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JON ZAL

Your front-row seat to my nervous breakdown

Archives for September 2018

#WarriorDown

September 14, 2018 4 Comments

My man Sam Shelby cleaning up Wrightsville BeachMy man Sam Shelby cleaning up Wrightsville BeachI originally published this piece three years ago today. I am re-upping it now both because of that anniversary, and because my dear friend Sam was from, and loved, the area currently getting hammered by Hurricane Florence. He was an environmentalist and a self-appointed steward of Wrightsville Beach who, among other things, organized trash cleanups there, and who even launched a green apparel line (Organic Lifestyle Apparel) that, in part, benefits his local chapter of the Surfrider organization, which “is dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world’s ocean, waves and beaches through a powerful activist network.” If you are able and so inclined, please consider contributing to that non-profit, and/or to the Red Cross, which will be doing critical work to help people affected by the hurricane.

***

I called him “Shep,” like, at least two or three times before finally realizing that I’d misremembered (yes, that’s a word now) his last name; it was “Sam Shelby,” not “Sam Shepard.” It was our first day working together, and there I am, calling him “Shep” … repeatedly … because I’m a douche. Of course, when I finally realized (with no small amount of embarrassment) the mistake I’d been making, Sam merely laughed it off and took it upon himself to make the moment far less uncomfortable and awkward than I deserved for it to be … because that’s just who he was.

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Filed Under: Personal Tagged With: #MOJOWARRIORS, Hurricane Florence, MOJO WARRIORS, Sam Shelby, Wrightsville Beach

There Is No Resistance Inside The Trump Administration. That I Can Tell You. Believe Me.

September 9, 2018 5 Comments

I work for the president and I can tell you that no one in the White House wants to meddle with his agenda because he is a smart person who hires the best people. And I am not the only one who thinks so. Many people are saying it.

Jon Zal is taking the rare step of publishing an anonymous Op-Ed essay. He has done so at the request of the author, a very, very, very senior official in the Trump administration whose identity is known to Jon Zal and the stature of whose formerly dignified and revered office would only be further sullied by the disclosure of that person’s identity. Jon Zal believes publishing this essay anonymously is the best way to make this bit funny. He does not care what you think about his vetting process. Keep it to yourself.

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President Trump — who, in a recent poll, was found to be even more popular than Abraham Lincoln, and who probably is the best president in the history of presidenting — is facing a test to his presidency unlike any faced by the 44 much less popular presidents who came before him.

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Filed Under: Politics Tagged With: #TheResistance, Trump

Endurance in the age of Trump, Part 3

September 3, 2018 4 Comments

Well well well … we’ve sure had a full and busy day, now, haven’t we? Yes we have … so much so, in fact, that, were we to write about it, it might end up being an overwrought trilogy that would take us four months to complete. Can you even imagine?

That's a lotta footsteps“Previously, on ‘Endurance in the Age of Trump: An Overwrought Trilogy That Took Us Four Months To Complete’: Jon went on The Most Patriotic Jog of All Time, and then visited Awe-Inspiring Memorials Dedicated to People Far Greater Than Those Currently In Charge, during which he clocked a combined total of almost 25,000 footsteps and covered nearly 14 miles.”

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Filed Under: Politics Tagged With: John Lewis, John McCain, Rod Rosenstein, Trump

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Jon ZalFollow18,34552,851

Writer, husband, father, Army veteran (Military Police K-9) • BLOG: https://t.co/VKNuVvMZ3e • IG: https://t.co/se86z2v34M #BlockedByTrump

Jon Zal
OfficialJonZal avatarJon Zal@OfficialJonZal·
13h 1203396658945548289

Rarely have I ever read on Twitter a thread that so clearly articulates my own thoughts. This one does.

David Darmofal@david_darmofal

A really quick thread on @KamalaHarris's campaign & what it meant to Gen Xers. I know from my social networks that she has a particular resonance with us Gen Xers. First, she was the first definitive high-profile Democratic Gen X candidate. Her cultural touchstones were...1/

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OfficialJonZal avatarJon Zal@OfficialJonZal·
6 Dec 1202788925196177408

I mean, this is bad and all, but what about the fact that someone accurately pointed out that @FLOTUS’s kid’s name is a homophone?

