey was prized and used medicinally.
Tequila can only be made in specific regions. It’s legally protected—like Champagne in France.
Colorful streets aren’t accidental. Bright paint helped people navigate cities long before street numbers were common.
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On the Map: Ojai Still Charms After All These Years
By Mark McNease
This is a travelogue, so I’ll skip the history lesson. I lived in Ojai, California, in 1979 after fleeing Indiana three days after my high school graduation. It’s always been a special place for me, an early refuge. My sister Cathy has lived in the same house here for 50 years this month. That’s it for the memoir.
Ojai is a magical town in the mountains about 90 minutes from Los Angeles and 40 minutes from Santa Barbara. It’s not far from Ventura, where I also lived once upon a time. Frank and I have been here a half dozen times over our 20 years together (next December) and we love spending several days and nights here. From this visit’s must-list: the Blue Iguana Inn, where we’re staying. It’s just 50 yards or so from my sister’s house, and it’s a lovely and slightly sprawling boutique hotel; dinner at Rumfish y Vino in Ventura; lunch at The Duchess in Ojai; and coffee-with-a-laptop at Ojai Coffee Roasters, where I’m writing this now. Keep reading for more about Ojai and the area, and if you ever get the chance, come stay a spell. It’s the kind of place where saying ‘stay a spell’ is a good way of putting it.
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Devil’s Wood Chapter 3: Who’ll Stop the Rain? (AUDIO)
Devil’s Wood begins when two boys wander into the woods outside Lambertville, New Jersey, and uncover a strange walking stick buried in the soil. One boy feels an immediate, nameless dread and keeps his distance; the other is drawn to it, pulling it free and revealing a grim truth beneath the earth—a human skull buried alongside the object. The discovery hints at an old, unfinished wrong, and a wood that has long remembered what was done there, waiting patiently for someone to find it.
The stick first surfaces in the life of Peter Brightly, a forty-two-year-old antique dealer struggling to hold together the fragments of his life after a painful divorce. As Peter becomes increasingly attached to the object, his health, judgment, and moral center begin to erode. The wood exerts a quiet pull, the past presses closer, and Peter is forced to confront how far he is willing to go to protect his own sanity.
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Savvy Senior: Do I Need to File a Tax Return This Year?
By Jim Miller
Dear Savvy Senior,
What are the IRS income tax filing requirements for retirees this tax season? I didn’t file a tax return last year because my income was below the filing threshold, but I got a part-time job in 2025, so I’m wondering if I need to file this year.
Semi-retired Joe
Dear Joe,
Whether you need to file a federal income tax return this year depends on several factors: how much you earned in 2025, the source of your income, your age, and your filing status.
Here’s a quick guide to this year’s IRS filing thresholds. For most people, it’s straightforward: if your gross income (all taxable income, excluding Social Security benefits unless you’re married and filing separately) is below the threshold for your filing status and age, you generally do not need to file. But if it’s over, you will.
2025 IRS Federal Filing Thresholds:
- Single: $15,750 ($17,750 if you’re 65 or older by Jan. 1, 2026).
- Married filing jointly: $31,500 ($33,100 if one spouse is 65 or older; or $34,700 if you’re both over 65).
- Married filing separately: $5 at any age.
- Head of household: $23,625 ($25,625 if 65 or older).
- Qualifying surviving spouse: $31,500 ($33,100 if 65 or older).
For a detailed breakdown, including taxable vs. nontaxable income, you can request a free copy of the IRS “1040 and 1040-SR Instructions for Tax Year 2025” by calling 800-829-3676, or view it online at IRS.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040gi.pdf.
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Health Beat: Sleep Changes with Age, and What Can Help
By Mark McNease
Another night, another wake up at 3:00 am. It doesn’t matter that we’re in California and it’s three hours ealier – the routine is the same. Having talked about this to many people my age, it seems like it’s just part of the changing sleep patterns that come with getting older. I’ve gotten use to it, but on those rare occasions when I wake up at 5:00 am, or even 4:30, it feels like I’ve slept late.
