Average Joe
@planetjoseph.bsky.social
Insatiably curious.
Writer, Reader, Maryland lover.
Writer, Reader, Maryland lover.
Finally turned in a big feature article that took me forever and dominated my life for a few weeks. I’m pretty proud of the work I did and also pretty pleased with how it turned out. I need a … something. I don’t know. 🥃
August 29, 2026 at 10:59 PM
Finally turned in a big feature article that took me forever and dominated my life for a few weeks. I’m pretty proud of the work I did and also pretty pleased with how it turned out. I need a … something. I don’t know. 🥃
I’m eyeball deep in writing an article about marching band culture and it’s been so hard to “kill my darlings” on this one. Agony. #journalism
August 28, 2026 at 9:44 PM
I’m eyeball deep in writing an article about marching band culture and it’s been so hard to “kill my darlings” on this one. Agony. #journalism
I rage-baited my adopted state with the most controversial hot take I could think of, and the reaction did not disappoint. Sorry to Orange Crush loyalists, I have a different summer cocktail that’s even more Maryland-y. I cropped the article b/c even this is paywalled journalism
August 28, 2026 at 9:43 PM
I rage-baited my adopted state with the most controversial hot take I could think of, and the reaction did not disappoint. Sorry to Orange Crush loyalists, I have a different summer cocktail that’s even more Maryland-y. I cropped the article b/c even this is paywalled journalism
One of my favorite publications I get to contribute to is but once a year, Spooky Little Halloween magazine. This year’s article is kind of an experimental homage to the charming style of Almanacs, tracking the fall moons and trying to capture the vibes (as they say) of the season. Check it out!
August 20, 2026 at 6:42 PM
One of my favorite publications I get to contribute to is but once a year, Spooky Little Halloween magazine. This year’s article is kind of an experimental homage to the charming style of Almanacs, tracking the fall moons and trying to capture the vibes (as they say) of the season. Check it out!
People use AI for a number or reasons that should be questioned. Unlike me. I use it to ask questions where I know its inclination to agree with me will make me believe I am in possession of good taste.
August 18, 2026 at 5:20 PM
People use AI for a number or reasons that should be questioned. Unlike me. I use it to ask questions where I know its inclination to agree with me will make me believe I am in possession of good taste.
Turns out you can just … write about food. Here’s my latest on the #Baltimore carryout with a cult following that has now expanded to #FrederickMD #Ekiben
For Frederick Magazine:
www.frederickmagazine.com/articles/fla...
For Frederick Magazine:
www.frederickmagazine.com/articles/fla...
Flavor Burst — Frederick Magazine
By now, the arrival of Ekiben to the Downtown dining scene is hardly breaking news. The trendy Ethiopian/Taiwanese fusion joint, already with three Baltimore locations, a James Beard semifinalist chef...
www.frederickmagazine.com
August 11, 2026 at 6:17 PM
Turns out you can just … write about food. Here’s my latest on the #Baltimore carryout with a cult following that has now expanded to #FrederickMD #Ekiben
For Frederick Magazine:
www.frederickmagazine.com/articles/fla...
For Frederick Magazine:
www.frederickmagazine.com/articles/fla...
What am I missing? Wife and I have tried 3 times to watch the film version of Merrily We Roll Along, ya know, the one that got all the awards and stuff? And it’s…terrible? Unwatchable? Yet it’s called a musical masterpiece. I’m no stranger to the form, & I like other Sondheim shows, I don’t get it!
August 6, 2026 at 9:48 PM
What am I missing? Wife and I have tried 3 times to watch the film version of Merrily We Roll Along, ya know, the one that got all the awards and stuff? And it’s…terrible? Unwatchable? Yet it’s called a musical masterpiece. I’m no stranger to the form, & I like other Sondheim shows, I don’t get it!
I am shooketh. I gave this 5 stars. I’m left with the question given my own religious history and context as a former Mormon discouraged by that faith’s Faustian bargain with right wing culture wars, who is the Tim Alberta of Mormonism to write a diagnostic this thorough for us?
