Category Archives: Uncategorized

Along with much of the rest of the country, and perhaps the world, I have been thinking this past week about the apparently senseless stabbings at Franklin High School in Murrysville, Pennsylvania. This outburst of mindless violence is certainly nothing … Continue reading →

I suppose this may turn into some kind of confession, but it would be seen as such only by people who see me on the train, walking down the sidewalk or in a grocery store. Strangers might not guess that … Continue reading →

As someone who taught high school English for thirty-five years, I know the value of reading and the joy or sorrow it can bring to students of all reading levels. My first motivation to read came from my parents. When … Continue reading →

It’s 8:30 Sunday morning in Pompano Beach, where I spend winters now. Clocks across the country moved ahead an hour, but my mind tells me it’s really only 7:30, insofar as that makes any difference. I don’t feel cheated in … Continue reading →

The music we listen to often provides signposts for the events of our lives. A song or other piece of music can be a sensory trigger catapulting us back to moments we think we’ve forgotten. Marcel Proust believed, and demonstrated in … Continue reading →

A couple of weeks, ago I received a notice from the IRS concerning a mortgage deduction I took in 2011. The letter indicated that I would owe an additional $1022 (and any further interest) unless I produced documentation showing that … Continue reading →

I love Southern Florida for many reasons, including the balmy winter weather, the beauty of flora and fauna, the ocean breezes, the friendly people, and the absence of state income tax. Among those reasons, driving will not be found. Native drivers here … Continue reading →

This morning I’ve been watching some of the personal videos posted on FaceBook. I’ve looked at twenty of them so far and have been surprised at how deeply moved I have been at every one of them. To see someone’s … Continue reading →

Downton Abbey…Episode for February 2 For me the most interesting conflict of the evening was between the Dowager Countess and Isobel Crawley. They are on such opposite poles of values in society, the dowager being so spoiled and used to … Continue reading →

We live in a world that is fragmented by special interest groups represented by social classes, political parties, religious sects, race, education, gender, age, income, even language. Divisions between groups and factions range from subtle to severe, almost to the … Continue reading →