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. […]
How Do You Choose Between 110 Kinds of Tide?
I was sent a magazine called Smart Money since I subscribe to the WSJ. It was more interesting than most magazines about finance, and a column by Anne Kadet caught my attention. It was about how Americans are fatigued with too many choices…and I must say I agree. That’s why […]
Today’s Teacher Lesson: Just Sit There…for Months
It’s the calm before the storm…and in the cozy GoNOMAD Cafe, I found a place to write here in front of the windows. I logged on to LATimes and read about the downside of teachers unions. There are 160 teachers in LA who are paid to come to school every […]
If You’re Dumb Enough to Check a Laptop, Well…
A story by Scott McCartney in yesterday’s WSJ convinced me never to ever pack anything with real value in my checked in bags. The story was about how many bags are looted and stolen from, and to make it worse, have their tags ripped off so the luggage never makes […]
Early Cruisers Loved One Thing: The Booze
I set out for the Y this morning without the book I’m reading. So I found another book on my shelf and dove in…it’s called Devils and the Deep Blue Sea: The Dreams and Schemes and Showdowns that built America’s Cruise-ship Empires. It begins by recounting the last day on […]
A Shameless Plug
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"Perfection is OK, But it Leaves the Old Man with Little to Do"
Mike Kirby writes a blog called On the Loose. A few days ago he mused about downsizing into a new condo. Granite counters, shiny this and that, but what would he be missing? He hits it squarely on the head. “Perfection is okay, but it leaves the old man with […]
Join Us for a Second New Year’s Eve in Holyoke
As I’ve gotten older I’m less and less willing to go out on New Year’s Eve. Yet last year I broke with tradition and ventured out to the Wisteriahurst Museum, to join about a hundred other proud Holyokers to bring in the new year. It was a lot of fun […]
Buffett Told Them to Send a Fax, But They Didn’t
A front page story by Scott Patterson in Saturday’s WSJ detailed the scary times last fall when it seemed the economy was collapsing right in front of our eyes. Warren Buffett says ‘he looked into the abyss’ when confronted with the scene–the government bailing out big banks, and most of […]
They Fear the Aspirations of their Own People the Most
I was up early this morning, reading and reading on my little iphone while lying in bed. So many interesting stories on such a tiny device, Lord what did I ever do before I got my mitts on this thing? I read Obama’s speech that he gave to the Nobel […]