June 18, 2026 at 1:02 PM
I am shooketh. I gave this 5 stars. I’m left with the question given my own religious history and context as a former Mormon discouraged by that faith’s Faustian bargain with right wing culture wars, who is the Tim Alberta of Mormonism to write a diagnostic this thorough for us?
Just listening to a charming little violin concerto by some Finnish composer guy from the late 1800s. Sibelis or something. Who knows? And playing solitaire. Sunday night perfection.
June 15, 2026 at 12:49 AM
Just listening to a charming little violin concerto by some Finnish composer guy from the late 1800s. Sibelis or something. Who knows? And playing solitaire. Sunday night perfection.
Reposted by Average Joe
"If a person has ugly thoughts, it begins to show on the face. And when that person has ugly thoughts every day, every week, every year, the face gets uglier and uglier until you can hardly bear to look at it." - Roald Dahl
June 7, 2026 at 9:46 PM
"If a person has ugly thoughts, it begins to show on the face. And when that person has ugly thoughts every day, every week, every year, the face gets uglier and uglier until you can hardly bear to look at it." - Roald Dahl
Reading by the pool is a vibe. This book is intriguing so far, 50 pages in. I’m hooked.
June 5, 2026 at 12:02 PM
Reading by the pool is a vibe. This book is intriguing so far, 50 pages in. I’m hooked.
Reposted by Average Joe
Less: ChatGPT
More: Researching amidst the flickering lanterns of an old-fashioned library in Edinburgh during a raging thunderstorm with the help of a library ghost.
More: Researching amidst the flickering lanterns of an old-fashioned library in Edinburgh during a raging thunderstorm with the help of a library ghost.
June 3, 2026 at 12:35 PM
Less: ChatGPT
More: Researching amidst the flickering lanterns of an old-fashioned library in Edinburgh during a raging thunderstorm with the help of a library ghost.
More: Researching amidst the flickering lanterns of an old-fashioned library in Edinburgh during a raging thunderstorm with the help of a library ghost.
Ooh, I just noticed on my Goodreads that I passed the milestone of 1,000 books read. That feels pretty significant in my personal #reading life. Go me, myself, and I!
June 2, 2026 at 5:15 PM
Ooh, I just noticed on my Goodreads that I passed the milestone of 1,000 books read. That feels pretty significant in my personal #reading life. Go me, myself, and I!
I’d like to spend my Audible credit on a beefy but not stuffy nonfiction book. With that prompt I’m soliciting your suggestions 🙏🏼
May 30, 2026 at 1:42 PM
I’d like to spend my Audible credit on a beefy but not stuffy nonfiction book. With that prompt I’m soliciting your suggestions 🙏🏼
I’ve been doing a “nighttime at the kitchen table” ritual lately where I brew a pot of tea and settle the day down with a book. Here’s a few recent ones. But it’s a fun practice and I hope to keep it going.
May 28, 2026 at 3:14 PM
I’ve been doing a “nighttime at the kitchen table” ritual lately where I brew a pot of tea and settle the day down with a book. Here’s a few recent ones. But it’s a fun practice and I hope to keep it going.
Nighttime at the kitchen table: Loose leaf rooibos with Ethiopian tea spices and the audio version of Yellowface by R.F. Kuang. Fascinating premise and hell of an opening/inciting incident.
May 28, 2026 at 2:52 AM
Nighttime at the kitchen table: Loose leaf rooibos with Ethiopian tea spices and the audio version of Yellowface by R.F. Kuang. Fascinating premise and hell of an opening/inciting incident.
My reads since April. If you’ve read any of these, let me know! Let’s ✨discuss✨
May 28, 2026 at 1:39 AM
My reads since April. If you’ve read any of these, let me know! Let’s ✨discuss✨
Reposted by Average Joe
Terry Laird is one of two ferry operators that serve the 200 full-time residents of Smith Island, Maryland.
