"A Prairie Home Companion" Sets Down in Lenox
Last night Garrison Keillor sang in the rain. In his white shirt and red tie, fifteen minutes before the live Saturday night broadcast of “A Prairie Home Companion” at the Koussevitsky Music Shed in Lenox, he serenaded joyful fans seated on the lawn with a version of the Gene Kelley […]
Google’s New Phone Will Do Much, Much More
Andy Rubin had a meeting with Google’s Larry Page that turned out much better than he expected it to. Rubin, the inventor of the Sidekick phone, wanted Page to give his endorsement to his new telephone software called Android. An article by Daniel Roth in this month’s Wired gives the […]
North Koreans Leave Simply to Eat and Be Free
There is a new movie about North Korea that I’m eager to see. Apparently it’s tough to watch, because it is about defectors who have made the crossing over the Tumen River into China in search of food and a better life. Melanie Kirkpatrick wrote about a new film called […]
Reaching Full Mobility and Listening To Larry
Today I am more mobile than I’ve been in years. I dragged my old 1997 Avalon to the third mechanic I could find, this one in Amherst, figuring that this was the final straw before I gave it to the American Lung Association. But — I drove away with an […]
I Can See! I Can See! Better than Ever
Yesterday I left the office early for an important appointment. I had been waiting months for this day, and at 3 pm, I was seated in a dark office popping two Valium with Cindy by my side. It was time to slice open my eyes with a laser and shave […]
We Just Ran Out of Excuses for Incandescent Bulbs
I read an angry diatribe in the Boston Globe a few months back about the tyranny of forcing consumers to switch to compact flourescent lights. The story railed about how unfair it was to make Americans use more efficient lightbulbs that burn a fraction of the energy. How it was […]
On "The Beach," Life Is Idyllic Until….
Last night’s movie called “The Beach” made me dream about writing blogs. Leonardo DiCaprio is Richard, a hard-partying traveler who meets a crazy Scot named Daffy in a Bangkok fleabag motel, and then finds him dead after he’s killed himself. But before he dies, he gives Richard a map to […]
This Is Progress! Right On Cape Wind
It was mighty encouraging to read that opponents of Cape Wind, who have thrown up all manner of legal obstacles to building offshore wind turbines in Nantucket Sound, have been pushed aside. We have to begin building our green infrastructure and wind, solar and even nuclear power have to be […]
Solar and Wind Tax Credits Should Be Extended!
Thomas Friedman once again calls it right…in a blistering column today he points at President Bush and scolds him for not being any sort of leader on energy. Great stuff, I just wish Bush and the Repblicans would read it. “The Senate Republicans — sorry to say, with the help […]
The Mini-vacation on the Cape–Good for the Soul
We have been enjoying our Cape Cod vacation and last night met a wonderful young couple who sat with us at the wedding reception. Bride and Groom Jackie and Mark included many personal touches that made the wedding more fun. At the table, the placecards were all little snippets of […]
Blackberry Time on the High Seas
Even with the Pittsburgh skyline and the fascinating company aboard the Gateway Clipper, the lure of the Blackberry is a tempation that’s hard to put down. Here uber traveler Johnny Jet checks email while we cruised the Allegheny river on Thursday night. We caught up with many interesting writers and […]
Maintenant, Nous Sommes en Vacance
It’s been a long time coming, we’re finally on our long-awaited Cape Cod mini-vacation to attend the wedding of Jackie Stevenson and Mark Archer. This young couple invited us way, way back when the snow was on the ground and the day has finally come for our two-night stay at […]
Pittsburgh Looks Even Better from the River
Last night we got a chance to see Pittsburgh from the Allegheny River aboard the Gateway Clipper. This huge party boat has four levels and is plenty big for hundreds of PR pros and tourism board people to mix with a handful of journalists while chugging up the river. I […]
Charles Veley Has Seen It All–and Wants to Go Back
I met a man tonight who’s been everywhere. He’s Charles Veley, the “most traveled person in America.” This moniker is quite a feat, since so many of the people I hang around with have serious stamps in their passports. But Veley is the real deal, and his travels put him […]
A Stuffed Dodo and the Legend of Iroquois Ironworkers
I am at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, which is attached to an art museum. Here there are four computers and they invite museum goers to blog about the museum and an exhibition called Life On Mars. Like many modern art exhibits, this […]
Advice for the Solo Traveler: Take a Seat at the Bar
I have some advice for solo travelers. Visit a restaurant with a long bar and sit near a corner. Last night I took this advice and walked many blocks of the center city to find The Sonoma Grille, a large, airy place on Penn Avenue. As is my custom, I […]
Pittsburgh, You’ve Got Spunk. I Love Spunk
I knew I’d like this city, from the moment I stepped into the Town car that whisked me the 22 minutes from the airport to the Marriot downtown. “I wouldn’t live anywhere else!” said my driver Patrick McArdle. He runs his own art salon in the city, and used to […]
Biking By the Three Rivers in Pittsburgh Today
Last night I had trouble sleeping, since I kept thinking about the plane. What time it was actually departing I hadn’t noted down, so I wasn’t sure when I had to leave for the airport. I fly to Pittsburgh this morning on 11 am flight and at 3:30 pm I […]