TThe clicking sound on my windshield sounds like a brittle cascade of sleet, but this being June, and this being a bluebird sunny day, I consider other sources. I am driving along the north shore of Lake Michigan just past the Mackinac Bridge. Perhaps sand is pelting my windshield, but I reject this option when…
Read More
Family Christmas Letter, 1963 “[Elizabeth] is in the 6th grade, no special interests, is good fun and pleasant company. Can’t really think of anything special to say about her…” Family Christmas Letter, 1964 “[Elizabeth] is a Beatles fan, likes to work with a microscope and slices up animals – spreading frog and mudpuppy guts…
Read MoreMy husband enjoys weekend pick-up hockey games at the community rink. He often comes home with stories of Joe, who is simultaneously the most enthusiastic player and the most inept player ever to grace the ice. His transition from forward to backward skating, which should be second nature to even a marginal hockey player, is…
Read MoreAs Nick and I entered the restaurant, I knew the food could not possibly meet our expectations. “Pig,” a farm to table restaurant located in the countryside near Bath, England, had been recommended by a local friend when she heard that we would be staying in the Cotswolds. “Best meal of my life,” she said,…
Read MoreThe Debut The girls’ dress code in my 1960s grade school consisted of a skirt or jumper, sturdy Oxford shoes and bobby sox or knee socks in the winter. Stockings were not permitted. Bare legs were allowed, but not a completely covered leg; at least a bare kneecap was required. Perhaps the rationale was that…
Read MoreForty five years ago a friend introduced me to the crime fiction author, Ross MacDonald and his detective Lew Archer, a descendant of the hard-boiled detectives Sam Spade (Dashiell Hammett) and Phillip Marlowe (Raymond Chandler) I devoured the series, reveling not so much in the plot lines – the type of seamy family dysfunction where…
Read More“In the criminal justice system, sexually based offenses are considered especially heinous. In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit. These are their stories.” For over 20 years the word “heinous” has been hammered into the American vocabulary via the…
Read MoreThe visceral up-chuck I experience at the sound of Trump’s voice, or the imitation of his voice, makes me a dangerous driver. Therefore, I generally listen to sports radio in the car, as it is reliably a no-Trump station. As we headed into the pandemic shutdowns., I wondered how sports talk shows would fill the vast…
Read More1. Think Before You Stink —- 6th grade teacher The devastating consequences of this grade school adage only became apparent in my professional life. I was working against a deadline for an article on PET scans, a new and controversial medical technology at the time. I wanted to get reaction comments from the PET Society…
Read MoreThe corona pandemic has birthed an outpouring of creative humor, from elaborate song parodies to simple one liners. I have transmitted the following with great success, from appreciative smiles to outright guffaws. “Did you hear, they have found a way to turn cauliflower into toilet paper.” What is it about this one line that finds…
Read More