Several months ago, a rumor circulated that he was quitting — and it sent the island into a tizzy. https://wapo.st/492NGIH
Several months ago, a rumor circulated that he was quitting — and it sent the island into a tizzy. https://wapo.st/492NGIH
May 16, 2026 at 3:00 AM
Terry Laird is one of two ferry operators that serve the 200 full-time residents of Smith Island, Maryland.
Several months ago, a rumor circulated that he was quitting — and it sent the island into a tizzy. https://wapo.st/492NGIH
Several months ago, a rumor circulated that he was quitting — and it sent the island into a tizzy. https://wapo.st/492NGIH
If you liked The Count of Monte Cristo, this book is right up there with it.
August 10, 2025 at 11:34 AM
If you liked The Count of Monte Cristo, this book is right up there with it.
While not my favorite band, the strays Coldplay fans are catching over this whole fiasco is rude! Let us enjoy music made for the masses. It’s ok! Let people enjoy things!
July 17, 2025 at 7:03 PM
While not my favorite band, the strays Coldplay fans are catching over this whole fiasco is rude! Let us enjoy music made for the masses. It’s ok! Let people enjoy things!
My latest feature is about our local Shakespeare festival, but don’t be fooled, it’s a great read for anyone interested in knowing what goes into a successful Shakespeare festival and all the reasons why they’re great for a community’s cultural milieu. www.fredericknewspost.com/news/arts_an...
Now in its seventh season, the Frederick Shakespeare Festival is hitting its stride
By Joseph Peterson
www.fredericknewspost.com
July 15, 2025 at 4:17 PM
My latest feature is about our local Shakespeare festival, but don’t be fooled, it’s a great read for anyone interested in knowing what goes into a successful Shakespeare festival and all the reasons why they’re great for a community’s cultural milieu. www.fredericknewspost.com/news/arts_an...
Important thread on AI in journalism. I think it can be an incredibly useful tool much like a recorder or a pen and notepad are for the gum shoe. But it can’t, and shouldn’t, replace the writer.
I have a lot of thoughts about this, but my main one is this: When @jasonkoebler.bsky.social talks about this job being one that's especially human, he's absolutely correct.
Reporting & writing are intimate, human skills. We need to lean into that to build trust and to create work worth supporting.
Reporting & writing are intimate, human skills. We need to lean into that to build trust and to create work worth supporting.
The Media's Pivot to AI Is Not Real and Not Going to Work
AI is not going to save media companies, and forcing journalists to use AI is not a business model.
www.404media.co
July 15, 2025 at 1:09 AM
Important thread on AI in journalism. I think it can be an incredibly useful tool much like a recorder or a pen and notepad are for the gum shoe. But it can’t, and shouldn’t, replace the writer.
Reposted by Average Joe
Washington, D.C., has a population roughly equivalent to Alaska's.
And it has zero senators. If D.C. had senators, the GOP megablil bill would have failed today.
Instead, Murkowski got carve-outs and money for Alaska, and then voted to subject DC to the bill
And it has zero senators. If D.C. had senators, the GOP megablil bill would have failed today.
Instead, Murkowski got carve-outs and money for Alaska, and then voted to subject DC to the bill
July 1, 2025 at 11:02 PM
Washington, D.C., has a population roughly equivalent to Alaska's.
And it has zero senators. If D.C. had senators, the GOP megablil bill would have failed today.
Instead, Murkowski got carve-outs and money for Alaska, and then voted to subject DC to the bill
And it has zero senators. If D.C. had senators, the GOP megablil bill would have failed today.
Instead, Murkowski got carve-outs and money for Alaska, and then voted to subject DC to the bill
Reposted by Average Joe
This @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social video is absolutely INCREDIBLE. The numbers he cites, the strategy and results they produced — it’s the future. When have you heard *any* campaign talk about this, ever? (Video split in 2 to fit in Bluesky’s limits)
July 1, 2025 at 4:45 PM
This @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social video is absolutely INCREDIBLE. The numbers he cites, the strategy and results they produced — it’s the future. When have you heard *any* campaign talk about this, ever? (Video split in 2 to fit in Bluesky’s limits)