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Professional Wednesday: Why Fantasy, Why Magic?
My oldest brother, Bill, who we lost several years ago, was an avid reader. He loved books of all sorts. Every year, he made a list of the National Book Award nominees — finalists and books on the long...
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Monday Musings: Baseball, Opening Day, and Childhood Dreams
Baseball season opens this week. That might not seem like a big deal to you. And in truth, it’s far less of a big deal for me now than it used to be. But once upon a time, Opening Day was Christmas...
View ArticleMonday Musings: Shutting Out the World
I have struggled some in recent weeks to come up with topics for my Monday Musings posts. One reason for this: I don’t want to overload readers with essays about family issues and mental health, though...
View ArticleMonday Musings: Giving Clueless Advice
This past week, I spent a good deal of time going through old magazines and books in my office trying to clear out some of the clutter. (More on that in Wednesday’s post.) For years, I have subscribed...
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Monday Musings: I’m Basically Ted from “How I Met Your Mother”
Are you familiar with the TV show How I Met Your Mother, which ran on CBS from 2005-2014? Ah, good! [Puts out hand.] Nice to meet you. I’m Ted. For those unfamiliar with the show, it was a sitcom that...
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Professional Wednesday: Roger Angell, 1920-2022
If you are not a baseball fan, and not a reader of The New Yorker, chances are the news of Roger Angell’s passing, at the age of 101, had little significance for you. But if you are familiar with his...
View ArticleMonday Musings: Being a Dad in the NRA’s America
This past week, I moved my younger daughter and her boyfriend out to Colorado — the Denver area — where they will be beginning a new chapter in their lives. They have jobs lined up, a very nice...
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Monday Musings: So Many Of Us Just Coping — A #HoldOnToTheLight Post
So, I don’t know where this post is going. I feel it’s important to make that clear up front. And I also want to say that, all things considered, I am doing pretty well right now. Our older daughter’s...
View ArticleMonday Musings: We Are Broken
On Friday, I grieved. Today I’m just ticked off. Every approach to the subject I attempt feels inadequate. Our nation is broken and I despair of seeing it repaired in my lifetime or even that of my...
View ArticleMonday: Dear Friends
Dear Friends, I am sorry to say that I need to pull back from blogging for a time, and will also be limiting my social media presence. Announcements of this sort seldom come from a good place, and mine...
View ArticleMonday Musings: What Matters? Part II — Time
Last week, I began a series of posts addressing the question “What matters?” My point in doing so was to focus on the simple fact that we have finite amounts of time, of energy (physical and...
View ArticleMonday Musings: What Matters? Part III — People and Relationships
We lost my older brother a bit over five years ago, and, as you might expect, in the aftermath of his death, my emotions were roiled and at times conflicted. Among other things, I was angry with him....
View ArticleMonday Musings: What Matters, Part IV — Money
Say you don’t need no diamond rings, And I’ll be satisfied; Tell me that you want the kind of things, That money just can’t buy. — John Lennon and Paul McCartney We were bound to get to money...
View ArticleMonday Musings: What Matters? Part V — Frivolity and the Importance of Things...
For all of January, I have been writing about “what matters” and what doesn’t. I’ve written about this in terms of our personal lives and our professional ones. And I fear I have left readers with the...
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Professional Wednesday (On Thursday): About Deadlines
Yes, this is a Professional Wednesday post, going up on a Thursday morning. And it’s about dealing with deadlines and professional obligations, which should give you some hint as to where this essay is...
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Monday Musings: Two Conversations With My Mom
Yesterday would have been my mother’s birthday — her 101st. I’ve written about her, and my dad, quit a bit in this space, though I haven’t written about my mother in a couple of years. She was smart...
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Monday Musings: The Story of the Storyteller On My Desk
In May of 1994, Nancy and I took our first trip to New Mexico. (We have been back several times since, and we’re always looking forward to our next visit; it is one of our favorite places in the...
View ArticleMonday Musings: Title IX, Soccer, and My Family
This past weekend, Nancy and I went up to Nashville to see the U.S. women’s national soccer team play Japan in a group stage match of the She Believes Cup. The tickets were a gift to us from our...
View ArticleMonday Musings: Facing Down a Big Birthday
I am staring down the barrel of a big birthday. This time next week, I’ll have passed a dubious milestone, and the fact is, right now I’m struggling a bit with the whole getting older thing. Yes, I...
View ArticleMonday Musings: The Things We Say, The Things We Don’t Say
Let’s begin with a couple of quick exercises. First, I want you to pause for a moment and think of someone you’re fond of to whom you have something to say, something you haven’t yet said. Think of...
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