Original anecdotes, commentary, rumination, and occasional pontification.
MARCH 27, 2021 – Current Republican efforts to adopt voter suppression legislation is a sweeping solution in search of a non-existent problem. Actually, it’s a white, racist solution to the white, racist problem of demographic decline. “If dark people, who go Democratic overwhelmingly, vote in droves,” say Republican strategists, “we gotta stop ’em.” The solution: …
MARCH 26, 2021 – When images of houses blown to bits by tornadoes flash across the screen, most people see . . . images of houses blown to bits by tornadoes. What I see is cheapskate construction, even in upscale neighborhoods. I see in the wreckage behind the on-site reporter, lots of OSB (oriented strand …
MARCH 25, 2021 – “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” I got that from a 2016 Smithsonian article quoting Wiliam Faulkner in a fascinating story behind the film, Free State of Jones, written and directed by Gary Ross (Hunger Games; Seabiscuit), and starring Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club – Best Actor). The …
MARCH 24, 2021 – As I read about the latest shootings in Atlanta and Boulder, I’m thinking it’s time for a change; time to modernize our national emblem. I speak of the proud bald eagle that forms the official seal of the United States of America. What’s with the arrows in the claws of that …
MARCH 23, 2021 – Forty years ago this month I embarked on a solo trek around the world. Traveling alone, I was never lonely. Without today’s technology, I navigated via guidebooks, paper maps, and total strangers, whom I learned to size-up quickly by their eyes, posture, and corners of the mouth. Though I chose destinations—such …
MARCH 22, 2021 – One day when I was a little kid my sister Elsa told me how to spell Hungary. I’m not sure of the circumstances, but in her usual, authoritative way, she informed me that although the country name sounded like “hungry in the stomach,” it was spelled with an “a, as in …
MARCH 21, 2021 – On the first day of spring, I skied my 88th day of the 2020-2021 season (northern hemisphere). In 28 years of record-keeping, that’s nine days above average; three days above median. In the process, I set three records: 1. Skiing every day of January; 2. Every day of February; and 3. …
MARCH 20, 2021 – Friday marked the death of Byron Hanson, musician and teacher extraordinaire at Interlochen Arts Academy. I first heard about Mr. Hanson from my sister Elsa. As I prepared for my first year at Interlochen—immediately following Elsa’s last—she told much about his genius, dedication, and inspiration. A graduate of Edina High School …
MARCH 19, 2021 – The up-coming trial of the Minneapolis cop charged with killing George Floyd, Jr. will be another boxing match, racial injustice class. In Corner #1: One set of facts—the video that all the world has seen; white cop pressing his knee against the neck of helpless black man until black man dies; …
MARCH 18, 2021 – As I lifted the receiver and started dialing home, Barbie S_________ (don’t worry; by fifth grade she’d become “Barb” and “Barbara”) interrupted me. She was one of my party group and consistently the smartest, most aware kid in our class. “We’re not leaving in the middle of the movie, are we?!” …
MARCH 17, 2021 – Often I play a mind game involving conversations with people of my past, including myself; past—as opposed to future—is only natural, given that “my movie,” you might say, is well past intermission. Speaking of “intermission,” I remember clearly my introduction to the word. The occasion was my eighth birthday party, or …
MARCH 16, 2021 – Hanneys were unusual for our insular town, which straddled the Rum River where it debouches into the Upper Mississippi. Father Hanney spoke with a Welsh accent, and his wife Nell talked with an English one, though I couldn’t distinguish between the two accents. To my young American ears, the older Hanneys …
MARCH 15, 2021 – The shoreline of Björnholm, our family’s retreat in northwest Wisconsin, presents an engineering challenge. After years of fighting the steep embankment in front of the cabin, Dad and Grandpa moved the dock and boatlift to more accessible terrain down the shore. Years later lake ice re-arranged that location. Over time, Dad …
MARCH 14, 2021 – Yesterday I lay low, wrapped in a blanket, watching Disney movies with my wife (to educate ourselves about our grand-daughter’s world), and just waiting it out. I was side-lined by the side-effects from my second vaccination the day before. Mind you, at no time did I regret the vaccination. (Get yours …
MARCH 13, 2021 – Yesterday marked an anniversary—the last time I rode a bus; my last day at my downtown office; the day I sat for 20 minutes across a table from a voluble guy, who experienced severe symptoms the following day, winding up on a hospital ventilator and nearly succumbing to The Plague. I …
MARCH 12, 2021 – Last Wednesday I wrote about “church town” U.S.A., which was a tad weird, given that I’m wholly unholy. Call it nostalgia or . . . the aging process amidst a world in constant tumult. My earlier post, however, didn’t go inside any of the mentioned churches. That’s because I myself never …
MARCH 11, 2021 – In her prime I didn’t appreciate Mother. She wasn’t afraid to try new things, meet new people, consider alternative ideas. As I myself struggled to conform to community standards, I found her unconventionality unbecoming. Take for instance the time members of the Minneapolis Symphony (now Minnesota Orchestra) staged a concert at …
MARCH 10, 2021 – Where I grew up, sometimes you’d run into a kid who went to Mt. Olivet Missouri Synod Lutheran Church, hidden on our side of town; the Baptist Church, standing across from Monty’s Pure Oil at Main and Ferry; the Congregational Church, sitting modestly behind Anoka Junior High School; the understated Methodist …
MARCH 9, 2021 – On today’s local news the youthful forecaster cheerfully promised bright sunshine and record high temperatures. Mercury’s already flying high—well above 40. My main concern is . . . over the past 24 hours, how much snow has disappeared from my remaining run in nearby “Little Switzerland”? Yesterday, before the sun got …
MARCH 8, 2021 – Until my wife and I watched The Crown on Netflix, British royalty was barely a blip on my radar (See 2/24/21 post). By the end of the series, however, the blip was a battleship. Then came last night’s airing of Oprah’s interview of Harry and Meghan. My wife and I watched …
MARCH 7, 2021 – The details are so intricate and interwoven, only by patient review of the fast-paced, suspenseful, multi-dimensional back-room political dealing can a person appreciate the episode in its full expanse. It unfolded in the final days of the 1960 presidential campaign. At the center was Martin Luther King, Jr., adamant about his …
MARCH 6, 2021 – PING! I checked my phone—a message on WhatsApp. Since I’m connected with only three people on that Facebook-owned app, by easy deduction I knew the text was from our son Byron. “If you are looking for an interesting documentary [. . .],” it read. “Yes?” I replied “The Social Dilemma[.]” “Netflix?” …
MARCH5, 2021 – On August 5, 2019, I met Idris, a 27-year old Somali immigrant who made an immediate positive impression. The next day, I wrote about him in a blog post (I’d misspelled his name, adding an extra “s.”). Yesterday, Idris called out of the blue. I was delighted to hear from him, and …
MARCH 4, 2021 – As my closest friends (and imaginary psychologist) know, for years my exercise regimen involves a weekly quota of a mile of vertical feet—stairs and hiking or skiing uphill. This works out to 750 feet a day, plus an extra 30 feet (called “leap feet”) per week. Much of my climbing occurs …
MARCH 3, 2021 -The big news on an otherwise slow news day: six Seuss classics banned for life. My reaction? Hmm. I’m an acknowledged American “leftist” (the equivalent of center-right in much of good ol’ Europe), and anyone reading my posts knows how I feel about the need for racial justice in the Disunited States …