Yesterday was a mild, “feels like spring” day. Enjoying the sunlight, we took the Batavia River Walk for a stroll southward towards the dam by the old Challenge windmill factory. A visit to the dam is a reminder of the immense power of flowing water, moved by gravitational pull toward the Mississippi River ultimately…
Good discussion last night. The topic was, is revolutionary. Revolutions are violent paradigm shifts, alternative ways of perception, and of self understanding. Political revolutions are almost never a “good” thing, as the river of blood that results, provokes a corresponding violent, bloody response. Revolutions of the intellect, on the other hand are desirable, a…
I believe there is no ultimate meaning outside of humankind, no final answer to be discovered which provides a certain anchor, a firm grounding, a robust assurance that “all will be well” and that all human suffering is justified. Life itself is change; life is recognized by our self-awareness and reason in the form…
I mentioned that in graduate school that one requirement for graduation was that I compose a essay addressing the foundational belief commitments that I held at the time. A friend suggested that I post that statement. so I retrieved an age-tinged copy composed on a typewriter in 1983. I confess that I still hold…
Memory is a strange thing. Yesterday I dedicated enough time to sort through the folders of legal, financial and administrative paperwork archived on occasion of the passing of my mom and more recently my sister. There seemed to be a lot of evidence for events that were sudden and still feel less than real,…
I didn’t realize how much I looked forward to Tuesday evenings. As usual I walked into the Chatterbox Cafe in Long Grove and looked for a seat. The place always gets crowed on taco Tuesdays, cheap taco night. When the small tables are taken along two sides of the room, I find a place…
Yesterday was really cold, bone chilling cold. Desiring to move about, we decided to visit the Japanese Tea Garden on the Fabyan estate, a short drive by car from our home. After all the sun was out, the trees, stone lantern, and moon bridge would be spectacular with a cover of snow. Yes, the…
I am always surprised at how quickly things can snap out of control. I remember that summer afternoon. The image remains; seated in the warm sun, basking in the hospitality of the backyard of two friends. Jim was a traveling salesperson. He traveled from North Carolina to the Midwest, peddling sets of wooden-handled screw…
I received a link to a New Yorker article from a friend. The link lead to a seventeen page detailed exploration of the career and the present work of Attorney General William Barr. The piece was entitled, Trump’s Sword and Shield by David Rohde. Simultaneously drawn and repelled by the prospect of reading the…
Loneliness comes over me this morning. Is loneliness the default condition of homo sapiens? We are social beings because our physical survival is dependent upon others. Others have written since Homer that we have “being,” solidity as selves in and through the regard of others. What do others say of us, say about us? …
