A Town on Tenterhooks
In the NY Times, Northampton was described as a “town on tenterhooks.” This expression goes back to 14th century, and refers to the ‘tenters’ which were used to stretch out wool in the sun, so that it wouldn’t shrink when it was being cleaned. The woodent tenter held it stretched […]
The Oldest Justice Swims Every Day
John Paul Stevens has been on the Supreme C0urt for 34 years. It is thought that he might someday become the longest serving justice of all time. I watched him on television tonight, and at 89 he was as spry and sharp as a man of 60. It was remarkable. […]
Odds and Ends at the End of the Year
I read in the Boston Herald about a tragedy…that donated clothing is being turned into rags. Rags! You’d think the clothes were alive or something. People are upset, and vowing to only bring their throwaway clothes to Goodwill, not to to the boxes that sit in many Cape Cod Supermarket […]
"I’m Happy Just to Look at You:" The Real Rain Man
When Barry Morrow won Best Screenplay Oscar for Rain Man, he gave the precious statuette to the original Rain Man, Kim Peek, who had inspired the screenplay. The savant who would become world famous after the movie won four Oscars died last week, leaving the world without an incredible mind […]
Christmas Morning Repose
It’s Christmas and a feeling of peace and contentment wafts through the air. Everybody is busy with some new toy or gadget; others are casually pulling their loot together to get ready to bring it home. It’s a satisfying thing to know that virtually every business has stopped, for a […]
A Net Zero House: My Eventual Goal
Some things are exciting….like being energy neutral. I read today about Net-zero homes that make and save as much energy as they use in the WSJ this cold morning. WOW! In Greenfield, Rural Development is putting up duplexes with these features, and can add $37K to the price of the […]
Do We Really Care if Cops have College Degrees?
I read so many things today I can’t think of where to begin. The Recorder had a story about how some police unions are suing a local town over Quinn Bill benefits. This law provides steep raises for any cops who take on-line or other dubiously challenging college courses. It’s […]
Quadruplets Add Four to Yale’s Class of 2014
I dialed up the NY Times on line this morning as I sipped my first cup of coffee. There I read about quadruplets from Connecticut who all got the same joyous news…they saw the blue screen, then the Eli bulldog, which meant that they had all been accepted into Yale. […]