Thursday, the day after the first debate in Miami for the Democratic candidates for the Presidency. I did not watch. At this stage it’s a beauty contest. The real game will be between the last man or woman standing and the current occupant of the White House. Whenever I pause to think about the…
The following is a guest post. Several posts have been in response to a consideration of Paschal’s Wager. Here is another: Wager Summer’s end, autumn waits, patient, since the world turns inevitably, even though we claim exemption from nature’s wheel, inventing eternities and peopling them with souls. Sunflowers bloom wild and silent by…
I think that I was at the Norwalk, Ohio dragstrip when I saw the Blind Faith funny car. A funny car dragster is a hand built race car, with a fiber glass body loosely mimicking one of Detroit’s products, a Camaro or a Mustang. The entire body tilts up and away from the motor…
Whether or not you believe in God, you should live your life with love, kindness, compassion, mercy and tolerance while trying to make the world a better place. If there is no God, you have lost nothing and will have made a positive impact on those around you. If there is a benevolent God…
Just past 9AM, at this moment the tables are empty within Starbucks, except for myself. Kevin, a contractor, stands behind me adding sugar and creme to his tall cup of coffee. Momentarily he will depart. He always does. I am surprised that he appears to be working on a Sunday. I read these lines…
The contention with the big bank came to conclusion. We received the “clear to close” word on our mortgage approval, and soon afterward a pdf of the loan agreement was received via email. The mortgage document was signed electronically and returned. An hour or so later a closing disclosure document was received and reviewed….
Friday and the majority of patrons walking up to the counter at Starbucks have a small screen in their hands. They momentarily look up to engage the barista to place their order. It’s a sunny day, and I wonder if anyone pays attention. The warm sun, the last day of spring, the effulgence of…
My day was upended by a conference call last night. My local bank branch manager, patched me in with a supervisor from his bank’s mortgage processing department. Three of us discussed, briefly and quite intensely the status of a certain mortgage application. You probably know from experience that one of the critical dimensions of…
Buying or selling a home is a high stakes proposition. A family needs a dwelling suitable to their lifestyle as well as a neighborhood amenable to all family members. Realtors, bankers, and several lawyers — are involved in the conversation. A home sale cuts wide into the successive rings of society: familial, legal, financial,…
For a few minutes Starbucks is unaccountably quiet. The space is usually a mad-house. The capuccino machine roars, a cacophony of voices rise in the high ceiling room, and sometimes a canine barks from a vehicle into the drive up window. I am acquainted with the staff. They work very hard, professionally competent,…
