Feb 5Decisions, decisions“No one would have believed that in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man’s…No one gave a thought to the older worlds of space as sources of human danger.” These are opening words to H. G…Voting5 min readVoting5 min read
Feb 4Valentine to CaregiversTraditions come from somewhere. Saint Valentine is a composite of historic religious figures that includes St. Valentine of Viterbo, St. Valentine of Raetia, and others who share martyrdom because of their beliefs. Their lifeworks, and stories have combined into the legendary St. Valentine, patron saint of such disparate areas as…Caregiver Support4 min readCaregiver Support4 min read
Jan 18CommunityMay 1864. Lt Colonel Charles Lyon Chandler led the 57th Infantry of the Union army at the Battle of North Anna River. He and his men were over taken, and Lt Colonel Chandler was mortally wounded on the battlefield. The commanding officer of the Confederate Army had him brought to…Community5 min readCommunity5 min read
Nov 22, 2022Abortion, like everything else, it’s all about property rights…Once upon a time there was a vast land, suddenly known to Europeans. They called it America, after Amerigo Vespucci, the circa 1500 a.d., Florentine explorer. There were people in America already, but along with blankets and baubles to trade, the Europeans brought their favorite traditions: property rights and religion. …Property Rights5 min readProperty Rights5 min read
Jun 7, 2022King For a DayIn 1604 King James of Scotland was super pumped to be getting another country. His cousin Elizabeth I, Queen of England, had died, leaving him first in line of succession to the British throne. He was on his way to London to impose his will on his new subjects, when…Voting5 min readVoting5 min read
Feb 2, 2022My Valentine to Teachers“Shall we play a game?” is a gateway question to many learning opportunities, not just a great line from a movie. My dad’s cousin Anne was an elementary school teacher when I was growing up. She had many subjects to teach to her students, but her lesson on what it…Teachers5 min readTeachers5 min read
Nov 2, 2021Thanksgiving and the true gift of traditionsWhen my siblings and I were growing up, our mother had great go-to phrases when we complained about our sad lot in life. As soon as one of us started a pity party about how unfair life was, and how there are too many people in this family, she would…Thanksgiving6 min readThanksgiving6 min read
Nov 2, 2021Balancing rights and responsibilities, the search for social grace in the age of social distancing.Once upon a time, there was a young woman named Mary. She was a cook in private homes in New York and New Jersey in the early twentieth century. She had quite the reputation as a cook, her employers were particularly fond of her ice cream recipe. When she left…Vaccines5 min readVaccines5 min read
Dec 29, 2020Wondering why Donald Trump is attacking his Republicans? It’s in his nature.“It’s in my nature”. That’s what the scorpion said after fatally stinging the frog who had carried him safely across the river. In September 2019 a friend asked me who I thought would be president in January 2021. I thought about this à la the frog and scorpion fable. The…Trump Attacks Republicans4 min readTrump Attacks Republicans4 min read
Sep 23, 2020Why I VoteEveryone has a story of why voting matters. If you don’t vote, you are writing someone else’s story. Today voting matters to me because we in the United States of America have been given a gift that many people never get, the right to put our needs on the record…Vote3 min readVote3 min read