Eric Umansky@ericuman

A 16-yr-old boy died in Border Patrol custody. He had the flu

They didn't take him to the hospital
They didn't release him
They didn't even seem to check on him as he was dying on the floor of his cell, contrary to the govt's account

We have the video

https://t.co/DE0BDzyviI

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OfficialJonZal avatarJon Zal@OfficialJonZal·
6 Dec 1202781739531296768

Worst cold I can remember having in years and I just burped and threw up in my mouth. How’s your night going?

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OfficialJonZal avatarJon Zal@OfficialJonZal·
4 Dec 1202334901082689536

The real reason Republicans are so angry about these hearings is that they thought they were going to get to impeach Hillary, but their racist, dipshit voters elected Trump instead.

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OfficialJonZal avatarJon Zal@OfficialJonZal·
4 Dec 1202331269650100224

I had to stop listening. How is @mattgaetz DUIng so far?

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OfficialJonZal avatarJon Zal@OfficialJonZal·
4 Dec 1202255732487405568

I'm unfamiliar with House rules, so can someone please answer this for me: When Professor Karlan's testimony is over, is she required to return Doug Collins's balls, or does he have to make a motion for that?

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OfficialJonZal avatarJon Zal@OfficialJonZal·
4 Dec 1202248067073921024

Did @Jim_Jordan & @RepDougCollins both take the same "Whine As Fast As You Can" course?

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OfficialJonZal avatarJon Zal@OfficialJonZal·
4 Dec 1202241561494507521

Fuck off.

DJ@muffinn66

@OfficialJonZal Just an outside observer...but is it really necessary to curse so often? Politics aside, how about some respect for the English language and decent discourse?

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ABOUT ME

Jon Zal @ The Capitol

I was born in 1970, raised just outside of Boston, and now live near Philadelphia. As a child, I thought I was going to be…
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Instagram

Instagram post 2175181534360609955_5919568488 Took me a while to embrace my “veteran” status, but in a day an age when some of the people at the top of our government are twisting the meaning of patriotism, maligning those who have dedicated their lives to serving our country honorably, and doing so while claiming to have the support of all military members & veterans, I feel it’s important to balance the scales.

Never had any veterans apparel before this year. Bought this shirt and hat. Wore them tonight to a Veterans Day ceremony downtown, which my son was attending as a member of his high school’s Veterans Club. My daughter, meanwhile, borrowed my shirt from the Veterans 5K I ran earlier this year so she could wear it to school today. And my wife made me my annual Veterans Day apple pie 🥧. Very appreciative of my family’s recognition of & respect for those who serve. 🇺🇸
Instagram post 2175168977906209332_5919568488 Proud to be a third-generation veteran.

That’s me, the weekend I finished Army basic training in September of ‘88; my Dad aboard the U.S.S. New Jersey during the Vietnam War; my Dad’s Dad during World War II; and my Mom’s Dad, who was a Marine who served during World War II & saw some serious combat in the South Pacific.

Thank you to all who served. 🇺🇸 #VeteransDay
Instagram post 2167065201190265294_5919568488 Taken 10 years ago tonight. The kids were 6 & 4, and our house at the time was the big Halloween attraction in the neighborhood. Fog machine, strobe light, spooky sounds, tons of decorations (including a full-size coffin made from plywood), extended family members in costume, and a voice-activated grim-reaper skeleton whose eyes would light up & whose jaw would move when you spoke into the attached microphone. Mister Bones, we called him.

I could see & hear the trick-or-treaters via a hidden baby cam. They’d freak out (in a good way) when they realized the skeleton was actually carrying on a real conversation with them & calling them by name. Pretty fun.

Our current house doesn’t get the same traffic, so we don’t do that whole production anymore. *sigh* Great memories, though.

Meanwhile ... kiddos got creative with the pumpkins this year. 👍🏻 #HappyHalloween
🎃 👻 💀
Instagram post 2162787347224859152_5919568488 My ride home is kinda beautiful.

I just wish fall came between summer & summer.

#nofilter
Instagram post 2158896412409964257_5919568488 I’m cold, I’m wet, and my nipples are on fire (my shirt rubbed them raw; TMI?) ... but I did the five miles ... which, actually, was far less than the psychological distance between how badly I did not want to run today and the finish line. 🏃🏻
Instagram post 2158553580503317138_5919568488 Fall, y’all. 🍁

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