Barbara’s Garden
Tough times, all around. But it’s also spring. Here in Seattle, that means our back gardens are doing their best to cheer us up. But even that is a mixed blessing, when it’s my friend Barbara’s garden. Barbara BonJour died April 18 of cancer. She was my friend for almost 40 years. We traveled together,…
Read MoreForgot three things
Three new things to add to the list of what to do whilst self-isolating:
Read MoreViral Blog
You’d think I had all the time in the world these days to write blog after blog, essay after essay for this website. Here I am, self-isolated and socially-distanced as strictly any old person ought to be. Seattle may no longer be the hottest spot for this virus to congregate, mutate and plan new attacks,…
Read MoreAntarctica
Spent most of January in Antarctica. Wanted to go to a place that humans haven’t yet had the chance to destroy. It was spectacular. The ice, the rocks, the sky, the water and the wildlife drew me in like nothing else. Here’s some photos. I don’t have enough words.
Read MoreLouisa’s take on Greta Gerwig’s Little Women
Alcott on Gerwig’s Little Women Alcott on Gerwig’s Little Women The author of Miss Alcott’s Email wonders what Louisa May would make of the new Oscar-nominated film adaption of her most beloved book. By Kit Bakke Director and screenwriter Greta Gerwig lets her audience know right away that her adaption of Little Women will be…
Read MoreBeen Traveling
Been traveling. South America is pretty much a mystery to me. We’ve traveled very little here, don’t speak Spanish, and are woefully ignorant about its land or its people. Although we have been to Machu Picchu and the surrounding Sacred Valley—all amazing, but another story—that’s just a tiny slice of our southern neighbors’ continent. Peter…
Read MoreParochial: “limited or narrow outlook”
One of the interesting aspects of traveling outside the US is to look at our country from a distance, through others’ eyes. Here is a thought-provoking example from London written by Terry Eagleton in his review of two books, The Madness of Crowds and The Problem of Everything. “Because the US is a deeply parochial society, not much…
Read MoreVisiting Germany
What do you think of when you think of Germany? We spent several weeks there in October—so Octoberfest tends to come to mind. We did see lots of beer, but no fests. In fact, some cities have their Octoberfests in September. Other connections we Americans might make about Germany is to cars (German engineering, etc.)…
Read MoreMy Uncle Phil
My mother had one brother, Philip. Earlier this year, I traveled kitty-corner across the country to sit in a hard plastic folding chair on a jetty at Cape Canaveral Florida staring 14 miles north toward the Kennedy Space Center’s launch pad 39A for five and a half hours. Why? Because a tiny capsule containing a…
Read MoreCurrently Traveling
I’m currently traveling. Please come back later. Here are two photos. Can you guess what city I’m traveling through?
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