If you’ve experienced this same phenomenon you’re not imagining things, and you’re definitely not alone. As we get older, sleep often changes in frustrating ways. Falling asleep takes longer for many people, although that’s never a problem for me. I often drift off halfway through a TV show at 8:30 p.m., maybe 9:00 p.m., and consider it a win if I get six hours of sleep. Then I wake up at 3 a.m. for no clear reason and lie there thinking about an acceptable time to get out of bed. Being in bed awake in the middle of the night doesn’t work for me: I explain it as feeling the way I imagine a turtle on its back feels. I just want to get up. Nothing is quite as disturbing to my fragile peace of mind as imagining terrible things in the dark while I’m stranded on my back.
One of the most important things to understand is that sleep changes with age are normal, but chronic exhaustion, if that’s a result, is not something we have to accept. Our bodies produce less melatonin as we age, and our internal clocks tend to shift earlier. That means lighter sleep, more awakenings, and earlier mornings. Add in medications, aches and pains, hot flashes, anxiety, or sleep apnea, and it’s no wonder rest can feel elusive. (I’ve been using a CPAP machine for seven years, and it’s not weight-related, which many people assume.)
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This Week’s Survey: Winter Makes Me Want To … ?
Winter makes me want to … ?
Slow down and cozy up
Enjoy every wintery day of it
Travel somewhere warmer
Stay home and appreciate the familiar
Catch up on reading, shows, or hobbies/creative stuff
Something else (add in the comments) -
This Week’s Fun Facts: The Mysteries of Greenland Revealed
Some things you may not know about Greenland
It’s drifting west, literally.
Greenland sits on the North American tectonic plate and moves about 2–3 centimeters west each year. Tiny, but measurable with GPS.There are no roads between towns.
You can’t drive from one city to another. Travel happens by boat, plane, helicopter, snowmobile, or dogsled depending on the season.Greenland has its own name, and it’s not Danish.
In the local Inuit language, the country is called Kalaallit Nunaat, meaning “Land of the People.”Ice hides a canyon bigger than the Grand Canyon.
Beneath the ice sheet lies a massive canyon system over 750 km long, discovered using radar. It was completely unknown until 2013.Time works differently near the Arctic Circle.
Parts of Greenland experience months of nonstop daylight in summer and months of darkness in winter with no sunrise or sunset at all.Most people live on a thin coastal strip.
About 80% of Greenland is covered by ice, so nearly the entire population lives along the coast—often wedged between mountains and sea.Greenlandic words can be very long.
The Greenlandic language (Kalaallisut) is polysynthetic, meaning entire sentences can be packed into a single word. -
Devil’s Wood Chapter 2: Going, Going, Gone (AUDIO)
Devil’s Wood begins when two boys wander into the woods outside Lambertville, New Jersey, and uncover a strange walking stick buried in the soil. One boy feels an immediate, nameless dread and keeps his distance; the other is drawn to it, pulling it free and revealing a grim truth beneath the earth—a human skull buried alongside the object. The discovery hints at an old, unfinished wrong, and a wood that has long remembered what was done there, waiting patiently for someone to find it.
The stick first surfaces in the life of Peter Brightly, a forty-two-year-old antique dealer struggling to hold together the fragments of his life after a painful divorce. As Peter becomes increasingly attached to the object, his health, judgment, and moral center begin to erode. The wood exerts a quiet pull, the past presses closer, and Peter is forced to confront how far he is willing to go to protect his own sanity.
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‘Devil’s Wood’ Cover Survey, PLUS Listen to Chapter 1: Sticks and Stones
I’m 10 chapters into my new book, Devil’s Wood, about a cursed and ancient walking stick that brings ruin to anyone who posseses it. But why? Where did it come from? Who made it? And can the evil in the Devil’s wood be stopped?
HELP ME CHOOSE A COVER! TAKE THE SURVEY HERE (limited to 40 responses). Cover on the left? Cover on the right? A combination of the two, or start over?
And now …. I’ll be publishing one chapter each week of the audio version right here. You can check back every week, or SUBSCRIBE TO MY SUBSTACK, On the Write Path With Mark McNease, where I’ll be sharing it with my subscribers every Monday.
