The day started as it always does … bumping around in the dark. The coffee was still too hot to sip … and there was this … this mother’s growl in the dark … “… this morning … find multiple parents complaining about excessive Kindergarten homework 6-7 handouts, writing assignments … and 1.5 hours of … Continue reading Under Pressure
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Tipping Point
So ... when does the tipping-point tip? Probably when our heads explode. The Grievance Game has some new players … Oberlin College undergraduates … who cough up 70k per year to bitch with the best. These privileged brats have certainly purchased the privilege to feel unprivileged to live in overly-privileged America. “When our field hockey … Continue reading Tipping Point
Father and Son
“There shall always be love." That buzzed my ear one sticky, summer night … after my father ... the college professor ... got a little rickety with some other dads ... down on the beach. A little too wobbly … after over-sipping. He wasn’t much of a beach guy … or a water guy. He'd … Continue reading Father and Son
Maybe, Maybe Not Age
A recent Boston Magazine article belched … “In Praise of Mediocre Kids” … and asked … “Why can’t we just accept that?”… Which calls to mind two odd sorts … English humorist Maximillian Beerbohm … and English misuser Yogi Berra. Sir Beerbohm said … “Only mediocrity can be trusted to be always at its best.” … Continue reading Maybe, Maybe Not Age
Trying Times – Sunshine Patriot
“THESE are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” ~Thomas Paine~ This is America’s carnival moment. Its freak time. And the moment to … Continue reading Trying Times – Sunshine Patriot
Kiss The Fish
You gotta kiss the fish. That’s how summer starts. With a kiss. That was the ritual of the boy and his grandfather. And then it was on to ponds and lakes and streams. A few hours here ... and a few more there. Almost always spur of the moment, grab-the-poles, hit-the-road decisions. Wedged in between … Continue reading Kiss The Fish
Silver Brushes and White Hair
I’ve out-lived my father. Isn’t that the saddest achievement? My sons are wonderful men. But they missed out on him … and he missed out on them. Bad timing. He was gone before they had a memory-card. I know something for certain. A strange something. Had he lived for a few more decades … … Continue reading Silver Brushes and White Hair
Going once … Going twice … Gone! … to the highest bidder!
Going once … Going twice … Gone! … to the highest bidder! Fess up! Who’s really surprised that schools are the next gold-mine for drooling hedge-funders and tech magnates? Big Banks, Big Pharma, and Big Oil … move on over. It’s Big Education’s turn. The lure of charter schools … with the ever-repeating money stream … Continue reading Going once … Going twice … Gone! … to the highest bidder!
Slippery Slope
This is the “slippery slope” everyone’s talkin’ about. Instead of the fun game of “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” … some folks are playing the very unfunny ... and dangerous ... game of “Six Degrees of American Slavery” … or “Six Degrees of Adolph Hitler” … or “Six Degrees of Harry Truman" ... or "Six … Continue reading Slippery Slope
Joan of Arc…the hottest girl of the Middle Ages
Everyone said it was gonna get nuts. They weren't kiddin'. Guess who's feelin' the heat ... so to speak? Joan of Arc ... the hottest girl of the Middle Ages. The teen queen of the Siege of Orléans. That's in France. Which is not in America. Where we live. "Surely, people realize she's not related … Continue reading Joan of Arc…the hottest girl of the Middle Ages
Missives Worth Reading 