Hi there:
My name is Jim Hagarty and this is a new site – Jim Hagarty: Things That Make Me Laugh (and Cry) – dedicated to showcasing the best of my work from the past 52 years of writing for publication. I am a retired newspaper reporter and editor and spent six great years teaching journalism at a Canadian college. I have been a storyteller since I was a kid but during my years on newspapers, I turned that hobby into humour writing and that, as it turns out, is my true passion.
I won’t go into much detail about myself here because as you read my stories, you’ll gradually discover more than you want to know about me. That is because I am not comfortable laughing at others (except for dumb criminals, I howl at them) but I don’t mind poking fun at myself as a flawed human being who bumbles along day by day in this fast-paced world.
Some of you might have become familiar with me through a blog I began in 2016 called Lifetime Sentences: Tales from a Wandering Mind. I continue to breathe life into that site, located at lifetimesentences.com, every day but it is a real funhouse filled with all sorts of things from great photography, wonderful music, and many contributions from friends I have met along the way.
This new site will be dedicated to my work only. My books, newspaper columns, poems, limericks and even a few opinion pieces. I don’t expect to spend the amount of time on this site that I dedicate every day to Lifetime Sentences, but you never know. My concept is to feature just one piece of my own writing every day. That will amount to 365 pieces every year. At that rate, given my backlog of writing spanning 52 years, it could take me a very long time to run out of stuff, especially since I am writing new material almost every day.
Much of what you’ll see here you will have already encountered at lifetimesentences.com. But I hope maybe in time, you will bookmark this site and we will enjoy each other’s company.
Without readers, a writer is a guitarist playing to an empty concert hall.
I need you.
And while you might find you don’t need me all that much, it might occur to you after awhile that you don’t mind having me around. I’m a pretty good houseguest. I can usually feed myself, I clean up pretty well and I only snore less than five hours a night. If you want, I will even walk your dog.
I am looking forward to getting to know you.
Jim Hagarty – Things That Make Me Laugh (and Cry)
