A few thoughts on Stoicism…. I found James Stockdale’s story a motherlode of lessons — if one is ready to consider and reflect. Stockdale’s foray into politics as Ross Perot’s running mate was fated to fail it seems to me. Success in politics demands that one be a shape-shifter, or worse. One thing that…
Yesterday I planted a Japanese Maple. Highly motivated to find the right tree I traveled for an hour in afternoon traffic, north to Countryside Nursery in Crystal Lake. They had a variety called Crimson Queen, for which I happily paid the purchase price. I transported the small tree home, another hour of stop and…
Yesterday, late afternoon at the Long Grove Coffee Shop I was discussing photography with Bonnie who works as barista at the shop. We both have interest in shooting photos and agreed that it was pleasant to converse with others about the topic. Bonnie drew my attention to the conditions of late afternoon light outside,…
Do you remember your first taste of toasted marshmallow? Was not that a divine sensation? The taste of honeyed sweetness, when toasted over a fire, presented a range of taste-counterpoint from the light toast to a dark char. A poetic tension of sweet and a hint of bitter, was indescribable, delicious. The work/art of…
…hatred of the idea of the Jews was tied to hatred of the power of intellect, as opposed to military power, hatred of law courts, of negotiations, of cleverness in argument, of learning and of the domination of learning; and in this way anti-Semitism is tied to hatred of justice itself, which must set…
Find it hard to write anything this morning. Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide, a twice-charged seller-of-women-for-sex. The first charge was accommodated by a brief stint under house arrest with daily “release for work at the office” privileges. The second time around, his wealth and favors-owed by his powerful friends showed little promise of another slap…
The days spent in Durham were bitter-sweet. Any persons death is sad, and that of a sister is particularly dark. People count and family members count most of all. I delighted to see the resurgence of my hometown. The medium sized, blue-collar town, integrated into the tobacco farming rural counties when I grew up…
A few days spent in my hometown of Durham involves a visit to the city park alongside the Eno River. The park is on the site of one of the first settlements in the area before Durham could have been called a town. Before railroads, grist mills along the river were places of gathering…
Fun I love, but too much fun is of all things the most loathsome. Mirth is better than fun, and happiness is better than mirth. I feel that a man may be happy in this world. and I know that this world is a world of imagination and vision. I see everything that I…
My sister, after suffering beyond words, from schizophrenia, and conditions of day to day life bereft of family, — passed on Saturday July 27. The meaning of a life cannot be positively expressed, but the absence is felt, much as the ruin of a edifice can be felt. I miss her and will always…
