Here, I connect politics and entertainment.
I have been watching a nine-part Netflix series Detective Hole, from Norway. It is story-craft at its best—it upsets me the way life upsets me. The twelve-year-old son of his girlfriend arranges to meet him in a bar; the boy has a very disappointing moment with him. I am thinking: “Why did you treat him that way? Grow up, Asshole!” A few minutes later, I think back on that moment and conclude, yes, that is a moment from life—life as-it-is-lived.
Another moment goes like this: A chief detective has told an assistant to get away from the window in a potential perp’s home and stay in the kitchen with the mother. It is a perfectly normal expression of concern, but it serves the psychopath’s aim. He will go meet the perp at the door, with his assistant out of the way. However; she gets on the phone with a colleague she feels closer to and expresses her concern. She whispers, “What the hell is going on?” Then, she breaks with the warning to stay in the kitchen; she goes down the stairs and meets the detective who is holding the perp with a drawn gun—he has come home to visit his mother. The chief detective has said loudly, “Drop your weapon!” She stands on the stairs, just above the entry door with her weapon drawn and says to the chief detective out loud, “He is unarmed.” We, the viewers, at that moment, think this about the chief detective: “Whoops, you didn’t think that one through, did you?” But then the chief detective holds up a pistol in his left hand and says, “I already disarmed him!” The scene shakily holds, awkward timing and all, to the chief detective’s line. The weapon in his left hand is connected to recent crimes and adds to the power of seeming truth-telling. He had already planned to kill the perp and plant that gun, until his assistant ruined the moment.
There is more to the scene than that (the actual connection between the perp and the chief detective), but I will leave it there. I have watched seven of nine episodes. I have never seen a more realistic representation of a psychopath than in this series. There are flawed, good people—very flawed—pretty good—people who have one thing in mind: outplaying the psychopath.
Politics. When we complete Donald Trump’s jokes for him, he wins. We talk endlessly about the absurd things he says and does every day. When you do this, you take his lead and run with it. That is what losers do. Almost everyone in the media does this. Foreign leaders do it.
It never stops. It never stops. OUTPLAY him. OUTPLAY him.
New America
September 7
Let’s rename everything just because I have a signing-pen in my hand, and I sit in the Oval Office. This shit is starting to get old, isn’t it?
He is undignified. He ain’t got no class—they like to say that in the movies.
History will say he was a sick son-of-a-bitch. Why the fuck didn’t you get him out of there.
I say, well: Let’s do history now: Get him the fuck out of there.
We had a buffet and played cards at Lee and Toni’s yesterday. I took some photos.
Dinner at Katy and Mike’s on Saturday, September 12
Pictures around their place on the Muskegon River.
September 15
I like the melody of What About Us?, so I added some photos and let the tune play to the end in the slideshow below. I do not know these kids. They are my grand-nephews and -nieces. I hope they do beautiful things in life. They are beautiful here. I hope they keep in mind What About Us?, and are always kind.
These are very busy days for me. September is the peak month for my work in academic testing. In addition, my type-A host for ArtPrize keeps me making trips to Grand Rapids to get ready for opening on Friday, September 18. Oh, well, go vote for me and make me a winner. My work is at the Harris Building, 111 S. Division. Use the left entrance; the right one is for the host’s piano shop, Herrema and Sons Piano Co. Go to the back: The ArtPrize pieces are there. Thanks.
September 18
This is how to vote in ArtPrize 2026. It opens today at noon.
To vote for a piece of art in ArtPrize (Grand Rapids, MI), the process is refreshingly simple:
You download the ArtPrize app, create a quick account, and then vote for the artwork you love by entering its unique five‑digit code. That’s the whole mechanism.
🖼️ How it works, step by step
- Get the ArtPrize app Available for iPhone and Android during the competition.
- Create an account Just basic info — it’s fast.
- Visit the artwork in person ArtPrize requires physical presence at the venue to vote.
- Find the artwork’s 5‑digit code Every entry has a posted number on its label or signage.
- Enter the code in the app Your vote is instantly counted.
🗳️ What to know
- You can vote for multiple pieces.
- Voting is free.
- Your votes help determine the public awards — one of the defining features of ArtPrize’s open competition.
My painting is at the back of my venue, Herrema & Sons Piano Co. It is titled Forget-Me-Not, designated by Entry #99741. Watch this short video.
My work was exhibited at Alley Gallery for a couple of weeks two years ago, thus, the lovely exhibit space there in the included video. The venue is 111 S. Division, not that far from Grand Rapids’ crossroads, Fulton and Division.
Thanks,
John Battle
September 19
A short walk through the venue
September 21
After I finished work today, for fun, I asked Copilot to create a realistic image of a ceramic version of my teapot. I like what it did.
September 25
We walked around ArtPrize yesterday:
September 29
I have been seeing this grass give a purple sheen to the pastures and hayfields around the area, sometimes heavy with dew in the morning.
This is what I found out from my AI assistant:
It looks like the purple haze you’re seeing in the hayfield is redtop grass (Agrostis gigantea), sometimes called black bentgrass.
Here’s how I can tell from your photos:
- The purplish tint comes from the fine seed heads that turn reddish‑purple when mature.
- It grows in dense patches, often forming a soft, shimmering layer over the field when dew collects.
- It’s common in old hayfields and pastures, especially in Michigan and the Midwest, thriving in moist soil.
- When cut or dried, it loses the purple color and blends into the hay.
It’s not harmful — in fact, it’s a traditional hay species, though less productive than timothy or orchardgrass.
September 30
Succinct Wisdom
Much of life is like moldy cheese: What difference does it make?
Clean it up and finish the casserole.
Have a nice meal!
What else are ya gonna do?
